Man Is Fired for Delivering Food to Disabled Lady after Café Hours, Sees Her Photo in Boss’ Office Day After – Story of the Day

Luke is fired from his delivery job after he goes against the café rules and delivers food to a disabled woman in a forest hut. When he comes to the café office to collect his severance check the next day, Luke is shocked to spot her picture on the desk and learn she is his boss’s sister, who is considered missing.

Luke hung his head as he stood in Mr. Cox’s office. He knew he was in hot water after going against the café’s rules, but he hoped his boss would hear him out.

Earlier that evening, Luke had just returned from a delivery when someone called in to place an order. Luke answered the call and said the kitchen was closed, but the woman began pleading with him that she was starving. The chef had left, so Luke decided to help her on his own, but that landed him in big trouble.

Luke prepared himself to face his boss’s wrath as Mr. Cox looked at him.

“What the hell did you think you were doing, Luke?” He leaned forward on the desk and clasped his hands. “Cooking and delivering food after café hours without my permission? Do you think you are the one in charge now?”

“I’m—I’m sorry, Mr. Cox,” Luke apologized, knowing he couldn’t afford to lose this job. “The customer was a disabled woman who lives alone in the woods. I couldn’t just turn my back on her when she asked for help. She—she can barely move around without her walker, sir. And she called us because she had nothing to eat at home. Our café was the closest eatery to her house.”

“So?” Mr. Cox raised a brow, glaring at him. “Do you think we are some sort of charity institution? We run a business here, and what you did is not acceptable, Luke! I’m sorry, but I have to let you go. I can’t let this slide because if I do, someone else will do the same thing tomorrow.”

“What? No, sir!” Luke’s heart pounded as he looked at Mr. Cox. “Mr. Cox, please,” he pleaded. “I—I can’t lose this job. You know I have a daughter to raise all by myself. There must be a way we can work this out. Please, I’m assuring you this won’t happen again.”

“And I’m supposed to trust your word? After what you did?” Mr. Cox scoffed in disgust. “Am I supposed to believe the one who doesn’t understand professionalism and is standing here defending himself after breaking the rules? OUT!” Mr. Cox announced. “You can come to collect your check tomorrow. Make sure you clear out your locker before you leave.”

Luke truly couldn’t afford to lose his job when he had a ton of responsibilities on his shoulders. What would he tell his daughter? That he had failed her? He would fall to Mr. Cox’s feet to save this job if he needed to.

“Please reconsider your decision, sir,” he begged. “I’m doing the best for my daughter. Sarah needs me. She is all I have. And for me…this is more than just a job. It’s what supports us. I—I will never do anything that goes against the policies. Please, sir.”

But Mr. Cox didn’t budge. “YOU ARE FIRED, Luke!” he declared heartlessly. “If you didn’t hear that…let me just repeat it for you. As of today, you are no longer employed here. Be grateful I’m not cutting your severance pay in half for the little charity stunt you pulled. Now leave before I have to ask someone to escort you out of here!”

Luke wished he could convince his boss again, but after ruining Mr. Cox’s mood further by trying to justify himself, Luke knew all his pleas would fall on deaf ears. So he quietly emptied his locker and left the café, knowing he was jobless now and probably a bad father too.

After his wife died, Luke had been raising their daughter Sarah alone, and now, he would return to her as a failed dad. Even as he made dinner for Sarah, all Luke could think about was how long it would take to find another job.

The severance pay would help them get by for a few days. But what after that? He didn’t have any savings, and the fear of not being able to support his daughter gnawed at him. Luke didn’t want the CPS to knock at his door one day and take Sarah away. He would be crushed.

With a heavy heart, Luke arrived at the café the next day to collect his severance pay.

“So you’re here for the money on time, but you can’t do what you’re asked to,” Mr. Cox sneered at him as he tossed an envelope on the desk. “There. Your last check!”

Luke had a lot of things to say, but he didn’t want to escalate the situation. He approached Mr. Cox’s desk and collected the envelope quietly. But as his gaze ran to the picture on his side, he froze.

“This woman…” he blurted out, staring at Mr. Cox. “She’s the one I helped! You know her?”

