Nobela ni Mimisunshine

Twenty years after my mother died, I stood in the Metropolitan Museum of Art with my daughter and granddaughter. Three generations visiting the woman who started it all.Mom died peacefully in her sleep at eighty-three. Marcus was beside her. She went to bed one night and simply didn't wake up. No pain. No fear. Just sleep that became forever.Marcus lived another two years after that. He said he stayed long enough to make sure I was okay. Then he went to join her. I think he died of a broken heart wrapped in old age.Now it was just us. Me at fifty-three. Lily at thirty-eight. And Aria at fifteen. Three generations of women carrying my mother's legacy."I've never actually been to the exhibition," Aria said as we walked through the museum entrance. "I mean, I know about Great-Grandma. Everyone knows about her. But I've never seen the actual clothes.""Then it's time," I said.The Bethany Nott: Reborn Legacy exhibition was on the third floor. A permanent display. Her story preserved f

Six months after my final show, my publisher called. "Bethany, it's been five years since your memoir came out. We want to do an anniversary edition. Updated. With a new introduction."I was in the garden pruning roses. "I don't know what else I have to say. The memoir covered everything.""Write a letter to your younger self. The woman you were before everything happened. Tell her what you know now. That's the new introduction."I almost said no. But then I thought about all the young women out there. The ones who were twenty-eight and naive and trusting the wrong people. The ones who needed to hear that survival was possible."I'll do it," I said.I spent three weeks writing the letter. Deleting it. Starting over. Trying to find the right words. The true words. The words that would have saved me if I'd been able to hear them.Finally, I had it. I read it to Marcus first."Dear Bethany," I read aloud. "Right now you think love means sacrifice. You think being soft means being weak. Y

Two years after Lily started at Parsons, I turned sixty-five. I woke up on my birthday feeling different. Lighter. Like something inside me had finally finished.Marcus brought me coffee in bed. "Happy birthday, old woman.""You're older than me," I reminded him."By three months. Barely counts."I sat up and looked out the window. Our garden was in full bloom. Roses and hydrangeas and daisies. Everything peaceful and beautiful."I want to retire," I said.Marcus looked surprised. "You already retired. You stepped back from Nott Designs five years ago.""I mean really retire. Completely. One last collection and then I'm done. No more designing. No more fashion shows. No more anything. Just us. Just life.""Are you sure?""I'm sure. I've been designing for forty years. I've said everything I need to say through fabric. It's time to stop."Marcus sat down beside me. "What would this final collection be?""A retrospective. A goodbye. Ten pieces representing my whole journey. From the nai

Lily spread her sketches across our dining room table. Twelve designs. Each one more beautiful than the last."What do you think, Grandma?" she asked. She was nervous. I could see it in the way her hands shook slightly. The way she bit her lower lip.I looked at each sketch carefully. Really looked. Not as a grandmother. As a designer. As someone who'd been doing this for forty years.The first piece was a dress with clean lines and classic proportions. But the fabric had a modern twist. Sustainable materials. Unexpected textures. It was elegant like my early work but fresh. New. Entirely Lily's own vision."These are incredible," I said. My voice came out softer than I meant it to. "Lily, these are really incredible.""You're not just saying that because you're my grandma?""I'm saying it because it's true. These designs are sophisticated. Thoughtful. They show technical skill and creative vision. Any design school would be lucky to have you."Lily's face lit up. "You really think so

My hair grew back different. Softer. Curlier. Gray at the temples instead of brown. I looked in the mirror and barely recognized myself. But in a good way. Like I'd shed an old skin and found something new underneath.Dr. Patel did my final scan nine months after my diagnosis. She came back into the room smiling."Clean," she said. "No evidence of disease. You're officially in remission."I sat there for a moment. Just breathing. Just existing in that space between sick and healthy. Between fighting and living."So I'm cured?" I asked."We don't use that word. Cancer can always come back. But for now, you're cancer-free. We'll do scans every six months for the first two years. Then yearly after that. But as of today, you beat it."I called Marcus from the parking lot. "I'm in remission."He didn't say anything. I just heard him crying on the other end."Marcus? Did you hear me?""I heard you," he said. His voice was thick. "I'm just so relieved. I was so scared, Beth. Every day I was

The lump was small. So small I almost didn't notice it. I was in the shower, washing, and my hand passed over my left breast. There it was. A tiny hard spot that shouldn't be there.I stood under the water for a long time. Telling myself it was nothing. Just a cyst. Just normal aging. Just my body doing something weird that meant nothing.But I knew. Somewhere deep inside, I knew.I didn't tell Marcus right away. I made an appointment with my doctor first. Let her feel it. Let her order the mammogram. Let her refer me to the oncologist. I went through all the steps alone because I needed to know for sure before I scared anyone.The oncologist was a woman named Dr. Patel. She was young and kind and didn't try to hide the truth."It's cancer," she said. "Early stage. Very treatable. But it is cancer."I sat in her office and felt the world tilt. Cancer. The word that everyone feared. The word that meant sick and weak and dying."What do we do?" I asked. My voice sounded calm even though

