It had only been a day since Bitsy passed away from her injuries at the hospital. Bitsy had already stipulated that she would be cremated and that her ashes would be stored in a pink diamond-encrusted urn. It seemed that even in death, she couldn't push aside her ego for one second. Still, it was hard to deny that things would never be the same again. In a way, it was like the end of an era... especially for the Brandenham Hotel.

Pretty much everyone who worked there was okay with that. It was probably for the best that Bitsy wasn't here anymore, since now their lives were easier for it. Helen thought that would've been the case for her as well, especially now that it was all but guaranteed she'd gotten her money. It wasn't.

For as much as she'd plotted and schemed to get the inheritance, for some reason Helen felt some sort of strong admiration towards Bitsy... one that was only now surfacing while she was engaged to someone else, and to Bitsy's adoptive daughter no less. She didn't quite understand why she would feel this way, especially now that Bitsy was gone. Shouldn't she have been happy she no longer had to deal with Bitsy's bullshit? She felt a sudden wave of guilt wash over her, as if she had betrayed Bitsy somehow.

She had never expected to feel this way after Bitsy had died. She wondered if perhaps she had been too hard on her, or if she had been too lenient. She was so befuddled over this swirling cyclone of emotions, but she didn't want to ask any further. Instead, she figured she would be better off going through the motions until everything was sorted out. She wasn't sure how to process her feelings, but she knew that she had to keep going and figure out what it all meant. She took a deep breath and steeled herself for the journey ahead.

For now, she had to get her affairs in order, starting with having to deal with the immediate fallout of her boss's death. And yet, she knew that the path to healing and peace wouldn't be a smooth and pleasant one. In fact, at this very moment, all she wanted to do was throw up and cry. However, she happened to be with Masa at the moment, and he couldn't help but look at her with worry on his face.

"Is... everything alright, Helen?" Masa asked gently.

"Everything's fine, Masa," Helen tried to assure him. "It's just that Bitsy's death is still fucking me up a little bit."

"Yeah... I hear you," Masa nodded in agreement. "But at least you're free now, right?"

Helen sighed heavily. "Masa, I know you're trying to look on the bright side, but I'm not sure how I should feel about all this. Sure, Bitsy wasn't a good person, but... well, I guess I'm just as much sad as I am relieved, you know?"

"That's..." He laid his hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry."

"No, no, it's okay. I'm fine."

Masa sat down next to her. "Look, I know we didn't get along, Bitsy and me, but it still sucks that she's gone. I'm sorry."

"No, really, I'm okay. Just..." Helen sighed deeply, trying desperately to compose herself in front of him. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine." She dabbed at her eyes with a napkin. "I was thriving without her then, and I can thrive without her now." She'd cried enough tears to fill up a bathtub during the last several hours, and she wasn't about to shed any more over the future.

Masa reached out for her hand. "Helen..."

The words never left his mouth. Helen felt him place his hand over hers, squeezing gently and slowly, and then pull away. He kept a small, sad smile on his face, as if he was about to say something that would've made her break down. Instead, he just shook his head.

"I'm just so sorry, Helen," he told her with a regretful look. "I wish I could do more to help you deal with this."

"I know. What I don't understand is why she didn't tell me."

Masa tilted his head in confusion. "Tell you what?"

"She had feelings for me this whole time. I worked beside her for years, and I didn't even know she felt that way about me."

"Oh, right. That. Well, in her defense, I don't think she knew either... at least not until it was too late. Even if she did, though, it probably wouldn't have mattered. She didn't exactly seem like the touchy-feely type, but I guess she respected you in her own screwed-up way. I mean, she trusted you enough to give you all that power over the other employees. That's gotta count for something, right?"

"Mm-hmm." She tried to come off as enthusiastic, but it wasn't very convincing. "It's just... it's just that I don't know if I can ever get over her... It's like a part of me is missing now, you know?"

"I know. And yeah... I think I understand how you feel." Masa wrapped his arms around her again. "You'll get over her, and you'll move on, and life will go on. It's all good, you know?"

"Thanks... I guess."

"It's gonna be okay, I promise." Masa remained silent for a while. He just held her in his arms. "So what are you going to do now?"

"Well, Kayla and I inherited the money and the hotel, so... there's that."

"Really? I figured Bitsy would have left everything to Shampagne."

"That's what I was starting to think, too, but she must've changed her mind at some point and made me and Kayla co-executors of her estate instead."

"Yeah, I guess she realized that dogs aren't that great at handling money. Well, at least you got what you wanted in the end, and that's all that matters."

Helen chuckled slightly, still a little sad by her loss. "Yeah, I guess so."


