Sickness & Health, Good Times & Bad

Chapter 83

Justin looked across the table at Melanie’s stricken face and then looked down at the table. Under the table Justin clicked his heels together three time and wished with all his might to be home. When he looked up Melanie was still sitting across from him with tears running down her face. He made a mental note to tell Em that even though Justin was Dorothy’s friend she let him down.

Justin reached over and took Melanie’s hand in one of his. “How did you find out that Lindsay is gambling again?”

Melanie took a deep breath and let it out with a sigh.

“Linds has been doing the grocery shopping since we moved back. I have taken over our finances. I noticed that we seem to be spending a lot more on food than we did in Canada. It’s not like we are having filet mignon and lobster tails for dinner every night. We’ve had a couple discussion about it but she always just said we had to have food.”

Justin nodded. “Gus told me about your discussions. He’s worried you don’t have enough money for food. He asked if Brian and I could give his Mommy money for food.”

Mel got half a smile. “Sorry. Linds has been really good about entering the grocery expenses into QuickBooks, so I never saw any receipts. We had a nice day Saturday. I made us breakfast and we talked about working on our relationship. In the afternoon we visited some friends, did some window shopping and had lunch at the diner and had a very nice evening at home. You know what I mean by very nice evening.”

“Yes and please don’t explain it any further.”

“This morning Lindsay was up and dressed really early. By the time I woke up she was ready to go out. She told me she wanted to get to the grocery store early. She planned to buy some supplies and then come home and cook some meals that we could freeze. That way when we had hectic evenings we’d have quick meals to prepare.
When she got home I was in the kitchen having coffee. She brought in the bags and immediately went over to enter the amount she spent in QuickBooks. I thought that was a little strange. When she came back she balled up the receipt and threw it in the kitchen trash.

She started to put things away and I took my mug over to put in the dishwasher. While Lindsay’s back was turned I pulled the balled up receipt out of the trash and put it in my pocket. She took a container that had spaghetti sauce that Debbie made us out of the refrigerator and made a big display out of smelling it and making a disgusted face. It had only been in there a few days so I could hardly believe it had gone bad. Lindsay emptied the sauce into the trash. I asked her why she didn’t just pour it down the sink and she kind of laughed and said she didn’t even think of doing that. Everything she did was all just a little off.”

The waiter brought their drinks and asked if they were ready to order. He kept looking at Melanie who was so obviously upset. Justin ordered a couple appetizers and asked the waiter to bring them some extra napkins. Melanie had used her to wipe at her eyes. After giving them a worried look the waiter left to put in the order for their appetizers.

“I told Lindsay I was going to get dressed and then I would help her prepare the meals to freeze. In the bedroom I straightened out the receipt. It showed Lindsay had taken forty dollars in cash along with paying for the groceries. After I got dressed I told Lindsay I had a couple things to do for work before I helped her. I went through the records on my laptop to total all the money Lindsay had spent at the market. I figured she didn’t take forty bucks every time so I used twenty five as an average and multiplied that by the number of grocery payments. When I subtracted that amount from out total food bills I came up with a much more realistic amount for money spent on food, much more in line with what we spent in Canada.”

“Linds could be using the money for something else. Maybe she just needed spending money?”

Melanie shook he head. “We have been trying really hard to get our finances in better shape, at least I thought we were. We were trying to clear our credit card debt and be less dependent on you and Brian so we both took just a small weekly allowance. When I confronted Lindsay with the grocery receipt she tried to explain it away but finally she admitted she was gambling again. She said it was the only way we could get ahead financially.”

“So I guess she hasn’t been going to Gamblers Anonymous?”

“Not since we moved back. Lindsay said she couldn’t find a meeting that she felt comfortable with. She said that since there were no casinos here she didn’t feel tempted. So many lies!”

The tears came faster down Melanie’s face and Justin tried to think of something comforting to say. He squeezed her hand.

“Mel, I’m so sorry. What has Lindsay been spending the money on?”

