Eleanor frowned, “Ste’s not like that. Something might’ve happened that we don’t know. Don’t me her.”

Fiona insisted, “Eleanor, you always take her side. I get it, but I saw it with my own eyes today. I have to step in now.”

“No way! I won’t believe it,” Eleanor said firmly. She knew Ste; Ste had a good heart. Even after all that had happened, Ste would never do this.

But Fiona went wild, like a crazy woman. Her fake kindness toward Ste was gone. “Ste, we know what you’ve been through. But you can’t treat Anna like this. Seriously, today you make her kneel, tomorrow you’ll make us kneel, right?

“We’re your parents, your family, not your enemies. If we kneel to you, can you take it? I hardly ever scolded you growing up. But since you came back, you’ve been out of control. Stay if you want; if not, leave-”

Before Fiona could finish, Eleanor pped her. “Enough!” Eleanor was shaking with anger.

Ste held back her pain and calmed Eleanor. “Grandma, don’t get mad. Getting angry is bad for your health.”

Fiona stared at Eleanor, shocked, hand on her cheek. “Eleanor, y-you actually hit me!”

Eleanor said, “Since you married into this family, we’ve gotten along fine all these years. We hardly ever fought. You handle the kids, and I stay out of it.

“But what you

said today was too much. This is Ste’s home. As long as I’m here, no one can kick her out, not even you!”

Fiona was furious, biting her lip hard. Eleanor was older, so Fiona couldn’t do anything.

Anna cried, “Mom, I’m sorry. It’s all my fault. Let’s get up and go. We won’t upset Grandma.”

Fiona’s heart ached. She gently touched Anna’s cheek, seeing how sad she looked. “Okay, let’s go.”

As soon as Fiona and Anna left, the room went silent.

Eleanor saw Ste staying quiet, and it hurt her. “Ste, you’ve been treated unfairly since you were a kid. Every time you visit me, you stay quiet. Why don’t you speak up now?”

Ste mumbled, “Grandma, I messed up your rtionship.”

“I should’ve done this a long time ago,” Eleanor sighed. “Every time you came, I asked you, but you stayed silent. I knew you did it for the family. You’re so mature; it hurts. I always thought about the peace at home and I never stood up for you.

“That’s what caused all this. When I found out your parents didn’t get you out, I was so mad. I told them, even if we have to borrow money, we must rescue you.

“Money doesn’t matter. We can start over. So what if we lose thisfortable life? Nothing’s more important than you. They said they’d find you, but…” At that, Eleanor burst into tears.

Ste reached out and wiped Eleanor’s tears away.

Eleanor held Ste’s hand, stared at her arms and legs, and sobbed louder. “Look at you. You look older than me. I can’t imagine how you made it through all those harsh winters and rainy days.”

Ste fought back tears, but seeing Eleanor cry made her own spill. “Grandma, it’s done. I’m here now, right?”

“I know that if it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t havee back to this. So, wherever you go, I’m going too.”

Ste said fast, “No, we’re staying put.”

“Don’t worry about my health. I’ve got money. I saved up for you over the years. We can go anywhere. If your dad doesn’t pay up, I’ll sue him. Anywhere is better than here.”

?????????????? ?

“Grandma, let’s stay. I need to get better fast.”

Eleanor sighed. She knew that Ste did all this for her. If they left and Ste didn’t notice Eleanor’s health issues in time, something terrible could happen. Ste would regret it forever.

Ste was back now. Eleanor wanted to spend more time with Ste. Plus, with Eleanor’s support, no one in the family dared to bully Ste.

In another room, Fiona started crying the second she saw Andrew. “Why would Eleanor hit me for Ste? Everything I said was true. You saw it earlier. I know it’s hard for you to me your mom; but she’s confused. Why’d she trust Ste?” Fiona said.

Andrew had seen Fiona get hit; it hurt and angered him. But if he argued with Eleanor and she fell, it wouldn’t be worth it.

Heforted her. “Honey, I saw how you were treated. I can’t go over now; I’ll wait for Mom toe out and talk to her.”

“Think how awful Ste acted. She made Anna kneel where we couldn’t see. Anna’s not healthy. How could she do that?”

Max was nearby, frowning, and nced at Anna. “What really happened?”

Anna froze.

Fiona heard the tone in Max’s voice. She stepped in front of Anna. “Max, what’s that supposed to mean? You don’t believe Anna?”

Max was helpless. “Mom, did she say anything?”

Fiona froze. She nced at Anna first. Anna looked innocent, but her anxious eyes gave her away. Fiona insisted that Anna was the victim. “Does she need to say anything? You saw her kneeling there.”

Max said, “Yeah, but did Ste make her kneel or did she do it herself? Mom, we need to figure this out.”

Fiona pressed, “Why would Anna kneel? What did she do wrong?”

Max frowned a little. Anna hadn’t done anything wrong, but something felt off.

Andrew waved a hand. “Stop. Anna is not at fault. I’ll talk to Ste soon.” He then looked at Fiona and said, “I’ll also talk to Mom. We can’t let Ste’s visits wreck the house.”

Anna caught Max staring at her. She looked away, too nervous to meet his gaze.

As soon as Eleanor left, Ste wanted to rest. But the door opened again. Lionel came in.