Shocking Information

Grandpa was old, even very old, but not infirm. Despite the fact that he was eighty years old, he kept his serene spirit and devoted himself almost to the end to his passion - sculpture. For over a dozen years he has hardly accepted any orders and has hardly ever issued anything. The system has changed and fashion has changed. Sławoj did not keep up with the changes, and he did not have to. He was already a well-deserved pensioner and more than his sculptures, he devoted himself to instilling this passion in his grandson's heart. However, the results were different.

They did not always understand each other, grandfather and him, but the boy became very attached to the last of his living relatives and the death of the old artist filled his heart with pain and mourning.

Sławek looked at the crystal blue sky and smiled sadly.

Still, it was a beautiful day. The weather was great. The priest delivered a touching and edifying funeral speech. Grandpa would like it. The weather too. He would probably be sitting on a bench in the orchard by now and watching the peaches ripen. He would be smiling.

Sławek wiped one disobedient tear.

He was returning to an empty house alone and had no idea what his life would be like now.

***

There was an expensive Swedish car in front of the house. The sun was warm and Sławek sincerely hoped that the man sitting in him was suffering from heat. But such modern, expensive cars have air conditioning, he realized angrily. By nature, Sławek did not wish people badly, but he was irritable and sad, and in addition he knew this car and was well aware of who had come with it and what for?

"They won't even let him cool down in the grave," he muttered angrily under his breath.

He knew that he should be polite to each guest, as his grandfather demanded of him, but he could not help but feel bitterness at the thought that these people did not even respect the day of the funeral. Scowling, he approached the house and, indifferently passing the car, opened the gate.

"Boy." The driver's side door swung open. An elegant man in his fifties got out of the car "I want to talk to your grandfather. Ask him out."

"It can't be done," Sławek grunted.

"You may not realize it, but me and your grandfather have serious business..."

"Not anymore," he muttered arrogantly. But for some reason he felt his throat tighten. "Grandpa died. I just got back from the funeral."

There was a moment of silence, interrupted only by the distant sounds of a combine harvester.

"It is very unfortunate," said the elegant gentleman glumly. "Your grandfather owes me a lot of money."

"I don't know anything about it and I can't help it. Please go now."

"We don't understand each other, boy. Your grandfather owed me a lot of money and I'm going to get it back."

Sławek felt a surge of irritation.

"How?" He asked, raising his voice. "Will you sue his ghost?"

"No, you cheeky brat. As agreed, I will occupy his land and house. The loan was secured against real estate and land. Not that the hovel is worth anything, but the habitat is."

The boy started. The loan was secured? Will it occupy the earth? And House? What does it all mean?

"I see you don't understand. So let me explain to you. Four years ago, I lent your grandfather ninety thousand against the pledge. He's paid me twenty, plus interest so far. So there were seventy left. In the event that he or his heir is unable to pay the debt, all this will become my property."

"But ... you're not serious, are you?"

"Most serious. The maturity date expired yesterday. Because there were unexpected circumstances… I'll give you a month to pay me back. Otherwise, I will take over all the land."

"A month ?!" Sławek felt as if the ground was parting under him, showing the core glowing with magma. "It's impossible! How can I get this money in a month?"

"That's your problem."

"My problem, yes, but..."

Seventy thousand! It was impossible! It is simply impossible for him to come into possession of such an amount. And then what? Someone just taking the land that has belonged to his family for generations? Will he throw him out of the house built by his great-grandfather? What will Sławek do with himself then? Where will he go?

The man did not wait for the boy to find a solution to his problem. As if nothing had happened, as if he had never endangered his entire existence, he returned to his car and, starting the engine, he started, raising a cloud of dust.

Sławek stood in the scorching sun, unable to move. The situation in which he so suddenly found himself overwhelmed him with a ton of boulder. He sank into this burning magma all the way to the earth's core.

He had no chance of getting that money.

***

The brown eyes of the gray, shaggy mongrel looked sadly at the young master. The touch of the hands caressing him was soft and warm, but not those hands should caress him. The dog knew about it, Sławek knew about it, who understood the sadness of the animal who did not understand why his beloved old man stopped coming to him. Kędzior felt abandoned and missed, just like any abandoned creature.

In his own way, Sławek felt the same. The grandfather left so suddenly that the boy was still unable to accept the truth. He was old, yes, but he should have stayed with him longer. Sławek was not yet ready to take full responsibility for himself. Then there was this awful debt thing.

He had never felt so deserted, lonely and helpless in his life. When my father died, his mother was with him. After his mother died, his grandfather was next to him. Now that he was gone too, all he had was the dog, as depressed as he was. Sławek was eighteen and a grown man, but at that moment he pressed his face into the shaggy fur and cried helplessly like a child.