Romans de Lady Ade

LESLIE'S POVMy lips trembled and my tears fell to the ground as I took steps closer to her. I crouched in front of her, a sob escaping my lips. Those familiar hazel eyes, that familiar mole, everything looked older but the same. Yet, she felt so different, so out of touch.“Mum." My voice cracked and my fingers hitched as they trailed the wrinkles on her face. “It's…it's me. Leslie, your daughter. Do you remember me?”She shook her head, the innocence in her eyes childlike. Her hands come up to wipe my tears. "Miss, why are you crying? What makes you so sad?”I broke down and hugged her to my chest, my tears wrecking me. My mum was alive. All these years, she had been locked up in this dark, cold place. All on her own.“I'm sorry," I sobbed. “It's all my fault. I should have found you earlier." I froze when I heard her crying and pulled back. I grabbed her cheeks and panicked. “What's…what's the problem? Are you hurt anywhere?”"Miss, I…I can feel your sadness," she sniffed. “If you

LESLIE’S POVMy hands trembled as I rushed inside the house to grab my phone from my purse. I opened my chat wall with the stranger and unblocked them to send a message, asking them what the message on the paper meant.‘That is exactly what it means. Raine is going to kill your mum tonight. You have to save her before she does that. The basement is connected to her office. Do not miss it or you will live in regret for the rest of your life.’My legs gave out and I collapsed to the floor, everything I've ever believed shattered around me. Why would Raine abduct my mum and keep her captive for years? She wouldn't be so cruel, right?I scrambled to my feet and rushed to the bedroom. Right on the bedside drawer was mum's diary that I never read to the end. I grabbed it and flipped the page until I got to the last entry.‘Mrs Baxter came here to see me today. Even after leaving the job, she still continues to harass me. Her words were scary. She said she was going to make me disappear. I h

SAINT’S POVI pushed the door to the private room open and nodded at the men that stood up to welcome me. I wasn't in the mood to bother with pleasantries so I went straight to the point.“Were you able to find out anything?" I sat down and looked at Aaron. He used to work at Baxter Group as the HR manager before Dad died and handed it over to me so when I was faced with questions, he was the first person I thought of."Yes, President Baxter.” He pushed some stacks of paper to me. "Luckily, I still had these with me. Sixteen to seventeen years ago, Ruby Blackwood worked in Baxter Group as your father's, Shawn Baxter, secretary.”I clenched my hands into fists. “Are you sure about what you're saying?" “Yes. She was his secretary for about a year before she resigned and then disappeared completely,” Aaron said.My eyes darted around, my blood rushing to my ears. I had called him after I spoke with mum yesterday, in disbelief at what she revealed to me. I closed my eyes and replayed our

LESLIE’S POVI turned around and mumbled, fighting against opening my eyes. I heard the door open and some footsteps but I stayed glued to the bed.The girls and I had only fallen asleep in the wee hours of the morning after talking and doing everything we could. I was spent and tired.“She is still sleeping." Even though she was whispering, Selene’s voice still seeped through my sleep.“It's okay. How was she last night?" Oh, that was Saint.“She seemed down when I first saw her but she loosened up later. In fact, she was the happiest. Or was she pretending?" “I don't know. Something was definitely bothering her yesterday but I can't seem to figure it out." “You don't have to worry. She will tell you eventually.”At that point, I was fully awake but I kept my eyes closed. It would be awkward to wake up when they were talking about me."We will leave now,” Saint said and a few seconds later, I felt hands lifting me up. I snuggled against his chest and let out a small sound. My eyes

LESLIE'S POVMy eyes stayed trained out the window as Saint drove into the Baxter compound. I clenched my fists trying to rein in my emotions but it was hard. “Leslie," Saint whispered, as if afraid a notch higher would scare me off and I turned him. “I need to see mum now. Do you want to come with me?" My throat clogged up and I found my head shaking frantically. “I…I'm tired. I would like to go in and rest instead.”"Okay.” He leaned in and kissed my forehead. "Don't sleep off without eating dinner, okay? I won't take too long and come back to make something for us.”I nodded and left the car, waiting by the side until he drove off. I sighed and rose my face to the heavens, the wind blowing my hair out of my face. “This sucks." I breathed out and turned to the house, almost jumping out of my skin when Selene appeared in front of me, her hands stretched out. “Surprise," she laughed as I clutched my chest. "What are you doing?” My voice trembled as I looked around. "Inviting you

SAINT’S POV“What's wrong? Did something happen?" I looked down at her as she ran into my arms, shooting my stress levels to the sky.She shook her head and hugged me tighter but I could still feel her sadness and frustration.I pulled away from her so I could see her face. Leslie was not good at masking her actions so no matter how hard she tried, I could always see through her.“Tell me what happened, Leslie," I urged. "Did someone say something to you?”She pulled away from me and rounded the table to her seat, the sudden distance between us unsettling me. "Everything is fine. I just wanted to hug you. Do I not hug you enough that you think me hugging you signifies that something is wrong?”“That's not—”"Truly, I am fine,” she interrupted and started to gather some files on her table. "I ended a meeting rather abruptly today and I need to fix that now. I will check up on you later.”She came over and kissed me on the cheek before leaving me alone. I sighed as I stood awkwardly in