Luke hastily grabbed the photo frame and looked closely at the woman’s face. In the picture where Mr. Cox stood grinning with his parents, the woman held Mr. Cox’s arm and smiled gently at the camera. Luke was sure it was her!

“What are you doing?” Mr. Cox snatched the photo frame from him. “How dare you touch the things here without my permission?”

“Sir, that woman beside you!” Luke explained. “I delivered food to her yesterday! She’s the one I was talking about!”

“Are you crazy, boy?” Mr. Cox lost his temper as he put the frame back in place. “That’s my sister, and nobody has seen her for the last three years. We did everything to find her. And you’re saying you saw her last evening? Helped her?”

“Mr. Cox, believe me! I’m sure that’s her!” Luke insisted. “She lives in a cabin in the woods! I can bet my life on it…it’s the same woman!”

Luke noticed a sharp emotion flashing across Mr. Cox’s face. Was it a look of relief that his sister was found?

“Can you…Can you take me to her?” he asked. “If you’re sure it’s her, you must be able to prove it, Luke. Shouldn’t you?”

Luke nodded firmly, knowing the woman he had helped the day before was Mr. Cox’s long-lost sister. “I can take you there, sir!” he said confidently. “Shall we?”

Luke and Mr. Cox arrived at the cabin and waited for the door to be answered. A gentle breeze blew through the trees, causing the leaves to rustle. Birds sang in the distance. The shrill cry of crickets filled the air as Luke knocked on the door again.

“What’s taking her so long, huh?” Mr. Cox impatiently grumbled at Luke.

“She can barely move around without her walker, sir. I’m sure she’s coming,” Luke said calmly.

“Ma’am, are you there?” he called out. “Can we please talk to you?”

“I think my sister disappeared now that we are here, Luke,” Mr. Cox mocked him, getting angrier by the second. But right then, they heard the sound of footsteps approaching the door and something being dragged across the floor.

The door swung open seconds later as the woman stepped out, leaning on her walker for support.

“Oh my god! Alice?” Mr. Cox gasped, his eyes wide as saucers. “It—It is you!”

“I’m sorry?” The woman’s brows furrowed. “I’m…not sure what this is about, but I’m Catherine, not Alice.”

“Alice, don’t you remember me? I’m Jordan, your brother!” Mr. Cox said. “I’ve been looking for you for so long!”

“Brother?” Catherine whispered the word, trying to jog her memory. But she couldn’t recall anything.

“I’m sorry, but I—I can’t remember if I had a brother. I have amnesia,” she admitted. “So…I barely know anything about my past. My boyfriend told me my name was Catherine. But…” she paused as she took another look at Mr. Cox. “…your face does look familiar to me.”

“Of course, Alice! That’s because I’m your brother!” Mr. Cox exclaimed. “Luke, call 911!” he added. “We’ll find out what went wrong, Alice! Don’t worry, OK?”

Luke nodded and turned away from Mr. Cox as he pulled out his phone. Suddenly, Catherine screamed, but before Luke could turn around, he felt a sharp blow to his head.

The last thing he saw was Mr. Cox holding a rock, then Luke collapsed on the ground with a thud, and it all went black.

It was all dark when Luke opened his eyes. His head was pounding as he looked around the space. A tiny window somewhere high on the wall let in a sliver of light in the room, but he could barely see anything.

“Oh god! Come on!” He gritted his teeth, trying to release himself from the ropes that were tied around his wrists and feet. But the chords were thick. He needed something to cut the ropes.

Luke frantically looked around for anything to assist him, feeling things with his tied hands. Suddenly, he spotted something. Luke grunted as he fell to his side and crawled to the glinting object he could see in the distance.

As he neared it, Luke realized it was an old scythe. He picked it up with his mouth and held it hard between his toes as he crawled to the area dimly lit through the window. Luke balanced himself in a sitting position as he slashed the ropes around his wrists.

Freeing his hands, he lowered the scythe in his lap and quickly untied his feet. He didn’t realize it, but Luke was trapped in the basement of Catherine’s forest home. The floorboards creaked under his weight as he walked on them, so he tiptoed around the room, trying to find the exit.

Suddenly, Luke heard a faint voice. The sound seemed to be coming from somewhere close, and he followed its direction, his arms extended to ensure he didn’t collide with something. The next moment, Luke realized he was touching the railing of the basement stairs.

