292 - Leon Carter

292 - Leon Carter
Leon Carter

It was already starting to get dark when the office was invaded by my godparents, my mother, and my wife, who were laughing at the way she was being dragged through the house.

"Get used to it…" Fay said, and I saw she was holding Perninha, who was relaxed in her arms.

"You irresponsible man…" my godmother complained as soon as she saw how much my cousin had lost weight.

"I already told him that, Helena!" my father said, rolling his eyes.

"Shut up, just because you're older doesn't mean you get to take away my authority as a mother over my son." I started laughing and pulled my wife aside, making her sit on my lap.

"Do you want to stay here, or would you rather go to our house and rest?" I asked before kissing her shoulder.

"Let’s stay, your mother is already organizing our wedding and if it’s up to her and your mother-in-law, we’ll be married in a week!" She started laughing, and I loved seeing my wife so relaxed and peaceful.

My eyes and hers turned back to the conversation happening between Gavin and his parents. My mother was trying to talk to them, attempting to ease the situation that was clearly making my cousin even more uncomfortable. His hands were on his head and I could see his body trembling. He was on the verge of a breakdown.

"That's enough!" I exclaimed loudly, startling everyone.

Ella stepped away from me and went to my cousin. She knelt and held his face to support him.

"Do you want to lie down?" she asked in a gentle voice, and we saw him nod.

Ella stood and helped him up.

"You all need to stop pressuring him, or we’re going to lose him…" I warned them.

Something happened to him. It’s as if the relationship he had with Lessie gave him a glimpse of paradise, but when she left, only emptiness remained. What keeps him standing is something like a feeling that she will come back, maybe something deep inside him is convinced of her return.

"I can’t bear to see my son like this, lost in this sadness. Gavin was always such a womanizer…" My godmother whimpered, and my mother comforted her.

"It seems like he found his other half, as if that girl was meant for him…" I rubbed my hand over my face, trying to find a way to explain everything I saw. "I don’t know how to explain it, but something tells me that if he doesn’t get back together with Lessie, we’ll never get the old Gavin back."

Everyone’s expression grew more serious, and we stood there, thinking of what to do to help my cousin feel even a little better.

"Let’s search harder, ask Gaia for help in Brazil…" my mother said, looking at my father.

"I’ll call Faína, maybe she can help too." I nodded.

"Now, the most important thing, how many days do I have to prepare for my wedding?" I smiled and saw everyone’s expression lighten.

"Twenty days!" my father announced.

I started laughing, remembering that Ella had just said something very similar.

"What’s another twenty days, right? I’ve basically been married for almost three years already."

That night, after hearing some ideas from my father and the plans the women of the house had in mind for less than a month away, I woke up early. I left my wife sleeping in our bed, and decided to go look for my cousin. I was sure he was even more distressed.

I left the bedroom and saw the mansion was unusually quiet, a sign that everyone was still asleep. I went to the room my cousin usually stays in and was surprised to see the bed neatly made, which meant he hadn’t even laid down. My eyes went to the balcony of his room, and there was Gavin, sitting alone, looking out at the garden like he was searching for a reason to keep breathing.

"It’ll pass," I said, sitting next to him.

"Will it?" he laughed, but it was an empty sound. "Because every night, Leon, I ask myself if she’s alive, if she’s safe, or if she just forgot I exist."

"She didn’t forget you. I saw it in her eyes, heard it in her voice, she loves you. But she also carries a weight none of us can understand. What she’s facing, Gavin, isn’t just about revenge, it’s something much bigger than we think, and when she reappears, just like you, she’ll be…" I paused for a moment and saw his eyes fill with tears. "She’s part of the ‘Family.’"

He nodded, and I saw the tears he had been holding back run down his face.

"Then why does it hurt like I’m feeling a burning blade touch right here…" he placed his hand over his chest and his face twisted in anguish.

"I don’t know, cousin, but I promise you we’ll find her. We’ll find out why she left."

"Why is loving someone so hard?" Gavin wiped his tears.

"It’s not hard, it’s just…" he looked at me and rolled his eyes.

