Who Do You Believe?

After a moment she opened the dead bolt and started to gently ease the door open. He gave it a push and sent her sprawling.

Vic could see she was terrified and he thought to himself, that's just fine. He helped her to her feet and ordered her to go make some coffee; that this would probably take a while.

He didn't ask her to make the coffee, as he usually did, he had ordered her. He had never done that before and the fear she was feeling was growing by the minute. She knew she was going to have to tell him what he wanted to know or, from the sounds, he might beat it out of her.

Vic looked at her and told her (as a command) to knock of the trembling and quivering, he was not going to hurt her. Then he said, "Terry, we are going to talk. We are going to set things straight right now, so make it easy on yourself and don't give me any shit."

She was petrified. He had never spoken or acted like this. She didn't like who Vic was right now. Still she screwed up her courage and asked why she had to talk to him if he was just going to lie.

He barked, "Damn it Terry, knock of the stupid bullshit. I have told you that I haven't had an affair. You don't want to believe me. I have asked you repeatedly to tell or show me how you "know" (using his two fingers on each hand to indicate quotation marks) I am having an affair. You won't tell me. You have done everything you can to prevent me from clearing this matter up. Well now we are going to settle it!"

He dropped the pictures she had given him on the table. "Ok, these are self explanatory. You fucked Lenny and they tell everything that happened that evening, Right?"

She replied, "That's a dumb question. You can see I'm having intercourse with Lenny. What else is there to say?"

Vic stood, went to the coffee pot, poured them both a cup of coffee and returned to the table. Looking her directly he said, "Terry, pictures don't always tell the full story. Let me ask again, and please think before you answer, "Do these pictures tell the full story of what happened?

She paused a minute and then replied, "I don't know what you are getting at. No, the pictures don't show all the ways we pleasured each other. They don't show every way we did it. Is that what you want? What else do you want?"

Terry was getting very uneasy now. Why was he pushing this issue? He was after something. Was he trying to prove how much of a slut she had been that night? Then Mel popped into her mind. But he couldn't know about that.

She finally looked at him and asked if he had just come over to badger her about what she had done to her cheating husband.

Vic, with some irritation in his voice said, "No, Terry, that's not what I'm here for. I want to get to the bottom of this mess. First, I see you cringe every time I say 'fuck.' Well, if we are going to be truthful about things then let's not beat around the bush by trying to cover up what you did with some other expression. You fucked him, that's what you did. Now I will ask the question one final time. But let me rephrase the question. Do these photos show all the fucking that went on that evening other than the different ways you fucked him?"

She snapped back at him, "Yes damn it. They show everything except for all the ways we did it. Now can we move on to something else?"

Vick picked up the second envelope and said, "Yes, by all means, let's move on. Please tell me about these photos. Were they made on another occasion?" He dropped two photos showing Mel on Terry.

She glanced at them, reached for them and knocked her cup of coffee across the table as she screamed, "Oh God. Where did you get these?" Tears came swiftly and she buried her face in her hands. She sat there whimpering, "Oh no, Oh no" over and over again.

Pressing on, Vic said, "It doesn't matter where they came from, but I guess we can agree now that the photo shows there was more to the evening than you're willing to admit, or else you are taking on any comers at the office at different times. Which ever it is, I can see you're using the same place to do it. I'll be honest; I don't know what to believe about the photos."

She bawled, "No! Vic. Stop! Let me explain."

Giving her some of her own medicine he said, "I don't need any explanation. It is plain to see you are fucking Mel as well as Lenny. God, Terry. What's gotten in to you?"

She, with a plaintiff cry said, "But Vick, you don't understand..."

He cut her off with, "What's to understand? The photos are very plain. You fucked them. There's no need to explain."

She hesitated and replied, "But Vic..."

He cut her off again and said "Let's move on." He pulled out several photographs containing images of him and Helen and dropped them in front of her.

She looked at them for a moment and, with her tears stopped momentarily, exclaimed, "Yes, I recognize them. They are what showed me you have been cheating. They are what did you in." By now her demeanor was becoming hostile again.

He reached down, pulled the two pictures 'showing him entering and leaving Helen's motel room aside.' Then he dropped another photo. This one showed a door, the same door, with a larger view of the 'Motel.' Then he told her to study the pictures carefully.

She looked for a moment and then said, "What are you trying to prove? This picture just shows more of the motel."

Vic blew his top. "God damn it, Terry, you're mind is made up and your going to convict me no matter what. Either that or you're so damned stupid that you need to be in an institution."

