Earlier this month, Audrey Westbrook of Savage saw the payoff from months of pressure: a $507 check in the mail.

The refund came from the Illinois Attorney General's office, which investigated the company that had been hired to clean the air ducts at Westbrook's home and at the homes of many other customers across the Midwest.

In April, Whistleblower described how Westbrook, 73, hired Elite Air Duct Cleaning for a $49 job that ended up costing more than 10 times that amount with questionable results.

Worried about the chemicals that were used, Westbrook tried in vain to contact the company.

She stayed in close touch with the authorities in Illinois, and sees her refund as a "lesson in perseverance."