I looked at her.
“No. I would rather decide what I give instead of having you decide for me.”
She had no answer.
Their marriage eventually collapsed under the pressure.
Tommy blamed Sandra for pushing them toward larger thefts.
Sandra blamed Tommy for treating me like a lifelong financial safety net.
Both statements contained truth.
Neither excused them.
They eventually divorced.
Tommy moved into a small apartment, sold his truck and worked a second job for a while.
Seven months after the incident, I received the first restitution payment.
Three hundred dollars.
For a moment, I considered tearing up the check.
Then I deposited it.
Not because I desperately needed the money.
Because repayment was part of accountability.
Turning it into another gift would have erased the lesson.
A year after my canceled trip, I finally flew to Oregon.
Martha met me at the airport holding a handmade sign that read:
