by Trisha Grace
Contents
Dedication
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty One
Chapter Twenty Two
Chapter Twenty Three
Chapter Twenty Four
Chapter Twenty Five
Chapter Twenty Six
Epilogue
Note to Reader
Connect With Author
About Author
More Books
To Jesus, the one who made it all possible.
To my dear fiancé, who is always so supportive of me.
To my mom, who is always encouraging of whatever choice I make.
Chapter One
“After what you’ve been through with your parents and grandmother, you shouldn’t have to be here,” William Hayes said through his oxygen mask. His voice weak, soft, and wispy.
Along with a private doctor and two nurses, Kate sat in Mr. Hayes’s bedroom, watching over him.
The king-size bed that used to be in the room had been replaced by a hospital bed. Different types of medical equipment, measuring every aspect of his status, stood all around them.
Holding his hand, she said softly, “Are you sure you don’t want me to call Tyler?”
William Hayes’s lids slowly drooped over his eyes. A drop of tear slipped down the corner of his eye and onto the white pillow case. “It was my fault; I abandoned him.”
Kate pulled a piece of Kleenex and dabbed at his tear. “It isn’t important now. Don’t worry about it. Someday, someday he’ll understand.”
A series of coughs reverberated through William Hayes’s fragile frame and his wrinkled hand flew to his chest, clutching it. Kate quickly moved aside as the doctor and nurses rushed forward to attend to him. When his coughing fit ceased, his trembling hand reached between them.
Everyone immediately stepped aside for Kate.
She cupped her hands over his. “I’m here.”
He pulled down his oxygen mask as she leaned in. “Help me to … to help him.” His weak voice was barely audible, but Kate knew who he was referring to.
The one regret that he couldn’t mend in time.
She didn’t know how she could help him, but she nodded anyway.
Mr. Hayes was a good man; he deserved to go in peace.
Her lips curled into a rueful smile as she thought about the first time she met Mr. Hayes at the elderly home where her grandmother was staying; the elderly home where she visited at least three times a week.
She was surprised to walk into the ward and find her grandmother dancing away with Mr. Hayes, a much healthier Mr. Hayes.
His white hair was combed back, and he wore a checkered button-down shirt that was tugged neatly into his black pants. His cheeks were slightly flushed, and he wore a polite smile as he held her grandmother and swayed along with the music.
Kate had thought Mr. Hayes was another patient with Alzheimer and was confused as her grandmother often was.
Mr. Hayes said nothing. He merely smiled apologetically at her.
Later, when her grandmother finally let go of Mr. Hayes, Kate found out that his mind was perfectly clear. He’d stepped in and pretended to be her grandfather simply to make her grandmother smile. He even apologized to Kate, telling her that he was sorry if he’d overstepped the boundary.
She didn’t think he did anything wrong. She understood his intentions and was grateful for what he did.
When her grandmother had started addressing her as ‘Tiffy’, who was her mother, Kate would patiently correct her. But that only brought about confusion, and sometimes frustration, to her grandmother. Not wanting to upset her grandmother, Kate went along with whatever frame of mind her grandmother was in.
As Kate started chatting with Mr. Hayes, she realized that he was, in fact, a volunteer at the home. He was there every day, lending a hand and keeping himself occupied.
Every day since then, he was a constant companion to her grandmother. Despite the smile he wore, Kate had always sensed a deep melancholy in him. His smiles never seemed to reach his eyes, and whenever he thought no one was looking, he would stare into the distant and sigh.
So even after her grandmother had passed away, Kate continued her trips to the elderly home. She would pitch in whenever she could, but her trips were mainly to accompany Mr. Hayes.
Though he had been kind to her grandmother, it took a while for Mr. Hayes to open up to her. And it took him over a year to reveal to Kate the accident that had changed his life.
Two years after her grandmother passed away, Mr. Hayes himself collapsed from a heart attack and his health had been deteriorating since.
She smiled at the frail old man lying in bed and moved forward, intending to put the oxygen mask back in place.
“Kate, promise me that you’ll help him,” Mr. Hayes said, clasping onto her hand.
Her brows furrowed slightly, but she retained her smile.
Having known Mr. Hayes for nearly five years, she’d heard all the stories about Tyler Hayes as a boy. Now and then, Mr. Hayes would take out a photo album and tell her the stories behind the pictures.
But that was all she knew of Tyler—the boy behind all the stories.
She had never met Tyler Hayes in person before.
Mr. Hayes and Tyler had long been estranged, and neither had tried contacting each other in the past twenty years. Throughout all the health episodes that Mr. Hayes had suffered in the past years, Tyler never showed his face or graced Mr. Hayes with a phone call. He was basically non-existent.
But Mr. Hayes was right: she couldn’t blame Tyler. Mr. Hayes had his part to blame for Tyler’s behavior.
