His Real Wedded Bride novel Chapter 1403

Suddenly, Leila changed her mind. She decided not to pick up Shirley and instead said to Benjamin on the phone, "Benjamin, could you please help me take care of this child? I am kind of busy right now and I don't have time in my hands. I will text you what to do later. And please don't make any moves before you hear from me. Of course, your reward will be raised. Thanks for understanding."

Benjamin was puzzled by Leila's words. After all, Leila was dying to find Shirley before and kept calling him for updates from time to time. Now that the girl had been found, Leila wasn't as eager to pick her up. 'What's going on?' Benjamin wondered.

Although Benjamin was confused, he understood the wisdom of silence. He'd better keep his head down and do his work without asking any questions. Besides, Leila promised to offer him more money, so he just said yes.

"Okay, I can help you with that. Just let me know when you are ready to pick up the kid."

Leila wasn't anxious about it at all. Shirley wasn't her biological child. At the very beginning, she might have seemed anxious and worried about Shirley, but that was just a show for Charles.

Now that Charles was suspicious of her and determined to bring her to justice, if Leila brought back his daughter to him, it would give Charles the confidence to put more time and efforts into the investigation.

Leila wouldn't want that to happen. Why would she willingly put herself in jeopardy? Besides, she knew that Shirley was in safe hands now. She wanted to make full use of this opportunity to turn things in her favor.

"I appreciate your help, Benjamin."

After she hung up, Leila lost herself in deep thought. It sounded simple enough to have Benjamin take care of Shirley, but there was always room for accidents. What if Charles found Benjamin? This time, she had to be extremely careful. She could not afford to leave any traces that could lead Charles to her.

Leila furrowed her brows, her face darkened. When she turned around, her body jerked in surprise, not knowing how to react. Her anxiety was obvious.

Standing behind her back was Melissa, who just happened to come downstairs to get some stuff. When she heard Leila talking, she followed the sound of her voice, to check up on her. Leila's odd reaction convinced Melissa that she was hiding something from her.

Leila was so focused on the phone that she failed to notice Melissa standing behind her this whole time.

Melissa narrowed her eyes and studied Leila from head to toe, which made Leila anxious.

"Leila, what happened? I can see that something is bothering you," Melissa asked Leila indifferently, her gaze fixated, eager to find some clues on Leila's face.

Leila averted her gaze, trying her best to remain calm. She would have comfortably told a lie and easily fool Melissa any other day. But this time was different. Melissa had already caught on to her anxiety.

"Nothing, Aunt Melissa. It's just…I just got home and I need some time to adjust myself. It's really nothing to worry about." Leila managed to fake a smile, trying really hard to convince Melissa that nothing was wrong.

"Really?" However, Melissa didn't buy into Leila's words at all.

"Leila, if something is wrong, you should come to me first. I am concerned about you. If you get mixed up in something bad again, I don't know what I could do." Melissa's words carried subtle implications. She was talking about Sheryl, who was bed-ridden in the hospital because of Leila.

"Thank you for your concern, Aunt Melissa. If I need your help, I will come to you straightaway. I was just being absent-minded. I guess that's what made you misunderstand me."

Leila was lying through her teeth. She had made up her mind not to tell Melissa anything about Shirley.

On the one hand, she couldn't trust Melissa as they weren't in the same boat anymore. After all, Shirley was Melissa's biological grandchild. What if Melissa made a slip of the tongue or decided to double-cross her? On the other hand, Leila wasn't exactly sure about how to deal with Shirley yet. She knew that she couldn't keep her in Benjamin's custody forever. Leila needed time to come up with a thorough plan.

"Fine, then. Everything is good with you I guess." Melissa was certain that Leila was hiding something from her. But since Leila didn't want to tell her, Melissa stopped questioning her, as she saw no point in doing so. If something bad had really happened, it would be Leila's fault and none of Melissa's concern.

Melissa went back to the living room to watch her favorite soap operas on television, but she couldn't help but think about Leila. Melissa was clueless, but she wasn't a fool. She could sense the unease on Leila's face from a mile away, which upset her because Melissa treated Leila as a real friend, but clearly, Leila felt differently about her.

Leila fidgeted on her feet, like she had ants in her pants, tucking a strand of her disarray hair behind her ears a few times. Finding Shirley didn't turn out to be as good news as she had expected. It was more like a hot potato.

Even if Leila did return Shirley to the Lu family, she couldn't erase Charles' suspicion about her or change the way he thought about her, especially Sheryl. Leila was almost certain that Sheryl knew it was her. Otherwise, Sheryl wouldn't have said such things about her to Charles.

If Leila's guess was right, she had really underestimated Sheryl before.

Leila was in a terrible dilemma now. Just as she was mulling over what to do with Shirley, her phone started ringing and Sheryl's name popped up on the screen. Leila hesitated, unable to decide whether to answer the call or not.

Her phone kept ringing and eventually, Leila answered the call.

"Hello, Sheryl. What's up?" Leila said indifferently.

"Leila, let's get straight to the point. I know you know where Shirley is. Return her to me."

Sheryl's calm and collected voice blew Leila's mind.

Suffice it to say, Leila was startled by the suddenness and certainty of Sheryl's claims.

"Sheryl, I am sure there has been a misunderstanding. I don't know where Shirley is. How can I return her to you?" Leila denied it at once, acting like she knew nothing.

"Leila, stop playing games. I know the truth. If you don't want to give back Shirley to me, that's fine. Anyway, I will tell Charles that it was you who tried to strangle me that night."

Leila had been expected to hear this from Sheryl, so she calmly said, "Sheryl, that's a serious accusation. Please mind your words. I have done no such thing. I have a clear conscience."

"Clear conscience? Leila, how can you do that, lying without feeling even the slightest bit of shame?"

"You don't have any evidence, Sheryl. So please stop saying that." No matter what Sheryl said, Leila denied it. 'She doesn't have a shred of evidence, ' Leila thought to herself.

Sheryl's next words, however, frightened Leila out of her wits.

"Leila, think about it carefully. How would I know it was you if I didn't have any evidence?"

Sheryl smiled coldly and continued, "I'll give you one day to reconsider your options. Otherwise, I will show Charles all the evidence. To tell you the truth, I would have presented them to the police long ago if it wasn't for Shirley."