Not wanting Eleanor to notice anything, Ste calmed down and went up to Eleanor with the bank card. “Grandma, can I borrow your phone?”

Eleanor said, “Oh, your phone’s broken. I’ll have them get you a new one.”

As she said, Eleanor went to the door. Ste stopped her. “No need. I’ll do it. I don’t need their help.”

Eleanor sighed, “Ste, I know they went too farpletely crazy. I can’t ask you to forgive them, but if they want to make it right, let them.”

“Okay,” Ste said shortly. If the Hayes could hide so much from Eleanor, she could also keep Eleanor happy and handle other stuff quietly.

Eleanor didn’t ask what Ste was doing with the phone. Seeing Ste’s hands, once elegant on the piano keys but now so ugly, made her heart ache.

When typing, Ste’s hands shook nonstop. Eleanor held back tears, afraid to remind Ste of those three tough years.

After Ste finished and deleted the message, she handed the phone back to Eleanor. “Grandma, I’m done.”

Eleanor took the phone. “When you buy your own, save my name first. That way, if I need you, I can call.”

“Okay.”

Max came to invite them to dinner. Eleanor smiled and said, “It’s dinner time. You haven’t eaten much today. Come on; let’s go downstairs.”

Ste wanted to help Eleanor, but actually, she needed Eleanor’s help herself.

Ste walked out and saw Max. After just one look, she looked away coldly.

Max’s heart ached. He thought knowing about Ste’s past was painful, but finding out Fiona did something like that without telling him shocked him. His sess today was all thanks to Ste.

He wasn’t used to apologizing to her, but it was clear they’d wronged her. Watching Ste struggle to move, Max wanted to step in and help her.

But then he saw Ste pull Eleanor, nearly making her fall. Max rushed over and saved Eleanor.

He shouted at Ste, “Ste, what are you doing? Grandma has always been good to you. She’s the one in this family who’s been the best to you. Why won’t you even spare her?”

Ste nced at Max. He always med her for everything. If Eleanor weren’t there, she wouldn’t let it go.

Seeing Ste quiet and not even saying sorry, Max got even madder. “Ste, I’m talking to you! Can’t you hear me? Do you know what Grandma has been through these past three years? Do you know how many times she’s ended up in the hospital?”

Eleanor jumped in, all anxious, “It’s a mix-up. Ste just tripped and grabbed me. We both almost went down. It’s not what you’re thinking.”

Max said, “Grandma, why stick up for her? She hasn’t forgotten what happened three years ago. She’s back to get back at us, one thing after another.”

Eleanor sighed, “It’s not like that. Ste wouldn’t do that. Max, stop saying that. It hurts.”

“Grandma…” Max started, but Eleanor’s face went serious.

Max and Ste stared each other down. Ste’s look was ice-cold; Max red right back.

+38

Dinner was fancy, like it was all for Ste. Fiona smiled like nothing was wrong.

Ste wondered how they could act like everything was fine.

Then Fiona spoke up, “Ste, you haven’t eaten all day. I had your favorites made. Let’s all sit.”

Eleanor looked happy. As the family’s elder, she wanted everyone to get along.

What happened three years ago really hurt Ste. She suffered more than most could handle since then. But Eleanor deemed that a happy home helped. They couldn’t forget past mistakes, but they got to try to fix things.

Eleanor put a big crab in front of Max. “You always shell crabs for Anna. Do one for Ste, too.”

Max wanted to say no, but after thinking it over, he did it anyway.

Ste didn’t want to let Eleanor down, so she tried to eat the crab. But she only ate half a crab and stopped. “Grandma, I’m full.”

Eleanor was surprised. “That little?”

Max got mad. “You hate me, don’t you? Ste, you always start trouble. Why do you have to mess things up? Are you happy making the whole house crazy?”

Ste replied lightly, “I can’t eat that much.”

“I bet it’s not that you can’t. You just don’t want to—”

Eleanor nudged Max. “Shut up. Look at Ste’s face.”

Ste felt her cheeks burning up. Other ces itched, too. She scratched them.

Anna got scared and moved back fast. Fiona hugged her tightly. “Don’t worry. Mommy’s here.”

Andrew’s face went dark. “Ste, what’s going on now?”

Ste rolled her eyes. “What can I do?”

Andrew was about to say something when Eleanor cut in, “Take her to the hospital now. It’s an allergic reaction.”

Fiona blurted out, “Don’t take her to the hospital.”

Eleanor stared at Fiona, shocked. “What did you just say? Do you want Ste to die right in front of you?”

“No!” But Fiona didn’t say anything else.

Max picked Ste up right away, while Fiona kept yelling, “Don’t go to the hospital!”

Eleanor was really mad now. She mmed her hand on the table and stood up. “Fiona, if anything happens to Ste today,

you’ll regret it.”

Fiona looked at Andrew, and he nodded.

At the hospital, the doctor checked Ste out. “It’s definitely an allergy,” he told Max. “Her stomach’s super small and doesn’t stretch much. We’ve never seen this before. It might take a while for her to eat normally again.”

Max looked at Ste in the ward and felt bad. He realized she really couldn’t eat much. The doctor said her case was weird. If they’d waited longer, she might’ve died.