Female Novel
Chapter 1795
When Aurora was done with her supper, she and Cindy went downstairs for a stroll.
Aurora had obviously brightened up if it meant she was going on an evening walk in hopes of gettingsome exercise in her routine. At the mention of this, Cindy found herself thinking about Peter and thegirl who liked him, both of whom she had seen not too long ago.
She wasn’t sure what could have happened to cause them to quarrel the way they had.
She had always pegged Peter for the gentlemanly and athletic type, so she couldn’t imagine what hewould be like in an argument.
At present, she and Aurora strolled around the park for a while longer, but they could not find a place torest. Finally, Aurora came upon a long bench by the side of the path and sat down.
Cindy, on the other hand, did not plan on sitting, so she paced around idly near the bench.
The both of them were in comfortable silence, and Cindy could tell that Aurora had brightened up quitea bit, even if her emotions were more subdued than usual.
Perhaps she was feeling the same thing Ian was—they had both lost someone who had, in his lifetime,not been very kind to either of them. Now Aurora was torn between grief and relief.
Meanwhile, Ian called that evening and said that he would be home late. He and Sean would be takingthe night watch at the funeral parlor while Leah, Simon, and the others had left after paying their lastrespects.
When Cindy heard this, she couldn’t hide her surprise. “I guess Sally still has a conscience, after all.”
Ian hummed in response. “Trust me, I didn’t see it coming, either. I didn’t have much expectations forLeah and her spawns, but Sally really surprised me toward the end.”
As for Simon, he was incorrigible. While Sally and Leah had been mourning and dabbing away at theirtears, he had remained apathetic. It was hard to tell that Bryce’s death affected him at all, for heshowed no signs of grief, only resentment.
Ian didn’t say much to Cindy on the phone, and even though she had no idea what he was doing at themoment, she did hear plenty of noise in the background.
Cindy merely informed him that there was dinner set aside on the table for him. With all that’s going on,he probably couldn’t catch a break or grab a bite to eat. Having hung up the phone, she hurried tomake his supper.
Meanwhile, Aurora was standing by the balcony window. She had somehow found a packet of Ian’scigarettes, and upon taking a roll-up out of the box, she lit it clumsily. It took her a drag or two beforeshe burst into a relentless coughing fit.
After that, she couldn’t quite attain the smoker’s finesse and decidedly snubbed out the cigarette on thewindow ledge, then muttered darkly, “How can smoking be so darn hard to get right?”
Cindy watched this with a light smile playing on her lips, keeping her opinions to herself.
Aurora exhaled the rest of the smoke, then said, “Then why don’t you tell me how I’m supposed to
celebrate?”
True to his word, Ian came back a little later in the evening, though it was still considered early. Helooked exhausted, and Cindy sauntered up to the threshold to help him take his coat. “How long will thewake service last? Are you still going over tomorrow?”
He nodded tiredly as he changed into slippers and plopped down on the couch. “It’ll last till tomorrow,and then we’ll wait for the cremation.”
With a nod, Cindy thought, Two days is long enough. There’s no way Ian could hold out if the wakeservice were to last any longer than that.
Aurora, on the other hand, promptly handed a glass of water to him as she pressed, “Anythinginteresting happened at the service? Did Leah and her spawns make a scene?”
Ian took the glass of water and gulped it all down at once, then let out a weary sigh. “The three of themmight not be very bright, but even they know better than to behave like maniacs at a wake service. Ifit’s a scene they want, they will wait until all this is over.”
More importantly, they couldn’t possibly stir up any trouble today. The old man had already had a willmade, and no one knows the contents. If Leah and her children wanted to make a scene, they wouldhave to wait until after the old man’s will was declared.
Aurora took back the empty glass and sat down on the coffee table. “Then shall we leave as soon asthe funeral is over? Or do you want to stay and hear the will read-out?” novelbin
Ian leaned into the couch. “Nah, I won’t be waiting. There’s no point staying for the squabble, and
whether or not I’m in the old man’s will makes little difference.”
Nodding in agreement, Aurora said, “I thought so too. I have no intention of staying and waiting forthem to start a fight over a piece of paper. Besides, we don’t have to start work immediately when wego back; we could lie low for a while. There’s no need for us to get involved in this twisted powerstruggle of theirs.”