It all happened about 2 years ago and it was the luckiest thing that could've happened to a guy like me. Basically I buy and sell contracts and make a small penny doing it. It's not a bad living. Well about three years ago my business started getting out of hand and I had to take on a few hires. Because I needed the the help but couldn't really afford to pay alot I was forced to take on people of questionable background. I didn't much care as there really wasn't any cash transfers. I hired an older lady, not bad looking in her early fifties just looking for a part-time job to keep from getting bored, a young college kid, and a younger girl somewhere in her early 20's.
She wasn't anything that would really stand out. She was attractive enough, about 5'3", 120lbs, and curvy. But she was plain. She had long straight black hair, brown eyes, and somewhat guarded. She had a strong spanish accent and I later found out she was Mexican. What was weird though was her name. Her name was Maggie Ryan. I remember asking what a weird name that was for a Spanish woman but she replied that her father was actually from northern Texas and that she was just born and raised in Mexico. Since she was a good worker I didn't think anything of it.
Things went very well for a while and I couldn't complain once about any of my employees. They all worked hard and were very responsible. Then it happened. I got a call from a woman named Margaret Ryan who was wondering why I was paying her for nine months. I agreed to meet the woman and get to the bottom of this, and just to be safe I brought Maggie's paper work along with me. Well it turned out to be dead on. All of Maggie's paper work turned out to be falsified.
On my drive home I was thinking about how I was going to let her go. Then the dark side kicked in. I don't know where it came from, maybe I suppressed this aggressive behavior. I formulated a plan and put it into action. After visiting a couple of friends I know who are into shady things I headed over to "Maggie's".
"John what are you doing here?", she asked. She was definitely pleasantly surprised by my visit then. It made sense though as I treated all my employees well.
"Oh I actually needed to have a word with you." Her family was in the background having dinner. Maggie didn't have any kids but she was married and lived with her cousin and husband and their two kids.
"Sure John. Come in."
"Um no thank you Maggie. Unfortunately I need to speak with you in private. Do you think you could step outside for a moment?"
I remember the look on her face when I asked that. She was definitely scared. I think she knew right then and there that I found out her secret. When she stepped outside I didn't pull any punches.
"Maggie, or whatever your name is, I found out that you're a liar and that you've been lying to me for about 9 months. What kind of asshole do you take me for?!?!?"
"John. Please. Please tell me what's wrong. I really need the job John and I would never do anything to get in trouble."
"Oh no? This afternoon I had lunch with Margaret Ryan. She's 27 from Texas with your exact same social security number. Care to explain how that happened??"
The cat was out of the bag and she knew it. She was pale white and couldn't say a word. That's when I drove it home.
"First off tell me your real name."
*sniff* "It-It's Maria." *sniff*
Oh how I remember those first tears she cried that night.
"Okay Maria. I have to report you to immigration and to the police. You will first be brought up on charges of fraud and identity theft and then you will be deported. I suspect they will investigate your family so I hope their paper work is in order."
That was what did it--it also proved to be pretty powerful later on, but that's another story. At this point Maria started begging and crying and just wouldn't let go of my arm. I knew I had her where I wanted her.
