Filed to story: Seventeen Heartbreaks: When Love Has No Voice
Leila, feeling unusually cheerful, took out her phone to snap some pictures. As she walked toward the edge of a cliff, a sudden wave of panic swept over her. The water rushed quickly below, and she could hear its roar as she stood at the edge.
Leila couldn’t resist peeking over the edge, her thoughts drifting. If someone fell from here, they would be smashed to pieces.
Suddenly, a disturbing scene flashed through her mind. In her vision, two men stood facing each other. One man was talking angrily, as if pressing the other. The man standing at the edge of the cliff had a look of despair on his face. He spread his arms wide and jumped.
The most terrifying thing was that as the man jumped, Leila saw his face clearly in her mind. It was Landon.
The thought was so disturbing that Leila lost her focus and almost stumbled off the cliff. Just then, a hand grabbed her wrist and pulled her back from the edge.
Leila steadied herself and quickly turned to thank whoever had saved her. She was surprised to see that it was Lacey. Leila recognized Lacey from her interactions with Jeanette.
Surprised, Leila smiled.
“Miss Payne, it’s you. Thank you so much. If it weren’t for you, I would have fallen just now.”
Lacey looked like hell. Her eyes were bloodshot, and her face was drawn, as if she’d been crying her eyes out. Lacey shook her head, her voice devoid of warmth.
“Don’t bother thanking me,” she said curtly. “I only helped because I couldn’t stand to watch someone die. If you really want to show your gratitude, just leave me alone. I need some space.”
Lacey’s words stung, but Leila wasn’t offended. People came in all shapes and sizes, with all sorts of quirks. Besides, Lacey had just saved her life.
Leila started to walk away, but something tugged at her. She turned back to Lacey.
“Miss Payne, I just wanted to clear something up. It won’t take a minute, I promise. The last time I saw your sister, she was being picked on by some other kids. As a mom, I felt terrible for her, but I wasn’t involved. I noticed you seemed a bit wary of me, and I think there might be some kind of misunderstanding. I’m Leila, by the way. You can Google me if you want. You saved my life, and I owe you one. If you ever need anything, just let me know.”
Lacey froze. She slowly turned to face Leila, her eyes filled with a strange mix of emotions.
“Anything?” Leila was puzzled by Lacey’s reaction, but she nodded.
“Within reason, of course.”
Lacey let out a hollow laugh as she took Leila’s business card. There was no warmth in her eyes.
“Okay, I get it. You can go now. I’ll be in touch if I need anything.”
Leila couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something off about Lacey. Last time, she had thought it might be a misunderstanding, but now her guess was confirmed. Lacey seemed to harbor some kind of resentment toward her. But if that was the case, why did Lacey save her from falling just now? It just didn’t add up.
“I’m probably just overthinking things,” Leila muttered to herself, picking up her pace.
Lacey listened as Leila’s footsteps gradually disappeared. She couldn’t resist the urge to glance over her shoulder.
Once Leila was gone, tears streamed down Lacey’s face. Lacey stared down at the river, its currents swirling violently below. Her heart ached with a mixture of grief and guilt.
She sank to her knees, her voice choked with despair.
“Landon, I’m so sorry,” she whispered.
Lacey never dreamed that her attempt to drive a wedge between Landon and Leila would indirectly result in Landon’s death. If she could turn back time, she would never have involved Clayton. All she’d wanted was for Clayton to keep Landon away from Leila. She never imagined Clayton would go so far as to have Landon killed.
Lacey used to think Leila was a terrible person, capable of anything. But now, Lacey realized she was no better.
The weight of her guilt was crushing her. She couldn’t help but lash out at herself, slapping her own face in frustration and self-loathing.
Lacey remained there, lost in her thoughts, for the entire afternoon. She stared blankly at the churning water below.
A sudden thought flashed through her mind. She wanted to jump. To end it all. Her love for Landon was intertwined with an overwhelming need to atone for what she’d done.
Yet, just as she was about to climb over the railing, the thought of Jeanette stopped her. What would happen to Jeanette if she was gone? Jeanette was just a child, alone in the world. She was all Jeanette had. And if Lacey was honest with herself, she was terrified of dying.
Lacey recalled how she had fought tooth and nail to escape their toxic family with Jeanette, vowing to build a better life together. Now, she was on the verge of abandoning Jeanette. What would become of Jeanette’s life if she was gone?
