At night, woman heard a knock on the door. Crying boy stood on doorstep, begging to save his father

Marilyn was the kind of girl who dreamed of marriage almost from kindergarten her mother always told her that the main thing in life was to get married and have children that this was the key to a woman's happiness despite growing up in an unhappy family with constant quarrels Marilyn firmly believed in these words after the death of her mother maolin's life in her own home became completely unbearable when her father remarried the girl dreamed of getting married as soon as possible and escaping from her cruel stepmother to start a new happy life during her years

of studying at Medical School Marilyn met John all the girls were in love with the tall brown eyed guy who could play the guitar and was considered the life of the party at first he didn't pay attention to Marilyn who dressed and behaved much more modestly than her fellow students however in their last year of study he was able to see the charm of the quiet girl that their friends had called a gray Mouse John was a Commuter so after graduation he returned to his hometown he did not work in his specialty despite the dreams

of his parents and got a job at a construction site where the pay was higher and the responsibility was less he and Marilyn began a stormy long distance romance Marilyn visited John every weekend she met his family an eagerly awaited a marriage proposal however John was in no hurry to propose but his parents liked the potential daughter-in-law so they pushed him to a responsible decision soon they played a wedding and got married finally Marilyn's Dream came true she no longer had to endure the rude attitude of her stepmother and the indifference of her father now

she had her own family and a cozy Nest a rented studio apartment where she was a mistress and didn't have to adjust to anyone except for her husband of course Marilyn was happy to take care of him create comfort and cook delicious meals however she didn't notice John's indifferent and detached attitude until she became pregnant it seemed that he wasn't delighted with the news of the upcoming Edition to their family instead he constantly reproached Marilyn for mismanagement and arranged scandals the guy quickly became tired of family life and when their daughter Amy was born things

went downhill fast always tired exhausted wife and endlessly crying child John became increasingly distant running away to his parents house more and more often to make matters worse his parents who had recently loved their daughter-in-law as their own daughter took John's side they were not interested in their granddaughter and did not try to reason with their son despite the difficult times Marilyn refused to give up hope she tried to make the best of things and hoped that her husband would eventually come around however things only got worse leaving her alone to face the challenges of

motherhood at first John stopped bringing money into the house it turned out that he had gotten into gambling and sports betting some time ago at first he was lucky but then he lost big not only did he lose his salary but also his parents pension which he almost entirely gave away to repay his debt it was then that John met a wealthy woman who was 20 years older than him Caitlyn was on the management team of the construction company where John worked her children had already grown up and lived separately and she had divorced her

husband several years ago Caitlyn had already missed out on romantic Adventures so when she noticed the young Builders flirtation she thought why not that's how the two became romantically involved Caitlyn helped Jon pay off all his debts gave him expensive gifts and took him to expensive restaurants the guy did not hide his relationship from his wife and was not ashamed of cheating at all see how generous women can be they don't even ask for anything and on the contrary they give he reproached his young wife Marilyn could not withstand such humiliation and filed for divorce

John did not object he no longer lived with his wife and was not interested in his child he did not even come to get his things why would he need those old cheap pants and t-shirts when his New Lover now dressed him in expensive brand name clothes while John was enjoying a Carefree life his former family was barely making ends meet his parents turned their backs on both Marilyn and their granddaughter they did not provide any support and simply did not want to help a girl with a child so she could go to work and

one child's allowance was not enough to live on even in a rented apartment the rent was paid a month in advance but what to do next Marilyn realized that she had no other choice but to return to her father's house from which she had left with such joy and such hopes several years ago that's okay I'll return to my hometown and start my life with a clean paper I now have someone to try for Marilyn reasoned packing her things she tried to make herself believe that everything would be fine that her father would be pleased

to see his little granddaughter however it was still somehow disturbing unfortunately the inner voice did not deceive the girl when she arrived at her parents house she was not received very cordially seeing Marilyn with a baby in her arms on the doorstep her father could not utter a word of surprise her stepmother immediately made a displeased Grimace and instead of saying hello she asked how long will you stay with us hearing that Marilyn had come home for good the woman flushed with anger she tried to keep her composure but the whole spectrum of emotions was

