Chapter 8

Yasmine suddenly looked up and blurted out a question.

“How far along are you?”

Yara smiled. “Three months.”

Three months. One month older than the baby she had lost.

Yasmine remembered that Leo had told her he was away on a mission at that time. In truth, he had already taken in Yara to “take care of her.”

How shameless could he be? How could he claim there was nothing between him and Yara and accuse her of being paranoid?

A wave of nausea hit her.

She forced herself to remain calm so as to not show any weakness in front of Yara.

But Yara was not about to let her off.

She clapped her hands, and several burly men stepped inside.

“This is Yasmine Silva, the famous TV host. You all know her. She’s now a traitor accused of colluding with foreign powers.

“I’ll let you have your fun. Just don’t kill her.”

One of Leo’s men hesitated. He was unsure if this had gone too far.

Yara’s next words stopped him cold.

“This is all Leo’s idea. He wants to teach her a lesson so she won’t dare betray her country again.”

Yasmine shouted in fury, “I didn’t! You framed me! I never did any of this! Call Leo here! I want to confront him face-to-face!”

“Denying it won’t help. Leo won’t save you. He already promised me and Noah a trip to the islands. You can stay here and enjoy yourself,” said Yara viciously.

With that, Yara slammed the interrogation room door close behind her and left.

The men drew closer. Yasmine could already smell the stench of their bodies.

Rough hands grabbed at her arms, her legs, and other places she did not want to be touched.

She shut her eyes, and tears of despair streamed down her cheeks.

She regretted everything.

Why had she fallen for Leo’s lies? Why had she ever tied her life to someone like him?

After returning to the past, she should have stayed far away from the Quinton family and their mess. At least then she would not have ended up here.

Yasmine bit down hard on her tongue.

If this was how she was to be humiliated, she wanted to die.

The taste of blood filled her mouth. At that moment, the door burst open.

Emma rushed in. When she saw Yasmine’s condition, her eyes turned red with anger.

“Yasmine is the star of our provincial TV station! How dare you torture her without evidence?!”

The man in charge protested.

“Commander Quinton said she’s a spy. He even showed us her letters. How could that be false?”

Emma nearly laughed in fury. She threw an official document in his face.

“Those are letters from her university supervisor abroad! Don’t tell me you didn’t even bother to find someone to translate them?

“This is a personal attack! Just you wait. I’m going to file a formal appeal!”

She helped Yasmine, who was barely conscious, out of the room. No one dared to stop her.

Yasmine’s voice was weak but firm as she said, “Ms. Larson, please take me away from here.”

“But you’re injured, and you don’t even have your belongings.”

Yasmine glanced at her battered body and smiled wryly.

“It doesn’t matter. I just want to leave as soon as possible.”

Wounds could heal, and belongings could be replaced.

Her mother’s keepsake was already destroyed. There was nothing left for her here.

Emma had no choice but to put her on the private plane herself.

Before leaving, she looked at Yasmine’s pale face and sighed.

In only a few years with Leo, this spirited young woman she had mentored had faded from a lively person to a lifeless shadow of her past self.

“Yasmine, do you want me to help you file for divorce?”

Yasmine shook her head. Meeting Emma’s disappointed eyes, she said slowly, “We were never married. So, there’s no need for a divorce.

“I have nothing to do with Leo anymore.”

Those few words carried the weight of fifty years of bitterness across two lifetimes.

After saying goodbye to Emma, she buried the cherished broken jade bracelet in the soil of her hometown.

From then on, she would go her own way.

She swore never to see Leo again.