A Bandit Creek Miracle

by Brenda Sinclair

  Early Saturday morning Amanda received the ‘all clear’ from Doctor Crosby to ride a horse, and Jeremy and Amanda joined the guest ranch visitors for a horseback ride throughout the countryside. Mark Rogers guided the tour with remarkable expertise while everyone took in the beautiful scenery. They heard a meadowlark call and spotted deer and rabbits along the way. They rode alongside an icy cold creek and cooked bannock and warmed up stew over an outdoor fire for their lunch. At three o’clock the riding party returned to the ranch when the skies darkened, and just as they finished tending to the horses the snow started flying. Everyone scurried into the guest lodge, and Mark carried in extra firewood and added a log to the fire in the stone fireplace. Arthur and Rosalie supervised while the children toasted marshmallows, and the adults sang songs around the piano with Shannon playing requests.

  On Sunday afternoon Amanda and Catherine bundled the babies into identical baby carriers, strapped them to their chests, and set out for a short stroll in the fresh snow around the grounds. They talked nonstop about their lives, their goals, and their dreams while enjoying a bit of exercise. Catherine admitted she hoped they’d become sisters-in-law some day, but Amanda didn’t encourage her friend’s wistfulness. Her heart saddened at the thought of leaving the friends she’d made, especially Jeremy. She’d started her assignment counting the days till she returned home, and now she dreaded her time in Bandit Creek coming to an end.

  Jeremy and Amanda had participated in the constant teasing and general merriment each evening while enjoying dinner at the main house with his siblings, their spouses, and Arthur. And at ten o’clock they returned to her hotel, and she fell asleep in Jeremy’s arms after making love.

  Miss Pringle knocked on Amanda’s office door and poked her head in, drawing her out of her musings. “There’s a Miss Sanders here to see you. She insisted you were expecting her.”

  “Yes, I am.” Amanda set her coffee mug on the corner of the desk. She slid her hands down her navy suit skirt, adjusted the tie on her white silk blouse, and then strode out of her office.

  “Miss Sanders, it’s so nice to see you. I trust the drive to Bandit Creek was uneventful.” Amanda extended her hand and resisted the urge to wink at her friend. They shared the same goals and ambitions, were the same age, acted more like sisters than former co-workers.

  “Miss Bailey, I spent the long weekend in Missoula with friends, and I enjoyed the drive here this morning.” Susan Sanders wore a gray suit and a fuchsia blouse under a stunning red wool coat. She whipped a black felt fedora off her head and shook Amanda’s hand.

  “Everyone, this is Miss Susan Sanders from the Ellis Bank branch in Helena. She’ll be working here for a few days performing an audit.” Amanda smiled. “Let me introduce you to our staff.”

  The introductions complete, Susan followed Amanda into her office. As soon as Amanda closed the door, Susan smiled and shrugged out of her coat. “What’s with the Miss Sanders business? You haven’t called me anything but Susan since the second day we worked together.”

  “I considered it practical to keep up professional appearances. Remember, one of those people I just introduced you to stole $10,000 from this bank, and we’re going to prove it.” Amanda hung Susan’s coat beside her own on the tree-rack and motioned her friend toward the client chair.

  Susan set her briefcase on the corner of the desk and dug her eyeglasses out of her purse. “So, let’s discover who your thief is.”

  The two of them pulled ten times the files they actually required to divert suspicion. Amanda’s desk overflowed with files, and she arranged for an unused rectangular table to be brought in from the staff room to provide a separate working space for Susan. And then they reviewed the loan documents Amanda suspected were bogus.

  Susan concurred with all of her findings. Someone at the bank helped themselves to $10,000. The fact that the first payments on the loans were made in cash indicated the employee intended to reimburse the bank for the funds in due time while remaining anonymous. Still, the whole manner in which they’d expedited the loans was fraudulent.

  “Why didn’t they just ask Catherine for a loan, follow proper procedures, and pay back the funds?” Susan shook her head.

