Not on record
Story of the Day: An elderly man visits his daughter on her 80th birthday, but she forbids him from entering her house.
When Richard visits his daughter at her eightieth birthday party, she tearfully opens the door and lets him in. Richard sees she’s right as he looks out her front windows.
Richard nervously tapped his fingers on the steering wheel as he drove. Deidre hasn’t driven to Thanksgiving since his wife’s funeral four years ago. Calls were now made only once a week.
“Dad? Why did you come here?” she asked, tears streaming down her cheeks.
“I came to celebrate my birthday with you… it’s a big eight!” Richard replied, but the excitement in his voice soon faded. “Honey, what’s going on? What’s making you cry?”
“It’s okay, everything’s okay,” Deidre said, wiping away her tears with a quick shrug. “This isn’t a good time and I just…I wasn’t expecting you. Sorry, Dad, but I have to focus. Look, I’ll call you when I’m at work. Okay, let’s go to dinner, I’m sorry.
Deidre closed the door, leaving Richard heartbroken and confused.
A major problem has occurred. Has something happened to Deidre?
Richard stayed inside but backed away from the front door. He slipped outside to look in the windows, avoiding the low flowering bushes that lined the sidewalk.
Deidre and two burly men were in the living room.
“Who was that?” one of them asked in a sharp voice.
“No one,” Deidre shook her head. “Just the neighbor’s kid…pulled a prank on the doorbell and ran away.”
“Back to work then,” remarked the other man. “Deidre, you are currently six months behind on your loan payments. Mr. Marco is getting more and more irritated.”
“All I need is more time. “No doubt there will be more business in the winter,” she pleaded.
“Time is one thing you don’t have, honey,” the man remarked, pulling out a gun. “People who owe Mr. Marc money don’t have a very long life expectancy and end up feeding the fish in the lake…” He pointed the gun at her.
Richard was paralyzed with fear. But the man turned around in a flash, tucked his revolver into the waistband of his pants,s and walked back in disgust.
“Look around this dump and see if there’s anything of value we can take to Mr. Marc, Danny,” the man said. “She’s a businesswoman, so there must be a computer or some equipment here.
“But I need those things!” she was crying. “I can’t make money without my gear!”
The man tapped the butt of the gun. “Boo-Hoo.” I might change my mind, you know. Stop being ungrateful now.
After the men ransacked her house, they left Deidre sobbing on the ground.
Deidre was doing so well that Richard was unable to understand anything.
She told him anyway.
But suddenly Richard felt that something was wrong. Deidre needed him.
The men loaded several appliances from Deidre’s residence into their vehicle.
Eventually, they took off and Richard followed.
The men stopped at a two-story brick building in the center of town that looked like a tavern. The door was closed but not locked. Richard walked in without being stopped by the staff.
Several other muscular men sat around the large table the men moved to.
One of them got up and walked over to him.
He grunted, “The club is closed,” he said. “Come back later.
“I’ve come to discuss Deidre’s debt,” Richard said.
“O?” The man at the head of the table stood up and looked at Richard. He looked like a gentleman except for a large scar above his left eye. Richard guessed it was Mr. Marco.
“How much does he owe you?” asked Richard.
Mr. Marco smiled. “You know, Good Samaritan? Deidre borrowed $80,000 from me for her business. She never made the monthly profits to pay me back.”
“I have about $20,000 saved up. Surprised that Deidre had taken on such a huge debt, Richard gasped in horror.
The amount they owe us is much higher.
Mr. Marco took a deep breath. “But there is something you can do to make up the difference.
That didn’t sound good, but Richard knew he had to do everything he could to keep his daughter out of the trouble she had gotten herself into.
“What do you want me to do?” he asked.
Mr. Marco smiled and motioned Richard to the table.
“My partner and I recently started a small business importing cars into Canada, but due to some delayed paperwork, we’re having trouble getting the ‘goods’ across the border. A kind, unsuspecting grandfather like you should have no trouble getting one of our cars across the border.”
Richard had no choice but to nod.
Later that night, he stopped at a gas station near the border town to use the toilet next to the patrol.
“Jesus!” he exclaimed as the German Shepherd in the back of the police cruiser began barking at him and clawing at the window.
It’s not appropriate for service dogs to bark at strangers until… Well, dude.
He quickly got into the Valiant and started backing up, driving the police dog crazy.
Two policemen looked him over, ran out of the gas station store e and told him to stop. Richard stopped the annoying voice instructions by putting the GPS app in his pocket.
As he weaved through traffic, he pushed the Valiant to its limits, leaving behind a wake of furious drivers narrowly avoiding collisions. Sirens started blaring behind him.
Richard soon came upon a tiny, unmarked dirt road that led into the woods.
He turned sharply and ran off the road into the woods. No matter how difficult it was to navigate the muddy terrain, Richard persisted.
He chose the slanting narrow path.
Then he saw a slight rise and immediately regretted it.
The car, perched on a small slope above a large river, was now stuck in an unusual position. The tires were spinning in an attempt to lose traction as Richard tried to turn.
In fact, the vehicle skidded in the direction of the water.
“No!” Despite his best efforts, Richard was unable to engage the parking brake.
A wave of dark water swept over the hood as the body of the car hit the river with a loud splash. Richard opened the door in a last-ditch effort to escape the sinking car.
The pressure of the water caused the car door to close against Richard’s feet.
Richard spluttered in panic as the river filled the interior.
