Chapter 86 What Grandma Left Behind
Lady Flourish’s POV
After Harold left, I remained standing beside Grandma’s memorial portrait for a long time, unable to summon the strength to move.
The last conversation between us kept replaying in my mind, but strangely enough, it no longer stirred any emotion inside me.
Whatever had once existed between Harold and me had already been buried alongside everything else I had lost.
The only thing that still hurt was Grandma.
I had barely taken two steps before I felt someone gently squeeze my shoulder.
I turned and found Devina standing beside me.
She had stayed.
Despite everyone else gradually leaving the mourning hall, she remained quietly by my without saying a word.
Her eyes softened when they met mine.
“Flourish,” she said gently, “if you feel like crying, don’t hold it in.”
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I looked at her for several seconds before slowly shaking my head. “Dev… I don’t want to cry.”
The moment the words left my mouth, I knew they were a lie.
Devinna knew it too.
Everyone did.
No one understood better than those closest to me how much Grandma had meant to me.
She hadn’t simply been my grandmother.
She had been my home. My family. My safe place.
If I allowed myself to cry now, I wasn’t sure I would ever be able to stop. After a long silence, I lowered my eyes and spoke softly.
“Dev… I want to stay here alone with Grandma for a while. You should go home.”
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Chapter 86 What Grandma Left Behind
Devinna’s lips parted slightly as though she wanted to argue, but after looking at my face, she simply sighed.
Without another word, she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around me.
The embrace was warm.
Gentle.
She didn’t offer meaningless comfort or empty promises that everything would be all right. Instead, she simply held me.
Sometimes silence was kinder than words.
After several moments, she loosened her arms and gently patted my back.
“I’ll leave now. But promise me something. If anything happens… if you need me, you’ll call.”
I nodded quietly. “I will.”
Only then did she finally leave the mourning hall.
I kept watch over Grandma for three straight days.
Three days.
Three sleepless nights.
Relatives came and went.
Friends arrived carrying flowers and left after paying their respects.
The memorial candles burned low before being replaced with fresh ones.
Incense rose into the air again and again.
Through it all, I never once closed my eyes.
My wolf remained silent inside me, curled into itself as though mourning in its own way.
When the day finally came to lay Grandma to rest, I stood quietly beside her coffin as it was lowered into the earth.
I didn’t cry.
Perhaps I had already exhausted every tear inside me. Or perhaps the grief had become too
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deep for tears to reach.
Finished
When the burial was over and everyone began walking back down the mountain, the hollow ache inside my chest only seemed to grow heavier.
It felt as though someone had carved out half my heart and left behind nothing except cold emptiness.
I intended to leave on my own.
Just as I stepped toward my car, Dad called after me. “Flourish.”
I stopped but didn’t turn around immediately. “What is it?”
He walked over with Lydia following a few steps behind him. His expression remained as stern as ever. “I know losing your grandma has devastated you.”
His tone paused briefly before becoming more serious. “But you still need to apologize to the Virel family. Especially Ragnar. Alpha Magnus may favor you, but Ragnar is the one handling most of the company’s affairs now. If he decides to make things difficult for us after what happened at the Lunar Rite, I won’t be able to shield you.”
I finally looked at him. “How is that my business?”
He frowned. I continued calmly. “Besides, isn’t Damian the one holding the larger share of the company?”
Dad’s face darkened almost instantly. “Enough. Who taught you to be so disrespectful? How dare you call him by his name?”
I couldn’t even bring myself to respond. Every conversation with him felt exhausting now. Leaning back against the seat after getting into the car, I slowly closed my eyes.
“I’m exhausted. I need a nap. If there’s anything important to discuss, we can talk once we get home.”
The car fell into silence. From beneath my lashes, I caught Lydia exchanging a meaningful glance with Dad.
Neither of them spoke again. The quiet was strangely unsettling.
Nearly two hours later, the car rolled into the Garett residence. The familiar mansion no longer felt like home.
It was simply another building where people happened to share my surname.
Since Grandma had only just been buried, I intended to stay here temporarily. There were still
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memorial ceremonies that needed to be observed over the coming days, and I owed it to her to be present for every one of them.
As soon as I stepped inside, I headed toward the staircase. “I’m going upstairs.”
Dad’s voice stopped me. “Wait.”
I paused with one hand resting on the banister. His brows were drawn tightly together. “Flourish. You’re becoming more and more defiant. Is it really that difficult to stand still and listen when I’m talking?”
Suppressing my growing irritation, I walked back to the living room and sank onto the sofa. Every bone in my body felt heavy.
“If you have something to say,” I replied tiredly, “just say it. I’m completely drained.”
Lydia immediately stepped forward with a smile that failed to reach her eyes. “Flourish, don’t misunderstand. It’s just that your grandmother owned five percent of the company’s shares. Your father had always considered those shares part of her retirement security.”
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