On Sunday, Noah came and drove Vivian to Ashley’s funeral. Vivian had asked Rachel to come along so that she would not be alone.
When she arrived, the first person Vivian saw was Harvey.
Harvey was standing in front of Ashley’s photo with his back hunched. He was no longer the man he used to be. In fact, he looked aged as compared to the last time Vivian saw him.
Vivian could not help but feel sorry to see him in such a miserable state. Though Harvey had never fulfilled his responsibility as a father throughout her childhood, he was still her biological father, after all.
And since Rachel did not wish to get near Harvey, Vivian had to walk up to him by herself.
“Dad,” Vivian stood behind him and gently called.
Harvey turned around and looked at Vivian. Her appearance suddenly got him flustered with emotions. Though Emma and Ashley were to be blamed for the chaos that had happened, to Harvey, Finnick, too, had to bear a certain degree of responsibility for Ashley’s death, the collapse of the Miller Group, and barring Emma from returning to the country. He did not know how to feel when he saw Vivian here, but since she was his only daughter left in this world, Harvey decided not to make things difficult for the both of them.
In a gentle voice, he said, “Hey.”
Vivian responded with a nod as she did not know what else to say.
“Good to see you here. Come and say goodbye to your sister.” Harvey then turned around, took a glance at her photo, and started tearing up again.
Vivian stood beside him quietly as she did not know how to comfort the grieving man.
The Miller family might have lost its foothold in the business world, but since Fabian was the one who organized the funeral, many prominent families still came to pay their last respects to Ashley.
At this time, Fabian went up the stage and started speaking.
“Ladies and gentlemen, we’re gathered here today to pay our respects to the late Ms. Ashley Miller. On behalf of all the friends and guests here, I would like to offer our sincere condolences to the Miller family.”
All of a sudden, there was a commotion outside. Upon hearing a woman wailing, all the guests began to look toward the entrance.
They saw a few security guards trying to stop a woman from entering, but she kept slapping them and scratching their faces with her nails as if she had gone mad. In the end, the middle-aged women barged into the hall and ran to the front.
Vivian thought her voice sounded familiar but could not recall who she was. As the woman approached, she finally recognized her. It was Emma.
Looking absolutely dishevelled, Emma was no longer the elegant woman that she was. Clad in a torn blue blouse and a pair of old and oversized camo sneakers, she ran toward Ashley’s photo.
Not only had she become as skinny as a skeleton, but her complexion was both sallow and pallid. It was as if she had been undernourished for quite some time.
Vivian was shocked to see Emma in such a condition. What exactly did Finnick do to turn this classy and domineering woman into a haggard beggar? What did they do to her?
Emma ran to Ashley’s coffin in wobbly steps and dropped to her knees.
“Ashley! How could you leave me alone? I didn’t even get to say goodbye!”