“Lotteries! She told me since they were run by the state there were better odds so she had more hope of winning. We argued and argued and finally I just left. All this time when I thought we were working together to turn things around she was taking money and wasting it on lottery tickets.”

“I’m afraid she done more than that. Gus told me that when Mom took him and the boys to Target for school supplies he asked her to buy him a candy bar at the checkout. She told him he had enough candy at the bowling alley so she gave him ten dollars and told him to buy himself and JR a candy bar when he was at the store sometime. Gus told me he told Lindsay about it and put the money in his treasure box. That night he saw Lindsay come in the room and take the money. She thought he was asleep. Gus thought she needed that money for food.”

Melanie’s tears stopped. “Gus told you that! I can’t believe Lindsay could sink that low. Oh my god!”

Justin nodded. “There’s more. Ted told me yesterday that there is an issue with the gallery petty cash. Lindsay has been sending over records that show Sidney using lots of petty cash. Sidney told me when we set up the petty cash that he didn’t want anything to do with it since he didn’t plan to ever use it. I haven’t spoken to him yet but it appears Lindsay may have been taking money from there as well.”

“If that’s true, she is going to lose her job right?”

“We won’t have any choice Mel. Are you planning to go back home? If you are I’m going to ask you not to mention the petty cash to Lindsay.”

“I’m not going home. I can’t face her, I can’t be responsible for what I would do. I know she has an addiction but to steal from Gus and from you. I just can’t be around Lindsay right now. I’m going to buy some things for overnight and stay at a motel out by the airport.”

“Do you need any money?”

Melanie shook her head and stood up. “I’m sorry Justin. I can’t talk about this anymore. You and Brian need to keep Gus and JR for at least another day. I hate to ask but …”

Justin got up and gave Melanie a hug. “Don’t worry about the children. We’ll look after them until we can get a start on clearing up this mess.”

Melanie left while Justin waited to pay the bill. The waiter brought the check and Justin handed him his credit card. Once the waiter left with the card, Justin pulled out his cell phone and called Sidney.

“Hi Justin, what’s up?"

“Sidney, sorry to bother you on a Sunday. Do you have time to talk?”

“I’m sorting through family photos and dividing them up for the kids so I am happy to be interrupted. Just part of getting ready to sell the house. Your Mother told me I need to get started on some clean out projects.”

Justin chuckled. “Well my experience is it is best to go along with Mom’s plans or you will regret it later. I need to ask you about the gallery petty cash. Have you used petty cash very often?”

“I haven’t used it at all, I told you I probably wouldn’t use it. I think Lindsay and Pat have used it for some things.”

“Well I’m afraid we have an issue with the petty cash, Ted told me that the gallery has used three hundred dollars since he took over the accounting. That is more than Kinnetik used for the same period. Lindsay has sent over explanation sheets and they show that most of the petty cash has been used by you.”

There was silence at the other end of the call. “Sidney are you still there?”

“This is a big problem Justin. I have not used one cent of the petty cash.”

“I kind of thought that would be what you would say. Unfortunately I have reason to believe that Lindsay has been skimming money out of petty cash. I don’t want you to be concerned I will handle this situation. It looks like we are going to have to terminate Lindsay.”

“I’m really sorry about this Justin. I know there is a whole lot of family stuff involved here. Whatever I can do to make it easier for you I am happy to do.”

Justin thanked Sidney and they ended the call. He signed the lunch check and started back home. The closer he got to home the darker the sky became. Justin thought it just fitted his mood.

Justin pulled into the garage, when he got to the kitchen he saw Brian in a lounger reading the paper. John and Peter appeared to be playing a card game with Gus and JR. Just as Justin opened the door there was the first clap of thunder.

Brian put down the paper. “Okay, time to move inside everybody!”

As Brian stood up he spotted Justin and smiled. “Welcome home Sunshine. Why don’t you push the button to retract the awning instead of just standing there looking cute?”

