John was on a mission to find his family’s lost heirloom. After rescuing a dog on the verge of drowning, he uncovers far more than just the family heirloom.
John had been stationed at an old cabin pursuing a long-lost family heirloom, a gold medallion with the family crest. He would spend days working online, then his evenings studying antiques on various specialized sites in hopes of coming across the medallion.
His grandfather cherished the medallion he had received from his father all those years ago. He would often talk about it with dear longing, so John decided to put it upon himself to try and find it.
However, that day was not about his work or family pursuits. On that particularly cold winter day, all John wanted to do was treat himself to a day of fishing. While preparing his fishing hook on the cabin porch, he suddenly heard a faint bark from the lake.
John initially ignored the barking, but he grew more concerned as it dissolved into desperate whimpers. He decided to go and see what was happening.
“You are definitely one lucky dog,” John said, pausing with a sudden epiphany. “Yeah… I think that’s what I’m going to call you. Lucky.”
As he approached the lake, he saw a Labrador that had fallen through the ice struggling to stay afloat. John immediately ran back to the cabin, grabbed a rope, and headed back toward the lake. He quickly tied a noose and caught the dog, drawing it out of the cold water. The dog shivered helplessly. It appeared to have an injury on its leg.
John quickly wrapped it in a blanket and took it home. He warmed it by the fireplace, fed it, and carefully tended its wounds.
“Poor little thing. You look like you’ve been through quite a lot. How could someone abandon something so beautiful?” John said as he tended to the dog, who was dozing off.
You are definitely one lucky dog,” John said, pausing with a sudden epiphany. “Yeah… I think that’s what I’m going to call you. Lucky,” he concluded with a warm smile. Lucky suddenly barked softly, seemingly in agreement with her new name.
John decided from that moment on that he would take Lucky in as his own. As the weeks passed, John continued searching for the heirloom.
What made the search particularly difficult was that he wasn’t exactly sure what he was looking for. Some family members said it was a gold medallion, while others said it was a pendant. The only thing they all agreed on was that it had the family crest on it.
The last thing they had linking them to the lost family heirloom was a pouch with an embroidered family crest, in which this relic was kept until it disappeared, as his grandfather claimed. John continued tirelessly on his pursuit, evening after evening. Every night he went through photos of antiques repeatedly but still found no leads. And every night, Lucky would sit at his feet, keeping him company.
One night, John’s unfruitful pursuits pivoted into an explosive outrage. As he was at his desk going through data as usual, he suddenly jumped up from the table and threw the pouch on the floor. He placed his hands against the wall, trying to calm down and steel himself.
“I’m done!! This is hopeless! I’ll never find this darn thing!” John yelled in frustration. Lucky whimpered sympathetically at her new master’s apparent frustration. John, sensing Lucky’s concern, went down to pat her. “Sorry about that, Lucky. I’m just fed up. No more searching for me. Plus, I’m not alone anymore. I have you now. No more wasting time on this nonsense. From now on, it’s just you and me.”
John examined Lucky’s wounds which were almost completely healed at this point. “Once you’re all good and healed, I’ll teach you some tricks. How does that sound?” John asked, to which Lucky responded with vibrant barking as she wagged her tail cheerfully.
“I think a better question is, what are you doing in my cabin?”
A week later, Lucky was fully recovered, and John started taking her on walks through the forest near the lake. However, each time they went for their walks, it seemed as if Lucky was always trying to escape from him and run into the woods.
It gradually worsened, and John began to fear that one day she’d run off and get hurt or lost. So, he decided to cut down on the walks and play and train with Lucky from home.
One evening, as he was sitting in bed, John decided to give his search another go. He pulled out his laptop and searched the internet for clues regarding his family relic. In the corner of his eye, he saw Lucky dragging the jewelry pouch into the bed John had made for her.
“No, Lucky!” John commanded, hopping out of bed. “Bring it here,” he said, trying to snatch it away from Lucky. But Lucky would not give in, tightly holding onto it with his teeth.
Suddenly John jumped up, took the bag in his teeth, ran to the exit, and whined under the door. John figured Lucky just wanted to play a little. So he opened the door, hoping he’d get the pouch back once they were outside. However, when he opened the door, Lucky sprinted into the forest.
“Lucky!” John yelled. He quickly grabbed his torch and ran after her.
“Lucky! Stop!” John yelled, literally behind Lucky’s tail. She would occasionally slow down and speed up again, allowing John to keep up with her as if she were leading him somewhere.
A few minutes later, Lucky suddenly stopped in an abandoned part of the forest. John stopped beside her and bent down, panting and scolding Lucky for running away. But when John caught his breath, he saw an old cabin before him. Lucky entered the cabin through the door, which was slightly opened.
“No, Lucky! Come back,” John whispered, fearing the house’s inhabitants may think they were trying to steal something. But judging from the cabin’s remoteness, John figured it was most likely abandoned.
