Serving Time

Passion always saw the good in people. Even if individuals were bad to the bone, she would look beyond their misdeeds. Raised in a household where the focus was more on spirituality, she would always hear her parents say, “There is good and bad in everyone. In some cases, the good never developed, so the bad took over that person’s life. One must always look deep into an individual’s heart and try to bring out that good.”
Therefore, when she started to correspond with an inmate name Dough and fell in love with him, she believed she was practicing what her parents were advocating.
However, she was about to be drawn into a network of lies, deceit and fraud, and after his release from prison, disturbing events would leave her asking, “Was he a good for nothing or the devil’s spawn?”
Ever since she could remember, Passion’s dream was to be a missionary. She wanted to nurture and save souls. Her caring, listening and communicating skills would have made her the ideal celebrant. She considered joining the Peace Corps but decided to stay close to home, because in her community, there were plenty of folks who needed divine intervention.
Every weekend, she would lecture to the heathens and lost souls. Yet, she possessed another great gift: Baking. When it came to her pies, cakes, tarts, and cookies, she was an amazing artisan. For over twenty years, she worked as a pastry chef at the popular Gourmet Treats in Upper Manhattan, New York.
People would come from the other boroughs, just to buy and taste her mouthwatering desserts. The business was doing so well that the owners decided to open a second Gourmet Treats in Carson City, Nevada, and they wanted her to manage the new shop; she would receive a forty percent share of the net profits.
After thinking about and discussing it with her parents, who encouraged her to go for it, she accepted the challenge.
In six months, she would be working in a city, whose economic force was tourism. With visitors drawn to the casinos, and other sites of interests, this shop was going to be a success if she had anything to do with it.
Since Passion had accumulated a massive amount of money and planned to purchase a home in New York City, she would use those funds to buy her first home in Carson City. She started to scout around for homes on the Internet and came across a real estate agency, which had a list of properties not too far from the new shop. After looking over numerous videos, she found a house within her price range.

Built in 2002, the single-family residence, with three bedrooms and two baths, was located approximately a quarter of a mile from the bakery.
The 2,081 square feet brick home sat on five acres of land, offering complete privacy and a superlative view.
Many upgrades included carpet floors, vinyl tiles, granite counters, a top-of-the-line gas range, built-in microwave oven, stainless steel refrigerator, a laundry room, cable TV, central air conditioning, natural gas, forced air heating system, high ceilings with ceiling fans, an enclosed patio and a finished three-car garage.
The asking price was $295K. The price was a steal, because a house like this in New York City would cost over seven figures, excluding the acres of land. Because she was paying cash for the property, her bid was $285K. The offer was accepted, and the agent would handle the deal and look after the place until Passion was ready to move in.
It would be another four months before Passion left for Nevada. She did not intend to take any of her old household belongings and decided to surf the Internet for new furnishings and accessories.
While on-line, she received an e-mail from a prison pen pal service called Serving Time Pen Pals Club or STPPC. The organization had been in existence for over thirty years, had thousands of members and published a monthly magazine, which listed personal profiles, photos, and direct contact information of lonely male inmates, all searching for friendship, love, romance and marriage.
Only non-violent inmates in minimum-security facilities could join and submit ads. Each issue had over five hundred listings.
According to some of the testimonials, many members had gotten married, and some had turned their lives around, because someone had taken the time to care by writing that first letter. An annual subscription to STPPC was $35.00. She immediately placed an order and could not wait to receive her first copy.
Everyone deserved a second chance, and she was going to employ what she believed in, bringing compassion and spirituality to the gone astray. Moreover, if she found love and romance, then her reaching out would not have been in vain.
Two weeks later, the first issue arrived. The layout of the publication was attractive. As she started to read the personal ads, one particular profile and photo piqued her interest:
My name is Dough, and I am an inmate at a federal correctional facility in Florida. I am a 42-year-old divorced male and wish to correspond with a single female who is open-minded, kind, considerate, and independent for friendship and possibly more. I am fun loving and enjoy baking, cooking, reading and writing. Meeting new people is one of my goals, but my current situation limits my traveling. My release date is set for December 31. I will promptly answer all letters. So, please write soon.

When she read that ad, he held her interest. The fact that he enjoyed baking was inspiring, but his photo was downright eye-catching. His piercing brown eyes were inviting and looking straight into her heart and soul. She immediately contacted him, and for the next several weeks, they were writing each other, as pen pals do.

