After breakfast, Dallas and the others had to go on patrol, leaving Averi and Karter to stay at the peacekeeping forces' camp. With unclear identities, it was inconvenient for them to wander around, so they stayed in Jordan's ward. Jordan hugged Averi and cried again, attracting the attention of the military doctor.
The military doctor, Carol Wiggins, a red-haired middle-aged woman, upon seeing her, said apologetically, "We were attacked last month and just relocated here. The camp is still under construction, so beds are a bit scarce." I can try to apply for you to stay here with Jordan. As for Karter… I'm sorry, he needs to go to the refugee camp where people will help him contact the embassy."
Karter looked at Averi nervously, silently praying that she wouldn't abandon him.
Averi smiled, "Thank you, Carol. We're doing well on the other side, and Dallas has already contacted the embassy for us."
Carol showed a hesitant expression, asking with her eyes if she was sure.
Averi knew she meant well and smiled again.
Karter silently struggled with himself for a long time, finally made up his mind, and approached Averi, saying, "Ms. Forbes, why don't you stay here with Jordan? I'll go to the refugee camp and wait for news. It's all men over there, which is indeed a bit inconvenient."
This morning during breakfast, he overheard two mercenaries making lewd jokes, using such crude language that he was embarrassed to repeat it.
Although it was a joke, it still felt inappropriate.
Karter had shown himself to be quite timid throughout their escape. Hearing what he said now, Averi was surprised and touched, and comforted him in return, "There won't be any problems."
Karter wondered how she could be so certain. Though puzzled, he didn't press further, as he wasn't really keen on going to the refugee camp.
Around six o'clock, everyone gradually returned to camp, and Dallas came to pick up Averi Karter.
The team led by the bald man, who had previously clashed with Dallas, was the last to return. In addition to four burly men in the vehicle, there was also a local girl.
The girl was petite, barely reaching the bald man's shoulder. Her brown eyes were wide with panic, darting up for the briefest moment before quickly dropping back down, too afraid to hold his gaze. After a pause, she would steal another glance, only to lower her eyes again just as swiftly. Upon seeing Averi, a trace of relief appeared on her youthful face.
The bald man and the girl drew the attention of everyone present. Apart from one or two people whistling, the others just watched quietly.
In a rogue-like manner, the bald man said, "Come on, let me introduce you. This is Sariah Hunter. She's my girlfriend for today."
After saying this, he tightly embraced Sariah.
Sariah pulled back her neck slightly, her limbs stiff, not daring to move an inch.
Dallas studied Lulu's face closely, his brow furrowed. "How old is she?" he asked.
"18."
Impossible, Averi thought silently.
Dallas didn't believe it either, and forcefully asked Sariah a question in Niyar. Hearing her native language, Sariah's eyes lit up with joy before shifting to unease. She glanced nervously up at the bald man, hesitated, and finally uttered two indistinct syllables.
Dallas's expression turned cold, "She says she's 15."
"How should I know? Her parents said she's 18. Whether she's 18 or 15, according to Lyria law, girls can marry at 13."
Dallas said, "You're not from here. None of us are."
The bald man snapped impatiently, "You're giving me grief over a woman? What, it's fine for you to bring a girl back but not for me? Last night, I saw you with my own eyes going into that foreign girl's room. Don't try telling me you two were just talking under the covers."
"Sariah was put up for sale on the street by her parents. If she weren't a virgin, I would have found her dirty. I gave her parents 200 dollars. Do you know what happened? They were almost in tears with joy. Even if I killed little Sariah here today, her family wouldn't say a word, maybe even beg me to buy their younger daughter too."
He kissed Sariah's cheek fiercely and pinched her chin, asking, "Baby, are you doing this willingly?"
Sariah's face was distorted by the pinch, tears welling up in her eyes. She could only understand a little English and didn't know what was happening.
"Speak!" the bald man shouted sternly.
Sariah trembled more violently, forcing a smile and softly repeating "yes" three times.
It doesn't matter if she doesn't understand, as long as she says "yes."
"Did you hear that?" The bald man, satisfied, looked down his nose at everyone, wrapping his arm around Sariah and walking past Dallas. He hadn't taken two steps when Dallas blocked him again.
"Are you done yet? Didn't you hear what she just said?"
Dallas refused to argue with him, his tone firm. "Let her go. Now. That's an order." Without waiting for a response, he turned and called out, "David, you're in charge of taking Sariah back."
"'That's an order' was like a spark in a powder keg, instantly igniting the bald man's long-held resentment. He jabbed two fingers into Dallas's shoulder and snapped, "You're a mercenary now, damn it. Can you stop shoving that honor and discipline crap down our throats?"
"I don't care if you want to die, but don't drag all of us down with you. You demand we don't shoot recklessly, but will those rebels show us any mercy? When they hear something, they just shoot, no matter who you are! Alright, you're the captain, and on the battlefield, I have to follow your orders. But this is my personal time. Are you seriously telling me I can't even sleep with a prostitute? Even the peacekeeping units do it, and no one bats an eye! We live every day with our lives on the line, not knowing if we'll survive to see tomorrow. And you're saying we can't even have that one last comfort before we go?"
"Dallas, I'm telling you, we're here to make money, not to be moral role models!""
The tension between Dallas and the bald man created an uneasy void around them, as if an invisible boundary had been drawn. While the others disapproved of the bald man's choice to engage with an underage girl, they also harbored their own grievances about Dallas's strict adherence to discipline. As a result, not one of them stepped in to offer support or defuse the situation.
Dallas stood still, his back straight, his eyes abnormally cold and sharp, "Jackson, if you have issues, you can complain to the company, but right now, I'm the captain, and here, we follow my rules."
He spoke each word clearly, "I'm ordering you to let her go."
The veins on the bald man's forehead throbbed as he spat on the ground, muttering a low "Fuck" under his breath. Through clenched teeth, he said, "You know why the company made you captain? Because your casualty rate is low, making it easier for them to report back to the government. Whether it's a general, a civilian, or a terrorist, killing them means mountains of paperwork. But when we die, no one has to answer for it. You're exactly the kind of obedient tool they love. You stupid bastard."
As he spoke, one hand moved towards his waist.
Suddenly, Averi moved, reaching out to pull the gun from the belt of the soldier next to her. Everything happened too quickly, and no one had thought to guard against her, so she succeeded.
With the gun pointed at the bald man, Averi issued a low warning, "Don't even think about it."
Dallas's mind exploded with a sudden wave of unprecedented fear.
