A Simple Case of Infidelity Pt. 03

I was surprised I got Francis almost right away, "Hello Francis? This is Leslie."

I heard him say, "Yeah, so what?"

'Gosh, I thought, 'he didn't sound very happy.' "Francis," I said, "I don't have any insurance. They took the tags off my car. My cell phone won't work, I don't have any clothes, I can't use my VISA card, and I don't have any money and I need a refrigerator. Where are you? I need you."

He replied, "Why are you calling me? Are you drunk? You sound drunk."

That took me by surprise. I guess I sort of lost my breath, but managed out an answer, "No, no, I'm not drunk, but I need help. I need you. The car's at Mrs. Bielson's. That's where I'm staying. I had to get some rugs, and I had a little accident. This nice policeman followed me home. He carried the rugs upstairs for me, and then he took my tags. I got a ticket and...Francis..."

"Are you hurt? Is the car damaged?"

"No," I said, "just a few little scratches on the hood."

"On the hood! What'd you roll the damn thing over?"

I felt so nervous. He sounded angry. I wanted to just cry. Mrs. Bielson put a cup of coffee down in front of me. I didn't know what to say, "No. The scratches are from the rugs."

"Rugs!"

"Yes. Didn't you hear me? I had to get rugs. I had to get pads too. I need my furniture, and I need a refrigerator. Do you have one? You gave my clothes to Goodwill. Most of them were sold. I hardly have anything wear. Why did you give my clothes away? Francis you've got to fix my VISA card and I need my car and my insur..."

He interrupted and he sounded gruff, "That's too bad. Have you called Richard?"

I answered, "No he's in school. You know that. Why would I call him?"

Francis tore my heart out, he reminded me of what I'd done that was so wrong, he replied, "No, not that Richard. I meant Richard Weatherby."

God! Why'd he mention him? Was he still mad? I was confused. I felt all shaky all over again. My head was pounding; it felt like it was going to explode. Geez I'd been up all day. I was past my nap time. I needed my nap. I needed another Xanax. I forgot; what was it I'd just taken? I wished I had one or two of mother's Valiums. My stomach hurt. I needed to pee. I said, "Francis I need you. I'm at Mildred Bielson's. Can you come and get me? We'll talk. I haven't had a..."

He yelled, "Get lost!" Then he hung up...

"...chance to explain..." That was what I was going to say. I slipped to the floor. I squatted on the floor beside Mrs. Bielson's kitchen table. I looked up, I was afraid I was going to cry, "I need to go to the bathroom."

Mrs. Bielson pointed to what I presumed was her hall bathroom. I saw the door. It wasn't far. I decided it would be faster to crawl on my hands and knees than to bother to get up. I felt kind of dizzy anyway.

~~V~~

I crashed. This was just too much. I got in the bathroom, closed the door, and I broke into a full-fledged tsunami of tears. I clasped my head in my heads and really let them roll. Mrs. Bielson came to the bathroom door and asked, "What's wrong now? What did your husband say?"

I blubbered, "He said I should call the man who...who...," Oh I just couldn't say it.

Mrs. Bielson finished the sentence for me, "He told you to call the man you cheated on him with."

I couldn't stop crying, but I did manage to nod. I guess I was so self-engrossed I didn't realize until Mrs. Bielson started talking that she'd picked up her cell phone and had called someone. Through my tears I asked, "Who are you...?"

She put a finger up for me to be quiet. I listened to her, "Hello Whalen? Mildred here. I need something, actually several things."

There was a pause.

"Yes she's here. There's a problem. Fact is there're several problems; seems like Francis has completely cut the girl off, no credit, no insurance, not even a phone. Yes, that's a good idea. Say 7:00? OK."

Before I could say anything Mrs. Bielson had taken a cool wash cloth and whisked it all over my face. She grabbed my chin in her fingers and shook my face back and forth, "Pull yourself together. We're meeting Mr. and Mrs. Campbell at Madigan's at 7:00.

Madigan's was one of the locally owned family restaurants that still existed in the area. Most had either closed because the proprietors had grown too old or they'd closed because they couldn't compete with the newer franchise restaurants that kept cropping up. Back in the day Francis and I used to take the kids to Madigan's; they had some really good reasonably priced meals. We'd shared a lot of happy times in that old place. I hadn't been there in nearly a year.

I sniffed and asked, "Why're we going there?"

Mrs. Bielson didn't answer. She looked at me, "Why don't you go lie down, take a nap. Use my spare bedroom." Without waiting for me to answer she got up, reached out her hand, and added, "Come on. You've only got a little while and you look like you need the rest. I'll get some towels and you can shower up before we go."

I didn't know what to say so I said, "OK."

She led me back to a small bedroom, turned down the spread and sheets, "You're a sight. Get out of those clothes. I'll fetch your suitcase from upstairs."