“Kate.”
His frail voice brought her back to the moment.
“I promise.”
“Thanks. Thanks, Kate. Thanks for letting me play the grandfather that I never stepped up to. You’re the best granddaughter anyone could ask for.” Then he closed his eyes, his hand slipping from within hers.
The muscles around his face relaxed, and it looked as if he’d simply fallen asleep. But the long monotonous beep from the heartbeat monitor indicated otherwise.
Kate stepped out of the room while the doctor and nurses flew into a flurry of activities.
She didn’t know how long she stood outside. Eventually, the doctor stepped out and gave her a grim pat on her arm while the nurses brought Mr. Hayes’s body out of the room.
She turned away from the doctor as her tears fell.
Shortly after, calls started coming through her cell phone asking her about funeral arrangements.
She knew Mr. Hayes had listed her as his emergency contact, but she was in no way qualified to make such decisions. She needed to find Tyler Hayes immediately.
She went into the study and searched for the black leather Bible that Mr. Hayes had once showed her. She pulled out the Bible and ran her fingers along the cursive golden letters imprinted on the bottom left corner. Tyler Hayes.
Mr. Hayes had bought it with the intention of giving it to Tyler for his eighteenth birthday, but he never did. For nearly ten years, the Bible had sat in the bottom drawer of Mr. Hayes’s desk.
Flipping all the way to the last page of the bible, she pulled out the piece of paper stuck within.
Though there hadn’t been any contact between them, the late Mr. Hayes had been keeping track of Tyler, making sure that he wasn’t lacking for anything.
With a heavy sigh, she dialed the number written neatly on the piece of paper. She broke into a small smile when the line connected, surprised that it actually worked.
“Hayes.”
For a moment, Kate lost her voice. She didn’t know what she was supposed to say. “Tyler Hayes?”
“Who’s this?”
There was no good way to go about delivering the news, so she took in a deep breath and gathered her courage. “I’m Kate, Kate Mitchell. I’m calling about your grandfather, Mr. Hayes.” There was no response on the other end of the phone, and she had an inkling that Tyler would hang up the phone at any moment so she hurried to continue. “He … he passed away.”
Again, Tyler Hayes was silent.
She waited, thinking he was probably dealing with shock or whatever feeling that was coursing through his system, but the silence dragged out and she felt compelled to say something.
“The funeral home is asking about the arrangements. Should I get them to call you?”
“Who are you?” Tyler’s voice was soft.
“Kate Mitchell, I’m … a friend.”
A grunt came from the other side of the line. “Do what you deem fit.”
“Wait, Tyler. I can’t possibly make the decisions.”
“Then don’t do anything; leave him wherever he is.”
Kate pursed her lips. That wasn’t an answer she’d expected. She drew in a long, deep breath and continued. “All right, I’ll settle the funeral arrangements. I know he wanted to be buried with your grandmother and your parents.”
Even in the continued silence, Kate could feel Tyler’s increased tension on the other end of the phone. Softening her voice, she said, “Come home. Come back home for the funeral.”
There was a click and the line went dead.
Kate sighed and shook her head, hoping Tyler would at least consider attending the funeral.
She returned to the guest room that Mr. Hayes had set aside for her. She sat by the desk and took a glimpse at the queen-size bed in her room. She wanted nothing more than to hide under the covers and cry, but there were things waiting for her to do.
Shoving all her feelings aside, Kate switched on her laptop and began making all the necessary arrangements.
Tyler clutched the phone in his hand and waited for the grief to come, but it never came. Perhaps he’d already done his grieving twenty years ago. Perhaps his childish hopes that his grandfather would someday turn up at his door finally died.
Whatever it was, he couldn’t find a single ounce of sadness or any feeling of loss.
“What is it, Ty?” Joanne asked. “Is it work?”
Tyler couldn’t deal with Joanne right now.
He stood and strode away, hoping to put some distance between them before Joanne started her motions of coaxing, then whining, and eventually throwing a fuss to get her way.
“Ty.” Joanne sighed and hurried after him. “What’s wrong?”
Tyler rubbed the bridge of his nose.
“You know you can tell me anything. I’m your fiancée,” Joanne cajoled while Tyler cringed.
He didn’t know how Joanne got into her mind that they were engaged; they weren’t even a couple. She was simply his friend’s spoilt younger sister.
But he wasn’t interested in dealing with that right now.
Going into his room, he slammed the door behind him—right in Joanne’s face.
“Ty!”
He closed his eyes while Joanne continued shouting for him from behind the door. He wasn’t in the mood to entertain her, he never was.
He sat on the ledge by his window and gazed out of his house. He’d wanted to go back to the mansion for the longest time. Not to visit his grandfather, but to look at the house he’d grown up in.
He hadn’t been back there since his parents’ funeral.
