Woman Returns $15,000 She Found Inside Bag, Officer Tells Her To Get A Lawyer

Trouble 

She gasped as she pulled the zipper, not knowing what the bag contained. After hearing the stories, she prayed she wouldn’t be used as a cautionary tale.   

She opened the bag, her eyes probing its dark depths with a thumping heartbeat.

Without knowing what she was doing, she was heading for trouble. 

A Cold Morning 

It was cold and windy in North Carolina in the early morning, and the wind ruffled her hair. She hoped the snow would end by dawn since it had fallen through the night.    

But it only got worse as it blanketed parked cars and blocked roads throughout the neighborhood. As soon as she woke up, she hunkered down and headed out for the three-mile walk to work.

As she walked this path, she didn’t realize that it would be her last.

Enjoying The Peace 

 

There had always been a sense of simplicity in Meghan McCalister’s life. It was the perfect way for the sixty-year-old retired teacher to provide for her family, working at the local farmer’s market. 

One of her grandkids was in college and made her proud at every turn, even though she lived alone in a modest bungalow outside town. They were left to Meghan’s care after their parents passed away.

A much more chaotic turn was soon to come for her peaceful life. 

Her Routine 

It was the tranquility of her age that Meghan loved. As soon as she awoke in the morning, she would feed her cats, then drive to the farmers market to sell fruits and vegetables.

Despite being cozy, her bungalow could turn suffocating after a long day locked inside it, so the drive to work was a needed break.

All that changed with the arrival of winter. 

Car Troubles 

On her way to work, Meghan’s car’s engine screeched, and all the dashboard lights came on. In the snowy road, she barely veered to the side, wondering what the problem was. 

In an effort to investigate, she opened the hood of her vehicle. Her late husband had taught her a few things about its engine.

She was about to make a life-changing decision. 

Better Off Walking 

It turned out that Meghan’s engine had knocked. She called a towing company and towed the vehicle to her favorite mechanic as quickly as possible. Soon, she learned that a faulty engine wasn’t her biggest concern. 

The vehicle was riddled with problems, from faulty brakes to a blown head gasket.

In light of the mechanic’s estimate, she decided walking to work was better than driving. 

An Enjoyable Activity  

Consequently, Meghan started walking a few miles to work, leaving the house in the morning and returning in the afternoon. The six-mile walk there and back was immensely enjoyable for her despite her advanced years, and as the week progressed she looked forward to it more and more. 

There was an intensification of the winter season, and the once comfortable weather outside had become unbearable.

How could Meghan get around without a car?

Staying Positive 

To stay warm, she layered up, wearing several sweaters and a thick winter jacket. Although this did not work as well as she had hoped, she walked to work anyway. 

Her outlook on life had never been pessimistic. It was always her mantra to tell herself, “Everything happens for a reason.”.

But how could such a simple mindset lead her to such a dark place?

The Handbag 

As she was walking to work, Meghan tripped over the seemingly harmless handbag. Its scarlet leather exterior was gleaming in the morning sun. 

Like a droplet of blood on a white sheet, it beckoned to Meghan from a distance. Despite not knowing what it was, she felt dumb not investigating.

Her eyes should have been diverted as soon as they landed on it.  

An Expensive Piece 

There was still no traffic on the roads as the sun arose. Trying to find a woman who could have dropped the bag, Meghan looked all around her. 

The bag was your standard designer bag, complete with all the niceties that go along with a bag of this quality. Meghan knew it must’ve been owned by a wealthy person just by looking at it.

She should have known the truth.   

Studying The Bag

The unsuspecting grandma picked up the bag, quickly studying it. She turned it over, her brows drawing up at the Hermes designer logo on its side. 

The red leather that had drawn her attention earlier was soft to the touch, exotic. It was clean, too, as if someone had just thrown it into the snow not a minute ago.

It was also heavy. 

Open It

Curious as to what was inside, Meghan decided to take a peek. Her fingers reached for the zipper – a red leather extension at one of the bag’s exquisite ends. 

She dared pull it, but a crow cawed above her, snapping her attention away from the bag. She stared at the bird, her brows knitting.

Was it a sign that she should drop the bag and run?

Taking It

The black-feathered bird continued gawking and cawing at Meghan until she decided not to open the bag. But she also couldn’t leave it behind. Stifling a shiver, she tucked the red bag under her arm and continued on. 

Since the farmer’s market was just a block away, it was only a short time before she entered the building’s door and got ready to start her day.

But nothing about this day would go as expected. 

Enough Is Enough

Meghan was an hour into her shift when she decided enough was enough. Curiosity had been burning through her since she walked in, and she couldn’t wait to go on her break so she could look into the bag. 

She’d placed it under her station next to her effects, and each time she walked past it, it would call to her.

Taking it behind the counter, she pulled the zipper open.     

Thinking It Through

With her heart thumping, she dragged the zipper across the bag’s length. She’d heard scary stories about malicious people leaving explosives in bags. Such occurrences were always chilling, making her wonder if she was in that same boat now.

These thoughts made her halt, and her hand trembled in place. What if the bag was rigged with something dangerous?

What if her curiosity cost the lives of everyone in the farmer’s market? 

It’s Not Over

Meghan slowly zipped the bag closed. But instead of placing it aside, she grabbed it with both hands and sprung to her feet. 

She called one of her co-workers, asking him to watch over her station for a few minutes. She jutted her chin at the restrooms and tapped at the bag.

The man nodded, thinking Meghan needed to relieve herself. 

