Inheritance - Recap

In the kitchen of the Miller farmhouse, Ellen and her son Jeff are preparing to attend the reading of neighbor Homer Carey's will. Jeff complains about having to dress for the event. Ellen sends Jeff to his room for a tie. When Jeff leaves the room, Gramps asks Ellen if Jeff "suspects anything." Ellen wishes Jeff entertained some suspicions about the reading of the will -- thinking such suspicions would make his behavior less disagreeable. Jeff returns. Gramps tells Jeff that later in the day they'll go fishing on the lake. Ellen notices Jeff is carrying something bulky in his pocket and she insists he reveal it. It's a jar of ants! Gramps takes charge of the ants; Ellen and Jeff leave.

At the Carey farmhouse, Ellen and Jeff arrive a bit late The reading of the will is in progress but the Millers are introduced to the Carey relations. Matt Willis, a hired man on the Carey farm is present for the reading and tells Ellen he'll be leaving for California when the business at hand is concluded.

The reading of the will is continued. Matt has been left $50 and an unflattering comment from the dead Homer Carey. It is evident that Homer Carey did not have much regard for his hired man. Ellen is bequeathed Homer's household furnishings and Jeff receives Homer's dog Lassie. Jeff is delighted.

Lassie is lying on the hearth. Jeff kneels at her side and embraces her. Jeff is told he may take Lassie outside. When Matt lifts Lassie to take her outdoors, she growls. Lassie does not like Matt any more than her master did. Matt says Lassie has been behaving in such a manner since Homer Carey died. He carries Lassie to the front door and drops her on the porch. Jeff joins her. Lassie shows no interest in Jeff. He reminds her that he always played with her in the past. Lassie is indifferent.

Young Edgar Carey, a boy about Jeff's age, comes from the house and taunts Jeff. The boys fight. Ellen, Mrs. Carey, and Matt rush from the house to part the boys. Lassie runs into the house when she finds the opportunity.

In the parlor while the boys fight outside, Emmett Carey tells the lawyer that his uncle Homer had $2,000 somewhere in the house. The lawyer disclaims any knowledge of the money. Matt steps into the room to fetch Lassie for the Millers and overhears the brief conversation.

Matt puts a rope around Lassie's neck and takes the dog outside. The Millers put the dog in the car and leave for home.

Ellen and Jeff arrive home. Gramps meets them in the farmyard. Jeff jumps from the car and excitedly tells his grandfather about Lassie being his own. When Jeff opens the car door however, Lassie rushes out and runs away. She stands a moment at the end of the driveway and looks at Jeff, then turns and runs down the road. Jeff is in tears and begs Gramps to go after her. Ellen gives her assent. Gramps and Jeff get into the car and drive after Lassie.

At the Carey farmhouse, Jeff and Gramps find Lassie on the hearth. Lassie growls at the Millers. Matt enters the room with a crowbar and tells Gramps Lassie is must leave. He's closing up the house prior to his departure and she'll have no systenance once he leaves. Matt tries to move Lassie. She resists. She growls fiercely. Jeff cries out when it appears Matt is going to handle Lassie roughly. Gramps manages to get Lassie out of the house.

Later that night Jeff wakes in his room. He expects to find Lassie asleep beside his bed. She's gone. Jeff is frantic. He leaps from his bed and looks out the window. Lassie is running down the drive. He calls to her. She looks back. Then, uncertainly, she turns to the road and runs off. Jeff sinks on his bed in tears.

Lassie runs to the Carey house. Finding the front door closed, she jumps through a window at the back of the house. She steps across the darkened hall to the parlor and returns to her place on the hearth. Matt is prowling about the house with a flashlight. When Matt enters the parlor, Lassie growls threateningly. Matt shuts her in the parlor and continues to prowl about the house.

At dawn, Jeff slips away from home carrying a jug of water. He heads for the Carey house. On the road, he meets the mail carrier who offers him a lift in his truck to the Carey house. Jeff accepts.

At the Carey farmhouse the mail carrier drops Jeff off and tells him he will return in 10 or 15 minutes. He drives away. Jeff finds the front door locked and enters the house through an opened window at the back of the house. Jeff finds Lassie on the hearth and talks to her lovingly. Lassie is indifferent. He feeds and waters her then discovers a loose brick on the hearth that conceals Homer Carey's fortune of $2000. Matt enters the room and takes the money from Jeff, shoving Jeff to the floor. Lassie growls angrily. Matt shuts Lassie and Jeff in the parlor and runs from the house. Lassie leaps through a window, shattering the glass. She runs after Matt. Jeff crawls through the broken window. The mail carrier returns and is apprised of the situation by Jeff. They rush after Matt.

Matt runs through a field with Lassie on his heels. At the edge of a lake, Matt battles Lassie and tosses her into the bushes. He jumps into a rowboat at the water's edge. Lassie rushes him and topples him into the water. Matt pushes Lassie under the water then struggles to the bank. Jeff and the mail carrier arrive, The mail carrier fells Matt with a punch to the jaw. The stolen money is recovered from Matt's pocket.

Back at the Miller farmhouse, Gramps and Ellen marvel at the $2000 that Jeff has brought home with him. Jeff calls his mother and grandfather to the farmyard for a demonstration of Lassie's tricks. Jeff throws a stick to the end of the drive. Lassie runs after it and picks it up. She pauses -- undecided whether to return to Jeff or run off again. She looks down the road as if to go and then back at Jeff. Jeff's face is filled with anxious hope and love. Ellen and Gramps watch. Lassie turns and rushes to Jeff. Jeff is overjoyed. Lassie has made her decision -- she will stay with Jeff.

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