Novels by Leticia Servulo

Sofia Hernandez - January, 2022I enter her room desperate not to see what I wanted. I try to contain the panic, while my logical side screams that she's only been missing for a few minutes.My cellphone beeps."I found her, she's in the tree."I exhale in relief and head straight to the garden. Up high, proudly standing, is my treehouse reminiscent of another life.I climb the stairs, which are sturdier than ever after the renovation five years ago.I hear her carefree laughter before seeing her face. "I'm sure it's not written like that, Daddy."My little girl looks at the book resting on her lap while her back is supported against Ethan's chest.- "Don't blame me, blame the book. It's right here," Ethan points to a passage on the page, laughing.Her childish face contorts into a grimace, and I know she won't stop until she gets the answer she wants."No, Daddy, that's not right. That word isn't "stinky" I know what stinky means, and it's not that," she responds, looking into his e

Ethan Hernandez - May, 2014As I embarked on my journey around the world, I thought of Sofia every day.We kept sporadic contact through messages, just checking in on each other. Every time I receive a message from her, my heart fills with joy. She seemed to be doing well, having landed a job as a primary school teacher near her home, and most importantly, she was sober.While traveling, I meet incredible people, visit fascinating places, and delve deeper into my career as an architect. But in every new location, there's an emptiness, a void that only Sofia's presence can fill.Two years quickly pass by.I look at my latest project nearing completion. A beachfront vacation home in Lanikai.This was the last house I would work on in the renovation of the friends Mr. Miller referred me to.After that, a position as a university professor awaited me in Chicago, my hometown, where my family lived.I was eager to live near my mother and sisters again, but I'd be lying if I said that the ca

Sofia Adams - May, 2012Entering the house where I lived with Nick feels strange because it seems like a lifetime ago that I was here, not just two months. I gather all the cleaning supplies, garbage bags, and boxes that I will need.Entering our bedroom is like being hit by a million memories all at once, including our last fight. Nevertheless, I stay strong and begin to clean. I carefully fold and store Nick's clothes that will be donated, pack away items I don't want to get rid of, and items that I know his parents would want.After everything is sorted and sealed, I start cleaning the room. I change the sheets, take out the trash, and I even find the empty box of the pregnancy test from that night. It was never a possibility, and I feel sad for the children I never had with him. But it's a sadness that I now know I can bear, and I can do it all without alcohol.I call Anne. I hear her sleepy "hello" from the other end of the line; I think I woke her up."I'm in my room," I say aft

Sofia Adams - April, 2012Spending ten days with Ethan, fully aware of my feelings, was almost magical. Whenever his work allowed, every minute was spent together. We visited every tourist spot in the city, went back to the Ferris wheel, talked on the rooftop until dawn. It was like how we used to be. Him and me in our own little bubble, stealing kisses here and there. It almost made me want to give up everything and follow him around the world. Almost. But here I was, sitting by the fountain one last time, looking at Ethan waiting for me.April is coming to an end, and so is our deadline."Have you made up your mind?" I ask, gazing at the undisturbed water. I tap my fingers, creating small ripples.Ethan touches his fingers to mine through the water."I've thought about it a lot, and I'm going to follow your suggestion... I'm going to accept. I've talked to my family, and in a month, I'll have a week off to visit them. For now, Hong Kong is my next destination," he says, taking a dee

Ethan Hernandez - April, 2012A long time passes without a response, and I offer another option."Or not, I can decline the offer, and we can go back to Chicago," I suggest.Sofia raises her head, and I see her eyes shimmering with unshed tears."We? Ethan, it's not your obligation to take care of me," she says, sounding slightly offended.It wasn't my intention to offend her with this conversation. We slowly resume walking aimlessly."I know that, I just want to," I say nonchalantly. I can't make a big deal out of it, or Sofia will run away.Sofia sighs."But I don't want that, and I don't think it's what I need right now," she firmly responds.Suddenly, I feel guilty. It seems like this conversation isn't going as I planned."But..." Before I can argue, she interrupts me."Look, Ethan, I appreciate the invitation. I really do, but I need to decline while you need to accept this offer," she says.I look at her confused; if I accept, the chances of us seeing each other will be almost

