The pillar of the family

Jasmine turned in terror to shield her son. "Daniel... what do you... what are you going to do?"

"What are you here for?! Jasmine has already served five years - isn't her five years in prison enough for redemption?" Richard stepped in front of Jasmine, glaring at Daniel with anger boiling in his eyes.

"Redemption?" Daniel laughed. "How could she ever repay what she owes me? Maybe I'll just take care of this little bastard right here?"

Jasmine stared at Daniel in horror; she knew he was dead serious. Desperately, she knelt down. "Daniel, I will do whatever you've asked of me; just give me a few days. I beg you, please."

All she wanted was to come back and be with her child. Was a few days too much to ask?

"Jasmine, get up! He wouldn't dare hurt us," Richard said tenderly, though his heart ached at the sight of her. She hadn't always been like this. The Jasmine of the past was like a pure white rose, but now...

"You think I wouldn't dare?" Daniel sneered. "Richard, do you know nothing of the world?"

With a casual wave of Daniel's hand, his bodyguard charged at Richard, landing a solid punch. Richard was tall and built, toughened by years of labor on construction sites. He was not one to back down from a fight.

But Daniel's goons outnumbered him; five bodyguards swarmed over him, quickly putting him at a disadvantage.

"Stop... please, Daniel! I'm begging you, stop!" Jasmine cried, falling to her knees before Daniel, pleading for him to cease the assault. "I'll do anything you want, just please, spare my brother. I'm begging you."

"Don't beg him!" Richard yelled desperately, trying to come to his sister's aid, but he couldn't break free from the bodyguards' grip. "If you've got the guts, then beat me to death."

"You'd do anything I want?" Daniel sneered, tilting Jasmine's chin up with his hand. "You're really something, aren't you?"

"Get off my mom!" Justin lunged forward, sinking his teeth into the back of Daniel's hand.

Daniel's gaze darkened as he looked down at the defiant boy. His hand whipped up, ready to strike.

"Smack!" The blow meant for Justin landed on Jasmine's cheek instead.

Jasmine swiftly pulled Justin close; her eyes filled with a mix of vigilance and fury as she faced Daniel. "Don't you touch my son."

The man standing before her now deeply disgusted her.

What disgusted her even more was the fact that she had loved this man for many years.

Daniel's fury intensified as he watched Jasmine protectively holding what he called a 'bastard.' "Jasmine, even now you won't tell me who the other man is? Who fathered this bastard you're so keen to shield?"

Daniel despised that she never revealed the identity of Justin's father.

Jasmine held Justin tightly, both mother and son resembling fierce beasts ready to snap.

When she remained silent, Daniel grew even angrier. "Take them both. Now!" "Jasmine! Justin..."

Richard tried to intervene but was knocked unconscious by a blow from a bodyguard's baton.

"Richard!" Jasmine's cries were cut short as she was forcefully shoved into a car.

Daniel was right; they stood no chance against his power.

They seemed fated to be trampled underfoot by the likes of him for life.

The car halted outside a house, and Jasmine held Justin close, eyeing Daniel warily. "What are you planning?"

"For the next month, forget about going anywhere. Stay put and get your strength back because, in a month, you're donating a kidney to Serena." Daniel stepped out of the car, shaking his hand, wounded from Justin's bite. "Bastard!"

"Master Daniel... have you noticed?" The driver stepped out, whispering to Daniel. "The kid... he kind of looks like a Douglas, doesn't he?"

Daniel paused, his expression changing as he subconsciously glanced back at the stubborn figure in the car.

There was no denying it; the kid had the distinctive look of the Douglas clan.

But Daniel's mood swiftly darkened again, his voice a chilling rebuke. "You talk too much!"

He knew, without a doubt, that he'd never laid a hand on Jasmine. When they dated, he idolized her, vowing not to have sex with her until they were married. Yet it was Jasmine who couldn't stand the solitude, seeking the company of another man far earlier!

"Get out!" The nanny's patience wore thin as she called for Justin to leave the car, but the boy, like a young wolf cub hiding in its den, refused to budge.

Losing her temper, the nanny raised her hand to strike Justin, only to be bitten by him in retaliation.

"You little beast; how dare you bite me!" She shouted, picking up a broom to hit him.

Jasmine, almost reflexively, shielded the child with her own body, absorbing the blow on her back. It was painful, but she had grown accustomed to it.

"What's all the commotion?"

From the second floor of the Douglas residence, a man's deep voice resonated from the balcony.

The nanny, startled, turned around and apologized profusely. "Master Ethan, I'm sorry for my intrusion and for disturbing your rest."

The man's brows furrowed as his gaze fell upon Daniel.

"Bro... why are you back?" Daniel's heart tightened. It was unusual for Ethan to return

to this house; what brought him back today?

"What, I'm not allowed to come back?" Ethan replied with an icy inquiry.

Daniel quickly lowered his gaze. "That's not what I meant."

Everyone in San Francisco knew the Douglas family wasn't one to be trifled with, and Ethan was the pillar of the family.

This man, with his abilities and family background, was untouchable to everyone in San Francisco.

Inside the car, Jasmine's fingers tightened around her child at the sound of that voice... Why did it sound so familiar?