Maid’s Daughter Helped an Old Man Every Day — Until a General Walked In With 5 Military Officers
Chapter 7
Theme:
Font Size:
24px
"He did." A very small smile touched the general's lips. "He called you the Quartermaster.""The cookie ghost," Emma whispered."Yes, that too. He said you were the only person in that entire hospital who wasn't afraid of him.""He was just sad," Emma said. "And his hands hurt."The general's eyes widened just for a second. He looked at Mary. "Ma'am, your daughter is very observant."The car slowed. They were in a part of the city Emma had never seen. The buildings were tall and made of glass. The car pulled into a private garage beneath one of the tallest.The general led them to a private elevator. It went up fast and silent. The doors opened into an office, but it wasn't an office: it was a room so large it looked like a hotel lobby. It was all dark wood, thick carpets, and leather-bound books. A massive window looked out over the entire city."Please sit," the general said, gesturing to two small antique-looking chairs.Mary and Emma sat. They looked tiny in the enormous room."General Sinclair," Mary said, "please. I'm a simple person. This is... a lot. What is this all about?"The general stood by his massive desk. "Mary—may I call you Mary? My name is Robert. I was Hank's attorney, yes. But I was also his friend. I was his... well, I was his last link to his old life."He took a deep breath."Henry Porter was not a poor man. He was not just some forgotten soldier. He was, in fact, one of the wealthiest men in this country. He built an empire in shipping and logistics after he came home from the war."Mary's jaw dropped. "But... he was in St. Jude's... in a normal room. He... he wore the paper-thin gown.""He hated his family," the general said, the words blunt and cold. "He had a son who gave him two grandchildren. They are... disappointments. They saw him as a walking bank account. They wanted his money, but they didn't want him. They hadn't visited him in five years.So, two years ago, Hank did something dramatic: he liquidated his assets. He put everything into a private trust. He gave his family exactly what his son's prenuptial agreement required—a large sum, but a fraction of the total. And then... he vanished.He checked himself into St. Jude's under his own name, but with no financial history attached. He wanted to see what the world was like with no money. He wanted to die as he was born: just a man. He was," the general said, his voice thick with emotion, "testing the world. He was looking for one person—just one—who would be kind to him with no expectation of reward."He looked at Emma."And then you, little Quartermaster. You brought him a cookie."The general opened a thick, leather-bound folder on his desk."Hank was a soldier. He didn't believe in long, flowery wills. He wrote what he called after-action orders. They are simple, and they are ironclad."He pulled out a single sheet of paper.