Filed to story: Seventeen Heartbreaks: When Love Has No Voice
“Fine, then don’t bother showing up around me!” Landon snapped, slamming the ward door as he left.
Steven, who had been standing by Leila’s bedside, sighed. “Ah, Leila, you’re just too laid-back. You should really stand up for yourself more,” he advised softly.
Leila looked at Steven, startled by his bluntness.
“Managing relationships is straightforward, right? Keep him interested, let him fall for you, and then break it off. Who cares if you can’t speak? Your looks are enough,” Steven stated bluntly.
Leila shook her head with vigor.
“What’s to be scared of? He won’t bite!”
Catching her phone, Leila swiftly typed out a message for Steven to read. “I can’t do that. I lose all my dignity around him.”
Steven, not anticipating Leila’s feelings, stared at her message in surprise before impulsively grabbing her phone. He then pulled out his own phone and took a quick snapshot of her text.
“Just rest,” Steven said tersely. With a flick of his wrist, he locked Leila’s phone and tucked it under her pillow. “Get some sleep. You’ll feel refreshed in the morning.”
Leila was stunned by Steven’s action of photographing her message. Before she could question him, he had already left the room.
Meanwhile, Landon received Steven’s message while he was at a lively social event. He had not returned to the golf course after leaving the hospital. Instead, he went straight to another gathering.
With a drink in hand, Landon grew introspective, his mood subdued enough that his companions hesitated to engage him.
Only Sarah, sitting next to Landon, seemed oblivious to his quietude, playfully asking for his help to peel shrimp.
When Landon glanced at the photo from Steven, he was mid-peel on a shrimp.
His eyes locked onto the word “dignity.” Memories flooded back of a dinner with Leila, where shrimp had also been served. Leila had peeled a whole bowl for him, placing it before him with a shy smile. Had he appreciated that gesture at the time?
Regrettably, Landon couldn’t quite recall, or perhaps he refrained from touching anything since he thought Leila’s hands might have been dirty.
“What are you thinking about?” Sarah peered over, trying to catch a glimpse of his phone. “Honey, I still want those crab legs. Can you help me crack them open?”
“If you don’t know how, why not ask a waiter?” Landon suggested, locking his phone and gently brushing Sarah’s hand away as he reached for his drink. A half-peeled shrimp found its way into the trash can.
Sarah recoiled, sinking back into her seat with eyes seething with resentment. It had to be Leila. Ever since Landon had left her standing outside the hotel, a subtle shift had occurred in their relationship. Leila probably interfered somehow. How audacious of that mute to meddle and harbor fantasies about what could transpire between her and Landon!
Seizing the chance to head to the restroom, Sarah dialed a number urgently. “She’s at Grace Hospital today, VIP floor, in a private room. Find a way to get in there and take care of her immediately!”
In the hospital room, Leila clung to Linsey, who was about to settle into the extra bed.
Leila’s fingers flew across her phone keyboard. “You should head home. The nurses are here. I’ll be okay by myself. It’s just a sprained arm. You don’t need to stick around for that.”
“How can I just leave you here by yourself?” Linsey protested, unwilling to leave.
Leila sighed, paused, and then fabricated an excuse, typing it out on her phone. “I’m worried Landon might drop by later.”
As expected, Linsey wavered. “Is he really trying to make amends?”
Earlier that day, when Landon and Leila had gone golfing, Linsey had thought their relationship was on the mend. However, the situation with Sarah had escalated, and Landon had not only ignored it but had also defended Sarah. This had left Linsey feeling let down.
Leila nodded reassuringly, typing out her response. “Don’t worry. I’ve got everything under control.”
“Alright then…” Linsey finally gave in, bombarding Leila with a series of cautions before she left.
But the moment Linsey stepped outside the hospital, doubt crept in. If Landon truly cared, wouldn’t he have shown up sooner? Maybe I’ll leave once he arrives, she thought.
With that thought, Linsey picked up some snacks at a nearby store and headed back to the hospital, planning to use the excuse that she had forgotten her keys to return to Leila’s room.
