Chapter 517 His Gift
Aurelia and Joe stood watching as Cathy opened the mysterious package.
Layer by layer, the contents revealed themselves—several exquisite glass bottles adorned with silk ribbons, nestled above a folded piece of paper. When Cathy unfolded the document, her eyes immediately filled with tears.
"Aurelia, this is your mother's handwriting—her perfume formulas. Where on earth did he find this? I'd recognize Brenda's script anywhere."
Aurelia examined the yellowed paper closely. It was indeed her mother's careful notation of fragrance recipes, while the three bottles in the box appeared freshly made—clearly Nathaniel had recreated the perfumes from Brenda's original formulas as Cathy's birthday gift.
Even if he was simply presenting her own daughter's work back to her, Cathy was deeply moved. At her age, no precious jewel or exotic treasure could compare to this tangible connection to her lost child. Nathaniel had understood exactly what would touch Cathy's heart.
"When is Nathaniel returning?" Cathy asked Joe. "I want him to visit so I can learn where he discovered this."
Joe's gaze shifted uncomfortably. "Grandmother, we couldn't have brought Burry home without Nathaniel's help. I never could have managed it alone."
Cathy studied the gift box thoughtfully. "I'm not ungrateful. You both must have endured considerable hardship on this mission."
"Nothing we couldn't handle," Joe replied with forced lightness. "Nathaniel went ahead to make arrangements—his advance work proved crucial. The drug lord has been captured by authorities and will never see freedom again. We can finally live in peace."
Cathy nodded approvingly. "Then I owe Nathaniel proper thanks. Perhaps I've been too quick to judge him. Arrange for him to join us for dinner when his schedule permits."
Joe's eyebrow arched slightly. "He's running a major corporation, Grandmother—hardly has time for social calls. When he's available, I'll extend the invitation. For now, shouldn't we return to your guests? It's time to cut the cake, and the guest of honor can't very well abandon her own party."
Supported by Joe and Aurelia, Cathy descended to find the business crowd eager to network with Joe, hoping to curry favor for future opportunities. His years in corporate politics had honed his social skills to perfection—he deflected their advances with polished courtesy that maintained distance while giving no offense.
When the eight-tiered cake Aurelia had personally designed was wheeled out, candles blazing, the guests murmured appreciative approval. Cathy reserved the strawberry-topped slices for Aurelia and Burry, knowing her granddaughter's preference and suspecting her twin might share the same taste. She was determined to learn every detail about Burry she'd just reclaimed, to somehow compensate for all the lost years.
After the cake came the fireworks display. With Joe managing the festivities, Aurelia slipped away to a quiet corner and tried Nathaniel's number again. Just as the ringing was about to end, someone answered.
"Hello? May I ask who's calling?"
A woman's voice.
Aurelia's stomach dropped. "I'm Nathaniel's girlfriend. Why do you have his phone?"
Instead of an answer, she heard a distant shout: "Sigrid Vinter, could you come here? Family has arrived."
"Coming right away..." The line went dead.
Aurelia's instincts screamed that something was wrong, despite Joe's casual dismissal. Who was Sigrid? What family? Why was some woman answering Nathaniel's phone?
Fireworks bloomed across the night sky, but Aurelia felt no joy in their beauty. Joe was hiding something—something he and Nathaniel had conspired to keep from her.
Little Jacoba tugged at her dress. "Mommy, where's Daddy? He promised to come to Great-grandmother's party."
Aurelia's expression faltered before she repeated Joe's explanation. "Jacob, your daddy had to return to Imperick for business. He'll come back when everything's settled."
The boy tilted his head thoughtfully. "Will it take very long?"
Aurelia had no answer, so she deflected. "Hopefully not. Why aren't you watching the fireworks with your sister?"
Jacoba wrinkled his nose. "Girls like those fleeting pretty things. I want to understand why Daddy didn't come home with Uncle Joe."
With her heart in her throat but determined not to alarm her son, Aurelia forced a smile. "Mommy will visit Imperick in a few days and bring your daddy home. How's that?"
"Good. We might have parent-teacher conferences next month, and Daddy promised to attend. He can't break promises to me."
"Daddy would never break his word to you. Don't worry."
Jacoba beamed, satisfied.
The celebration finally wound down around nine o'clock. Despite the mountain of unopened gifts, Cathy ignored them all and hurried upstairs to check on Burry.
Exhausted from travel and illness, Burry had slept fitfully, plagued by nightmares—the avalanche, a white-coated woman strangling her, imprisonment by the drug lord Alex. She woke to find the kind-faced elderly woman sitting beside her bed. Her grandmother. She was no longer alone in the world.
"Grandmother, what time is it?"
The time difference had left her disoriented. Everything felt surreal, like stepping into a completely new existence.
"Are you feeling unwell, darling? You're drenched in perspiration. It's past ten—you can sleep more if you need to. Tell me if anything hurts. Would you like some water?"
Burry struggled to sit up. "I'm not tired anymore, Grandmother. You should rest—it's late."
But Cathy shook her head. Sleep was impossible when she could barely believe her good fortune. Just four years ago, she'd gained one granddaughter, and today she'd reclaimed another. She couldn't bear to leave Burry's side.
"Would you like some birthday cake, dear?"
The slice she'd saved sat on the nightstand, its bright strawberry catching Burry's eye and stirring her appetite. "Of course I want your birthday cake."
Cathy settled in to watch her eat, with no intention of retiring anytime soon.
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