Desperate Times, Desperate Measures

"So now what?" Mandy said to herself once they got control and went inside.

She still had too little money, and now she was faced with having to hire an attorney, court fees, and who knew what else.

She called a friend of a friend who referred an attorney to her, and he agreed to represent her 'pro bono' during what was essentially an arraignment, although with minors and juvenile court, many terms were different. After that, she would have to pay his hourly fee of $250 an hour, which, by attorney standards, was very cheap.

Courtney wouldn't face a trial or a jury, but she would have to come back in two weeks for a hearing in which the judge would listen to both sides and make a decision. She could be let off with probation or some kind of community service or possibly even do some amount of time in juvenile hall. That was unlikely, but it was at least a possibility, and that, too, made her mom sick to her stomach for many reasons, not the least of which was the thought of her daughter incarcerated with 'hardened' criminals'.

As pressures mounted at the bank for Mandy to 'scratch her boss's back', she was reaching her breaking point when another woman who worked there told her out of the blue a couple of days later Mrs. Martin had died.

"Oh, my God. When? How?" Mandy asked.

"Two or three days ago maybe? Not long after she stopped by here. I heard it was a heart attack. Poor thing lived all alone. I don't think she has any family around here, but she once mentioned a son who lives in Colorado. I don't think they found her until this morning. She has a dozen or so cats and they were all starving. It's just so sad, you know?"

"That's awful!" Mandy said hoping she hadn't laid there suffering until she passed.

"Anyway, once they reach her next of kin, I'm sure he'll be here for the safety-deposit box—if he thinks it's worth the trip. If not, well, you know the rules."

Mandy did know the rules. By heart. And she knew they gave her time to do something she'd just thought of and for which she immediately felt ashamed.

And yet for the rest of that day and the next two, all she could think of was how no one on earth, except for possibly this estranged son of Mrs. Martin, knew what was inside that box. She wouldn't have to take it all. Just what would fit in her own purse on the way out one day. She knew she could easily get away with it, and avoid the security camera issue as she knew how to adjust them and/or turn them off for up to two minutes without the manager's approval. There wouldn't be any hidden alarms, the money wouldn't be marked, and no ink pack would explode were she to try and spend it.

The following day she mentally wrestled with the problem again, and just before lunch made her decision. What pushed her over the top was what her branch manager said just before lunch time.

"So, I noticed you're more than two months behind again or your mortgage. If you can't take care of that by the end of the month, I may have to begin foreclosure, and that would be a shame; a real shame considering how easily that could be avoided."

That look on his face made her sick again, and in that moment she knew what she was going to do. And just after five o'clock, she walked out with a purse stuffed with wads of cash. Mrs. Martin had 'deposited' mostly rolls of $20s, but there were at least a dozen made up of $50s and two with $100s. Her heart was racing with fear as she carefully transferred them from the safety-deposit box to her purse before struggling to return the heavy box, with most of its contents still in place, back to where it belonged.

No one even glanced her way as she walked out and, of course, no alarm sounded. Once she was home, Mandy took the money upstairs and locked her door and began counting. When she finished, she counted again, and the amount she'd taken stunned her.

Just the two wads of $100s were worth more than $25,000. The rest of the cash added up to nearly another 25-grand giving her nearly $50,000 in cold, hard, untraceable, tax-free cash.

An hour later, once the adrenalin rush wore off, the realization of what she'd done gave her a migraine headache so severe she finally vomited several times. Fortunately, the weekend had arrived, and Mandy had the next two days to decide what to do with the money she'd...stolen. Just the sound of that word made her queasy whenever it came to mind, and it was coming to mind every few seconds.

By Monday, she came to the realization this wasn't a bell she could unring. What was done was done. Therefore, Mandy decided she would: pay her mortgage up to date plus one month, pay the attorney representing Courtney, and do at least one nice thing with her daughter. Well, if she didn't lose her nerve and return the money. Then again, how could she possibly return it without incriminating herself? Getting it out was one thing. Risking putting it back seemed even more reckless.

No, she'd have to either spend the money, hide it, or possibly burn it, as giving it back was now impossible without going to jail.

