Filed to story: Seventeen Heartbreaks: When Love Has No Voice
The two women were at each other’s throats in a heartbeat.
Ewing watched the brawl unfold, his face a mask of frustration. Bria was acting like a commoner, a far cry from the elegant lady she could’ve been. He couldn’t help but think back, feeling things would be different if she hadn’t been raised by her shady parents.
Tyrone’s birthday party, a cheerful occasion, had turned into a farce. Ewing stormed forward and pulled the two women apart. “Enough! Break it up! Have you both lost your minds?”
Sarah, rubbing her arm dramatically, whined, “See? She started it! I wouldn’t have fought back if she hadn’t slapped me first. You gotta be fair!”
Bria shot Sarah a withering look, her eyes narrowed like a viper. Sarah clearly thought she was already part of the Nixon family, practically batting her eyelashes at Ewing. The nerve!
Ewing growled at Bria, “Regardless, you shouldn’t have hit her! You’re grounded. Stay within your room to reflect on your behaviors until I say so.”
Tears welled up in Bria’s eyes, her voice cracking. “That’s not fair! She made fun of me first. What right does she think she has to mock me? Ewing, I’m your cousin. Are you just gonna let this woman walk all over me?”
Ewing rubbed his temples, a headache blossoming behind his eyes. He knew Bria. If he didn’t make Sarah suffer due to her taunts, Bria would continue to make a scene. Sure, losing face was one thing, but if Tyrone’s memory took another hit, things would get messy. Fast.
The only problem was that Ewing still wasn’t sure if Sarah was his long-lost cousin. He was caught between a rock and a hard place.
Just then, Landon approached, his gaze landing on Sarah. He planted himself in front of her like a human shield. Bria, already fuming, saw this and practically let out steam.
Sarah, on the other hand, plastered a sugary-sweet smile on her face and cooed, “Landon, I knew you wouldn’t let this mean girl pick on me.”
Ignoring Sarah completely, Landon turned to Bria. “Look, Miss Nixon, instead of throwing a tantrum at Sarah, why not find whoever messed with your gift and make them explain themselves to you and your grandfather? They’re the real jerk in this mess, not Sarah.”
Bria, feeling like a cornered cat, snapped, “I made it myself, okay? I messed up. That’s all.” Even she could tell this was such a lame explanation.
Ewing, displeased, said, “Bria, even if you had someone else do it, everyone knows you meant well. Now that your whole surprise is ruined, are you not going to do anything about it?”
Bria’s voice rose, laced with impatience. “Look, I made this present. It has nothing to do with anyone else!”
Despite her simmering fury, Bria held onto a sliver of reason. Leila couldn’t show her face in public, not yet. If anyone recognized Leila, she would be done for. Anyway, Leila had to stay hidden.
Bria’s eyes narrowed, a cold fire of vengeance burning within. She’d get even with Leila for this mess, but later. A silent snarl twisted Bria’s lips, her anger a coiled viper waiting to strike.
Ewing suddenly had a bold speculation. The person he had been searching for could have made this very object. Ewing’s gaze darted toward Landon, deep in thought.
In a flash, Landon was on Bria, his hand clamping down on her wrist. Bria’s breath hitched at the sudden contact. She met his gaze, only to find it as cold as ice.
“Who made this?” Landon questioned, his voice laced with a barely concealed threat.
A tremor of panic ran through Bria. There was no mistaking the menace in Landon’s voice. Bria stammered, flustered, “Mr. Kensington, I already told you, I made it myself. Why couldn’t you believe me?”
Sensing the rising tension, Sarah stepped in. “Landon, please. Don’t make a scene over me. I’m sure Miss Nixon regrets her actions. I’m willing to forgive her.”
Bria shot Sarah a venomous glare. She then struggled to break free from Landon’s grip, bristling with indignation. “Mr. Kensington, I don’t feel well. I need to rest. Let go of me!”
Ewing coughed slightly before he said, his voice strained, “Mr. Kensington, this is a family squabble. It doesn’t concern you.”
Landon froze, and a dim light flashed in his eyes. Finally, he released Bria’s wrist. His eyes narrowed as he scanned Ewing and Bria, a cold suspicion settling in his gut.
A chilling idea struck Landon. Leila was likely taken to be hiding amongst the Nixons. But how in the world could she end up with the Nixon family?
The question hung heavy in the air, a seed of doubt Landon instantly regretted planting. Did Ewing have any idea about it?
Panic gnawed at Landon’s gut. He shouldn’t have involved Ewing in this mess. Yet, back then, with his back against the wall, he saw no other way out.
Frustrated, Landon asked Sarah, who was still crying, to leave first.
As Edgar led Sarah and disappeared into the throng, Landon pivoted to leave. But a blur of movement caught his eye. A woman was barreling through the crowd, desperation etched on her face.
The woman darted toward Ewing, skidding to a knee right in front of him. The sudden action silenced the murmuring crowd, all eyes fixated on the kneeling woman.
Landon whipped around, his jaw dropping in disbelief as he recognized the woman.
Bria’s jaw dropped when she saw Leila suddenly drop to her knees in front of Ewing. Ewing snapped out of it first. He instructed his men to take Tyrone back while he dealt with this mess.
