Chapter 6
Maggie sprang up from the ground and lunged at Sarah, reaching out to grab her. "You cold-hearted bitch! My son was nothing but good to you, and you tossed him aside? You're not leaving until you give me an answer!"
Sarah sidestepped, and Maggie missed, nearly taking a nosedive right into the dirt.
"An answer?" Sarah laughed. "Alright, I'll spell it out for you, right here with everyone watching."
She set her grocery basket down and cleared her throat. "Everyone, let me tell you something. I know exactly what kind of people this family is. Three days ago, this lady here brought her two sons to my house to talk about marriage.
"The moment she walked in, she demanded a three-bedroom apartment and a car worth 70 thousand dollars, and both had to be in her son's name."
There was an uproar in the crowd.
"What? The bride's family is supposed to pay out of pocket just to marry off their daughter?"
"Isn't that just a total scam?"
Maggie shot back, "Are you kidding me? That's the wedding gift. It's just how we do things back home!"
"Where's 'back home' then?" Sarah shot back, staring her down. "Mars? Or the sewer?"
The crowd burst out laughing.
Maggie's face flushed bright red, and she went for Sarah again, wild with anger.
Sarah pointed at her. "Don't even think about it. I'm filming everything. If you lay a finger on me, I'll call the police right away."
Maggie froze.
Callum rushed forward. "Call the cops then! You broke off the engagement, and you still got the nerve to call the cops?"
"Broke off the engagement?" Sarah shot him a look. "Who exactly was I engaged to? Your brother? Or you?"
Callum was stunned.
Sarah fired off the questions. "Did Tommy ever propose to me? Did your family ever bring over a bride price? Did our families ever sit down together for an engagement dinner?
"None of that ever happened, so what engagement are you even talking about?"
Callum was left speechless.
Maggie started wailing again. "You two were together for two years! So my son's youth means nothing to you? All those years just thrown away?"
Sarah couldn't help but laugh.
"Maggie, so my daughter is not worth anything to you?" Jasmine pushed her way through the crowd, standing protectively in front of Sarah. "Your son spends two years dating, and you want compensation, but my girl's two years are meaningless?"
Maggie was totally stumped, unable to come up with a comeback.
Sarah grabbed her mom and faced the crowd. "Everyone, help me out here. I dated Tommy for two years, and what did he ever get me? Not once did he buy me clothes!
"On my birthday, he gave me 20 dollars, then turned around and asked me for 70 dollars because he said he was broke and needed food money.
"The first time he came to my house, he showed up empty-handed. Only after my mom said he was being rude did he finally bring cheap fruit on sale and milk about to go bad. And then he had the nerve to ask me to reimburse him!"
Someone in the crowd shouted, "What a cheapskate!"
"Why keep a guy like that around?"
Maggie shot back, "That's called being thrifty! Unlike you women, always spending like there's no tomorrow!"
Sarah gave her a sarcastic look. "Good with money? Maggie, your son earns a thousand dollars a month, blows 500 on cigarettes, and another 300 on dinners for friends. That's your idea of being smart with money?"
Everyone cracked up again.
Maggie was losing face and started throwing a fit. "I don't care. You two dated for two years. Those two years can't just be for nothing! Pay up!"
"How much do you want me to pay?" Sarah asked.
"30,000 dollars!" Maggie held up two fingers, then realized her mistake and switched to three. "30,000 dollars! Not a cent less!"
Sarah nodded and pulled out her phone.
Maggie's eyes lit up. "Really? You're going to pay?"
"Like hell I will," Sarah scoffed, pulling out her phone and dialing. "Hello? There's a group causing a disturbance at the neighborhood gate, trying to extort money from me. Can you send someone over?"
Maggie's face fell. "You're calling the cops?"
"Why not?" Sarah said, waving her phone. "Since you won't listen to me, maybe the police can knock some sense into you."
Maggie panicked and reached out, trying to grab the phone.
Sarah quickly dodged back, and Maggie missed, slamming right into Callum.
Callum grabbed his mom, still spitting curses. "Sarah, you low-life! You'd better watch out!"
"Watch out?" Sarah scoffed. "Let's see who's really in the right when the cops get here."
The crowd stepped aside, clearing a path for Sarah.
Two cops walked over. "Who called the police?"
"Me." Sarah stepped forward. "These two are making a fuss at the neighborhood gate, trying to extort money from me, and they even tried to grab my phone."
The cops turned to Maggie and Callum.
Maggie's expression changed instantly, forcing a smile. "Officer, it's a misunderstanding! We're here to get our money back. She owes us!"
"She owes you money?" The cop turned to Sarah.
Sarah stayed cool. "Officer, I dated her son, but we broke up. When her family came over to talk about marriage, they demanded a house and a car in his name.
"I turned them down. Now they're here trying to get 30 thousand dollars from me as a breakup fee."
The cops immediately understood what was going on. This kind of drama was nothing new to them.
"Where's the IOU?" the cop asked Maggie.
Maggie was stunned. "What IOU?"