Larissa Judson and Haskell Palmer novel Chapter 745

“My mom…” Leopold processed her words. “What do you mean, my mom was almost killed?”

“See for yourself,” Larissa said, turning and walking out of the room.

A sense of dread washed over Leopold. He scrambled out of bed, about to slip on his slippers when he saw his mother, Vivica, sitting on the floor by the doorway.

“Mom…”

He started to ask what was going on, but a flicker of movement in the hallway caught his eye. There were other people here.

A stone-faced woman dressed in black.

A tall, powerfully built man, also in black.

And his father, Paxton, lying on the floor, clutching a wounded shoulder.

A cold shock ran through Leopold. Forgetting his slippers, he rushed to Vivica’s side.

“Mom, what’s going on? Why is Dad hurt? And who are these people?”

Faced with her son’s barrage of questions, Vivica slowly lifted her hollow eyes to meet his. Her voice was devoid of life as she asked, completely off-topic, “Leopold… your father’s plan… were you a part of it?”

Seeing his mother’s soul-crushing despair, Leopold froze. “Mom… what’s wrong with you?”

“Answer me! Were you a part of what happened tonight?!” Vivica grabbed Leopold’s arms, her voice a hysterical shriek.

Leopold was stunned. “...What are you talking about?”

Vivica’s grip tightened, her eyes wide with a desperate, wild look. “Your father hired someone to kill me!”

Leopold’s eyes widened in horror. “Mom, what are you saying? Dad hired someone to kill you?!”

A small sigh of relief escaped Vivica’s lips. Her hands fell away from his arms, and her entire body seemed to deflate like a punctured balloon.

Leopold hesitated for a moment, then walked back to his mother, helped her up, and settled her on the bed before pulling out his phone to call Finley.

It was late, and the phone rang for a long time before it was answered.

“...Hello?” Finley’s voice was rough with sleep and annoyance.

“Finley, Mom and Dad are in trouble,” Leopold said. “You need to come back.”

“What happened? Is it serious?” The voice on the other end was suddenly wide awake.

“Very serious. Larissa’s here too. You’ll understand when you get here.”

“Okay, I’m on my way.”

Larissa walked over to Paxton and performed some basic first aid to stop the bleeding from his wound.