To bring my whole family together, you either had to throw a pile of money in front of them or wait for someone to die. Unfortunately, that day, it was both.
I stood at the cemetery, watching as Grandma was lowered deep into the ground.
I held Berta’s leash tightly, and she pulled forward, as if she wanted to go after Grandma.
Berta was Grandma’s dog. She’d bought her when I was little, and, as Grandma often liked to say, Berta was her best friend and almost the only one she could truly trust.
Grandma was a good person, though she was definitely a bit particular.
She had earned a lot of money during her life, but she never gave a penny to her children or grandchildren.
Instead, she paid for everyone’s education. She believed that in life everyone should achieve things on their own, to rise from nothing, just like she once had.
Because of that, neither my mom nor my uncle and aunt, nor their children, spoke to Grandma or even mentioned her until that day.
I looked around at them, studying each face. I knew why they were all there. Money.
They hoped that at least after Grandma’s death, they’d finally get something. But knowing her, it wasn’t going to be that easy.
For the last six months of her life, Grandma had been really sick, and I’d had to move in to take care of her.
Balancing that with my job as a nurse hadn’t been easy, but I managed.
I knew Grandma had been grateful that at least someone stayed with her through those difficult moments.
But she hadn’t made my life easier either. I remembered one day when I’d gotten a huge bill for a car repair.
“I don’t know how I’m supposed to pay for this,” I told her.
“You’re a strong girl. You’ll manage,” Grandma replied.
Of course, I hadn’t expected anything else. Even for me, she didn’t make exceptions. But she always supported me and guided me, and I was thankful for that.
After the funeral, everyone went to Grandma’s house to hear the will. Knowing my family, I had packed all my things beforehand.
I knew they wouldn’t let me stay in her house. While we waited for the lawyer to arrive, nobody said a word, only exchanged cold, hostile glances.
Then Aunt Florence, probably bored, turned to me. “Meredith, remind me, what kind of doctor are you?” she asked.
“I’m a nurse,” I said.
“A nurse?” Uncle Jack repeated, shocked. “You won’t make any money that way. Tom has his own car company, and Alice owns several beauty salons,” he added, pointing to my cousins sitting with their noses proudly in the air.
“I help people. That’s enough for me,” I said.
“I can’t believe I gave birth to her,” Mom muttered.
I talked to her exactly three times a year: on my birthday, her birthday, and Christmas, always by phone.
Suddenly, the doorbell rang. When I realized nobody was going to answer it, I opened the door myself.
Standing there was Mr. Johnson, the lawyer handling Grandma’s will. I led him into the living room, where the whole family sat in silence.
Mr. Johnson stood by the entrance to the living room and politely refused my invitation to sit.
“I won’t take much of your time,” he said calmly. “There isn’t much to discuss.”
“What do you mean, not much to discuss? What about the will?” Mom asked, clearly annoyed.
“She must have left something to someone,” Uncle Jack said impatiently.
“It seems Cassandra didn’t think so,” Mr. Johnson replied dryly.
“What do you mean?” Aunt Florence asked.
“None of you will receive any inheritance from Cassandra,” Mr. Johnson said in a flat voice.
The room filled with angry gasps.
“How is that possible?! We’re her family! Who will get the money and the house then?!” Mom shouted.
“I’m afraid I can’t share that information with you,” Mr. Johnson said. “Now, I must ask all of you to leave the house.”
But nobody moved.
“That old witch!” Uncle Jack shouted. “I knew our mother didn’t care about us, but not even a penny after she died?!”
“Don’t say that,” I said quickly. “Grandma cared about us. She worried about everyone, she just showed it in her own way.”
“Yeah, right,” Mom muttered. “She was a witch while she lived, and she’s still one now.”
At that moment, Berta barked loudly.
“Oh right, and what are we going to do with that dog?” Aunt Florence asked.
“Put her down,” Mom said coldly.
“I agree,” Uncle Jack said. “She’s as old as dirt anyway.”
“You can’t put her down!” I shouted.
“And what are we supposed to do with her? It’s better than throwing her out on the street,” Mom said.
“Grandma loved Berta. Someone has to take her,” I said.
The room filled with bitter laughter.
“If you want her, then take her,” Mom said. “That woman didn’t care about us. Why should we care about her dog?”
“I can’t take her, my lease doesn’t allow pets,” I said quietly.
“Then it’s decided, we’ll put her down,” Uncle Jack said firmly.
“Tom? Alice?” I turned to my cousins, desperate.
Tom waved me off. Alice shook her head. “No way. I’m not bringing a flea-ridden animal into my house,” she said.
I let out a heavy sigh. “Fine. I’ll take Berta,” I said.
