Chapter 3

The thumping sound of helicopter blades cut through the storm' s roar. Three sleek, black helicopters descended, landing in a nearby flooded parking lot, their rotors whipping the rain into a frenzy.

Staff in bright yellow raincoats jumped out, setting up a quick checkpoint. "Registered students, line up here with your exam permits!"

Emily, her face a mixture of awe and relief, gave my hand a squeeze and joined the line.

As the students began to board, Susan grabbed Mark' s hand and tried to push to the front.

"Excuse me, we' re next!" she declared.

A stern-looking staff member blocked their path, holding up a clipboard. "Name?"

"Mark Johnson. He' s with the group."

The staffer scanned his list. "I don' t have a Mark Johnson on the student roster. Is he a private applicant?"

"Yes, but he' s here for the exam! It' s an emergency!" Susan insisted.

"I understand, ma' am," the man said, his patience thin. "As a private applicant, he can board the last helicopter, but he will need to pay the emergency transport fee."

"Fine, how much is it?" Susan asked impatiently.

The staffer looked down at his tablet. "For a last-minute emergency charter in these weather conditions, the fee is two hundred thousand dollars."

Susan' s jaw dropped. "Two hundred... what? That' s robbery! Highway robbery!"

She started screaming at the staff, causing a scene. As if on cue, a police car, which I had requested be dispatched for "crowd control," pulled up, its lights flashing. An officer warned Susan to stop obstructing the transport of the students or she' d be arrested.

Mark, his face pale with panic, turned to Susan. "Susan, the card! Give me the debit card! All my savings are in that account. It' s about two hundred thousand!"

Susan' s face went from indignant to flustered. She hesitated, her eyes darting around.

"The card... well, I..." she stammered. "I used it."

"You what?" Mark' s voice was a choked whisper.

"I bought you something!" she said, trying to sound triumphant. "For luck! I went to a master, a real master, and he sold me this lucky jade pendant! It guarantees your success!" She pulled a gaudy green pendant from her pocket. "It cost three hundred thousand. I put in a hundred thousand of my own money for you!"

Mark stared at the pendant, then at her, his expression turning from disbelief to pure fury.

Just then, a man who lived down the street from us, a jeweler I' d spoken to earlier, walked by under an umbrella. He glanced at the pendant in Susan' s hand.

"Hey, that looks like one of those fakes from the night market," he said casually. "Made of dyed quartz. Worth maybe two hundred bucks, if you' re lucky."

The world seemed to stop.

"You... you idiot!" Mark screamed, his voice cracking. He lunged at Susan, grabbing her by the collar of her soaked blouse. "You spent my life savings on a piece of glass?"

The police officer moved in quickly, pulling them apart.

"Get him on that helicopter!" Susan shrieked, now completely hysterical. She turned to me, her eyes wild with desperation. "David! Please! Loan me the money! For Emily' s sake, think of what this will do to her if Mark can' t take his test!"

I looked at her, my face a mask of cold indifference.

"I can' t just give you two hundred thousand dollars, Susan."

I reached into my briefcase and pulled out a folder. Inside was a loan agreement I had my lawyer draft this morning.

"But I can offer you a loan," I said, my voice flat. I handed it to her. "The terms are all there. Twenty percent interest, compounded daily. The full amount is due in thirty days. Your house as collateral."

Susan stared at the paper as if it were written in a foreign language. The police officer was tapping his foot impatiently. The last helicopter was preparing to lift off.

"You have to decide now," I said.

With a strangled sob, she snatched the pen from my hand and signed the agreement. I transferred the money. Mark, seething but desperate, paid the fee and scrambled onto the helicopter just as the doors were closing.

I watched Emily' s helicopter lift into the grey sky, a tiny speck of hope.

Then, a new announcement crackled over the police officer' s radio.

"All units, update. The floodwaters at the Route 7 bridge have receded faster than expected. We' re reopening the road to limited traffic. Ground transport can now proceed."

Susan, standing alone in the rain, heard it. Her face crumpled. She had just signed away her future for a twenty-minute helicopter ride that was no longer necessary.

A cold, satisfied smile touched my lips. This was only the beginning.