Chapter 3

My dad was the CEO of a publicly traded company. All the years he was married to my mom, he spoiled her rotten. She never had to lift a finger, and he always doted on her. Even when they argued, they'd make up in no time.

But then my mom got cancer, and it got worse really fast. My dad spent millions trying to save her, but nothing worked. If it hadn't been for that, they would've stayed madly in love forever.

After my mom passed away, my dad was heartbroken. He swore he'd never bring another woman into our lives.

For more than ten years, he kept his word, raised me single-handedly and never even looked at another woman.

My dad was such a great guy. How dare they say he was worse than that poor guy here?

"What are you all arguing about?" Grandma shuffled out slowly, leaning on her cane.

She was the oldest in the family, and no one dared to cross her.

The relatives who'd been mean to me suddenly plastered on fake smiles, asking if she was cold and telling her to hurry inside so she wouldn't catch a chill.

But Grandma ignored everyone else and waved me over. "Grace, come here. Don't any of you dare mess with Grace," she said, her voice shaky as she coughed.

I rushed over and held her steady. "Grandma!"

Out of all my relatives back here, Grandma was the only one who ever really cared about me.

When I was a kid, she'd peel oranges for me, make little clay animals, weave straw hats, and at night, she'd take me outside to count the stars and tell me stories.

I hadn't seen Grandma in years, and I missed her like crazy. That was why I drove hundreds of miles over the break just to see her.

If it weren't for Grandma, I never would've set foot in this place.

Grandma gripped my hand, her tone half grumbling, half doting. "Grace, why'd you go and buy lobsters? What's so special about them anyway? I'd much rather you just come inside and chat with me."

Everyone's eyes practically sparkled, and they were almost drooling.

"Lobsters? Did you say lobsters?" someone asked.

Grandma tugged me into the house, completely ignoring their desperate questions.

As soon as the door closed, the relatives started whispering among themselves.

"What's going on? Is Helen's daughter really going out to buy lobsters?"

"Lobsters cost a fortune. No way she'd splurge on lobsters for this whole big family. Don't get your hopes up."

"But isn't Helen's husband a CEO? Her daughter should be able to afford a few pounds of lobsters, right?"

"Could it be we misjudged her? Maybe she actually is buying lobsters to treat us all?"

"The crops haven't been great these past few years. I haven't had lobsters in so long that I can barely remember what they taste like. If we really get to eat lobsters tonight, that'd be a real treat."

"Why don't we go apologize to her? We're all family anyway. She won't hold it against us if we play nice."

Seeing the relatives gradually taking my side, and some of them even thinking about making up with me, Linda couldn't hold back anymore.

She raised her voice, loud enough to drown everyone out. "First she says she's buying lobsters, and now she suddenly backs out? She's just putting on a show, flaunting her money.

"She never meant to buy any for us. How fake. It makes me sick! Ugh, give me a break!

"If she thinks pretending to buy lobsters is going to win me over, she's dreaming. Unless she apologizes to Tommy, I won't let her off that easy!"

Grandma and I went into the inner room and shut the door tight, completely cutting off their chatter.

I was heading out early tomorrow anyway, so let them talk all they want. I wouldn't ever have to deal with them again.

Grandma pulled out the medical kit and carefully treated my injury, wrapping it up with practiced hands. She swore she'd make Linda and the others cough up the money for what they did.

Even when I tried to brush it off, saying the repairs wouldn't cost much, she wouldn't take no for an answer. She was determined to have my back.

Grandma and I chatted for a while, and honestly, my mood lifted a lot.

By seven o'clock, the family dinner was about to kick off.

Then it hit me that I still had two boxes of fruit in the car trunk, mangoes and kiwis, Grandma's absolute favorites. I headed outside to grab them.

As I got closer to my car, my jaw dropped.

Not only was the outside trashed by that little brat, but the whole car was tilted forward on the left side.

I rushed over to the left front. My tires were totally flat, with several big nail holes in them. The right front tire had a thick, long nail jammed right in.

The base of the nail was bent, like someone really went to town with a hammer.

This wasn't something a kid could pull off. It must have been some adults.