She knew exactly what kind of person her cousin was, and after everything that had just happened, she was starting to panic.

“Everyone, please, there’s nothing to see here. This is a private matter. Please go back to what you were doing.”

Megan’s voice was soft, sweet, and completely non-threatening. She looked like a cute little bunny, her tone gentle and airy, without a trace of authority.

The crowd glanced at each other, seeing that instead of sending someone intimidating to disperse them, they’d sent a timid girl. It only confirmed their assumption–this group clearly had no real influence. If they did, someone would’ve stepped in by now and cleared them out. But nothing had happened. And people always picked the easier target, especially after seeing so many situations like this. They knew exactly how to press where it hurt.

Lucas watched the crowd grow bolder by the second, and the amusement in his eyes turned cold. Clearly, he’d been too soft during his time at this hospital. Did these people really think they could do whatever they pleased right under his nose? Without another word, Lucas pulled out his phone and called the hospital director. He spoke a few quick, fluid sentences in a foreign language, then hung up.

Some in the crowd didn’t understand a word. But one person did and snorted with laughter. “Ha! He just called the hospital director, told him to come down here and deal with us personally. He said he has five minutes to show up.”

The way he said it, full of sarcasm, made a few others laugh too. No one took it seriously. After all, Lucas was not local, and this was a foreign country. Did he really think one phone call could summon the hospital director like that?

Clearly, many in the crowd were thinking the same thing, because the laughter grew louder. Lucas remained completely calm from start to finish. Even Megan closed her eyes, clearly not wanting to watch what would happen next. She had originally thought that if she stepped up first to calm the crowd, it might save her cousin the trouble. That way, he wouldn’t have to get involved, and they could avoid an ugly scene. But she hadn’t expected this group to be so completely unreasonable. She had tried to speak to them politely, had explained everything calmly, yet not a single person believed her. Now that her cousin had stepped in, she thought she shouldn’t interfere further. None of these people were getting away now.

Honestly, she thought, they weren’t very smart to begin with.

Leonard looked over at Megan, confused by the faintly smug look on her face. He didn’t really understand what Lucas had just done–was it real or was he just bluffing? He tugged on Megan’s sleeve and asked in a low voice, “Is he faking it? Lucas doesn’t really know the hospital director, does he?”

Megan’s eyes widened, but before she could say anything, someone in the crowd overheard Leonard’s comment. And just like that, the whole situation spiraled.

The crowd erupted with laughter. “Ha! I knew it. That guy was acting way too confident.”

“Right? Even his own friend doesn’t believe him. What kind of person is that? Why would anyone trust him?”

Megan stared at Leonard in disbelief. For the first time, she wondered if he had said that on purpose. And maybe he had. There was something oddly calculating about him right then. Sure, the others might not know who Lucas really was, but Leonard definitely did, right? So how could he not know exactly what he was doing?