Private Marriage, Secret Love-Chapter 153: There Will Be a Day When the Wound Heals
"What?" Raina Reddington thought she must have misheard.
"Miles Hawthorne’s ashes."
She stood up, staring down at the urn. "Ethan Lancaster, are you insane?"
’How could he say something like that?’
Ethan Lancaster rested his hand lightly on the table. "The place caught fire. He was already gone by the time they pulled him out."
"Impossible," Raina stared straight at Ethan. "Then why wasn’t I told anything?"
"You? Because you’re not his family. You don’t even have the right to claim his body."
Raina forced herself to stay calm, not to fall apart. There was still so much about this that didn’t make sense. "Then who handled the arrangements? Even if it’s true, it wouldn’t be your place to collect his ashes."
A clear struggle flickered in Ethan’s eyes. "You think I wanted to? If it weren’t for you..." The man bit down lightly. "I couldn’t let it end with you truly hating me for the rest of your life. This is the only thing he has left."
Raina’s blood ran cold. Her hands clenched, then relaxed, only to clench again. "You’re lying to me, aren’t you?"
"I had Seth Sinclair find a way to get the ashes. The rescue records and cremation process can all be verified. Raina, he’s gone. I have no reason to lie to you."
Her hand fell to the back of the chair as all hope turned to ash. She reached out, picked up the urn, and walked out without another word.
Raina placed it carefully on the passenger seat and drove out of The Verdant Garden. The car sped through the desolate, cold night, and soon she arrived at the place where Miles Hawthorne had been staying.
The lights were all out, leaving only a scene of devastation. The building was severely burned, and even a few of the neighboring shops hadn’t been spared.
Several heavy iron barricades blocked the road. In a daze, Raina pushed open the car door. She took a few steps forward; the shattered glass on the road had yet to be cleared. The door she had gone in and out of was now just a burned-out frame. The interior was pitch-black, like a gaping, bloody maw.
Raina stood in the wind, tears streaming down her face.
An older woman who lived nearby, carrying a bag of trash, walked past Raina. She paused. "Miss, did you know someone who was in there?"
Raina nodded.
"Then you should try to contact them quickly. That fire was terrible. There were gas canisters inside, and they all exploded in the end." The woman pointed to a pile of debris not far away. "Look, the whole roof was blown off."
"Ma’am, were there any casualties?"
"I think so. When they carried one person out... they said he was already gone."
A sob caught in Raina’s throat. Seeing her pitiable state, the woman quickly offered some comfort. "You should call and ask. Maybe the person who got hurt isn’t the one you’re looking for."
Her throat bobbed convulsively as she nodded repeatedly. The woman walked away, carrying her bag of trash.
It was someone else’s business. For others, it was just a moment of sympathy. The very idea of empathy felt like a lie.
She didn’t need to make that call anymore. No one would ever answer again.
Raina returned to her car, her blurred gaze falling on the urn. "Miles Hawthorne, let me take you home."
A few days ago, she had gone to the funeral home to inquire. May Sullivan had already been cremated and her ashes collected. Miles must have been the one to handle it, but she didn’t know where May was now. 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮
「The Verdant Garden.」
Ethan Lancaster sat on the sofa. The living room lights were off. A sound came from the doorway.
The man looked up and saw Seth Sinclair take a few steps inside. "Fourth Master, the Young Madam drove off. It looks like she’s heading back to Hemlock Village."
Ethan instinctively wanted to stop her. It was late, after all, and a long drive. But he knew Raina’s temper; there was no chance of holding her back. "Have someone follow her. Keep a close eye on her. Make sure nothing happens."
"Yes, sir."
He sat in silence for a while, then suddenly stood up. "Get a car ready. I’m going too."
"Fourth Master, it’s so late. You should rest at home. The men we sent are reliable, don’t worry."
Ethan didn’t answer, striding quickly outside. Seeing this, Seth had no choice but to follow.
It was nighttime, making the drive back even more difficult. Raina put on a song that Miles had liked. He had sung this very song at the school anniversary performance in their second year of middle school. When he came off stage, a younger girl had stopped him and shoved a love letter into his hands.
Raina’s eyes were dry and sore, but ironically, no more tears would fall.
She didn’t know how long she had been driving. She only knew that by the time she got back to Hemlock Village, her back ached so much she could barely straighten up, and her legs were numb.
Raina parked the car on the side of the road and walked into the village, clutching Miles’s ashes. There were no streetlights in the village; it was pitch-black. All the houses were dark. Raina stumbled along, nearly falling into the adjacent fields several times.
Ethan’s car was right behind her. Seth had come prepared; there was a high-powered flashlight for hiking in the car.
Raina passed a neighbor’s yard. Hearing her footsteps, the dog inside began to bark wildly. She used to be quite timid and was especially afraid of walking at night, but now, clutching the urn, she felt no fear at all.
After the Hawthorne Family’s house was demolished, no one had cleaned up the site. Raina used her phone’s light to find the stretch of ruins.
Ethan didn’t follow any closer. He stood beside a ditch in Hemlock Village, one that had been dug by hand to irrigate the village’s farmlands.
He saw Raina’s figure curl into a ball, squatting down as she hugged the urn tightly.
Raina tossed aside the broken bricks at her feet. Once she had cleared a small space, she began to dig into the damp earth with her bare hands. This spot used to be the Hawthorne Family’s yard. She vaguely remembered that there were a few peach trees, two persimmon trees, and three pear trees by the duck pen. The pears they bore were small, sour, and not very good to eat.
Seth turned off his flashlight, which made the beam of light at Raina’s feet seem all the more glaring.
She clawed at the soil, and a piece of broken brick hidden within cut her fingertips. Raina winced in pain, pulling her hand back to look. Ethan had expected her to break down, or at least burst into tears, but she just knelt there quietly. No crying, no fuss—just focused on digging a hole.
Raina picked up the urn and gently wiped its surface, as if reluctant to let go. Then she carefully placed the box inside the hole.
"Miles Hawthorne." She whispered his name, her voice catching, unable to say more.
That year, the flowers were in full bloom, and the garden was filled with laughter. Raina stood under the largest peach tree, her hands outstretched to catch the peaches Miles picked for her.
Samuel Hawthorne was in the yard, sawing wood to make a chair for Raina. May Sullivan was busy preparing vegetables while a pot of fragrant braised pork belly simmered on the stove.
That year, the Hawthorne family of three was whole and their home was full of joy. And now...
Raina couldn’t help but bend down, pressing her forehead against Miles Hawthorne’s urn. This wonderful family of three could now only be reunited beneath the earth.
Ethan watched Raina’s back, not taking a single step closer. It was as if he were asking Seth a question, yet also talking to himself. "She’s in so much pain right now... but the wound will heal one day, won’t it? Will a month be enough? Half a year?"
