The Killer Queen (Noella Briony)

"Ever look back and wonder about the silly things you did when you were younger, huh?"

Helen sat in her wicker chair, lazily waving a fan back and forth.

The fan was embroidered with wisteria, a riot of colors that seemed almost sinister in Ashlyn's eyes!

She recognized it at a glance.

This fan was something Harriet used to carry around when she was younger!

"Helen! May you never find peace! You hate Harriet so much, yet you keep her belongings? Oh, the horror!"

Helen replied calmly, "Why shouldn't I use it? It was a gift from her. The one with a guilty conscience isn’t me."

Ashlyn was on the verge of a breakdown, both mentally and physically!

"Let me go, Marcel won't let you treat me this way. I've been his wife for years, who gave you the right to torment me like this?"

Helen straightened up, continuing to wave her fan leisurely.

The sarcasm on her face was unmistakable!

"Me, tormenting you? Think hard about how you treated Elara! When she was five, you tried to poison her with rat poison in her food, hoping to get rid of Elara so your granddaughter could take her place in the Schnabel family!"

"When Elara was in elementary school, you insisted she board there and not come home!"

"How old was that child, having to cook and clean for you, an old witch? Couldn’t the Schnabel family afford a maid?"

At first, Merrick and Freya were reluctant to help with the child as well.

Both elders had their careers, thinking a nanny would suffice given the Schnabel family's brood.

It was only after Jasper visited and came back teary-eyed to Merrick, claiming his sister was on death's doorstep!

Ashlyn, taking advantage of Sienna's postpartum recovery, claimed she'd help with the child but had the nanny feed Elara nothing but water and rice broth behind their backs!

Merrick was shocked, skipping a literary award ceremony one evening to rush and retrieve Elara.

By the time he arrived, Elara had withered to a shadow of herself.

If not for her maternal grandparents, Elara would've been long gone, thanks to this cruel hag!

Helen was livid as she recounted these events!

"When Elara was three, you even tried to bind her feet. Your own feet are bigger than a donkey's hooves; why didn’t you bind them? Why torment my granddaughter instead?"

Ashlyn was speechless, not expecting Helen to have dug up so much dirt.

"I...I was only thinking of her best interest..."

"Best interest my foot! Don’t worry, I won't lay a hand on you. Since you were 'so good' to Elara, I'll return the favor 'so good' to you.

You seem to forget, making Elara stand out in the sun until her skin peeled. What kind of person does that to a child?"

Helen glared at Ashlyn, whose skin was now sunburnt to a crisp.

The venom in her voice was palpable!

This old zealot had not stopped her wicked ways for years!

"And she turned out just fine... I was toughening her up. She's successful now because of my 'good' upbringing. You should be thanking me!"

Facing Ashlyn's blatant self-justification, Helen could only scoff.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure to 'thank' you properly. I have all the time in the world. As for what surname my granddaughter chooses, that's none of your damn business!"

Helen rolled her eyes.

"You think your marriage to Marcel wasn’t because you snatched someone else's child? Would Marcel have married you otherwise?"

Ashlyn was furious!

"You're lying! Marcel had me in his heart! He loved me! You think you married into the Pollack family for any reason other than you and Harriet looking alike? The old Pollack head just saw you as a replacement!"

Helen stood up, approached Ashlyn, and slapped her across the face!

Back in the day, having worked in tough conditions, Helen's strength could rival that of any young man, leaving a dazed Ashlyn seeing stars.

"Garrick told you what, and you believed it? You're really as naive as they come."

As she noted the time, Helen spoke up, "Marcel is coming with the kids to pay their respects to Harriet. Before they arrive, you'll stay here in the sun, just as you made Elara and her mother suffer. I'll make sure you get a taste of your own medicine."

Hearing that Harriet had been laid to rest in the Schnabel family cemetery, Ashlyn broke down completely!

"Why? Why does she deserve to be in the Schnabel family cemetery?! I can't accept this!"

Her screams grew weaker under Helen's relentless hand.

Every time Ashlyn nearly passed out from the heat, Helen would revive her with cold water.

Since Marcel couldn't deal with this witch, she would!

"Helen! How can you not hate Harriet? Your husband spent his life pining for another woman, doesn’t that bother you?"

Ashlyn was baffled.

Why wasn't Helen siding with her?

Helen, chin high with dignity, declared, "I, Helen, refuse to stoop so low. If my husband yearned for another woman, that's my failure, not Harriet's.

To blame your failures on someone else, that’s something only trash like you would do."

Noella, standing not too far away, turned to Nolan.

"Make sure Helen doesn't overexert herself. Send some folks to bring her something to eat."

"Alright, boss, our company's... ahem, Senior Comfort Squad, knows exactly what the old lady likes! Don't worry, after all, she's your hubby's granny. We'll take care of her just right."

Noella was speechless for a moment.

She glanced briefly at Ashlyn, who was sprawled on the floor, sobbing her heart out.

All drama, but not a shred of remorse!

People like Ashlyn only feel like the world has been unfair to them, driven by greed for wealth and status, and terrified of death!

...

At Harriet's gravesite.

The sun blazed down, the cemetery serene, and the headstone had been rewritten with Noella's name!

Behind it, a long list of the Schnabel family children's names, even Elara's, but not Marcel's.

Horatio explained, "Noella, your grandfather didn't want to upset your grandmother. After all, considering the kids, especially you, she'd definitely love to rest here!"

Marcel was afraid, afraid that having his name on Harriet's headstone would displease her!

Xavier's video call came through.

"Noella, today... it's your grandma's memorial day, right?"

Noella aimed the camera at Harriet's headstone and said softly, "Take a look."

On the headstone, Harriet's smile was still gentle and serene, brimming with strength! © NôvelDrama.Org - All rights reserved.

Xavier took a look, sniffed, hiding his sadness.

Instead, he ended up comforting Noella!

"It's okay. Don't be sad. Harriet may not be here, but you are. You're the child she raised, her legacy in this world!"