Sister Mei was furious.
"You went to meet a stranger alone? After everything I've told you about safety?"
"I wasn't alone! Xiao Ling was with me!"
"Two women against a man with resources and no conscience. Great odds." Sister Mei paced her office. "He knows where you are now. Knows your routine. This changes everything."
"So what do I do?"
"You move. Different shelter, different city. We have a network."
"I just got settled here! I have a job, I have Dr. Wang—"
"And you'll have them again somewhere else. Wanyin, your life is more important than convenience."
But the thought of starting over again, of leaving the fragile stability she'd built, made Wanyin want to cry.
Xiao Ling spoke up from the corner where she'd been sitting quietly. "What if she doesn't run? What if we make it harder for him instead?"
"Explain," Sister Mei said.
"He wants her isolated and scared. Running plays into that. But if she stays, if she builds a support network here, if she documents everything and builds a legal case, she has power."
"Or she ends up dead."
"She could end up dead running too. At least here she has us."
Sister Mei looked at Wanyin. "What do you want to do?"
Wanyin thought about the temple. About the way Shen Jingwei had looked at her like she was a possession that had wandered off. Like it was only a matter of time before he reclaimed her.
Running would just prove him right. Prove she was weak, incapable, needed him.
"I want to stay. I want to fight."
"Then we fight smart." Sister Mei pulled out a folder. "I've been compiling information on him. His business, his connections, his wife. We need more though. We need evidence of the abuse, evidence that he's stalking you. We need to build a case that will hold up in court."
"What kind of evidence?"
"Photos, recordings, witnesses. Every time he contacts you, we document it. Every time he shows up, we report it. We create a paper trail so thick that even his money can't bury it."
Over the next week, Wanyin became hypervigilant about documentation.
The man in the dark jacket appeared three more times. Each time, she photographed him, noted the date and time, recorded her location.
Shen Jingwei sent flowers to the bookstore. Mrs. Zhou refused them but Wanyin photographed the card before throwing them away.
"I know you're angry. But you'll forgive me eventually. You always do. -J"
J for Jingwei.
He'd signed like they were still together. Like this was just a lovers' spat.
"This is good," Sister Mei said when Wanyin showed her. "This is harassment in writing. Keep everything."
Chen Li called one night, her first contact in weeks.
"I heard he found you."
"How did you hear?"
"I have sources. Wanyin, are you safe?"
"For now. I'm building a case against him. Documentation, evidence."
"Good. But be careful. Men like him don't respond well to being challenged legally. They escalate."
"What am I supposed to do then? Just keep running forever?"
"No. You stand your ground. But you be ready for when he pushes back."
That night, Wanyin couldn't sleep again. She kept thinking about escalation. About what that might look like.
Around 2am, her phone buzzed. Unknown number.
"Stop making this difficult. Come home and I'll forget everything. Keep fighting and you'll regret it."
She screenshot it, sent it to Sister Mei, then blocked the number.
Ten minutes later, another text from a different number.
"You think blocking me will work? I can buy a thousand phones. I can find you anywhere. There's nowhere you can hide."
Screenshot. Send. Block.
It happened four more times before dawn.
By morning, she had six screenshots and six blocked numbers. Her hands were shaking from adrenaline and lack of sleep.
"He's losing control," Dr. Wang said during their emergency session. "The texts are getting more desperate."
"Is that good or bad?"
"Both. It means your strategy is working, he's feeling cornered. But cornered people are dangerous."
"So what do I do?"
"You keep building your case. You keep yourself safe. And you prepare for him to do something drastic."
"Or she ends up dead."
"She could end up dead running too. At least here she has us."
Sister Mei looked at Wanyin. "What do you want to do?"
Wanyin thought about the temple. About the way Shen Jingwei had looked at her like she was a possession that had wandered off. Like it was only a matter of time before he reclaimed her.
Running would just prove him right. Prove she was weak, incapable, needed him.
"I want to stay. I want to fight."
"Then we fight smart." Sister Mei pulled out a folder. "I've been compiling information on him. His business, his connections, his wife. We need more though. We need evidence of the abuse, evidence that he's stalking you. We need to build a case that will hold up in court."
"What kind of evidence?"
"Photos, recordings, witnesses. Every time he contacts you, we document it. Every time he shows up, we report it. We create a paper trail so thick that even his money can't bury it."
Over the next week, Wanyin became hypervigilant about documentation.
The man in the dark jacket appeared three more times. Each time, she photographed him, noted the date and time, recorded her location.
Shen Jingwei sent flowers to the bookstore. Mrs. Zhou refused them but Wanyin photographed the card before throwing them away.
"I know you're angry. But you'll forgive me eventually. You always do. -J"
J for Jingwei.
He'd signed like they were still together. Like this was just a lovers' spat.
"This is good," Sister Mei said when Wanyin showed her. "This is harassment in writing. Keep everything."
Chen Li called one night, her first contact in weeks.
"I heard he found you."
"How did you hear?"
"I have sources. Wanyin, are you safe?"
"For now. I'm building a case against him. Documentation, evidence."
"Good. But be careful. Men like him don't respond well to being challenged legally. They escalate."
"What am I supposed to do then? Just keep running forever?"
"No. You stand your ground. But you be ready for when he pushes back."
That night, Wanyin couldn't sleep again. She kept thinking about escalation. About what that might look like.
Around 2am, her phone buzzed. Unknown number.
"Stop making this difficult. Come home and I'll forget everything. Keep fighting and you'll regret it."
She screenshot it, sent it to Sister Mei, then blocked the number.
Ten minutes later, another text from a different number.
"You think blocking me will work? I can buy a thousand phones. I can find you anywhere. There's nowhere you can hide."
Screenshot. Send. Block.
It happened four more times before dawn.
By morning, she had six screenshots and six blocked numbers. Her hands were shaking from adrenaline and lack of sleep.
"He's losing control," Dr. Wang said during their emergency session. "The texts are getting more desperate."
"Is that good or bad?"
"Both. It means your strategy is working, he's feeling cornered. But cornered people are dangerous."
"So what do I do?"
"You keep building your case. You keep yourself safe. And you prepare for him to do something drastic."