She bought groceries using coupons.
She cried when I surprised her with a handmade anniversary gift.
She had once spent an entire Saturday fixing Lily’s favorite stuffed rabbit because she refused to throw it away.
And all that time, she had owned the controlling interest in a company worth hundreds of millions.
“Why?” I whispered.
Grandma looked at me.
“Because she understood something this family never did.”
She paused.
“Money is useful. But it isn’t a measure of someone’s worth.”
I thought about our little house.
The worn kitchen table.
The nights Nora sat beside me, helping Lily draw pictures while I worked on engineering projects.
She could have lived anywhere.
She had chosen that life.
With us.
Grandma continued.
“Nora received her share of the business before you were married. Later, she placed it in an irrevocable trust for her future children.”
I looked up.
“Lily?”