Justin stuck out his tongue but did push the awning control beside the door. JR, who hated thunderstorms, was first in the house followed by the three boys. Justin helped Brian stow some cushions and other things in the pool house.

Just as they came into the house there was a flash of lightening and a clap of thunder that shook the house. Before Justin even knew what was happening JR threw herself against him with a shriek. He gathered her up in his arms.

“My Mom always said that thunder was just the angels bowling in heaven. Nothing to be afraid of honey, we are all safe in the house.”

JR, who had her arms clenched tightly around his neck, did not seem to agree. Justin looked over at the three boys. Gus had an exasperated look on his face and John & Peter seemed amused.

“Why don’t you guys find a DVD to watch and get it set up in the media room.”

Rain started to beat against the french doors to the patio and JR tightened her grip on Uncle Jus.

Brian came over and hugged Justin so that JR was sandwiched between them. “Little girl I know you don’t like loud noises but we really are completely safe here in the house. How about we make some popcorn and then we’ll all go watch a move in the media room.”

Apparently popcorn was a favorite snack because JR loosened her grip allowing Justin to breathe a little easier and nodded her head at Uncle Bri’s suggestion. The next thunder boom was not quite as loud so JR did allow herself to be put down on the floor and just hold Justin’s hand.

Brian got out the air popper and allowed JR to measure the corn kernels and start the popping. When the popcorn was done JR led the way to the media room with Brian carrying the big bowl of popcorn. Gus and John were sitting on the couch playing a video game and Peter was reading in a chair by himself.

Justin announced it was movie time. They installed JR next to John with Gus on her other side. Brian told her that John and her brother would keep her safe. Peter came over and sat beside Gus who kept the popcorn on his lap where everyone could reach it. Justin said he and Brian were going to check on what they could have for dinner. They shut the media room door on their way out.

Once Justin and Brian were in the kitchen Justin brought Brian up to date on everything. When he related the part about Lindsay taking the ten dollars from Gus’s treasure box; Justin saw the vein in Brian’s neck start to bulge.

“Gus wasn’t too upset Brian so you shouldn’t be either.”

“What the fuck was she thinking to steal from her own son! I want to fucking wring her neck.”

Justin kissed the side of Brian’s neck where the vein was bulging. “It won’t help for you to have a stroke.”

Justin kept one eye on the hall to make sure no one came into the kitchen. Once Brian had all the information he went over to the wine rack and took down a bottle which he opened and filled two glasses with wine.

Justin took a big swallow of wine. “I think we should keep the kids out of school tomorrow. Can you take the day off?”

Brian nodded. “Nothing major scheduled for tomorrow. Ted and I usually have a finance meeting but that can wait. I’ll email Ted and Cynthia and let them know I won’t be in the office.”

“I think it would be a good idea for you to take the kids out somewhere. You could take a drive down to Coopers Rock Park. I bet John and Peter have never been there and they can help you with the kids. Alice can pack you a picnic lunch to take with you.”

Brian frowned. “I hate to leave you with all the mess at the gallery to handle on your own.”

“Brian! I am not helpless. I’m going to email Patti and she and I can take care of terminating Lindsay’s employment. The gallery is my responsibility.”

“Maybe we could get Mother Taylor and Tucker to take the kids down to the park and I could help you with the Lindsay situation.”

“Help me by strangling Lindsay? You know you are way too emotionally invested with her. I can handle this on my own. It is my responsibility!”

Brian reluctantly agreed. He went to the study to email Cynthia and Ted to let them know he was taking the day off. He also emailed Fort Pitt School to let them know Gus and JR would not be in school the next day.

Justin checked the pantry freezer and decided to defrost and cook a pan of Debbie’s chicken cacciatore. The kitchen refrigerator contained a bunch of fresh vegetable that he could combine in a stir fry to accompany the chicken. With dinner under control Justin went back to the media room to watch the second half of the movie.
Brian joined the family group a short time after Justin.

