When Michael arrived, Reba was no longer in the main hall.


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    Seeing Peter sitting there with a sour look on his face, Michael asked casually, “Didn’t you say Reba was here? Where is she?”


    “As the Quinn family’s precious little princess, of course Dad took her to show her around the Hanson residence,” Peter said with a mocking tone, shooting Michael a look full of disdain.


    Michael didn’t ask any more questions and just walked over to his seat and sat down.


    “Aren’t you going to go see her?” Peter said, his tone dripping with sarcasm. “Our niece has got a temper on her, just like Amelia–she’s not easy to handle.” <fn5405> This content belongs to Find_Novel(.</fn5405>


    “Works out pretty well,” Michael replied, soundingpletely unbothered. “A girl with that kind of attitude isn’t going to get taken advantage of out in the world.”


    Peter’s scowl deepened.


    Peter didn’t care that Michael was the head of the family–he just let him have it. “Come on, it’s just us brothers here. Drop the pretense, all right? No one knows better than you do that you don’t want Amelia or Reba back in the Quinn family.”


    “They’re part of the Quinn family. Why wouldn’t I want them here?” Michael never let anyone see what he was really thinking.


    “Hypocrite,” Peter scoffed. “Let’s see if you can keep pretending you don’t care when Dad tells you to sell off the shares that belong to Amelia to her daughter, and at the original price, no less.”


    ‘Michael nced over at Peter. “Aren’t you handing over your shares too?”


    “Mine are hardly worth mentioning, so it doesn’t matter either way,” Peter shrugged, soundingpletelyid–back. “You’re the one with the big chunk.”


    Michael’s expression stayed unreadable–he didn’t mean a word of it. “Those shares belong to Amelia anyway.”


    Peter let out a dryugh.


    Yeah, those shares really do belong to Amelia.


    If it weren’t for Amelia, the Quinn Group wouldn’t even exist, and the Quinn family might’ve been kicked out of The Big Four Families ages ago.


    But once you’ve been in the game for so long, it’s hard to let go. If Michael hands over those shares to Reba, he’ll just be a figurehead as the head of the family, and even his son Max will get dragged down with him.


    There’s no way Michael would ever give up those shares.


    Everyone was well aware of it–even Sebastian himself. No one said it out loud, but the truth bung heavy in


    the air.


    As Sebastian walked beside Reba, a storm of emotions welled up inside him, but he pushed them all down. keeping his expression unreadable,


    “This is Ms. Amelia’s room,” Oliver exined softly. “Nothing inside has ever been moved. Feel free to go in and take a look


    Reba reached out and gently pushed the door open.


    The room was set up in a ssic European style, with a polished rosewood desk and wardrobe. Everything was spotless–no dust anywhere.


    “Mr. Quinn didn’t let anyone else touch this room. All these years, he’s been the only one who cleaned it<b>,” </b>Oliver added.


    Sebastian gave him a gentle whack with his cane. “Enough with the chatter!”


    Oliver let out an awkward cough.


    ‘So I put in all the effort, and I can’t even talk about it?‘ he grumbled to himself.


    Reba shot a nce at the old man with the snowy white hair. Sensing that she might feel guilty, Sebastian quickly assured her, “Honestly, I’m just passing the time at home. Figured I’d take on a few chores to stay busy.”


    Reba didn’t say anything more.


    It wasn’t hard for her to figure out why he took care of this room himself.


    He missed Amelia, and he was weighed down by remorse.


    He longed for his daughter–and couldn’t shake off the guilt of pushing her out of the family.


    “We’ve always kept this room for her. She’s wee toe back whenever she wants,” Sebastian finally said, his voice gentle but resolute. “Home is always home.”


    “I’ll let her know what you said,” Reba replied–there wasn’t much else she could do.


    Sebastian had spent all these years weighed down by guilt, never able to forgive himself for what he’d done back then.


    A mistake is a mistake–there’s no undoing it.


    Time never goes in reverse, and rivers never flow against the current.


    “The room next door is yours,” Sebastian said, wanting to do whatever he could for them. “You can stay whenever you feel like it.”


    “Thank you,” Reba replied.


    “No need to be polite with your grandpa, Sebastian chuckled.


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    Reba pressed her lips together. She just couldn’t bring herself to put on a cold face with someone who always greeted her with kindness and a warm smile–even if all she could offer in return was courtesy and polite distance.


    Reba spent the next half hour quietly exploring Amelia’s old room, soaking in every detail.


