in his golf cart and made sure he was safe in the shallow end. While I was occupied with Mr. Oliver, I happened to glance over to the back door, and I saw Sue take food bags into the house and hide them in the pantry. She packed up all the groceries she wanted for her family and carted the bags to her house. This was being observed by Darna. All this food was paid for with Mr. Oliver’s credit card. I thought, Here we go again!
Mr. Oliver belonged to a singing society that met once a week. He really enjoyed this get-together for singing comradery. He invited this group and his friends once a year in the spring to a songfest in his home. Sue took this opportunity to invite her friends without asking Mr. Oliver. A good bit of food and spirits were served. Lots of booze magically disappeared. Guess where? Mr. Oliver’s family did attend some of the affairs but never checked on what was going on behind the scenes.
Mr. Oliver had an extensive collection of cars. These were exotic foreign cars that I maintained. One day, when I was off, eight of these autos disappeared. The next day, I asked Mr. Oliver what happened to his cars. He said a friend of Sue’s bought the cars and that he would get big fat check! These were beautiful Jaguars, Maseratis, and Porsches. I could tell they were taken out on a “flatbed” because some were locked, and there were skid marks on the floor from the winch attached to the truck. I informed Jack, his son. He said he would look into it, but he never did. By the way, there was no “fat check!” Again, the family was told, but nothing was done.
What Sue was planning to do eventually was to devise a way to change his will and hopefully inherit the estate for herself and her family. She was taking advantage of his onset of dementia. Within a few weeks, Mr. Oliver’s accountant and lawyer were visiting, and Sue enticed them into changing his last will and testament over to her. She promised them a tidy sum. These people did not care about Mr. Oliver and treated him badly! These meetings went on for three or more times. Darna, the care giver, couldn’t help noticing what was happening. She notified the family. They just laughed about it and said they wouldn’t do that; but yes, that’s just what they were doing! The kids recommended calling the “old folks foundation!” Sue talked her way out of that somehow.
Finally, after a month or so, the son thought that she might get away with this scheming. He came over and told her to get off the property and stay off! Finally, I couldn’t believe it. She did eventually stayed away!
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
