The Golden Envelope

The Golden Envelope

“Lydia, my name is Lydia! Get that right!” She rolled her eyes and huffed.

The bank teller apologized and corrected her mistake. The teller had never seen so much money being deposited. Five million. Lydia was in a rush to get that money in her account. She felt that maybe it was a joke, or a trick someone was playing on her. Waiting for the shoelaces to drop, Lydia was guardedly expecting the bank teller to say that it couldn’t be cashed, but that never happened.

She received a check in the mail yesterday. The envelope had no return address, which she found very strange. Like she would return in anyway! But there was her name in bold letters written on the “Pay to” line of the check- Lydia Tannenbaum. The envelope was golden and embossed with red trim around the edges. It looked like something that you would get an invitation in- very fancy.

She felt like she had been shafted in life, and that this check, wether it be a mistake or not, was owed to her. Her kids hated her. She had a long list of exes. Even the neighbors didn’t want to be around her. But none of that was her fault, no! It was the fault of every one else. She was just an innocent trying to live as life mocked her from sunup to sundown. Now was her chance to flip off the world and say I don’t need you

There was a signature on the check but the teller made little regard to it and deposited the money. The signature was in a sloppy script that she could barely make out. It looked like the last letters was tan. She really did not care. Lydia’s mind reeled as she thought of all the ways that she could spend the money.

The first thing she purchased was a dream vacation to Hawaii, alone. But that was ok with her. She didn’t need a man to any family members to share it with. The trip was amazing. When she came back from her two weeks off, she bought an Aston Martin car. She had always admired this type of car when she first saw it on James Bond movies.

She spent the next ten months buying clothes, a vacation home in Tahiti, shoes and much, much more. Neighbors wondered how on Earth she got that kind of money. They would see her in her new car with fancy, expensive designer clothes on. Rumors spread throughout the neighborhood.

Lydia got lonely though. So she bought a groom from Europe. Yes, you can buy a groom just as easily as brides are bought from oversees for the right price. His name was Augustus and he was to wait on her every whim. He was more than happy to. Now that he was married to her, he was an American citizen. He liked that.

After about a year of uncontrolled spending and greed, Lydia was running out of her windfall. Panic set in as bills piled up as she kept spending long after her money was depleted. Augustus had become short with her and fights ensued. Her greed had caught up with her and she had her car and vacation home repossessed. Her home caught fire the week afterward. The house was a total loss. She never bought home insurance and she was screwed.

By March of that year she was living in a car. A hunk of junk that she bought with the last of her winnings. Her husband left her and she was destitute. When she awoke the next morning, she saw a beautiful golden envelope that was embossed and had red trim on the edges. It was tucked underneath the wiper blades. As she opened it she gasped and panic seized her. Death had found a new victim.

Later that day police found her dead with the envelope in her hand. The note inside read, I hope you enjoyed the money. I will have my payment now. Signed S.A. Tan.