Trash

“Why did I say that I would do this? Why did I let him hustle me into doing something he’s not even sharing with me? I must be out of my mind!” Linda says under her breath as she moves back and forth between the roadway and the ditch picking up trash with the ‘grabby thing’ the supervisor of this clean-up gang gave her and putting the trash in a bag she carries with her.

“George said, ‘it will be a chance for me to get to know my new neighbors. Showing my willingness to help out in community projects.’ But so far all I’ve gotten from this endeavor is a sore back, sore feet, a rotten smell up my nose and a building headache from being in the sun too long! As for my neighbors, they have been ignoring me except when I add another bag to the growing pile, then they give me a bland smile that never reaches their eyes! Oh, yes I’m going to have some serious words with George later!” Linda continues to mutter. “my neighbors probably think I’m crazy, talking to myself.”

Moving to the next clump of trash, she picks up a wet cardboard box that comes apart and a small black book falls out. Pausing, she kneels and picks it up. It is only slightly damp, no doubt protected from last night’s rains by the box. Flipping through the book she doesn’t find any ownership info, but each page is filled with groups of numbers, separated into threes, fours, and sixes. Right away she suspects they are lotto numbers. Having noticed several of her neighbors pocketing items found, Linda slips the book into an inside pocket of her jacket and continues to gather trash.

By mid-afternoon, her group is finished with their one-mile section and free to go home. Stopping off at a convenience store on the way, Linda decides to test her theory. She selects one number from each group, plays them straight or boxed to offer the best possible odds of winning. The threes and fours are played daily, but the sixes are only played twice a week. She pays for one day for each of them, for a total of $3 invested. If they all hit, she’ll be a lot richer, heck if only a few hit, she’ll be happy!

Once home, Linda completely forgets about the book and the numbers she played focusing more on a hot shower, a hot meal, and a movie. In fact, it isn’t until the next day while doing laundry does she find the book and the slips for the numbers played. Curious, she checks the newspaper for the winning numbers for the previous evening. To her surprise most of the numbers won, and the winnings combined total nearly $580! If all the numbers in the book continues to win at this rate, she could settle down nicely for the rest of her life. Heck she might even give George a second chance, since his idea led her to finding the book!

Shocked, Linda sits down in a chair. How can this be happening? She’s beginning to feel bad for whoever lost the book, but then again it was found on the side of the road, so however it got there it must have been on purpose. Still, maybe she should turn it over to the police? There aren’t any identifying marks or info in the book, how will they find the previous owner? A sudden cold chill runs down her spice making her shiver…winners of the lotto are often announced on News media, what if the owner realizes she has his/her book and comes looking for it! That would be a great reason to give it to the police!

Going round and round in her mind isn’t solving her problem, what she needs is to talk to someone trustworthy. The first person who comes to mind is George, though she is still a bit angry with him, at the same time, what if he wants to play the numbers himself and that gets him in the crosshairs of the previous owner…oh, what should she do? Getting up off the floor, Linda pushes the problem to the back of her mind and focuses instead on finishing the laundry.

Unfortunately, putting it off didn’t solve anything. Scrolling down her contact list, Linda contemplates who to ask for advice? Her mom, Helen? Not likely, she can turn any situation into a chance to remind Linda of every sin committed since childhood, something she wants to avoid at all costs! Her sister, Regina? Maybe, she’s always been straight up with Linda about lots of things, Regina will definitely tell Linda the truth. Her best friend Shelly from back home? Who else can you trust than a best friend? She’s the one! Dialing the number, Linda impatiently waits for an answer. After five rings, she reluctantly leaves a message, “Hi Shelly, it’s Linda. I just called to ask your advice about something kind of serious, so call me back as soon as you get this. Thanks, love you, bye.” Disappointed, Linda takes a few breaths and calls her sister, Regina, who picks up on the second ring…

“Hello?”

“Hi, Sis,” Linda says.

“Hi yourself. What’s going on? Getting settled into your new place okay? We miss you,” Regina says all in a rush.

“Whoa, slow down, I miss you guys too. Yes, I’m settling in okay though here is nothing like the hills back home, it’s very flat here,” Linda says trying to be upbeat, though thoughts of home are making her homesick again.

“So, what’s going on? Why the call?” Regina asks.

“I have a problem and need your advice,” Linda explains.

“Okay, shoot,” Regina says. Linda can hear her sitting down on something crunchy.

“what are you sitting on?” Linda asks instead.

“Why?” Regina asks.

“It sounds uncomfortable,” Linda explains.

“Oh, I’m sitting on the cat’s blanket, it has some kind of filler that sounds like plastic bags crinkling,” Regina explains. “It’s too much trouble to move it, so I just sat down. So, what's your problem and stop stalling?”

“Okay, I was helping out with a neighborhood project, cleaning up trash along a stretch of road the other day and I found a little black book with a lot of numbers in it. I took a chance and played some last night on the lotto and a good part of them hit earning me a lot of money. So, what do I do now? Should I turn it over to the police? Do I keep it? What do you think I should do?” Linda explained.

“Um…did you find any information inside that shows it belongs to someone?” Regina asks.

“No, I looked,” Linda says.

“Have you told anyone else about the book or the winnings?” Regina asks next.

“No, only you,” Linda says.

“Were there any houses close to where you found the book that it might have been tossed out by accident?” Regina asks further.

“I don’t think so, but I didn’t really pay attention. I was focused on picking up trash quickly so I could go home,” Linda explained.

“Okay, well the possibility of someone looking for it is unlikely, so stop worrying about that. As for the winning numbers you played, perhaps it was beginner’s luck! Maybe the book was tossed because the number combinations stopped working,” Regina suggests, not allowing herself to get caught up in her sister’s excitement and worry.

“I guess that's possible,” Linda concedes. “But maybe I should play some of them again to see if they win before I toss the book? What do you think?” She says with a much calmer tone.

“I think that is a good idea, just don’t get your hopes up in case they don’t win,” Regina warns.

“Okay, thanks Sis,” Linda agrees. After a few minutes of pleasantries, the sisters hang up. Now Linda is on pins and needles – should she play the same numbers or chose different ones? No, she’ll stick to the same ones regardless of how many hits, she’ll be happy. She will definitely have to talk to Regina again about financial planning, she doesn’t want to go the path of top winners of the lotto in the past, splurging and quitting their job thinking that the money will last forever, because it won’t, especially if the winner opts for a lump sum instead of a monthly payout.

Two months later, Linda’s phone rings, picking up, she hears a firm male voice on the other end saying without preamble “…I know you have my book. I hope it is serving you well, but I want it back! Enjoy it while you can, because if I can find your phone number, your address will be a small thing. And, before you know it, I’ll be on your doorstep!” And with that being said, the call disconnects loudly in her ear like a gunshot! Petrified with fear Linda stands at her kitchen counter staring at the phone as if it just betrayed her as the words sink in before she slowly slides down the wall, onto the floor…what should she do now?

The end.