Mr. Johnson cleared his throat loudly, reminding everyone of his presence. “I’ll ask you one last time, please leave the house. You no longer have the right to be here,” he said.
“And who does have that right?!” Mom shouted. “We grew up in this house!”
“Please, don’t make me call the police,” Mr. Johnson said.
Everyone grumbled angrily, gathered their belongings, and left one by one. I picked up Berta’s things, threw them into the car, helped her climb into the back seat, and drove back to my apartment.
I was relieved when my landlord agreed to let me keep Berta for a while, though he raised the rent a bit.
I had prepared myself for the possibility that we might end up on the street.
It was obvious Berta missed Grandma as much as I did. Grandma had been the only one who truly supported me in our family.
She had paid for my education, she had always asked about my work, and she had celebrated every patient who recovered. I missed her terribly.
One day after a night shift at the hospital, I heard an unexpected knock at my door.
When I opened it, I froze. My mother was standing there.
“Mom? What are you doing here?” I asked.
“I know you have it!” she shouted.
“What are you talking about?” I asked, surprised.
“I know you inherited everything from Grandma!” my mother screamed.
“All I inherited was Berta,” I said.
“What?” she asked, not understanding.
“Berta, Grandma’s dog,” I said.
“Don’t lie to me!” my mother yelled. “You lived with her for the last six months. She must have left everything to you! You were always her favorite granddaughter,” she said, overplaying that last line.
“Grandma didn’t give me money, just like she didn’t give any to you,” I answered.
“Liar!” my mother screamed. “Where is it? I gave birth to you! You owe me that money!”
“I have nothing!” I cried, tears running down my face.
“We’ll see about that, witch!” my mother spat and left.
I closed the door and sank to the floor, unable to stop crying. Berta climbed into my lap, as if trying to comfort me.
I began to stroke her, and then something on her collar caught my eye. I took Berta’s collar off and turned it over.
An engraved address and the number 153 were on the back. I frowned and put the address into my GPS.
It pointed to the train station, and the number seemed to be a locker. But where would I find the key to that locker?
Then I noticed the tag on Berta’s collar could be opened. I opened it, and a small key fell into my hand.
Without thinking twice, I went straight to the station. I found locker 153 and tried the key. It fit.
When I opened the locker, I found a folder marked “For Meredith”. Inside were a note written in Grandma’s handwriting and some documents. I pulled out the note and began to read.
I decided to leave everything I had earned in my life to a person with a pure heart who would not exploit others.
Everything I owned would go to the person who agreed to care for Berta. And I am more than certain that person would be you, Meredith.
You are the only one left in our family who still shows decency, and you deserve the best. With love, your Grandma.
After I read the note, I took the documents from the folder and realized it was Grandma’s will. I could hardly believe it was real.
“Aha! I knew you were hiding something!” I heard my mother’s voice behind me.
Startled, I turned. “I swear, I didn’t know anything,” I said.
“So she really decided to leave everything to Meredith,” Uncle Jack said, as if he had appeared from nowhere.
“What are you doing here?!” my mother shouted.
“You didn’t think you were the clever one, sister. I hired a private detective to follow Meredith,” Uncle Jack said. “Now, Meredith, be a sweetie and hand over the will.”
“No! You’re my daughter! Give it to me!” my mother screamed.
“Meredith will give it to no one,” Mr. Johnson said firmly.
“And where do you come from?!” Uncle Jack barked.
“The sensor on my phone alerted me when the locker opened,” Mr. Johnson explained. “Since I am responsible for executing Cassandra’s will and I suspected something like this might happen, I came as soon as I could.”
“I don’t care! I’m Meredith’s mother! I have rights to the will!” my mother insisted.
“Cassandra’s estate goes to whoever took on the responsibility of caring for Berta. That was not you,” Mr. Johnson said calmly.
“I’ll take that flea-ridden dog if I must!” Uncle Jack shouted.
“It’s too late. Meredith took Berta, not knowing that she would receive anything for it. That was the main condition of the will. And if any of you try to interfere, you will have to deal with me and the police,” Mr. Johnson said.
I stood there holding the folder, my hands shaking, unable to say anything.
“Come on, Meredith, we have a lot to discuss,” Mr. Johnson said, and we walked to my car.
“Why did she do this? Why make everyone fight?” I asked Mr. Johnson as we sat in the car.
“She wanted her money to go to a good person who would spend it on good deeds,” Mr. Johnson said.
I nodded. “Then I will give the larger portion to the hospital,” I said.
“It’s yours now. You can do whatever you want with it,” Mr. Johnson replied.
In that moment, I missed Grandma more than ever, but I knew I would try not to let her down.
