Marlene let out a breath she seemed to have been holding for six months. She didn't gloat; she simply worked efficiently. She began transferring the vacuum-sealed bricks into her buckets. When she reached the halfway point, she stopped, leaving exactly half the bricks sitting on the concrete.
She stood up, snapping the lids onto her two buckets.
"The pressure gauge should return to normal once you replace the sand," Marlene said, adjusting her windbreaker. "You might want to backwash the system just to be sure."
Caleb looked at the small fortune sitting on his pool deck, then up at the elderly woman who was about to climb back over his fence with a million and a half dollars.
"Marlene?" Caleb asked, his voice quiet.
She paused at the fence line. "Yes, Caleb?"
"Do you happen to know any good pool guys to help me fix this sand?"
Marlene smiled, a genuine, warm expression that reminded him of the woman who baked snickerdoodles. "I'll leave a business card in your mailbox. Have a lovely Saturday, Caleb."
Caleb watched her slip over the fence, disappearing back into her perfectly manicured yard. He looked down at the money, smiled, and began to pack it into his own house. It was turning out to be a very productive weekend.