I've Been There Before (Grace and Caden)

"Boss, don't you belong to the Shaws?" Carol quickly followed her and asked carefully, "Why do they call you James?"

Grace stopped at the door of her room. She turned around and landed her gaze on Carol, whose eyes were filled with fear. Grace understood at a glance that the girl in front of her had changed. Carol was no longer the innocent girl that she used to be. Instead, she had

become increasingly cautious.

"Carol, you're afraid of me, aren't you?"

Grace asked. But Carol didn't answer her question.

Her tender face turned red in a second. Everyone could tell her embarrassment. She said, "No, boss. Why would I be afraid of you? You are the kindest to me."

Grace touched Carol's face with her cold hand. Carol trembled and secretly looked at her boss through the eyelids. However, she didn't expect that she would bump into a pair of eyes filled with grief. Grace looked thoughtful yet helpless. Carol was at a loss of words, "Boss..."

""Carol, I don't know my name, either.

My grandfather named me Grace James when I was born. He is a James. So is my father. I was the daughter of the James family.

Then, Grandpa passed away. I made a mistake by offending someone that I shouldn't. I was no longer a James since then.

Afterwards, some people told me that my surname was 'Shaw', and I was Grace Shaw from then on.

I don't know what my name is, but I feel more at ease when you call me boss."

She wiped the tears off Carol's face with her thumb and said, "Good girl, what are you crying for?" After thinking for a while, she walked into her bedroom and waved to Carol at the door. "Come in," she said. With that, she opened a safe in the corner and carefully took out a file bag from it, saying, "Carol, what's wrong? Sit down."

As she spoke to Carol, Grace sat down on a chair beside her and opened the file bag in her hand. She said, "If I leave this world one day, take this and go find Mr. Nielson of HC Law Firm. Jonas Nielson. 'Memory Inn' is very important to me. It's more important than my life. If I die, be strong and help me take care of this place, won't you?"

Naïve and innocent as Carol was, she could still tell that something was wrong. "Boss, you're not going to...leave, are you?" Actually, Carol felt that Grace's words were more like a note saying goodbye. Nonsense! Long live the boss!

Carol tried to comfort herself.

Grace stood up and said, "I'll take you somewhere." Without explaining away Carol's doubts, she walked out of the room with the file bag in her hand.

"Boss, where are you going?"

Grace walked in front, a little anxious, a little staggered. Carol mumbled, "Boss, you are having trouble with your feet! Slow down."

Following Grace, Carol stood in front of the door in the most remote corner of Memory Inn.

"Boss, you always tell us to stay away from here, don't you?"

Grace ignored her words. She put a key in the hole. With a twist, the door creaked open. Then she pushed the door and walked in. The room was a little dark. She turned on the light. Carol gasped before saying, "A picture...of the dead..."

""Carol, don't be afraid..

Her name is Leona. She is a very, very kind girl, like you."

Grace stepped forward to light the lamp and pray for Leona, saying, "Leona was a good girl. She lost her life to save me.

She lay on my laps and passed away, just like that.

Before closing her eyes, she was still talking about her yearning for this world.

She said that she liked the scenery of Erhai Lake, as well as the distant Jade Dragon Snow Mountain.

Her only wish was to run a homestay on the edge of Erhai Lake. It didn't need to be big, and she hoped that people could be free and happy in her homestay. She didn't want people to be trapped in worldly disputes. She left without fulfilling her lifelong wish.

She saved me with the price of her life.

So, I have decided to view her wish as my own."

Carol was indeed afraid when the picture of Leona suddenly came into sight, but she gradually calmed herself as hearing the story of this girl in the Grace's soothing tone. When she looked at the unfamiliar girl in the picture again, she could sense her kindness and warmth. "Boss, you are a good boss. Boss Leona was also a good person."

Hearing this, Grace, who was in front of the incense table, was shocked for a moment. A good person... She chuckled and stretched her eyebrows. "Leona, this girl said that you are a good person. In these days, only Carol can use 'a good person' to praise someone." Only a simple girl like Carol would say such words.

"Boss, did I say anything wrong? Boss Leona saved your life. Of course, she was a good person."

"No, you're right." After burning the incense for Leona, Grace wiped her hands and turned around to smile at Carol. She said, "You are right, Carol. If possible, I hope that you can always be yourself for the rest of your life. It's good."

She spoke very seriously, but the girl opposite her was obviously confused. Grace thought for a moment and shook her head... Forgot it. It was best if she couldn't understand.

If Carol could understand, then she would become a complicated person... That was not a good thing.

She picked up the file bag that had just been put aside, and handed it to Carol, saying, "Carol, do you like Memory Inn?"

"I like it."

"Then, if I am about to leave Memory Inn for a long time, can you take care of this homestay?"

"I'm very familiar with the procedures of checking in and checking out. The aunts will take care of the restaurant and tidying up the rooms, and the garden will also be made neat... Boss, what's wrong? You're strange today." "Carol, listen carefully. When I leave, take this portfolio and go to find Mr. Nielson of HC Law Firm.

Mr. Nielson will help you handle all the inheritance formalities for my estate, including the transfer of this lodging to your name.

But Carol, if you accept this inheritance, you have to promise me one thing.

