Filed to story: Seventeen Heartbreaks: When Love Has No Voice
Furthermore, Sophie felt upset about not having her father around.
Sophie needed love and support from both her mother and father as she grew up.
With Leila’s steadfast encouragement and protection, Sophie had always felt valued and never inferior.
However, Leila had noticed Sophie seemed sad occasionally. Therefore, she didn’t refuse Landon. “I’ll take you to see her, but heed my warning. If you are not genuinely fond of her and fail to treat her well, I would prefer you to keep your distance. She is my bottom line. Do you understand?”
Her gaze was as cold as ice, devoid of any warmth.
Seeing this side of her, Landon felt a complex swirl of emotions. She had grown up. She was no longer the quiet girl who silently followed him and was constantly bullied.
Landon gave a solemn nod. “Understood.” He offered no flowery reassurances. His true intentions were revealed through his actions, which spoke louder and truer than any words ever could.
Sophie was at kindergarten today.
Leila glanced at her watch, noting that the class was still in session. She decided to take Landon and wait by the gate.
Two hours later, the final bell rang, and most of the children had already been picked up. However, Sophie was nowhere in sight.
Leila’s heart raced with worry. She hurried inside and approached the teacher, who was still in the classroom. The teacher looked puzzled when she heard Leila’s question. “Are you Sophie’s mother?”
Leila’s frown deepened. “What do you mean? Are you saying someone took her pretending to be me?”
The teacher was momentarily at a loss for words. She hesitated, then quickly retrieved Leila’s information and carefully cross-checked the details. It was only after this comparison that the realization hit her-Leila was indeed Sophie’s mother.
A wave of panic swept over the teacher. “You’ve never shown up before, and it has always been an elderly man who picks up Sophie. But today, a well-dressed woman arrived, claiming to be Sophie’s mother. I didn’t know what she said to Sophie to make Sophie leave with her. I really believed she was Sophie’s mother!”
Landon’s frustration was evident as he asked, “The kindergarten should have kept a record of the phone numbers for the parents who pick up their children daily. Did you even try calling the elderly man?”
The teacher fidgeted and stammered, “I was overwhelmed at the time. You see, some parents don’t always have time to pick up their kids themselves. They sometimes ask the teachers to help out. I can’t take care of all the children at the same time.”
Leila took a deep breath, steadying herself. “Even so, you should have asked a few more questions. But I’m not here to make things difficult for you. If you want to make it right, the least you can do is give us a clear description of the woman who took my daughter away.”
The teacher gave a grateful nod and dipped her head slightly toward Leila. “Thank you so much. I’ll review the surveillance footage immediately.”
Meanwhile, Sophie was taken to an apartment by the well-dressed woman.
Sophie’s large eyes sparkled with intelligence. As soon as Sophie and the woman entered the room, a chubby little boy darted out.
Sophie pulled her hand away from the woman, planted her hands on her hips, and said seriously, “You said you wanted to apologize to me face-to-face. Well, here I am. Let’s get this over with. My mother is waiting for me at home.”
The little boy burst out laughing, his face twisted with malice. “Did you really fall for what my mother told you? What a fool!”
Sophie frowned, her eyebrows knitting together. “What do you mean? Did you lie to me?”
Growing impatient, the woman shoved Sophie aside and said, “She is just a troublesome girl. I had to go there all because of her.”
The little boy chuckled and said, “Mom, I like her. How about we keep her as my servant?”
The woman’s harsh expression softened in an instant. “Oh, you’re such a sweet boy. If that’s what you want, then it’s settled. You’re so kind to come up with this proposal.”
Sophie could hardly believe what she was hearing. “You are breaking the law! The police are going to arrest you for this!”
The woman let out a mocking laugh as if Sophie had just told the most ridiculous joke.
The woman pinched Sophie’s face hard. Sophie’s delicate skin immediately turned red and swollen.
The woman sneered, her voice dripping with arrogance, “Go ahead and call the police. You think I’m afraid? Let me tell you something. My family has a backer. And you? You’ve only got your grandfather, and by the looks of it, your grandfather is not exactly rolling in money. I don’t think a little girl like you has what it takes to put us behind bars. If you don’t want your grandfather to get hurt, you’d better behave. Got it?”
The last words carried a clear threat, the tone sharp and menacing.
Sophie quickly grasped the situation. It was clear they had no idea who her mother was or the power her mother held.
