Put Into A Cruiser
He didn’t understand. He hadn’t done anything wrong. How did the police get involved in the first place? The next thing he knew, he was being put into the back of the cruiser and driven somewhere. It was still pitch black outside.
At 4:00 AM, the sun still hadn’t come out. The birds weren’t even chirping, but Edward was on his way to who knows where after being picked up by two police officers. All they had told him was who had given them a tip-off to find him - his boss.
Edward Landry
Edward Landry was a college student just looking for ways to make ends meet. But he didn’t just have to provide for himself but also his mother. She was in her 60s, and they desperately needed money.
That’s when he managed to find a job at a moving company. All he had to do was pitch up, help carry and pack furniture and boxes, and then move it to the new house. It wasn’t very difficult to work, and it paid well. But he had no idea the turn things would take.
Training Week
Edward’s training week wasn’t too bad. He was willing to put the dedication in to impress his new boss and owner of the company, George Sunderland. He was an easy-going man that took a chance hiring him.
George didn’t ever seem the type to be high strung. But all of Edward’s notions toward his boss would drastically change after he found out that he would make a call that would change everything.
Trouble
On the first day of Edward’s first proper week on the job, disaster struck. His car broke down, and he had no idea how he was going to get to the house he needed to be. It was 20 miles away, and now he had no vehicle.
But Edward had been through his fair share of discomfort in his day. He decided that he would get to the job any way that he could. He just needed a plan. But he had no idea what the repercussions would be.
An Action Plan
Edward decided that he would walk to work. But for him to get there on time, he would have to start walking very early. To get there by 7:00, he would have to start walking at midnight. He was willing to walk 20 miles to get to his job on time.
But he had no idea that once his boss found out about his plan to get to work, he would make a phone call that would have him in tears. It would be the first time anyone reacted like this. He was only walking, right?
6 Hours In
After 6 hours, Edward was feeling tired. He had walked most of the distance to where he had to be. He took regular breaks to catch his breath and intentionally wore Nikes because of the uneven terrain he would have to walk across.
But just as he got a second wind and started making good progress, he saw the flash of blue and red and heard the squeal of a siren. He feared the worst. He knew profiling could happen to him. But he had no idea what was going to happen.
Police
A patrol car appeared behind him and approached the side of the road. He didn’t want any trouble. He knew he would have no witnesses this early in the morning if they were corrupt.
The patrol car slowly came to a stop, and he watched as two officers stepped out of the car. They sauntered towards him. He could see a gun, baton, and taser on their belts. But they would surprise him with what they were about to say.
Identification
The officers looked tired. He guessed that they must have been out patrolling for a while. But he had no idea how wrong he was. They asked him to identify himself. This was something he’d had to do before, so he pulled out his wallet and showed him his I.D.
But he had no idea that that would be his first mistake. One of the officers took it from him and examined the document with incredulous eyes before turning to his partner. Nothing could have planned him for what he said.
“Come With Us.”
The cop gestured towards his partner and said, “he’s our guy.” The officers looked back at Edward and said, “can you come with us, sir?” Edward didn’t like this. They had no reason to take him away.
Thoughts swirled in his head. If they took him, he wouldn’t be able to make it to his job, and he would get fired by his boss. But they knew something that they weren’t telling Edward, and it would shake his world.
“His Boss.”
He asked them what he had done wrong, but the men just bellowed with laughter. They told him that they weren’t asking him and that someone wanted to see him. This left him with even more questions.
But after the cops smirked at each other for what felt like forever, they finally let him in on their little secret. They told him that they were sent by George Sunderland, his boss. Edward was at a loss for words.
Hadn’t Done Anything Wrong
He didn’t understand. He hadn’t done anything wrong. How did the police get involved in the first place? The next thing he knew, he was being put into the back of the cruiser and driven somewhere. It was still pitch black outside.
At 7:00 AM, the sun had come out. The birds were even chirping, and Edward was on his way to who knows where after being picked up by two police officers. All they had told him was who had given them a tip-off to find him - his boss.
His Boss Waiting
After 30 minutes of silence in the patrol car, they finally stopped by a car dealership. Edward was confused as ever. But he then saw his boss waiting in front of the car. He had only worked for him for a week. What had he done wrong?
But his boss would make everything clear in a moment. He explained to Edward how he had heard about him walking to work since midnight. It was something he didn’t like one little bit.
Hardship
But soon, his boss dropped his guard and gave Edward a wink. He didn’t understand what was going on. His boss explained that Edward’s mother had called him and told him about his dedication to the job.
He further explained that he couldn’t bear to let one of his employees do that. Especially after his mother had explained all of the hardship that they had gone through, which ultimately meant that he had to get the job in the first place.
Hurricane Katrina
George informed Edward that his mother had told him about how they had lost their property in New Orleans as a result of Hurricane Katrina. That they had to move across the country and how Edward not only had to find a way of funding his tuition but also take care of his mother.
He said to Edward, “You’ve gone through enough, haven’t you, son?” He winked at Edward once more before handing him a small object. Edward examined them and broke down into tears.
Car Keys
They were car keys! His boss had bought him a brand new car so that he could easily drive to work every morning without any problems. He could sell his old unreliable car and use the money to pay for a good chunk of his tuition.
Edward was speechless. He couldn’t believe how kind his boss was being. He had never experienced human kindness to a degree like this before. He knew that his life would be a lot easier from now on.