We never made it back to New York.Agent Park changed plans within hours. "Too risky. Jessica knows we'd expect you to return. She'll be ready. Waiting. We need to relocate you again. Somewhere completely different. Somewhere no one knows about.""She found us in Vermont in less than a week. What makes you think anywhere else is safer?""Because someone leaked your Vermont location. Someone inside my organization. Someone Jessica has compromised." Agent Park's voice was tight with fury. "I've initiated an internal investigation. But until we find the mole, we can't trust anyone. This relocation, I'm handling personally. Only three people will know where you're going. Me. And two agents I've worked with for fifteen years. People I trust with my life.""You trusted the Vermont team and look what happened.""I know. But I'm out of options. Either we try again with tighter security, or I let you go back to New York and hope we catch Jessica before she kills you. Pick your poison."Montana

Agent Park spent the next week unraveling Jessica Patterson's empire. Every day brought new discoveries. Each one more damning than the last.I sat in her office watching her whiteboard fill with connections. Lines connecting Jessica to Shaw. Shaw to bankrupt designers. Jessica to Jade Phoenix Investments. Jade Phoenix to dozens of fashion brands built on stolen work."This isn't just fraud," Agent Park said. She added another connection to the board. "This is organized crime. A criminal enterprise operating for forty years under the cover of legitimate business. RICO territory. Federal conspiracy. Money laundering. Tax evasion. The charges we can bring are extensive.""But you need Jessica to bring them," I said. "And she's gone.""We'll find her. She can't hide forever. No one can."But I wasn't so sure. Jessica had forty years to prepare escape plans. She wasn't like Shaw or Brock. She didn't act impulsively. Every move was calculated. Every contingency planned."Look at this," Age

I thought surrendering would bring peace. I was wrong.The morning after I told Agent Park to drop the investigation, my phone rang. Unknown number. I knew before answering."Good morning, Bethany. I trust you slept well after making such a wise decision." Jessica's voice was warm. Almost friendly. Like we were still mentor and student having coffee. "But I'm afraid your decision isn't complete. There are additional terms we need to discuss.""I backed down. I told the FBI to stop investigating you. What more do you want?""I want to make sure you stay backed down. That you don't change your mind in a month or a year when you're feeling brave again. I need permanent insurance." Her voice hardened slightly. "Here are my terms. You have seventy-two hours to complete them. All of them. Or I start removing people from your life. Permanently."My blood ran cold. "What terms?""First, shut down Nott Designs. Completely. Close the company. Fire all employees. Liquidate all assets. The brand

Agent Park spent the next week unraveling Jessica Patterson's empire. Every day brought new discoveries. Each one more damning than the last.I sat in her office watching her whiteboard fill with connections. Lines connecting Jessica to Shaw. Shaw to bankrupt designers. Jessica to Jade Phoenix Investments. Jade Phoenix to dozens of fashion brands built on stolen work."This isn't just fraud," Agent Park said. She added another connection to the board. "This is organized crime. A criminal enterprise operating for forty years under the cover of legitimate business. RICO territory. Federal conspiracy. Money laundering. Tax evasion. The charges we can bring are extensive.""But you need Jessica to bring them," I said. "And she's gone.""We'll find her. She can't hide forever. No one can."But I wasn't so sure. Jessica had forty years to prepare escape plans. She wasn't like Shaw or Brock. She didn't act impulsively. Every move was calculated. Every contingency planned."Look at this," Age

We were halfway to the FBI building when my phone rang again. Unknown number. Different from the text.I almost didn't answer. But something made me pick up."Hello?""Bethany. It's been too long." Jessica Patterson's voice. Warm. Familiar. The same voice that once encouraged me. Taught me. Believed in me. "We need to talk. Face to face. Just you and me.""I have nothing to say to you.""Oh, I think you do. I think you have quite a lot to say about the USB drive you found. The one Brock so thoughtfully hid in Emma's stuffed rabbit. The one you delivered anonymously to the FBI this morning." She laughed softly. "Did you really think I wouldn't know? I have people everywhere, darling. Eyes and ears in places you can't imagine."My hands tightened on the phone. Marcus glanced over from the driver's seat, concerned. Diana leaned forward from the back seat."What do you want, Jessica?""I want to meet. To explain. You deserve to understand why things happened the way they did. Why you were

I didn't sleep that night. Kept thinking about the meeting with Agent Park. About what could go wrong. About Jessica Patterson watching from somewhere, waiting to strike.At dawn, I made a decision. I wouldn't go to Agent Park's office myself. Too risky. Too exposed. If Jessica had connections in law enforcement like Valerie suggested, showing up at the FBI building would be like announcing I had the evidence.Instead, I called Diana."I need your help. And I need you to not ask questions until after you've done what I'm asking."Diana was quiet for a moment. "That's ominous. But okay. What do you need?""I need you to deliver something to Agent Park. A USB drive. Evidence. Critical evidence. But I need you to do it anonymously. Don't tell her where you got it. Don't mention my name. Just say you received it from a concerned party and felt the FBI should have it.""Bethany, what's on this drive?""Everything. Financial records. Money laundering proof. Evidence that could destroy Shaw