Filed to story: Seventeen Heartbreaks: When Love Has No Voice
Cara let out a chilling laugh, her eyes devoid of fear. “Go ahead and kill me. Remember, Elma is our daughter and she will stay with me. The Morgan family practically rules this place. You won’t have Elma’s custody and can’t possibly get rid of me.”
Landon’s fingers tightened around her throat, cutting off her air supply.
Cara’s face contorted in pain, her eyes bulging.
The crowd around them remained oblivious, lost in their own conversations and laughter.
The loud music only amplified the chilling scene, casting an eerie glow over Cara’s struggling form.
Landon’s distaste for Cara grew. Finally, with a heavy sigh, he loosened his grip and let her go.
Cara clutched her throat, coughing violently, but still managed a smile at Landon. She was provoking him.
Landon took a deep breath, his fists clenched. The veins in his arms bulged. He couldn’t leave Elma behind, especially since Cara was far from a good mother. He knew she wasn’t bluffing and could go through with her threats.
Clayton was usually reasonable but would definitely side with Cara if the situation escalated.
Landon remained skeptical about Cara’s claim of their marriage and parenting a child before he lost his memory.
Cara got up from the floor and latched onto him, her grip shameless. She whispered in his ear like a ghost, “If you don’t want Elma to suffer, tell me who that woman was.”
Landon sighed. “I really don’t know her. She was being bullied and came to me for help. Can you cut it out, Cara?”
Cara wouldn’t back down. “You don’t know her, but you let her get close to you. You never let me do that!”
Landon looked at her with an icy stare. “While I don’t want to be close to you, I don’t mind others’ closeness. Maybe you should think about why I keep pushing you away.”
Cara gritted her teeth in frustration. Knowing she wasn’t going to get an answer, she softened her voice. “Fine, I won’t push it.
Elma’s been missing you at home. Can you come home with us tonight? If you insist on staying here, I’ll bring Elma to see you. She can ask you herself.”
Frustrated, Landon conceded. “Fine, I’ll go back with you.”
Cara beamed, a triumphant glint in her eyes. She led Landon out of the bar.
The Morgan family’s sleek car was waiting for them. That man who had harassed Leila moments ago was lurking nearby, sucking up to the Morgan family butler.
The man’s eyes lit up when he saw Cara emerge. He rushed toward her, practically yelling, “Miss Morgan! You gotta help me!”
Cara, riding high on Landon’s concession, thrilled that he was finally coming home, scowled at the man’s sudden appearance. “What the hell is going on?”
The man grinned, assuming Cara would definitely help him. However, his smile faded as he recognized Landon, the one who had challenged him and defended Leila.
The man faltered and could barely sputter out a word.
Cara’s patience snapped. She shot a withering look at the butler hovering nearby. “Is your nephew an idiot? Can’t he even form a coherent sentence?”
The butler scurried over, shooting a disapproving glare at the man. Then, he turned back to Cara with a slimy grin.
“He’s just a bit flustered to be in your presence, Miss Morgan.”
The butler assumed his nephew was too flustered to speak, so he jumped in to explain. “Here’s the deal. My nephew was minding his own business at the bar when that woman came on to him, strong.
When he turned her down, her friend jumped in and started mouthing off. Her friend even arrogantly declared his lack of fear of the Morgan family! It is well-known that the Morgan family is not to mess with, since even the mayor sucks up to them.
But the woman’s friend? Such arrogance!”
Cara let out a cold laugh. She was used to getting her way, and the thought of someone dissing the Morgan family pissed her off.
“That woman is shameless!” she spat. “Get the bodyguards to surround the bar. Your nephew can point them out. I wanna see who’s got the balls to disrespect the Morgan family.”.
The butler beamed, nudging his nephew.
But the nephew’s face had gone pale, sweat beading on his forehead.
