As Selene swayed with her groom, Gideon, during their first dance, the hotel manager interrupted to say someone was asking for her outside. It was her uninvited grandmother, Agnes, with a wedding gift Selene didn’t want. But when she threw the tiny box, it broke open, revealing something that made her sneer.
Selene and Gideon moved to the music, savoring their perfect moment, though Selene’s heart ached for her absent parents. A hesitant cough broke their bliss. Selene opened her eyes to see Mr. Harrow, the hotel manager, looking uneasy.
“Sorry to interrupt,” he began. “Someone’s outside asking for you, Mrs. Caldwell.”
“Who?” Selene asked, stepping back from Gideon, who frowned.
“She says she’s your grandmother, Agnes,” Mr. Harrow replied.
Gideon’s eyes met hers. “I’ll tell her to leave.”
Selene sighed. “No, she’ll cause a scene. I’ll see what she wants.”
Outside, Agnes’s face lit up upon seeing Selene. “You’re the most beautiful bride, darling,” she said, reaching for Selene’s hand.
Selene stepped back. “Why are you here? You weren’t invited for a reason.”
“I know,” Agnes said, tears in her eyes. “I had to see my only granddaughter marry.”
“You need to go,” Selene said, arms crossed, holding back anger. “My father would be here if not for what you didn’t do.”
“I’m sorry,” Agnes whispered. “I regret it. I just came to give you a wedding gift.” She handed Selene a small jewelry box.
“This is all I could get you,” Agnes said, clutching Selene’s hands. “I hope you like it.”
Selene stared at the red box with disgust. “What, some cheap trinket? Did you steal it?”
“Oh, dear, I—” Agnes started, but Selene cut her off.
“If not for your greed, my father would be here, walking me down the aisle!” Tears choked Selene. “Get lost! I never want to see you again!”
“I hope you don’t hate me forever,” Agnes said sadly. “I’ve always adored you.”
Agnes shuffled away, leaning on her cane. Alone, Selene’s thoughts drifted to the day that fueled her hatred for Agnes.
Years ago, Selene sat in her father’s lawyer’s office. Mr. Kessler, a gruff man, got straight to the point.
“No good news, kid,” he said, explaining her father’s case. The plaintiffs demanded compensation—a staggering sum.
“I don’t have that money,” Selene said, breathless. “Is there no other way?”
Kessler shook his head. “Without payment, we go to court, and your father, Elias, will likely face a long sentence.”
“No!” Selene gasped.
“You need to find the money,” Kessler said. “It’s the only way.”
Selene left, knowing friends couldn’t help and her credit wouldn’t secure a loan. Her only option was Agnes.
“Selene?” Agnes was shocked to see her exhausted granddaughter at her door. “What’s wrong, honey? You look pale. Is it the lawyer?”
Selene explained the meeting, the compensation, and the stakes. “Dad will go to jail if we don’t pay.”
Agnes sat beside her, taking her hand. “I’m sorry, Selene, but I don’t have that kind of money.”
“You can,” Selene pleaded. “Sell the bakery. It’ll cover it and more.”
Agnes’s eyes widened. “My bakery? It’s my life’s work. I can’t sell it.”
“Gran!” Selene cried. “It’s about Dad! Do you want him in prison?”
“No, but I can’t sell,” Agnes said firmly. “How would I live? Your father won’t support me. No, Selene, I won’t.”
Selene stood, tears streaming. “If you don’t help, I’ll never speak to you again. How can you abandon us? I hate you!” she screamed, storming out and slamming the door.
Unable to raise the money, Selene watched her father go to prison despite Kessler’s efforts. She visited Elias often, vowing never to abandon him. But six months into his sentence, her phone rang while she shopped for groceries.
“Is this Mr. Vance’s daughter?” a man asked. “Inspector Caldwell here.”
“Yes? What’s this about?” Selene frowned.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “Your father died last night in his cell. Heart attack. It was quick.”
Selene’s cart crashed into another shopper’s. She collapsed in the aisle, sobbing into her phone. The preparations that followed hardened her heart. As they cremated Elias, she could only think Agnes let him die alone in jail, robbing her of a final goodbye.
“Selene!” Gideon’s voice snapped her back to the present.
“What?” she blinked, realizing she’d clenched the jewelry box so tightly it hurt.
“Where’s your grandmother?” Gideon asked, gripping her shoulders with concern.
“She left,” Selene sighed. “For good. Let’s go inside.”
But her eyes fell to the box. Biting her lip, she hurled it to the ground with force.
“Selene!” Gideon exclaimed. “Careful! What’s that?”
The box shattered, and a ring rolled out, glinting with large stones. “Is that an emerald ring?” Gideon asked.
Selene knelt, examining it. “No way. How could she afford this?”
A tiny folded paper peeked from the broken box. Selene grabbed it, gasping as Agnes’s words sank in.
Dear Selene,
I know you hate me, but your father wasn’t a good man. He did terrible things, careless of the consequences or those he hurt. I warned my daughter not to marry him, but she didn’t listen, and I believe he drove her to give up on life. I could’ve saved him from jail, but he didn’t deserve it. Nor did he deserve a daughter as loving as you. There’s so much you don’t know. I kept the bakery for you, not me. I hope you’ll understand someday. Take this ring as part of my wedding gift. A lawyer will contact you about the rest.
Love you to the moon and back,
Gran.
“Oh God,” Selene whispered, her heart softening.
The next day, Selene drove to Agnes’s house, a place she hadn’t visited in years. Two moving trucks stood outside, and people were moving in. Confused, she demanded answers, but the movers only said the house was recently sold.
Desperate, Selene knocked on the neighbor’s door. Mrs. Linden, an elderly woman, greeted her warmly.
“What are you doing here, dear? I miss Agnes,” Mrs. Linden said softly.
“What do you mean?” Selene asked, startled.
“She moved weeks ago, after her diagnosis,” Mrs. Linden said. “Skin cancer, stage four.”
Selene froze. “She didn’t tell me.”
Mrs. Linden nodded, mentioning her own mother’s death from the same disease.
“I’m sorry, but I need to find her!” Selene interrupted.
“Frank’s, I think,” Mrs. Linden said.
Selene rushed to Frank’s, a rundown motel that was once a charming vacation spot. At the reception, she begged for Agnes’s room number.
“The grandmother?” the receptionist said. “Let me get my manager.”
“No!” Selene snapped. “Give me her room now!”
“She passed last night,” the receptionist said awkwardly. “Housekeeping found her. The coroner’s taken her.”
Selene’s eyes flared. She nodded stiffly, walked out, and let out a gut-wrenching scream.