Determined, Lacey decided to descend the mountain and search for Landon. A sliver of hope lingered in her heart. Maybe, just maybe, she could find him if she ventured down. She could rescue him, just like she had before.
Call it fate or sheer luck, but Lacey indeed stumbled upon Landon. She found him huddled in a cave, unconscious and suffering from hypothermia. Landon had escaped any major external wounds, but his minor injuries had become infected without proper care.
Relief washed over Lacey as she spotted him. Tears of joy streamed down her face.
Fate had granted her a second chance to redeem herself. Lacey was aware that Clayton had dispatched search parties to this area for Landon’s body. Seizing the opportunity, she had slipped away unnoticed. Now, she had found Landon before Clayton’s men and, once again, saved his life. Was this a sign that their destinies were still intertwined?
Pushing aside her elation, Lacey set to work treating Landon’s wounds. After what felt like an eternity, Landon finally stirred. His eyes fluttered open. Through his blurry vision, he saw a woman’s silhouette. His first thought was of Leila. But then Landon remembered the death certificate Clayton had shown him before he leaped from the cliff, and his heart sank.
In a fit of despair, he swatted away the woman’s hand.
“Leave me alone!” he growled.
Lacey, caught off guard, stumbled and cried out in pain. Only then did Landon realize his mistake. It wasn’t Leila. As his vision focused, he recognized Lacey.
“Lacey?” he croaked, bewildered.
“What are you doing here?”
Back then, Clayton had pushed Landon to the brink, leaving him with no choice but to jump. In that moment of despair, Landon had felt utterly lost, a dark whisper of surrender tempting him to let go. But as gravity took hold and Landon plummeted toward the jagged rocks below, a surge of terror washed over him. He regretted his decision, clinging to life with a desperate intensity.
Fate, it seemed, had other plans for him. A solitary tree clung to the cliff face, its branches reaching out like gnarled fingers.
In a stroke of luck, Landon managed to grasp one of the branches, his fingers digging into the rough bark.
Landon was weak and injured, so he couldn’t get a good grip on the branches. He slipped through them, his fall only slightly broken. The tree slowed him down a bit, but not by much.
Luckily, it wasn’t the rainy season, so while the river looked rough, the current wasn’t too strong. Before Landon passed out, he managed to drag himself out of the water and onto the riverbank. With the last of his energy, Landon crawled into a hidden cave.
He knew Clayton wanted him dead. And Clayton did send people to look for Landon. But they barely even bothered to search the area below the cliff. They figured that if Landon had fallen from that height, he wouldn’t have survived. There were no bloodstains, so they assumed he’d landed in the river.
Clayton’s men concentrated their search on the river. They scoured the riverbank for miles, both upstream and downstream, but they couldn’t find any sign of Landon. Some of them figured his body must have been swept away by the current. And even if Landon had somehow survived the fall, he wouldn’t have just stayed put.
But Landon did the opposite. He holed up in that cave for five days. He didn’t know when Clayton would give up the search, but he knew one thing: he couldn’t let Clayton find him. He’d rather die than be captured.
If Lacey hadn’t stumbled upon him, he probably wouldn’t have made it. Landon wasn’t sure what Lacey was doing here, but he was grateful she’d found him. As soon as he was strong enough, he thanked her.
“Miss Payne, I didn’t expect to be in your debt again.”
“How can I ever repay you?” he said, his voice rough but sincere.
Lacey met his gaze, her expression unreadable.
“Did you meet the person you came here to see?” she asked, ignoring his question.
Landon’s eyes clouded over, and he remained silent.
Lacey knew instantly that something had gone wrong. A wave of gratitude for Leila washed over her. She was grateful for Leila’s coldness. If Leila had returned Landon’s affections, she wouldn’t have been here with him now.
A long-buried hope flickered within Lacey. But remembering Landon’s distant behavior, she quickly tamped down those feelings. Her face became serious.
“I have one request. I want to stay with you. I can be your doctor.”
Landon looked confused, so Lacey quickly explained, “I don’t mean anything romantic or anything like that. I’ve just seen a lot of scary things lately, and I’m worried about my sister and me. You’re powerful and can protect us. If you’re with us, Jeanette and I will be safe.”
Landon thought Lacey’s request made sense. In the past, when he was at the height of his power, many people had come to him offering their services. Lacey wasn’t asking for much.
But Landon still warned Lacey, “A lot of people want me dead. It would be dangerous for you and your sister to be around me.”
Lacey shook her head.
“I’m not scared. I just want to advance my position with your support.”