Burn Me Once Burn With Me (Ruby Grayson) novel Chapter 413

After saying that, she rummaged through the box again, hoping to find another sheet of music.

When her search turned up nothing, she couldn't help but mutter, "How could something so valuable be kept in such a plain old box?"

Fanny and Ruby exchanged a quick look, both sensing that something was off about Hayley’s reaction.

“This is the only one that’s been here since I brought it back,” Ruby explained quietly.

At that, Hayley's shoulders slumped, and it was as if reality slowly dawned on her. She let out a soft sigh and began, “This really is the original manuscript of Maestro Antinus’s ‘Flourish Symphony.’ The loss of this score is one of the great tragedies of the music world, even among collectors. I never imagined I’d see one of its pages here, in Quinborough.”

“One of its pages?” Ruby caught on instantly, her brows knitting together.

Hayley nodded, turning to look at her, an eager spark in her handsome, androgynous face. “According to experts, the ‘Flourish Symphony’ manuscript originally had at least five pages. The one you have—it’s the first page. Ruby, who exactly was your grandmother?”

Her eyes shone with relentless curiosity, the kind that wouldn’t rest until she had every answer.

Ruby found herself following that line of thought. To her, her grandmother had always been a remarkable, almost legendary woman, but from what she knew, there was nothing particularly mysterious about her background.

Back when Frieda insisted on marrying Hanley—going so far as to break ties with the Steele family—her grandmother couldn’t bear to let her daughter go alone, so she quietly followed her to Quinborough. Later, she moved again just to help take care of Ruby in Stormhaven.

Ruby knew the Steele family was one of the most influential, old-money families in the Capital, and the only possible connection she could make for the origins of the score was that it might have come from their collection. But her grandmother wasn’t a Steele herself.

She shook her head. “As far back as I can remember, my grandmother was just an ordinary old lady.”

But Hayley shook her head, conspiratorial and certain. “No, what ordinary grandmother has the first page of the ‘Flourish Symphony’ manuscript?”

“Maybe it came from the Steeles?” Fanny offered gently.

The moment she said it, Hayley seemed to recall Ruby’s family history, too.

Folding her arms, Hayley rubbed her chin in thought. “The Steeles... it’s not impossible.”

Suddenly, Hayley leaned toward Ruby, her eyes intent. “Have you ever thought about going back to the Steeles?”

The question caught Ruby completely off guard.

Her gaze fell on the now-closed metal box, and almost unconsciously, she picked it up again, feeling its weight in her palm.

Her fingertips traced the battered, peeling edges, the rough surface catching against her soft skin. As she did, her mind wandered far away.

She couldn’t help but feel she’d failed as a granddaughter. She’d lived with her grandmother all her life, yet had never truly asked about her past.

Letting out a heavy breath, Ruby suddenly had a flash of inspiration and hurried to her bedroom to grab the key to her safe.

She’d been so busy lately that she hadn’t had a moment to really think. But now, with some quiet, a thought struck her—if her grandmother had really been just an ordinary old woman, how could she have left behind such a sizable inheritance? Ruby couldn’t help but think of that grand piano in the safe.

She’d grown up with her grandmother, relying on a modest living allowance from the Grayson family. Yet her grandmother had never hesitated to teach her everything she knew—not just dressmaking, but also the basics of piano. Ruby never really grasped music theory, but she remembered those lessons.

Maybe... maybe the sheet music really had belonged to her grandmother.

The idea made Ruby’s heart skip a beat.