Love’s Change of Heart novel Chapter 479

Chapter 479

Although Leanna hadn't visited the mall in a while, she was never short of fancy clothes. After all, Aidan would always replace the clothes in her closet with the latest ones every season. Therefore, Leanna didn't have to buy much for herself, unless it was something that caught her eye at first sight.

For that, she usually bought men's apparel for Aidan. When Zoe saw what Leanna bought, she clicked her tongue and mocked the other woman, saying, "Seriously? Are you trying to make me feel bad or something?"

In response, Leanna smiled and said, "Yeah, you don't say. By the way, your birthday is just around the corner. Is there anything you want? Tell me, and I'll grant your wish."

"I want a boyfriend."

While Leanna was speechless, Zoe replied solemnly, "Fine, forget that I asked." Then, she sat on a bench and set her eyes on the couple who were holding hands outside.

"Come on, why is it so hard for me to get a boyfriend when it's a piece of cake for everyone else? Did I do something to piss Cupid off? All the men I've met are either jerks or idiots." She sighed. A few seconds later, Zoe added, "You know what? I wish I could read my mom's mind. She's been calling and asking me to join speed dating."

"Speed dating?"

"Yeah, she said that her former schoolmate's son will be joining. She even told me that this guy has a promising job in a multinational company. Furthermore, my mom knows the man's parents, so she assures me that this guy isn't the same as Anthony."

"What's your take, then? Are you going to meet him?"

Zoe sighed and replied, "I don't want to, but my mom is threatening to cast me away from home if I don't go." She paused for a second and continued, "Anyway, I have to admit that it may not be such a bad idea to spend the rest of my life with a man like this guy. At least I know my life is going to be peaceful and happy. However, I… I don't want to force myself to accept someone I don't love at all. If I had to do that, I'd be better off looking for a housemate instead."

"I think your mom is worried about you. Perhaps you should sit down and talk to her about it." Leanna nodded.

"Alright, that's enough. I wish you'd know how tired I am of her nagging. Fine, I'll do as she wishes this weekend and think of a reason to turn the man down by then. That should keep my mom's mouth shut for a while."

"Sounds like a plan."

A few moments later, Leanna's phone rang before she realized it was a call from Daniel. Thus, she walked to a corner and answered the call. Soon, she heard Daniel saying, "Miss McKinney, the autopsy results are out."

"What does it say?" Leanna's fingers tightened around the phone.

"I'm not sure about the details, which is why I'm calling you to come with me. I believe we're going to find out from the forensic doctors as soon as we get there." Daniel proceeded to ask, "Where are you now? Perhaps I could give you a ride or something."

"It's alright. Send me the address instead. I'm not at home, so I'll just find my way there," Leanna replied.

"Sure," Daniel responded affirmatively.

As soon as the call disconnected, Leanna received the address from Daniel right away. Then, she put away her phone, turning her attention to Zoe just as she came closer. "Zoe, I have something to attend to, and I need to head there now."

"What's wrong?" Zoe asked while enjoying her coffee.

Leanna pursed her lips. "My mom's autopsy report is out."

Zoe stood up abruptly. "Alright, I'm coming with you."

"Um… Are you sure about that? Daniel is going to be there too."

Zoe went silent for a few seconds and chuckled. "O-Of course, I'm going to keep you company, not to meet him. It doesn't matter whether he is there or not." After all, Zoe was still rather curious about what she would find with the autopsy report, not to mention her concern that Leanna might faint again like she did last time.

When she noticed Zoe's determination, Leanna decided not to change her mind. After getting into the car with Zoe, she forwarded the address of her destination that she received from Daniel to the driver. Half an hour later, the car pulled up outside the building, whereupon Leanna said, "Please wait for me right here, Alice. I'll be back once I'm done."

Alice nodded her head. "Sure, Madam. As you wish."

In the meantime, Daniel was already waiting at the entrance outside the car along with Elijah right beside him. When Leanna and Zoe came closer, Elijah asked, "Hey, Leanna. Wait a second. Didn't you tell Louis about this?"

"I didn't. He is in the middle of class right now. Moreover, I wasn't sure about the situation, so… Well, I'll worry about that later." Deep down, the only thing Leanna could remember about her mother was that she died of dystocia after giving birth to Louis. Nonetheless, she couldn't help but think something was wrong, considering the sequence of events that happened subsequently. Therefore, she reckoned she should find out more about it before telling Louis about it.

"Let's head inside," Daniel said.

Upon their arrival, they were ushered by someone into the lab where they saw the forensic doctor waiting for them. "Which of you is a family member of the deceased?" The forensic doctor gazed at the few of them and asked.

"I am," Leanna answered.

The forensic doctor then took a file from the desk and said, "We've confirmed that the deceased was killed by a severe blow to the skull."

"A severe blow to the skull?" Leanna echoed the doctor's words in disbelief.

"Here is the report. You may take a look at it." The forensic doctor nodded and placed the document right in front of her.

As Leanna frowned and took a closer look at the report, the forensic doctor added, "When the deceased was sent here, we were told that she died of dystocia. However, after running a few tests, I was sure she didn't die of dystocia, although it was indeed hard to ascertain her cause of death with only her skeleton left. After all, there were obvious signs of physical trauma on her skull, which were probably what killed her."

While Leanna kept her head down and bit her lips in a ponderous manner, Daniel took the autopsy report and put it on the desk. "In other words, she was murdered."

The forensic doctor nodded. "The deceased suffered severe physical trauma in the back of her head. Someone might have delivered a huge blow to her head by shoving her toward the wall in a fierce fight. That, coupled with the fact that she didn't receive proper treatment in time, was the cause of her death."

Leanna closed her eyes after knowing that, her body shivering from head to toe. What Jethro told me about my mom dying of dystocia was all a lie! It was his words against mine. He was the one who killed Mother and buried her body in the wall after that. That means he must have raised me because of guilt, fear, or to cover his tracks, but as time went by, he still showed his true colors in the end. At the thought of that, Leanna quickly felt grateful about the fact that she and Louis were able to live until that day with Jethro.

Meanwhile, Zoe noticed something wrong with Leanna and quickly gave her hand to help her stand. "Are you alright, Leanna?"

Leanna opened her eyes and shook her head. "I'm fine."

Zoe noticed that Leanna's complexion seemed better, so she knew that the woman was fine. She then looked toward the forensic doctor and said, "Well, is there anything else? If not, we'll be taking our leave."

"Please sign your name here." The forensic doctor pointed at the space at the bottom of the results. Leanna grabbed the pen and did as she was told.

"I'll take it from here, Leanna. You should probably take some rest," Elijah said.

Leanna put down the pen in her hand. "It's alright, I'm fine. I may not remember much about her, but…" She continued in a sobbing voice and added, "I think I should be with her for one last time."