147\u2013The Madeline Impersonator\u00a0<\/p>\n
Baxter:\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI am sorry for hurting you, Yuvonne, but I am leaving, and I will take Bodhi with me,\u201d I confirmed, watching her eyes fill with tears.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She stared at my face for several seconds in silence before she stormed out of the room.\u00a0<\/p>\n
After she left, I looked at Bodhi and noticed how empty his eyes appeared.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDo not worry, kiddo. I am going to take you to your mother.\u201d As soon as I told him that, I saw him smile a little, and it genuinely broke something inside me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I took a quick shower, got dressed, and prepared to leave so I could help Madeline, because I knew she would be alone among those hungry wolves.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I had only finished getting ready when I began waking up Bodhi.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I let him take at least an hour\u2013long nap before I woke him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He was a little tired, so I carried him in my arms, his face resting on my shoulder.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As soon as I stepped out of the room, I was met by Yuvonne once again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was outside my room, leaning against the opposite wall with her arms folded across her chest.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It looked as if she had been waiting there silently, too conflicted to knock. But once I stepped out, she chose to face me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Before she could speak, I raised my palm to stop her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cCan we please not do this right now? I really need to go to the council center,\u201d I told her, trying to show urgency.\u00a0<\/p>\n
However, she seemed unwilling to understand.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI just need to know something,\u201d she insisted, pushing herself off the wall and stepping toward me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cCan it wait?\u201d I questioned, and she shook her head.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, it cannot,\u201d she replied.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFine, what is it?\u201d I asked, exhausted because I was running out of time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was already late, and I knew the interview had begun long ago.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeline must have been worried about her children too.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSomething has changed in you. I am not sure what happened or who told you what, but do not tell me that nothing is wrong,\u201d she demanded.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I knew she would figure it out because of my behavior.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She had been around me for years, and in those years she had paid close attention to almost every bit of my\u00a0<\/p>\n
reactions.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will talk about it,\u201d I remarked.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As soon as I said that, I realized it was the confirmation she needed. She widened her arms to block my way.\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\/3\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, we will talk about it now. I want to know the truth,\u201d she pressed, making me take a step back from her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I did not want to have an important conversation in such a rush, but it seemed that to get her off my bark for a while, I needed to give her an explanation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWho texted me using Madeline\u2019s phone that night?\u201d As soon as the question left my mouth, I wanched her earice\u00a0<\/p>\n
demeanor shift.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She might have been thrown off by the question, or she might have known exactly what I was tallding font\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat?\u201d she replied, sounding more confused than I expected.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThat night, years ago, when Madeline ran away, I texted her, and I received a response\u201d I had only reached that part when Yuvonne clicked her tongue and wagged her finger at me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you suspect that I was the one responding to you? Why would I do that? How do you know the left before texting you?\u201d she retorted, her expression tightening\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cMadeline told me she did not take her phone with her, and that she never received any text from me.\u201d As soon as I said that, Yuvonne began laughing sarcastically, breathing deeply enough that the rise and fall of her chest gave her away.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you believe her but not me? You started suspecting me because she told you?\u201d she asked, and I noticed tears forming in her eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was not fair for me to doubt her after everything she had done for me and with me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But my stubborn heart wanted to believe Madeline.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And it was not difficult for me to confirm whether Madeline had been bonest.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe must have responded to you before leaving, and now she regrets whatever she wrote,\u201d she added, trying to push the blame onto Madeline.\u00a0<\/p>\n
However, she did not know that I had done my research.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI checked the departure time of the cruise that night. Madeline left on that cruise one hour before I texted ber, and her phone was left behind. She did not take it with her,\u201d I stated firmly, watching her face change color.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She knew that even if Madeline had taken her phone, it would not have worked, and she would not have been able to communicate with me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI do not know then,\u201d Yuvonne stuttered.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I raised my palm again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI will go now, and then we will talk about it,\u201d I hissed, making it clear she had disappointed me by trying to paint Madeline as a liar.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Once I had strapped Bodhi in, I sat in the driver\u2019s seat and sped to be there for Madeline in time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As soon as I reached the center and stepped out of the car with Bodhi, I headed to the top floor, only to be redirected to the lobby, where they told me the interview had ended and they were having one last word with\u00a0<\/p>\n
Madeline.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When I entered, I heard them speaking to her in a way that made me feel I needed to stand up for her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
So I stepped forward to announce what I intended to do.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ruby Walker is a rising voice in the world of romance and spicy fiction. With a gift for weaving deep emotions, sizzling chemistry, and unexpected twists, her stories are a blend of passion and drama that captivate readers from start to finish. Ruby\u2019s writing style is bold and irresistible\u2014perfect for those who crave intense, addictive love stories.<\/p>\n
147\u2013The Madeline Impersonator\u00a0 Baxter:\u00a0 \u201cI am sorry for hurting you, Yuvonne, but I am leaving, and I will take Bodhi […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19143","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-no-daddy-novel-by-novelnozi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19143","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19143"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19143\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19348,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19143\/revisions\/19348"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19143"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19143"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19143"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}