evident on her face she nervously walked around the apartment defiantly slamming doors and drawers and her husband ran after her on tiptoe trying to calm and soothe the situation Marilyn who was tired from the road did not care much about her Stepmother's feelings she wanted to settle down feed her little girl and at least take a nap but when she opened the door to her room she saw only bare walls and mountains of construction materials her comfortable bed large closet fashionable desk and cute pink curtains were all thrown out the room after her stepmother started

the repairs and decided to start with Marilyn's room apparently she wanted to erase all the memories of her stepdaughter and cut off her way home forever Marilyn had to live in an empty room on an air mattress it was out of the question to let her stepdaughter with a baby sleep on a soft bed in the bedroom or at least in the living room the stepmother trying to show her displeasure didn't even feed her stepdaughter the father in response to his daughter's reproachful look only spread his hands Marilyn was too tired to make the situation

clear and why should she being the heiress of her late mother Marilyn was a co-owner of the apartment and had every right to be there so she went to the kitchen made tea took a shower and fell asleep with the baby at night the girl woke up and went to the kitchen for a drink of water but froze at the door when she overheard an interesting conversation why didn't you tell me your daughter was coming why didn't you talk her out of it resented the stepmother I didn't know anything wouldn't I have told you Marilyn's

father Justified himself keep in mind that I'm not going to squat in the same apartment with her the baby will cry endlessly and I'll have a headache the woman went on well let her live for a while and then I'll talk to her the man tried to smooth things over for a while no you'll talk to her tomorrow we have after all begun the repairs the woman declared pounding her fist on the table seeing through the crack that her stepmother was heading for the door Marilyn slipped back into her room trying to remain unnoticed the

fatigue lifted like a hand and she couldn't sleep anymore until the morning Marilyn thought about how her father would behave in her heart she hoped that he would stand up for her and that he would not let his daughter and granddaughter go anywhere but she realized that this weak-willed man would not dare cross his authoritarian wife I will stand up for my rights Marilyn reasoned to herself early in the morning there was a timid knock on the door after which Marilyn's father entered the room without wishing his daughter a good morning without asking how she

slept the man began to mumble something inarticulately you perhaps overreacted when you left your husband things happen in life people cheat on each other split up and then move back together you'd better come back too you can't leave a child without a father the man seemed to want to say something else but didn't have the time because at that time his wife came into the room she had apparently been standing outside the door the whole time listening to the conversation between father and daughter realizing that her husband was of little use in the matter she

decided to set the record straight herself I haven't heard a word from you in years you never remembered your father and me and now you show up and disturb our peace no you're an adult you can live on your own we have our own rules and there's no place for you and your child here blurted out the stepmother clearly pleased with her eloquence a few hours ago Marilyn was ready to fight desperately for her place in her parents apartment and even planned what she would say to the mean stepmother but now looking at this greedy

woman and at her father who was hiding behind her back she forgot all the words the girl suddenly became so disgusted that she didn't want to stay under the same roof with these people for even a moment without saying anything Marilyn packed her things and left she threw her father a reproachful look but the man only shamefully averted his eyes of course Marilyn would not leave her apartment if she had nowhere else to go Pride was Pride but she wasn't stupid enough to wander the streets with an infant she knew that there was one place

in this world where she would definitely be welcomed with open arms and never pointed at the door a few hours later the girl was already riding on an electric train that took her to the village where her grandmother lived when Marilyn was a little girl her mother often took her to her grandmother's house the family lived poorly and could not afford trips to Resorts so the girl spent her summer and went to vacations in the village Mrs Spruill visited the city but not often because she disliked her son-in-law after her daughter's death she did not

even set foot in her house believing that it was her good for nothing son-in-law who had brought her daughter to a fatal illness during Marilyn's years as a student she became preoccupied with her own Affairs and worries leaving her little time to visit her grandmother in the village they only spoke occasionally on the phone and although Mrs spurril kept calling for a visit Marilyn never came now in a desperate situation Marilyn realized that her only option was to go to her elderly relative whom she had ignored for so long due to her youthful selfishness when

she arrived at her grandmother's house she hesitated to enter the yard at first she observed her grandmother sweeping the cobbled paths in the garden and concluded that she had not changed at all in the few years since they had not seen each other despite being almost 80 the old woman was still very energetic and active and looked younger than her age aim is crying interrupted Marilyn's thoughts the sudden noise brought the elderly woman's attention to the gate oh who's crying she exclaimed shielding her eyes from the Sun and squinting to get a better look Mrs

