Chapter 38: What about her?

**Third person**

Layla immediately put away the notebook.

“It doesn't mean anything,” she said to herself.

Ashley was long dead.

Then she placed the jotter back and then headed out.

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Valerie walked into the knitting room filled with the soft click-clack of needles against yarn, the gentle hum of conversation, and the faint scent of coffee.

She was dressed casually in jeans and a sweater and took a seat at a small table, her eyes scanning the room.

She spotted her grandmother, Martha, sitting at a table near the window, her hands moving deftly over a pair of socks. Martha's face was framed by a halo of silver hair, and her eyes sparkled with a warm, inviting light.

Val approached her grandmother, a mix of excitement and dread coursing through her.

After discovering her parents' betrayal, Val had been hesitant to see Martha.

Maybe it was the fear of being betrayed again. She wouldn't be able to take it if Martha was involved too, and so she kept her dist