The Substitute Bride

"Fine! Leila, listen to me, if you let my mother go, I assure you that you're going to be safe!" Charles began to back down slowly. The only thing that mattered to him was Melissa's safety, even if that meant letting Leila go. Nothing else mattered to him right now.

"Guess what, Charles? I don't believe you. You're my enemy now, why should I trust you? I know for a fact that I'm not getting out of this one. But if anything happens to me, I assure you that Melissa's going to die. So keep your word. Don't lie to me. I haven't even shown you half of what I'm capable of yet!" Leila shouted hysterically at Charles. She was trying to intimidate him by threatening him.

"Okay, okay! I promise! Hey, get out of the way! Let her through!" Charles barked an order to his men to let Leila pass. He was frowning as he was frustrated by what had happened.

His men began to scatter and made a path for Leila. Everyone was very nervous as they feared that Melissa might get caught in the middle of this.

They all knew that Melissa was Charles' mother, and therefore, most important to him. Should anything happen to her, Charles would hold them all accountable, and they didn't want that to happen.

Leila, on the other hand, was holding Melissa as her hostage and edging towards the exit while Charles, followed by his bodyguards, kept backing down. The bodyguards were all on high alert and ready to take Leila down once Charles gave the order.

All the while, Charles did his best to talk to Leila in an attempt to distract her so that his men could get a hold of Melissa and get her away from Leila. From there, they could finally take Leila down.

Leila, meanwhile, was still a bit overwhelmed as this was the first time that Charles had spoken so much. She was feeling so many things. For a split second, she had her hand away from Melissa's neck.

"Now!" Charles shouted, and his bodyguards instantly moved in and put Leila on the ground, while Charles pulled Melissa away from Leila.

Melissa was still in shock. She looked at Charles with tears welling up in her eyes, while her entire body was shaking involuntarily.

"Mom, it's fine. You're safe!" Charles patted Melissa on her back to calm her down. She still looked so scared and worried.

Leila was pinned down on the ground by one of Charles' bodyguards. This was the end of the line for her now.

"No! Charles, please let me go! I promise I'll leave you alone!" Leila tried her best to lift her head to look at Charles while begging for his mercy.

Melissa grew angry upon hearing this. 'How dare she ask for mercy after all the horrible things she's done!' she thought inwardly. With this in mind, Melissa briskly walked toward Leila and pulled her up to her feet. Then she mustered all her

ake sure you die a horrible death, and that's a promise I'm willing to keep. Mark my words!" Charles then forcefully pushed her out of his way and left.

Leila knew there was nothing else she could do. She was surrounded by Charles' bodyguards. There was no escaping for her now.

When she thought of her experiences in prison, she recoiled as she didn't want to go back there again. All the color in her face had drained. She desperately looked for a way out, but she was completely surrounded.

Leila felt as if her world was falling apart. She slowly backed away. Soon, she was on the edge of the roof.

The bodyguards didn't know what she was doing. They asked her, "What the hell are you doing?"

"You're not taking me back! I'd rather die than go to prison! Not again!" Leila then began to laugh. She laughed so hard that she almost seemed crazy. Her laughter sounded desperate and miserable.

The bodyguards began to move in around her, as they feared that she might jump off the roof.

When they started to move closer, Leila wanted to jump. However, when she saw how high it was, she faltered. If she jumped, she'd turn into a bloody pulp, and that was a horrible way to die.

Leila didn't want to die ugly. Most of her life, she'd wanted to be pretty and fabulous. If she was going to die, she was going to make sure she retained her beauty.

Just as Leila was contemplating this, the bodyguards thought she was going to make a run for it, so they swooped in and tried to get a hold of her.

Leila was so shocked by their sudden movement that she slipped right off the rooftop!

"Ahhhhhh......"

Everyone froze in shock as no one saw this coming.

Charles had just made it to the ground floor when he heard a scream that sounded like it came from above. Then a thud came. A woman's broken body lay in front of him.