Morgan had lived the best 83 years of his life. He was married to the woman he fell in love with, had started a family with her, and was living a life of luxury, as he was a wealthy businessman. However, everything changed two years later.
At 85, Morgan hated his life. His wife died two years ago, and his children didn’t even bother to check on him.
As he grew older, Morgan worried about his future heir. His family was greedy; they only came to see him once a year for the vacations, and were more interested in his money and his will than him.
However, Morgan was no fool. His gray hair was a testament to his experience. So when he discussed his will with his attorney, Mr. Carter, he came up with a plan to determine the heir.
«Are you sure it would work, sir?» asked Mr. Carter.
«Well, haven’t they been so nice to me, Mr. Carter? You see, they visit me during the vacations and talk to me so nicely. That would only test their love for me…. These children have forgotten that I am their father. I can see right through them, and I’m not going to give them my inheritance just because we are related by blood!»
«Well, then, when do you want me to call them?»
«I think in two weeks, that would be fine. And, when you do, please let them know that my funeral will be held privately,» Morgan added with a broad smile.
Mr. Carter took Morgan’s advice and called the children two weeks later to inform them of their father’s death. To his surprise, none of the children wanted to attend the funeral until Mr. Carter told them that the reading of the will would take place before the funeral.
«Your father left a detailed set of protocols to follow. I hope to see you all soon,» Mr. Carter told them.
So Morgan’s funeral was a private affair attended only by family members. On the day, when his children arrived with their families, Morgan’s coffin lay in the backyard of his lavish home, his picture next to it on a stand.
Morgan was gone, but the kids weren’t sad. They were excited to find out who would receive the largest share of their father’s fortune or if the inheritance would be divided equally among all of them.
«Now that you’re all here, I’d like to ask you to come and pay your respects to your father,» said the priest standing in front of the closed casket, following Morgan’s protocol.
«Paying our respects?» laughed Morgan’s oldest son, Ethan. «We didn’t come here for that. Mr. Carter,» he said, turning to the lawyer. «I thought you called us about the will.»
«But don’t you want to say goodbye to your father? He adored you all.»
«Ugh, does it really matter now that he’s gone?» added Peter, Morgan’s second child. «Come on, do you really think about all this? I mean, this private ceremony, these stupid protocols… Why didn’t you just call us at the office? This is a waste of time.»
«I know, it is,» replied her youngest daughter, Clara. «There’s no point in getting upset and crying over the dead. Let’s move forward with the will.»
Mr. Carter was shocked. He now understood why Morgan didn’t want to leave his property to his children. They were just a greedy bunch who had no feeling for their dead father.
Morgan, on the other hand, was hiding and listening to everything. He had tears in his eyes as he thought about how he had failed as a parent. He had built a huge fortune, but he was failing to raise his children properly.
«It’s probably my fault.» He blamed himself.
Suddenly, a squeaky voice caught his attention.
«Grandma!» he said in a desperate tone. «Mr. Comfort has left me, and so has Mom and Dad! I’m going to miss him so much!»
The voice was that of Adam, an 8-year-old boy who lived next door. The poor child was an orphan, and his widowed grandmother was raising him alone. He and his grandmother had come to deliver cookies to Morgan and were devastated to learn that he had died.
Morgan had first met Adam in the neighborhood park. He was a sweet kid, and very quickly became his friend. Adam called Morgan «Mr. Comfort» because Morgan always comforted Adam when he was sad about his parents.
«Yo kid, who are you?»» snarled Ethan. «Isn’t this supposed to be a ‘private’ family matter? And who the hell is Mr. Comfort? The one lying in that closed casket there is our father. He was no good, anyway. Go home and play with your toys instead of bawling!»
«Bad!» shouted Adam. «You are so bad! How can you talk about your father like that?»
«He was OUR father. You can say anything you want, kid!», Clara yelled at the boy.
«Oh, you mean the kids are going to rot in hell,» said Esther, Adam’s grandmother. «Your father was a good man. He helped us so much!»
Esther approached the coffin and whispered a small prayer, then she and Adam were about to leave. Just then, Morgan appeared in front of everyone, and his children’s eyes were wide with shock.
«D-dad?»
«I’m here, Adam. Mr. Comfort is here. He’s not dead! This was all part of his plan! It was all a setup, my dear.»
«Mr. Comfort!» Adam cried and hugged him. «I’m so happy to see you! Please don’t go anywhere. I don’t want to lose you like I lost my mother and father.»
«I’m not going anywhere, Adam. Hopefully not soon.»
Morgan consoled Adam and apologized to Esther for needlessly dragging her and Adam into the drama.
Once they left, he revealed who he would leave his money to.
«Since your father has been of no use to you, I am cutting you all off permanently. I have decided to disinherit you and leave my wealth to Adam! Mr. Carter, take note of this. These three children and their families must never come here again!»
Morgan’s children shamelessly begged their forgiveness, claiming they didn’t mean what they said. But Morgan kicked them out.
«I must be a terrible father not to have taught you the importance of relationships! Let me correct that and teach you that lesson right now!»
After cutting ties with his greedy children, Morgan decided to start a new life and move on. He and Esther liked each other very much, and they decided to make their relationship even more special by getting married.
So Adam has a new grandfather, and Morgan feels loved by his new family. As for the estate, Morgan decided that Adam would get it when he turned 18.
