Windfall

  “Of course not, they will make an insurance claim and get every penny back. The insurance company may take a hit, but that is what they are there for. Trust me, no one is going to miss this money. Two point five million dollars is nothing to a large bank, but to us, it’ll drastically change our lives. It will allow you to become a nurse to help people, and it will allow me to inspire countless people through my music. It’s win-win.”

  “I guess.”

  “Let’s lay low for now, and figure out a plan for all this money.”

  Riley went to the closet and pulled out a large Rubbermaid bin. In it were old keepsakes that they never looked at – photo albums, hockey skates, a basketball pump… He emptied out the bin and neatly stacked the money inside. When he was done, the money fit perfectly allowing enough room for the lid to fasten.

  “Okay, there it is,” he said.

  “It won’t exactly fit under our bed now will it?”

  “No, but we can just place it back in the closet. No one will think that there’s anything of value in it.”

  “Okay.”

  “Can you help me push it back into place?”

  When the money was in its new location, Riley and Jade decided to go downtown for lunch.

  Chapter Five

 

  It definitely felt nice to have a little bit of pocket money for a change. They ate at a fancy restaurant, where people who looked like them didn’t normally eat. When the bill came, they paid with crisp hundred dollar bills. On the way out, they bumped into Jade’s manager.

  “Hey, Jade, Riley – how’s it going?” he said.

  “We’re good, how are you?”

  “Funny bumping into you guys. What are you up to?”

  “Nothing,” Jade said nervously.

  “Did you guys just have lunch at Premier’s?” her manager asked.

  “Umm… no, we were just saying hello to a friend.”

  “You’re not thinking about leaving us and working here are you?” her manager said.

  “No, of course not.”

  “Okay, then. I have some more errands to run. I’ll see you later tonight.”

  “Yeah, see you.”

  “That was uncomfortable. Good cover-up though.”

  “Yeah, I think pretending we don’t have money may be harder than I originally thought. We’re already lying to people, and I hate lying.”

  “It’s just the nature of the terrain. Nobody said this was going to be easy, but considering what we get in exchange, I’m willing to put up with it.”

  The couple decided to spend the rest of the afternoon window shopping. Even though they each had a wad of money in of their pockets and loads more back home, they agreed not to buy anything over $100.

  Riley walked into a leather shop and was enamored by all the items. He spent over an hour trying things on. He envisioned being decked out head to toe in leather and rocking out to a crowd of 80,000 screaming fans. His dreams were big and he now had a bank account to support those dreams, but walking away was still the right thing to do.

  Jade dragged him out of the store to entertain a dream of her own. She found herself staring through the glass cases at Tiffany & Co. What was once unattainable suddenly became options. Even a small chain cost more than her allotted budget so she reluctantly withdrew from the store and carried on.

  “Maybe we should stop, this is torture,” Jade said.

  “I agree!”

  “What is happening to us? Why do we suddenly have this insatiable desire to consume? That is not like us.”

  “Because neither of us have ever had anything before. The natural tendency for anybody to have a sudden windfall of money would be to go crazy. So far, I think we’re doing a pretty good job of controlling our greed demons.”

  “Greed demons?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Okay.”

  “What should we do now?”

  “I think we should look for a new apartment. That way, you have a reason to quit your job, and start a new life.”

  “What happened to laying low?”

  “We will still lay low. We won’t be driving Lamborghinis or anything. This is just a new apartment, people move all the time, right?”

  “I suppose.”

  ***

  They walked into the showroom of a swanky downtown apartment complex.

  “Hello,” the woman greeted them. “Can I help you?”

  “No, thanks, we’re just looking.”

  “The starting price is $480,000,” the lady said.

  “Okay, thanks.”

  “So what are you guys looking for?”

  “We’re just taking a look.”

  The lady was persistent. It was obvious by her tone that she wasn’t expecting a sale out of Riley and Jade. They didn’t look like the typical customers. They realized that they didn’t exactly fit the mold of the average home buyer, but they still resented the attitude from the lady who undoubtedly made less than 20 grand a year. The woman continued to berate the couple with questions. Not the kind of friendly questions you ask to get to know someone, the kind of probing questions a commission-based sales associate asked to suss out whether or not you have any money.

  “Are you guys renting or do you own.”

  “Ah… renting right now.”

  “Oh, alright. Do you live in the neighbourhood already?” the woman asked.

  “No.”

  “What neighbourhood do you live in?”

  Riley and Jade looked at each other and didn’t answer. Revealing the location of their rental property would immediately identify them as low-rungers.

  “Do you guys have the day off today?”

  “He does, but I have to work later.”

  “What do you guys do for work?”

  “You know what, you cut the act, okay? I know what you’re doing,” Riley said as he lost his cool. He pulls out a wad of hundred dollar bills and fans it out. “I have more money in my pocket than you have in your bank account, so I don’t appreciate you talking down to us, alright?”

  The lady looked dumbfounded.

  “Come on, let’s go,” Riley said as he pulled Jade by the arm out of the store.