Burrell recognized Marilyn and rushed to hug her then escorted her inside the house seeing her granddaughter with the child in her arms and a suitcase the woman who had seen a lot in her long life understood everything without further questioning the elderly lady was thrilled to have such dear guests she was upset for her granddaughter who at such a young age had suffered betrayal from her husband become a single mother and was rejected by her own father however Mrs spurril was still glad that Marilyn was by her side even if it was under such sad

circumstances after the death of her daughter Mrs spurle had barely seen her granddaughter and was worried that the absentee father would not be able to properly care for the girl at least now Marilyn would be supervised and surrounded by care furthermore Mrs spurril was very lonely in the big village house now she would have much more fun with her granddaughter and great-granddaughter and receive help with household chores it becomes more and more difficult to care for the house garden vegetable garden and even the poultry as one grows old but a strong young woman could easily

cope let her study thought Mrs Spiral anyway after my death all this will go to her in her grandmother's house all of Marilyn's worries dissipated and her despondency disappeared the care and support of her elderly grandmother were beneficial and in a couple of days Marilyn came to her senses she seemed so cheerful and happy as if all the troubles from the past months had never happened the baby seemed to benefit from the Fresh Air and her great grandmother's care she slept well was cheerful and active and began to gain weight quickly Marilyn adjusted to Rural

Life and her grandmother taught her how to grow fruits and vegetables and take care of chickens things went very well and the grandmother and her granddaughter even started selling their crops at the local market Marilyn made friends among the villagers and soon she no longer felt lonely life went on as usual and it seemed to Marilyn that this happiness would last forever however five years later grieving came to their home one day Mrs spurril caught a severe pneumonia that led to serious complications of the heart unfortunately the woman was never able to fully recover once

cheerful and Lively the pensioner now rarely left the house and over time she weakened completely and practically stopped getting out of bed feeling that these were her last days Mrs spurl decided it was time to have a serious talk with her granddaughter lately the elderly woman went to bed early and she did not even have the strength to watch her favorite TV series but this evening she waited until Marilyn finished her chores and put Amy to bed and then called her into her room the woman understood what her grandmother wanted to discuss and was very

upset at first Marilyn did not even pay attention to the fact that the woman held a beautiful carved box in her hands Mrs sporel started a sad conversation that brought tears to Marilyn's eyes at first the elderly woman gave her granddaughter instructions for the future urging her not to repeat old mistakes then she talked about inheritance it turned out that Mrs spurl had visited a notary long ago even before her illness and had bequeathed her house and modest savings to Marilyn but the most precious thing was in the box that the elderly woman handed to

her granddaughter with a trembling hand when Marilyn opened the box she found an incredibly beautiful antique gold ring in the shape of a flower with a huge Ruby in the center my great-grandmother received this ring as a gift from her husband they lived a long happy life together and since then it has been considered the Talisman of our family from generation to generation the ring has been passed down the female line bringing good luck and happiness to everyone said Mrs Spiral why didn't you give it to my mother when she got married Marilyn asked looking

at the jewelry and surprise in admiration because she chose the wrong man my foolish daughter wouldn't have been able to keep the ring from her foolish husband and he would certainly have sold it Mrs spoile explained by morning Mrs spurl had passed away and her death shook Marilyn deeply despite the support of her neighbors and friends she felt quite lonely to avoid going crazy in an empty house Marilyn decided to get a job she had a medical degree and the local paramedic had left for the city a few months ago the Specialists could not be

lured to the Village by any means and the villagers were left without medical care and had to travel to the district Center thanks to Marilyn the local medical office was up and running again albeit only a few times a week however the salary of a rural paramedic was meager and it was difficult to live on it for two people with a daughter so Marilyn continued to look after her grandmother's garden and sell fruits vegetables and eggs at the market the income was modest but it was enough for Marilyn and her daughter one day while on

business in the city Marilyn happened to be near a Jewelery Workshop she became curious whether her grandmother's ring was truly valuable or just a pretty trinket the Jeweler examined it carefully and quoted an amount that dumbfounded Marilyn if she sold the ring the money would be more than enough to move to the city and pay the first installment on a mortgage and considering that the ring had truly historical value a collector would pay a fortune for it despite the Temptation Marilyn decided not to sell the ring she did not want to betray the memory of