He remembered everything about that day. He remembered crying his eyes out when they lowered the coffins. He remembered Marianne embracing him while his grandfather turned his back to him and walked away. He remembered how he’d called after his grandfather, only to see him getting into the black sedan.
His grandfather didn’t bother to turn back and offer him a hug or even some kind words.
Instead, almost as soon as the funeral was over, his grandfather got someone to pack up his things and ship him and Marianne off to another house.
Every day, he waited for his grandfather to come for him or at least to visit him, but he never came.
Each time the phone rang, he would race to it, only to hear another unfamiliar voice.
Not once did his grandfather call to check on how he was doing.
Once he was out of sight, he was out of his grandfather’s mind.
Why should he go to his grandfather’s funeral when his grandfather had never bothered to look him up for the past twenty years?
He never understood why his grandfather was so cruel to him. He was just an eight-year-old who didn’t know any better.
Marianne had told him that his parents’ death was an accident and it wasn’t his fault.
Then why did his grandfather punish him by abandoning him when he needed his grandfather the most?
Tyler crooked his lower jaw and tightened the grip on his phone. Just when he made up his mind on not attending the funeral, his phone rang with another call from another unfamiliar number.
He sighed and picked up the call. “Hayes.”
“Tyler Hayes?”
“Yes.”
“Good evening, Mr. Hayes. I’m your grandfather’s lawyer, Joel Sawyer. Your grandfather had insisted that I read the will in front of Miss Marianne West, Miss Kate Mitchell, and you after the funeral. You will need to be present before I can reveal the contents of the will.”
Tyler rolled his eyes.
He didn’t need any more money. The company that his parents was running became his when he turned 21. There was only one thing he wanted—the mansion.
The mansion that he grew up in and was ripped from after having his parents taken away from him.
“Let me know what the contents are over the phone. You can call me after the funeral.”
“There’s a clause stating that if you do not turn up, no one else on the will gets anything.”
Tyler drew in a long, frustrated breath.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Hayes. I’m merely following your grandfather’s instructions. ”
Though he wasn’t willing to attend the funeral, he couldn’t allow the bad blood between him and his grandfather rob Marianne of what she rightfully deserved.
For the past twenty years, she was all he had. She was his only family; she was there for him when no one else was. He couldn’t allow his anger to blind him to that fact.
He sighed and said, “I’ll be there.”
Chapter Two
A solemn atmosphere enveloped and percolated through the Hayes mansion as Kate listened to all the condolences. Though she’d been at the mansion so many more times than the other guests, she couldn’t help feeling out of place.
Tyler should be the one speaking to the late Mr. Hayes’s friends, the one listening to their condolences, not her.
She scanned the room of unfamiliar faces for the umpteenth time and finally spotted Tyler.
Recognizing him was much easier than she’d expected.
He hadn’t changed much from the younger version she’d seen in the photo albums.
His dark brown hair was shorter than it was in the photographs, and his bangs that nearly reached his eyes were pushed to the side.
She leaned against the wall and watched him move around the living room in the black suit.
It wasn’t the time to notice how well the suit fitted him or to admire the br
oad shoulders that made him the perfect rack for any style of clothes.
Her foot inched forward, but she paused when she saw him brushing his fingers across the surfaces of the furniture in the living room.
She took her eyes off him and glanced around the room.
The late Mr. Hayes kept the design of the house pretty much exactly as it was before the tragedy occurred.
The coffee-brown leather couch that took up the largest space in the room, the chocolate-brown coffee table that sat above the furry beige rug, and the bookshelf against the white wall had all been around even before Tyler was born.
Even the renaissance wall finishes were exactly the same.
The late Mr. Hayes only added some new pieces of furniture to replace the space where the grand piano used to be. Besides that, nothing much had changed.
The whole place was like a time capsule.
It must be difficult for Tyler to see the house after so many years.
She walked over and asked as she neared him, “Tyler Hayes?”
His head snapped up, and he frowned the moment he laid eyes on her. “Kate Mitchell?”
“Yeah, that’ll be me.”
His head bobbed up and down while his eyes scrutinized her.
“Something wrong?”
“I was expecting someone … older.”
She looked around and laughed softly. “I guess I’m pretty young among this crowd.”
“You said you were his friend, so I thought …” Then he shrugged, not bothering to complete his sentence.
Kate smiled. “He wasn’t exactly my friend. He was sort of my grandmother’s friend.”
“Sort of?”
“It’s complicated.”
Tyler gave her a look over and turned his back to her.
She thought Tyler would prefer some company, but she supposed she was wrong.
She pursed her lips and tucked her hair back behind her ear. “I’ll leave you alone.”
“Wait,” he said and turned back to face her.
She stood where she was, her brows raised, waiting for him to say something.
“Never mind,” he continued after a moment.
Kate could sense his hesitation. She watched his eyes sweep the room, observing the different faces.
