Chapter 329 I'll Help You
Adeline froze, her mind racing. Linda's mention of the "love letter" brought back a flood of bad memories.
That night, after taking a drunk Linda home, Gabriel had confronted her, waving the letter around. He snapped a picture, smirking, then tossed it into the fire.
The next day, Linda's world fell apart.
Adeline never knew what was in that letter. The shock had wiped Linda's memory clean of what she wrote.
Now, Linda claimed she remembered.
"David," Linda interrupted Adeline's thoughts, staring at him. "Can I have a moment alone with Adeline?"
David nodded and signaled Benjamin, who was handling Linda's wheelchair.
Benjamin, their caretaker, quickly stepped back with a nod.
David pulled out a pack of cigarettes, then hesitated, glancing at Linda. He put them away and gave Adeline a hard look.
"This floor is clear," he said firmly. "Just you two. Say what you need to. You're safe."
David looked deeply at Adeline and said, "Take care of her."
Then he walked to the elevator, leaving Adeline and Linda alone in the quiet hallway.
As the elevator doors closed, Linda took a shaky breath and turned to Adeline, looking both scared and determined.
"The letter," she whispered. "It was about..."
Adeline put a comforting hand on Linda's arm, stopping her. "You wrote that you knew the real Evelyn, right? That she's actually Stella, Jasper's wife."
Linda's eyes widened in shock. "You knew?"
"I figured it out," Adeline said, regret in her voice. "I never saw the letter, but I pieced it together."
She started pushing Linda's wheelchair down the hallway, thinking back to what happened after Gabriel's reveal.
The Quinn family, learning about the letter, had risked Jasper's anger to silence Linda. They desperately wanted to keep that info hidden.
What they feared most was exposing Stella's true identity.
The woman posing as Evelyn probably didn't commit suicide. Someone of her status would have known the real Evelyn. Morris, in desperation, silenced her, staging it as a suicide to protect his family's secrets.
Then they targeted Linda, trying to tie up loose ends.
"Linda," Adeline whispered, guilt heavy in her voice. "I'm so sorry. If I hadn't come back to Neon City, if we hadn't reconnected..."
She couldn't finish. Linda wouldn't be in this mess if it weren't for her.
Linda shook her head, a sad smile on her lips. "You found me, Adeline. But I could have ignored you. I could have pretended I didn't remember the letter, kept it to myself."
She looked out the window, eyes empty. "This was my choice. My fate. I was destined to be played by a monster like Zavier, to endure this torment."
She lowered her head, her hand resting on her still-flat stomach. "Destined to carry this... this devil's child."
Adeline's heart ached for her friend. She crouched down in front of Linda, taking her hand. "Linda, be honest. Do you really not want this child?"
Linda closed her eyes, a tear slipping down her cheek. She nodded slowly, her resolve firm.
"Every time I feel it move," she whispered, her voice choked with pain, "I'm reminded of that night. The terror, the violation..."
"There were so many of them, Adeline. Five, maybe six. Each one..."
She couldn't continue. The memory was too horrific, the pain too raw.
"I don't even know whose child it is," she finally whispered, her voice trembling. "I can't bring myself to love it. It's a constant reminder of everything I've lost, everything I've endured."
She took a shuddering breath, meeting Adeline's eyes with a desperate plea. "You've had three children, Adeline. You understand, don't you? Even if I kept it, I could never truly love it. It would grow up knowing its father was a criminal, and its mother's heart is held only resentment."
"It would be a tragedy, Adeline. A life forever tainted by the past."
She straightened, her voice gaining strength. "The doctors, the nurses, they all tell me to keep it. They say another abortion could leave me infertile, that it could even kill me."
"But I don't care anymore, Adeline. I can't live like this, haunted by this... this thing inside me."
"They say it'll have a heartbeat soon. That it'll be a real life. But I have to do this, Adeline. Before it's too late."
Linda's words hung heavy in the air, each syllable filled with raw, desperate longing for release. Adeline understood her pain, even if she couldn't fully grasp the depths of her suffering.
If this child was destined to be a constant source of pain and trauma for Linda, then maybe it was kinder to let it go before it truly entered the world.
"But Linda," Adeline said, her voice filled with concern, "are you prepared to risk your own life to get rid of it?"
"Yes," Linda breathed, her gaze unwavering.
A flicker of desperation crossed her face. "But David won't allow it. He'll never agree. And even if I escaped, no hospital in Neon City would perform the procedure, not in my condition."
"He'd find me, Adeline. He'd bring me back. I'll never be free..."
Her voice cracked, the weight of her despair threatening to crush her. "Maybe death is the only escape."
"I'll help you," Adeline stated, her voice firm with resolve. She stood up, meeting Linda's gaze with unwavering support. "If this is what you truly want, I'll convince David."
"Really?" Linda whispered, a flicker of hope in her eyes.
"Yes," Adeline affirmed.
"Interesting."
A cold, sardonic voice cut through the air, sending a chill down Adeline's spine.
Jasper stood leaning casually against the wall, arms crossed, a mocking smile on his lips. He had been there all along, an unseen observer to their conversation.
"David brings you here to convince Linda to keep the child," he drawled, his gaze piercing. "And now you're planning to convince him to do the opposite?"
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