Chapter 178 We Must've Crossed Paths Before
"Big Joe, why are there suddenly so many cars popping up?" In the van, the driver looked at the black cars closing in and furrowed his brows. "They're too close, we have to slow down."
In the back seat, the man they called Big Joe frowned, glanced outside through the semi-transparent windows, and said, "It's about time. Take the next exit."
He maliciously kicked the two kids tied up at his feet. "Stay put!"
The two children bound at the feet of their captor were Bennett and Lauren. The thugs had tied them face to face and then laid them horizontally at the feet of a shady figure in the back of the van.
For nearly an hour, that man had been carelessly kicking at the bound siblings, not bothering to count the number of times his boot landed on their small bodies. Bennett's pant leg had ridden up during the struggle, revealing a knee mottled with violet bruises, while Lauren's legs remained untouched. It was clear that Bennett had been deliberately shielding his sister.
The man they called Vince sneered. "The boy's got some guts, playing the protector."
Bennett clenched his teeth, shooting Vince a glare filled with defiance but remained silent.
"Stubborn kid," Vince taunted before delivering another brutal kick to Bennett's back. Then, planting his foot firmly on the boy's spine, he pulled out his phone and snapped a picture to send to his boss. "Does this satisfy you?" he asked, sly confidence lacing his voice.
The reply from the other end of the line was prompt. "Be careful not to kill them. Even if they die, they won't be getting off easy."
"Understood!"
Vince laughed with a cruel gleam in his eye and was about to respond to his boss when a loud bang erupted from the front of the van. The vehicle screeched to a halt.
Lifting his head, Vince was about to spew curses when the door flew open. A knife pressed instantly against his throat.
The cold-eyed man wielding the blade commanded, "Get out!"
Vince hesitated for only a moment before raising his hands in surrender and stepping out of the van.
"Bennett! Lauren!"
Violet's car couldn't make it through the fleet of Jasper's security team, so she stopped a few hundred meters away from the van. Without hesitation, Adeline flung the door open and sprinted toward the scene, barreling through the throng of bodyguards, and reaching the van.
There, Jasper was tenderly untying the children, his face etched with concern. As soon as Adeline saw her two bruised and battered little ones, the tears she'd been holding back broke free in torrents.
Sweeping both Bennett and Lauren into her arms, she sobbed. "Are you okay? I was so worried! If something had happened to you two, I couldn't live with myself!"
Lauren sniffled, gently patting her mother's back. "Mommy, we're okay."
Summoning all his strength, Bennett managed to wriggle free from her embrace. He let out a sigh, lifting a hand to wipe away her tears. "Chill, Mom, we're not dead."
Adeline sniffled again, scrutinizing the little boy in front of her. His body was covered with bruises and cuts, his face not spared from harm.
Lauren, although also smeared with grime, had sustained far fewer injuries than Bennett had.
Adeline knew it was Bennett who had stealthily protected his sister. She bit her lip, sniffled, and with one arm cradled Lauren while her other hand grasped Bennett's. "Mommy's going to take you both to the hospital..."
"It's just some scrapes and bruises; there's no need for a hospital. We'll just clean it up and slap on some band-aids at home." Bennett wiped a tear from his cheek, trying to be brave. "Don't worry, okay?"
He then glanced over at Jasper, who was still staring resolutely at Adeline.
"Mr. Jasper." The little guy looked up, his large eyes blinking earnestly. "We're heading to Mommy's place now. Thanks for getting here so fast to save us."
Jasper's gaze finally shifted from Adeline.
He squatted down, gave Bennett a helpless look, and said, "I'm your dad. Do you really need to thank me?"
"Some things still need to be said." Suddenly, as if he remembered something, Bennett gave Jasper a sidelong glance. "Those guys didn't kidnap us to kill or for your money. It was like they just wanted to let out some steam by roughing us up. Have you ticked anyone off lately, putting us in the line of fire?"
Jasper couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time. "I haven't made any enemies recently."
"That's strange then..." Bennett muttered, frowning slightly.
After a deep breath, he reached out and gently squeezed Jasper's fingers. "Anyway, thanks. I'll go comfort Ms. Adeline and Princess Lauren. You handle these thugs."
With that, the little guy dashed over to Adeline, took her hand, and climbed into Violet's car with her.
Jasper stood there, watching Violet's car shrink to a speck in the distance.
"...It was... a client who hired us to beat those two up..." Behind him, the man called Ryan, after a few rounds of interrogation, had spilled the truth. "The client said the kids belong to his enemy's family. We couldn't kill them, but they wanted us to beat them within an inch of their lives."
Kneeling with a trembling voice, he continued, "But he didn't tell us those kids were yours, Mr. Jasper... Although I... I did hit them, I thought, with their soft skin, a few kicks would be enough. I didn't really beat them to a pulp... So, maybe you could..."
Jasper snorted derisively as he looked at the man's meek expression. With a swift motion, he kicked him hard. "You're a grown man trying to take your anger out on a six-year-old kid? You and your boss are no better than animals!" he spat out in disgust.
Jasper furrowed his brows and climbed into the van. Poking through the gap in the seats, he managed to locate Big Y's cell phone.
The chat app was still open on the conversation with his employer.
After scrolling through the messages, Jasper stepped out of the van and handed the phone to Ryan. "Check it."
Just then, Jasper's phone buzzed.
It was the same mysterious caller who had previously tipped him to tail the vehicle.
"No need to look into that employer anymore." This time, the voice came through the phone with a synthesized cadence. "I've already got the details.
"The employer, named Maya Moody, was the anchor at this morning's news conference. I've sent her current address to your email. If you go now, you can still catch her."
Jasper tightened his grip on the phone, stepped up to the sidewalk, and gazed at the trees swaying in the wind. "Impressive hacking skills—I think we might have crossed paths before."
Back at his computer, Blake glanced at the laptop sitting on a distant table. "Indeed, we've had our run-ins."
Long ago, Blake had smeared Adeline online to get even with Molly, which led to a virtual showdown with Jasper—a hacker duel.
That laptop on the table was the one Jasper's cyber assault had rendered useless.
"So…" Jasper clenched his jaw over the phone. "Who are you really? And why do you care so much about Adeline and her kid?"
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