I did what I was told. As I lay there on the stiff white sheets and on the fresh pillow case I thought, 'Three days ago I was lying in my bedroom in Baltimore. Now I was in a bedroom in Oakland. Nothing had changed. I was still...no I wasn't,' I sniffed some more, 'I can't. I won't.' I dozed off.

~~V~~

A couple miles away Whalen put the phone down, "Maggie!"

Maggie Campbell peaked in the kitchen from the dining room where she'd been sewing, "You don't have to yell. What is it?"

"We're meeting Leslie and Mildred Bielson at Madigan's at 7:00."

"What wrong?"

"We'll talk about it at the restaurant."

Maggie Campbell dropped her sewing and stormed into the kitchen, "No we won't you'll tell me right now."

Whalen asked, "Where's Victoria?"

"Not home from school yet. Why?"

"If we're talking to Mildred and Leslie I'd rather not have Victoria there."

At that very moment Victoria walked in, "Not have Victoria where?"

Whalen blustered, "We're having dinner with your mother tonight and I don't want you there."

"Why not? It's my mom, and I haven't seen her in months except for a couple minutes this morning."

Whalen growled back, "It's going to be a serious discussion, and I don't want you there."

Victoria ignored her grandfather and looked pleadingly at her grandmother, "Grandmom?"

"Let her come Whalen. It is her mother. She'd old enough."

Whalen grumbled, "Stupid."

"Now what's to talk about," asked Maggie?"

Whalen threw up his hands and fumed, "Oh what the hell, I can't seem to win around here. Seems Francis has done what I already knew; he's completely cut Leslie off, no insurance, no credit, no phone, no nothing."

Maggie sighed, "Oh."

Victoria listened.

Whalen kind of brusquely went on, "Yeah so why don't you go do something to get ready?"

Maggie had heard enough, she left the kitchen.

Victoria thought, 'Dad's cut mom off; that's pretty bad, another thing that needs to be fixed.'

Once Maggie left Whalen scowled at Victoria, "You get out of here too. Do some homework or something," then he picked the phone back up and called his son. He got Francis on the second ring, "Francis?"

"Yeah dad."

"You cut her off."

"Yeah, that's right."

"Pretty harsh don't you think?"

"No, I think it's more than fair."

"Hold on a minute son. You never told her?"

"Not my responsibility."

"Come on damn it. She's come back. Maybe you won't take her back, but this is her home. Her kids are here."

Francis hesitated on the other end but answered, "Her home's in Baltimore."

Whalen wouldn't hear it, "That's bullshit and you know it. This is where she belongs. Her home's here. She left that place, raised her kids here, she married you. Now she's back. I'm telling you son; she's in a bad way, never saw her like this."

"That's not my fault. She's not my problem, and as far as I'm concerned she can just go back again."

"Look Francis she has a right to see her kids. Come on I know you're hurt, everybody knows you've been hurt, been hurt a long time, but she's still their mother. She was your wife for twenty years. She's back and she's going to need some help. I don't know what to say; we've got a real sick puppy on our hands. She's going to need you son."

"Look dad I'm not saying she can't see her kids. They're mostly grown now anyway. She can live wherever she wants. She wants to move back let her, but she shouldn't expect anything from me. And it was twenty-two years, not twenty."

Whalen concluded the conversation, "Honestly son I can't blame you. I just thought...well you waited six months. She's come back. It's a small town; you know you're going to see her."

"No, I don't have to see her, and I don't have to see you either if I don't want to."

Whalen wanted to say something more, but Francis hung up on him.

~~V~~

On their way over to the restaurant Whalen told Maggie a little about his conversation with their son. Victoria was on the back seat listening attentively, "You know what he said. He said he didn't need to see her or me if he didn't want to. Maggie the kid's really mad. It's like the whole thing happened last week and he just found out. You'd a thought he'd a cooled down some by now. I don't know what we're supposed to do. He's my kid, but she made our grand kids, and anyway, I really love her."

"I wished I knew more myself," was Maggie's reply.

"I know. Something's not right. I mean twenty years the perfect wife; then bang, a whore?" Whalen looked at Victoria, "I didn't mean that the way it sounded, "I mean it doesn't add up."

Victoria grinned, "I know granddad."

Looking out the window of her husband's pick-up Maggie gloomily replied, "I just wish I knew."

Victoria sort of whispered, "Now that she's back it'll be all right. You'll see."

Neither grandparent replied.

~~V~~

It was a Monday; a night most restaurants were usually closed, but Madigan's never closed so, though sparsely attended they knew they'd get some kind of meal. The Campbells arrived first. The waitress seated them. Shortly thereafter Mildred and Leslie showed up. Since it was Monday the menu offerings were sparse, no specials. The five ordered, ate, and managed to squeeze in dessert. As they were finishing up they got down to brass tacks.

Whalen started, looking at me, Leslie, he asked, "You have any money at all?"

"Less than $2,000.00 now."

"Maggie added, "You'll need more than a part-time at the library."

