She wanted it known that this was her conscious, unwavering decision.”

He handed me a box filled with photos—photos of us baking pies, playing board games, laughing over silly jokes. Letters in her delicate handwriting, recounting the bond we shared, the love she felt. I clutched the box, tears blurring my vision.

This was why she made me take all those photos, she’d anticipated what would happen upon her passing. The guards also finally made sense when the lawyer read one last instruction contained in the will:

Ensure that my caretaker, Grace, has security present when my family learns of my decision. I do not trust them to handle this with grace.

Victoria collapsed onto the couch, her face pale.

“She… she left us nothing?”

The lawyer nodded. “She stated clearly that you abandoned her. This is her final wish.”

There was nothing else to discuss, so the guards promptly escorted the family out as they shouted protests, accusations, and threats.

I watched them leave, hollow and broken, their greed consuming them from within. The lawyer approached me. “She loved you, Grace.

She wanted you to have a home. A family.”

I sank to the floor, tears streaming down my face. “I loved her too.”

He put a gentle hand on my shoulder and said, “Then honor her memory by living in the home she cherished.” The notary then asked me to sign some papers and promised to be in touch after handing me the house key.

Then they both left with the policemen. I looked around feeling shocked, overwhelmed, and completely unprepared as I became the owner of the house. Mrs.

Patterson had given me more than a house. She had given me a family, even in her de-a-th. And as I stood there, holding the box of memories, I realized that she would always be with me—my friend, my grandmother, my home.

And her so-called family? They were left with nothing but their own regrets.