Читать книгу The Caretaker - Glenn MacFarland - Страница 7

Chapter 3

In the meantime, Darna had to take a leave of absence due to some family crisis. She asked a woman she knew to take her place for a while to care for Mr. Oliver. I met this young ambitious woman and soon realized she was not a friendly person. She made the boss’s meals, did some laundry, and took him for rides around the area. This woman’s name was Rhonda. She never made any small talk with Mr. Oliver, just basic conversation regarding his routine.

I still continued to come to the kitchen every morning to plan my work day with Sam, the boss. Rhonda didn’t like it when I was there. She told me not to come, that I was disrupting the household! I told her that I do not take orders from her! She also had an ulterior motive which I suspected from the beginning. She lasted approximately two years. She was caught buying food from a dollar store which she fed to Mr. Oliver, and she ate the quality food from the local supermarket. She pocketed the money for herself. Nothing was done about that!

Eventually Darna came back to care for the boss, and Rhonda left for another job. It was so pleasant having Darna back. She was anxious to make her tasty home-cooked European soups and meals again for the boss. She often invited me to sit down and have a bowl. She bought healthy vegetables and meats for the boss. She soon fell into her usual routine again. Darna many times would have to pay for Mr. Oliver’s medicine and his clothing out of her own pocket. The family didn’t give her enough money.

I tried to spend more time with the boss because he liked to have conversations with me and talk about the “old days” he reflected often lately about his childhood and school days. The household was running smoothly for a while, back to normal. Everyone was happy!

One day, Mr. Oliver developed a heavy cough. After a few days, he was getting worse. His coughing was deeper and continuous. We took him to see his doctor who gave him medication and advised Darna to take him to the emergency room at the local hospital. A week later, his condition really deteriorated, so Darna called 911. He developed pneumonia; and within a week, he passed away. Sad to say, Darna and I were upset and so sorry to know that he was really gone.

The family planned a funeral service at his church. Jack told Darna that he would pick her up, but I said that I would take her to the service. Jack spun around and asked, “Are you coming?”

I replied, “Why wouldn’t I? I worked for the man for forty-two years!” As caretaker of the property and devoted services to Sam Oliver, I really discovered what makes this world go round!

A realtor was engaged, and the family put the estate on the market. Darna left and found a nursing position in another state. I really will miss her!

After many months of potential, yes, curious buyers going through the property, examining every nook and cranny, the estate was finally sold. A really charming elderly couple are the new owners, and they asked me to stay on and continued being the caretaker.

One morning, a red-haired very tall gentleman stopped me by the driveway and asked if I could direct him. He was a stranger in this area and didn’t know his way around. I gave him directions for the shortest way to go. He told me that his name was Tom Winston and that he was related to Jack Oliver.

A few weeks later, Tom knocked on my office door in the barn and thanked me for helping him locate Jack. He has a friendly personality and felt very comfortable talking to me. I could tell that he really needed someone to listen. He mentioned that his mother attended art school in New York to get a teaching degree. Tom assumed that’s where she met Jack’s father, Sam Oliver.

After tracing his roots, Tom understood that his mother put him up for adoption a few months after he was born. A childless couple adopted and raised him as their own. After some DNA testing, Tom realized that he had a half brother and half sister. His adoptive parents helped him locate information as to where they were located in the East. His parents are in the dairy and cattle business in Michigan and are not familiar with the eastern part of the country.

Tom came to Westerfield to find a place to live so that he could become acquainted with his newly discovered family. He also has business here in the East. I really don’t think Tom is trying to get involved with any monetary issues with Jack. He is vice president of his adopted father’s cattle business.

Jack’s son Brendan and daughter-in-law, Emily, were very curious about Tom and found him very interesting and want to know more about this new member of the family. Jack was noticeably upset and was giving them a difficult time. He thinks that Tom is an intruder and was giving them arguments about being related. Jack wanted to see proof with another DNA test. Tom felt that he was not obligated to prove anything to Jack. Jack’s wife, Nancy, won’t let Tom in the house. She was a bit of a recluse!

Jack’s son Brendan planned to become more involved with Tom. He and his wife Emily began meeting Tom for lunch and dinner at a local restaurant. Brendan told his father that he really was very interested in Tom’s cattle business and wants to visit Michigan and look into Tom’s offer of a job. This, of course, struck a raw nerve with Jack. They called me and wanted to know if I would supply him with any information I hear from Tom. I told Jack that anything I hear is confidential and that I don’t want to be involved. Whatever I hear, I keep to myself! Everyone feels that they should still confide in me. I don’t want to jeopardize my caretaker job here with this lovely couple. Tom calls me on his phone off and on and occasionally stops by to chat. He is very pleasant and has a great sense of humor. He really seems thrilled realizing that he has a family.

Barbra, Jack’s sister, was back from California. She’s planning to live in New York, so this is apartment hunting time. The company she works for has a branch office in a suburb of New York. I really feel that she wanted to be closer to the actions involving her family.

Brendan was packing to go to Michigan with Tom to learn the dairy and cattle business. He has to learn the basics, in other words, what it takes to run this kind of business. Tom, who is single, was delighted to learn that someone in the family wants to be part of his life. They both wanted to visit Barbra before leaving. She was so excited but somewhat apprehensive about her first meeting with this surprise relative. Meanwhile, Jack was angry and “fit to be tied” with all these latest developments. He was basically acting like a “green-eyed monster!”—Well it all boils down to losing his grip on his family.

One morning, Jack left the house abruptly without checking on his wife, Nan. She was in the kitchen making breakfast with her usual cocktail nearby. She liked to have a little “nip” during the day. That’s her get-up and go-to vitamin. Nan was in one of her moods when all of a sudden, she saw smoke coming from the kitchen. The wall above the stove was in flames. She ran frantically, screaming from the house. A neighbor walking his dog saw the smoke and called the local fire department. After the fire was extinguished, a fireman noticed an opening in the charred remains of the stairs behind a crumbled wall. When the area cooled off the cave-like room, they noticed an old dusty chest. They pried open the wooden chest that was not damaged by the fire. Inside they found artifacts dating back to the Civil War.