"Ever look back and wonder about the silly things you did when you were younger, huh?"
Helen sat in her wicker chair,zily waving a fan back and forth.
The fan was embroidered with wisteria, a riot of colors that seemed almost sinister in Ashlyn''s eyes!
She recognized it at a nce.
This fan was something Harriet used to carry around when she was younger!
"Helen! May you never find peace! You hate Harriet so much, yet you keep her belongings? Oh, the
horror!"
Helen replied calmly, "Why shouldn''t I use it? It was a gift from her. The one with a guilty conscience
isn’t me."
Ashlyn was on the verge of a breakdown, both mentally and physically!
"Let me go, Marcel won''t let you treat me this way. I''ve been his wife for years, who gave you the
right to torment me like this?"
Helen straightened up, continuing to wave her fan leisurely.
The sarcasm on her face was unmistakable!
"Me, tormenting you? Think hard about how you treated ra! When she was five, you tried to
poison her with rat poison in her food, hoping to get rid of ra so your granddaughter could take
her ce in the Schnabel family!"
"When ra was in elementary school, you insisted she board there and note home!"
"How old was that child, having to cook and clean for you, an old witch? Couldn’t the Schnabel
family afford a maid?"
At first, Merrick and Freya were reluctant to help with the child as well.
Both elders had their careers, thinking a nanny would suffice given the Schnabel family''s brood.
It was only after Jasper visited and came back teary-eyed to Merrick, iming his sister was on
death''s doorstep!
Ashlyn, taking advantage of Sienna''s postpartum recovery, imed she''d help with the child but had
the nanny feed ra nothing but water and rice broth behind their backs!
Merrick was shocked, skipping a literary award ceremony one evening to rush and retrieve ra.
By the time he arrived, ra had withered to a shadow of herself.
If not for her maternal grandparents, ra would''ve been long gone, thanks to this cruel hag!
Helen was livid as she recounted these events!
"When ra was three, you even tried to bind her feet. Your own feet are bigger than a donkey''s
hooves; why didn’t you bind them? Why torment my granddaughter instead?"
Ashlyn was speechless, not expecting Helen to have dug up so much dirt.
"I...I was only thinking of her best interest..."
"Best interest my foot! Don’t worry, I won''ty a hand on you. Since you were ''so good'' to ra, I''ll
return the favor ''so good'' to you.
You seem to forget, making ra stand out in the sun until her skin peeled. What kind of person
does that to a child?"
Helen red at Ashlyn, whose skin was now sunburnt to a crisp.
The venom in her voice was palpable!
This old zealot had not stopped her wicked ways for years!
"And she turned out just fine... I was toughening her up. She''s sessful now because of my ''good''
upbringing. You should be thanking me!"
Facing Ashlyn''s tant self-justification, Helen could only scoff.
"Don''t worry, I''ll make sure to ''thank'' you properly. I have all the time in the world. As for what
surname my granddaughter chooses, that''s none of your damn business!"
Helen rolled her eyes.
"You think your marriage to Marcel wasn’t because you snatched someone else''s child? Would
Marcel have married you otherwise?"
Ashlyn was furious!
"You''re lying! Marcel had me in his heart! He loved me! You think you married into the Pock family
for any reason other than you and Harriet looking alike? The old Pock head just saw you as a
recement!"
Helen stood up, approached Ashlyn, and pped her across the face!
Back in the day, having worked in tough conditions, Helen''s strength could rival that of any young
man, leaving a dazed Ashlyn seeing stars.
"Garrick told you what, and you believed it? You''re really as naive as theye."
As she noted the time, Helen spoke up, "Marcel ising with the kids to pay their respects to
Harriet. Before they arrive, you''ll stay here in the sun, just as you made ra and her mother suffer.
I''ll make sure you get a taste of your own medicine."
Hearing that Harriet had beenid to rest in the Schnabel family cemetery, Ashlyn broke down
completely!
"Why? Why does she deserve to be in the Schnabel family cemetery?! I can''t ept this!"
Her screams grew weaker under Helen''s relentless hand.
Every time Ashlyn nearly passed out from the heat, Helen would revive her with cold water.
Since Marcel couldn''t deal with this witch, she would!
"Helen! How can you not hate Harriet? Your husband spent his life pining for another woman,
doesn’t that bother you?"
Ashlyn was baffled.
Why wasn''t Helen siding with her?
Helen, chin high with dignity, dered, "I, Helen, refuse to stoop so low. If my husband yearned for
another woman, that''s my failure, not Harriet''s.
To me your failures on someone else, that’s something only trash like you would do."
Noe, standing not too far away, turned to Nn.
"Make sure Helen doesn''t overexert herself. Send some folks to bring her something to eat."
"Alright, boss, ourpany''s... ahem, Senior Comfort Squad, knows exactly what the olddy likes!
Don''t worry, after all, she''s your hubby''s granny. We''ll take care of her just right."
Noe was speechless for a moment.
She nced briefly at Ashlyn, who was sprawled on the floor, sobbing her heart out.
All drama, but not a shred of remorse!
People like Ashlyn only feel like the world has been unfair to them, driven by greed for wealth and
status, and terrified of death!
...
At Harriet''s gravesite.
The sun zed down, the cemetery serene, and the headstone had been rewritten with Noe''s
name!
Behind it, a long list of the Schnabel family children''s names, even ra''s, but not Marcel''s.
Horatio exined, "Noe, your grandfather didn''t want to upset your grandmother. After all,
considering the kids, especially you, she''d definitely love to rest here!"
Marcel was afraid, afraid that having his name on Harriet''s headstone would displease her!
Xavier''s video call came through.
"Noe, today... it''s your grandma''s memorial day, right?"
Content bel0ngs to N?vel(D)r/a/ma.Org.
Noe aimed the camera at Harriet''s headstone and said softly, "Take a look."
On the headstone, Harriet''s smile was still gentle and serene, brimming with strength!
Xavier took a look, sniffed, hiding his sadness.
Instead, he ended upforting Noe!
"It''s okay. Don''t be sad. Harriet may not be here, but you are. You''re the child she raised, her legacy
in this world!"