The Night I Left, He Turned Grey

Sean Sinclair was busy all night.

Busy bailing out his sister.

Busy hiding it from his parents.

In the end, he couldn’t keep it from them. Once Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair found out, they rushed to the police station that very night. When they saw their daughter, her eyes swollen like walnuts from crying, and learned it was all because of Leila Jennings, they cursed her from head to toe.

"Dad, Mom, why are you here?"

"Your brother tried to hide this from us. Thankfully, Sarah secretly told us."

"Boohoohoo... Mom, Dad, and Sarah are the ones who are good to me." ’Sarah was willing to go behind her brother’s back and tell Mom and Dad to save me,’ Cecilia thought. ’No matter what, I’ll never reveal that she was involved too.’

Facing her parents, Cecilia didn’t stick to her story about being framed. She told them everything, except for Sarah Lynch’s involvement.

She knew this was the only way her parents could help her.

Mrs. Sinclair jabbed her daughter’s forehead and scolded her in a hushed tone, "How could you? And at a hotel owned by the Cole Group, of all places! Any other hotel would have been fine; they would have done your brother a favor. But the Cole Family doesn’t do favors for anyone."

Every time Mrs. Sinclair remembered being humiliated by Ms. Neville at Eden Restaurant, she seethed with anger. ’Just because she was born into a better family and married well, what’s there to be so arrogant about?’

Mr. Sinclair, however, asked, "Is there a record of you buying that drug?"

"I bought it from a private seller, we never even met." Cecilia shook her head. "There’s no record of the purchase."

"What about the man you arranged to be with Leila Jennings?" Mr. Sinclair immediately asked. "He didn’t stay in the room?"

"No. For some reason, he came back down not long after going in. When we went up later, the whole room was flooded with cold water," Cecilia answered earnestly, clinging to her mother’s arm.

Mr. Sinclair considered this for a moment. "Then he must have gone into the wrong room, realized his mistake, and left. Your only mistake was not closing the door properly. Do you understand?"

"But I did close it properly," Cecilia said, not understanding at first.

Mrs. Sinclair glared at her. "You foolish girl, listen to your father. If he says you didn’t close it properly, then you didn’t."

"Oh," Cecilia said as it finally dawned on her.

Mr. Sinclair comforted his daughter, "Don’t worry. I’ll have someone find that man and tell him he just went to the wrong room. There’s no downside for him. If there’s no evidence, they have to release you after twenty-four hours."

"What? I have to stay here for twenty-four hours?" Cecilia whined, shaking her father’s arm. "Dad, I don’t want to be here that long."

"I know." A worried expression crossed Mr. Sinclair’s face. "Getting out doesn’t mean you’re in the clear. If Leila Jennings and The Cole Crest Hotel insist on pursuing this, it’s going to be a long fight."

Mrs. Sinclair said furiously, "That Leila Jennings! She’s already on her way out, and she still has to take a bite out of us."

"On her way out?" Cecilia asked. "Where is she going?"

"Nowhere important." Mrs. Sinclair dodged the question and instead warned her, "Don’t you dare tell your brother about what happened tonight. Keep your mouth shut. Your brother has feelings for Leila Jennings, and they run deep."

Cecilia pouted. "I know."

Mr. Sinclair said, "You go find Leila Jennings and get her to drop the charges against Cecilia. As for the Cole Group, our son can’t handle them alone. I need to go find someone to help."

The two of them went their separate ways.

Mrs. Sinclair called her son to ask where Leila Jennings was.

When Sean Sinclair found out his parents knew, he stiffened, then said immediately, "Mom, Leila’s not feeling well. Please don’t go bother her."

"Since Cecilia is innocent, there’s nothing to worry about. I’ll handle this."

Furious, Mrs. Sinclair hung up.

’So it’s true what they say. Once a man gets a wife, he forgets his own mother.’

’He won’t even listen to his own mother anymore.’

’He protects Leila Jennings like she’s some precious treasure, day in and day out, little does he know she’s about to divorce him!’

Mrs. Sinclair then called Sarah Lynch.

Sarah Lynch said, "Mrs. Sinclair, Sean told me not to say anything."

"Sarah, I won’t tell him."

"Alright, then." Sarah Lynch’s voice was full of feigned reluctance, but a smile touched her lips. "Leila Jennings is at the Dalton Clinic."

Once she had the address, Mrs. Sinclair rushed over immediately.

After a frantic half-night, dawn was breaking.

Leila Jennings’s internal clock woke her as usual. Madam Dalton, who had been by her side, had woken up much earlier and was already up and about.

She pushed open the window.

After a good rest, she felt completely refreshed.

Thankfully, she had managed to lock herself in the bathroom yesterday. And thankfully, Nathaniel Cole had shown up.

Otherwise, she very likely would have drowned.

Leila Jennings felt a surge of gratitude toward Nathaniel Cole. She pulled out her phone to thank him again, only to find the battery was dead and she didn’t have a charger. She decided not to worry about it for now.

"Morning, Jennings."

It was Caleb Dalton.

"Morning, Dr. Dalton. Where’s Madam Dalton?"

"Probably in the backyard, drying herbs." Caleb Dalton stepped closer. "How are you feeling?"

"Completely refreshed," Leila Jennings replied succinctly.

Caleb Dalton nodded. "That’s good. I need to report back to President Cole."

"Why?" Leila Jennings asked, confused.

"I’m President Cole’s private physician. He’s the one who called me in to work overtime last night. My assignment was to treat you, so whether you’re better or not, I have to report back to him." With that, Caleb Dalton stepped aside.

Just as Leila Jennings was about to head to the backyard to find Madam Dalton, a familiar voice rang out from the entrance.

"Is Leila Jennings here?"

The disgruntled tone made it clear they were looking for trouble.

Caleb Dalton looked back.

Leila Jennings did as well.

When Mrs. Sinclair saw Leila Jennings, she strode in arrogantly. Noticing others were present, she decided against making a public spectacle of herself.

"Leila Jennings, come out here. I need to talk to you."

"Are you here about Cecilia?" Leila Jennings’s face was cold. "Whatever it is, I refuse."

"I haven’t even said anything, and you’re already refusing?"

"When it comes to Cecilia this time, I refuse to agree to anything."

Mrs. Sinclair’s eyes widened. "Leila Jennings! Cecilia is your sister, too! You and Sean haven’t even gotten your divorce certificate..." 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"My sister is an orphan." Leila Jennings cut her off. In her four years with the Sinclair Family, Cecilia’s malicious pranks had been endless, and Sean’s refrain was always the same: "Cecilia is still young. She’s your sister, too."

Even though it wasn’t Sean saying it this time, hearing those words from any member of the Sinclair Family made her sick.

"So, may I ask, when are you two planning to die?"

"What..." Mrs. Sinclair was so shocked she was speechless. ’How could Leila Jennings be so utterly impudent!’

"Y-y-y-you... You’re going to be struck by lightning for saying that, you know that?"

"Cecilia is the one who’s always calling me an orphan, and even insults my friends by calling them orphans. If you insist on her being my sister, then I must ask, when are you two going to..."

"Don’t you dare!" Mrs. Sinclair said, flustered and furious. "If you say those two words again, this won’t be over!"

Leila Jennings looked completely unfazed.

In the past, she had respected them. In the past, she had silently endured her grievances in the Sinclair household. She did it because she loved Sean, believed he loved her too, and didn’t want to put him in a difficult position.

But the past was the past. This was now.

"Leila Jennings! Don’t you want your divorce papers anymore? If you don’t let Cecilia off the hook this time, we will never finalize the divorce!"