A Vengeful Ex-Wife
Chapter 286 Shield The Criminal

Based on what Alina said, it was true that Maria had indeed gone off the grid for a few months, so Colby took her word for it.

However, he pretended to hear this for the first time. "Really? Why did Mr. Xi get you out of jail?"

"Why else?" Maria sprinkled her tone with hints of bitterness. "Men can't resist a beaut. He did all he could to get me out, only to keep me hostage in his own house. I was only able to go out today because his guard was down. Mr. Zheng, you need to rescue me from him!"

"Well..." Colby hesitated. "You're his ex-wife, after all. I wouldn't really call this my area of expertise."

"Mr. Zheng, I tried to contact you before, but the signal in the manor was cut off. I couldn't contact anyone. Mr. Zheng, how are you doing recently? When are you free? I'll come to you."

The woman's voice sounded genuine over the call.

"Did Mr. Xi let you out now?"

"Yes, Mr. Zheng. Oh my God, James Xi is just a creep. I don't want to be with him any longer."

"Okay, I'll make some arrangements."

"Thank you, Mr. Zheng. My hope's in you!" Maria said, faking a sob.

Sometimes, a woman's tears were as sharp a weapon as a man's gun. Although Colby couldn't see Maria's crying face, his heart was moved. "I'll do what I can as soon as possible." "Okay. Thanks, Mr. Zheng."

After the call, Maria idly looked at the scenery framed by the cafe windows. She wondered if she was the reason why Joslyn's stepmother, Colby's current wife, hadn't come back from abroad.

That night, Maria went back to James' grandparents' house as usual, but was greeted by an unexpected sight.

"Cooper? Gosh!" In the living room, a man in black and white street wear was cradling a baby in his arms.

Cooper turned around to face her, all smiles. "Maria, my dear sister-in-law!"

"When did you come back? Why didn't you call me in advance?" She was thoroughly surprised. No one had told her Cooper would be here.

"I missed the little guy, I went straight here from the airport." He jutted his chin towards a corner of the living room.

Maria followed his gaze and saw a pile of luggage neatly stacked.

Before she could respond, her phone rang. Taking out her phone, she didn't recognize the caller ID flashing on its screen. Frowning, she swiped to answer and heard an anxious voice on the other end of the line. "Hello, is this Maria? This is Sandra's mother."

"Hello, Auntie. Yes, it's me."

"Is Sandra with you now?"

"No, we were together yesterday afternoon but we didn't see each other today. What happened?"

Sandra's mother sounded completely flustered. After all, Sandra had been kidnapped by human traffickers before. "Her phone has been unreachable since this evening. She hasn't been to school, and I've already checked the places she frequents. Moreover, her classmates haven't seen her. I'm just so worried that..." '...Sandra's been kidnapped again.' She didn't finish.

"Auntie, please don't panic. I'll try to replace her and get back to you ASAP."

"Okay. Thank you, Maria."

After hanging up, Maria tried ringing Sandra's phone, but sure enough, the call didn't connect. Cooper, seeing the worry lines on her face, asked with concern, "Maria, what happened?"

Without glancing up from her phone, she answered, "Well, one of my friends is missing."

Just as she was about to instruct her men to look for Sandra, her mother called again. "Maria, I asked around. I just heard that Sandra was last with a friend, when suddenly, a woman approached them saying your driver was picking her up. Her friend thought Sandra had some plans with you or something, so she left without suspecting anything."

Maria frowned. She didn't send any driver for Sandra.

So, who on earth went to replace Sandra, claiming it was her?

Just then, her phone pinged. An unknown number sent her photos.

Glancing at the photos, Maria clenched her fist and gritted her teeth, seething with rage.

In a dimly lit, dark space, Sandra lay on the concrete floor, beaten black and blue. Blood was trickling down the side of her mouth, and her eyes spoke of excruciating pain.

The events of the previous day suddenly flashed in

Maria's mind. Was this Alina's or Joslyn's doing?

Narrowing her eyes, she made some calls to replace out the whereabouts of these two women.

"Is there any way I can help?" Cooper asked, his forehead creased with worry. He could see that she was very anxious.

"Maybe. Wait a moment." Maria proceeded to make several more calls without pausing in between.

Twenty minutes later, Cooper carefully handed the baby over to Tami, and he drove off with Maria in the lead.

Maria raced to the Leopard Club, followed by Cooper's car.

A few minutes later, the door to a VIP room of the Leopard Club was kicked open.

Bang!" The several people inside all whipped their heads towards the door in shock.

A domineering woman stood at the doorway.

"Maria Song? What is she doing here?"

"I don't know. Is she here for Mr. Xi?"

Maria flicked on the lights. With a gaze as cold as ice, she searched the faces in the room that was suddenly as bright as day. She identified James, Ethan, Alina, Joslyn, and some other people she knew, but there were other faces she didn't recognize. Ethan whispered to the man beside him, "Your woman looks very angry. Is she here for you?"

James didn't say anything. Obviously, Maria didn't come for him.

The woman's faze was fixed on the two women next to

him.

In one swift motion, Maria pounced on Joslyn and pressed a sharp dagger against her neck. Joslyn screamed, while everyone else in the room was stunned. Alina quickly moved aside, shying away from Maria's dagger.

"Where is she?" Maria hissed.

All the color drained from Joslyn's face. "If you dare touch me, I'll have my father kill you." Feeling a sharp pain, she cried out. A red sliver of blood appeared on her delicate neck. Maria paid her threat no heed. "If you don't tell me now, I will kill you and your grandfather!"

Ethan stood up calmly and asked, "Maria, just wait a second. What happened?"

"She asked someone to take my friend away," Maria explained briefly.

"Do you have any evidence it was me?" Joslyn tried to sound brave, but she was trembling all over. She anxiously eyed the phone on the table, wishing she could call her bodyguards. Maria pressed the dagger against Joslyn's neck with one hand, and with the other, she took Joslyn's hand and caressed it gently.

"It will be deemed minor injury if I chop off your little finger, but it'll be serious injury if you lose your thumb. Which one do you think I should pick?"

Joslyn's eyes widened in fear. "Alina, please help me!"

Alina glanced around helplessly, until her gaze landed on James. "James, get Maria to calm down! She's cut Joslyn's neck!"

With all eyes on him, James stood up and looked down at her coldly. "Are you asking me to shield a criminal?"

The man rejected her in front of all these people, embarrassing her profusely.

In a low voice, she apologized to her friend. "I'm sorry, Joslyn. It's not that I don't want to help you. You saw what just happened."