As he slowly marched upstairs, Luke realized it was Mr. Cox’s voice. The voice became clearer and clearer as he stepped out. It seemed to be coming from one of the rooms:

“…You and him! The two of you should have never met! And unfortunately for him, he knows more than he should…”

Luke peered through the door crack of the room to his left and gasped when he saw Catherine strapped to a chair by ropes. Mr. Cox drew a knife, and Luke…he knew there was no time to waste. He stormed into the room and charged at his ex-boss, knocking him to the ground.

In the heat of the moment, Luke’s gaze was drawn to a glass jar on a nearby table. He snatched it and smashed it on Mr. Cox’s head. Mr. Cox passed out.

“Are—Are you OK?” he asked Catherine as he removed the tape sealing her lips.

“I—I’m fine, Luke!” she said tremblingly. “Thanks—Thanks for helping me!”

“We need to call the cops!” he said as he untied her wrists. “We need to get out of here before he wakes up! He’s unconscious for now.”

“We can’t call anyone for help,” Catherine said as her hands were freed. “He hid our phones somewhere!”

“He must have his! Untie your feet. I’ll search his pockets!” Luke told her.

Luke looked through Mr. Cox’s pant pockets and found his car keys. Then he went through Mr. Cox’s coat.

“Got the keys!” he said as he dashed back to help Catherine. “I’ve found his phone too!”

But Mr. Cox’s phone was locked with a password, so Luke and Catherine decided to make it out of the forest and go to the police station.

“I shouldn’t have trusted him and brought him here,” Luke said as they climbed into Mr. Cox’s car. “He was acting all weird when I told him I had met you. I’m sorry for the mess I created!”

“It’s not your fault, Luke,” Catherine assured him as he turned the ignition on. “Nobody would’ve guessed my own brother would try to kill me…and you too. You had nothing to do with any of this.”

“Take that turn to the right,” she added. “We should get out soon!”

The forest sounds kept getting faint as Luke and Catherine drove out of the forest to the road that would take them to the police station. Luke’s heart throbbed against his chest, and his palms were clammy from anxiety on the steering wheel. He only hoped they reached the station safely.

“Relax, Luke,” Catherine told him, noticing he seemed nervous. “We’re out of there. We’ll make it to the station soon. By the way, I have something to tell you. I guess now I know why Jordan wanted me dead.”

“You know why?” Luke was surprised. “Go on…I’m listening!”

“I had a few recollections…memories…But I thought they were just dreams and probably meant nothing,” she confessed. “But they started to take shape the moment I saw Jordan. I don’t know…maybe seeing him after all these years did jog my memory. While Jordan had held me there and you in the basement, he told me everything about my past,” she added.

“And then I realized why I had those recollections. Turns out I had hitchhiked to this city three years ago after fleeing my toxic fiancé. He was someone wealthy. But I didn’t want to stay with him because I didn’t love him.”

Luke looked at her as she said that. “True story!” she shrugged with a slight smile. “And then the night I arrived in the city, I just showed up at Jordan’s door unannounced…”

Catherine was desperate for both shelter and money back then. She had arrived at her brother’s house to convince him to share their parents’ inheritance with her. But Jordan refused, claiming he had already spent half of it.

When Catherine demanded a share from the other half, he refused again as he was not ready to give even a dime to her. But she kept pestering him, so Jordan decided to kill her. Nobody except Jordan knew that she had fled from her fiancé’s house, so no one would come looking for her.

“And the next thing I remember is that I was in the cabin where Jordan had held both of us captive. But I remember I was not alone when I opened my eyes. I met a man named Nick who told me that during an accident, I had suffered an injury on my head and lost my memory. We were living together for two years…We had this mini garden in our backyard. Nick loved that. He was passionate about gardening.”

“Where is he now?” Luke interrupted her. “I didn’t see him around. Don’t tell me your brother had something to do with him too.”

“He left me,” she revealed. “One morning, I woke up, and he was just not there. His stuff, his gardening tools, clothes…everything was just gone. Later, I learned he was a thief who had been hiding from the cops for two years. Guess I’ve only met the wrong people in my life. Jordan wants to kill me, and Nick abandoned me after using me.”