Victoria plunged in, "Why don't you come back and live with us?"

"No, that's not a good idea," intoned Mildred, "I'm not completely in the dark. Leslie came home to try to patch things up. Am I right?"

I nodded in the affirmative.

Mildred continued, "She moves back with you guys Francis won't come home. Now I'm not saying I'm taking sides, but I think this marriage could be made to work again if things went just right. You putting Leslie up will make it harder."

Whalen thoughtfully replied, "You think she should stay with you."

Mildred pursued, "Yes I do. For one she'd still be close by. For another we could use my place as a kind of halfway house; a place where we could find ways to force the two of them to be together from time to time. Also I'm lonely."

I said, "I'll have to get some of my furniture."

Whalen interjected, "Yeah, that'll force Francis to see you; he'll have to help."

I asked, "How can we get Francis to talk to me?"

"I've got that," responded Whalen.

"How are you going to do that?"

"Just shut up, and don't worry about it. Just do what I tell you when the time comes."

I looked down and thought, 'I'm getting all this help, and I don't deserve any of it,' I said, "Yes sir."

Whalen grunted, "That's better; now about the insurance and the transportation; the Avalon's in Francis's name right?"

I nodded.

"So you don't have a car and you don't have any insurance, right?"

I nodded again.

Whalen looked at Mildred, "Would you let her drive your husband's old truck?"

Mildred nodded, "It's pretty beat up; he used to let his old dog ride in it so it smells, but I guess so."

"All right," said Whalen, "we'll put her on our policy, and she'll drive the old truck," he shook his finger at me, "but this is only for work."

I nodded, then added, "But I don't have a job."

Whalen frowned, "I said to be quiet.

Again I nodded.

My dad went on, "Now about a job, you will have one. I've got something in mind for you," then he sort of glowered at Mildred, "she'll be kind of in your care. You're to keep an eye on her. She's not to go anywhere," he frowned at me, "not anywhere, especially alone. Consider yourself under a kind of house arrest, he glared at his wife to keep her mouth shut, then back at me, "you Leslie have to earn your way back, and I mean earn your way back on everything. I'll expect you in church every Sunday. All the time, everywhere you go you're all prim and proper. You're polite to everybody all the time. Someone says something about what you did; you apologize. Leslie you've got to do some major ass kissing around here. You understand what I'm saying?"

I guess I did. I replied, "Yes sir."

He plunged ahead, "I'll get you a cheap cell phone. No frills. We'll put you on our VISA, but only for gas."

This was amazing. I nodded.

Whalen frowned, "Now about the clothes. Maggie you and Mildred here take Leslie over to Walmart. Get a few things," he paused, "then Saturday go to Cumberland. Victoria you go with them Saturday. Get her a whole new wardrobe; nothing elaborate, but nice things, matronly genteel things. Cumberland's got a Bonton's, and a Sears, and they've got a Penny's. I think there's a TJ Maxx up there too. I want a pretty girl, no sexy stuff. Get her things that will turn heads, but won't make her look trashy. You know."

He looked at me again, "You wear what they get you. I don't want any arguments. Do as you're told, and get a haircut too."

Victoria chirped up, "Gee mom, granddad's got your number."

I didn't know what to say so I didn't say anything. I was glad I'd taken a Tranzene before we went out.

Maggie looked at her husband and sarcastically asked, "Any particular hairstyle?"

Whalen looked at me for a moment and sort of evinced a half smile, "I like ponytails."

Mildred chuckled. She took the index finger of her hand and tapped my left wrist, "Ponytails it is."

Victoria excitedly smiled, "This is going to be so cool."

I didn't know what to think.

~~~V~~~

Where do we go from here?

Leslie has come back. She's come back completely alone and utterly empty handed, but her mother and father-in-law, literally her adoptive parents, and a lonely widow with rock like moral character have taken her on.

For sure Leslie was down, her life was in tatters, with the papers she'd gotten her marriage was all but over, but she still believed she wasn't completely out. The seas ahead were going to be perilous. Leslie had cheated and she'd lied, and she'd done both in 'cold blood', but for the first time in a long time she didn't feel so completely alone.

Meanwhile and much the worse for her there was Francis. Francis was a strong willed, upright, ethical man, a popular, handsome, and a soon to be legally available bachelor. He was a man with a good job, and a real career; he wasn't just a catch, he was a prize catch. Even worse for Leslie he hadn't been hasty, he'd been slow and deliberate; he was a man slow to act but firmly committed once he had. Last and certainly not least; his was the moral high ground, he was totally in the right and he knew it

A brief postscript:

I'm sorry for the delay. Not knowing where this was going has made things go slowly. I absolutely appreciated the comments I got from part two, but even now I couldn't say how this is going to end. I know what's going to happen, but people are funny. I just can't tell what Francis is going to do. Let's find out.

I hoped you've enjoyed this part. Vote if you like. Leave a comment.