  “There could be any number of reasons. They required the money immediately. Too embarrassed to admit they needed the funds in the first place. No collateral. Maybe they paid a gambling debt? Maybe the thief was being blackmailed?” Amanda’s eyebrows rose.

  “You’ve been watching crime shows on TV again, haven’t you? Stop it! Those Hollywood writers feed that fertile imagination of yours.” Susan stretched her back, massaged her neck. “What if Catherine is the thief?”

  Amanda felt her face pale. “I refuse to even consider that possibility. Catherine is married to a Branigan. She doesn’t require $10,000, and if she did she could access the funds in a minute.” Her stomach flip-flopped as she contemplated having to reveal to Jeremy and his family that Catherine was a suspect in the theft. The whole idea was ludicrous.

  “Amanda, nobody is exempt from suspicion at this point.” Susan closed the file she’d been reading. “Maybe we should call it a day. You can buy me dinner.”

  “The cook at my hotel does a lovely steak.”

  “It’s a date, girl. Let’s go.” Susan stood and grabbed her purse. “By the way, I’m also staying at the Nugget. I heard a gal sometimes encounters extremely sexy cowboys wielding wine bottles in this hotel’s restaurant.”

  Amanda gasped.

  “I phoned my old college pal, Catherine, the other day. Extended my congratulations on her new sons. Asked how the mat leave was going.” Susan’s eyes twinkled with mischief.

  “And my love life happened to work itself into the conversation?” Amanda glared at her friend.

  “My lips are sealed, of course. But Catherine tells me congratulations are in order for you, too.” Susan shook her head. “And to think I believed all that baloney about hating small towns. Catherine emailed me a picture of your Jeremy. Does Jeremy have any good-looking cowboy buddies? I’m a single gal. And I’m going to hate small towns, too, beginning tonight.”

  CHAPTER NINE

  The next morning, Susan and Amanda met downstairs in the hotel restaurant for breakfast. They’d enjoyed a pleasant evening together including a fine steak dinner and a movie at the local cinema. Unfortunately for Susan no handsome cowboy materialized at her side either at dinner or afterward.

  “If the cook prepares eggs Benedict as well as he does a steak, I’m eating all my meals here.” Susan scanned the breakfast specials. “Darn. It’s not even on the menu. I guess the veggie omelet will suffice.”

  “Please stop talking about food.” Amanda’s stomach felt particularly queasy today, either from nerves thinking about investigating the bogus loans or the onset of morning sickness. “Just black decaf for me.”

  Amanda recognized the morning shift waitress, a plump middle-aged woman with shocking red hair tied back in a ponytail, when she approached their table. “Good morning, ladies. Hiding out here are you?”

  Susan and Amanda exchanged stunned expressions.

  “I guess you aren’t aware of the latest rumors flying around town. The air positively crackled with gossip at Ma’s Kitchen this morning. I stopped in for an early breakfast with my husband.” The waitress whistled and filled their mugs with coffee. “Holy cow, you two opened a big old can of worms yesterday.”

  “What are you talking about?” Susan leaned back in her chair.

  “The missing money at the bank.” The waitress set the coffee carafe down and dug a pad and pen out of her pocket. “Was the bank robbed? Do you know when it happened?”

  “Who mentioned anything about missing money?” Amanda tapped her fingers on the table.

  “Well, I don’t recall anyone mentioning the initial source, but the story is all over town. Rumor has it that the big city girls are accusing someone at the bank of misappropriating funds. That means someone stole money, right?” The wait
ress met Susan’s eyes, expectantly.

  “Actually, it means a dishonest or illegal use of funds, but stole is close enough. How did this rumor get started? Neither Amanda nor I announced our findings or accused anyone.” Susan glared at the waitress.

  “The local grapevine transfers gossip faster than anything.” The waitress chuckled. “Those fellows think their Internet moves so swift. Hah! They never tangled with a small town gossip on a well-greased grapevine.”

  “This whole business is nothing more than conjecture.” Amanda sipped her coffee.

  “Well, honey, I’d be a tad bit more concerned if I was you.” The waitress parked her hand on her hip and glared at Amanda. “Rumor has it that you stole the money yourself, and you’re attempting to pin it on one of the locals.”