    Framed on the wall were photos of her mom in her youthful, fearless days, snapshots with her friendsughing together, and a shelf full of the trophies she’d won.


    In every group photo except the award ones, Ryan was always front and center–both of them looking so sure of themselves, eyes brimming with hope for the future.


    <i>‘</i>Back then, Amelia was bursting with energy–always so confident and fearless, Reba thought.


    ‘She was the life of the party, full of youthful spirit and enthusiasm. Nothing ever seemed to slow her down, Reba mused.


    “Ever wonder what your mom was really like when she was young?” Sebastian broke the silence<i>, </i>his voice warm. “If you’re ever curious, I’ve got plenty of stories I could tell.”


    Reba stiffened, then shook her head quickly. “No, thanks.” ‘I don’t need to hear it straight from him, she thought, avoiding eye contact.


    Just from these photos and those scattered words her mom used to share, Reba could already picture her mom’s carefree, vibrant youth.


    “If you ever want to hear about it, just ask me–so long as I’m still breathing, I’ll tell you everything you want to know,” Sebastian said, his tone full of warmth. “And if I’m already gone, just holler for me in your dreams. I’ll ask the King of Hell for some time off ande tell you myself.”


    Reba’s heart twisted a little at his words.


    He was the most honored elder in the Quinn family, the sort of man everyone in Honn feared and respected. Yet here he was, talking to her like she was a kid–just hoping she’d warm up to him, going out of his way to make her feel wee.


    “If only you’d been this kind to my mom back then, maybe things would’ve ended up differently,” Reba couldn’t help herself; the words slipped out before she could hold them back.


    Both Sebastian and Oliver paused, visibly stunned by her sudden honesty.


    For a moment, it was as if something from the past came rushing back–they both got lost in memories that stung a little more than usual.


    Reba carefully put everything back where she found it, swallowing down the tangle of emotions inside her. “Let’s go,” she said quietly.


    Sebastian’s thoughts were in turmoil. ‘If only I’d done things differently back then… he couldn’t help but think, regret gnawing at him.


    But he shoved the thought down, forcing himself not to linger on it.


    There’s no use wishing for ‘what ifs‘ anymore.


    That mistake was already carved in stone.


    Amelia would never forgive him. Not now, not ever.


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    But no matter how hard he tried, his thoughts couldn’t help drifting–if Amelia were still around, he’d be the luckiest old man in Honn. She’d be there to love him, to spoil him, to bicker andugh with him, showing her affection even as she yfully teased him.


    “Sir…” Oliver broke the silence, his voice gentle.


    “Let’s go,” Sebastian said, pressing a hand to his chest, feeling the ache settle in. “Dinner’s ready.”


    Reba could see Sebastian’s mood darken, and she knew perfectly well her words had brought up something that still hurt deep down inside him.


    On the way back to the main hall, the silence hung in the air like a thick nket–no one said a word.


    Sebastian walked with a heavy, somber look, the lines of worry clear on his face.


    The three of them moved together without speaking, perfectly in sync, not needing any words at all.


    It wasn’t until everyone was seated at the dinner table that Sebastian finally snapped out of his thoughts. He looked over at Reba, who was sitting a bit farther away, and said directly, “Reba,e sit by me.”


    Everyone turned to look her way, but nobody said a word against it.


    Reba stood up and walked over.


    An unusually heavy silence hung over the dinner table.


    “This is Reba, Amelia’s daughter–my granddaughter,” Sebastian announced, looking each person at the table in the eye, his voice steady and full of authority. “From now on, she’s family.”


    Everyone just nced at one another, but no one dared to speak.


    For all these years, even mentioning Amelia had basically been forbidden–nobody would ever bring her up in front of Sebastian. Now, with him talking about her openly and bringing her daughter back into the fold, you could sense everyone quietly sizing up the situation and recalcting their own ns.


    “These are your uncles–Michael and Peter,” Sebastian said warmly, ncing at both men as he spoke.


    Remembering what her mom had told her beforeing here, Reba looked up and said, “Uncle Michael, Uncle Peter.”


    “I’m just d you’re back,” Michael said, reaching into his jacket and handing her a thick envelope with a friendly smile. “Here–your uncle’s small token to wee you home. It might not be much, but ites from the heart.”


    Peter was like, “Seriously??–his eyes wide with disbelief.


    He red at Michael with a deep frown, looking like he just couldn’t process the level of fakeness.


    Is he for real right now? Didn’t think he could be this fake, Peter thought, totally floored.