After dinner was over and John & Peter were doing cleanup Justin took JR upstairs for her bath and story before she fell asleep. The baby monitor was still on the hall table outside her room so he took the receiver with him.

Justin glanced in the media room on his way down the hall and saw Brian and Gus playing a video game. He continued down to the study and emailed Patti about the Lindsay situation and his plans for terminating her employment. He let Patti know he would be at Kinnetik tomorrow morning to discuss the situation.

After sending his email Justin went back to the media room but Brian and Gus were gone. He figured they were upstairs in Gus’s bathroom and headed that way. Gus was happily splashing around in the tub and Brian was laughing at his son’s antics.

After the bath Gus put on his pajamas and got into bed. Brian settled on one side of Gus and Justin on the other side read Gus a story. Gus was delighted to be in the middle of a daddy sandwich and fell asleep quickly.

When the men went downstairs they found John & Peter having a snack in the kitchen. Justin told them about the plans for the next day and as he suspected they had never been to Coopers Rock. They said they were going up to their rooms.

The storm was over so Brian and Justin went out to the hot tub, took off their clothes and settled in to relax. The baby monitor receiver on the patio beside the hot tub in case either JR or Gus woke up and was looking for them.

Brian & Justin discussed how they were going to deal with the Lindsay situation and the best way to shield Gus as much as possible. They hadn’t turned any lights on and so eventually Justin climbed onto Brian lap and they enjoyed a spirited fuck in the darkness. Afterwards they talked some more before putting on their pants and going into the house. Brian made sure the house was locked up and turned on the alarm while Justin went upstairs.

When Brian got to the Master Bath Justin was already in the shower. Brian dropped his pants and got into the shower where there were mutual blow jobs exchanged followed by actually getting washed. They both put on boxers before getting into bed. Justin went to sleep quickly but Brian lay there listening to Justin’s even breaths and trying to figure out how Lindsay had gotten her life so fucked up.

The next morning was kind of a reversal of their normal morning routine as Justin got up to shave and shower when the alarm went off while Brian relaxed in bed. When Justin came out of the bathroom Gus was cuddled beside his Daddy with a big smile on his face as Brian told him about their plans for the day.

Gus glanced over at his Papa and was surprised to see him wearing dressy clothes. “Papa is that what you are wearing for our picnic?”

Justin smiled at the little boy. “I’m not going with you guys. I have some important stuff I have to do in the city so Daddy is taking you all out for the day on his own.”

Gus looked somewhat doubtful, it was kind of unusual for his Papa not to join them on adventures.

Are you sure you can’t go with us? Maybe you could do your important stuff some other day?”

Brian gave Gus a hug. “Don’t you want to go with just me?”

Gus assured his Daddy that he was happy to spend time with him but felt bad that Papa would miss all the fun. Brian and Gus got out of bed and went to wake up JR while Justin went downstairs to the kitchen.

Alice was already on duty in the kitchen. Justin told her about the plans for Brian’s day with all the kids. Alice immediately got some chicken out to cook for sandwiches and put a pot of water in the stove to boil pasta so she could make pasta salad.

Alice went to the back door and called to Charlie. She sent him over to the cottage to get the leftover roast beef from their dinner the day before. Next she grabbed a frozen loaf of homemade bread from the pantry freezer and set it on the counter to thaw.

By the time Brian came downstairs with Gus and JR, Alice was in full preparation mode for the picnic lunch. Justin sat at the counter eating a bagel and drinking coffee with a smile on his face as he watched Alice move around the kitchen.

Brian served bowls of fruit to Gus and JR before allowing them each a bowl of the sugary cereal they loved. John and Peter made an appearance and got sent to the pool house by Alice to bring her an ice chest and an insulated jug she could fill with ice tea.

Leaving behind the beehive of activity in the kitchen Justin gave Brian a kiss good bye. After getting a list of instruction and cautions about driving Brian’s beloved Corvette Justin drove to the city. He parked in the Kinnetik garage and went up to Brian’s office. Carole was a little surprised to see him since she knew Brian was taking the day off.

