ra had initially thought Quinn was the one who set the fire, but seeing the state Quinn was in now, it was clear she wouldn''t be getting any answers from him. After Quinn was sent to a mental hospital, ra found herself sitting on a bench outside, feelingpletely drained.


    Even though she was exhausted, there was still Johnny''s funeral to arrange. With Naomi in the hospital and Ryan needing time to find his footing, it was up to ra to handle everything. Over the next week, she carefully nned Johnny''s funeral down to thest detail.


    On the day of the funeral, the sky poured with rain. ra, dressed in ck, noticed Ryan had stopped crying. He seemed to have found a bit of inner strength. She walked over, gently patting his shoulder in support. Ryan pursed his lips, turning his head to hide the tears that threatened to spill.


    ra hadn''t had a decent break in a long time. ncing around at the crowd, she realized Naomi was nowhere to be seen. On such an important day, why wasn''t Naomi there? Just as she was about to give Naomi a call, Ryan stopped her.


    "Mom said she''s decided to be a nun."


    With her husband gone and her daughter in a mental hospital, and with years of tension between her and ra, she chose solitude over reconciliation. ra understood and respected her decision. Over the week, she had liquidated all of the Bradford family''s assets-she bought Ryan a house and put the rest into a savings ount.


    As ra and Ryan made their way down the hill, ra suddenly lost her footing and slipped. Ryan, rmed, reached out instinctively.


    "ra!"


    ra tumbled a few meters down the slope and came to a stop, noticing that Ryan, in his rush, had fallen with her. She got up first, extending a hand to help him.


    Ryan''s eyes were still red from crying, but he ced his hand in hers. ra took a deep breath and said, "We''ve got a tough fight ahead. You need to be ready."


    Ryan was well aware of the vultures circling thepany. They''d been pestering him non-stop, even going as far as to approach Naomi, trying to pressure them into selling their Bradford shares for next to nothing. At first, Ryan was overwhelmed, but with ra by his side, he felt he could handle anything.


    The chill in the air was biting, their breaths visible in the cold. Once they got into the car, ra cranked up the heater, and Ryan hit her with a question.


    "ra, didn''t Simon mention you had a boyfriend? Where is he?"


    ra paused, caught off guard. The past week had been so hectic, she''dpletely forgotten about Z. She pulled out her phone and saw theirst conversation was over a week old. He hadn''t called or texted since.


    She frowned, wondering why she hadn''t heard from him. She had been busy, but what was his reason? She thought about calling him but hesitated, eventually setting her phone aside.


    She had been feeling there were unresolved issues between her and Z for a while. Maybe now was the right time to address it. If they were going to break up, it was best to do it while they both had a clear head.