She started to say something and he took the third photo from her and held it in her face and told her to shut up, and then asked her several questions in succession without waiting for answers. "Does that really look like a motel? How many motels have you stayed in that don't have room numbers on the door? How many motels have a walk through a lawn leading to one door? How many motels have you stayed in where the door to the next room is not either adjacent to yours or within 15 -- 20 feet of yours?"

Without waiting for a reply he continued, "What you are looking at is the front of Helen's condo."

She looked again, and realized that it was not, as Vic stated, a motel. She didn't know for a fact that it was Helen's condo, but she had to admit to herself that it wasn't a motel.

Then he went on, "Look at what I am wearing in the two pictures. It's not the same suit or tie. Do you think I would be keeping a change of clothes at her place? Now look at the light. Both pictures were made in broad daylight. Do you think I would be arriving and leaving in broad daylight if I were going in to or coming out from having an affair?"

About now, Terry started to get a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach. Had she made a very bad mistake?

Vic was on a roll and pressed on. "Look again at the suit in the picture of me allegedly leaving the motel. Don't you recognize the suit you insisted was too worn and we gave to Goodwill last winter? Don't you think from that that we can say the picture was taken before my alleged affair? Terry, don't you think that your so-called evidence of my affair is starting to appear very questionable?"

Allowing the evidence to sink in for a moment, Vic finally said, "One last question and then I want you to hear a part of an audio tape and look at some more pictures. Answer me this, with what they told you about my affair and how it was cause for dismissal, answer me why, a week later, I haven't been fired." With that he dropped the remaining contents of the second envelope in front of her and started the tape recorder.

She responded, "It wasn't they. It wasn't Mel and Lenny. It was only Mel, your boss, who let me know what you were doing." The authority in her voice and her confidence in what she had known to be true was beginning to falter. It was beginning to look to her like she had been set up. Right now she felt ill and all she wanted was for this nightmare to end.

There were several photos with Mel and Lenny having sex with other women in the company. In addition there were pictures of other male members, including some high level officers, having sex with these women.

The audio tape held a conversation between Mel and Lenny discussing their progress with Terry (the discussion had nothing to do with her professional progress).

At this point it was obvious that Terry had all she could take. She was unraveling fast and Vic decided to wait until tomorrow before playing the piece of tape between Mel and Michael.

Terry was crying uncontrollably as she was beginning to realize that she had truly made a terrible mistake. What a complete fool she had been as she realized that she had been had by those two assholes. Worse yet she was beginning to contemplate what hurtful and possibly irreparable damage she had done to her marriage.

Vic looked at her with mixed feelings of sympathy and rage although the brunt of the rage was directed at Mel and Lenny. Now he needed to get himself together. He had broken down the wall of her disbelief and replaced it with the horrible void of self-hate. He knew what the next step was going to be, but he needed Terry back in a more rational state of mind. Mel and Lenny were going to pay, and they were going to pay big time.

He quietly said to her, "I'm going back to my motel room now. You need to get yourself together again and then we will discuss the future. I am going to play one last piece of tape for you in the morning, but you have had enough for tonight. I need you for the next step if we are going to bring this to a conclusion. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day."

She could only sob and mutter. "Vic, I'm so sorry. Please don't go. What's on the tape, please tell me now."

He told her he needed time to himself and he would be back for breakfast in the morning. With that he gave her a kiss on the back of her head, said, "I still love you and we'll take care of things.

Then he remembered to ask her if Mel or Lenny or anyone else from the firm had called her this evening.

She replied, "No, why?"

He told her he would discuss that in the morning but, under no circumstances was she to answer the phone until he got there in the morning."

Again she wanted to know why and he told her she would understand in the morning, just don't answer the phone.

She derived little comfort in the fact that he didn't seem to be too mad at her when he left and he had told her that he loved her. At least he would be back in the morning.

Vic returned to his motel room and spent time setting things in place for tomorrow. Although he fully understood that Terry had been set up, he still hurt with what she had done. He knew he was going to forgive her but he had no idea how their life would be from now on. The unquestionable trust was gone now. It would take a long time to repair that, if it could be repaired. Worst of all, he knew the images now burned in his mind were only going to be made worse with what he was planning. But now, the total destruction of Mel and Lenny were foremost in his thoughts.

* * * * *

Vic returned to the home before seven. He had enjoyed some sleep, not much, but enough to revive him some. He could tell from looking at Terry that she had not had a good night. He helped her with breakfast and they relaxed for a few minutes before Vic got up and announced that there was work to do. To start with they were going to listen to a tape segment.

The tape was a conversation between Mel and Michael Birmingham, the Senior Vice president and son of the CEO. Mel advised him that Terry was now in the pen and that there were plenty pictures available to assure her co-operation. He was sure Terry would do whatever was needed to prevent the material from being circulated. Michael made it clear that he wanted some of her immediately. Mel had told him that Vic was living in a motel so he wouldn't have to worry about him. With that, Michael told Mel to give him her phone number and he would set things up tomorrow (Sat.) himself.