Justin settled in at Brian’s desk and checked his email. As he expected Patti has some issues with the details of his plan to terminate Lindsay. Justin’s plan was to place Lindsay on a two month leave of absence with only one month’s pay. After two months Lindsay’s employment would be officially ended. Justin wanted Lindsay’s medical coverage to continue for the two months. Justin hoped Lindsay would get some counseling to help her understand and work on the issues she had created in her life.

Justin sent a meeting request to Ted and Patti, he asked them to come to Brian’s office in 15 minutes. After he got their acceptance messages he went to the employee lounge to get some coffee. He wanted Ted in the meeting to talk about how to pay Lindsay for what was essentially one month’s severance pay.

Instead of going back to Brian’s office Justin stopped by Ted’s office. Ted looked up from his computer screen when, after a quick knock, Justin walked into his office.

“Hi Justin. What brings you into the office today?”

“I bet you have a good idea why I came in today. We need to put a stop payment on the gallery petty cash check you sent. I also need you to send an email to Lindsay saying there is a problem with that account and she shouldn’t cash that check.”

“No problem. Are we still having our meeting or is this it?”

Justin smiled. “We are still having the meeting. I am going to fire Lindsay but I want her to be placed on a two month leave of absence first so she still has medical benefits. I only plan to pay her for one month. You need to figure out how to do that.”

Ted eyebrows went up but he nodded and Justin went back to Brian’s office. Cynthia was standing at Carole’s desk explaining a project she wanted Carole to complete. Justin and Cynthia exchanged greetings before he continued into Brian’s office.

Patti arrived a few minutes early for the meeting. She looked around the office.

“Isn’t Brian going to be part of this meeting?”

Justin shook his head. “Brian took today off. As you know this meeting really concerns Lindsay Petersen and her position at the Bloom Gallery. Brian really doesn’t have anything to do with what happens at the gallery.”

Ted gave the door a quick knock and came into the office. He walked over to the desk and handed Justin a sheet of paper and gave one to Patti as well. Justin got up and moved to the guest area of the office.

“Let’s sit over here and be comfortable.”

Ted spoke first. “I gave you both a spreadsheet showing a month’s salary for Lindsay. I have deducted the first month’s medical insurance from the net amount. Not sure if you wanted me to deduct the second month’s premiums as well?”

Justin thought for a moment. “No let’s just deduct the one month. She may get a job or not want to continue the insurance for some reason. If Linds keeps it for the second month you can just deduct the premium from Brian’s paycheck.”

Patti looked surprised at Justin’s comment and glanced over at Ted who simply made a note without any comment.

“Justin, I strongly disagree with your plan for ending Lindsay Petersen’s employment. It will set a very bad precedent for terminating Kinnetik employees and could leave us open to future legal action.”

Justin smiled tersely. “I would like to point out, again, that Lindsay is not a Kinnetik employee. She is employed by the Bloom Gallery.”

Patti had not had much experience working with Justin and had no idea how stubborn he could be. She tried again to make her point.

“I am the Human Resources Manager for both Kinnetik and the gallery. It was agreed that our HR policies would be the same for both businesses. I really cannot condone this special treatment for Ms Petersen. I am also worried that we have no proof that she has misused petty cash.”

Justin sighed. “Lindsay is a special situation because of the personal issues involved here. She had a gambling problem in the past and I have been made aware that she has started gambling again. That is why I’m sure that she has been dipping into petty cash at the gallery.”

“I hope we don’t have any more special situations with future employees.”

Justin sighed. “Doubtful. Brian only has one son so there won’t be any more special circumstances similar to Lindsay. Your objections are noted but this is the way I want this handled.”

“I don’t think I can go along with this plan without getting Brian’s approval first.”