As the water gradually rose to his face, he tilted his head back, took one last breath, and pulled himself under.
Richard pushed through the opening and pushed himself up.
He took a deep breath and began to swim to the river bank.
When he reached the shore, Richard realized how close he was to death.
Fortunately, he was still alive. He still needed to do something with the eighty thousand dollars. To get home, Richard decided to hitchhike.
Telling the bank teller, “I have to foreclose on my house,” “And I need cash in my bank account fast.”
Richard waited exasperatedly for the bank employee to complete the paperwork. The sound of Deidre’s call startled him.
“Some guys from the local gang came to ask how you are, Dad. What’s up?”
Let them know I’ll be there shortly. I arranged for your loan to be processed. Now is not the time to talk about it, Deidre, and I don’t understand why you didn’t reach out to me first.”
When Richard hung up, he signed the papers. As much as he didn’t want to, giving up the house where he and his family had made memories was the only way he could help Deidre.
After a few hours, he parked his rental car in the club’s parking lot and walked to the door.
“Dad, hold on!” Richard looked back as Deidre lunged at him.
“I won’t let you face those thugs alone,” she replied. “I still don’t understand how you found out about this mess or how you got the money to pay it off, but the least I can do is stand by you while you save me.
Richard could see the determination in Deidre’s eyes and knew he couldn’t convince her to leave. Once inside the club, the boys escorted him and Deidre to a table.
Richard placed a bag on the table containing the money he had collected after closing the mortgage.
“This is the $80,000 Deidre owes you, plus another $15,000 to pay off your vehicle. The car ended up in the river after I got into trouble.”
Mr. Marco pursed his mouth in anger and slammed his hand on the table.
Will you offer me a measly fifteen thousand dollars? When you come in here and say you sunk a $100,000 shipment that was hidden in that car? What you owe me at this point is much more than that.’
The gangster grabbed the bag and threw it at one of his thugs.
“You know, Deidre, I really believed you, but sometimes in business,, you have to know when to cut your losses.
He removed the revolver from his jacket and pointed it directly at Deidre’s forehead.
Deidre was dragged behind Richard. “Please, no! I’m the only one to blame! Don’t discipline her.”
“Well, you said well. After the thug shrugged, Richard found himself looking down the barrel of the gun.
Suddenly, they heard police sirens outside.
Mr. Marco turned and ran backward the room shook with a loud gunshot.
Father and daughter were crawling under the table. The club was in ruins, and when Richard saw his daughter’s terrified eyes, he realized he had to do whatever it took to save her.
Richard and Deidre overturned the table and took positions in the corner.
They hid there until the police arrived to remove them. Fortunately, Mr. Marco was found.
“Are you sure you don’t have any heart-related health problems?” Richard shook his head at the paramedics in the ambulance.
Richard gulped as he saw the police detective walking towards the ambulance.
“Sir, what were you and your daughter doing at this club today?” the investigator asked angrily.
Richard explained to them the terms of Deidre’s loan and how he would return her to the club that day. Hopefully, the car he sank in the river won’t need to be recovered.
The investigator gave Deidre a quick glance. “We wouldn’t have come to your aid if we hadn’t discovered a car loaded with illegal goods in the river. Miss, you shouldn’t be borrowing money from such shady individuals.”
“Car in the river?” “I’m nervous,” Richard asked.
“It was registered to Mr. Marco’s cousin, which was exactly the lead we needed to bring this gang down,” the officer said.
Richard sighed peacefully. He was safe.
The police released him and Deidre after the statement.
Dad, I’m really sorry for you. When Deidre saw Richard’s car pull up in front of them, she apologized and said, “I dragged you into all this mess.”
Her eyes filled with tears. “I wasn’t sure how to inform you. How can anyone tell their father that he has failed miserably?”
“You are not a failure!” Deidre felt Richard’s hands on her shoulders. “Deidre, you tried, even though the idea of your company didn’t turn out the way you hoped. I wish you were comfortable enough to share the true nature of your existence with me. He continued, “Damn, I just wish I could feel that you could be as close to me as you were to your mother.’
Deidre started to cry and Richard wrapped his arms around her shoulders. “It’s okay baby,” he murmured soothingly. “Everything will be fine.
As Richard held his daughter Deidre in his arms, he realized how much he missed their bond. Years of distance and secrets had created a rift between them, but in this moment he saw the depth of her struggles and the weight of her decisions. Despite the confusion, Richard was relieved that they had escaped the dangerous situation unscathed. The police intervened just in time and Mr. Marco’s criminal empire was on the verge of collapse. Deidre’s debt, though still a significant burden, would be resolved and she would finally be able to lean on her father for support.
Deidre tearfully admitted how difficult it was for her to ask for help and how ashamed she was. However, Richard assured her that failure is a part of life and that they would face it together. He was always there for her, even when she didn’t feel comfortable reaching out. The years of emotional distance now seemed insignificant compared to the love and commitment they shared as father and daughter.
Looking back at everything that had happened—Deidre’s failed business, the dangerous men she’d gotten involved with, and the risks Richard had taken to help her—he knew the road ahead wouldn’t be easy. But he felt a renewed sense of purpose. Regardless of the problems, she will be there for her daughter, guiding her through the next steps and helping her rebuild her life, one step at a time.
Richard and Deidre emerged from the chaos together, stronger and more united than ever. Their bond, tested by time and hardship, was renewed. As they drove home, the weight of the past began to lift and Richard felt a glimmer of hope for the future.