  The two stormed out of the office. Riley was pissed off, but had a smug smirk on his face. It felt good to flaunt his money in someone’s face. His whole life, he was an outcast. Whether it was his tattoos, wild hair, or piercings, he had been turned down and rejected by most sects of society. Now that he had money, it was a way for him to give them all the middle finger.

  “Riley, what was that?” Jade asked.

  “You saw how that lady was talking down to us, nobody talks down to us anymore. I could buy that stupid lady.”

  “You’re being ridiculous.”

  “Am I?”

  “Look. I didn’t like it any more than you did, but you can’t go around spazzing-out at people all the time. Some people just have narrow minds and if they can’t accept you for who you are, or judge you based on your appearance, then let them be.”

  “I just didn’t like the way she made me feel. She just wrote us off like we were some punk kids.”

  “I know, but storming out of there only makes you look childish. We need to take the higher road.”

  “You’re right. It still felt good to shove all that money in her face.”

  “Come on.”

  Chapter Six

 

  Riley sat on the worn-out couch with his feet propped up by a plastic milk crate. He looked around his dismal basement-suite apartment with nothing but an idle mind and millions of dollars sitting in a bin in the closet. Not being able to spend it was agonizing.

  “The gift and the curse,” Riley mumbled to himself.

  “What’s that?” Jade said from the other room. She was busy getting ready for her shift at the restaurant.

  “You know, I think you might be the richest waitress in the history of the world, Jade.”

  “What’s your point?”


  “Nothing.”

  Just then, there was a knock on the door. Riley got up to answer it. He had a feeling of who it was, but a part of him figured it might be the police acting on the testimony of an eye-witness. He looked through the peephole, it was pitch black.

  “Who is it?”

  “What’s with the maximum security?” Jay asked. This time, Riley opened the door. “What’s up, man?” Jay said.

  “Nothing, I’m just about to walk Jade to work.”

  “Then what are your plans?”

  “Don’t have any.”

  “Sweet, you wanna hang out?”

  “Sure.”

  Jade came out of the bedroom a few moments later and greeted Jay.

  “Are you ready?” Riley asked.

  “Yeah.”

  The three of them proceeded to walk the nine blocks to Jade’s work.

  “You guys hear about the robbery that took place last night?”

  “A robbery? No,” Riley said nervously.

  “Yeah, apparently one of those armoured vehicles was hijacked and robbed by terrorists just a few blocks from here.”

  “How did you hear about it?”

  “It was on the news this morning. The whole neighbourhood is talking about it.”

  “Terrorists you say?”

  “Yeah, they basically flipped the truck over, incapacitated the guards and made off with a sick bounty!”

  “Sounds like something out of a movie,” Riley remarked. He and Jade exchanged a quick look.

  “Yeah, it’s crazy.”

  “Why do they think it was terrorists, were there any eye witnesses?”

  “Nothing has been released yet, but the reporter said that police were following up on a few leads.”

  When they got to the restaurant, Jay went into the bathroom.

  “Riley, I think we should turn the money in.”

  “Don’t be foolish, just be cool.”

  “You heard what Dieffer said, the police are following up on a few leads.”

  “The police always say that.”

  “Look, I’m working the night shift tonight, same as last night. It won’t take a genius to figure out that my shift ended shortly before the truck was robbed. Heck, Dieffer nearly put two and two together.”

  “It’s a good thing that Dieffer is not a genius.”

  “Yeah, but my manager saw us coming out of a really expensive restaurant this morning.”

  “Yeah, and he will see you coming into a really inexpensive restaurant this evening. Just be cool, act as if everything is normal, and we’ll be in the clear when this all blows over.”

  “What about the guards?”

  “The guards didn’t see anything.”

  “I think I said your name when you were helping them.”

  “You’re thinking too much. If the guards heard the name Riley, then I would already be arrested right now. It’s not like that it’s a common name. Let the police do their job, if they catch us then they catch us, but until then, finders keepers.”

  “Okay.”

  “Have a good shift. I’ll see you at midnight.”

  At this time, Jay Dieffer came out of the bathroom. “You want to get something to eat?” he asked.

  “Umm… no, I got no money,” Riley responded.

  “Alright, let’s just hang out at your place.”

  “We can’t, I don’t have any food.”

  “Not to worry, I think I have a frozen pizza. I’ll bring it over.”

  “Why don’t we just hang out at your place?”

  “I’m beginning to think you don’t want me at your place, man.”

  “I was thinking the same thing about you.”

  “Alright, fair enough.”

  They arrived at the apartment building and went inside Jay’s apartment. They came out a few moments later with a frozen pizza and two sodas.

  “I didn’t have any beer so these will have to do. Sorry, I’m broke too,” Jay said.

  Jay held onto the pizza box until Riley unlocked the door. When they got in, Jay handed Riley the box. “Here, can you make this, I gotta use the washroom.”

  “You just went!”

  “I know, I have a weak bladder.”

  Riley put the pizza on the counter while he preheated the oven. After that, he put some ice in two glasses and poured the soda in. He took his time in the kitchen tidying up a bit.

  Jay came out and sat on the couch. “Dude, what happened to your TV?” Jay asked.

  “Sold it.”

  “You should have asked me, I would have bought it off you.”