Justin was wide eyed. “I do not need Brian’s approval for anything I want done at the gallery. I am just as much your employer as Brian is. You will comply with my instructions or we will be looking for a new Human Resources Manager.”

Ted decided to intervene. “Patti that remark about Brian’s approval is uncalled for. Justin is correct, he does not need Brian’s approval for anything. I suggest you call our corporate attorney and check with him. If he has a serious objection to Justin’s plan tell him to call Justin. Meanwhile you proceed with Justin’s instructions.”

Patti gathered up her papers and left. Once she was out the door Justin gave her a one finger salute.

“She is being a real pain in my ass!”

Ted chuckled. “It is kind of her job to follow rules. How do you know Lindsay is gambling again?”

Justin sighed again. “I know you’ll tell Blake but don’t tell anyone else. Mel called me yesterday and asked to meet with me. She told me Lindsay admitted she was gambling again. Lindsay has been getting cash back when she goes to the grocery store and playing the lottery. Mel just thought food was more expensive here than Canada.”

Ted and Justin discussed the ramifications of Lindsay gambling before Ted headed back to his office.

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Meanwhile Brian had loaded the, Alice prepared, picnic lunch into the car. Gus and JR had been strapped into their booster seats; Peter was sitting between them in the back seat and John was in the front passenger seat. They were in the road heading towards Coopers Rock State Park in wild, wonderful West Virginia.

Brian hoped that this trip would not be a longer repeat of the squabbling ride from the city on Friday. Peter got Gus and JR interested in singing some ridiculous song that even made Brian smile. After that John got out the “car bingo” cards that Alice gave him and all four “kids” worked at spotting the items listed on their cards.

Gus won the first game. John collected the bingo cards, shuffled them some unused cards and redistributed them. Brian glanced over at John with a smile and got a wink in reply. With some help from Peter, JR won the second game. She also announced she had to go potty so that meant a rest stop 45 minutes from home.

When they got to the park JR requested that John carry her to the rock. He had her climb on his back for a piggyback ride. Gus firmly took Peter’s hand as they walked along the path to the rock. Brian brought up the rear carrying a bag with several bottle of water and laughing at John’s antics with a giggling JR on his shoulders holding on for dear life.

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At Kinnetik Justin sat at Brian’s desk sketching to relieve his tension when the phone rang. It was Larry Buchanan, their attorney, who was softly laughing as Justin said hello.

“All these years I thought you were the nice one in the partnership. You sure pissed off your HR person.”

“Well, to be fair, she has also kind of pissed me off.”

“Yeah I can see that; she is really by the book. Which is not necessarily a bad quality in an HR person but she is kind of over the top. I told her that I have no problem with how you want to handle the Lindsay situation. I understand it needs special handling. I’m really sorry it has come to this. How is Brian handling it?”

Justin chuckled. “He is trying to stay out of it as much as possible. He took Gus, JR, John and Peter to Coopers Rock today with a picnic lunch.”

Larry was quiet for a moment. “Wow! I did tell Patti that she didn’t need to worry about Brian’s being upset because you can pretty much make him agree to anything. I have to say I’m impressed you could get him to take four kids on a picnic.”

“It was surprisingly easy to arrange.”

“Wow again. Oh, I told Patti that she could type up a memo saying we were doing this against her recommendations and you would sign it. I gave her the wording.”

“Thanks Larry, I’ll talk to you later.”

Larry said good bye and they hung. A few minutes later Cynthia walked into the office holding a sheet of paper.

“I hope you talked to Larry because I have something for you to sign.”

She placed the paper on the desk, Justin read it over quickly and signed at the bottom.

“So this will make Patti happy?”

Cynthia grinned. “Well, I wouldn’t exactly say happy. She told me you threatened to fire her.”

Justin grinned back. “I did, she can be pretty annoying.”

Cynthia laughed. “I think up until now she always thought Brian was difficult to deal with but now she has a new appreciation for him. I did tell her that she has a tendency to take herself too seriously. She needs to warn us about the consequences of our requests but comply with them regardless of what she thinks.”

