Chapter 274

“Is that okay?” Zinnia was genuinely surprised. She hadn’t expected Yannis to bring up the past himself.

After all, it was widely said that the incident was a taboo for the Perkins family, even more so for Yannis.

Yannis said, “Actually, I’m not that resistant to what happened seventeen years ago. After all this time, it’s only right to move forward.”

As a child, Yannis had indeed been unable to face what had happened. But after all these years, no matter how reluctant he was, each memorial day made one fact painfully clear:

Grace was already gone.

But as a child, Yannis couldn’t bear to hear anything about that kidnapping. Over time, it gradually became an unspoken taboo in high society.

Yannis said quietly, “Seventeen years ago, there was a kidnapping in Jinston… My mom and I were among the victims.”

Seventeen years ago, a massive kidnapping shook Jinston. It all began when James led a raid that took down a major drug cartel.

Some of the criminals managed to escape and, in a twisted act of revenge, abducted dozens of children across the city.

Sensing the incident was likely targeting him, James promptly contacted Grace, urging her to take Yannis to the military base for safety.

On their way, drug dealers intercepted Grace and Yannis. Realizing they couldn’t overpower Grace, the criminals used the abducted children as leverage, forcing them to comply.

Neither Grace nor Yannis were willing to let innocent children suffer because of them.

They saw the children tied up by drug dealers, some sobbing hysterically, others whimpering nonstop.

Some had fainted from terror. Others were covered in wounds and bruises.

Yannis even spotted one child with broken limbs. Some had blood streaking their faces.

Grace and Yannis agreed to cooperate, but only on the condition that the children would not be harmed. With that, they too became hostages. They were led away by the kidnappers.

After being taken captive, Yannis endured an ordeal that would haunt him for life.

The drug dealers were ruthless criminals who would stop at nothing, utterly depraved and vicious.

After they were captured, Yannis was dragged to an abandoned building and smashed to the floor with a brutal kick. They were destroying their hideout.

One of the dealers struck Grace across the face with such force that her cheek split open and blood began to flow.

Furious about James, Yannis, his hands and feet bound, watched helplessly as Grace was beaten. He wanted nothing more than to fight back and tear them apart.

All he got in return was a savage slap that sent him sprawling to the ground.

At that moment, his head throbbed with sharp pain.

He had never suffered such humiliation before; he’d always been treated like royalty.

But Yannis refused to give in. Seeing Grace hurt only made him want to kill those monsters. He’d learned a few moves from James as a child, but compared to these brutal criminals, he was powerless.

Another heavy kick sent him crashing down, and a boot pressed hard against his chest. He gritted his teeth against the pain, feeling as if his organs had been rearranged.

His face turned as white as a sheet.

Later, the kidnappers demanded that Grace entertain them, promising they’d go easier on her and Yannis if she complied.

Grace was undeniably beautiful. She was the most stunning woman in Jinston, her beauty dazzling and unmatched.

Fiercely proud, she naturally refused to submit to such demands.

Enraged, the drug dealers lashed out at her with a whip.

Grace, being a military doctor, was tough and in good physical shape. When the drug dealers tried to force military secrets about James from her, she refused to say a word.

Yannis could only watch helplessly as Grace was tortured with knife wounds, whip lashes, belt marks, and dagger cuts. Her dark tracksuit was soaked with blood.

His eyes burned with rage and helplessness, but there was nothing he could do. Pinned face-down under a boot, he was forced to watch as Grace was beaten to the verge of death.

At one point, someone tried to strip her. Grace glared and threatened, “Lay a finger on me and I’ll end my life right here.”

This only enraged the drug dealers, leaving them frustrated and helpless. They could do nothing but come up with new ways to torment her.

Her high-quality tracksuit was lashed open, revealing the blood-streaked skin beneath.

Yannis lay sprawled on the floor, his face pressed against the dirt. The thick metallic stench of blood filled his nostrils. It was Grace’s blood.

It was seeping from Grace herself.

His eyes burned crimson with rage. In his mind, he screamed, ‘If only I could tear them apart with my bare hands. If only my glare could shred them into pieces.’

Grace had already been tortured so badly, and Yannis was no better off.

Maybe realizing they couldn’t get anything out of Grace no matter how much they tormented her, they turned their cruelty on Yannis instead.

All ten of his fingernails were ripped out, two of his fingers were snapped, and his thick hair was shaved clean off. Barbed whips lashed at his frail body again and again, leaving no inch of skin intact. He was a bloody, mangled mess.

The drug dealers pressed burning cigarette butts into his flesh, and he could smell the acrid stench of his own flesh burning.

Before he could even process that excruciating pain, a bucket of salt water was poured over his wounds.

Then, they grabbed Yannis by the head and forced him to helplessly watch as his lower leg was shattered by a steel pipe.

His neck was bruised and purple from being strangled, as they tried to use Yannis’s life to threaten Grace.

But Grace truly remained unmoved. That was the only reason Yannis barely escaped with his life.

Yannis knew exactly what they wanted. They wanted him to cry to Grace, hoping a mother’s love would break her resolve.

But neither he nor Grace would compromise national security just to save themselves.

If they spoke, it would endanger countless others. This was no longer just about them.

So Yannis bit through his tongue until blood filled his mouth, but never uttered a word.

They dared to beat and torture Grace and Yannis, but killing them was the one line they wouldn’t cross.

If either of them died, James would hunt the kidnappers to the ends of the earth. He’d never rest until every last one of them paid the price.

Grace and Yannis watched, helpless, as each was tortured beyond recognition right before the other’s eyes. It was no wonder their psychological defenses were pushed to the brink of collapse.

The entire night dragged on, twelve excruciating hours. Grace and Yannis gritted their teeth and held on, refusing to break.

After enduring the long night, dawn finally broke. James finally tracked them down.

The abandoned building was now completely surrounded. The drug dealers knew there was no way out.

After being tortured all night, Yannis had gone numb with pain and eventually lost consciousness. When he finally came to, he found himself and Grace suspended mid-air, ropes cutting into their bodies.

Dangling alongside them were other innocent children.

They were all hanging precariously nearly 330 feet above the ground.

Yannis, barely conscious, heard the drug dealers force James to make an impossible choice.

Option one: a group of innocent children, each connected to dozens of families. Option two: Grace and Yannis.

Through the haze, Yannis heard James choose the children.

He heard Grace’s hoarse, broken voice whisper, “Yannis, don’t blame your dad.”

Yannis wanted to say he didn’t. James was a hero. But the words never left his lips.

The instant James made his choice, the ropes binding them snapped.

He had no clear memory of how he was ultimately rescued.

All he remembered was the sensation of plummeting from a great height. His heart ached so badly.

It was the dead of winter, and the freezing wind hit his face.

Yannis’s life force was fading fast. He’d always been frail as a child, but now, on the brink of death, his mind became startlingly clear. He felt a pair of slender arms wrap around his waist. He knew it was Grace.

He sensed Grace’s trembling hands as she pushed a pill into his mouth.

When he managed to open his eyes, all he could see was Grace’s face, streaked with blood.

Crimson flooded his vision in overwhelming waves.

Then, summoning all her strength, Grace crushed him against her, as if trying to shield him with her own body, desperate to give him a sliver of hope.