  “With what, you don’t have any money.”

  “I could have paid you in salt, just like the olden days.”

  “They used to pay people in salt?” Riley asked inquisitively.

  “Yeah, you didn’t know that? I thought everyone knew that.”

  “Never heard of it.”

  “Here,” Riley said as he returned from the kitchen with two beverages.

  “Sweet, you put ice in mine. Thanks!”

  “I’ve never seen a guy get so excited about ice.”

  “It’s what it’s all about – having ice in your cup. You know it’s a modern invention. Back in the day, kings didn’t even have ice. Did you know that?”

  “I hadn’t really thought about it.”

  “Yeah, man. We’re living better than kings.”

  “What are you talking about? Look around, this isn’t exactly a palace!”

  “You know what would have been sweet? Imagine you were there when those terrorists hijacked that truck.”

  It was a topic that Riley wanted to steer clear of, so he nervously took a sip of his drink and left the room. He made some excuse to go into the kitchen. The oven was far from ready, but he put the pizza in anyway and took out some dishes. He was hoping his removal from the conversation would be enough to switch topics completely, but with no other form of entertainment, that seemed like the best thing to talk about.

  “I mean, imagine that they dropped a stack of money or something and you came by and found it. Even finding a couple hundred bucks would be awesome.”

  “Yeah, that would be awesome.”

  “Until you try to spend it, then you might get arrested.”

  Riley’s heart started to pound. “Why would you get arrested?” he asked.

  “Because, you know how it is, right. All the money is traceable through the serial numbers written on them.”

  “I doubt that they have the serial numbers of all the bills written down.”

  “Yeah, who knows? I guess we’ll find out. Somewhere, someone is trying to spend that money. I guarantee it!”

  “So what have you been up to, man?” Riley asked in an attempt to change the subject.

  “I’m still working for the same landscaping company. It’s hard work, but rewarding, you know?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Wait, you wouldn’t know about working hard, would you?”

  “I work hard,” Riley retorted.

  “Really? When have you worked hard?”

  “I may not do physical labour, but I write all my own songs, I put in countless hours practicing the guitar, and singing, I have to promote gigs, set-up equipment, perform, meet fans…”

  “Oh come on, you had me until you mentioned that last one. You don’t have any fans, now I know you’re lying,” Jay joked.

  “Whatever, man.”

  “Honestly, I’m just joking, bro. You are actually really good. Better than a lot of stuff that is currently out there. Problem is no one is going to hear you if you just play these local shows.”

  “Gotta start somewhere.”

  “Doesn’t it get discouraging how the best musicians aren’t necessarily the most famous musicians? I mean, how do some of these people get record deals and sell millions of records, while other artists are living in poverty with a milk crate as a coffee table?”

  “I couldn’t tell ya, I wish I knew.”


  “What you need is some promotion. You need someone to come along and blast your stuff on every radio station across the world and put up large billboard ads with you doing some rock-out pose. That will get people to pay attention to you.”

  “Yeah.”

  “But something like that would cost a lot of money, money which you don’t have.”

  Chapter Seven

  The timer on the oven went off alerting them that the pizza was done. Riley rose from the couch and entered the kitchen. He looked around for a tray of some kind to scoop the pizza on, but the best thing he could find was a plate. He opened the oven door and the aroma of pizza permeated throughout the apartment.

  “Smells good, bro!” Jay said in anticipation.

  Riley poked a fork into the edge of the pizza crust and dragged it onto the plate.

  “I’ll find us something to eat on,” Jay offered from the other room. Riley was too busy dealing with the pizza situation to pay much attention to it.

  Realizing that the milk crate would be unsuitable to eat on, Jay searched the apartment for something else. The first place, he went was the front door closet. When he opened it, he found a large Rubbermaid bin marked ‘Christmas Decorations’. Jay attempted to lift in and nearly threw his back out.

  “What do you guys keep in here?” he asked.

  “What’s that, I couldn’t hear you?” Riley said.

  Jay dragged the bin into the living room and placed in right in front of the couch. It was at this time that Riley returned from the kitchen holding two plates of pizza. He nearly dropped them when he saw what Jay had dragged in.

  “What are you doing, bro?” Riley asked in an aggravated tone.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Where did you get that bin?”

  “I found it in the closet. What’s the big deal?”

  To avoid further suspicion, Riley switched gears. “Oh, nothing, I just didn’t know where that came from.”

  “It’s your bin, I figured you would have known about it.”

  “I did, I just… never mind, let’s eat.”

  Riley walked over and set both plates on the bin hoping that would prevent Jay from opening the lid. He had meant to tape the lid shut, but he didn’t have any tape.

  “What’s in here anyway? There’s no way it’s just Christmas decorations in here. The thing weighs a ton. I nearly threw my back out trying to lift the damn thing. I had to drag it in here.”

  “I think it’s filled with Jade’s books.”

  “Books? What kind of books?” Jay said as he peeled up the corner of the lid. It was then when he saw a glimpse of the money. The wheels in his mind were beginning to make the connection. He looked at Riley with wide eyes and an open jaw. “Oh my God, dude! You robbed the truck!” he blurted out.