Ethan Hernandez - April, 2012Mr. Miller sent me another message asking if I accepted the offer.I send the following reply:"I'm still thinking, Sir. I promise to have an answer by May 1st."My phone immediately beeps."It will be two years traveling the world, Hernandez. You're young, you can make the most of this personal and professional experience. If it makes you more comfortable, I'm sure the costs of an additional traveler can be covered. Maybe that pretty friend of yours could go with you? ;)"I laugh at the message. Who would have thought my boss would play cupid. It's not the first time he suggests it; he's very generous.It would be a lie if I said that whenever the subject comes up, I don't stop to think. And to have a little hope.If Sofia were to come with me, traveling around and exploring places. Just the two of us enjoying our lives. It would be a dream.Before my mind wanders too much, I pull myself back to reality.Sofia is still slowly overcoming Nick's death. Sof

Miranda NewmanI wake up in a good mood. Finally, I'm going to start part of my mission today.I'm getting ready to take a shower when I hear my phone ringing. I pick up the darn thing from the nightstand next to my bed and furrow my brow when I see who it is. What does Stan want with me this early in the morning?"Hey, Stan," I say."Good morning to you too, Newman," he responds sarcastically."A good morning certainly wouldn't start with me hearing your voice so early," I retort, rolling my eyes. "Goodness, you didn't even let me prepare for the shock.""Very funny, Newman, but the matter is serious," he says. I immediately stop my teasing and wait for more. Stan sighs on the other end of the line. I bet he's pulling at what little hair he has left right now."I'm calling to warn you that there's a lot at stake with this mission, Miranda, a lot. Please be careful," he says.In other words: Don't mess it up again.I adopt a serious tone of voice. "I know, Stan, and I appreciate your

Miranda NewmanOver the course of two weeks, my routine continued almost normally as it was before the punishment, with the only difference being that I had a Briton on my back every moment of my day at the agency. Not that I was complaining... God, it was so good to have that glimpse of paradise all the time, but I wished that vision didn't have such a serious expression. The man urgently needed to smile more.My day started with training, where he insisted on giving me exercises that worked on my self-control. I swear, with his Zen lessons, he would eventually ask me to stand up and applaud the sun.It wasn't all bad; despite everything, I had a lot of fun mocking his "I am a serious and responsible agent" attitude and occasionally amusing him with my provocations.It was rare, but sometimes I could see a ghost of a smile on his lips. Like the day when I couldn't stop talking during yoga. Yes, he still insisted on doing that, claiming it was a great relaxation and self-control techn

Miranda NewmanDamn Stan. Damn Brit. I can't believe I'm here at the Agency at five in the morning.I yawn, tired from sleeping so little.I enter the training center and find Mr. Super Agent Green lying down, peacefully reading a book. I let my training bag fall off my shoulder with a thud. He doesn't even flinch.I approach him and lean towards him. He continues reading without paying attention to me."Hey partner, I'm ready for training," I say, looking into his eyes. He finally looks away from the book and stares at me."Good morning, Agent Newman," he says politely. He's really a serious guy."So, what are we going to do today?" I look around. Despite the early hour, I wasn't going to let my bad mood affect my training. I enjoyed training, expending all my energy by hitting something sounded good to me. I started trying to imagine what exercise he would ask for... Sit-ups? Boxing? Running? I was more than ready. I looked at my partner expectantly, waiting for his instruction. He

Miranda Newman"Seriously, Stan," I try once again to get my boss's attention. I think he purposely annoyed me."I've already told you, Miranda, until you learn to control yourself, I won't let you go on another mission. We lost a lot last time because of your..." "I know, impatience," I interrupt, rolling my eyes."I was going to say stupidity, but impatience works," he says, smiling and making me look like an idiot. Stupidity? I saved the damn mission. Okay, maybe I let the criminal escape and the warehouse caught fire because of me, but hey, I brought the victim back alive (let's ignore the sprained ankle when I pushed her down the stairs so she could escape). That counts for something, right? Well, not in the eyes of my annoying boss."And what do you expect me to do?" I ask irritably, crossing my arms."I don't know, maybe try yoga?" he says, smiling. Yoga? Do I even have time for yoga?I huff in frustration and turn my back to that insolent creature.I walk through the corridor