What a fine "I won't take it further."
A handful of words, and he'd nailed me to the pillory, as if I'd truly done something shameful.
It was a move to make an example of me, to kill the chicken to scare the monkeys. It stained my name, and it froze whatever was left of my heart.
I looked at my daughter for a long moment and swallowed everything I might have said.
I didn't argue, didn't make a scene. I quietly took out my phone, scanned Rupert's payment code, and transferred the ten thousand.
The instant the transfer went through, Rupert smiled.
"There we go, Dad. That's the right attitude. As an elder, you should be thinking about your children more, not sitting around all day trying to bleed them dry."
"Consider this money a lesson. Just watch yourself from now on."
Then he lifted his phone, turned to face every employee in the restaurant, and raised his voice.
"You all saw that, right? Steal something from this restaurant, and it doesn't matter who you are or how you're connected. The fine applies, no exceptions."
"Even my own father-in-law took one bottle of water today, and it's still a ten-thousand-dollar fine."
"Anyone who tries it again, don't blame me for showing no mercy."
The few servers glanced at one another. Not one of them said a word.
My daughter checked the time and announced, flatly,
"All right, that's the end of the shift. Everyone can head home."
The staff filed out one after another.
Only the few of us were left in the restaurant.
Seeing that my face wasn't good, my daughter softened her tone a little.
"Come on, Dad. The staff were all right there. I had to handle it by the book, I couldn't play favorites with you."
"Once we close up, let's all go out for a meal as a family. Don't stay upset."
And she reached for my arm, coaxing, the way she used to as a little girl.
I gently moved my arm out of her reach.
"No."
"You all go."
They were the family, after all.
I was just the thief who drank one bottle of water and had to hand over ten thousand.
I couldn't have swallowed a bite of that meal.
Ada Chavez shot me a look and sneered.
"You're not still telling yourself you've been wronged, are you?"
"We elders are supposed to have some spirit of sacrifice. While we've still got it in us, helping the young people out, chipping in some money, that's exactly what we should be doing."
"Forget the fact that you really did steal the restaurant's water and deserved the fine. Even if you'd just handed these young people ten thousand for nothing, so what? Do you really need to stand here sulking over a little thing like this?"
Spirit of sacrifice?
I looked at Ada, and I suddenly wanted to ask her exactly where hers showed.
Was it in the five years she'd loafed around, never once coming in to help at the restaurant?
Or in the way she dragged her old girlfriends in every few days to eat and drink for free, ordering the staff around until everyone was grumbling?
Or maybe it was how, every time she lost money at cards, she'd walk straight up to the register and take cash to go right back to gambling?
If that was what she meant by a spirit of sacrifice, then I really did fall short of her.
I looked at her and nodded.
"You're right. I was the one in the wrong."
Where I went wrong was this. I had held this daughter too dear.
Dear enough to lose myself.
Dear enough to give up everything.
Luckily, there was still time.
This ten thousand was a new beginning.
