An old millionaire leaves behind a gigantic $5.3 million mansion after his death, but there’s a twist: neither his wife nor his daughter inherits it.
“Will you be able to come later today, William?” 89-year-old Samuel asked his lawyer, William Banks, on the phone.
“Well, I can, Mr. Brown. But are you sure about the will? I’d advise you to think about it once more.”
“I’m as certain of it as I am of who will be the next heir to all of my property, William. I look forward to seeing you soon. Is it possible for you to take some time for me today? I don’t want to waste any more time.”
“Okay then, Mr. Brown. I’ll be there. And don’t worry. I’ll bring all the documents that are needed,” Mr. Banks replied and then hung up the phone.
60 years ago…
Samuel Brown had everything he could have wanted in life. He had a stable job as a celebrity designer, good health, and the company of the love of his life, Olivia, which was about to grow even more prominent when he found out she was pregnant and he’d be a father soon.
But unfortunately, all those dreams were dashed one fateful day when he was on his way home from work and received a call that his pregnant wife had passed away in a terrible fire that engulfed their home.
Samuel rushed to the hospital where Olivia had been taken, in a distraught state, only to discover that the pale, lifeless, and nearly burned body in the morgue was hers. He couldn’t cope with the shock of losing her and spent days in bed, unable to accept that his lovely Olivia was no longer with him.
A few days later, when he slowly recovered, he decided to organize the funeral and wish her a final goodbye. But after everyone left, he could feel the void again, the emptiness, as he gazed at the fresh mound of earth.
After that day, something in Samuel had changed, and the man who’d previously been cheerful and happy now seemed like a robot, just working for hours and hours non-stop. In fact, he left his stable job and decided to devote himself to starting a new company that would have Olivia’s name in it.
After 10 years of rigorous trying, his dream came true, and he launched his own company named Olivia Designs, after which rowing millions was nothing but an easy task. And a few years down the line, when he clocked the age of 60, even love entered his life again when he met a young designer named Samantha at his company.
She was 25, way younger than him, but her hazel eyes and curly brown hair reminded him of young Olivia. Samuel undoubtedly fell for her in an instant, but Samantha saw his affection for her as the older millionaire’s weakness and used his money to live her life to the fullest.
Samuel was obviously no fool; he was well aware of everything, but he loved her so much that he closed his eyes to a lot of things, including her cheating on him.
When Samantha became pregnant, Samuel felt like he was the happiest person on planet Earth. However, after the child was born, he realized the child wasn’t his. The baby had no resemblance to him or Samantha, and the DNA test he secretly took of the baby confirmed his suspicions.
But he never told Samantha about it and instead lavished all of his love on the child, accepting her as his own. Little did the man know he was making the biggest mistake of his life.
The present-day…
After Samuel got off the phone, he opened the phone’s gallery and started scrolling through his and Olivia’s pictures. They appeared sweet and happy, in contrast to his life since he became bedridden and needed someone to look after him.
As soon as Samantha had learned about Samuel’s illness, both she and her daughter fled to a holiday destination in Florida, where they stayed in opulent hotels and enjoyed their lives, escaping the misery of caring for an older man.
During this time, the only support and help Samuel ever got was from his house helper, Emma, who looked after him tirelessly, making several rounds of the medical stores, accompanying him to appointments, and rushing to his room on a single call to ensure she was available whenever her boss needed assistance.
Things went on like that for seven years. Emma was a single mother whose husband had abandoned her and her son because he didn’t want to look after them. After that, she’d been wandering places looking for a job, but nobody had offered to hire her except Samuel, who not only gave her a job but a small outhouse where she stayed with her son, Brian.
Emma never wanted a lot from life. She just wanted to earn enough so that her son had a comfortable life, and ever since she’d started working for Samuel, that didn’t seem like a problem. Unfortunately, problems arose only for Brian, and that was after Emma died in a car accident while returning from the market after purchasing some medicines for Samuel.
Poor 4-year-old Brian became an orphan in an instant, and his entire world came crashing down around him. So that evening, when Samuel met Mr. Banks, he decided to write his will and repay Emma’s kindness. He bequeathed his gigantic $5.3 million mansion to Brian and the remainder of his estate to charity, leaving nothing for his greedy wife and daughter.
A week later, when Samuel passed away, Samantha flew back to New York, organized a funeral for her husband, shed a few crocodile tears, pretending to be in pain, but after everyone left, she immediately called Mr. Banks, excited at the prospect of inheriting Samuel’s fortune.
“So, Mr. Banks, when can I come to your office to discuss Samuel’s will? It’s indeed sad that my beloved husband passed away, but who can avoid fate? Now that he’s no longer here, I’ll have to look after the entire business by myself. I hope I’m able to do that.”
“I apologize, Mrs. Brown, but I believe there is some misunderstanding here. Mr. Brown’s w
ill made no mention of you.”
“What? Didn’t Samuel transfer his wealth and property in my name? After all, I’m his wife! How is that possible? Oh, wait, did he give our daughter everything?”
“Unfortunately, Mrs. Brown, that is not the case either. Your husband gave his million-dollar mansion to his house helper’s son, Brian Bernstein, and the rest of his assets to a charity.”
“What?!” Samantha couldn’t believe what she was hearing!
“Oh, yes, and now that you called me, let me tell you that you have a few days to vacate the mansion. I was planning on paying you a visit a few days later, assuming you’d be upset about your husband’s death, but seeing your excitement, I don’t think that’s the case. Mr. Brown’s will says that you have a week after his death to vacate his home. Since four days are already gone, I’d advise you to hurry,” Mr. Banks said and hung up.
Samantha couldn’t contain her anger when she got off the phone. She decided she’d sue the orphan boy, but it was all for naught.
The lawyer who agreed to take her case duped her and extorted all of her savings. He’d promised her he’d win the case for her, but he could never gather enough evidence for her case, telling her it was difficult and he needed more money to pay his sources. Eventually, she lost the case, and in the end, she and her daughter became homeless and impoverished.
What can we learn from this story?
You can’t avoid karma. Samantha and her daughter lived off Samuel and wanted to do so after his death, but karma eventually caught up with them.
If you’re good to others, you’ll receive goodness in return in one way or the other. Emma looked after Samuel and was there when he needed someone the most. So when she passed away, Samuel ensured that her son would never suffer and transferred his mansion in her son’s name.
