Chapter 444 Shane's Doubts About Patricia's Identity
After a month of intensive training, Grace had calmed down significantly. She no longer antagonized Patricia at every turn, nor did she cling to Martin relentlessly. Shane's treatment of her had also improved significantly.
Grace brought in a pot of tea she had brewed herself into the study, where Shane was deeply engrossed in composing his poetry. He glanced up briefly when she entered, then quickly refocused his attention on his paper.
Grace knew, despite her grandfather's silence, he was still blaming her inside.
She placed the tea carefully on the edge of the desk, licked her lips and spoke, "Grandpa, I really understand my mistakes now. Please don't be mad at me anymore! If you're upset with me, I won't hold it against you, but I'm just scared it could take a toll on your health, and that would make me upset."
Shane didn't respond. He was carefully inscribing inspirational words in elegant cursive on the paper. The top line read: "Hope blooms anew as daffodils embrace the spring." The second line echoed: "A solitary snowflake whispers winter's end."
Since the incident at the jewelry design competition, he had been irritable and had sequestered himself in the study, writing poems. His mind had been restless, his writing unsatisfactory. But today, it finally pleased him.
Grace extended the tea closer to him and said sweetly, "Grandpa, this is your favorite black tea. I brewed it myself. Would you like to try it and see if it’s to your liking?"
Shane glanced at her with a moment of hesitation, then set down his pen and took the cup from her hand. Grace's face lit up with joy. Grandpa accepting the cup meant he was not as angry as before.
At that moment, Grace's gaze accidentally fell upon a framed photo on the desk. She picked it up, smiling, and asked, "Grandpa, is this you in the picture?"
Shane, separating the floating tea leaves with the lid, nodded his head. Grace glanced again at the woman clinging to Shane's arm, not recognizing her at first glance, and asked, "Who's this girl with you?"
Shane paused, looking up at her, "You don't know her?"
Surprised, Grace asked, "Should I?"
He stared at her, dumbfounded. Finally, with a somber tone, he said, "She is your mother."
Grace felt her world pause for a moment, her heart skipped a beat, and a wave of panic flashed in her eyes. But she quickly regained composure and smiled. "So, this is my mother! I was so young when she passed that my memories of her are vague. Besides, she's so young and happy in this photo, quite different from the tired and sorrowful mother I remember."
Her words triggered a long-buried guilt in Shane. Remembering the bright, vivacious girl worn down by years without joy, his heart ached. Any blame he had for Grace vanished. He put down his teacup and gently ruffled her hair.
"I've failed you and your mother! If I weren't so stubborn back then, your mother wouldn't have died, and you... wouldn't have had to endure all this. It's my fault, I shouldn't have blamed you."
Grace rested her head against Shane's calloused palm. "I've never blamed you, and I believe Mom didn't either."
Even though Shane sensed she was comforting him, he felt a little better. A single photograph seemed to dissolve all their recent estrangement as if it never existed. With a smile, Shane tousled her hair, "Grace, you..."
As he was about to say something more, a knock at the study door interrupted him. Patricia's voice came from the other side of the door. "Grandpa, it's me, Patricia. I'm here to say goodbye, can I come in?"
Hearing Patricia was leaving, Shane quickly withdrew his hand, his voice softened, "I'm here, come on in."
The study door opened. Patricia walked in slowly, hesitating when she saw Grace in the room, then as if she hadn't seen her at all, she approached Shane.
"Grandpa, The Centennial Diamond project is complete! I've come to bid you farewell!"
Shane looked at her with fondness, his eyes misted with fondness as he took her hand. "Leaving so soon? Thanksgiving is around the corner. Why not stay and celebrate with us?” Shane's voice was tinged with genuine reluctance to see her go.
Patricia always felt a strange warmth towards him, and at this moment, it intensified.
"No, I miss my kids. I need to get back to them. If Jeremy ever needs me, just give me a call."
As she spoke of returning to her children, Shane's mind drifted back to days long past. Back to when Elise was still around. Back before the tragic car accident that took the old couple. Thanksgiving was always a time of joyful reunion, filled with laughter, the playful squabbling of children, and sometimes tears. Sadly, those days were beyond reach now.
At the thought, his eyes quickly grew moist.
"Well, you're absolutely right. Thanksgiving is a time for family. So, I won't ask you to stay any longer. When are you planning to leave? I can have Riley arrange a private jet to take you home," Grandpa offered kindly.
"No need for that, I've already got my ticket. I'm leaving in the afternoon, the day after tomorrow."
Hearing this, Shane said nothing more.
After they wrapped up their talk, Patricia got ready to leave. Out of the corner of her eye, she glimpsed a photo frame in Grace's hands. What was a casual glance turned into a fixed stare upon seeing the woman in the frame.
Noticing her attention on the frame, Shane took it from Grace and handed it to Patricia.
"This is my daughter!" he exclaimed, as if a realization had just struck him, looking bewilderedly between the two women. "You know, you two actually bear a resemblance."
No wonder he always felt a mysterious sense of familiarity with Patricia. That was the reason.
"Really?" Patricia took the frame and looked closely at the woman in the picture.
The longer she looked, the wider her eyes grew, as if trying to confirm something. She looked up and asked, "This... is your daughter?"
Shane nodded, "Yes, do you see it? The resemblance between you two?"
Patricia's slender fingers traced the features of the woman in the photo, her eyes reddening slightly. "No, I don't look like her. But she... she looks like my mother. It's uncanny, almost as if they're the same person."
She had never seen two people look so alike.
"Your mother?" Shane asked, astounded.
Patricia nodded. "Yes, my mother! It's just that I can't remember her ever smiling. The only smile I've seen was in her old photograph."
Her mother used to be so gentle and serene, but sorrow soon furrowed between her brows.
A woman tormented by life, by her husband, beyond the point where words fail. How could she find a reason to smile?
Shane's brows knit together with concern, "What was your mother's name?"
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