Even in Darkness She Chose to Rise (Tatiana and Jasper) novel Chapter 355

Chapter 355 The Steele Legend

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Hanson cleared his throat, his posture shifting from its usual rigidity to something bordering on sycophancy. After all, nobody bites the hand that feeds them.

“Look at this. Doesn’t she look just like you? I mean, assuming your face was fully healed.”

Intrigued, Tatiana leaned in for a closer look. Her eyes widened as she took in the woman in the photograph. The resemblance was uncanny.

The headline read: “The Shipping Heiress: A Vision of Grace.”

The Lane family held massive influence overseas, and news of their heir’s return had naturally captured the attention of the international media. More importantly, Hanson had dealt with the Lane family before–specifically, with one particular member. He saw no reason to hide this and told Tatiana directly.

She frowned. “An enterprise of that scale is involved in human trafficking?”

Hanson let out a cold sneer. “Even the largest empires have parasites. This man held a high- ranking position and used their maritime routes to move cargo. It was pure profit with zero risk. Not just me–nearly everyone in the trade funneled their goods through him.”

Demand always creates supply. Hanson was merely a small fish in a vast ocean, responsible for snatching stateless people from remote islands to sell to a buyer for quick cash.

And that buyer…

“Who is he?”

Hanson struggled with the pronunciation. “I heard them call him… Donnie. Yes, Donnie.”

The moment Tatiana heard the name, it felt as though an axe had swung into her skull. The pain was blinding.

“Ugh!”

She clutched her head, her face contorting in agony.

Hanson panicked. “Hey! Are you alright? Should I call a doctor? Wait, you are the doctor. You-”

“Shut up!”

The once–formidable captain instantly went silent.

Tatiana waited for the waves of pain to recede, her breathing shallow. She was certain of one

Chapter 355 The Steele Legend

thing: she knew this “Donnie.” He was a key to her past.

“I want to see him.”

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“What?”

“That man. Find him.”

“No, no. He’s dangerous. It’s better if you stay away.”

“I want to see him. Figure it out.”

It was Hanson’s turn to feel a headache coming on, yet he found himself unable to refuse her. “Fine. Give me some time.”

Tatiana nodded and took the newspaper with her.

The island was cut off from all signals; their only link to the outside world was the stack of newspapers brought back from occasional supply runs. Even then, the news was always stale. The paper Hanson had given her was already two weeks old.

As Tatiana walked outside with the paper in hand, the locals greeted her warmly. She kept her head down, ignoring them.

“What’s wrong with her?”

“Who upset her?”

“Must be the Captain. He’s always getting a lashing! Remember when he tried to sell to that other client on his own and got scammed? She chewed him out so hard he didn’t know which way was up! Haha!”

“If the Captain got the earful, why is she the one looking miserable?”

They all cared, but none dared to ask.

She ran into Alita, who immediately sensed the shift in mood. “What happened?”

Tatiana sat by the shore, watching the waves crash against the rocks. She handed over the newspaper. “Does she look like me?”

Alita looked at the photo and burst out laughing. “Not at all! Can you imagine yourself wearing something like that?”

Tatiana offered a thin, silent smile.

Slowly, Alita’s laughter died away. She sat up straight, studying the image again. “Actually… she

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Chapter 355 The Steele Legend

does. A lot. Even the way she carries herself. Could she be your twin sister?”

Tatiana shook her head decisively. “Impossible.”

“You lost your memory. How can you be so sure?”

“Intuition.”

She couldn’t explain where the feeling came from, but she trusted it implicitly.

“Do you want to find your family?”

A

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Tatiana fell silent. Her life here was comfortable. Forgetting the past hadn’t seemed to hinder her much. But in the dead of night, she couldn’t help but wonder if she had anyone left in the world.

The daily grind and the constant danger had allowed her to bury those thoughts, but this newspaper had reignited a fierce spark within her. She had to look. She had to find them. She had a lingering, hollow feeling that something–something that belonged to her–had been stolen.

“Yes.”

“Alright then! I’m coming with you! Things are stable enough here anyway; the others can handle the rest. I’ll help you find them.”

Tatiana smiled and gave a firm nod. “Thank you,

Alita.”

“Don’t thank me. If it wasn’t for you, we’d all be dead. You’ve given us everything. You’re incredible.”

In Alita’s eyes, Tatiana was a living god, commanding more devotion than even the deity of the

sea.

In the four months since they had first set sail, their lives had transformed completely. They had

gone from a shipwreck to being captured by pirates, surviving a skirmish, being stranded on a deserted island, discovering a jade mine, and finally building a trade empire.

The island now had a name: Steele Island.

In a remarkably short time, Steele Island had become the heart of the surrounding waters, and Tatiana’s authority now stood firmly above Hanson’s.