Dough was very open about himself. Fifteen years ago, he and a college friend started a consulting firm, which helped small and medium-size businesses become more efficient and profitable. The two created great marketing and advertising ideas that generated continuous earnings for their clients.
However, his partner had embezzled over one million dollars, committed mail fraud, vanished and left Dough holding the bag. Employees of the company lost all of their retirement savings, and the corporation folded. He ended up serving five years for a crime he had no knowledge of or committed.
He lost his home; his wife divorced him, and his family and so-called friends abandoned him. Trying to prove his innocence to no avail, he became disillusioned. Passion’s letter was the first piece of communication he had received since serving time.
In one of his letters, he wrote, “Most inmates doing time never get to have pen pals, or visits from relatives or friends. They are always hoping that someone will give them a chance to form a lasting friendship by taking the time to write a letter. In addition, an inmate’s contact with the outside world is a positive step, especially if that connection is with someone who is ready to encourage that individual to evaluate his past and bring about the changes necessary for him to lead a fruitful life, when released from prison. The first letter I received from you brought me so much happiness and restored my faith in humanity. Now, I am ready to face whatever life throws my way with you by my side.”
Overwhelmed by his sincerity, she started to fall for this man and knew what she had to do next, help restore his sense of worth.
The two were now corresponding by e-mail. Passion mentioned her new role as manager of a gourmet bakery in Carson City and wanted Dough to work with her. Since his areas of expertise were marketing and advertising and with his love for baking, he would be a perfect fit for the company. He was interested in her proposition but questioned how was he going to get to Nevada, and where was he going to stay since he had very little money.
To ease his mind, she wrote, “I just purchased a home with plenty of space, and you will have your own room and complete privacy; I will send you a plane ticket and enough money to get started, until you get back on your feet. As manager of the store, I will split my profits with you.”
No man in his right mind would have turned down an offer like that. Keyed up, he accepted her invitation and made a promise to be a righteous man.

The owners were preparing Passion for the takeover of the new shop, which would open in two months. She informed them that she knew a business consultant who could be her associate store manager and assistant pastry chef, and he was planning to relocate to Carson City at the end of the year. e wouHOf course, she never mentioned he was an inmate who was about to be released soon.
Whether the owners would have approved of an ex-con working at their business never came up during work-related discussions.
Not everyone shared her philosophy of forgiving or granting people a second chance. Some of her co-workers and close friends thought she was too trusting and giving, especially when it came to men.
She always had that eager to please syndrome, which in the end would cause her demise.
In two weeks, Dough would be a free man and on his way to Carson City. Passion instructed the real estate agent to provide a house key for him upon his arrival. It would be another month before she would join him.
When he got to the house, the real estate agent was there and handed him the key. He thanked the agent and let himself in. To say he was not impressed with the house would have been a fib. He could not fathom being in such an exquisite setting. Nicely outfitted with chic furnishings and elegant accessories, it was a scenic place.
“After spending five years in a dormitory style housing that consisted of numerous cots in a large room, this is a five star villa,” he echoed to himself.
He toured the house, selected his room, and was ready to execute his underhanded plan. As he was unpacking, the house phone rang. It was Passion, letting him know that in two weeks, the owners were coming to Carson City to check on the shop and wanted to meet with him for an informal interview.
She reiterated, “There was no mention about you serving time.”
He reassured her that everything was under control. They talked for about two hours. After getting off the phone, he put together an impressive résumé and listed three references. On his way from the airport, he remembered passing a copy place, which was within walking distance from the house.
The next day, he took a draft copy of his vita to the printer and had it professionally typed. Two days later, the document was ready.
He then went to a men’s clothing shop and purchased a couple of suits, shirts, ties, a pair of shoes, and a leather attaché case. He was now ready to play the most compelling role of his life.
The owners had flown in to check on the bakery, which was going through some last minute modifications. They were anxious to meet with Dough, called and invited him for a get together, at his convenience. To scrutinize the layout of the shop, he thought meeting there would be perfect and agreed to meet with them the following day.
He rehearsed his lines in front of the mirror and foresaw every question the owners would pose. He knew they would check his references and had that area covered; he left nothing to chance. He laid out his garments and had his résumé along with an introductory letter in an elegant dossier. Stating that this man was not on top of his game was like saying, “The dog was not a descendant of the wolf.”
It was just a matter of time before he would con the owners, wreck them financially, and leave Passion holding the sack.