her grandmother however she did not want such a beautiful and significant item to gather Dust In A Box so she decided to wear the ring it reminded her of Mrs spurl and gave her hope for a happy future six months passed and Marilyn inherited her grandmother's estate becoming the full Mistress of her house she worked at the nurse's station and household chores helped her recover from her loss life seemed to be getting better slowly however one cool fall evening an Uninvited Guest shattered Marilyn's piece someone knocked insistently on the door as the only doctor in

the Village People often came to her for help Marilyn thought it was probably a sick neighbor but she was in for a very unpleasant surprise John stood on the doorstep but Marilyn did not immediately recognize him her ex-husband had not changed for the better during their years of separation he had become gaunt grown a beer belly and was bald it was obvious from his face that he liked to drink which was probably why John looked as if he was going to retire the next day there was no shame or embarrassment in his gaze as if

there had been no betrayal it was as if five years had not passed Marilyn was frozen at first from Surprise and then all her hidden anger and resentment boiled up in her soul she wanted to slam the door in his face but John pulled on the doorknob and addressed his ex-wife in a pleading tone we need to talk I won't take much of your time feeling pity for him Marilyn escorted him into the kitchen she thought it's a good thing Amy stayed the night at her girlfriends and didn't have to see her unscrupulous father but

John did not even take an interest in his daughter he did not ask how Marilyn lived after his departure or how she coped with difficulties from the threshold the man began to tell the sad story of his life at first the romance with his new lover Caitlyn developed perfectly John even thought of making a wealthy lady a proposal to established a legalized involvement in her wealth but this was clearly not part of Caitlyn's plans the businesswoman quickly tired of the young lover who began to behave too intrusively she realized that John's hypertrophied Romanticism was not

caused by deep feelings but by Bernal greed in addition she had another man on the horizon a grown-up solid businessman she decided to end this fleeting romance John of course did not want to put up with the fact that the Goldfish was slipping out of his hands and began to literally pursue Caitlyn in response she fired her ex-boyfriend and even filed a police report accusing him of harassment left at a broken trough John returned to his parents apartment and lived off their pensions drinking and gambling again he got into debt forcing his parents to sell

their summer house and an old car to pay for it but this situation did not sober up the negligent sun or make him take up his mind John's mother decided that her son should be married so that some woman could control him but who would want him like that drunk and unemployed that's when the woman remembered her former daughter-in-law she must have a hard life alone with a child she'll come right back to you if you just beckon her John's mother told her son John decided that his mother's reasoning was not unreasonable and went searching

for his former wife and soon he learned that Marilyn had most likely gone to her grandmother's Village I'm thinking that it was in vain that we separated then well as they say in a couple it's always both to blame personally I don't hold a grudge against you and I think we can start again and you've got a big house we'll be comfortable John reasoned get out Marilyn shouted getting up from the table and pointing her finger at the door I'll be off shortly only if you don't relax too much because I'll definitely come back again

know that this topic is not closed John said with a smirk glancing at the ring temptingly glittering on the finger that was still pointing at the door at that moment Marilyn was so angry and annoyed that she didn't notice John's eyes glittering at the sight of the ring she shoved her husband to the back and slammed the door behind him hoping his I'll be back was just an empty threat but no matter how she tried to reassure herself she was still very uneasy at heart her inner voice told her that since Jon had reappeared in

her life she should not expect anything good from him two weeks passed throughout this time Marilyn flinched at every knock on the door even when someone simply passed by the gate and the neighbor's vicious dog began barking the girl's Soul was filled with anxiety and apprehension on this particular rainy day Marilyn was especially uneasy The Village had been hit by a terrible downpour with thunder and lightning which seemed to intensify her worries suddenly there was a knock at the door at first it was tentative but then it became very insistent it could have been any

of the neighbors but Marilyn was somehow sure that it was John and decided not to open the door however The Uninvited Guest did not leave and continued to knock harder and harder the belligerent woman grabbed the vacuum cleaner stick and opened the door sharply swinging her weapon threateningly but upon seeing who was at the threshold she shrieked and dropped it on the floor on the doorstep stood a boy of about seven years old drenched and frightened he was crying and mumbling something unrelated asking for help but Marilyn could not make out anything she took the