However, as Linsey emerged from the elevator into the corridor, she spotted a shadowy figure stealthily making his way into Leila’s room. There were only two wards on this level, making it impossible for Linsey to mistake one for the other. She paused briefly and then yelled at the top of her lungs, “What are you up to?”
Linsey hastily dashed toward Leila’s room. She knew Landon wouldn’t lurk about like this. She burst through the door with a forceful kick, but she was too late.
A man was pulling Leila from her bed, his hand clamped around her neck as he dragged her toward the wide-open window. Leila’s upper body was perilously dangling outside, her grip on safety visibly slipping.
“Hold it! Police!” Linsey screamed.
Her voice jolted the man. In his momentary hesitation, Leila lashed out with a forceful kick to his abdomen.
Caught off guard, the man groaned in pain. However, the momentum caused Leila to stagger backward, teetering on the brink of falling from the sixteenth floor-a certain death.
As Linsey sprinted toward Leila, a blur of motion zipped past.
Steven, quicker on his feet, reached the window first. He snatched Leila by her hospital gown and yanked her to safety. They both tumbled onto the floor in a heap.
“Leila! Are you alright? Are you hurt?” Linsey dashed forward, tears streaming down her face, her expression filled with lingering fear.
Silently, Steven rose from the floor and delivered a powerful kick to the lower back of the man in black. He channeled all his strength into the kick, causing a loud crack to echo from the man’s back as the latter fell, immobilized by pain.
Linsey assisted Leila back to her bed, just as the nurses hurried in to tend to her.
Leila’s neck bore bruises from the man’s grip, and her recently set arm had been dislocated again, bringing tears of pain to her eyes.
As Leila’s arm was tended to, Linsey looked at Leila with deep sympathy. “This is all my fault. If I hadn’t left, none of this would have happened.”
Leila shook her head, dismissing the blame.
“It’s that guy’s fault!” Linsey snapped, her voice strained as she approached the injured man and stomped on his head. “Did Sarah send you?”
At this point, Sarah was the only one with the motives to harm Leila.
The man, writhing in agony, only whimpered, offering no information.
Meanwhile, Steven had already made a call to Landon.
When Landon was informed of the attack on Leila, he sprang up and rushed out. But as Landon was leaving, he caught Linsey’s accusation and paused, turning to gaze at Sarah, whose face showed only concern.
“You’re coming with me,” Landon stated firmly to Sarah.
As Sarah and Landon stepped into the room, Linsey burst out with a loud, mocking laugh. “Have you come to make a confession?” She scoffed, her gaze fixed on Sarah with intensity. “Feeling cornered as the other woman, you resorted to hiring someone to eliminate Leila?”
“What… What are you saying? I don’t know anything about this…” Sarah’s voice wavered, her eyes brimming with tears as she stood quivering behind Landon, her complexion turning ashen.
“Oscar-worthy performance,” Linsey mockingly commented and then raised a phone. “A simple phone call will confirm if you were the one who hired this man.”
Linsey pressed a button on the phone, and moments later, Sarah’s phone chimed.
“This is his phone,” Linsey declared, gesturing toward the unconscious man on the floor. “He took the last call from this number. When I called it back, your phone rang. So, Sarah, what’s your explanation?”
“I… I…” Sarah faltered, her complexion ghostly as terror gripped her. Her hands shook violently as she clung to her phone, words failing her.
Landon, stunned, quickly took Sarah’s phone from her trembling hands and answered it.
“Hello?” Landon asked, his voice echoing through the phone in Linsey’s grip.
“You sent someone to kill Leila!” Linsey yelled, her finger jabbing in Sarah’s direction. “I’ve already called the cops! We have undeniable evidence! You’ve orchestrated a murder, and there’s no escaping jail now!”
Linsey’s glare at Landon was intense.
“I really don’t know anything about this…” Sarah’s voice broke into sobs, her distress palpable.
“The evidence is here, plain as day! What can you possibly say to that?” Linsey barked.
Just then, the man sprawled on the floor stirred and cried out, “I’ll confess everything! Just please, don’t let me end up in jail!”