Steve Walton was exhausted. After a long flight from Singapore, he wasn’t in the mood for the visit from Pastor Morris. Steve was wealthy, used to getting what he wanted, and tired of hearing pleas for support from the community. But when his butler announced the pastor’s arrival, Steve sighed, not wanting to deal with it.
“Get on with it, man!” Steve snapped as Pastor Morris entered. “What is it that you want this time?”
Pastor Morris hesitated for a moment before saying, “Mr. Walton, I saw Susan.”
Steve’s heart raced. His daughter, Susan, had been missing for nearly fifteen years. “Susan?” Steve cried, his voice full of panic. “Where? When? How is she?”
The pastor spoke softly, “I was in Los Angeles, helping out a friend who works with the homeless, and I saw her.”
Steve’s heart pounded in his chest. “Susan? Was she volunteering? Did you tell her I’ve been looking for her?”
Pastor Morris shook his head. “No, she wasn’t a volunteer. She’s homeless. She’s living in a car with her children.”
Steve’s legs went weak. “Homeless? My daughter? And children?!” he gasped, feeling dizzy.
“I’m afraid so,” Pastor Morris said, his voice gentle. “I tried to convince her to come home, but she wouldn’t listen.”
“Why?!” Steve asked, now furious. “She’s not still with that man, is she?”
Pastor Morris sighed. “Her husband passed away three years ago. She said she wouldn’t bring her children into a house where their father was despised.”
Steve felt his old anger rise, as it had all those years ago. He remembered that terrible day when he’d thrown Susan out of the house, furious after she told him she was pregnant. “Pregnant at sixteen, and by the GARDENER!” he had shouted. “We’re going to take care of that, and HE’S fired! You will never see that man again!”
Susan had stood her ground, her voice trembling but determined. “That’s my baby, daddy. And he is the man I love. I’m going to marry him.”
Steve’s eyes had burned with rage. “You marry him, and you’re on your own, Susan! No more money, nothing! You marry him and get out of my house!”
Susan had looked at him with tears in her eyes. “I love you, daddy,” she had said before turning away and leaving his life forever.
Despite his best efforts, Steve had never been able to track her down. But now, after all these years, he was hearing about her again, and it shook him to his core.
“How many children does she have?” Steve asked, his voice barely a whisper.
“Four,” Pastor Morris replied. “Three girls and a boy. Beautiful children.”
Without a second thought, Steve picked up his phone and ordered his private jet ready. “Pastor, would you come with me to Los Angeles? Take me to my daughter?” he asked quietly.
The pastor nodded, and within two hours, they were on their way. The jet flew south, and soon they arrived in Los Angeles. A limo drove them to a parking lot outside a large mall, where Pastor Morris guided Steve to a small pickup truck with a tent set up in the back. It was clear that Susan and her children had made this their home.
Inside the tent, the sound of laughter filled the air. Steve saw two children tumble out of the back. The biggest girl, about fourteen, was laughing as she tickled her younger brother.
“Mom!” the girl shouted. “That old preacher of yours is here!”
A familiar voice called out from inside the tent, “Preacher Morris?”
Then Susan climbed out, her shock visible when she saw Steve standing beside the pastor. “Daddy?” she asked, tears filling her eyes.
Steve was stunned. His daughter, barely thirty-one, looked much older than her years. Her face was worn with hardship, her hands rough from work. His heart ached as he looked at her. “Susan,” he said, tears welling up in his eyes. “Look at you! Look at what HE did to my princess! I wanted so much more for you! And you married that man! What could he have given you? Poverty?”
Susan shook her head, her voice calm despite the pain. “He loved me, daddy. And he gave me four beautiful children. He died, and I had nowhere to go, but I’ve done what I could for my kids. I will always love the father of my children, just like I’ve always loved you.”
Tears flowed down Steve’s face. “Forgive me, Susan,” he sobbed, his heart breaking. “Please forgive me. Come home, I want you all to come home with me. Let me help you take care of the children.”
Steve held his daughter close, knowing that everything would be alright now. Susan introduced her children to Steve—three granddaughters and one little boy.
“And this,” she smiled, “is little Stevie.”
Steve was shocked. “You named him after me?”
Susan nodded. “After everything I went through, I still love you, daddy. Don’t you know that?”
That afternoon, the family flew back to Texas together. It was the start of a new chapter, one filled with hope and a better life for all of them.
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