At the reading of the will, my parents handed my sister $10 million and told me to “make do.” And that’s when my grandfather’s lawyer revealed a secret that only concerned me… and my mother exploded with rage.
As I pulled up in front of the old ranch house, the bells hanging from the porch tinkled softly. Once, that sound meant safety and laughter. Today, it rang hollow. It had been over a year since I’d been here. Not because I didn’t want to come, but because I’d been told there was no one left to visit.
The front door creaked open, and I was greeted not by a warm embrace, but by a voice as cold as a rusty mosquito door.
“So, finally decided to show up?”
My grandmother, Helen, stood there, arms crossed, her eyes shining with a pain I didn’t understand. Her words pierced me. “Grandma, what’s going on?” I asked, taking a step forward. “They told me you were in a nursing home, that you and Grandpa…”
She interrupted me, raising a trembling hand.
“Your grandfather called for you, Elena, over and over again on his deathbed. He kept asking about his little scientist. But you didn’t answer. You never came.”
My breath caught in my throat.
“That’s not true,” I whispered, my voice shaking. “Show me the number he called.”
She left and returned with a small, worn book. I recognized Grandpa’s handwriting immediately. But the number written down wasn’t mine. Not at all.
“That’s not my number,” I whispered.
Her brows furrowed.
“They told us you changed it when you went to university. That we shouldn’t bother you anymore. That you were ashamed of us.”
“No!” “I cried, clutching the porch railing. “Grandma, I came last year for spring break. I came here. Vanessa was home. She said no one was here.”
Grandma’s face turned pale.
“But we were here. We’ve always been here.”
“They lied to me,” I replied, rage rising inside me like a tidal wave. “They told me you were placed in a care center, that visitors were prohibited because of the quarantine.”
Her lips parted, silently at first.
“They told us you didn’t want to see us… that you had a new life… that we were no longer a part of it.”
A bitter laugh escaped me.
“I never said anything like that. I was deliberately cut off from you. They didn’t even tell me Grandpa was sick until it was too late. I was told the funeral was at one o’clock today. When I arrived at the church, it was empty.
Realization fell across her face like a shadow.
“The funeral was at nine,” she whispered. “They told everyone you didn’t come. That you didn’t care.”
He died thinking I didn’t care about him.
The words broke out like a stifled cry. I fell to my knees, burying my head in hers.
“Now we know the truth,” Grandma said quietly, stroking my hair. “We know, Elena.”
Tears streamed down her face, but her eyes now blazed with determination. She entered the house, and I followed her. She picked up an old rotary phone, her fingers trembling as she dialed the number.
“Betty! Yes, it’s me. I need you, Jacob, and Vanessa to come immediately. No, we can’t wait. I’ll expect you within the hour.”
She hung up without another word. Then she turned to me, her voice calm but blazing with suppressed rage:
“The lawyer will be coming too. Your grandfather… he left something that needs to be read. In front of everyone.”
