CHAPTER SIX — THE FAMILY SHE NEVER KNEW
1028 Words
Evelyn burst into tears.
Not quiet tears.
Not graceful tears.
The kind of tears that had been trapped inside her heart for nineteen years.
Before anyone could stop her...
She hurried forward.
Then stopped only a single step away from Eliora.
Her hands lifted instinctively...
Only to freeze halfway.
She wanted to hug her.
She wanted to hold her daughter.
She wanted to tell her everything.
But...
Could she?
Would she frighten her?
Would she make her uncomfortable?
Nineteen years.
Nineteen years without earning the right to embrace her own child.
Evelyn slowly lowered her hands.
"I'm sorry..."
Her voice trembled.
"I..."
She laughed weakly through her tears.
"I practiced this moment so many times."
Another tear slipped down her cheek.
"I thought I'd know exactly what to say."
She looked into Eliora's eyes.
"But now..."
"...I've forgotten every word."
Silence settled between them.
Eliora quietly watched the woman before her.
The expensive clothes.
The elegant posture.
The trembling hands she was desperately trying to hide.
For some reason...
She believed her.
Every single word.
Master Orion quietly stepped aside.
Giving them space.
Giving them time.
Richard Ashford finally cleared his throat.
His usually commanding voice sounded strangely uncertain.
"I'm Richard Ashford."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"...Your father."
The last two words felt awkward leaving his mouth.
Not because he doubted them.
Because saying them aloud made everything feel real.
Eliora looked at him.
One of the most powerful businessmen in the country...
Looked more nervous than she was.
His hands repeatedly tightened and relaxed at his sides.
Almost like a young man attending his first interview.
The realization caught her completely off guard.
Then another figure stepped forward.
A young man with sharp features and calm eyes rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
"This..."
He sighed helplessly.
"...is harder than I expected."
Several people laughed softly.
He smiled faintly.
"I'm Lucas."
He pointed at himself.
"I'm your older brother."
Then he pointed beside him.
"And unfortunately..."
"...that noisy person is your younger brother."
"Excuse me?"
Liam looked deeply offended.
He immediately stepped forward.
Unlike Lucas...
Standing still seemed physically impossible for him.
His bright eyes never left Eliora's face.
Almost as though he were trying to memorize every feature before she disappeared again.
"I'm Liam."
He grinned.
"The favorite brother."
Lucas sighed.
"We don't have favorites."
"We do now."
"You promoted yourself."
"I earned it."
"You absolutely didn't."
Eliora stared at them.
Then...
Without warning...
A laugh escaped her lips.
Light.
Soft.
Completely genuine.
The entire courtyard fell silent.
Again.
Because everyone saw it.
Her smile.
Richard's breathing stopped.
Lucas blinked.
Liam slowly lowered his hands.
Even the servants unconsciously smiled.
Because when Eliora laughed...
She looked exactly like Evelyn.
Exactly.
Grandfather Ashford quietly closed his eyes.
Then spoke for the first time since she appeared.
"...She has her mother's smile."
Silence.
Evelyn immediately burst into tears again.
"Father..."
The old man looked away.
Pretending he hadn't spoken.
Pretending nobody noticed the moisture gathering in his own eyes.
Pretending nineteen years hadn't just come crashing down around him.
And somehow...
The atmosphere became lighter.
Not because the pain had disappeared.
But because, for the first time...
It finally felt like a family meeting.
Instead of strangers meeting by chance.
An awkward silence followed.
Nobody seemed willing to move.
Or speak.
Or leave.
Nineteen years.
How were they supposed to fit nineteen years into a single afternoon?
Fortunately...
Master Orion had never been a patient man.
"Ahem."
Everyone turned.
The old physician looked around the group.
Then pointed at Eliora.
"My Little Sparrow hasn't eaten since yesterday."
Immediately, Evelyn's expression changed.
"What?"
Richard frowned.
"Since yesterday?"
Liam looked genuinely horrified.
"Wait... that's illegal."
Lucas immediately smacked the back of his head.
"It isn't illegal."
"It should be."
Master Orion snorted.
"She's stubborn."
Eliora looked offended.
"I am not."
"You once refused to eat for two days because I criticized your handwriting."
"It was a perfectly reasonable reaction."
"It absolutely wasn't."
Soft laughter rippled through the courtyard.
Even Grandfather Ashford's lips twitched.
Master Orion folded his arms proudly.
"And don't let that innocent face fool you."
"Master..."
"She threw a medical textbook at my head when she was sixteen."
"I apologized."
"Three months later."
"You deserved it."
"I probably did."
Even Richard couldn't stop himself from laughing.
The heavy atmosphere that had suffocated everyone only moments ago slowly disappeared.
For the first time...
The conversation felt natural.
Not forced.
Not rehearsed.
Just...
Family.
Master Orion looked toward the Ashfords.
"If you're all done standing around looking at each other..."
He gestured toward the villa.
"...my Little Sparrow is hungry."
Evelyn immediately nodded.
"Yes... yes, of course."
She instinctively reached for Eliora's hand.
Then hesitated.
Afraid she was moving too quickly.
Eliora noticed.
She quietly looked at the trembling hand suspended between them.
Then...
Very gently...
She placed her own hand inside it.
Warm.
Soft.
Careful.
Evelyn froze.
Her breathing stopped.
She slowly looked down at their joined hands.
Then back at Eliora.
Another tear rolled down her cheek.
This time...
She didn't wipe it away.
Richard discreetly looked toward the sky.
Pretending not to notice.
Lucas quietly smiled.
Liam looked suspiciously close to crying himself.
Grandfather Ashford cleared his throat.
Twice.
Then turned away.
As though the sudden moisture in his eyes had absolutely nothing to do with the young woman holding her mother's hand.
Hand in hand...
They slowly walked toward the villa.
The Ashford family followed behind them.
Not as strangers.
Not completely as family either.
But as people finally taking the first step toward finding one another again.
As Eliora crossed the entrance...
She paused.
Almost instinctively.
Then turned around.
Master Orion was still standing outside.
Watching her.
The old physician smiled.
A small...
Proud...
Almost fatherly smile.
"Go on."
His voice was gentle.
"I'll be right here if you need me."
Eliora smiled back.
A little brighter this time.
Then nodded.
"Thank you...
Master."
For a brief moment...
Neither of them said anything else.
They didn't need to.
Both of them understood.
One chapter of Eliora's life had finally come to an end.
Another...
Had only just begun.
END CHAPTER SIX
- Writer