During her lunch hour, Mandy went to another bank, and, after laying out several thousand dollars in cash, asked for a certified check in the amount she was past due on her home loan and the next month's payment. She then asked for another large enough to cover the cost of the attorney's fees. She would then use cash to buy groceries for the rest of the month, and to cover a weekend at Crystal Mountain ski resort, a place where they'd regularly gone when Mandy's husband still lived at home. After that, well, she'd worry about that then.

She and her daughter loved to both ski and snowboard, and Mandy decided she would do this for her daughter and try not to think about how she was paying for it.

When she returned to her bank, she knocked on the branch manager's door then said, "Do you have a moment?"

"For you? Of course," he said with a smile.

Mandy sat down then he closed the door and took his seat.

"So...have you maybe changed your mind?" he said with that sickening smile of his.

"No, actually I haven't, but I have decided to clear this up," she said.

"How so?" he asked.

Mandy slid the certified check his way and said, "This will put me back even plus cover the next month's payment."

The balding, heavyset man pushed it back and said, "I hope you're not late on a payment from here on out...Ms. Barrow."

"That's my problem, sir," she said. "But for now, I'm caught up, right?"

She picked up the check then went to deposit it, wondering how he'd react and if his reaction might be vindictive. As with the remaining money, she'd worry about that if and when it happened, but for now, she'd bought herself, of rather—stolen—some breathing room.

Courtney was beside herself that evening when her mom said where they were going that weekend.

"But we can't afford this, Mom!" she said immediately. "Wait. Did Dad give us some money?"

"No. I won't take money from your father," she told her, knowing she had taken money from someone. "Ever."

"So...we're really going skiing? For three whole days?"

"Well, Friday afternoon and all day Saturday and most of Sunday, yes," her mom told her.

"I love you so much!" Courtney said excitedly as she hugged her mom who was still being torn apart by what she'd done.

Mandy minded her p's and q's the entire week then left at noon on Friday having used four hours of sick leave to make it as close to a true three-day weekend as she could. She swung by the school, picked up her daughter, then stopped by the house to change and throw the bags they'd already packed into the car.

Mandy hadn't seen her daughter this happy since before her father left. She was chatty the entire way, and back to her normal old self. As bad as she felt for what she'd done, Mandy couldn't help but think it may have been worth it just to see her daughter acting the way she used to. And if this could help break her out of the long-running funk Courtney had been in, it would almost certainly be worth it. Almost.

At the lodge, they went inside to make sure their chalet was ready, and the clerk informed them it was. She handed Mandy two electronic key cards and wished them a pleasant stay.

"Mom! This is so awesome!" Courtney said once they walked into their large, spacious room made of wooden logs with a huge area built around a massive fireplace. The room was also very-nicely decorated and well worth the cost.

"You deserve something nice," her mom said.

"Even though I stole that food?" her daughter said, reminding her yet again of she herself had done.

"Let's not think about that the rest of this weekend, okay?" he mom said as they started putting their bags away.

A few moments later, they heard the door being unlocked and nearly panicked.

"What in the world?" Mandy said, thinking it had to be room service even though it was early afternoon, and room service would have knocked first.

The door flung open, and a man in his early-to-mid-20s stepped inside, saw them, and said, "Um...excuse me, but what are you doing in my chalet?"

Mandy moved closer and said, "What are you doing in my chalet?"

He stood there staring at her then reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper.

"Here. Look," he said. "See this? This is my room."

Mandy wasn't looking. She was pulling out her receipt and began reading.

"Occupant is hereby purchasing for the period of two nights and three days..."

She stopped reading and went to show the man who was trying to show hers then read it again.

"Three days...one half of one chalet."

"What in the world?" she said again.

He looked at his and read the same thing.

"Half a chalet."

"Well, that is not okay!" Mandy said as both of them reached for their cell phones.

Within seconds both of them had their answer: there were no other rooms available. None. At any price. There were also no motels all the way back down the mountain until the town of Enumclaw some 50 miles away.

"I guess we're stuck with one another," she told him.

"Well, at least it's divided up so we won't have to spend any time together," he said.

Almost immediately he apologized.

"I'm sorry. That is not how I meant that. I was only trying to say..."

