?Chapter 610:


    How did he know?


    “Ashley, you know what happens to those who betray me,” the man said, voice disturbingly calm and smooth, like poison in honey.


    “I didn’t betray you…” Ashley’s voice cracked with fear. “The battery died. I turned it off. The call was from a telemarketer.”


    “Power on your new phone and get it online. Now.”


    “Okay.”


    Ashley obeyed without hesitation.


    Once it was on, she quickly reported, “It’s online now.” The man didn’t answer.


    In front of him sat a phone on speaker. He listened closely, then looked at the woman across from him.


    At his signal, she began typing rapidly on her keyboard.


    Momentster, Ashley’s call logs appeared on the screen.


    The woman listened carefully,paring the content, then gave him a nod.


    That single nod made his eyes narrow with suspicion.


    “I’m telling the truth,” Ashley said anxiously, her voice shaking in the silence. It sounded like she truly feared being misunderstood.


    The man’s gaze darkened, and something in him shifted. He no longer looked at her the same way. “Why are you scheming behind my back with other people?”


    “What?” Ashley’s voice faltered, her mind drawing aplete nk. She couldn’t tell whether she’d been caught red-handed, or if—as Freya had warned—he was just fishing, bluffing his way through.


    The man’s voice slithered through the speaker, low and threatening. “You should know—I’m not exactly the patient type.”


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    “I honestly have no idea what you’re talking about…” Ashley managed to say, struggling to keep her voice steady.


    “You don’t understand? Then, care to exin why there’s a system fortified by ‘K’ embedded in your phone?” There was a heavy malice in his presence—something cold and suffocating. “Since you’re staying quiet, maybe your little brother and grandmother can help convince you to talk.”


    “I really don’t know anything!” Ashley’s voice cracked, trembling near tears. “Please, don’t hurt them!”


    His tone turned icy, like steel about to snap. “This is your final shot. Aside from you, who else has touched your phone? Tell me, and I’ll reward you. Don’t, and you’ll find out what happens.”


    Thosest words slithered into her like venom, sending a shiver down her spine.


    Her limbs went rigid, and even breathing felt like a task too great.


    “Still refusing to speak?” The man’s voice came again, dark and coiled like a devil in the shadows.


    Ashley jerked instinctively, her body reacting with a deep, involuntary fear.


    Freya caught that and gently reached for Ashley’s free hand, her grip warm, her gaze calm.


    In that instant, Ashley’s panic began to ease, if only slightly.


    Her eyes, swollen with emotion, turned toward Freya. Her lips were pale, as if one more word might make her cry.


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