On the day of the interview, it was a bright and sunny day. Dough woke up feeling victorious. He took a shower, got dressed and was ready to leave for his meeting. Since the shop was not too far from the house, he decided to walk, which gave him enough time to practice his script.
When he arrived at the bakery, the owners were already there. With a gleam on their faces, they introduced themselves as Cid and Betty.
He responded by saying, “It is a great honor to meet you; Passion has told me so much about you and your other shop in New York.”
“Likewise,” said the owners, who started to give him a tour of the place; he made a mental note of the shop’s layout. It was spacious and well designed, with earth tone colors and trendy exhibit cases. The enclosed back area was where the baking would take place. On each side was an office. The front area was indicative of a specialty gourmet shop with enhancing wooden floors.
Because the shop was on a highway, the area was a crowd-puller; the business would unquestionably make tons of money.
As the three sat down, Dough talked about his business background as a consultant and came up with many thoughts as to how the shop could pull in more money.
He recommended setting up a mail order department and emphasized, “This way, you could build a customer mailing list, and during special events or holidays, send out flyers or brochures announcing new products and special sales. To build your in-house mailing list, you could have the customers sign their name and address in a guestbook before leaving the shop. In the near future, you can have a presence on the World Wide Web and quadruple your revenues.”
His suggestions swept away the owners. After reading his résumé, they were even more amazed. The owners were pleased with his creative talents and professionalism. They offered him the job as Director of Marketing and Advertising, but first, they had to check his references and would get back to him shortly.
A week later, Dough heard from Cid and Betty. After checking his character references and hearing glowing accounts of how he made millions for his clients, they offered him the job as head of marketing and advertising.
After getting that good news, he made several phone calls and said to the people on the other end, “It’s a done deal.”
Later that evening, he called Passion and gave her an update. So overjoyed, she could not wait to see and work with him. Still, it was not clear if he would be her partner or an employee.
She contacted the owners and inquired about Dough’s employment status. They informed her that he would be on probation for six months. If things worked out, he would have the option to become her associate partner.
In two days, Passion was due to arrive in Carson City. Dough was getting his act together and coming up with the grand scheme of all schemes.
In twelve months, someone would make an offer to Cid and Betty to buy the two shops. It would be a well thought-out plot. He knew three ex-offenders who would participate in the deception. They would pretend to be investors and handle all transactions.
Two offshore bank accounts would be set up in countries that had no extradition treaties. These types of depositories were great, because they usually left no paper trail.
Passion’s flight arrived on time. She called Dough from the airport to let him know she was on her way. In forty-five minutes, she was home. When she opened the door, he was standing there; they embraced and kissed each other like overzealous fleas.
“What a rubenesque beauty,” he thought to himself.
“What a hunk,” she thought to herself.
He looked as if he had just stepped out of a men’s fashion magazine. He was tall, muscular and downright attractive. Completely fulfilled, she knew he was going to be her better half. It was positively love at second sight.
She went to her room, got undressed, and took a long hot bubble bath. While she was relaxing in the tub, sensual thoughts started to seep into her head. Finally, she got out of the tub, dried off and got dressed. When she entered the dining area, dinner was waiting.
They sat down, started to talk, and were delighted to finally meet in person. She was thankful he got the job and talked about applying unique strategies to make the business successful and profitable.

Today was the grand opening of Gourmet Treats. The shop was selling an assortment of cakes, cookies, tarts, cupcakes, muffins, gift tins and gift baskets.
The first week’s opening was an overall success, with over fifty thousand dollars in sales.
By the end of the month, the store made over two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.
The mail order department was taking off like gangbusters.
Three months later, sightseeing companies were scheduling bus tours to the shop. The owners could not have predicted that the place would become one of the most popular spots in such a short period.
Word of mouth about Gourmet Treats was spreading faster than a running back carrying the ball across the opponent’s goal line.
People were arriving from all over, and eventually, orders were coming in from around the world.
Two additional employees were hired, and in six months, Dough became an associate partner. He and Passion were now running a booming and lucrative business.
Cid and Betty felt the shop was now sound and decided to return to New York.
It did not take long for Passion and Dough to become somewhat romantically involved. When they got home from work, the two would engage in foreplay, but he would always pull back. She found this to be quite exciting and odd at the same time but admired him for not succumbing to her lustful desires.
Most of the men she met in the past were only interested in getting it and moving on to the next conquest; she learned that a respectable man would take things at a snail’s pace and get to know a woman first before rushing into bed with her. Therefore, she would have waited longer for him to come around.