Luke felt a pang of sadness with the way Catherine felt so horrible about herself, and he wanted to comfort her. But the buzzing of the phone somewhere in the car distracted them.

“Someone’s calling Jordan,” Catherine said as she inclined the phone closer to Luke.

“That’s my number!” he said, looking at the screen. “I think it’s Mr. Cox. Answer it.”

“You haven’t reached the cops yet, have you, Luke?” Mr. Cox’s voice appeared over the line as Catherine held the phone to Luke’s ear.

Mr. Cox seemed oddly relaxed, and a strange fear gripped Luke.

“Don’t you worry, sir!” Luke taunted him, trying to keep his composure. “We’ll be there in five minutes.”

“Oh, I wish that was the case, Luke!” Mr. Cox replied, and Luke and Catherine exchanged a worried glance.

“Because in five minutes, I’ll be at your house,” he added. “And I’m sure Sarah would love to meet me. Look, someone’s gonna die today. Either your daughter or my sister. The choice is yours. Are you going to give up on your daughter because of Alice?”

A chill ran down Luke’s spine, and he slammed on the brakes, causing the car to come to a screeching halt. He froze for a moment, unable to believe what he was hearing. He looked at Catherine regretfully, knowing if he saved her life, he would end up sacrificing his daughter’s.

“Don’t you dare touch her!” he growled on the phone. “Stay away from Sarah. She has nothing to do with all of it! You better not bring her in between us!”

“Then be a good Dad bring my sister back to the cabin in an hour!” Mr. Cox threatened him. “And yeah, don’t be a fool and come along with the police, Luke. You’re a smart man. I hope you don’t want to see your daughter dead.

“Keep this in mind: if I see other cars in the forest besides mine, your daughter is dead! If I get even the slightest hint that you contacted the police, your daughter is dead! If you’re even one second late in meeting me at the cabin, your daughter is dead! Is that clear? I have nothing to lose. You, on the other hand…”

“Fine!” Luke almost yelled on the phone. “Just don’t…don’t do anything to her. I’ll do whatever you ask me, OK?”

Luke turned the car around at the first intersection as he hung up and changed his mind.

“He wants you, or he says he’ll kill my daughter!” Luke told Catherine, his voice shaking. “I can’t let my daughter die! But trust me, I’m not going to let anything bad happen to you either!”

Instead of driving to the cabin directly, Luke headed home.

“I’ll be right back. Don’t go anywhere,” he told Catherine as he got out of the car.

As Luke stepped inside his house, he noticed everything seemed oddly quiet. “Sarah, honey? Sarah??” Luke ran to her bedroom, but she was not there. He checked the other rooms, the backyard, and even the bathroom, but there was no sign of Sarah.

Luke’s heart was racing as he returned to the living room. He couldn’t believe he had put his daughter’s life in danger. Luke was so furious, so mad at himself for getting himself involved in Mr. Cox’s life.

Suddenly, Luke noticed that on the table was a note. It was held in place by a paperweight. Luke hurried over and picked it up, reading the message on it aloud: “I have her. Time’s running out, Luke.”

A rage washed over Luke as he read the note. He grabbed the baseball lying in the corner and stormed out of his house.

“Is she there?” Catherine asked breathlessly as he climbed into the car.

Luke shook his head and started the car. “He got Sarah before I could come here and save her,” he said.

“Just hand me over to Jordan, Luke,” Catherine told him. “That’s the safest way. I don’t want to risk your daughter’s life. I would hate myself if I did that. Let’s get done with this.”

Luke swallowed the tears rising to his eyes as he stepped hard on the gas pedal and drove back to the cabin in the woods. He couldn’t utter a word.

As they neared the cabin, Luke could spot two figures outside. His eyes bulged in horror when he realized one of them was Jordan. But the other…”Oh god! Sarah!” Jordan had Sarah, her hands and feet tied, lips sealed by tape, and he was holding a knife against her throat.

Luke slammed on the brake pedal as he arrived at the cottage, and the car came to a sudden, heart-stopping halt, the smell of burnt rubber emanating from the tires.

“Put that knife down!” Luke demanded as he and Catherine climbed out of the car. “Please! Catherine is here now, so leave Sarah alone!”

