Chapter 115 She loved me
Damien stood frozen in the middle of the street, breathing hard. His hands curled into fists at his sides. “What the hell…”
Confusion and unease churned violently in his chest. Behind him, the venue doors opened again.
“Damien?” Richelle’s voice called out.
He turned slightly. Richelle and Darcy stepped outside together, both looking concerned.
Richelle walked toward him first, her heels clicking softly against the pavement. Her sharp eyes immediately caught the tension in his posture.
His furrowed brows, the tightness in his jaw. “What happened?” she asked quickly, glancing down the empty road where the car had disappeared. “Why did Jasmine run out in tears?”
Damien shook his head slowly, still staring down the street. “I don’t know,” he admitted, his voice tight with confusion. His hand lifted absently to rub the back of his neck. “She just… ran out.”
He exhaled sharply, frustration creeping into his tone. “I came outside and saw her getting into that car.” He gestured vaguely toward the road. “And then it just took off.”
Richelle frowned deeply.
Darcy stepped closer, worry etched across her face. “She didn’t say anything?” Darcy asked.
Damien’s brows furrowed further. “No.”
His voice dropped slightly. “She hugged me… kissed me…” His throat tightened“And then she left.”
Richelle and Darcy exchanged uneasy glances.
Damien suddenly pulled his phone from his pocket.
“I’ll just call her,” he muttered. He quickly scrolled through his contacts and pressed Jasmine’s name.
The phone lifted to his ear.
It rang.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Inside the moving car, Jasmine’s bag rested carelessly on the seat beside her unconscious body. The phone inside it vibrated loudly.
The man sitting in the front passenger seat turned his head slightly at the sound. A slow smirk spread across his face. “Well, well,” he murmured under his breath.
He reached back casually and grabbed the bag.
The zipper slid open. He pulled out the phone and glanced at the screen. The caller ID glowed brightly. "Damien ❤️"
The man scoffed. “Pathetic.” His thumb pressed the power button. The screen went dark instantly.
Without another glance, he tossed the phone carelessly into the boot of the car behind him.
Back outside the venue, Damien frowned slightly as the ringing abruptly stopped. Then the automated voice came through. “The number you are trying to call is currently switched off.”
Damien slowly lowered the phone from his ear.
His jaw tightened. A heavy sigh escaped him as he rubbed his temples with two fingers. He could still feel the fear rolling off Jasmine when she held him.
That wasn’t just sadness.
It had been terror. Pure, overwhelming terror.
“What the hell scared you so badly?” he murmured under his breath. The memory of her trembling hands flashed through his mind again.
Then the words she had whispered returned to him like an echo. I love you.
His stomach twisted painfully. She had held him so tightly. Kissed him like she was afraid she would never see him again. Damien ran a hand through his hair. “What’s going on…” he muttered.
He turned back to Richelle and Darcy.
“Were either of you with her before this?” he asked.
Richelle nodded immediately. “Yes.” Her brows knitted together thoughtfully. “We were just talking.”
“About what?” Damien asked.
“Honeymoon venues,” Richelle replied with a small shrug.
Darcy nodded in agreement. “That’s right,” she added gently. “Then Jasmine got a phone call.”
Damien’s attention sharpened instantly.
“A call?”
“Yes,” Darcy said. “She stepped outside to answer it.” She paused, frowning. “That was the last time we saw her.”
Damien dragged a hand through his hair again.
“Do you know who called her?”
Richelle and Darcy both shook their heads.
“No idea,” Richelle said. Silence settled over the three of them for a moment.
Richelle crossed her arms slowly, her mind clearly racing. “What could have been so urgent,” she murmured aloud, “that it made Jasmine run out of the party like that?”
Damien had no answer. Then suddenly Richelle’s expression changed. Her eyes widened slightly.
“Wait.”
Damien looked at her. “What?”
Richelle turned toward him quickly.
“Call Uncle Thomas.”
Damien blinked in confusion.“Why?”
“Just call him,” Richelle said urgently. “Maybe he called Jasmine.”
Her mind raced silently. Maybe he found something. Maybe he called Jasmine about her father. The thought made her stomach drop.
Her face suddenly went pale. “Damien,” she said
sharply. “Do you have Uncle Thomas’ number?”
“Yes,” he replied slowly.
“Call him. Right now.”
Damien frowned deeply. “Richelle—”
“I’ll explain later,” she cut in quickly. “Just call him.”
Confused but sensing her urgency, Damien dialed the number.
The phone rang once, then twice. Finally the line connected. “Hello?”
The moment Uncle Thomas answered, Richelle snatched the phone from Damien’s hand.
“Uncle,” she said quickly, breath slightly uneven. “Did you call Jasmine earlier tonight?”
There was a brief pause. “No,” Uncle Thomas replied calmly. “I didn’t.”
Richelle’s stomach sank. “She just left Damien’s party,” Richelle continued, her voice tightening. “She ran out in tears and got into a car.”
Silence filled the line for a moment.
Then Thomas spoke again. “I haven’t called Jasmine in weeks.”
Richelle’s heart began pounding.
“I’m coming to Damien’s house immediately,” he said firmly. "My niece better be okay"
Before she could respond, the line went dead.
Richelle lowered the phone slowly.
Damien stared at her. “Why did you take the phone?” he asked, clearly puzzled.
Richelle handed it back to him. “There’s… a lot you don’t know yet,” she admitted quietly.
Damien’s brows drew together. “What does that mean?”
Richelle shook her head slightly. “I’ll explain soon,” she said.
Then she glanced between him and Darcy.
“Uncle Thomas is coming to your house.”
Damien blinked. “So we should go there too,” she continued. “In case Jasmine goes there.”
Darcy nodded slowly, though confusion still lingered in her eyes. Damien exhaled and ran a hand over his face. None of this was making sense.
Still, something deep in his gut told him Richelle was serious. “Alright,” he said.
Minutes later they were inside Damien’s car, driving through the quiet streets. The city lights streaked past the windows as the vehicle sped toward his house. Inside the car, tension hung thick in the air. Richelle sat in the passenger seat, unusually quiet.
Darcy sat in the back.
Damien’s hands gripped the steering wheel tightly.
His knuckles had turned pale.
“So,” Richelle said suddenly. Damien glanced at her briefly. “What exactly happened between you and Jasmine before she ran out?”
Damien frowned slightly as he recalled the moment. “She hugged me,” he said slowly.
Richelle nodded. “And?”
“She kissed me.”
Her eyes flickered.“Anything else?”
Damien hesitated slightly. “She said she loved me.”
Richelle’s heart sank.
That confirmed it. Jasmine had been saying goodbye. Richelle stared ahead quietly.
She was trying to run.