It's about Leona. You have to promise me that you will burn paper money for her on her death day and every Tomb-sweeping Day. Also, you should clean up this place every 15 days."

"Boss, what on earth are you talking about? What does inheritance mean?

Why are you giving me an inheritance? Why are you talking to me like you are about to die?

Boss! Was it because of that bad guy today?

It's him, right?

He is going to hurt you, isn't he?

No! I don't want it!"

"Calm down, Carol." Grace wanted to persuade her, but Carol was too stubborn to listen. Grace could only hug her tightly in the arms. "Carol, don't be so excited. Do you want to know the reason?"

Hearing this, Carol stopped struggling and said, "Alright, I'll calm down. Boss, tell me the reason. Why are you suddenly telling me your will?"

"First of all, notarized wills are no big deals in other countries.

Look, I don't have any relative. The James family doesn't want me anymore.

You have stayed by my side for the past three years. I can rest assured to give you my will.

Secondly, I am not about to die. I tell you about it, just in case. I'm not in great health. What if I die young? Who will I give my inheritance to if something unexpected happens? I have no relatives. So, I have to write a notary will in advance. Right?

Or rather, are you hoping that my inheritance will be given to those families who don't want me anymore?"

"Really? Is that what foreigners do? Just in case?"

"Yes. If I lie to you, my nose will grow longer, just like Pinocchio."

"Alright."

Carol pursed her lips. She was still a little unhappy, but she had stopped making trouble. Grace touched Carol's head with her hand. A smile appeared on the corners of Grace's lips... "Carol is such an innocent girl. I hope that she will fall in love with someone and live a happy life," Grace said to herself.

...

On the way to the hospital, Caden slowly opened his eyes.

"Jesus. You're finally awake." Ingemar heaved a sigh of relief and said, "Why did you work so hard? Since you came to Dali, you haven't had a good rest. In these three years, you've been as busy as a top. Do you really think of yourself as Iron Man?" Caden raised his hand and touched the gauze wrapping around his head. He suddenly became clear. He opened the mouth and said hoarsely, "He did this to me?"

Although it was a question, Caden was certain of the answer.

"Can you remember now?

It looks like you're quite sturdy. The tumble didn't hurt you much. No wonder your precious baby thought that you were pretending to be dizzy so that others would pity you. She thought you were playing a trick again. Interesting." Hearing Ingemar's ridicule, Caden's heart tensed up. He felt somewhere painful. And he had no idea that whether his head ached or his heart ached. He took a few deep breaths before saying, "Don't blame her."

"Hey, are you nuts?" Ingemar couldn't listen anymore. "You fell hard to the ground like that. She just watched coldly and taunted you for being a hypocrite, saying that you were playing a new trick again. And you are telling me now not to blame her? I think you've really broken your head."

"I'm not sick. I'm sober now more than ever.

Ingemar, I did treat her badly in the past. She doesn't believe me now. Everyone else can blame her and say that she's wrong. But I can't."

When Caden said these words, he felt bitter. He added, "In the past, I didn't believe in karma. But now, here comes karma."

"You..." Ingemar felt enraged. He said angrily, "Alright. Even if what you said is true, you should explain to her clearly that you fell. And you were injured because your body was heavily loaded due to the lack of rest for several days. At this time, you were not pretending." "You told her about it?" Caden's face turned pale. He pursed his lips and looked at Ingemar. Ingemar wanted to anger him, so he said, "Yeah, I did. I said that you hadn't slept for days because you were looking for her. In the past three years, you turned into a workaholic and would go anywhere to find her in your spare time. Your body had already broken down. Otherwise, you wouldn't have been easily pushed down by Kern. You even hurt your head."

Caden's face turned even paler. Ingemar glanced at Caden's gloomy face and said angrily,

"Alright, don't act as if this is the apocalypse! I didn't say anything to her! I lied to you.

You've just suffered a head injury. I think you'd better go to the hospital."

"No, it's fine. Turn around and drive back. I have to take her home today."

Hearing this, Ingemar suddenly became serious.

"Caden, among the few of us, there has always been a consensus. You, Caden, would be the first to support us if anything bad happened. But now?

To be honest, even if Grace is innocent and has suffered so much, and even if you do something wrong again, we will still stand by your side. It's true for me, also for Humbert.

We will stand by your side, instead of Grace without hesitation.

However, you love Grace more than you love yourself. So, Humbert and I chose her because you did. We are friends, aren't we? Love you, love your dog. Do you understand?

But if you ruin yourself because of her, what will happen? If one day, we see that she's fine but you are not, do you think Humbert and I will let her go? You should know that Humbert and I, as well as you the three of us have never been good in nature."

Caden was silent for a while. He said in a low voice, "Go to the hospital."

...

Lijiang Airport. Mrs. James looked much more haggard. Just as she got off the plane and rebooted her phone, she received more than a dozen missed calls. She clicked on a text message from her son.

She swept her eyes over the screen. All the messages were the same "Have you arrived? Have you seen Grace?"

Mrs. James clenched her phone tightly. She had always been attentive to her care, but wrinkles had appeared on the corners of her eyes these days. Perhaps because her son was still ill. Her slack eyelids were swollen. She picked up a pair of sunglasses worth more than 100,000 yuan and put them on. With the sunglasses, she became the elegant rich lady again. However, behind them, her eyes turned red.