  Amanda choked on her mouthful of coffee. “You’ve got to be kidding me!”

  “Nope, I heard it at Ma’s over my eggs and toast.” The waitress patted Amanda’s arm. “I don’t believe it myself, of course. But there are a lot of locals who refuse to believe one of their own would steal money from the bank, from their neighbors.”

  Susan stood, tossed her napkin on the table, and set a five dollar bill beside it. “That should cover the coffee. Please keep the change.” She met Amanda’s eyes. “This is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. Someone at the bank started this rumor, and we’re going to put an end to it right now. I’m beginning to understand and share your opinion of small towns.”

  Susan and Amanda climbed into Susan’s car. Amanda’s hands shook so violently she couldn’t have driven if her life depended on it. Susan started the car and exited the hotel parking lot.

  Amanda clasped the handle on her briefcase in a white knuckle grasp. Suddenly, the old shaman’s warning popped into her head. Trouble’s coming. Trouble’s coming. Trouble’s coming. Jack was right.

  She’d prayed the trouble had nothing to do with the baby. And as it turned out, it didn’t concern the baby at all. The trouble centered on her career and her reputation, however. In future, she should be more careful of what she prayed for. Second only to losing the baby, losing her career would totally devastate her.

  The irony of the whole situation angered her. She’d agreed to this temporary assignment in Bandit Creek to further her career. And now these outlandish accusations could derail her plans, could totally erase everything she’d worked so hard for. Why me? she thought. The second the words popped into her head she hated herself for succumbing to that moment of weakness. She wasn’t going down without a fight.

  “Susan, these unsubstantiated rumors could sabotage my career if I can’t prove them false.”

  “Of course, we’ll prove them false. You’re no more a thief than I am.” Susan met her friend’s eyes. “We’ll expose the real culprit, and then this entire town will owe you an apology.”

  “And I worried that if word got out I was pregnant and single in this small town my reputation as a professional in the community might be damaged.” Amanda shook her head. “That’s the least of my worries.”

  When Susan pulled up to the curb outside Ma’s Kitchen, Amanda blurted, “What are we doing here?”

  “Counterattack. We’ll dispute every allegation that was volleyed about this morning. If anybody accuses one of my staff of unlawful activity, they’ve got a battle on their hands.” Susan and Amanda strode into the restaurant.

  “Good morning, everyone.” Susan smiled, broadly, and then headed for a table by the window. “Lovely morning, isn’t it?”

  All conversation ceased. A pin dropping would have sounded like an atomic detonation. The locals exchanged glances and then every eye in the room glared at Susan and Amanda.

  “Rumor has it you folks are accusing my associate of stealing money from the bank.” Susan stood with one hand on her hip.

  “Damn right we are!” An old fellow seated at the horseshoe counter stood and waved his fist at Susan. “No trouble at the bank until you two showed up.”

  “So you all believe I stole money from the bank. And you think I’m covering my tracks by blaming it on one of Bandit Creek’s upstanding citizens.” Amanda’s gaze encompassed the entire crowd.

  Immediately, a rumble of agreement from the locals filled the room, accompanied by collective head nodding and finger pointing.

  “That’s ridiculous!” shouted Amanda.

  An overweight gray-haired woman hefted herself off her chair and wagged a stumpy finger at Amanda. “Darn tooting, we’re accusing you. The money in that bank belongs to the citizens of this town. No one in Bandit Creek would steal from their own.”

  “Well, I can assure you Miss Bailey is not the guilty party. Regardless of what you’ve heard, every account holder at the Ellis Bank can rest assured their funds on deposit are quite safe. We have uncovered a discrepancy at the bank, however, and we are investigating. That is all I’m prepared to divulge at the present time. But I guarantee you we will expose the party or parties responsible and deal with the individual or individuals in due course.”

  Most of the locals waved away the words they’d just heard, distrust evident on their faces.

  Susan glanced at her watch. “Goodness, look at the time! Miss Bailey, we should get moving. We wouldn’t want to be late for work.”

