Coming back from the army, the guy kicked out his unfaithful wife and their illegitimate child. And getting rid of her things, he was dumbfounded by such a find…

Old John slowly made his way into the general store and muttered a quiet curse under his breath. Once again, all the town gossips were gathered at the counter. Didn’t they have anything better to do than chatter away?

He couldn’t stand those whispering hens, and he hated gritting his teeth in frustration. At least he saw them very rarely these days. When they offered him the job as a forest ranger with a cabin at the nearby station, he agreed without a second thought, since he was alone anyway, so why not?

In fact, that was what bothered the women the most. He was a free man, you could say a bachelor, and even he had fled the town. But it hadn’t always been like that.

Back in the day, he wasn’t Old John yet, but Johnny, the tractor driver, the top guy in town. And he had a fiancée, Annie. He’d noticed the girl back in school, and after graduation, she returned his feelings.

She promised to wait for him during his military service, and she kept her word. Johnny came home from the army on wings of happiness. Right away, he and Annie filed for marriage, had a big wedding, and started living together.

Then, in the eighth month, Annie went into labor. She gave birth to a weak little boy, but he was viable enough. Bad thoughts started creeping into Johnny’s head.

But he pushed them away. Annie couldn’t have cheated on him; their love was too strong. But there were kind folks who hurried to open his eyes about how his fiancée had waited.

And Johnny believed it. He couldn’t not believe it. It wasn’t the gossips who whispered it.

His best friend revealed the secret. And he wouldn’t lie. They were sitting in the sauna at the time.

Johnny had just decided to fix the roof there. So Pete offered to help. After work, they wanted to have a drink to unwind.

Annie and the baby had been home for a week already. But for some reason, she couldn’t stand Pete. Knowing that, Johnny went home first.

He grabbed a bottle and some simple snacks. There was plenty of space in the sauna. So they settled in there.

They had one drink. Then another. That’s when Pete casually asked…