Tim’s funeral was quiet. No reporters. No headlines. Just a small, private ceremony under a gray sky.
lanie stood near the grave, dressed in black, her face unreadable as the priest read the final rites. Beside her was Ben, silent and steady, holding an umbrella over both of them.
Even after everything, she still showed up, for closure, for the mory of the brother she once knew.
After all, Tim was still her family. He made terrible choices. He hurt people. But he was also once a boy who laughed with her, who protected her, who dread alongside her.
"I hope you’ve finally found peace," lanie whispered as the casket was lowered. A part of her mourned the man he could’ve been, the brother she lost long before he died.
Ben placed a hand gently on her shoulder. "You did what you could, l."
She nodded. "It just never feels like enough."
****
Later that day, lanie visited the prison again. She had never stopped coming, even when it was hard. Even when she didn’t know what to say.
Dina sat on the other side of the glass, pale and hollow-eyed. Ti had taken its toll on her too.
"You still co?" Dina asked with a faint voice, a small bitter smile forming.
"I told you before," lanie replied gently. "I won’t give up on you."
Dina looked away, sha flickering in her eyes.
"I know you hated ," lanie said softly. "But I loved you. And I believe you can still do sothing right, even if it’s just telling the truth and making peace with yourself."
For a long mont, neither of them spoke. Just silence filled with history, regrets, and unspoken pain. But lanie kept coming back. Not for forgiveness. Not for approval. But because healing, no matter how small, starts sowhere.
And she wasn’t afraid to begin.
Dina was still part of the Clayton family. For lanie, she was still her niece... broken, lost, but not completely gone. Even after all Dina had done, lanie couldn’t bring herself to turn away entirely.
Dina had been sentenced to life imprisonnt. The trial was painful and public, revealing secrets and lies that shattered what little image remained of the once-respected Clayton na. But even then, lanie showed up.
She sat in the courtroom, quiet and steady, not to defend Dina’s actions, but to remind her that soone still saw the girl behind the cris.
Now, as she looked at Dina through the thick glass of the prison visitation room, she saw the weight of that sentence etched into every line on the young woman’s face. The arrogance was gone. The fire in her eyes had dimd. What remained was a shadow of who Dina used to be.
lanie didn’t co to excuse her. She ca to remind her that change was still possible.
"You’re paying for what you did," lanie said gently. "But that doesn’t an your story ends here."
Dina didn’t answer, her eyes lowered.
"I don’t expect you to be grateful," lanie continued. "And I’m not here to make you feel better. But I want you to know, this world hasn’t abandoned you. I haven’t."
A faint tear slipped down Dina’s cheek, though she quickly wiped it away. She didn’t speak, but her silence was different this ti. It wasn’t cold or defiant, it was listening.
lanie stood to leave. "I’ll co again."
And she would. No matter how long it took, she would keep showing up, not because she had to, but because she still believed that retribution wasn’t the end of the road.
Redemption, however small, was still a path worth hoping for. Even in the darkest places, lanie believed, light could still reach.
Like always, Ben was already waiting. The mont lanie stepped out of the visitation area, Ben was there by the door, holding it open for her and gently guiding her toward the waiting car. He didn’t ask about the visit, he never did, but his quiet support said more than words could.
Once they were inside, he turned to her, adjusting her seatbelt with care before starting the engine.
"Should we go straight to the Watson family celebration?" he asked softly. "Or do you want to head ho and rest for a while?"
lanie smiled faintly. "Let’s go to the celebration. I want to be there... for Sumr, for Rain."
Ben nodded and pulled the car onto the road. Today was an important day.
Rain was finally going to et the Watson family, her mother Sumr’s family. A proper introduction was long overdue, and now, after everything, she was finally being welcod not just as Sumr and Arlan’s daughter, but as part of the Watson bloodline. More than that, she was being introduced to the public as the President’s granddaughter.
The world had been watching ever since Carla’s unraveling. The live feed from the decoy mission had exposed every inch of her cris. Carla’s mask had shattered, and with that, all the whispers behind Rain’s back vanished.
No one dared to defend Carla now, not publicly. Only a fool would.
Rain’s na had been cleared without her lifting a finger. Truth, when revealed in its rawest form, had a way of silencing lies.
The car moved smoothly through the streets, the city outside calm and unaware of how much pain had been buried to reach this mont.
Rain was waiting at the Watson estate, ready to walk through another Chapter of her life, this ti, not as soone surviving from the shadows, but as soone who finally had a place, a na, and a family that stood with her in the light.
lanie looked out the window, her heart both heavy and hopeful. So much had been lost... but sothing precious had been found.
And for once, it felt like peace wasn’t just a dream. It was finally beginning. She was so happy for Rain.
Then, without a word, she felt Ben’s warm hand reach over and gently squeeze hers. His touch was steady, comforting in a way that reminded her she wasn’t alone.
lanie glanced at him and offered a small smile, one filled with gratitude.
She, too, was fortunate. Fortunate to have Ben in her life. Through everything... the chaos, the betrayal, the pain, he never left her side. While the world may have whispered behind her back, doubting her because she was Tim’s sister, Ben never once faltered. He stood beside her, believed in her, and quietly carried her through the darkest of days.
Now, being with Rain... and a family that embraced her despite everything... lanie finally felt like she belonged. Maybe it was late in life. Maybe it had taken too long and too much.
But she was here. With the people she loved. And that was enough.
Reviews
All reviews (0)