Mandy's attitude also changed and she said, "No. I understand. And you're right. Other than the kitchen, we have separate spaces so it shouldn't be a problem, right?"

She'd been too upset to notice he was a very handsome man. Not just good looking but...gorgeous.

Courtney hadn't been too busy, and once he was on his side and his room, she whispered, "Oh, my God, Mom! He is like super hot!"

"Oh, I hadn't noticed," Mandy said even though he was good looking enough to cause her body to react to his presence.

"He's like way too old for me, but...not for you," Courtney said.

Mandy's eyes opened wide as she said, "Um, excuse me? He may be a lot older than you, but he's a lot younger than me. A lot."

"So? He's an adult, so what's the big deal?"

Caught off guard by her daughter's remark, Mandy wasn't sure what to say.

"Okay. That's true, but he might be married or engaged or..."

"Who me?" they heard a male say.

"Oh. Sorry. I didn't think you could hear us," Mandy said now thoroughly embarrassed.

"I'm not," he said, flashing a gorgeous smile their way along with a bare left hand he held up for them to see. "Married, that is. Or engaged."

"My mom thinks you're hot," Courtney said out of the blue.

"Courtney Michelle Barrow!" her mother said in full-exasperation mode.

The younger man chuckled, walked back over to them then said, "I'm Heath. Davis."

He extended his hand, and after a few uncomfortable moments, Mandy shook it.

"Mandy. Barrows. And this is my soon-to-be-dead daughter, Courtney."

Courtney smiled back at him while ignoring her mom and shook his hand, too.

"My mom isn't married, either. Or engaged," she said as her mother's facial expression returned to horror.

"I...I don't even know you!" Mandy said as Heath laughed again.

"Good to know," he said still chuckling.

He looked at his watch then said, "I hate to break up this amazing mother-daughter moment, but I really need to get downstairs. I want check out the snowboards on display."

"Oh, right. We need a couple of those ourselves, don't we, Court?" he mom said.

"We do. We only have skis, remember?"

"Right. Yes. Um...okay, well, we'll be right down, too, I guess," Mandy told him.

"Maybe I'll see you there," he said, flashing that incredible smile again.

Before she could say anything to her daughter, Heath stopped at the door then turned and said to Courtney, "For the record, your mom is pretty hot, too."

Courtney smiled then started laughing as Mandy once again got that look on her face. Heath just smiled and left the room.

"I...I think we may need to pack up and go home," Mandy said, wondering if her face was as red as it felt.

"Mom, he's just flirting with you. Relax, okay? I mean, you are single, so what's the big deal, right?"

"Well, I...I suppose it's not all that big a deal, it's just that he's...he's so...young and..."

"And?" Courtney asked.

"Never mind," her mom said. "I wouldn't expect you to understand."

"That's because you know I'm right," Courtney said as she turned her head almost upside down as she walked in front of her mom, putting her upside-down face close to hers and smiling as she went by.

"I think I'm going to go downstairs and rent us a couple of boards now," Mandy said trying to ignore her daughter. "You wanna come with?"

"No. You go ahead," Courtney said with an evil smile. "I can wait up here for you."

"Suit yourself," her mom said, grateful not to have to keep talking about who was 'hot'.

The lodge had a large selection of equipment available for rental, as well as for sale. Mandy knew she wouldn't be doing this again anytime soon, so buying was out of the question. A three-day rental would be more than enough for her and her daughter.

Her eyes gravitated toward the snowboards that were neatly displayed by brand, and although she was no expert, Mandy knew that Barton boards were the most popular and one of the best. She also knew the Mysterious Board was their best product and saw two of them on the rental rack. The price was going to be steep, but well, she did have the money.

That thought alone caused another wave of guilt to wash over her which she tried to crush or at least suppress.

She removed one of the boards then set it on the floor then reached up to grab the second. When she did, it seemed to pull back. She looked at it then saw a hand on the other end pulling it in the opposite direction.

"Excuse me. I'm renting this board," Mandy said with a bit of an edge to her voice when she saw who was holding it.

"Um, no, excuse me," Heath said. "I believe I got here first, and it's first-come, first-served."