The closer they got to the cabin, the more John recognized it and the more bewildered the whole situation left him. He didn’t understand what was happening. He knew the forest like the back of his hand and had passed by this cabin many times but never paid any attention to it. Why did Lucky bring him here?
Overwhelmed by curiosity and going against his better judgment, John followed Lucky inside. Lucky circled around the cabin, sniffing at each nook and cranny. She suddenly stopped near the fireplace, placing the bag next to her.
“That’s not all. I found your brother, Steven. He is in my car, and you can meet him right now.”
Alright, that’s enough, Lucky. Let’s get out of here before we get in trouble,” John said softly, trying to tug Lucky towards the door. But Lucky would not give in. She was in pursuit of something. Lucky started digging at the ashes in the fireplace. A minute later, she pulled a shiny object out with her teeth and placed it near John’s feet.
It was a gold locket with an intricate design engraved on the front. John picked it up to examine it closer. After a moment, he realized it was not just a pattern but a family coat of arms! His family crest! This was the heirloom John had been looking for all along. He had almost entirely given up on looking for it, and now there it was, in his hands.
Suddenly the door to the cabin opened, and an old man entered.
“Charlie? I’ve been looking everywhere for you!” said the old man, turning to the dog.
Charlie? Do you know her? John asked.
“Do I know her? I think a better question is, what are you doing in my cabin?” the man asked, grabbing the ax by the door.
“I’m sorry, she led me here. She was very insistent. I mean no harm,” John said, holding his hands up in the air cautiously.
“Yes, she can be quite persistent,” the man said.
“I found her in the lake. She almost drowned.”
“Oh… Well, thank you. I picked her up myself as a puppy from a nearby track,” the man explained, slowly putting the ax down.
“And you called her Charlie? You know she’s a female, right?” John said with a chuckle, also lowering his hands.
“She became my best friend, so I named her after my childhood friend. Someone I haven’t seen in a very long time,” the old man said with a sad, nostalgic glare.
“Where did you get this?” John said, handing him the locket. “My family has been looking for this locket for many years,” John added.
The man’s face suddenly turned pale. He looked confused and angry. John began to fear for the worst, but then John saw a tear run down his cheek as he sat down on the floor, defeated.
“My parents left that locket to my younger brother, Charlie, when they died. They left me nothing. I got so mad I stole it from him. After a while, I was deployed for service in the army. When I came back, I had no intention of reuniting with my brother, so I came to live here in this cabin, hoping I could sell the locket for a little cash and start my life anew,” the man explained in tears.
“But I was told it had no value. So this cabin became my new home, and I’ve lived here as a hermit ever since. I couldn’t bring myself to go back to my brother and apologize for what I did. My shame has followed me ever since,” the man confessed.
“I recently tried burning it in the fireplace. But it remained unharmed,” the man concluded.
“Your brother’s name is Charlie?” John asked in awe.
“Yes,” the man said.
“That’s my grandfather’s name. He has been looking for this locket for years,” John said, approaching the man.
You’re Charlie’s grandson?” the man said, getting up to get a better look at John. “Yes, I see it now,” the man said with a comforting smile. “Charlie brought us together,” he concluded, giving John a warm hug as he cried.
“I think it’s time you and your brother reunite,” John said softly.
“Yes… I think it is,” the man said, nodding in agreement.
John was in sheer disbelief. He realized that he had found the family heirloom and discovered a family secret. He had no idea that his grandfather had a lost brother.
That same evening, John went to his grandfather to show him what he had found. The old man could not hold back his tears when he saw the locket. He was amazed at how the dog could find in a few days what their entire family had been looking for decades.
He opened the locket to reveal its true value. Inside was the only photo of John’s grandfather, his parents, and his older brother
“Thank you so much, my boy. You don’t know how much this means to me,” John’s grandfather explained.
“That’s not all. I found your brother. Your Steven. He is in my car, and you can meet him right now.” John’s grandfather couldn’t believe what he had heard. He hesitantly nodded in agreement
John and his grandfather walked out of his small lakeside home to find Charlie’s brother, Steven, simultaneously exiting the car. Charlie approached them with tears in his eyes. John stood back with Lucky at his side as he watched his grandfather and his brother embrace in an emotional hug filled with tears from lost years.
“I’m so sorry, Charlie!” Steven cried.
“I know. It’s okay now. We’re finally together, brother,” Charlie said, weeping bitterly.
Charlie and Steven had a long night together. They drank coffee, reminisced about the old days, and caught up on all the major events they had missed in each other’s lives. John took pictures of their night together and was extremely overjoyed for his grandfather.
John’s grandfather and Steven agreed that Steven would leave the cabin and move in with him the next day to make up for the lost time. But in the morning, John, who was supposed to take Steven with his belongings to his grandfather, found that the old man had died in his cabin.
His grandfather was heartbroken, but he was grateful for the moment he had been given with his long-lost brother and best friend. John added the picture of the brother’s together in their old age to the locket, and it only upped its value as far as their family was concerned.
