A New Life

Mary left work on a Thursday afternoon of what seemed to be a normal day at the bank. Looking forward to the weekend plans she had with her husband, she mindlessly got out of the taxi and continued her short walk home. As she approached her apartment, she saw all kinds of people gathered around. Police officers, investigators, and a few bystanders. She hurried over to see that the door to her apartment was wide open.

She was told that her husband was being investigated for bank robbery. Said he’s a suspect of a million dollar heist. They began questioning her on his whereabouts. “You must be mistaken” she told them. “There is no way Henry is your guy.” “I don’t know where he is, but he should’ve been home. Something’s wrong.”

A few days passed and she hadn’t heard from her husband. She lost her job at the bank after they heard news that her husband was wanted for bank robbery, thinking she had something to do with it. After heading to work to pick up her last pay check, she walked the long way home to clear her head. As she neared her apartment, she saw yellow rose petals scattered on the ground. Her favorite flower. She followed the path, as it was in the direction of her home. After a minute she started realizing it seemed to be a path directly to her front door...

She looked around and started to feel panicked. Is someone watching her? Where did this path of petals come from? Is Henry home? She started running.

As she neared her front door, the path of petals stopped. “Henry?” She called out. On her doorstep, a metal briefcase and a little black notebook lay. She looked around. Nobody in sight. She quickly unlocked her door, grabbed the briefcase and notebook, and flew inside making sure to lock the door behind her. “Henry?” She called out again.

She opened the notebook. The pages were blank. Inside the front cover all that was written was: “For Mary. Catch a plane to Paris. I’ll be waiting.”

She opened the briefcase to find it full of money. $20,000. “Where did this come from?” She wondered. “Is it true? Did Henry really rob that bank? Is this from him?” Paris was the place she’d dreamed of visiting since she was a girl. She felt overcome with guilt. Guilt for all the things she dreamed about. Living a luxurious life, traveling the world. “Is this why he robbed that bank?” “For me?” They lived in a dingy apartment, barely making it. And she often voiced how badly she wished they could have a new life.

She heard a knock at the door. Panicking, she threw the briefcase into the closet. “Who could that be?” She opened the door to find her 87 year old neighbor, Julia. “How are you doin honey?” She asked. “Oh you know, I’m fine. Thanks Julia.” She answered quickly. “I might go away to visit some family for a few days.” She added, creating a cover story for why she will be out of town. Her sweet neighbor offered to watch the place while she was out of town, and headed back to her apartment.

Mary began to pack. Only bring a carry on, she decided. So that she could keep the money close. She didn’t know if they were ever coming back to this place, so she packed only a few shirts, and filled the rest with whatever she could fit that held sentimental value. She hid the $20,000 in a few books and photo albums that she had packed. “I can’t believe this is happening” she thought to herself.

She caught a cab to the airport. Bought the soonest ticket to Paris, and waited.

While going through security, she started to panic. “What if they find the money?” She thought. It all happened in a haze, but before she knew it she was on the plane and it was preparing for takeoff.

The flight took about 7 hours. “The longest 7 hours of my life” Mary thought, as the plane began to land. Then her mind started racing. “Will Henry be here? How will I find him? What if this is a setup, should I not have come?” She wished she had the answers.

Hesitantly, she began to exit the plane with her carry on close by. She made her way down the terminals and into the airport. Her heart began to race and she couldn’t believe her eyes. There he was. Waiting for her with a bouquet of yellow roses. “Welcome to our new life.”