Win My Husband Over to Find My Child
Chapter 226: Nothing Could Excuse Their Act

Chapter 226: Nothing Could Excuse Their Act

T/W: Mention of attempted suicide

----------

"Leslie... I will cherish you and our daughter... May you give me a chance... for us to be a family?"

Calix’s quivering voice relayed to Leslie his ardent wish. He hoped to build a family with her, to give a safe home to Calliope – picking up the pieces of the lost times.

Both of them had lost six years of Calliope’s life despite the situation being out of their hands.

None of them experienced the joy and concern coming from caring for a newborn. They also witnessed nothing of the little one’s growth from a toddler to a preschool age child.

Thus, Calix wanted to make sure neither he nor Leslie experienced such a devastating loss again.

Calliope—their daughter—needed them. Even though she lived happily under the care of the orphanage, her life and future would still be better with her parents.

Now that the truth had come out, Calix was unwilling to waste any more time. As long as Leslie agreed, he would speed up the process and preparation to bring Calliope to live with them.

Calix’s genuine sincerity entranced Leslie. Not realizing how her eyes brightened, she repeatedly nodded, quickly agreeing with Calix.

"Y-yes! You may... you may, Calix..."

She could live with her daughter!

They wouldn’t ever be separated again!

Leslie’s beaming countenance brought a smile to Calix’s lips as a sense of comfort flooded his heart. Parting his lips, he wanted to say more to her but, the immense happiness and relief rendered him speechless.

In the end, he could only nod and smile. Gratitude brimmed in his eyes, causing her smile to soften out of delight and helplessness.

"Mr. Xu, you cried..."

Leslie ran her thumb under Calix’s eyes, feeling the remnants of his tears seeped warmth into her fingertip. Her action lured a chuckle out of his mouth.

"Wasn’t too manly of me..." Calix reached out for Leslie’s eyes, also doing the same. He pressed his thumb on her cheek, "You cried too, Mrs. Xu."

Another laughter escaped Leslie’s lips. Shaking her head, she reassured Calix, "You’re manly ah... Crying doesn’t make you... less than a man..."

Men and women were human beings with emotions. Crying didn’t make a man less masculine. They shouldn’t be taught to suppress their feelings because of the outdated values.

Calix said nothing, taking in Leslie’s words that touched his heart. Gently grasping her wrist, he took her hand down from his cheek. The coarseness of his palm grazed her soft skin.

Calix still couldn’t believe how smoothly his conversation with Leslie went. Despite being unable to hold back from crying, everything was better than he initially expected.

Exhaling a sigh, Calix slowly brought up what was still left in his mind. He locked his eyes on Leslie’s countenance, silently mesmerized to witness every little emotion she might show.

"There are still many things I want to ask you. May I inquire later? Let’s focus on bringing Calliope back to us first. Is that alright?"

Leslie was aware that this matter was far from over. Knowing Calix, he might want to ask about her memories of that night and even what happened afterward.

Perhaps, about what she experienced during and after her pregnancy as well.

Charlene’s memories of those times were half-clear and half-vague. But, Leslie believed she would remember them as if they were hers soon.

"Let’s do that... We need to think how to... broach the subject to our... families too..."

The Xu family knew nothing about Calliope while the Li family... kept the child’s existence a secret.

Excluding Irene who was still a young child at that time, Rowan and Bianca were also the accomplices. But, Leslie was unsure of the depth of their involvement in this matter.

’Most likely, the old woman suppressed them. But, this won’t excuse their act.’

Noticing the slight change in Calix’s countenance, Leslie shifted her focus back to him. His brows merged into a frown, expressing something was troubling him deep inside.

"Calix... what’s wrong?"

Without thinking, Leslie lifted her unoccupied hand to Calix’s forehead, gently touching his brows as if she wanted to smoothen the crease. She couldn’t help but wonder what might have bothering him now.

Flustered by the sudden yet intimate touch, Calix’s hardened expression loosened a little. He heaved out a sigh once more.

"I’m still angry at your family... for putting you and our child... a mere child! In that kind of situation. I knew about your confinement. They didn’t let you go even after you gave birth to Calliope, didn’t they?"

Blinking, Leslie lowered her hand from Calix’s forehead. She silently took in the suppressed anger swirling in his peach blossom eyes.

It seemed like they were thinking about the same thing – the evil done by the Li family toward the pregnant Charlene.

"You learned ... where they hid me away that year?" asked Leslie despite already knowing the answer.

"I knew," Calix nodded, quickly responding to Leslie’s question, "A mountain village in Winburg City. You were confined there."

Calix explained further about his discoveries. He admitted that he tasked Edward to find whoever used to work there during Leslie’s confinement.

"You gave birth early autumn, didn’t you? Yet, they continued hiding you until the next summer. Were they afraid of you looking for Calliope?"

Calix was discouraged to imagine a helpless Leslie being forcibly separated from the newborn Calliope. By yielding little to no power, she wouldn’t ever get to search for their child even if she tried to.

Dejected, Leslie nodded.

Charlene’s memories of those times were vague as if a veil layered upon them. Yet, Calix’s question seemed like a breeze lifting it away, revealing the rest of what was hidden.

"That’s one of the reasons... They sent Calliope away... when I was asleep after giving birth... I almost lost a lot of blood... when I tried running away... to find her..."

Charlene’s body was greatly weakened after the labor. Yet, she pushed herself out of the bed, frantically asking and looking for her newborn. Trails of blood marked the bed and the floor, the places she tried crawling.

"Because of that... I was admitted to a hospital... I needed a blood transfusion..."

A pang of ache pricked into Leslie’s heart, spreading her sorrow to her entire body. She could remember Charlene’s agony as if she experienced the pain herself.

"W-what? You were... sent to a hospital?"

Aghasted, Calix couldn’t believe what Leslie had just said. This was the first time he heard of this!

Edward learned nothing about Leslie’s emergency hospitalization. Thus, Calix also heard nothing.

Winburg City only had a few hospitals, including private ones. The hospital wouldn’t disclose the patients’ conditions but, Calix was certain that the Li family had taken extra measures.

Leslie smiled bitterly. Hiccuping, she forced herself to speak more, "I was secluded from other patients... After one week, they forced me to return to the villa... Even if I was alone, I knew that... I was being watched..."

No matter where Charlene went, eyes were looking at her from afar. The bodyguards patrolled every inch of the yard and no entrance or exit was left unattended.

Eventually, Charlene succumbed to her despair. She even tried...

To end herself once.