Ben sobbed as he read the last page. So his great-grandpa’s liver was the cause of his death. This was the history of the stones and now we was stuck with them. What if he ended up with a son? The thought plagued him day and night but he decided to keep this revelation a secret. He returned the diary to its original place and slept with a heavy heart.
‘Bennington. Twenty five years years…’
He woke up with a start. Where did that voice come from? It was probably his mind playing games with him and he suddenly felt nauseous. Suddenly, the door opened and Margaret came running inside.
“Oh my God, Ben! Heaven help us!” she cried out.
“Mother! What happened?”
Ben asked worriedly. Her face was pale and she was shaking all over.
“Your father is in the hospital!”
“It can’t be!” he exclaimed in disbelief.
‘He was run over by a car!’ Was his bad luck being transferred to his family now?
A half hour later, they were at the hospital. It was as if his troubles had just started.
‘I hate to be the bearer of bad news, Ms. Lodge’ the doctor said as he met up with them.
‘What do you mean, you silly old quack?’ Margaret screamed at the top of her voice.
‘Ben, tell your mother to calm down’.
Sebastian had died to a tremendous loss of blood.
Margaret wailed in anguish as Ben led her out of the hospital. In a way, he felt better. His father’s death did not matter to him because he was hated by many of those who knew him. He was a cruel moneylender who earned huge profits by charging exceptionally high interest rates. People came to him because he was backed up by the mafia who were paid by him for their services. They knew that he was the CEO of his business and worked hard to gain his favor.
Why not? He was rich. After all, they benefited from his earnings. Those who needed money to pay their debts went to him because they did not want any trouble. They realized that his rivals had long gone ever since he joined hands with the mafia. Those brutes killed mercilessly, and they were sure that his competitors had bitten the dust.
Ben had never felt this good in a long time. In fact, he was quite happy but he did not show it to his mother. However, what bothered him was the fact that his father never made a will. This meant that all his wealth would be given to the state whether he liked it or not. Even their property’s deed was in his father’s name and he felt like sinking to the ground.
News about Sebastian’s death spread like fire and the two were in a blaze of publicity. They were visited by police officers, reports and government authorities who had many unanswered questions. It was only a matter of time before the the mayor, Mr. Griffin, evicted them from their residence. Sebastian was a hated figure in society and anyone associated with him was filth.
Mr. Griffin, however, had a soft spot for women. He felt a stirring for pity as Margaret cried uncontrollably in front of him. He would do anything she wished for although returning the house to her was definitely not on the list. Sebastian had robbed from society and everything that once belonged to him would not remain with his wife or son anymore. He made arrangements for Margaret to be sent to an institution for the homeless but Ben would not get anything. Mr. Griffin wanted young men who could fend for themselves and Ben was no different, even if he was admired. It was his mother he cared for.
Ben looked around for work, albeit unsuccessful. He soon became friends with a couple of drifters who called themselves Rags and Skipper. They were found by a miner who took them with him to a distant land. The man was shrewd; he would pay them low wages and make them work like slaves. Ben had nothing to say because he needed to eat. Rags was lazy; he detested working. Skipper was a different kettle of fish altogether. He had severe mood swings and this was probably the reason why Rags called him a psychopath. What a confusing world, Ben thought.
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