I was with my boyfriend when a woman came and pressed a sanitary pad into my hand.
She said, “You need this.” I wasn’t on my period-I checked in the toilet. Something felt off. When I opened the pad, in shaky red ink, were 2 words:
“RUN. NOW.”
My hands froze. The words weren’t smudged or accidental. They were written intentionally—with urgency, maybe even desperation.
I looked around the restaurant. My boyfriend was sitting calmly, sipping his drink, waving at me with a smile like everything was fine. But suddenly, nothing felt fine.
I rushed to the restroom, locked the door, and pulled out my phone. My hands trembled as I reread the message on the pad. Who was that woman? Why did she give me this? What did she mean?
I texted my best friend:
“I think something’s wrong. I’m scared.”
She replied instantly:
“You mean Jake? I’ve been trying to tell you for months—something’s off about him. I did some digging.”
I stared at the screen as more messages came flooding in—screenshots, links, even a mugshot. Different name, same face. Fraud, theft, manipulation.
Jake wasn’t just my boyfriend.
He was a wanted con artist.
And I had almost moved in with him next week.
I stuffed the pad into my purse, stepped out of the restroom, and gave him the biggest smile I could fake.
“Hey babe, I forgot I promised to drop something off at my mom’s,” I said lightly.
“No problem,” he replied, completely unaware.
That was the last time I saw him.
But I still think about that woman. Her courage. Her warning. Her two small words that might have saved my life.