Watching You Burn In Regret novel Chapter 108

"I already told them in advance. From the very beginning, all I wanted was to bring you home for dinner and introduce you to the family, nothing more."

"This is between us. Our decision is what matters; everyone else will respect that."

Seren nodded, slowly uncurling her tense fingers.

No matter if she was living with the Bradleys or before that, with the Powers, she'd always had to watch people's moods, tiptoeing through every interaction, carefully gauging what was expected of her.

But for the first time, she realized how good it felt not to tiptoe around anyone.

They arrived at Rutledge Manor.

As soon as Seren stepped inside, Joyce caught her quietly and gave her a quick update on the house:

Old Mr. Rutledge was in the back room, preparing candles and incense for the memorial.

Nadine, Susan, and Hollis had arrived early and were waiting in the main house. Not a single Bradley had shown up.

Sure enough, the moment she entered the main house, Seren saw that the Brewer family was all there.

Nadine came right over, speaking in a low voice as she pulled Seren aside.

"You don't have to worry about the Bradleys showing up. I already asked Grandpa to talk to them. This year, for Grandma's anniversary, we're not going to the cemetery for the memorial, and they aren't expected back either."

Seren smiled faintly. "Honestly, even if you hadn't said anything, they wouldn't have come."

After Old Mrs. Rutledge passed away, the Bradleys only bothered with appearances the first year—after that, they always had an excuse: work was too busy, something urgent at the company, Carla had a competition, and on and on. They never came again.

Even if Old Mr. Rutledge hadn't said anything, they would've found their own reasons to stay away.

She still remembered, that first year after Old Mrs. Rutledge died, Zena had been openly reluctant about the whole thing.

When it was just their family in private, Zena would mutter,

"We already had a big funeral; did all the proper rituals. Why do we need a memorial? It's a waste of time and energy."

Just mentioning the Bradleys made Nadine bristle.

Even without what happened yesterday, cutting ties with the Bradleys was only a matter of time.

For a moment, Nadine didn't dare imagine what the Bradleys must have done to push someone as loyal and kind as Seren to such a hard, final decision.

*

At that moment—

Outside Rutledge Manor, a sleek Mercedes rolled to a stop.

Slater stepped out, scowling. "You really think Seren's coming? If she's not, we just wasted a trip."

"She'll come. Today's Grandma's anniversary—Seren wouldn't miss it," Swain replied with certainty.

Seren had grown up at her grandmother's side, and their bond had always been close. Now that she was back in Seaside City, even if she wasn't coming for the memorial, she'd return to the old house—at least to visit the grave, to pay her respects.

In the courtyard, Joyce was trimming back dead branches when she spotted Swain and Slater approaching. She muttered under her breath, "Didn't see them all last year—now suddenly they show up? Guess the sun really is rising in the west today."