The Break-In

Margo and her older sister Iris had a close relationship, and their parents claim to have witnessed the moment the two of them bonded. They said that it happened when Margo was brought home to their house on Kingston Street and placed in Iris' arms. The sisters love to hear this story.

The girls had a lot in common, but they also had a few differences. Margo didn't like to read, but Iris did. Margo loves to be on her bicycle, but Iris doesn't know how to ride.

However, although they were five years apart, as they grew, they looked more like each other. Their Mom took credit for their high cheekbones, thin eyebrows and long curly black hair. Their Dad was credited, by their Mom, with their coconut shape head.

They grew up, and both went to university, and there, Iris met Lemar, the love of her life, and got married. Margo was her Maid of Honor.

Iris was hired as the small food bank manager through their Dad in their area, and she enjoys her job. Nevertheless, it had its low points, and the main one was that the food bank was facing a food shortage. Iris believed that she would lose her job if she didn't turn things around. So, she decided that an advertising campaign was in order.

The campaign was a month into its operation when there was a break-in at the food bank. When the public heard about the theft, the people were incensed. Radio commentators shouted their outrage, and shortly afterwards, money and lots of items began pouring in to help the food bank. There were so many items that they had to rent a storage building to house some donations.

The police were investigating the case, but six months after the theft, the case was still unsolved.

Margo and Iris sat in a quiet restaurant for their weekly dinner together. Margo wore a jeans dress, and her cornrow hair ended in a bun at the back of her head. Iris wore long blue dress pants with a long-sleeve white shirt tucked inside. Iris, who was usually quiet, asked, "Do I complain a lot?"

Margo, who was about to drink from her glass, looked over the rim.

"What are you talking about?" she asked.

"Do I complain a lot?" she asked again.

"Well," Margo said, putting down the glass without drinking from it, "you are not shy about letting others know how you feel about something, but you don't complain a lot."

She nodded.

"Am I a good wife?"

"What?"

"Am I a good wife to Lemar?"

"You would have to ask him that, but you are a great sister and a wonderful daughter to Mom and Dad."

Iris nodded.

"I asked Lamar the same question, and he said that I was the best."

"Iris, what's this? What's going on?"

As she asked the question, like a slowly dripping faucet, the answer came to her.

"Did he cheat on you? I'm going to..."

"No," Iris said, shaking her head, "he didn't."

Margo let out a sigh of relief.

"Then what's going on?"

Iris stared at her as she said, "the break-in at the food bank, Lemar and two of his friends did it."

Margo's mouth fell open.

"What?"

"He said that he did it for me because he did not want me to lose my job. He knows how much I love working there."

"That guy is crazy," Margo said, laughing, "didn't I say so the moment you brought him home?"

"Yes," Iris said, "but there's nothing funny about this. He could go to jail, and then for sure, I'll lose my job and then what?"

"You're right, you're right. It's not funny, sorry."

Still, the side of her lips curved into a smile before she picked up the glass and put it to her mouth.

"He said that he got the idea from a movie. The idea was to steal from the food bank, and when others heard about it, they would become outraged and band together to help out. At least that's what happened in the movie."

"And in real life, too," Margo said. "His plan worked, but how did you find out about it?"

"Last night, he was talking in his sleep, and he plainly said, 'robbing the food bank was brilliant."

Margo laugh.

"Stop that," Iris said, looking around the restaurant that was quickly filling up, "anyhow, I woke him up and asked him if he had anything to do with it. At first, he tried to dodge my questions, but he eventually told me everything."

"But wait," Margo said, "how does this make you a complainer and a bad wife?"

"Because he did it for me. I think that if I didn't talk so much about losing my job, he wouldn't have done it. What kind of wife am I that my husband thinks I would be okay with him stealing from my workplace?"

"That has nothing to do with you," Margo said, "did he say that it did?"

"No, but..."

"He didn't even tell you about the plan!"

"True," Iris said, thoughtfully, "but if the cops find out, he could go to jail."

"Yeah, I know," Margo said. "What did they do with the stuff they stole?"

"Stored them in a friend's garage."

"What are they going to do with them?"

"They were going to return everything within two months or so because they thought that things would settle down by then. However, it's been six months now, and donations are still going strong, so they decided to wait."

"He needs to return them soon because you know these cops, they may be slow sometimes, but eventually they get there."

"I know, I know, and that's what worries me. So, what should I do?"

"You?" Margo asked, "You should do nothing. Leave Lemar to take care of it. You keep quiet and let this play out."

Iris was thoughtful as she played with the rice on her plate with her fork.

"I don't know," she finally said, shaking her head.

"Well, I do. Lemar got this, and if you want, drag him to talk to a lawyer tomorrow, but for now, eat your food, and I'll tell you what aunty Sarah has been doing lately. That will help to take your mind off of this."

The End