One of my first jobs ever was Mall Security... your basic Rent-a-Cop job. It didn't pay much, but it was in a decent area, so there was relatively little crime involved... so it wasn't exactly like taking my life in my hands, either. In fact, the job was downright boring. The merchants in the mall were glad we were there, but they knew as well as we did that they basically didn't need us. Nothing much to it.

But, we did have the security cameras... and that was fun. Of course, they largely ran on autopilot... recording everything that happened in key places throughout the mall. And there were a lot of cute girls running through the mall. They were all ages... just your basic mall rats... traveling in packs half the time... teasing guys, wearing short skirts, giggling like crazy. Fun to look at, but not all that much happening upstairs... so it wasn't like we sought out conversation.

All the guards were young guys. The mall seemed to like it that way... probably because we put up with the low pay. But, we had a lot of time to sit around and talk when things were slow. In fact, we'd all sort of known each other from school or sports teams or neighborhoods or whatever. There were only a few of us, so that's not quite as weird as it might seem. Sometimes we'd all get together and throw back some brews and play cards, watch DVDs, that kind of thing.

One night, we all got to talking. And we came up with an idea. One of us had heard about it from a guy who used to work mall security in another state. They'd done it a couple times and had a great time. And we thought... what if we ALL were on the same page and did it? We'd all benefit, and there would be no one to rat us out. So we came up with a plan and decided to try it the next night... during my shift.

She was smokin' hot. Blonde, busty, beautiful. Unlike most of the girls we saw, she was there alone... at least, this time. And that was the only way this would work. She went into the store where all the hot young chicks bought their clothes, and she was shopping for at least an hour. Steve, my partner that night, had scoped her out, signalled me (non-verbally) with the walkies, and I was watching both him and her on camera. She had a shopping basket, and had been loading it up with stuff. He guessed that she would be checking out soon... so he decided it was time to make his move. When she was on the other side of one of the racks, he walked up and picked up her purse and shoved some stuff in it, and dropped it back in the basket... moving on almost without stopping his motion. He headed back out into the mall and moved around a bit... staying within about 50 feet of the door to that store.

10 minutes later... sure enough... the store alarm went off and Steve arrived at the front door of the store at the same time that Blondie walked out and an employee followed her, requesting to see the contents of her purse. She opened it quickly and held it up to his face. He reached inside and pulled out several pairs of panties... tags still on them. She freaked. "What the hell is going on here? Why would I steal those? I have plenty of money!"

Steve stepped up and said, "Miss, people steal for all sorts of reasons. (looking to the employee) Thanks, Jason. I'll take the merch down to the security office for now, and get it back to you in an hour or so, after the paperwork is done." Jason nodded. "Now, Miss, if you'll follow me to the mall security office peacefully, we don't need to make a scene." She was crying softly under her breath. "I don't understand what's going on..." He took her gently by the arm near the elbow and guided her down to the office.

Steve brought her in and sat her down in front of me. He briefly explained the situation. I said thanks... I'd handle it while he resumed his patrolling. He smiled and winked, then headed out... closing the door behind him.

"So, Miss... would you like to tell me what happened here?"

"I... I don't know. I bought some clothes, and when I left, the alarm went off, and..." She broke down crying again.

"Well, Miss... what's your name, by the way?"

"Jennifer. Jennifer Cartwright."

"Well, Jennifer. We have the evidence which was retrieved from your purse. It's not like we don't know what happened here. Girls often try to take just a little extra stuff with them when they leave the story. Sometimes they make it, sometimes they don't. Just so happens that you got caught. Has anything like this happened to you before?"

"No sir."

"I see. Well, it's not like it's grand larceny. We usually just call the parents and explain the situation. There will have to be an appearance before a judge, of course, and..."

"But... I can't. You don't understand."

"Understand what, Jennifer?"

"My dad can't find out about this. He would kill me. I'm a straight-A student. I am president of my class at school and my youth group at church. I... I... will probably get a full-ride scholarship to college from both sports and academics. Anything like this that would go on my record... it would just kill all of that for me. All my hard work would go down the drain..." (sobbing uncontrollaby)

"Jennifer, we can't just pretend this didn't happen."

"I don't know what happened. I would never steal anything. But... I can't let this happen. My dad is the president of one of the biggest banks in town. I can't ruin his reputation like this! How can I make this right? Can I just pay for the stuff now? Or, hey... I've got some cash. What if I give you $300? Can you just make this go away? Please... I..."

"Jennifer, let me explain something to you. I'm sure your family is used to getting their way. People with money usually are. But bribing a security officer is a VERY bad idea. Now, your offense has gone from a misdemeanor to something much more serious."

"Oh God, no. Please help me! I don't know what to do..."

"Well, let me make a little suggestion. You're not the first person who has said that it would be very harmful to them personally if something like this were to get out and ruin their reputation. So there is one other option that I might consider. I can't take even a single dollar for you. In fact, I don't want your money. But you're familiar with the idea of a criminal informant, right?"

"Yes, from the police shows on TV."

"Correct. Here's what I can offer you. We've developed an informal little program here designed to help improve mall security. It involves temporarily utilizing people like you in a little training session... and then you return for one more activity in the next month. If you agree to do so, and actually go through with it, no one will ever know a thing about this, and your obligation to the merchant and the mall will be considered resolved. Do you understand so far?"

"I think so."

"Well, here's the rub. This process is non-negotiable. You either do it or you don't... and once you agree, you can't back out. You WILL do whatever I tell you to do both times. Otherwise, we'll phone your parents now and then get the paperwork started while they are on their way to meet us."

"No, please... that can't happen. I agree to the other thing. Anything you say. Please, just let me get this nightmare over with."

"Well, it's not over yet, sweetheart. But, at least we're making progress."