My SIL Held Her Wedding at My Grandma’s Lake House but Destroyed the Garden and Turned the Yard Into a Dump – So I Brought Her a Wedding Gift She’d Never Forget
***
On the morning of the wedding, my aunt collapsed at home.
The hospital believed it was a problem with her heart, so Zac and I drove there immediately. I called Kelsey from the parking lot and told her we wouldn’t make it to the ceremony.
She sounded irritated before she remembered to sound concerned.
“Fine. Just text me the code for the back door.”
I gripped my phone tighter. “The rules still apply.”
“Yes, Nadia. I remember the sacred flowers.”
“The rules still apply.”
Zac heard her through the speaker. He went stone-still, but the nurse called our names before he could respond.
My aunt stabilized late that night. By the time the doctors allowed us to leave, neither of us was capable of driving another two hours to the lake.
So we returned the next morning.
***
I knew something was wrong before I opened the gate.
One of Grandma’s hand-sewn cushions lay facedown beside the driveway.
I knew something was wrong before I opened the gate.
It had rained overnight.
The fabric was soaked.
The yard looked worse than the cushion.
Plastic cups covered the lawn. Champagne bottles had been left beside the dock. Confetti clung to the wet grass and floated in the shallows.
Deep tracks crossed the lawn where heavy tables had been dragged toward the water. Muddy footprints covered the porch and continued through the kitchen.
Champagne bottles had been left beside the dock.
