After I Stopped Loving Him novel Chapter 1211

Cynthia watched Isabella's face closely. "Harold is a wonderful man. He respects you and supports everything you do. If there's an issue, talk it out. Don't fight. Arguments wear down even the strongest relationships over time."

"Mom, Harold and I didn't fight," Isabella reassured her.

"Then what happened?"

Isabella hesitated. She didn't want to frighten her mother, but lying was pointless. "On our way to the coast this morning, Harold's mom called. Barbara was kidnapped."

Cynthia gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. "Is she okay? Did they get her back?"

"She was out shopping with a friend," Isabella continued softly. "The moment she stepped out of the car, they grabbed her. Her friend was beaten up and sent to the hospital. Obviously, the trip was canceled. We rushed straight to the Carter estate to help."

She assumed the rescue had been successful, or Harold wouldn't have been calm enough to drive Isabella home.

"They got her back," Isabella nodded. "Physically, she's unhurt. She said they didn't touch her, but I don't know the full extent of what she went through."

Whenever kidnapping was mentioned, a dark shadow fell over Isabella's mind. The memories of her past life clawed at her—the suffocating terror, the brutal assaults, the way they had tortured her and ruined her face before finally killing her.

Barbara was young and beautiful. The thought of what those men could have done to her made Isabella feel sick.

"Yeah. But Mom, we need to be more careful from now on." Isabella's tone turned serious. "I'm hiring more security. Whenever you and Uncle Zachary go out, you need bodyguards. No exceptions."

Cynthia nodded quickly. "Of course. Does this mean your uncle and I shouldn't go visit our hometown? We just told Ethan that to stop him from coming over for dinner, but we really did plan to go."

"You can still go, just keep a low profile. I'll send a security detail with you," Isabella insisted.

"Honestly, I wasn't that eager to go back," Cynthia admitted. "But it's your uncle and Aunt Amelia's home. It's where their roots are. No matter how nice things are here, they miss it."