child into the house and asked him to speak again clearly explaining what had happened to him it turned out that the boy's name was Alan he and his father were returning from a fishing trip and decided to take a shortcut by driving through the village when suddenly The Man became ill fortunately he was able to stop the car and avoid an accident the child ran to the nearest house for help which happened to be Marilyn's house from the symptoms described by the boy the woman realized that the man had an asthma attack and that the

inhaler was not in its usual place in the glove compartment luckily Marilyn had first aid supplies for All Occasions in her first aid kit she grabbed her suitcase and an umbrella and ran after the boy to the car where the man was suffering from an attack of Suffocation help arrived just in time a couple more minutes and the man would not have been saved in such a state and even in such heavy rain it was impossible to drive and continue on the road especially with a child so Marilyn invited Alan and his father to spend

the night at her place it was not at all scary to let a stranger into the house as for some reason he immediately inspired trust a man with Noble features and intelligent eyes could not turn out to be a crook hot tea and a delicious dinner quickly brought the man to his senses Alan and Amy immediately found a Common Language while the children played in the living room the adults were talking it turned out that the man's name was Daniel he was raising his son himself and his story was very similar to Marilyn's Daniel had

also faced betrayal which for a long time discouraged him from trusting women and starting any kind of relationship with them Daniel and his wife Karen had been in love since high school they could not imagine life without each other so after graduation they decided to enter the same College actually Daniel dreamed of studying in another city at the University but his beloved studied too poorly to enter the university therefore the guy sacrificed his Ambitions and stayed in his native City next to Karen after finishing their studies the young couple immediately got married the money they

earned was only enough to rent a tiny apartment on the outskirts of the city but even that was enough for the newlyweds to be happy soon after the couple had a son named Alan it would seem that the happiness of the family should have increased but it turned out to be the opposite after the birth of the child Karen became very irritable she suddenly became cramped in a tiny apartment and began to reproach her husband for a lack of money Daniel did not take offense at his wife and took her approaches as a guide to

action he got a second job thanks to which the family was able to move into a larger apartment closer to the city center within a few months however Karen was still dissatisfied she constantly complained that she was tired of sitting at home and that her husband did not help at all with the child Daniel was tormented by his conscience he would be happy to spend more time with his son but he worked from morning until night and came home only for a few hours to sleep and go to work again so he asked his mother

to visit Karen more often during weekends the Mother-in-law would babysit her grandchild so that her daughter-in-law could go out and meet her friends and one day at her cousin's birthday party Karen met a handsome and wealthy man who owned a beauty salon where the birthday girl worked as an administrator Karen was Smitten by his charm and gallantry thinking that such men only existed in movies to her Delight the man seemed to show interest in her too thus began a dizzying romance Karen completely lost her head almost every day she caught her mother-in-law for help just

to get out of the house and see her lover for a couple of hours the man took her to expensive restaurants and gave her luxurious gifts with each such gesture Karen's love for her lover flared up all the stronger and the naive Daniel did not suspect anything of course his mother dropped some hints she noticed Karen's frequent departures and the sudden appearance of expensive things however Daniel did not believe in his mother's speculations and even took offense however soon he had to face a harsh reality one beautiful spring day Daniel finished work early and hurried

home with a bouquet of roses on the way he stopped at a store and bought Karen's favorite cake to please his wife he practically ran home looking forward to a pleasant family evening however he did not find his wife at home instead his mother opened the door and informed him that she had looked after Alan all day and that Karen still had not returned home or answered her phone calls I don't know what to think said the worried woman even though she did not have a special love for her daughter-in-law she was still very concerned

about her Daniel was also worried and tried to call his wife but his attempts were unsuccessful Karen's sister and close friend also knew nothing about her whereabouts suddenly he noticed a corner of a notebook sheet sticking out from under the sofa cushion it turned out to be a note from Karen informing him unpretentiously that she had fallen in love with another man and would now live with him she entrusted her son to her husband as the New Lover did not want children the short letter written in neat calligraphic handwriting ended with I hope that you

will forgive me and will not forbid me to see the child Daniel angrily tore up the note after reading it and then sat down on the sofa crying bitterly and childishly hiding his face in the palms of his hands his mother didn't even have to read the note to understand what had happened she didn't try to comfort him but only sighed heavily and shook her head Daniel was so offended and angry and filed for divorce the very next day he firmly decided that he would not allow his Unfaithful wife to see their son and traumatize