"Look who's talking, the guy who's been in love with his wife since he was thirteen, who grew up with her and built the foundation of the family he'll have with her one day."
A smile spread across his lips.
"And I’ll be there when that happens. I’ll be the godfather who spoils the nephew so much that Ella hits me with the mansion's decorative vases." I kicked his leg.
"Don’t even joke about that, there are artifacts here worth more than an entire country!"
Gavin didn’t reply. He just sat there in silence. But this time, his eyes were looking ahead. Toward the horizon.
And that was already a start.

The wedding was approaching, and with it, her birthday too. And despite everything, all the darkness that insisted on surrounding us, my girl was excited. She was planning small details of the wedding with a sparkle in her eyes that I hadn’t seen in a long time. And that gave me strength. Because when she smiled, everything seemed possible again.

Even Gavin seemed a little more whole. The pain was still there, of course, none of us expected it to vanish overnight, but now he was more present. Quieter, yes, but with a purpose.

That morning, while I was organizing the nightclub reports, I got a call that made my blood run cold.

"Carter?" the voice of the club manager was cautious. "I think we found someone… someone matching the description you sent. Young girl, dyed red hair, gray eyes. She’s going by the name ‘Ally.’"

I stood up instantly. My heart pounded in my chest.

"Which club?"

"The one on 34th and Lexington. She’s working at the bar as a waitress, but she doesn’t talk to anyone. Very reserved, but there’s something different about her."

I hung up and went straight to Ella. I found her in the library, sitting among the wedding papers, smiling with a dreamy expression.

"Love…" I called, and she looked up softly.

But just one look was enough for her to know something had changed. My face must have given it away.

"What happened?"

"We have a lead…" I said. "A possible sighting of Lessie. At one of our clubs. I need you to come with me."

Ella didn’t hesitate. She stood up immediately, her eyes now filled with a tension that’s become familiar. I can see she’s learning to hide it, but it always comes back when it involves the people she loves.

We arrived at the club on a humid night, the city buzzing in a rhythm that didn’t seem to belong to us. We entered discreetly, under the watchful eyes of our men.

My eyes scanned every corner, every table, every shadow behind the bar.

And then we saw her, the girl with short reddish hair. She was a bit taller, and when she turned to face us, I felt Ella’s hand tighten around mine.

It wasn’t her.

Ella sighed heavily beside me. She shook her head slightly, trying to shake off the frustration. I wanted to punch something, smash a wall, but instead, I took a deep breath and looked at her.

"Want to stay for a while?" I asked. "Just the two of us."

"Why?"

"Because you’re just weeks away from marrying me, and you haven’t enjoyed any of it yet. Because your birthday is coming, and you deserve a moment for yourself. And because even without Lessie here, I can still make you smile."

She looked at me, surprised. Then she smiled. Softly, but genuinely.

"Then let’s stay."

I ordered a bottle of wine. Then another. And another shot of tequila because, according to Ella, "The night deserves an exception."

She danced across the floor like the world had given her a break. Her hair loose, her laughter free, lightness in every step. That was the girl I met when I was thirteen. The girl who showed me what love felt like. And the woman who now was my life.

"You’re drunk…" I murmured, laughing, as she stumbled slightly and leaned on my shoulder.

"Maybe just a little…" she smiled and leaned closer to my face. "I’m gorgeous and in love," she said, laughing out loud. "Take me home before I dance on the bar and cause a front-page-worthy scandal!"

I scooped her up in my arms and watched as she nestled into me like I was the coziest thing in the world. As if, at that moment, she had let go of part of her burdens.

We arrived at our house, and I was surprised to see Gavin sleeping on the living room couch, the TV remote still in his hand. Ella was mumbling something about white flowers and flowing dresses as I carried her upstairs.

I laid her gently on the bed. She pulled me by the collar of my shirt and whispered,

"Marry me tomorrow…"

I smiled.

"Anything you want, love, but how about a nap first?" I asked, watching her trying to take off her clothes.

I helped her, and with every failed attempt, she smiled, until she finally fell asleep, a little smile still on her lips.

And I stayed there, sitting beside her, watching her sleep and worrying about my cousin downstairs.

I need to help him. We need to find Lessie once and for all.