Chapter 53: Gotten Under His Skin
At Clayton Ancestral Mansion
"I don’t understand why we still have to visit Aunt Lydia’s grave every year," Dina whispered irritably to her mother as they walked through the garden towards Lydia’s grave. "We already do it on All Saint’s Day. Why do we have to go on her birthday and even her death anniversary? Isn’t that a bit too much?"
"Just be quiet! Your father might hear you," Sylvia hissed back. "You know how sensitive he is when it comes to that woman."
Walking just behind them, Melanie could hear every word of the whispered conversation. She glanced ahead at her brother, Tim, who was carrying Lydia’s favorite flowers, lost in his own world.
Dina and Rain were both in the dark about the full story. All they knew was that they had an aunt who died young at twenty-two, twenty-three years ago. Lydia Clayton was her name.
Only Melanie and Sylvia knew the real truth. To everyone else, it appeared that Tim was simply a devoted brother, forever mourning his adopted sister. But they knew better. Tim had loved Lydia deeply—not as a sister, but as the love of his life.
"This visitation is quite boring without Rain," Dina murmured in her mother’s ear as they walked. "I’ll miss the drama where Father makes her kneel before Aunt Lydia’s grave, bowing so low her head touches the ground!"
Melanie clenched her fists, resisting the urge to lash out at the two women in front of her.
"Maybe it’s your turn to do that, Dina," she casually interrupted her voice calm but laced with a cold edge.