In its first year, Gourmet Treats netted two million dollars, and customers could now go on-line to place orders, thanks to Dough. While at work, he called one of his cohorts to put his plan into motion. It was easy to call from his office, because it was private, with no one to eavesdrop on his conversations. Whenever he made calls to his contacts, he would always use disposable cell phones.
In New York, Cid and Betty were facing a dilemma. A new owner was purchasing the building that housed their shop. The present lease was no longer enforceable. There would be a one hundred percent increase in the rent. They were already paying close to fifty thousand dollars a month.
With the new increase, rent would be over one hundred thousand dollars a month. At this point, they were ready to close that bakery and focus on the one in Carson City.
Two days later, they received a call from an investor, who along with other backers was interested in buying both Gourmet Treats.
Because of the shops’ unique product line, good management and potential sales growth, the venture capitalists saw a great opportunity to expand Gourmet Treats into a global phenomenon by opening shops in various countries. They wanted to meet with the owners and make an offer that would leave the couple set for life.
Cid and Betty were quite intrigued and agreed to get together with the investors, who would be in New York at the end of the week.
Back in Carson City, Dough was making plans to move money from Gourmet Treats’ account and the owners’ joint account into an offshore account. He was able to hack into the couple’s financial records, and obtain their username, password and personal identification number. How he was able to accomplish this was unknown. The business account had over three million, and the joint account close to two million dollars.

Passion was in a world of confusion. All she thought about was Dough and wondered why he did not want to make love to her. After all, they had lived together for over a year. She saw herself as a sexy and desirable woman.
“What is the problem? Perhaps he is impotent or not into me,” she imagined.
On the job, he was all business. She would try to get his attention by flirting with him and wearing seductive clothing, but these tactics were ineffective.
Lastly, she came up with a line of attack that would answer her query, “Is he in love with me or not?”
The next day, she left work early, went home, and prepared some spicy dishes, which would stimulate his sexual appetite, and had Cold Duck on ice. She removed her garments, took a shower, got out and sprayed her body with a lavender scented splash. She played some soft romantic music, got into his bed and waited.
As soon as he arrived home, the melody and the aromatic food spellbound him. When he walked into his bedroom, Passion was naked as a jade bird and had positioned herself like a lady in waiting. He stood there with a devious grin, got undressed, and before she could open her mouth, he was going at it like a greyhound trying to break the speed record.
If she thought the lovemaking was going to last for eternity, it would never happen. In two minutes, it was over. He gave a completely new meaning to the idiom, biff bam, thank you ma’am.
She was flabbergasted. It was the fastest undertaking she had ever encountered, and after his quick presentation, he fell asleep.
She got up, went to her bedroom, and started to sob.

The interested buyers and their lawyer met with Cid and Betty. The investors presented a proposal and offered them ten million dollars for both Gourmet Treats. If they wanted to, they could stay on as consultants and receive twenty percent of the net profits. The owners felt the bid was an excellent one but did not wish to stay on as advisers but placed a stipulation before selling the business: Passion and Dough would have to stay on in their current positions.
The backers agreed.
Dough and Passion would manage both shops or hire someone to run the New York City one and have complete autonomy. As long as the two were meeting projected revenues, the investors would remain silent.
Since Cid was a paralegal, he read the contract, and everything seemed to be in order. He and Betty signed the agreement.
In one week, they would receive a cashier’s check.
That evening, Dough received a call from one of the men saying, “They took the bait.”
It was early Friday morning and Dough’s last day in Carson City. Passion was already awake. As she was getting ready to take a shower, Dough grabbed and kissed her; they ended up making love for almost two hours.
She was overjoyed and shouted, “I love you and want to be your wife.”
He said, “I have always loved you but did not want to rush into a serious relationship and wanted to make certain that you wanted to be with me, and now I am ready to commit myself to you forever.”
She succumbed to his lines and was ready to be with him without end but had no clue it would be her last day with him.
They left for work, but he had to make a stop and pick up a gift for her. He would see her in a couple of hours.
In her mind, he was making it official and buying her an engagement ring.
Before Dough left for the airport, he went back to Passion’s house. He got on her computer, logged into Cid and Betty’s personal and business accounts and moved all of the funds into an offshore account.
He left the house, hailed a cab to the airport, got on his flight and landed in Mexico. He went to The Global Bank of Mexico and had over five million dollars wired into another offshore account, which was somewhere in South America.