“Larry just said she was a little over the top.”

Cynthia nodded. “She can be. She is also concerned about how Brian will react to all this. I actually laughed out loud when she told me that. I said that there was no way in the world that Brian would ever second guess any decision you made.”

Justin laughed. “Well he might question them to me but probably not to anyone else. Brian knows what’s going to happen. He is just staying out for the communication loop today. If you need him for anything urgent he’ll answer a call from my cell.”

Cynthia shook her head. “Contrary to Brian’s opinion Ted and I can handle most anything that happen here at Kinnetik. Patti should be here in a couple minutes with the stuff you need to officially give Lindsay the heave ho.”

Justin grimaced. “You don’t know how much I wish this didn’t have to happen. I can’t believe that Lindsay continues to screw up her life. I have no idea how we will explain this to Gus.”

Cynthia came around the desk and put her hands on Justin’s shoulders. “Gus loves you and Brian, nothing will change that fact. Try and think about how much worse this would be for him if he didn’t have you and Brian to rely on.”

“Thanks Cynthia.”

There was a knock on the door before Patti came into the office with a folder. She told Justin she had gotten Lindsay’s final check from Ted so everything he needed was in the folder. Justin thanked her, Cynthia handed her the document Justin had signed and Patti left the office.

Justin looked through the folder, closed it and stood up with a deep sigh. After a glance at Cynthia and a small smile he left for the Bloom Gallery.

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At the park once the group walked out on the huge rock to look down at the Cheat River JR immediately called for Uncle Brian to take her off John’s shoulders. Even with a death grip around his neck JR did not want Brian to walk anywhere near the barrier at the edge of the rock.

Gus was determined to be brave and walked to the barrier but kept a firm grip on both John & Peter’s hands. Peter turned to Brian with a smile and looked down at his hand being firmly gripped by Gus. Brian nodded with a smile.

“So Sonny Boy that quite a view isn’t it?”

“It’s awesome Daddy. The river is really way down far away!”

JR refused to even look in the direction of the river. John offered to hold her while Brian looked at the view but JR firmly vetoed that plan. An amused Brian told John that he had been to the park before so he had seen the view of the river.

After most of the discussion about the river view was exhausted; Brian decided the group should head back to the car, retrieve the picnic lunch and find an open table to eat at. Everyone got something to carry to the picnic table that Gus & JR decided was the best one. Bran was amazed at the lunch Alice had gotten together in a short time. Everything was labeled and there was a big selection of sandwiches and side dishes. There was the big jug of ice tea along with a small cooler full of bottled water and juices.

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Justin pulled into the gallery parking lot and sat in the car for a few minutes. Finally he took a deep breath, got out of the car and walked into the building.
Sidney was expecting him but Pat and Lindsay were surprised to see him. Lindsay did not seem to have any idea about the purpose of his visit.

Justin and Sidney went into Sidney’s office. Justin went over the contents of his folder and explained his plan for firing Lindsay. Sidney had a few questions but basically agreed with the plan. He offered to handle the meeting with Lindsay on his own since he knew it would be really difficult for Justin to do. Justin thanked him but said he felt an obligation to handle this situation.

Together they left Sidney’s office. Justin walked over to Lindsay’s cubicle. “Hi Linds. Would you please come into the conference room with Sidney and me?”

Lindsay, still seemingly unconcerned, followed the two men into the conference room. Once they were all seated Justin started the meeting.

“Lindsay we have been made aware of some discrepancies in the gallery petty cash distributions. Here are the reconcilement sheets you have sent over to accounting. They show many entries for Sidney but he has never used petty cash.”

Justin slide copies of the sheets over to Lindsay but she didn’t look at them.

“I’m sorry there was an emergency and I needed some cash. I know it was wrong and I’ll pay the money back. You can deduct it from my pay checks.”

Sidney spoke up. “Just what was the nature of this emergency?”

