Samuel and Marianne arrived at the base soon after. Marianne sobbed her heart out as she clutched Seline in her arms.

“Oh, my baby! I thought I would never see you again!” Marianne wailed. “I thought about you every day and dreamed about you every night. I was worried to death!”

Tessa stood to the side as she watched with tears streaming down her cheeks. For the last few days, whenever she closed her eyes, images of James torturing Seline would flash across her mind.

She always had nightmares when night fell. She would dream of James pouring oil on Seline with the intent to burn her to death. In the nightmares, James would always tell her that she could save Seline, but only by giving up her own life.

Samuel’s eyes had also reddened at the touching reunion. There were a million things that he wanted to say, but he was only able to choke out a single sentence. “Seline, I missed you a lot too.”

The four of them shed tears together. Marianne, who had a keen eye, noticed that Seline wasn’t in a good mental state.

With bloodshot eyes, she said, “Seline was already traumatized by her last kidnapping. This time she was taken all the way to Arcton and nearly lost her life in the process. I’m worried that she-”

She couldn’t complete the rest of her sentence. Seline wasn’t even nine years old yet, but she had already been kidnapped twice. How was such a young girl going to endure such terrible stress on her psyche? She would undoubtedly develop mental issues in the future.

Samuel’s gaze was steely. He hadn’t gotten a single day’s rest since Seline was kidnapped. Fatigue and anxiety were etched on his face as he gazed at Seline with guilt and worry in his heart. “I’ll contact the best psychiatrist I know immediately.”

Tessa added, “I’ll also ask my friends to contact the best child psychiatrist in the industry. Seline will definitely get better, Ms. Connors.”

“I can only hope so,” Marianne said before sighing deeply.

Stephen and Julian were engaged in discussion as they stood outside. When the Yates family exited the room, the two parties greeted each other. Stephen’s gaze fell on Tessa, and the two of them locked eyes. Tessa’s eyes were bloodshot, making it obvious that she had been crying earlier.

Tessa could see the flicker of heartbreak in Stephen’s eyes. She pressed her lips together before quietly averting her gaze.

Marianne initially wanted to thank Stephen, but she suddenly recalled that Seline had only been kidnapped in the first place because of him. She couldn’t force the words past her lips no matter how hard she tried.

Meanwhile, Samuel openly glared at Stephen with glaciers in his eyes. Stephen’s expression remained passive as he greeted Samuel politely. “Mr. Yates.”

“Don’t talk to me,” Samuel spat at him. “I have nothing to say to you.”

Stephen was undeterred, though he did nod his head slightly. He asked, “How is Seline doing?”

Samuel’s rage boiled over after hearing his question. He scoffed before replying, “She nearly lost her life thanks to you.”

Stephen lowered his gaze, appearing to be immensely remorseful. “I’m sorry.”

Julian, who was standing to the side, wanted to say something. But he didn’t have Stephen’s permission, so he wasn’t allowed to just insert himself into the conversation.

Samuel wasn’t moved by Stephen’s

apology, though the latter had

discarded his pride to do so. Rage

continued to burn in his heart. His

expression was hard when he coldly, “What’s the use in

apologizing? Can you heal Tessa’s and Seline’s wounds just by saying sorry?”

Stephen had nothing to say to that.

Samuel scoffed again before he left in a rush, cradling Seline in his arms. Marianne also stayed quiet beforez she trailed after him. Tessa moved to follow them, but Stephen caught her wrist when she passed him, murmuring, “Tess…”

Tessa stopped in her tracks. She lifted her head to look at him. “Is there something else?”

Stephen’s eyes were like an abyss. She could see the pain that swirled deep within his gaze. He seemed almost pitiful when he asked, “Can we get back together?”

Tessa was stunned by his question, her eyes filled with disbelief. A long moment passed before she regained her senses. Her brows knitted together when she asked, “What are you saying?”

He wanted to get back together with her? Now that the situation had turned out this way, how could they possibly get back together?

First of all, Rowena didn’t like her and strongly opposed their being a couple. But even if Rowena conceded and approved of them being together, there was no way that Tessa could get back with him.

Seline’s kidnapping hung like a dark cloud between them. Both Tessa and Seline had nearly lost their lives, and Samuel had developed an intense loathing toward the

Jacobsons. It didn’t matter is

stiff harbored lingering feelings for Stephen; there was no way they could ever rekindle their relationship.