The Young Shoplifters-excerpt from a short story by Austin Mitchell

The Young Shoplifters

by

Austin Mitchell

         Syd Bethune was into his third day of work at the bank as a trainee customer service representative. Suddenly he looked up from his desk and immediately his hand went to his mouth as in walked Reds Bryan, his former branch manager.

            He immediately spied Syd and came over.

            “Syd, you are working here again? I can’t believe it. You know that I live abroad now. I just stopped by to greet some of my former colleagues, but it seems as if most of them have left the branch. But one day you can tell me how you got re-hired.”

            Reds shook Syd’s shaking hand and disappeared upstairs. Syd kept a nervous eye on the stairs until he saw Reds descending them and disappeared out of the bank. Syd said a silent prayer that Reds hadn’t said anything about him.  

            But that Friday at about two o’clock Syd got an urgent call summoning him to head office.

            “Mr. Bethune, you didn’t tell us that you formerly worked with us and of the circumstances why you had to leave,” Mrs. Hall, the bank personnel manager, said.

            “I don’t know what you are talking about. I never worked with this bank before and I can prove it.”

            Mrs. Hall began reading from his file.

            “Do you deny it now, Mr. Bethune?”

            “No, I’m sorry, it’s only because I wanted a better job, why I did it.”

            “I’m really sorry, Mr. Bethune. I hope nothing like this ever happens to you again. You do understand that the bank has to protect its property and reputation. But see your services have been rewarded,” she said, handing him a brown envelope.

            Syd thanked her and left the bank. When he opened the letter it gave an account of the first incident.

            Syd remembered cashing those pensioner’s checks and collecting one hundred thousand dollars for his efforts. A month later the fraud was discovered and he had to pay back the money he had collected or face jail time. Three years later and Syd now in a low paying government job decided to try his luck again and would have gotten away with it had Reds Bryan kept his mouth shut.

                                                ***     

              Three months after being fired that first time from the bank, Syd formed a partnership with two friends, Junjo and Bankie. Bankie did hardware sales, while Junjo (like Syd) was an office clerk. To supplement their meager wages they stole easily concealed items from all kinds of stores. Syd could remember doing these same things to make up his lunch money. He had been punished many times by his parents who thought the money they gave him was enough.

                Bankie soon got into trouble when he walked out of a pharmacy with several bottles of cologne. A guard chased and held him. He was fined twenty thousand dollars or three months in prison. The syndicate didn’t think Bankie was very smart and he was booted from the organization.

            Perhaps their favorite time was when the two biggest

department stores in town had their blow out sale. This normally took place between April and May, after the Christmas and Easter seasons.

            This particular season, the blowout sale was in full swing when Syd weighed in, going into the store (the Monday following his lastest dismissal from the bank) without a belt or tie but coming out wearing both items. The next day he was back, making off with a shirt this time. Syd decided to take it easy the next day but got away with a pair of pants and two belts that Thursday.

            On Friday he managed to snatch a hat. That same evening he met Junjo in Half Way Tree. He had been stealing things at the other giant department store. 

            “So how is it going, Junjo?”

            “I heard that they held you last night, Syd.”

             Junjo dipped into his bag and brought out a pair of Italian made shoes.

             “You stole those from Mac’s store? How did you manage to beat their security system?”

            Just then Cal Morgan came up to them. He arranged deals for a cut out of the proceeds.

            “I don’t rate what you guys going on with. To me, you are petty thieves. Sid, it’s two times they fired you from the same bank. To me what they fired you for is foolishness. You can’t work at a big bank like that and let them fire you for small change,” Cal said.

            “I never knew that they would have sent me back to the same branch this last time here and the first time I didn’t know that the guy at the pension place so soft. He started talking even before the police arrested him. You have any bright ideas?

            “What do you suggest that we do, Cal?” Junjo asked.

            Cal stretched out his hand to Junjo.

            “Give me back the two hundred dollars I paid the guard at that pharmacy not to come after you for those two bottles of cologne.”

            “I will give you back the money when I sell some of the things I took from Mac’s store.”

            “I have a sweet deal for both of you. I know people who have money in the banks and they’re not going to miss a couple hundred thousand dollars. We are going to draw the checks in your names and you will get thirty percent of it,” Cal told them.

            Both Junjo and Syd looked at each other.

            “When can we start?” Syd asked.

            “About how much will each check be worth?” Junjo chimed in.

            “They’ll be worth half a million dollars.” 

             Junjo and Syd jumped out of their seats.

            Syd had been in banking too long not to know the regulations governing persons moving such large amounts of cash.

            “Don’t you think they’ll call to find out who’s

cashing the checks?”

            Cal took out a letter and showed them.

            “They will call this number and somebody will answer it.”

            “It’s too easy, what about identity cards?” Junjo asked.

            “We are going to fix up some papers for you to get identity cards very fast. Both of you can take it easy for this weekend. If you pull this off and my friends feel that they can trust you, we are going to let both of you in on some big deals.”

           Upon Cal’s departure the two friends debated whether to follow his advice or not.

          “It’s foolishness, Cal’s talking because I wouldn’t mind if the sale could last another week,” Junjo opined.

            “You can say that again, I haven’t gotten enough things. I am not even going to make any money on what I’ve taken so far. They have some expensive suits, I wish I could get two of them,” Syd declared.

            “How are you going to take way suits? If it was in America it would be easier because everybody wears suits over there, but down here as they see you  walking out of the store they would  hold you.”

            “Junjo, I will see you, don’t bother let them hold you.”

            “Don’t worry yourself, Syd. I’m too smart for that.”

          The two men shook hands and went their separate ways.

          Read the full story in 'Days up the River'.