Even in Darkness She Chose to Rise (Tatiana and Jasper) novel Chapter 352

Chapter 352 A Sea of Emeralds

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Finished

Before Alita could even respond, a sharp crack echoed through the air. The bone snapped back into place before she even had a chance to scream.

“There, all done,” Tatiana said calmly. “Watch your step for the next few days and rest up. Help her up.”

One of the pirates obediently hoisted Alita to her feet.

As Tatiana moved to stand, she suddenly noticed something unusual about the stones beneath her feet. One in particular caught her eye–it was smooth and rounded, and where it had been pressed into the damp earth, a faint green shimmered through the grime.

She picked it up, her eyes narrowing as she scrutinized the rock.

Alita was still grumbling under her breath. “Stupid rock! Nearly killed me!”

She had no idea that Tatiana’s eyes were growing brighter by the second. Suddenly, Tatiana stood up and gave Alita a fierce, impulsive hug. “You really are a lucky charm!”

“Huh?”

“You stay here and keep watch,” Tatiana commanded the pirate who had helped Alita. “Don’t move until I get back. The rest of you, follow me to the camp!”

Leaving one confused pirate behind, Tatiana led the others back to the settlement at a run.

She burst into the camp and found Hanson, cutting straight to the point. “Let’s make a deal.”

Hanson, who was drawing lazily on a cigar, gave her an inscrutable look. “I don’t think we have anything to discuss.”

She ignored his dismissal. “I want those prisoners.”

Hanson nearly choked on a mouthful of smoke. “Impossible! I wouldn’t give you a single one even if I were dying! They’re my assets!”

“How much do you make per head?”

Hanson’s eyes grew guarded. “What’s it to you?”

“Just tell me. How much?”

“A thousand USD. It depends on the quality; prices fluctuate.”

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Chapter 352 A Sea of Emeralds

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“You have 305 people left,” Tatiana countered quickly. “Selling them all at once only nets you 305,000. After you deduct the losses and damages from this voyage, you won’t even have half of that left. All that hard work just to maintain the ship? Is that really worth it?”

Hanson paused, his interest piqued. “What are you getting at?”

“We collaborate. Give the people to me, and lend me your men. We’ll start a new business–one that’s guaranteed to make more money than this wretched human trafficking trade.”

Hanson’s face was a mask of disbelief. He didn’t even bother to respond.

The smile vanished from Tatiana’s face, replaced by a cold, predatory glint in her antidote…”

eyes.

“The

“Fine! Tell me what you’ve got!”

“Follow me.”

Tatiana led him back to the spot where Alita had fallen. At first glance, the ground was just a mess of jagged rocks and dirt.

She carefully selected a specific stone and gestured to a pirate. “Break it open.”

Hanson huffed, feeling his patience thin. “These are just worthless rocks. What a waste of—”

The word ‘time‘ died in his throat. His eyes went wide, fixed hungrily on the fractured surface of the stone.

It was a brilliant, vivid green, shimmering with a mesmerizing luster.

“This… this is…”

The pirate captain, a man who had seen everything the high seas had to throw at him, began to

stutter.

Tatiana finished the sentence for him. “Money. A literal mountain of it.”

A dimly lit room.

The woman posing as Tatiana was lost in a dream.

She was caught in the throes of a phantom passion, her breath hitching in ragged, desperate gasps. Her hands clawed at the air as if she were holding someone close, her body trembling with a flushed, feverish glow.

Through the monitor, however, the scene looked grotesque.

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Chapter 352 A Sea of Emeralds

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The screen showed her arching her back against empty air, her movements suggestive and rhythmic, her eyes glazed over in a deep trance.

At the edge of the bed sat a man, his lips moving in a silent, rhythmic chant–a hypnotic lullaby.

This was a manufactured sweet dream.

The dreamer would never suspect it was an illusion; the sensations were designed to feel more real than life itself.

In the observation room, there was a heavy silence.

Jasper stood by the window, a rare cigarette between his fingers, his face cast in deep shadow. Wisps of smoke curled upward, drifting toward the ceiling. He watched the smoke trail off, his expression unreadable and cold.

Behind him, his subordinates exchanged looks of quiet admiration.

They hadn’t expected their boss to come up with such a calculated method. Hiring a specialist to give that woman a sensory–rich experience of intimacy… it was the perfect trap.

Everything she felt was a lie.

“Boss, it’s finished.”

Jasper snapped back to the present. He crushed the cigarette out and strode toward the room. As he opened the door, the air inside felt heavy and stifling, smelling of sweat and delusion.

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