“What’s wrong with you?” the butler hissed at him. “Miss Morgan’s offering to help! Take it and hurry up! She doesn’t usually get involved in this kind of stuff.”
Cara lifted her chin, looking down at the butler. “I’m only doing this because you’ve been loyal to the Morgan family. Now hurry up. I need to get home with Landon.”
Landon suddenly burst out laughing. He stepped forward, stopping in front of the butler’s nephew. The nephew practically vibrated with fear.
“Don’t bother looking for them. The guy in question, the one who disrespected the Morgan family, is me. Got a problem with that?” Landon said. “He was harassing a woman at the bar. I wasn’t just going to stand there and watch.”
There was an immediate, deafening silence.
Cara’s smile vanished. She couldn’t believe her ears.
The butler snapped out of it first. He whacked his nephew upside the head. “You idiot! What the hell have you done?”
The nephew practically vibrated with fear. “I didn’t know it was him…” he stammered.
Cara’s chest heaved with fury. “So, the woman you risked your neck for was the one he was harassing?” she shrieked. “Why the hell do you care so much about that woman, Landon?”
Landon raised an eyebrow, not giving a damn about what Cara thought. “So what?” he retorted.
Cara was seeing red. How dare Landon say that? He was humiliating her, making her look like a fool in front of everyone. It was like he wanted the whole world to know she meant nothing to him.
Cara exploded. She slapped the nephew hard across the face, her anger boiling over. “Why the hell were you harassing that woman? Are you insane?” she screamed.
The butler was shaking like a leaf. He tried to calm Cara down, but she slapped him too.
Cara lashed out, hitting and kicking them both. Landon just gave them a cold, hard look. Then, he got in the car and told the driver to get moving.
The driver hesitated, glancing at Cara, who was still going ballistic outside.
“Just drive!” Landon growled. “Don’t worry about her. She’s a Morgan. Someone will take her home.” He was just going back to the Morgan family as she wished, after all. She couldn’t complain about that.
The whole scene left Cara feeling even more humiliated and furious.
Everyone in the Morgan family knew Cara had a nasty temper and liked to throw her weight around. The butler and his nephew were on the receiving end of her wrath, but they didn’t dare say a word.
By the time the car pulled away, Cara was worn out from all the hitting. She felt like bursting into tears.
Yet, Cara blinked back the tears stinging her eyes. She refused to let them fall, not in front of these people.
The bitterness in her heart was a suffocating weight, but she swallowed it down. She wasn’t ready to give up on Landon, not after all this time.
The thought of losing everything, of ending up with nothing, was unbearable. She’d fought tooth and nail for years to get where she was.
Cara took a deep breath, composing herself. She turned her icy gaze on the butler’s nephew. “You got a good look at that woman?” she asked, her voice sharp.
The nephew nodded eagerly. “Yes, ma’am. I’d know her anywhere.”
Cara let out a humorless laugh. “Good,” she said, her eyes narrowing. “Here’s your chance to redeem yourself. Stay here and keep an eye on her. She’ll have to leave eventually. I want you to take a picture of her, discreetly. Then, send it to the butler. You know what to do after that, right?”
The butler nodded, a sinister smile spreading across his face. “Of course, madam. Consider it done. A nuisance like that woman doesn’t deserve to breathe the same air as us.”
Elsewhere, Leila woke up in her own bed, Linsey sleeping soundly beside her.
Leila stared at the ceiling, replaying the encounter with Landon in her mind. Did she imagine things at that time? But it felt so vivid. She could almost still smell Landon’s distinctive scent, a clean, crisp fragrance. But why did he claim not to know her?
Lost in her thoughts, Leila didn’t notice Linsey stirring beside her. “Leila?” Linsey mumbled, her voice thick with sleep.
“You’re finally awake! You scared the hell out of us yesterday. You said you weren’t feeling well and went outside to throw up. I waited for ages, but you didn’t come back. Wayne and I went looking for you and found you passed out on the floor.”