“I can’t tell you the exact circumstances but it was something for my parents. That’s why I couldn’t let Melanie or Brian know. Neither of them would ever agree to help my parents.”

Sidney looked unconvinced. “To be frank it can’t have been much of an emergency if three hundred dollars or less could solve it.”

Justin spoke before Lindsay had a chance to say anything else. “Lindsay, Mel called me yesterday and asked me to meet her. She told me that you admitted you were gambling again. I know about you taking cash back when you went grocery shopping.

Gus also told me that he woke up and saw you take the ten dollars, my mother gave him, out of his treasure box. He asked if Brian and I could give you money for food. He heard you and Mel talking about the high grocery bills and figured you needed the ten dollars to buy food. Linds you need help.”

For a moment Lindsay looked around the room and Justin though she might make a run for it. Than as he expected the tears started to flow.

“I’ve tried to find a Gamblers Anonymous meeting where I felt comfortable but I just couldn’t find one.”

Justin shook his head. “Linds you took money from your seven year old son that was given to him to buy candy. That is just so wrong. You need more than GA. I think you should consider counseling.”

“Okay. You are probably right. I’ll start to look for a counselor right away. I’ll make sure it doesn’t interfere with my work schedule.”

“Linds, you must realize we can’t keep you on here at the gallery. You took money. We can’t take the chance on you taking art work. This really hasn’t been working out anyway.”

Lindsay stood up. “You mean that you are firing me? You were a high school kid when we first met and now you are playing at being the big boss.”

Sidney stood up and faced Lindsay across the table. “Sit down now! Justin doesn’t have to play at anything. He is the boss and you are a thief.”

Lindsay sat back down. Justin passed her another sheet of paper. “What I have decided to do is place you on a two month leave of absence. We’ll pay you for one of those months. At the end of the two months your employment will be officially terminated. Your medical insurance will continue for the two month so hopefully you will use that to get some help in getting your life back on track.

Please look over this paper. It spells out what I have just told you. The official reason for your termination is that things just didn’t work out. If you don’t agree to these terms you are finished today and we notify the police about the petty cash. I don’t think you would do any time for such a small amount but it would make the theft public knowledge. That would make it difficult for you to get another job.”

Lindsay read over the paper. “Does Brian know about you firing me?”

“Yes. He took the kids out for the day. We prefer that he not be involved directly in this matter. He won’t answer any call except from my cell”

Lindsay snorted. “Well you certainly have him under your thumb. Afraid I might be able to talk him out of this?”

“Lindsay you are a thief and a liar. Those are two things Brian hates. You also took money from his son. I think you can imagine how he feels about that unfortunate episode. He simply prefers to avoid rehashing this matter with you.”

Sidney spoke up. “So Lindsay what will it be? Are you going to take Justin generous offer or should I call the police?”

Lindsay picked up a pen from the table and signed the paper. Justin pushed a second copy across the table to her.

“Here is a copy for you to keep. I’m sorry the job here didn’t work out for you. I hope you’ll take this opportunity to get some counseling.”

Lindsay took her copy and started out of the room. Justin stopped her. “Here’s a check for one month’s salary.”

Lindsay looked down at the check expecting the missing petty cash amount to be deducted.

“You didn’t take the money for the petty cash.”

Justin shrugged. “That wasn’t part of the deal we offered you. It isn’t a large enough amount to worry about. I don’t want to make this anymore unpleasant then it has to be. I hope you will be adult about this and not try and make Gus think I took advantage of you in any way.”

Sidney held out his hand. “I’d like your gallery keys. We will be changing the locks and alarm code this afternoon.

Lindsay dropped her keys on the table, shrugged and left without a word. She grabbed her purse and shoved a couple personal possessions into the purse and left without a word to Pat.

*************************************************************************************

After cleaning up the remains of their picnic lunch, Brian and the four kids started back for home. Gus and JR were kind of worn out from running around with John and Peter. They both took a nap for most the trip home.