Chapter 311
Not long after, Desmond and Xena arrived at the base.
The moment Xena saw Jodie, she broke down, clutching her daughter as she sobbed uncontrollably.
“Baby… I thought I’d never see you again. I’ve thought about you every single day. dreamed of you every night. I was so scared, sweetheart. I was
Charlotte stood to the side, her own tears falling silently.
These past few days, every time she closed her eyes, she saw that tunatic Joseph torturing her sister. The nightmares never stopped seeing Joseph dousing Jodie with gasoline, hearing his chilling voice as he demanded that Charlotte trade her own life for her sister’s.
Now, faced with this moment, even Desmond’s eyes were red
He had so much he wanted to say, but in the end, all that came out was a simple, hoarse, “Jodie, Daddy missed you so much.”
After they had all cried themselves out, Xena wiped her tears and noticed something wrong
Her eyes still swollen, she said softly, “Jodie was already traumatized after the first kidnapping. Now she’s been through this again… taken all the way to Atlantis. She nearly lost her life. I’m worried about her mental state.”
She couldn’t go on
Jodie was not even nine years old. No child should have to endure this kind of trauma twice.
There was no w
was no way her mind could come out of this unscathed
Desmond looked exhausted. In the days since Jodie had been taken, he hadn’t slept a full night
Now his face was gaunt, his eyes shadowed. Guilt and worry filled his gaze as he looked at his daughter. “I’ll contact the best child psychologist I can find.”
Charlotte quickly added, “I’ll reach out to my contacts too. I’ll ask around and find the top expert. Aunt Xena, Jodie will get through this.”
Kena let out a long, heavy sigh. “I hope so..”
Outside, Sean and Jack were speaking quietly.
When the Riley family came out, the two groups crossed paths
Sean’s gaze immediately found Charlotte’s. Their eyes met. Hers were red, her face still streaked with tears.
A faint ache rippled through Sean’s chest.
Charlotte pressed her lips together and looked away
Xena had intended to say “thank you,” but the words stuck in her throat. If it hadn’t been for the connection to Sean, her daughter wouldn’t have been kidnapped in the first place. No matter what, she couldn’t bring herself to thank him
Desmond shot Sean a cold look.
Sean remained calm. “Mr. Riley ”
Desmond’s voice was icy. “Save it. Don’t pretend we’re on good terms.”
Sean didn’t take offense. He simply inclined his head and said, “How is Jodle doing?”
That question only made Desmond angrier..
He snorted. “Thanks to you, she nearly died.”
Sean lowered his gaze, guilt clouding his features. “I’m very sorry.
Beside him, Jack opened his mouth as if to speak, but without Sean’s signal, be said nothing.
Sean’s sincere apology did nothing to case Desmond’s anger
He was burning inside, his face dark with fury. “Do you think “I’m sorry‘ is enough? Do you think a simple apology can undo what my daughters have been throughTMTMTM
Sean remained silent.
With another cold snort, Desmond turned and stalked away with Jodie in his arms.
1/2
Xena followed without a word
Charlotte trailed behind.
As she passed Sean, he suddenly reached out and grabbed her wrist. “Lotte…”
She stopped and looked up at him. “What is it?”
Sean’s dark
keyes shimmered with pain, his voice soft and pleading. “Can we start over?”
Charlotte froze.
Her eyes widened in disbelie
It took her a long moment to find her voice. She frowned, “What are you talking about?”
She was stunned. “Start over? After everything that had happened, how could we possibly start over?” she thought.
Never mind the fact that his grandmother despised her and had fought tooth and nall to keep them apart. Even it, by some miracle, Mrs. Jasper Sr. changed her mind, there was no way Charlotte could go back.
Not after everything
Between them now stood what had happened to Jodie and to herself. They had both nearly lost their lives. Desmond’s hatred toward the Jasper family ran bone deep.
Even if some small part of her still harbored feelings for Sean, there was no way they could ever go back