Sophie decided to play along for the moment. She feigned fear, her voice trembling as she asked, “You say you’re really powerful, but who’s backing you? Someone stronger than the police?”
The woman’s face lit up with smug satisfaction. She laughed, clearly enjoying the moment. “Let me tell you something. My son is part of the Kensington family. You’re in over your head, little girl. From now on, you’ll be doing whatever my son needs. You should be grateful we brought you here.”
The little boy came running over, grabbing the woman’s hand as he spoke in a soft, whiny voice. “Mom, I think this girl is very pretty. I want her to be my wife when I grow up.”
The woman beamed at her son, patting his head affectionately. “My dear boy, she’s from a poor family. She is not worth much more than a toy for you. Someone like her doesn’t even deserve to be by your side when she’s older.”
The little boy puffed out his chest, arrogance radiating from him.
Sophie, however, remained silent, her cold gaze fixed on the duo. These two fools had no idea what was coming. She knew her mother would make sure they regretted this.
The woman, clearly pleased with herself, suddenly shoved Sophie hard, causing Sophie to stumble.
The woman yelled, “Get in the kitchen and learn to cook! My son can’t be eating just my food forever. And don’t forget, you’ll need to call your grandfather and tell him you’re doing just fine. Behave, and maybe I’ll let you keep going to school with my son. But if you step out of line, you know what’ll happen.”
Sophie stared at the pair, their menacing expressions meant to intimidate. But instead of resisting, she put on an act, pretending to be meek as she obediently headed toward the kitchen.
Just then, the front door opened, and a man stepped inside.
The woman and the little boy rushed to greet the man with exaggerated joy.
The boy shouted, “Daddy!” The woman called out, “Honey!”
Curious, Sophie turned to see who this “important” man was. To her surprise, he didn’t look anything like the powerful figure they had described. His beard was unkempt, and his eyes had a dull, lifeless quality to them. But as soon as the man’s eyes landed on Sophie, they widened in shock.
Without hesitation, the man strode over and grabbed Sophie’s hand, his disbelief evident.
Dean’s voice was a bit frantic as he asked, “Who is this? What’s going on here?”
The woman stepped forward with a saccharine smile. “She’s a girl from the same kindergarten as our son. She offended him somehow, but our boy is so generous that he doesn’t hold grudges. He said he wanted her to have a good life, so I brought her home.”
The reason behind Dean’s disdain was more complicated than he let on. Sophie’s face was an eerie echo of Leila’s when Leila was a child, stirring memories Dean had long tried to bury.
Now, in the throes of middle age, Dean’s life was a shadow of what he had once imagined. He had killed his mother and framed Landon.
But instead of facing his own failures, Dean had convinced himself that Landon was to blame for everything. In his twisted logic, if Landon had just relinquished control of the Kensington Group, none of this would have happened. It was easier for Dean to project his anger onto Landon, and by extension, to despise Leila.
Dean had heard that Leila had returned to the Nixon family and was thriving. She had even opened an auction house, where, to his dismay, that fool had suffered a loss at Leila’s hands.
Sophie was a spitting image of Leila as a child, a resemblance that both unsettled and infuriated Dean. As long as this girl wasn’t Leila’s daughter, Dean saw no reason not to unleash his pent-up rage on Sophie.
Without warning, Dean raised his hand and hurled a porcelain bottle to the floor.
The sharp sound of it shattering echoed through the room as the bottle exploded into pieces right in front of Sophie.
Sophie jumped, startled, as shards of porcelain flew toward her, one of them grazing her delicate face and drawing blood.
The pain was immediate, and Sophie instinctively covered her bleeding cheek.
Dean’s lips curled into a smug smile as he grabbed her hand, his tone dripping with malice. “You idiot! Why are you just standing here after breaking this? Clean up this mess!”
But Sophie wasn’t one to back down easily. Despite the pain, she shot back, “You clean it up! You broke it, not me. This isn’t my fault.”
Dean’s face twisted in anger, “You little brat! How dare you talk back to me?”
Fueled by the alcohol he’d consumed earlier, Dean’s temper flared. He swung his hand with all his might, slapping Sophie hard across the face.
The force of the blow sent Sophie reeling, and she fell to the floor, landing directly on the broken shards. The jagged pieces cut into her skin, and blood quickly stained her clothes.
But as Sophie lay there, hurt and bleeding, Dean felt nothing but satisfaction, a twisted pleasure in seeing her suffer.