The man’s brothers didn’t like the house their dad left them as their inheritance. So when he volunteered to buy it, they sold him their shares. But one day, they regretted it and angrily rushed to meet him after he accidentally found a rare family heirloom in the house.
Adam Phillips was alone in his dad’s old mansion. His eyes gushed with tears as he recalled his childhood in the house and the nightmares he endured from his older brothers, Travis and David.
“I will meet you soon after many years, dad!” he murmured, holding his late dad’s picture. A gush of breeze tingled his skin, and he decided to light up the fireplace.
As he opened the bolt of the furnace and tried igniting the firewood, something fell, letting out a loud noise. He was spooked and backed off. Then he walked closer to the fireplace, only to find a life-changing heirloom hidden from sight for several decades…
Adam lodged at his late dad’s house for the night. | Source: Unsplash
Growing up, Adam never had lovely memories of his brothers. They often bullied him for no apparent reason and mocked him. The only person who sided with him was his dad.
Mr. Phillips had sent Adam away to a college across two towns so that he could learn how to mold himself into a braver person.
“You need to take a stand for yourself, son…I cannot always do it for you,” he often advised Adam.
Since that day, Adam barely came to his hometown, although he remained close to his parents. He visited during his mom’s funeral and witnessed how she had transformed his room into an indoor garden.
“Lovely!” he gasped. As he toured around the house, he met his brothers. They never had a good word to say about him and constantly gossiped.
Although Adam stayed away from his brothers, he saw them again at their mom’s funeral. | Source: Pexels
“My sons…my boys,” Mr. Phillips shouted in tears. “Do not forget that your old man is still alive… I’d appreciate it if you could visit me often.” The three sons assured their father and embraced him goodbye after the funeral.
Unsurprisingly, David and Travis never visited him. Sometimes, they wouldn’t even pick up his call and would divert him to their voicemail.
Meanwhile, Adam often visited his dad and made sure he never felt left out. “And this…this is the vintage showpiece I bought from Italy this summer,” Adam said, showing his dad an artifact he purchased for him during one of his trips.
Although Adam insisted his dad move with him to the city, his dad refused. “This house is not brick or concrete… it’s an abode of my memories…it echoes our good and bad times,” Mr. Phillips often reasoned.
Thus, when his dad discussed the fate of his house after his passing, Adam promised him that he would never sell it or even move a brick from it. “This would be my kids’ weekend home…for vacations, I suppose!” Adam assured him.
But fate had other plans…
Adam’s dad refused to relocate as his sentiments were attached to his house. | Source: Pexels
Adam left for the city, and several weeks later, his phone rang. After picking up, he dropped it to the floor and collapsed on the couch with his face buried in his hands. “Rest in peace, dad…rest in peace,” he sobbed.
Adam met his brothers at their dad’s funeral and realized they were not there to pay their last respects, particularly after he overheard them discussing the will.
“If we get this house, I know a realtor who can find us a good buyer to sell this old, ugly hut,” David told Travis.
The next day, the brothers met at the lawyer’s office and learned that their dad had indeed willed the house to his sons, split into three equal shares among them.
The brothers met again at their dad’s funeral. | Source: Unsplash
“I’ll buy it,” Adam spoke out when his brothers unanimously discussed selling the house. “I’ll buy your shares for a better price, so sell them to me.”
David and Travis had no idea why Adam wanted the old mansion, but since money mattered to them the most, they agreed.
Following a few formalities, Adam got the house signed under his name. He drove to the place to pack his dad’s belongings, and by the time he finished taping the cartons, he realized it was too late.
“I will rest here tonight and call for the truck in the morning,” he muttered and sat on the couch in front of an old fireplace.
It was too cold and windy, so he made some tea and decided to light up the furnace. He stacked the firewood and ignited them. The smoke gushed through the chimney, and an old magpie’s nest plunged into the ashes, dropping an expensive and unseen heirloom.
“What??? Oh my God,” Adam exclaimed as he rummaged through the rubble dusted in ash. He picked up a dazzling ring with a huge stone…
Adam chanced upon a long-lost family ring while lighting the fireplace. | Source: Unsplash
“This must be my grandmother’s long-lost ring,” Adam mumbled, recalling his dad mentioning his mother’s lost ring that was never found.
The next day, he rushed to a jewelry store to find out the ring’s worth. He gaped in awe as the store owner revealed the diamond band’s value.
“It could be higher, but on average, it must be around $300,000!” the seller disclosed.
Adam was stunned. He took the ring and drove back to his dad’s house. Eventually, the news of the expensive heirloom’s discovery reached his brothers’ ears.
The ring was a family heirloom worth $300,000. | Source: Unsplash
“Can we see the ring?” Travis asked Adam during a surprise visit home.
“Why only see it when we can rightfully have it!” David chimed in while Adam watched in silence.
After listening to his brothers brag about how the ring belonged to them since it was found in the house, Adam walked away and returned with a folder in his hand.
“You see, my dear brothers! This house now belongs to me since you’ve already sold off your shares to me,” Adam crisply explained. “And everything around, under, and over this roof belongs only to me now!”
David and Travis grimaced. They sat in silence for some time then stormed out angrily.
Adam never heard from his brothers again, but he was sure they would do anything to possess the ring. That afternoon, he drove to the city where he worked and put the ring in a safety deposit in the bank.
“I’m keeping my promise, dad! I’ll never move a brick from our house…and not sell our memories!” he muttered on his drive home.
Adam kept the ring in a safety deposit box. | Source: Pixabay
What can we learn from this story?
- Learn to respect your elders because it might reward you in the future: Of the three sons, only Adam supported his dad and stayed with him until his last breath. After his dad died, he bought his brothers’ share from their house so that he could keep the promise he made to his dad. Due to his good deed, Adam found a long-lost heirloom as a reward.
- Never be greedy, as it might lead you to lose more. Adam’s brothers sold their shares from the house because they wanted money and they looked down upon the old house. But after they learned about the expensive ring Adam found, they envied him and claimed their right to it, but failed.
If you liked reading this story, here’s one about a boy who helped a poor old lady carry her groceries and is surprised when his mom was rewarded with $265K.
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