his psyche he repeatedly thought about what he would say to Karen when she asked to meet with their son but it never came in handy for six months she never once remembered the baby enjoying a beautiful life and enthusiastically spending the money of her rich lover however her happiness did not last long Karen knew that her new chosen one was a well-known womanizer throughout the city but being a naive woman brought up on melodramas and cheap tabloid novels she sincerely believed that he really loved her and would certainly marry her unfortunately this was not the

man's plan when Karen bored him he simply kicked her out the door and moved on to a new relationship all her dreams were shattered just a few days ago she was putting on a designer dress to have dinner at the best restaurant in town and now she was on the street with only one suitcase and without a penny to her name her lover had taken away all the expensive gifts jewelry fur coat and a smartphone probably for his next girlfriend Karen did not have anything to sell to live with anything for the first time she

thought that it was a good thing that she had such a wonderful loving husband and that he most likely missed her and forgave her but no one opened the door when she went to her old apartment from the neighbors she learned that Daniel had moved out a long time ago and now lives with his mother she went to his mother's place but even there she was met with failure the former mother-in-law did not even let her on the doorstep and she did not show her child Karen sat on a bench near the entrance until late

in the evening waiting for Daniel to come home from work when she saw her ex-husband she immediately jumped up and rushed to him with hugs how dare you show up here and hug me go back where you came from Daniel exclaimed pulling away from Karen please forgive me I made a huge mistake but now everything will be different and we'll live happily ever after me you and Alan Karen emotionally pleaded whether it was from stress or whether Karen really did not understand what she had done she was sincerely confident that her husband would forgive her

and everything would be as before however Daniel was not willing to forgive her he looked at her with a scornful gaze making it clear that there would be no second chance he quickly came to the entrance and then turned around and said don't you dare come here again only then did Karen realize the tragedy of the situation she lost her beautiful rich life with a lover and finally lost her family she had nothing left but to return to her parents house however they were not pleased with her and couldn't forgive her for her disgrace though

they didn't throw her out they didn't show much Hospitality either the next day Karen's mother called her into the kitchen for a serious conversation don't think you can freeload off us like you did with your naive husband that won't work with us and you won't get our pension find a job well what am I going to do I never worked after marriage replied Karen confused you're no use at all well I'll talk to my neighbor maybe she'll help you find a job as a letter carrier or Courier working days became a hard test for Karen

who had never worked a day in her life and had no plans to do so the size of her salary came as a shock to Karen how am I supposed to live on this money she thought every day the woman became more and more aware that her life probably wouldn't get any better the thought of spending the rest of her life in her parents apartment living from paycheck to paycheck led her to Despair and she turned to alcohol At first she drank only a bottle of beer after work but then switched to Stronger drinks her

boss began to notice that she was addicted to alcohol and fired her to avoid any problems with parcels this missile finally broke Karen and she began to drink without measure her parents tried to help her by taking her to the doctors but to no avail she continued to drink and had an affair with a neighbor who was also an alcoholic and frequently beat her in a drunken rage one day the man pushed Karen so hard that she hit her head on the corner of the closet and she died instantly Daniel her former husband took care

of all the funeral expenses he felt partly responsible for her tragic end after all if he had not driven her away so cruelly and categorically perhaps she would have been able to pull herself together but of course a truly loving mother would have sought communication with her child not drowned her worries in alcohol be that as it may Daniel never said anything bad to his son but to his mother the boy grew up with the idea that his mother who loved him very much died of a serious illness and his father did everything possible so

that Alan was not deprived of either attention or material wealth he worked hard to create his own successful business which he could then pass on to his son by inheritance Marilyn also told Daniel her story during the conversation the interlocutors did not notice how time flew by and it began to get light they even forgot about the children Amy and Allen who were playing late in the living room fell asleep waiting until the kids woke up Marilyn prepared a delicious hearty breakfast of country products Daniel thanked his Savior and left with his son and Marilyn

thought about what she had heard for a long time what coincidences there are in life his wife did to him almost exactly what John did to me after this incident life in the village went on as usual Marilyn had so much work at the nursing station and household chores that they superseded the disturbing thoughts caused by her ex-husband's visit for some reason she had decided that Jon's threats were nothing and that he would never come back well if he was really up to something he would have come by now and even if he comes what

