Refund

Two-time Pushcart Prize-winning author Karen E. Bender has had her work published in the New Yorker, Granta, and Zoetrope. Entrenched at the crossroads of money and value, the titular story from her National Book Award finalist Refund offers an understated look at the lengths to which one family will go to make ends meet. In desperate need of cash to pay for their three-year-old's expensive preschool, New York City artists Josh and Clarissa decide to sublet their two-bedroom apartment to cover the cost. But when the terrorist attacks of September 11 devastate the city, their tenant demands her money back, forcing Josh and Clarissa to reevaluate their dreams in the face of tragedy.