Chapter 24

Desmond turned to his grandmother and said, "Grandma, if there's nothing else, I'm heading out." When Nora came back from her walk, Old Mrs. Marson's face had softened again as she said kindly, "Nora, Desmond had something to deal with and left early. I asked our driver to take you home." Nora glanced at her expression—calm, no signs of anything unusual. That didn't make sense. If Old Mrs. Marson knew Desmond was still tangled up with Isabella, she wouldn't act like this. But Nora was well aware—Isabella's parents were responsible for the deaths of Desmond's parents. If Isabella's dad hadn't been driving while exhausted that year… Old grudges really did carry over to the next generation. What Nora didn't know was that no matter how much Old Mrs. Marson disliked Desmond, she'd never show her feelings in front of an outsider. Back at Elysian Court, Desmond walked in to a lively chatter coming from inside, including a child's cheerful cries of "Mommy! Mommy!" The second they saw Desmond s