Anna returned home from the cafe, packed her belongings, and drove to her grandfather’s house in the countryside. It was a small blue cottage with a wooden door, very different from Anna’s in Cleveland, but here she could find peace and a well-deserved break from housework and, especially, Edward’s lies.
The woman creaked open the gate upon arrival, but as she took a step forward towards the front door, she noticed a man lying unconscious in the yard with a shovel beside him. Blood had covered every square inch of the shovel as if someone had hit him on the head with it.
Anna called 911 right away and rushed the man to the hospital. Fortunately, they made it in time, and the man was out of danger. But when she got home from the hospital, she had another surprise in store for her. Her dear husband Edward was waiting for her at the cottage.
“I have been searching for you the whole day, Anna! You just disappeared without a trace. Where have you been?” Edward inquired.
“Because you were so preoccupied with your work and ‘client meetings,’ I decided to take a vacation with my baby,” Anna said indifferently. “It’s not as if I have to ask you for your permission for everything. Anyway, what are you doing here?”
Edward’s tone abruptly shifted. “Are you upset about something, honey? Do you want me to get you something?”
“No, Edward,” Anna retorted. “Right now, all I need is sleep. So, please move. And, yes, I’ll be sleeping alone, so you can sleep outside on the couch!”
Anna went to bed, but her thoughts kept returning to the man she’d discovered unconscious in her yard. What exactly was he doing here? Was she on the lookout for something? Is he familiar with me? And how did he get a head injury? Her head was racing with questions.
Anna fell asleep while trying to find answers for her inquisitive mind and was awakened by the sun the following day. It was mildly cold, so she reached out for the blanket, but she couldn’t find it.
She awoke, irritated, and was about to yell at Edward if he’d pulled it to his side when she realized she’d been sleeping alone.
However, as Anna looked around the room, she noticed it was in a terrible state. The blanket had been thrown on the floor, her room’s cupboard had open drawers, and her luggage had been opened and rummaged through.
If this is you, Edward, I swear you’re dead today! Anna was furious as she dashed into the living room. But that space was in no better shape. It was even messier than she’d found it when she first entered the house, and Edward was nowhere to be found.
She was about to go outside and check the yard for him, but just then, her gaze was drawn to a crumpled sheet of paper on the ground. When she picked it up, she discovered it was a blueprint for her cottage with a red circle at its center.
She dashed to the loft as it came under the circled region and discovered that, too, was messed up. Edward had vanished as if he didn’t exist, and the yard had been dug out in one corner.
Worried, she was about to call him, but just then she heard a voice from behind. “I’m sorry, but I hope I didn’t disturb you!” it said.
Anna turned around and discovered the man she’d saved the previous day standing at the doorstep. “Oh, it’s you! Are you all right now?” she worriedly inquired.
The man sighed as he looked around Anna’s house, which was in a state of disarray. “I was taken to the hospital on time thanks to your assistance,” he said. “By the way, my name is Andrew. Can I come inside, if you don’t mind? I’d like to speak with you about something…”
Anna offered tea to Andrew, and that’s when he started telling her the whole story. Andrew turned out to have cared for Anna’s grandfather in his final days. So, before his death, her grandfather told the kind man about the treasure hidden in the yard near his house.
“He also gave me a letter,” Andrew explained, “and it was addressed to you to an address in Florida. I went there, but you’d already left, so I waited until you came back so I could give it to you. I wasn’t there on his funeral day; otherwise, we could have met that day.”
Anna opened the letter and began reading it.
“Dear Anna, I hope you’re doing well,” the letter began, “I know it might come as a shock to you, but I have a box hidden in my yard, and there’s a map to it.”
“My grandfather gave it to me before he died, and I wanted to give it to you on your wedding day, but I’m sorry to say that your husband already has his eye on it. Edward is not who he appears to be. He came to see me after you two got married and overheard me talking to Andrew.”
“By the way, Andrew is the man who will most likely deliver this letter to you. The brooch you’ll find inside the box is worth millions of dollars, and it is a relic of our ancestors that has been passed down to us. Edward will not find it as long as he does not obtain the map. I hope you find it and keep it in a safe place. Love, Grandpa Silas.”
As Anna finished the letter, she showed a picture of Edward to Andrew. “Have you seen him around, or do you know him?”
“Oh, yes, he’s the man who comes here often. When I came here that day to clean the yard, I found him here, and he hit me over the head with a shovel.”
When Andrew said that, it all made sense: Edward’s sudden appearance at the cottage and his sudden disappearance. Anna immediately called the police and informed them of the situation. In no time, Edward was apprehended, and he confessed to the theft, and Anna was able to recover the brooch.
After the incident, Anna decided to cut all ties with Edward, who’s serving time in prison, and she and Andrew are now raising her son, Brandon, together.
What can we learn from this story?
You can’t escape karma. Edward decided to flee with the ancient brooch, but he was apprehended and punished for his actions.
Everything in life happens for a reason. If Anna hadn’t caught Edward cheating on her that day, she would never have found out the truth about Edward.
If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a young mother who found an old crib on her doorstep with an envelope inside.
Pampered Boy Ridicules Flight Attendant Unaware That His Wealthy Father Is Observing
Seventeen-year-old Andrew is used to getting what he wants and treating people badly when he doesn’t get it, but his father decides it’s time Andrew learned a lesson about respect when he mistreats a flight attendant.
“Do you think he’ll be okay?”
Steven had been watching his seventeen-year-old son walk toward the airport boarding gate, but now he looked down at his wife.
“Of course Andrew will be okay,” he replied.
“I hope this new school can help him learn some humility.”
“But what if they treat him badly in the dorms?” Steven’s wife looked up at him. “He’s never been to boarding school before.”