Mandy made a scoffing noise, and without letting go of the board said, "No. You were not here first. I bent down and when I went stood back up, you were there. And you grabbed it just as I did."

Heath let go then said, "Honestly, if you want it, you'll have to wait. That goes for the other one, too."

"What do you mean by that?" she asked.

"May I?" Heath said.

Mandy slowly let go so he could take the board and turn it over.

"See this? That number means only 50 of this board were made and this signature means they were handmade by the #1 guy in the business."

Mandy saw the name but didn't recognize it. She also saw the number and could only take his word for it that it meant what he said it did.

"Then why is it for rent?" she asked.

"It's not," Heath told her. "Take a look at the sign above the rack."

Right between several racks of rental boards was this one that said, "Charity Auction Boards."

"What auction?" Mandy asked.

"Tomorrow night. The guy who made these boards will be here. All of the money is going toward helping kids who can't afford to snowboard or ski learn how."

"Oh. Well, that's pretty wonderful, actually. Okay, so I guess if that's the case, I can take a look at some other boards then."

She looked at Heath then asked why he was reaching for it.

"I was making sure it was one of the signed boards. That's all," he told her.

Mandy gave him a kind of dismissive look then stepped over toward the rack of boards that definitely was for rent.

"May I offer some assistance?" Heath asked. His voice had changed and sounded very sincere and helpful.

"Well, I suppose that couldn't hurt," Mandy said. "Do you know a lot about snowboards?"

"A little," he said in a non-committal kind of way.

"I haven't snowboarded in years, so I think that might be helpful," she said allowing her voice to soften, too.

"So we need to find one that's the right length and width for you, and that takes into your skill level," he said. "Are you also looking for your daughter?"

"Yes, actually. We haven't done anything like this in a few years, but we used to come here to ski all time. We've both snowboarded several times, but we're a lot better on skis."

"Yeah, but snowboarding is so much fun, right?" Heath said with a smile.

"Oh, no kidding. Don't get me wrong. I love rocketing down the slopes on skis, but there's something almost magical about riding one of these," she said now smiling herself, having forgotten about money for at least a while.

"Do you do moguls?" he asked.

"We did that once the last time we were here maybe...what...two years ago?" Mandy said.

"Come on. I've got two different boards in mind I think you'll love that should be well-suited for you."

Heath helped her select the one that was the best size for her and then for Courtney who was only a couple of inches shorter than her mom who was 5' 7".

"Okay. I'll take your advice and go with these," Mandy told him.

"May I carry them upfront for you?" he asked politely.

"Well, okay. Thank you. That's very kind of you to offer."

As they walked the thirty feet or so to the register, Heath said, "I hope I didn't embarrass you upstairs. I was only kidding around."

"Oh, so I'm not 'smokin' hot' after all, huh?" Mandy teased.

Heath stopped and waited for Mandy to do the same.

"No, I wasn't kidding about that part. You are definitely a very attractive woman, Mandy."

The way he said it was even more disarming than what he said, and Mandy was at a loss for what to say in reply.

All she could think to say was, "Thank you...Heath."

She went to turn back toward the register when he said, "Listen, I was wondering if you and your daughter might like to join me for dinner tonight. On me, of course."

"Oh, I don't know. I...I don't really...date or anything," she said immediately feeling silly for assuming it was a date.

"We don't have to call that," Heath said.

He waited for a second then added, "Unless you'd like to."

"I'm not sure. It's very, very sweet of you to offer, but maybe we should just hang out...separately."

"Okay, but if you change your mind, I'll be in the dining room around 8pm," he told her. "For now, I'm gonna try and get in a couple of runs before we lose daylight."

He set the boards on the counter and asked if he could do anything else.

"No. But thank you for your help, Heath. It was nice having a kind of expert to give me some advice."

"My pleasure, Mandy. Well, I guess I'll see you either on the slopes or back in the chalet then."

"Yes. I'm sure we'll bump into each other again a time or two," she said with a polite smile.

"I hope so," Heath said before excusing himself.

He took a few steps then looked back, and just as he thought, Mandy was looking at him. He smiled at her and she looked away so fast he feared she might have hurt her neck.

"You thinking about hittin' that, Heath?" he heard a familiar voice say quietly.