The Substitute Bride

Melissa asked with anxiety, and couldn't help but to clutch Leila's hands. Uneasiness feeling lingered her, and her senescence worsened it. The evil desire was written all over her face, as she was desperate to make Sheryl disappear in her family.

"Aunt Melissa, tell me. Who does Charles care about most? Who is the person he can't leave without?"

With the abrupt question, Melissa was confused and baffled as to why Leila would ask such questions. However, she began to think about these questions.

Although Charles was her son, Melissa was fully aware of her significance to his life. Worst, the person that her son cared about the most was the one she never favored, making her reluctant to mention her name. It was Sheryl, the woman to whom her son gave immense love and affection. As Charles candidly displayed his feelings, everyone was jealous yet impressed by how he took care of Sheryl.

"His children, of course. He cares about Clark and Shirley very much," Melissa answered, playing safe and denial. Curiously, she waited for Leila's further explanation. The anxiousness inside her didn't subside.

"You're right, Aunt Melissa. The kids are the ones Charles cares about most. Imagine this. Do you think Charles will forgive Sheryl if she loses the children?"

A naughty grin almost ground her teeth with this question. Her smile with lurking viciousness was deceitful. No passerby could tell the wickedness that Leila possessed right away.

In pure disbelief with Leila's question, Melissa looked at her. Her mouth was left open, as she didn't know what to say. Feeling frightened, she was out of words.

"What do you mean, Leila? What are you going to do?" Even though Melissa tried to hide her fears, Leila could see her quivering.

'What a scaredy-cat! This pathetic old woman!' Seeing Melissa's reaction, Leila couldn't help but look down on Melissa. Her disdain towards Melissa grew stronger. Leila hadn't done anything to her, yet it scared Melissa already. Melissa was too coward to kick Sheryl out of the Lu family.

Of course, Leila concealed the disdain she felt towards Melissa. Favorably, hiding feelings was her specialty. After all, Melissa was an alas to her plans to make it successful. She had no choice but to patiently explain, "What I mean is to hire someone to kidnap the children. Then, we will blame Sheryl for it. She is responsible for taking care of the children, especially Clark, but if she loses him, it will be a disaster for her." Melissa was abou

er end of the line, it was a man. Leila met him before she went into prison. They were good friends. The man got caught and went into prison before. Upon hearing his release from prison lately, Leila took advantage of the situation as the man also lacked money. So when she asked him to help her and promised that she would pay him for doing this, he accepted her offer without hesitation.

"Are we going to take action now, babe? My hands are itching for thrill." Hearing the word "babe" from him made Leila sick. Even though she knew that he had a thing for her long ago, she shrugged away disgust thoughts. She decided to make use of his affection and asked him to do her a favor.

Honestly, Leila came up with the plan for a long while. She would still execute it without Melissa's consent, but the risks of getting caught would be high. She also had already asked the man to go to the amusement park to stand by.

"Yes, you can play it by ear now. The little girl is your target. When the kid is alone, it is your chance. And please, do not leave any trace."

"Noted, wait for my good news, honey. And I will be expecting a grand reward later."

Leila didn't respond and hung up the phone. She walked back to Melissa, pretending that nothing had happened.

"Clark and Shirley, did you have fun today? Should we go home now?" Sheryl asked as soon as they sat down on the bench. She waited for the children to get tired before asking them to go home.

"Okay, let's go home. But next time, I want to come here again with Dad. The amusement park was so fun!" Shirley exclaimed while putting her hand on her chest. Her excitement made her even more adorable.