Love's Cunning Ruse novel Chapter 303

On the drive to the cemetery, Julien gripped the steering wheel, turning to Julie, “No wonder it wasn't found abroad. Turns out, Rankin's final resting place is right here at Whispering Pines.”

It seemed they had been searching for quite some time. After the incident with Davina Field, Julie had asked Julien to help locate Rankin's grave. Unexpectedly, even with Julien's capabilities, it had taken this long to find it.

A light drizzle misted from the sky as they passed a florist. Julie asked Julien to pull over, then walked inside the shop.

She lingered among the blooms, contemplating her choice. The florist, eager to help upon learning Julie was visiting a friend's grave, suggested an array of vibrant flowers, each more beautiful than the last.

Yet Julie's gaze settled on a secluded corner.

The owner hurried over, "Ah, this is the Bird of Paradise. It's also known as..."

"Strelitzia," Julie finished with a smile, and then turned to a bunch of light pink gypsophila nearby. "Could you wrap these up for me?"

Her eyes had been on the Bird of Paradise, but in the end, she asked for the gypsophila to be wrapped. The owner handed Julie the neatly packaged flowers and then watched as she picked a single Bird of Paradise, settling the bill.

Back in the car, Julie placed the Bird of Paradise amidst the gypsophila.

Julien nonchalantly inquired, "What flower is that?"

Julie knew she wasn't asking about the gypsophila.

"It’s Bird of Paradise, also called Strelitzia. It's said to be the bird that flies to heaven, carrying all sorts of emotions and yearnings with it. If there's a heaven, then a good soul like Rankin is surely there. The flower's message is: No matter when, no matter where, never forget the one who waits for your love. It just... felt right for him."

Julien remarked, "A flower is just a plant. All those nice and sad meanings, we attach them ourselves." After saying this, noticing Julie's expression, Julien quickly added in a softer tone, "But if there really is a heaven, he's probably there."

For Julie, hearing such words from Julien was nothing short of miraculous. She knew it was just an attempt at comfort.

"Julien, can I ask you something?" Julie asked tentatively, wary of broaching a sensitive topic.

"Go ahead," Julien replied, unfazed.

"You mentioned earlier… about Hayden and Adeline..."

"I don't know." Before Julie could finish, Julien's curt reply cut her off.

Julie wasn't embarrassed by the interruption, but there was a silence that followed.

Having spent more time with Julie, Julien's temperament had softened. She would have once been indifferent to cutting Julie off, but now she regretted her abruptness, sensing it might have upset Julie, and she explained further, "I mean, I haven't figured out what's really going on between Hayden and Adeline. I'll tell you once I do."

Julie was surprised by the additional explanation, a flicker of excitement crossing her face.

After a moment, she asked, "How's your investigation into the murder case going? You're not working for the National Security Agency at the moment, right? So why are you still looking into a murder case?"

"Murder case?" Julien was momentarily lost, her mind sifting through memories associated with the term.

Seeing Julien's confused expression, Julie gently reminded her, "You know, the time you took a bottle filled with vitamins to QuadDylan for analysis, suspecting something else was inside, only to find out they were indeed just vitamins. He asked what was going on, and you mentioned you were on a murder case. Don't you remember?"

As Julie elaborated, understanding dawned on Julien, who realized Julie must be jumping to conclusions. Julien quickly interjected, "Don't get the wrong idea; it's not what you think."

"And what do you think I'm thinking?" Julie teased, her gaze playful.

Julien remained silent.

Julie prodded, "So there was no murder case, right? The pills in that bottle..."

"Yes, that's right, they were from him," Julien admitted, knowing Julie had seen through the facade. There was no point in hiding the truth from her.