1
Gloria cleans rooms at the Palm Hotel in Miami. Twenty rooms every day. The work is long, and the pay is small.
Gloria has a boy at home. He is seven years old, and he is not well. Doctors want money — a lot of money. Gloria does not have it.
2
On Monday morning, in room 30, Gloria sees something near the window. A ring.
It is small. But Gloria looks at it for a long time, and she knows: this small thing is a lot of money.
The woman from room 30 is out.
Gloria thinks about her boy.
She puts the ring in her pocket.
3
But Gloria knows this hotel. When something goes from a room, Mr. Kemp, the manager, looks in every worker's bag and every worker's coat. Always the workers. Never the people in the rooms.
So at eleven o'clock, Gloria goes to the small coat room. The workers put their coats there — and Mr. Kemp puts his coat there too. A big blue coat. It is always there.
Gloria takes the ring out of her pocket. She puts it into the pocket of Mr. Kemp's coat.
Then she goes back to work.
4
At twelve o'clock, the woman from room 30 comes to Mr. Kemp.
"My ring is not in my room," she says. "Someone in this hotel has it."
Mr. Kemp smiles a small smile. He likes days like this.
"No one goes home," he says. "First, I find the ring."
He looks in every bag. He looks in every coat in the coat room. He looks in Gloria's bag for a long time. Nothing.
"Where is it?" says Mr. Kemp. His face is red. The workers look down. Gloria looks down too.
5
At the end of the day, the workers go home. Mr. Kemp stands at the door and looks in every bag one more time.
"Good night, Gloria," he says.
"Good night, Mr. Kemp," says Gloria.
Then Mr. Kemp puts on his big blue coat and goes home too.
The ring goes home with him. It is in his coat pocket all night. He does not know it.
6
In the morning, the coat is in the coat room again. Gloria is there first, before everyone. When she comes out, the ring comes out with her.
There is a shop in the city. It buys old things and asks no questions.
That week, Gloria's boy sees the doctor.
And Mr. Kemp? He looks for that ring every day. He looks in every worker's bag, morning and night.
He never looks in his own coat.