Inside The Bag

Outside, in a secluded part of the snow-covered parking lot, Meghan finally cracked open the bag. She’d expected to find something malicious inside but was taken aback at what stared at her.

Carefully placed inside the bag were wads of cash strapped into stacks with rubber bands. Meghan took out the first wad, counting the one-dollar bills to five hundred dollars.

But that was just the beginning. 

Counting It

The second stack had hundred dollar bills, the third a mixture of a hundred and one-dollar bills. Meghan was awestruck, forgetting that she was out in the biting cold. 

Her body ran warm as she continued counting. She was now past the ten thousand mark, with more cash stacks still waiting for her.

If only she knew who the money belonged to. 

A Hefty Sum

Meghan ended up with fifteen thousand dollars in her hand, not to mention the bag the cash came in, which could fetch a hefty sum at a second-hand shop. Excitedly, she snapped several photos of the money and sent them to her granddaughters in college. 

She thought about how this money would come in handy in buying them school supplies. She could even fix her car with it! But people rarely walked around with such massive amounts of cash, let alone threw them into the roadside snow.

At once, the excitement that had taken over Meghan’s body froze into ice. 

It’s Dirty Money

What if the cash belonged to someone dangerous – a criminal gang or someone who made terrible life decisions and was looking to pay up or get rid of the money?

These thoughts had Meghan throwing the bag and the money on the snow, stepping back with her shaky fingers against her lips. She took in a deep breath in a bid to calm her head.

What kind of trouble had she gotten herself into?

Maintaining The Peace

For Meghan, the biggest downside to living a quiet life was the constant fear of everything falling apart. She didn’t like the idea of chaos looming just outside her door. 

She’d never been caught with the wrong crowd in her long life. She’d rarely slept in a police station because of breaking the law. Of course, she’d had minor runnings with the authorities, but none of it was ever serious.

Fifteen thousand dollars of unexplainable money would surely put her where the sun never shined.

Breathe

“Keep calm,” Meghan whispered to herself. Maybe the money belonged to some ordinary woman who lost it while driving down the road. Maybe someone’s kid took the bag without knowing what was inside and left it in the snow.

None of these reasons seemed sensible, but Meghan needed something to keep her mind steady. 

Breathing in again, she hurried down and collected all the money, stuffing them into the bag. Although she didn’t like what she was about to do next, she knew it was the only right thing to do. She’d deal with the consequences as they came. 

I Need To Go

Meghan hurried back to the building with the bag under her arm. She told her boss she had an emergency and needed to visit the police station immediately. 

Her boss tried to pry, but Meghan didn’t divulge any information about the bag or what it carried.

She only insisted she needed to go to the station, saying it was urgent.

Reaching Their Destination 

Her boss, Mr. Chaplin, offered to drive her to the station. He gave her the rest of the day off and walked her to his Jeep. The next thirty minutes saw them cut through the midmorning traffic into the local station. 

Meghan walked in with the red bag clutched tightly under her left arm. She didn’t let Mr. Chaplin look inside.

She hadn’t mentioned it in their conversation here. 

A Full House 

With her heart pounding and sweat slicking her forehead and neck, she went into the station and asked to see any officer on duty. The place was packed, so a deputy came to listen to her issue. 

He stared wildly as Meghan presented the bag, taking out stack after stack of cash. Even Mr. Chaplin looked dumbstruck.

But Meghan didn’t stop. 

Something’s Wrong

She explained how she found the bag that morning and why she opened it. She asked the officer if she was in any trouble. With a smile, he assured her she wasn’t. 

She’d done the right thing by bringing the money to the station. The officer reached for the cash, took a few bills, and shone them under a desk lamp beside him.

But his smile slowly receded, his head tilting. Something was wrong.  

Where Did You Find It?

“Where did you say you found the bag again?” he asked, pushing his chair back. “Beside the main road to town,” Meghan answered.  

The deputy’s face had changed from that of wonder to one plagued with worry. An unsettling feeling washed over Meghan, rooting her in place.

Without an explanation, the officer walked away with the bag. 

He’s Back

Meghan sat with Mr. Chaplin, studying the officers, who were a few desks away, discussing in hushed tones. The officer she’d talked to returned, a single hundred dollar bill in his hand. 

He pulled the chair as if needing to sit but stared at it for a few seconds before sighing. His gaze locked on Meghan.

What he’d share would turn her world upside down. 

It’s Fake

“Mrs. McCalister, I’m afraid there is a problem. We might need to keep you here for questioning if that’s alright.”

He slid the dollar bill across the desk and said, “It’s fake. All of it is fake.”

Meghan took the cash and looked at its details. It looked okay from her point of view. “Here,” the officer reached for the bill. “Let me show you.”

Lawyer Up

“The most common way to know if cash is fake is to hold it against any light. If it doesn’t have a visible serial strip, then it’s fake. You can also rub it between your thumb and index finger. If it’s papery, oddly soft, or smooth, then chances are it’s counterfeit.” 

He helped Meghan do the tests on the bill, and to her surprise, the money didn’t have a serial strip and was soft to the touch. “It’s fake,” he said. “You look like a good person, Ma’am.

What we have here is evidence that fits directly into an ongoing investigation. I’d suggest you lawyer up. What comes next will be very messy.” 

 

Disclaimer: To protect the privacy of those depicted, some names, locations, and identifying characteristics have been changed and are products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblances to actual events, places, or persons, living or dead, are entirely coincidental.