Discovering life

The inheritance

Romão

I spent the whole day showing Jorge how the farm worked. He was a very smart guy, he learned everything right. In the late afternoon we returned home, he was waiting a lot to see Cidinha, he was in love with her since she was fifteen, but at that age she still played with dolls.

Time passed, she turned into a beautiful woman and Mom insisted that we date. We dated when she was eighteen, but the relationship lasted less than a year because she changed since she started studying in the city.

One day I found out she was with another guy, I finished everything, in fact, I already wanted to finish before discovering her betrayal, because my mother and Marta, our cook and her aunt, were already planning the wedding. I thanked God for being cuckold, otherwise I'd be married already.

Arriving at the farmhouse, I took a shower in the outdoor shower and went up to my room, changed my clothes and got a change of clean clothes to lend to Jorge. After changing my clothes, I went down to get his clothes and saw Cidinha talking to him from a distance. He looked like he was “stunned” by her presence. I didn't want to interrupt the couple, I shouted calling Cidinha to deliver the clothes to him.

"Maria Aparecida!"

She looked at me and cracked a smile.

"Hi!"

She ran towards me.

"Give Jorge these clean clothes and the towel."

She took the clothes and towel from my hand and walked out towards the outdoor shower. I checked if they spoke with the same enthusiasm, before calling Cidinha to deliver the clothes, it seemed that my presence had gone unnoticed.

I went to the cafeteria and the table was already set, the workers had already finished their work and were already drinking coffee to go home before dark. I sat next to Mom who looked distressed about something, she barely touched her cornbread.

"What is it, Mom? Are you worried about something?"

“Your dad hasn't called me yet, he's not the type to do that,” Mom said.

I thought the love they had for each other was beautiful. Always so worried.

"It shouldn't be a big deal, remember he threw his cell phone on the wall, there shouldn't be any live contacts left to tell the story. Relax, he'll be here soon." I poured coffee into the cup and cut a piece of corn cake.

"Yes, you're right."

"How is it? Am I right?" I liked being right.

"Don't overdo it kid, you may be an adult, but I can still give you some slippers."

I started to laugh and kissed Mom's head.

"I hope one day I find a wife just like you, Mom, wonderful" She scowled at me.

"I hope that when that happens, she can put him on a halter and make him interested in city life."

"Mother, I don't need these modernities, it's fine as it is."

"You're smart, you can do very well in the city, we could even expand the warehouse. You could have a better life and not have to go through all this suffocation."

"I'll help daddy at the grocery store, you don't need to be worried."

"You could live in the city, make a living there and live with Cidinha."

"Now! It even seems like Cidinha talking, she was the one who had the idea, right?"

"She's right! What is she studying business for? Managing the chickens?"

"So what? Gabriela and Gisele are such beautiful chickens."

"But they haven't given birth to puppies in a long time."

"And is it my fault if Genesis isn't joining in?"

"This rooster is already old, it's even past cooking time, we have to get a new rooster."

"I'm not leaving this farm, I want to be down to earth, one day I'm going to marry a woman born and raised on the farm, without all those modern frills of big city girls."

"Damn! Then at least buy a new cock."

"When Dad gets back from his trip, I'll fix it."

When Mom put something on her head, there was no one to take it off.

"Think about what I told you, you can have a better life in the city."

"Now! I'm not having this conversation with you, my farm life is fine as it is."

Jorge and Cidinha joined us, they seemed interested in each other. I just hoped that Jorge would win Cidinha's heart and make her let go of me.

“Jorge was telling me about when he had to spend a season in the city”, said Cidinha. What was this conversation? Jorge never went to town. “He said he worked at a nightclub.” Maybe it was a strategy to conquer Cidinha, she liked everything she had to do with the City.

"Oh yeah? Tell me more, how was this club?" I said, holding back my smile.

He looked at me apprehensively, he knew very well that I knew, that he was lying.

"Well, you know, loud music, drinks, women..."

"I never went to the club, do you take me a day when you worked?" Cidinha asked excitedly.

“Yeah, maybe one day,” said Jorge, ending the subject.

We had breakfast and talked a little longer, the rain that threatened to fall all day, began to wet the earth in the early evening. The smell of wet earth felt like better days and because of the problems the farm was going through, we really needed to keep that hope.

"Later," Dad came home from a trip and, from the look on his face, it looked like things didn't go his way. We let him be at ease first so he could tell us what happened in town.

"I did what I could, but Mr. Geraldo made the loan at the bank yesterday, after we talked and put his part of the farm as collateral. I went to the bank to try to talk to the manager about how to undo the deal. I only got a deadline of 30 days to pay off the debt, otherwise..."

"Otherwise what?" I asked worriedly.

How does a person get a loan without talking to a partner? That was inconsiderate, I think this guy was cheating on Dad.

"Otherwise we will lose the farm."

"Jesus!" Mom covered her mouth with concern. "And what will it be like now?"

"Calm down mom, let's figure it out. How much loan did he borrow?"

"$1 million."

"What? The farm and the warehouse aren't so bad for him to take this loan, he's cheating on you daddy."

"I know, I think he owed the game, every day he left early and usually he cleaned the cash register. I had to remove the money from the safe to be able to pass the change. And every time I closed the warehouse, he didn't put the amount in the safe. So I started coming home later and even changed the secret of the safe."

“Let's figure it out, let's not lose the farm,” I say.

The office door opened and Cidinha entered.

“I'm sorry to bother you, but the men are there,” said Cidinha.

I looked at my dad and grimaced.

"They came to arrest me because of Geraldo?"

"No, that can't be, that bastard wouldn't have the guts to do that," I said, "shrill."

"They didn't come to see Senhor Ismael, they came to see Romão." Cidinha surprised me with the news.

"Me? What do they want with me?" I asked worriedly.

"Could it be Geraldo's thing?" asked dad.

"I don't know. Anyway, I'll know what's going on," I said, leaving the office.

"I'm going with you son!"

Dad followed me to the yard where the cops were. Mom followed but continued to wait at the door.

"Are you Romao da Cunha Coelho?"

I know, infamous little change! I had the last name of that rodent I hated so much, but what should I do?

"Yes it's me."

“We came to inform you of your father's death. "Who bit the mule?" "Son, what's going on?" Even my father, who was on my side, didn't understand."

"They're saying you're dead."

"Are you his father?" asked the policeman.

“I'm foster father” Dad replied.

"So, his real father, Mr. Francisco Nogueira Ferraz, just passed away."

"And what does this have to do with me?" I asked curiously.

"I spoke to his lawyer to find out if he had any living relatives and in the will it said that you are his only heir," said the policeman.

"Heir to what?"