can he do to me nothing Marilyn pondered calming herself meanwhile she remembered her recent guests with warmth and Amy was always asking about her new friend with whom they played so cheerfully will Alan come to us but Marilyn had nothing to say to her daughter she was sure that she would never meet Daniel and his son again after all they did not discuss that and did not even exchange phone numbers although admittedly Marilyn would not mind communicating again with the new acquaintance because he seemed to her to be a good man and also an interesting

conversationalist one night Marilyn had a bad dream she saw it as if someone were chasing her in the Dream Marilyn was running down a long dark Corridor when she saw the pursuer pulling his huge hairy hands with long dirty nails towards her either man or beast had finally caught up with his victim he grabbed her hand and tried to remove the precious ring from her finger which would not budge at that moment Marilyn woke up in horror it was still night the full moon was shining through the window filling the room with a soft but

somehow unpleasant light which only added to the anxiety after an unpleasant dream Marilyn toston turned in bed until morning but still couldn't sleep actually she was not superstitious and did not believe in dreams or Omens and she had had nightmares hundreds of times but for some reason this particular one impressed her and Disturbed her greatly every morning getting out of bed Marilyn put on her grandmother's ring which she left in the drawer on the bedside table for the night and this time her hand immediately reached for the ring but when the girl put the jewelry

on her finger she suddenly remembered the nightmare again some strange bad feeling made Marilyn take off the ring she suddenly thought that she was doing a very frivolous Thing by walking around the village wearing such a piece of jewelry I'll hide it away in the room stood her grandmother's large chest Not only was it locked with a key but it also had a double bottom under which Mrs spurl hid all the most valuable things documents money gold earrings which she had not worn since her Youth and a box with a ring Marilyn decided to return

her family heirloom to its rightful place she mentally thanked herself for not ignoring the bad premonition looking at the clock Marilyn realized that it was time to wake up her daughter and prepare breakfast when the girl was busy in the kitchen the neighbor's dog suddenly barked loudly Marilyn had long been accustomed to these sounds and did not pay attention to them as the dog reacted aggressively to literally every Russell but today the animal behaved differently than usual the dog growled menacingly and literally tore off the chain so Marilyn decided to go outside and see what

the matter was there was no one at the gate and the dog was barking not towards the street but towards Marilyn's yard the animal all bristled bared its teeth and pulled the chain with all its might as if pointing to the far corner of the neighbor's Garden probably the dog saw a cat thought the woman but still decided to go around the yard just in case she took a brief look around and saw no sign of any Intruders for a moment though she thought she heard him Russell on the side of the patio but there

was no one there either Marilyn went back to her work and in about an hour she and Amy left the house on the way to kindergarten Amy suddenly remembered that she had forgotten the acorn craft at home which her teacher had asked her to make the child burst into tears and the mother and daughter had to turn back even though they had already traveled two-thirds of the way as they entered the yard Marilyn noticed that the daughter of the house was a jar did I forget to close it she thought but as she approached she

realized that the lock was broken not just cracked but literally broken out of the door as if someone had chopped it with an ax at that moment John ran out of the house he looked unrecognizable with anger where's the ring he shouted seeing his ex-wife and daughter standing in front of the house frightened it turned out that the Barking of the neighbor's dog that morning was not in vain the pet had immediately sensed someone sneaking into the neighbor's territory John had climbed over the fence from the backyard to remain unnoticed and had looked behind the

patio waiting for a convenient moment to enter the house when Marilyn had gone out into the yard at the sound of the Barking Dog John had snuck into the cellar which luckily for him had been open through the ajar door he had watched Marilyn carefully and noticed that she was not wearing the ring that he had come for then we must wait until she leaves and search the house he had thought finding the ring was vital to him he had once again lost badly at cards and owned money to some dangerous Bandits who had threatened

to kill him if he didn't repay the debt but his parents couldn't help him they had already sold everything they could and the only thing left was the apartment John had begged his mother and father to sell the apartment in the center of the city and buy something smaller why do you need this big apartment in your old age buy yourselves a one bedroom and live happily is an apartment more valuable to you than your own son he had pleaded but his parents had finally lost their patience his father had kicked the wayward son out