“You are not one who makes the rules here, Luke!” Mr. Cox smirked. “Walk 30 steps away from the car! And you,” he turned to Catherine. “Get back in the car!”

“OK, OK, I’m doing as you say, alright?” he said timidly. “That knife…just lower it! Catherine, I’m sorry,” Luke said, turning to face her.

As Catherine got back into the car, Luke sneakily dropped his fitness band with activated GPS into the car door pocket, pretending to close the door.

“What do you think you are doing?” Mr. Cox yelled. He pressed the knife further against Sarah’s skin, and Luke shuddered.

“NO, please, I was just…I’m coming!” He quickly ran those steps, and Mr. Cox pushed Sarah away and ran to his car.

He locked the door and drove away while Luke was busy untying the ropes around Sarah’s hands and feet.

“Dad, what do we do now?” Sarah asked, panting. “He…he took her away.”

“Don’t worry, princess,” Luke said after planting tearful kisses on his daughter’s forehead. “We’ll help her out, OK? Let’s find our way to the road first.”

Luke and his daughter ran out of the forest together, hoping to spot someone who could help them. The sun had started setting, and it was getting darker. They needed to escape the foliage before it was too late.

Twigs snapped beneath their feet as they sprinted through the forest, and Luke’s heartbeat was so fast from the run that he could almost hear the sound of his heart throbbing in his ears. Holding his daughter’s hand tightly, he finally arrived at the road at the exit of the forest.

“Dad, what if we can’t find help in time?” Sarah was getting pessimistic, and even Luke was scared. But he tried to remain calm.

“Somebody will surely help us, princess. Have faith!” he said as they waited for a car, truck, or anything to cross the road.

About five minutes later, they saw a car approaching and ran to the middle of the road, waving their arms.

“Here! Help us!” They chorused, and the kind driver stopped the car.

“Please call 911!” Luke requested as he dashed to the man’s window. “Our friend is in trouble. Please!”

The police arrived in five minutes, and Luke told the officers everything—how Jordan had held him and Catherine captive and how he was now going to kill Catherine.

“I did manage to toss my bracelet into the car,” he told the officers. “We can track them down!”

The officers nodded as they exchanged glances, and Luke and Sarah got into the police cruiser. They drove along the geolocation shown by Luke’s fitness bracelet. And along the way, the cops contacted the patrol that was in the area Jordan was driving through.

“Alerting all units! A man has held a woman captive and escaped with her in a black SUV! The target goes by the name J. Cox. J stands for Jordan. Repeating the target’s name: J. Cox. The victim is a 30-something woman named Catherine. She claims to have amnesia, and her real name is Alice…”

“Dad, the tracker!” Sarah suddenly said, distracting everyone. “It stopped!”

The cops sped up and rushed to the location shown on the GPS. While they were still on the way, a voice appeared from the transmitter, “…We’ve got him! Target is in custody. He was trying to throw the woman off the bridge!!”

“Oh god, Dad! We got him!” Sarah hugged Luke excitedly, and Luke’s racing heart finally calmed down.

“Yes, we did it, princess,” he said, heaving a sigh of relief. “We did it!”

The cops drove to the location where Mr. Cox was apprehended, and as they arrived, Sarah and John saw Mr. Cox being led to a police cruiser while Catherine was sitting on the pavement with a female officer, her head buried in her palms.

Luke put an arm around Sarah as they approached Catherine. “Hey,” he said, and she immediately looked up, tears in her eyes.

“Oh god! Luke! Are—Are you OK?” she asked worriedly.

“We are fine, Catherine,” he said with a slight smile. “Are you alright?”

“The ambulance will be here soon,” she sighed, nodding.

“You must be…” she added, looking at Sarah, then at Luke.

“Hey, I’m Sarah!” Sarah introduced herself, and they all sat there on the pavement talking before the ambulance arrived.

“We’ll come to visit you at the hospital. Take care,” Luke told Catherine as the ambulance doors were closed.

Sarah waved goodbye to Catherine, then she looked up at her dad. “She’s pretty, Dad, isn’t she? You must’ve liked her!”

A shy smile appeared on Luke’s face as the ambulance disappeared into the distance.

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