The man driving away from Bob was Sam, his stepson, whom he had reared as his own and loved with all his heart since he was five years old.
Bob was about to marry when he met Sam’s mother, Adele.
Adele had been gorgeous, charming, and thrilling, and Bob had abandoned his fiancée without explanation. He abandoned his old life like a filthy shirt and married the rich Adele.
For thirty years, Bob and Adele had been happy. They traveled the world in luxury, thanks to the bequest she inherited after the d.e.a.t.h of her wealthy old husband — Sam’s father.
Bob felt they were a happy family until Adele became seriously ill. Unfortunately, no amount of money in the world could save her from the horrible disease that ravaged her small body.
Adele’s lawyer called Bob and Sam a few days after her d.e.a.t.h to explain that she had not left a will and that the estate would be placed in Sam’s care on an interim basis.
That weekend, Sam persuaded Bob to go for a trip to the countryside to get some fresh air.
The two had driven away in Sam’s convertible, and Bob had noted that his stepson was unusually quiet, despite his frequent smiles and amusement.
“Sam?” asked Bob, bewildered. “What’s going on?”
“As I told you, I’m getting rid of the cobwebs, starting a new life,” Sam said with a nasty little smile. “And you’re dead weight, old man.”
“I don’t owe YOU anything. You lived off her for thirty years, that’s long enough, don’t you think?”
“What I care about is all that money and I’m not about to share it with you. It’s MY money, old man, so get lost!”
Sam made a threatening motion, and Bob crawled out of the car, frightened. He stayed there and watched Sam’s car leave in a cloud of dust.
He began wobbling after Sam’s car, believing that he would eventually come across a house or be overtaken by another vehicle. automobile after automobile passed past, but no one stopped.
The sun was setting and it was getting cold when a large expensive-looking car pulled up next to him. “Sir,” said a friendly voice. “Are you alright?”
Bob’s eyes welled up with tears as he heard that stranger’s voice express worry. “No,” he said shakily. “I’ve been abandoned here. Please, if you could take me to the nearest town, a police station? If it’s not too much trouble!”
The driver was a young man in his early thirties with a pleasant grin and nice blue eyes. He reminded Bob of someone, but he couldn’t recall who it was. Bob told Jake Kale his entire story.
Jake was outraged, and when he noticed Bob shivering from the cold, he decided to take him home. “I’ll take you to the police tomorrow morning, Bob,” he told me. “Tonight you get warm and have a good meal and a restful sleep.”
Jake guided Bob into a cute, cozy home and introduced him to his wife Angela and daughter Faye.
Bob was taken aback when the woman turned and spotted him standing there. She shouted out, and Jake had to catch her before she fell.
“That man…” gasped Peggy Kale. “Bob…It’s you!”
“How did you get here? How did you find us?” Peggy asked.
“It was Jake who found me, rescued me. I was abandoned on the road. He picked me up. He’s your son?”
“My son…and yours.”
“I didn’t know then — and later it didn’t seem to matter. You didn’t want me, and I wasn’t going to use my baby to pressure you.”
Bob dropped his head and shed painful tears. “I raised Adele’s son!” he whispered. “You knew that?”
As Peggy nodded, Bob continued bitterly: “It was Adele’s boy — whom I thought was my boy, who abandoned me by the side of the road like a stray dog.”
The next day, Jake took Bob to the police station to file a complaint against Sam. Jake found Bob a skilled lawyer, and the courts gave him half of Adele’s large estate.
He sought Peggy’s forgiveness and is currently working hard to make amends to his son and ex-fiancée.