of the house and ordered him never to return he had even changed the locks so that Jon could no longer get into the apartment and take out the TV washing machine and his mother's amber beads the only remaining valuable thing that could still be sold for some money left without the Last Hope John suddenly remembered the luxurious gold ring with a ruby that he had seen on his ex-wife's finger and now when Marilyn and Amy had left for the daycare he had immediately run out of his hiding place and begun to search after pulling the

old wooden door and making sure it was not too reliable the man had grabbed an ax he had found in the backyard and struck the lock on the first try the barrier was removed and he broke into the house to look for the ring John turned out closets looked under mattresses moved furniture and rummaged through cans of cereal and flour hoping to find the jewel but to now Avail he had no idea of where the stash was he even broke open the lock of the massive wooden chest in the usual for him way with the

blow of an ax but found nothing but his grandmother's old tablecloths blankets and an album of old photographs he was very close to his cherished goal but fortunately he had no idea about it has she sold it but she couldn't have spent the money so quickly he thought with these thoughts he ran out of the house His Last Hope was the attic where he was planning to climb using the long ladder presented to him on the wall and just at that moment he came face to face with Marilyn and his daughter who had come home

to a handmade craft the robber taken by surprise was at first confused but realizing that he had nothing more to lose he decided to take Extreme Measures he roughly grabbed Marilyn and Amy and dragged them into the house the woman tried to scream and call for help but at that moment John looked so threateningly that she had a lump in her throat after taking his captives into the house the man closed the door behind him and demanded that his ex-wife give him the ring confess where did you hide the ring speak quickly don't try my

patience demand it John what ring I don't have any ring Marilyn Justified herself because she was determined not to hand over the valuable heirloom to her ex-husband don't pretend I saw it on your finger last time it's just costume jewelry from the local store I lost it somewhere in the garden a long time ago the woman lied thinking on her feet why are you playing games with me I'm not an idiot I know there's gold there probably 10 grams of gold Anna Ruby the size of my fist give it to me or else we'll both

be in trouble suddenly John ran out to the garage and returned with a can of gasoline for the lawnmower I have nothing to lose if you don't give me the ring I'll set the house on fire and we'll all die together shouted the man in his crazed State Marilyn realized he was not joking she went to the bedroom took out her grandmother's jewelry box which was dear to her heart and gave it to her ex-husband of course she was hurt to part with the precious gift but the safety of her child and her own life

were more important than any jewelry after receiving what he wanted John rushed to the exit but on the way to the gate he suddenly stopped he had a sudden urge to cause more trouble for his ex-spouse whom he blamed for all his problems he rushed back into the house where the shocked Marilyn looked at the chaos that had rained in her Cozy home and tried to assess the scale of the damage he roughly pushed the woman into the bedroom and locked the room from the outside then he grabbed a crying Amy by the arms and

dragged her towards the exit in fact he didn't even know where he would go with his daughter or what he would do with her because he didn't actually need her but the main thing was despite Marilyn and he was least concerned about his child's feelings and fate meanwhile Marilyn was banging on the door and threatening to call the police and really John thought suddenly she won't stay there forever she'll get out somehow all the neighbors will rescue her of course she'll file a report and I'll be in trouble the man realized he couldn't let Marilyn

Live and decided to carry out his threats however he wasn't going to kill the little girl so he simply locked her in the barn to prevent her from disturbing him or attracting the attention of neighbors with her screaming then John grabbed a can of gasoline and started pouring the flammable liquid on the walls of the house he was so mad with anger and engrossed in the process that he didn't even hear a car drive up to the yard fortunately for Marilyn and her daughter Daniel and his son came to visit them to thank them once

again for their rescue seeing this terrible picture Daniel disarmed Jon with the first log he could find 15 minutes later the district police arrived the Intruder was detained and the valuable ring was returned to its rightful owner John was sent to prison for robbery and the attempted murder of his ex-wife Marilyn never saw him again or heard anything about him and she wasn't interested in that at all she now had a new life which had no place for the ghost of the past Marilyn and Daniel began a romance and Amy and Alan were thrilled that

their parents were together and were going to get married creating a big family at the wedding Marilyn put on her grandmother's ring and never took it off again now she was sure that the family Relic had brought her long-awaited happiness