It was already two in the afternoon, and Passion was patiently waiting for Dough to come to work. She was beginning to wonder if something had happened and called home to see if he was there, but there was no answer.
The shop was crowded with tourists, and the phones were ringing non-stop. The two other employees were at their wits end, juggling the phones, attending to mail and on-line orders and waiting on customers. There was so much chaos that a line started to form outside of the shop and around the block.
It was now six in the evening. Things had slowed down, and yet, there was still no sign of Dough. As Passion was getting ready to leave work, she thought about calling the police but believed that an adult had to be missing for at least twenty-four hours before law enforcement would do anything.
She went home, hoping he would be there, but he was not. As she started to get undress, the phone rang, but it was the wrong number. When she went into his room, all of his belongings were gone. It still did not dawn on her that he had left for good.
Confused, she did not know what to feel, and thought, “He would never leave without saying something.”
The next day, she reported him missing.
A week later, Cid and Betty received a cashier’s check for ten million dollars and deposited it into their joint account. A couple of days later, they decided to move funds from the business account into their joint account. What they were about to discover would leave them in a state of shock and disbelief. The business account had a zero balance.
When they confronted the bank manager about the error, the administrator said, “You moved your money from the business account into a foreign bank account.”
Cid and Betty looked at each other as though the woman was speaking in tongues. They insisted that no such transaction occurred, that the bank made a gross blunder and to check and correct the mistake, or they would sue the institution for blatant negligence.
If they thought they had put the fear of God into the bank executive, they were about to face the most terrifying event of their lives. The ten million dollar check, which they deposited into their joint account, was bogus, and the balance was one hundred dollars.
What happened next would leave customers and the business community asking, “Who swindled whom?”
When Passion learned what had happened to Cid and Betty, she was stunned. For all purposes, the shop was out of business. She thought that maybe she could continue to run the shop or perhaps purchase it, but where was she going to get that kind of money? Everything was now in disarray.
A computer technician was able to pinpoint the moving of the money from the owners’ bank accounts back to Passion, because all of the transactions took place on her PC; it was unknown where the money went.
When confronted with this information, Cid and Betty held her responsible for their financial fall and pointed the finger at her for embezzling five million dollars. After all, she was the manager, and the buck stopped at her doorstep.
She finally got it. Dough had set her up right from the start. He was never in love with her.
Now, in the same mess as she believed he was once in, her bosses were accusing her of a crime she had no knowledge of or committed.
When the scandal broke about Gourmet Treats, the media had a field day, and people in Carson City and New York were gossiping like guests at a hen party.
A few individuals believed Passion and Dough were in on the fraud.
Others thought Cid and his wife Betty moved the money to an offshore account to avoid paying taxes.
Some reflected, “It was strange that the owners would sell their business to complete strangers and not first have their lawyer investigate these so-called financiers.”
The circumstances, under which the deception took place, were mind-boggling.
Nevertheless, Passion had an ultimatum: Either she would have to repay all of the money, or Cid and Betty would press charges against her. Since she did not have that kind of cash, she was prepared to go to prison.
After six months of probing and legal finagling, all the evidence pointed to Passion; she decided to plea no contest to fraud and received ten years’ probation, and as restitution, she had to relinquish all of her personal assets and real property to Cid and Betty. They would also garnish any future income until all five million dollars was paid in full.
Because Passion had no criminal record, she got off easy. Many of her loyal customers, friends and relatives came to her defense and spoke very highly of her.
After learning that Dough had once served time for misappropriation of funds, everyone guessed that he, and he alone was behind the offense.
Countless people thought the owners of Gourmet Treats treated her unjustly; they knew deep down in their hearts that she would have never committed such a diabolical act; it was not in her nature. The fact that she worked for these people for over twenty years and made bundles of money for both shops meant nothing to them. They went after her as a cat would go after a mouse, without mercy.
At the end, Passion did share some of the blame for her own stupidity. By not doing a comprehensive background check on Dough, she had premeditated her own downfall.

A year had gone by, and Passion was now living in a boarding house with five other people. The environment was a complete contrast to where she had once lived. She occupied a room, had to share the bathroom and kitchen with the other tenants and worked as a pastry chef at a neighborhood restaurant in Reno.
Because Cid and Betty were garnishing half of her paycheck, she was barely getting by. The more money she made in over-time, the more money they got. It was a never-ending battle to make ends meet.
She often thought about Dough and wondered how he was able to live with himself, using her and the owners in such an atrocious manner. She learned that he was the one who embezzled the money from his own company. There was never any partner.
It was obvious to her that he lacked moral character and was a good for nothing villain; she thought back to those words her parents had delivered and concluded, “There was never any good in him, and no amount of heavenly intervention would have saved his soul. He was a progeny of the devil.”
She also recognized that a leopard never changes its spots.?