Unable to speak, Leila reached into her pocket and pulled out a note she had written beforehand. In the note, Leila said she was a victim of human trafficking. She was brought to the Nixon family, and now she and her baby were in a terrible situation. She begged the Nixons to set her free. She couldn’t take being locked up in their house anymore.
Leila was gambling on everything. If she was lucky and there was at least one decent soul within the Nixon family, she might leave this place. Even if her plan failed, Leila reasoned that the Nixons wouldn’t dare deal with her in front of everyone. Bria had invited a huge crowd to this celebration, which unwittingly helped her.
On top of that, Leila held on to the silver hope that some guests might be from the Brooks or Hayes families or connected with them, thus lending her a helping hand.
Originally, Leila didn’t plan to run out of the room. She had purposely given Bria the inferior gift. She had expected Bria to drive her out of the room and take the blame. Yet, Leila clearly underestimated Bria. Bria might have acted arrogant and bossy, but she was also cunning.
Thankfully, Leila had spent the past few days acting like a doormat. This trick fooled Bria’s men into lowering their guard, allowing her to slip into the party.
Leila’s pleading contained cruel information. Lacking the ability to speak, she was pathetically trafficked into the Nixon family and later got locked up. Worse, she was pregnant.
The crowd began to murmur amongst themselves.
“Oh my goodness! There’s so much drama in rich families. How can they be so cruel?”
“I mean, seriously? Avalon has laws, doesn’t it? How can anyone get away with treating someone like this?”
“Didn’t you hear? The Nixons come from Ferelden, a prominent clan there. Their wealth shields them from facing the music, so it doesn’t shock me one bit.”
Bria’s face paled, and her body trembled with rage. She swept through the crowd with a fierce look, but found her men nowhere in sight.
Ewing’s face turned grim. He only knew that Bria had a woman locked up and didn’t expect her to have committed such an inhuman thing. Bria usually got away with anything, but this time she crossed a line. Was she crazy?
Before Ewing could speak, Bria rushed over to the kneeling Leila, all fake smiles. “Leila, honey, what’s gotten into you? Get up. I treat you with delicious food and no mistreatment. If you want to leave, just say so. There’s no need for this drama.”
Bria then raised her voice for everyone to hear. “Oh my, what a misunderstanding! This is just a woman I found on the streets, pregnant and alone. So I took her in. But it seems she has some mental issues. Don’t believe me? Call the police and have them check it out! In fact, these days, I’ve treated her like a queen. I have specially arranged a nutritionist for her, as well as the massage sessions. Why would I do all those things for her accusations?”
Leila’s jaw dropped. Her face drained of color. She hadn’t expected her little trick to backfire so spectacularly.
The crowd quickly switched sides.
“Oh, just a misunderstanding then!”
“I knew it! Miss Nixon wouldn’t do such a thing! How ungrateful can you get, accusing someone so kind?”
Stuck behind the crowd, Linsey craned her neck, trying to see what was going on. But she couldn’t squeeze in. Finally, Linsey grabbed the arm of the person next to her. “What’s going on? What’s everyone saying?”
The man snorted with disgust. “Nothing much. Miss Nixon took in a mute woman, but then that woman was quite ungrateful and even tried to slander her! How awful is that, accusing someone who has been helping? And that woman is pregnant!”
Linsey’s eyes widened in shock. Mute and pregnant. Sounded like Leila. Ignoring the crowd, Linsey pushed her way through, yelling, “Leila! Leila!”
Leila heard Linsey’s voice and attempted to look for Linsey. However, Bria swiftly grabbed Leila’s arm and pinched it hard.
Unable to speak for herself, Leila had no choice but to endure the pain. She looked up at Ewing for help, but he was lost in thought and frowning. Leila’s heart sank in an instant. She felt rather desperate.
The next second, Leila spotted a familiar figure in the crowd. It was Landon! Landon had been staring at Leila from the very beginning. When their eyes met, Leila saw happiness and concern in his eyes.
Leila tried to move toward Landon, but Landon remained still. He simply clenched his fists and looked away. Landon kept reminding himself not to do anything rash. At least, he knew where Leila was now. There were plenty of ways to get Ewing to let Leila go, but he had to wait for the perfect moment. He just couldn’t approach her and take her away instantly. It wouldn’t take long before the day came. He had tackled most of the obstacles. If he acted now, everything he’d done so far would be for nothing.
Bria raised her hand to slap Leila and then put on a sad act. “How could you do this to me? Don’t you have a heart? Don’t you want to leave? I wonder how you’ll survive without the Nixons’ help.”
Bria let go of Leila and went to Ewing’s side. Leila tried to walk away, but someone stopped her. She realized this was a Nixon family party, and she couldn’t leave without their permission.
Bria whispered to Ewing, “I’ll explain later, but we need to take her back now.”
Ewing snapped, “Are you crazy? Do you know who she is?”
Bria cut him off, her voice laced with a desperate edge. “Who she is doesn’t matter! Even if she’s some high-society princess, we have to take her back now. Those backing her will throw the book at me if they find her accusations are true. We gotta work together on this, or the Nixon name gets dragged through the mud. Our grandpa’s fragile as it is. If he finds out my doings, it’ll practically kill him!”