“That’s the point.” Steven clenched his jaw. “Andrew has become spoiled and he needs to learn some tough lessons about life.”
Months later, Andrew was flying home for the holidays after his first semester of boarding school. He’d hated every minute of his time there and was eager to return to his high-powered computer and the luxury car he got for his sixteenth birthday.
“Hey, you.” Andrew waved to the flight attendant, a redhead woman with freckles.
“How can I help you, sir?” The flight attendant smiled at him.
“You can get me something better to snack on than these peanuts.” Andrew threw the bag of peanuts at her.
The flight attendant’s smile turned into a frown. “Sir, please don’t throw things at me.”
“I’ll do what I like,” Andrew replied. “You’re here to serve me, so stop complaining and do your job.”
“Don’t talk to her like that.” The older man in the seat beside Andrew turned to look at him.
“Just because it’s her job to serve us doesn’t mean you can disrespect her.”
Andrew rolled his eyes and snapped his fingers at the flight attendant. “I’m still waiting for my snack.”
The flight attendant walked away with her eyes downcast. The older man in the next seat shook his head.
“Your parents must be so disappointed in you,” the elderly man muttered.
“Nobody asked you, old man.” Andrew began scrolling through the movie options.
After a few minutes, the flight attendant returned with a pretzel.
“Here you go, sir,” she said and held out the pretzel to him. “If there’s anything else —”
Andrew sneered and slapped the pretzel out of her hand. “I don’t want a pretzel!”
The flight attendant recoiled, tears forming in her eyes. “Peanuts and pretzels are the only snacks we serve on this flight.”
“That’s pathetic, just like you.” Andrew leaned forward in his seat. “Go and fetch me a proper snack, now!”
“How dare you talk to her like that?” A woman rose from her seat across the aisle and put a hand on the flight attendant’s arm.
“If she did her job then I wouldn’t have to.” Andrew pointed at the flight attendant.
“She’s a servant, and a bad one too.”
The flight attendant burst into tears. The woman passenger tried to comfort her.
“Somebody ought to give you a hiding, young man.” The elderly passenger in the seat next to Andrew scowled at him.
“I agree.” Somebody placed a hand on his shoulder.
At that moment, Andrew understood what his father had been trying to teach him.
Andrew recognized that voice. He turned and stared in surprise when he saw his dad behind him. His face was red with anger.
“Dad, what are you doing here?” Andrew asked.
“Flying home from a business trip,” Steven replied. “I hoped we might meet on the plane, but I never imagined it would be like this. Apologize to this young lady and the other passengers immediately.”
Andrew hunched his shoulders and mumbled an apology. He didn’t see what the big deal was, but he knew better than to disobey his father when he was so angry.
When Andrew and his father got home, Steven marched him straight to his office on the second floor of the luxurious house.
“This comes to an end right now.”
Steven shut the door and turned to point at Andrew. “Your behavior is disgusting. I hoped that you might learn manners in boarding school, but it seems I was wrong.”
“Why are you making such a big deal out of this?” Andrew threw out his arms. “She’s just a flight attendant. It’s not like she’s important.”
“And that’s your problem, Andrew. You think you’re better than others because you were born into a wealthy family, and that you can treat others badly because of that.” Steven crossed his arms. “That’s going to change.”
“What does that mean?”
“You won’t be going back to that school. You’ll finish your education at a public school, and you’re going to spend your holiday working.”
“Working?” Andrew straightened up. “Are you giving me a job at your company?”
Steven smiled. “You could say that. I’m going to give you a job in my cleaning company, as a janitor.”
Andrew was horrified.
“I won’t do it!”
“You will because I’m also cutting off all your privileges. I’m taking your bank cards, your computer, your car, and your cell phone. I’m even taking your branded clothes.” Steven put his hands on his hips. “You’re going to find out what it means to respect people.”
Andrew had no choice. His father took his possessions from him, and he started his job as an airport janitor the next day.
Andrew knew nothing about cleaning. The older woman he was assigned to work with laughed at him for not knowing how to sweep or mop. He shouted at her for laughing at him and threatened to get her fired.
“No, you won’t,” she replied, shaking her finger at him. “Your father warned me about you, now get to work. These floors don’t clean themselves.”
Andrew sighed and started sweeping. He was clumsy, and his supervisor teased him about it. Andrew got angry, but there was nothing he could do about it.
He was cleaning the trash cans when something hit him. He turned and saw that somebody had thrown an empty takeaway carton at him.
“Hey!” Andrew shouted at the man who’d thrown the carton. “How dare you throw that at me.”
The man ignored Andrew, so he ran after him and grabbed his arm.
“I’m talking to you,” Andrew said.
The man shook Andrew off so hard that he fell to the ground. “Get your filthy hands off me, you dirty janitor.”
Andrew watched the man walk away in shock. Was this how it felt to be treated like you didn’t matter? Andrew didn’t like it. He looked around just as somebody kicked him.
“Get out of the way, you lazy bum.” The woman who’d kicked him sneered at him.
“I’m going to report you for sleeping on the job.”
At that moment, Andrew understood what his father had been trying to teach him. He knew now how much it hurt to be mistreated by people who thought they were better than you.
A flash of red caught his eye, and Andrew looked up. He recognized the flight attendant he’d been rude to and hurried across to her.
“I’m so sorry,” he said when he reached her. “I treated you so badly.”
The woman was surprised to see him, but she smiled when he apologized.
“I’m glad you’ve learned the error of your ways,” she said.
What can we learn from this story?
Everyone deserves respect. It doesn’t matter if somebody works a menial job; they’re still a person and deserve to be treated respectfully.
Sometimes children need to learn a lesson the hard way. It can be difficult for children to understand the true depth of important life lessons when they’ve never experienced that situation.
Share this story with your friends. It might brighten their day and inspire them.
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