A week later, Helen had brought Bitsy's cremated remains home from Crestwood Funeral Home and Cremation Services on 445 W 43rd St. Just like Bitsy had stipulated, the ashes were stored within the pink diamond-encrusted urn. Although Helen's heart still hurt from Bitsy's sudden death, she was still determined to get on with her life no matter what. That being said, she knew that her life was not the same anymore. Although the urn reminded her of what she'd lost, it also reminded her of all the good times she had spent with Bitsy. All the pleasure she had experienced, and the future that she and Kayla would have together. She looked forward to the life she and Kayla would have together and felt a sense of gratitude to Bitsy for bringing them together. She knew that the urn would always be a reminder of her, a reminder of the love and the life they had shared.

Once that was out of the way, Helen had in mind an idea to hold a memorial service at the hotel. She recalled Bitsy's reasons for not wanting a funeral, mainly not wanting family members to upstage her on what she considered the most important day of her life. Regardless, Helen decided to go ahead with the memorial service anyway, making sure to send out invites to anyone who could come (even if that included people who had a bone to pick with the late hotel magnate).

Today was Sunday, November 9th. It had been a rough week for just about everyone since Bitsy passed away from her injuries at the hospital. It was pretty chilly outside, about 55°F or so, so everyone in attendance was cooped up in the lobby of the Brandenham Hotel in the meantime. They were all quietly talking about their grief and sadness, still in shock from the news.

Just about everyone Helen could get was here, in fact. Goldie and Maya were here with Spinel, their assistants Marigold and Skye, two of Goldie's producers Gustavo and Rogelio, and the rest of Whitney's family (their niblings Sapphire and Steven, as well as their great-niece Garnet and her one-year-old twins Hope and Jonah). The adults chatted amongst themselves while the kids distracted themselves from the gravity of the situation by playing games. Kayla was talking with her son Logan, seemingly distraught over this whole situation, while Brendan and Molly were offering condolences to Classi and Masa. Hibari and Kikujiro were also there. They were talking with their friend Tatsu and his wife Miku and daughter Himawari as Tatsu and his family got a feel for the place. Helen could also see out of the corner of her eye that Owen and Paige were also here to pay respects. She hadn't expected them to do so given their history with Bitsy, but then again she wasn't sure what to expect anymore.

She was so busy noticing all these people in attendance that she didn't even notice someone placing their hand on her back until she felt it on her. She looked down to see Bitsy's estranged half-sister/cousin Tabitha standing beside her.

Tabitha had her graying dark hair done up into a flipped bob that complimented her thin, angular face and stood out against her bronze-colored skin. She was wearing a white Mac Duggal Rosette Chiffon Cutout Empire Waist Gown that she'd paired with Nine West silver high heel sandals and a pair of rose gold stud earrings shaped like flowers that were encrusted in rubies and diamonds.

"Well, congratulations, Helen," Tabitha said. "You're finally free. What are you going to do with the money now?"

Helen proceeded to break down crying upon hearing that.

Tabitha crossed her arms. "Hmph. I thought you'd be happy about that."

Helen shook her head, tears streaming down her face. "No. It's not what I wanted, not like this."

Suddenly, Tabitha felt someone tapping on her shoulder. She turned around to see Lionel behind her.

"Why don't you leave Helen alone right now?" Lionel asked Tabitha. "She's been having trouble processing her emotions about Bitsy lately. Don't get me wrong. I'm glad Bitsy died, too, but the last thing Helen wants is to have you rub it in her face."

"Ah." Tabitha's eyes darted to the ground. "Well, I didn't mean to make Helen cry. I was just happy that a toxic person's out of my life forever, that's all."

"I get it. Now why don't you take a seat before you make a scene, okay?"

Tabitha nodded and took a seat, unsure of what else to say. At that moment, the memorial service commenced.

"I know Bitsy said she didn't want a memorial service, but... it felt wrong not to," Helen began to speak. "We're all here today because Bitsy was such an important part of our lives. A lot of us don't agree with the choices she made throughout her life, and she wronged a lot of us in some way. Despite all of that, we can't let the events of the last week or the last year or even the last decade take away the memories we made with her along the way. And as much as it hurts to admit it, she shaped who we are today in some way or another."

Some murmuring could be heard in the audience.

Helen paused for a moment, taking a deep breath before continuing. "Bitsy was complicated, but she had moments of kindness and love that we can't forget. She may have made mistakes, but she also taught us lessons about forgiveness and resilience. Today, let's remember both the good and the bad because that's what makes up the whole person. Thank you."

Light clapping could be heard as Helen stepped away from the microphone and took her seat. As the clapping died down, Lionel stood up and approached the podium. Helen proceeded to dissociate while Lionel began to make his own eulogy. Where could she go from here?