Chapter 809
On May 15th in the afternoon, law enforcement officials cracked down on a significant child trafficking operation that shocked the nation as soon as the news broke.
The case involved several criminals and numerous innocent children victimized by this heinous crime. The youngest was only a month old, and the oldest around twelve or thirteen, with the majority being around four or five years old. Some of these little angels were tragically lost forever, others left with disabilities, and some even with missing organs p>
Each child represented a devastated family. The heart-wrenching scenes of parents clutching their children, tears streaming down their faces, broke everyone’s heart.
Just moments before, online communities were abuzz with complaints about retirement age; but as soon as the police bulletin was released, the public’s attention swiftly shifted. The traffickers were vilified online, with many expressing a fervent wish to take justice into their own hands.
Some extreme voices even called into question the effectiveness of the law, believing such criminals deserved death, prompting a broader call for legal reforms to ensure the harshest penalties for child traffickers.
Elysia, scrolling through the news, felt a heavy weight upon her. Her brows furrowed, her breathing shallow, her body trembling with emotion. As a mother, she found these stories unbearable, feeling a deep empathy for the parents and an overwhelming sorrow for the children.
“They’re so young, they should be growing up happy, not facing these demons!” she lamented.
Tarquin, sitting next to her on the couch, tried to offer some solace, “The law doesn’t hand out the death penalty to traffickers not to give them a chance but to save the children. If traffickers knew they’d face the death penalty regardless, it might lead to more harm than good p>
Elysia replied, “I know, and I respect the law, but it’s just so infuriating! These children… they’ve lost the light in their eyes. Who knows what horrors they’ve faced to end up like this? And who knows how much love and time it will take to heal their wounds p>
“Those who prey on women and children won’t have an easy time in prison either. There’s a sort of code among inmates, and traffickers are at the bottom of the pecking order. As for the children, all we can do is hope they recover slowly,” Tarquin consoled.
Elysia, fighting back tears, leaned into him, “We have to make sure nothing like this ever happens to Elliot and our kids. We have to protect them at all costs p>
Tarquin wasn’t worried about their children’s safety, given the measures he’d taken, but he understood Elysia’s fear. Yet, he couldn’t help but worry about how she would react if she knew they had a daughter out there somewhere.
Elysia’s sensitivity, especially when it came to children, was something he deeply cherished, yet it also made him anxious. Holding her close, he dared not bring up any topic that could upset her further.
Meanwhile, in Future Community, Keith sat on his couch, scrolling through the news with a hollow look in his eyes, the life seemingly drained from him.
These past days, he had been cooped up at home, nursing not just physical wounds but emotional ones too. His cherished cabin, a symbol of so many precious memories, had been reduced to ashes by Tarquin, a cruel reminder of how well Tarquin knew where to strike to hurt him the most.