  Amanda turned and headed back out the door. Just before the door closed behind them, Susan called, “Have a pleasant day, folks!”

  As they drove to the Ellis Bank, Amanda whispered, “I can’t believe we just did that. What will the board of directors say when they hear about this?”

  “Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn. Nobody is accusing you of thievery. Nipping this silliness in the bud was the sensible action to take.” Susan pulled the car into the bank’s parking lot, grabbed her briefcase, and crawled out of the driver’s seat. “Now, let’s expose a thief.”

  The bank usually buzzed with activity and conversation, but today it remained quiet. Only a few customers crossed the threshold. Working alongside the staff today seemed more awkward than it had on Amanda’s first day on the job. The person responsible for those rumors and the theft sat among them, and Susan and Amanda knew it. Was it the same person? And who was the guilty party?

  At eleven o’clock, Susan waved Amanda over to her corner table. “Come examine this closely and tell me your opinion.”

  Amanda slipped back into her shoes then approached the makeshift desk.

  “What am I supposed to be looking at?”

  “Catherine’s signature.”

  Amanda carefully studied the collection of signatures on the various documents lined along Susan’s work station. Most of the signatures resembled a carbon copy, but a few stood out as slightly different.

  “These two don’t have Catherine’s double dot over the ‘i’ in Branigan.”

  “Exactly.” Susan’s finger tapped the paper. “I believe our thief forged Catherine’s signature on the bogus loans. Let’s check the rest of them to be certain.”

  Amanda dug the other four files out from under the pile of paperwork on her desk and rifled through them until she found the proper documents. “Sure enough, these are missing the double dot, too.”

  Susan slapped her makeshift desk with her hand. “Whoever the thief is, he or she is not familiar with Catherine’s signature.”

  “Or, they just missed or forgot about that double dot when attempting the forgeries.” Amanda smiled. This was their first small break in the case, she thought, and then grimaced. Break in the case? Maybe she had been watching too many crime shows after all. Nonetheless, her spirits soared. “At least we know Catherine isn’t the thief.”

  “Unless, would Catherine purposefully sign the documents this way to trip up an investigation?” Susan tilted her head.

  “You’re so distrustful. You can’t believe our friend is guilty.” Amanda sighed and touched her middle. “And I do consider her a friend, even if she told you my secret.”

  “Okay, I admit I don’t believe Catherine is our thie
f. I was prepared to report her shoddy practice of signing documents without reading them first, but this forgery business proves Catherine’s professionalism. She never signed these bogus loan docs.”

  “Miss Pringle suggested Catherine signed paperwork without perusing it though.” Amanda tapped her front teeth with her nail. “Perhaps Catherine signed requisitions for office supplies or something similar without a moment’s thought, but never important banking documents?”

  “There’s only one way to be certain. Road trip.” Susan smiled.

  “What?”

  “Grab the bogus loan files and your purse. We’re going to lunch, and then we’re going to visit some babies.”

  ****

  Ninety minutes later, Catherine threw open the front door to the Branigan mansion. “Amanda! Susan! What a lovely surprise! Come in, come in. You’ve got perfect timing. I just put the boys down for a nap.”

  “Darn it, I wanted to see the little darlings.” Susan slipped her coat off and set it on the bench in the front entryway. And then she slipped her heeled boots off and set them on the corner of the rug.

  “They’re sleeping in their bassinets in the kitchen.” Catherine waved them forward. “Come take a peek. And, Susan, thank you for those sweet outfits you sent the twins.”

  “You’re very welcome. The little guys will have to grow into them, but my girlfriend complained that everyone bought her new baby small-sized clothes that her daughter outgrew so quickly. I always buy something they can wear later on.”

  “What an excellent idea!” Catherine smiled. “Can I get you gals a cup of coffee or something?”

  “I’d love some coffee.” Amanda followed the others into the kitchen.

  The ladies spent fifteen minutes admiring the sleeping babies while the decaf brewed. Catherine poured them all a cup and set a plate of home-made chocolate chip oatmeal cookies on the table. “So, besides my handsome little guys, what brings you out my way?”