The Ross mansion was filled with a lot of hypocritical faces, wearing black, gathered together to mourn the early passing of the young heiress, who unfortunately got caught up in an explosion in Miami.
It was clear they were not there to share their sympathy, rather, they were there to make connections and spit hateful words at the villainous heiress who had always lived as she wished, not fearing any repercussions.
"See, there is such a thing as karma in the world." One said,
"Good riddance. All the evil deeds she did finally caught up with her. Someone couldn't stand her any longer and took the liberty to liberate us all from her tyranny."
"But it's too bad she had to drag down an innocent skipper with her."
"He was unlucky the moment he got hired by her."
They were referring to the sailor who sailed the yacht. According to the reporters who were secretly watching Valerie, they say he was the only one on the yacht with Valerie after she sent her assistant out to get some iced popsicles, as that was what she returned with, thirty minutes later.
Thirty minutes later, after Frankie was sent away to get the popsicles, the yacht exploded, giving her a heavy shock and she was immediately sent to the hospital.
The Ross family immediately sent out a search party, but of course, it was for formalities, as nothing would thrill them more than getting rid of Valerie for good.
After searching for a week with no sign of Valerie's body, or the skippers, it was concluded that their bodies blew up to bits along with the yacht.
"Hehe, that assistant was pretty lucky, don't you think?"
They sniggered and glanced at Frankie who was standing silently in the corner with her head down, mourning her master.
They sneered and mocked her as well as her dead master, so it was infuriating but she could not act out. She no longer had a master so of course, a little mistake from who could get her thrown out immediately.
Not like she had any plans to stay in that rotten family anyway.
She glanced at the memorial picture. It was so dull, not like the flashy appearance Valerie usually appeared in. She didn't even have a smile either and Frankie pursed her lips, angry and sad at the same time.
Dead or alive, these people could not hide their true colors and leave her alone. They could not even pretend to mourn Valerie. Yes, she was a bit too much...scratch that...she was very much in her dealings, but she never really harmed anyone, not intentionally at least.
And contrary to how the world perceived her, she was a good person. But they could not see that. No one could.
Her pitiful master. When could she finally shed her skin and soar like a butterfly?
"May I get your attention?" Valerie's uncle, Bernard, called for everyone's attention and the chatter ceased. He cleared his throat and said, "It pains me that I had to part ways with both of my children this period." He said, bowing his head in sadness. "Though one of them was a bit of a tyrant, she was the daughter my dear brother left for me to take care of, so I feel bad that she had to walk such a path. Yet, I regret that I couldn't set her straight before she died. She could've been a better person and contributed to society positively but..." He looked aside, pretending to hurt at heart and Frankie clicked her tongue.
Who was he trying to fool with that act? Who exactly would gain from Valerie's death?
He was just trying to put on a show for the cameras that were currently rolling. A father having to face the death of both children in one month... What could be more devasting than that?
During his son's funeral, he didn't dare to bring the press into the mansion grounds as it would be disrespectful to his dead son but yet, he allowed them through the doors to record everything that was going on because it was Valerie. He wanted to mock the already dead heiress.
Despicable.
"I've lost two children, but luckily, I still have my daughter." He said, introducing Lucy. "She's a very bright child, has so many talents, and is my ray of sunshine. She's the only one left and the only one I can pin my hopes and dreams on."
Lucy smiled in front of everyone but her smile immediately fell as she broke down in tears,
"I'm sorry." She said and cleaned the tears from her eyes. "I just... I just can't control my tears. I really liked sister Valerie. Though she never showed it, I knew she was kind inside and that's why I... I feel so bad that she ended up like this. I wish I had tried harder, been a lot nicer to her, and tried to get even closer to her."
She cried in front of the cameras, earning the sympathy of the crowd and everyone who was watching.
'What a drama queen?' Frankie thought and glanced at her watch. Wasn't it about time to wrap this up? What was taking so long?
"This is my advice to everyone out there," Lucy said and sniffed. "If you have a difficult sibling, no matter how difficult they are, please, do not give up on them. Show them the love they crave and break them out of their darkness. Let's avoid something like this from happening to any of us."
She concluded her 'heart-touching' speech and got the guests talking.
"Miss Lucy is honestly too nice. Even when that witch caused her brother's death, she still wishes the best for her."
"If I were her, I would curse her at her funeral." They laughed and Lucy grinned beneath her hanky.
'This is nothing.' she thought. 'Starting today, I will become the only heiress and the one to inherit Ross in the future. Everyone will worship me.' she danced in her glorious dream but maintained a sorrowful front in front of everyone.
She was still feeling elated, being showered with all the attention and bearing the title of Ross heiress when someone arrived. A lady wearing all white. Whitecoat over her white suit, white shoes, white shades, and a white sun hat.
All eyes went to the lady whose white stilettos made sharp noises as she cat walked towards the front where Valerie's picture was on display, surrounded by lilies.
She stopped in front of the picture, bent down to observe it with her hand on her chin and she stood straight, turned sharply towards the guests who were all looking at her, wondering who it was. She took off her glasses to their horror and said,
"I wonder, who hates me so much that they went ahead to use this pathetic thing as my memorial picture?" She asked, smirking. "Is this how you want the world to remember me? A dull melancholic person?"