When the tape finished, Terry fully understood that not only had she been had, but that now she was Mel's whore. She had been absolutely stupid. She was crying uncontrollably and asking Vic how she was going to get out of this.

Vic attached a tape recorder to the phone and told Terry she was to talk to Michael when he called. He would undoubtedly apply pressure for a meeting. Terry was to argue with him until he verbally threatened her and then she was to reluctantly give in and make arrangements to meet him at home.

Terry was ok with the plan to this point. But, when Vic laid out the remainder of the plan she fell apart. She was not only to keep the date, but she was to allow him to take her to bed and Vic would photograph the action.

Vic completed the layout of the plan, which was not to Terry's liking, but as she saw it, she had no choice. To put it in the vernacular, she was fucked no matter what she did.

When she asked if she was to allow Michael to penetrate her, Vic told her she was.

The next few minutes were rather unpleasant.

Terry asked him how, as her husband, "He could knowingly allow another man to fuck her and worse yet stand by and watch her and take pictures."

This kind of pissed Vic off and he replied, "Why should it bother you whether I know, or not? You certainly didn't seem to care when you delivered your fucking pictures to me."

After a few nasty exchanges, Vic held up his hand and said, "Terry this is enough. What has happened has happened. I want, and I think you should want to see these guys get their balls cut off. With what I am proposing, we can do just that."

She was still very upset and pushed a little harder by explaining that what she did was wrong but he was asking her to do something just as bad.

Vic was exasperated but he resisted the temptation to blow up. In a calm voice, he spelled it out, Honey, this is not pleasant and it's killing me. But as I see it, you fucked your way in to this mess and you are going to have to fuck your way out of this mess."

Terry got the point and shortly agreed that the sex blackmailing had to be destroyed. At Vic's prodding, she called the other women caught in the web and told them what was coming down. She explained that everything possible would be done to protect them but that there were no guarantees.

Before she called the last woman, Michael called. He was very pleasant and explained that he had been made aware of the wonderful work she had done by working late and would like to take her out for dinner tonight. Terry politely refused and he pleaded that this was his only opportunity for the next month and that he really didn't want to put it off. Terry politely refused again.

Michael was becoming exasperated and started to put the pressure on. Terry acted a fantastic part as she became the insulted and outraged housewife who knew what he was after. She was going to let her husband know and she was going to report him at work on Monday.

Michael finally blew his top told her if she wanted to have a job on Monday that she had better reconsider. He told her there were certain photographs around that he was sure she didn't want circulated.

Faking tears she finally relented. But she told him she didn't want to take the chance of being seen, could he come to the house?

He confirmed that Vic was not living at home and agreed to come after nine.

* * * * *

Vic and Terry spent the morning trying to mend fences. But both of them knew that the mending was going to take time.

Vic told her that he had a lot of work to do and that he would be back after supper, before Michael would arrive.

Terry pleaded for him to stay, that she was so terribly frightened.

He told her he was sorry, but there were some things he needed to do.

At the motel he called a long-time golf buddy, Alan, an attorney, and explained the whole mess. When Vic told him about the plans for tonight, Alan whistled and said, "You're going to let your wife do this? It would certainly put a final nail in the coffin, but are you sure?"

After hearing the whole situation, Alan told him that considering the present conditions, this shouldn't wait and asked if Vic could bring samples of the evidence and come to his office right away.

Vic took the whole box of evidence and was in Alan's office within thirty minutes. It didn't take Alan very long to inform Vic that he not only had enough evidence to put Mel and Lenny out of business, but that he also had enough to mount a sizeable law suit against the individuals and the firm. He said, "Vic, this is so big and involves enough high level personnel that upper management has to be aware of what is going on. They are just ignoring it like it isn't happening."

Vic asked if the plans for tonight would make a difference.

Alan told him that without proof of the "big guy's" involvement, the evidence would only get Mel and Lenny for sure. With the evidence produced tonight it would bring the whole operation down. But then he asked, "Are you sure you want to pay the price to positively bring the whole operation down?"

Vic confided in him he didn't think he could live with himself if he didn't but that he was terribly worried about tonight. What was it going to do to their marriage?

With that, Alan said, "Monday you and Terry call in late for work. Come to my office at nine and bring the pictures from tonight and the tape, if you go through with it. I will finish the papers with the final evidence, we will get a sheriff to officially serve the papers, and we will go to your office as soon as the sheriff arrives. Please don't go to your office until the sheriff and I can accompany you. There will be at least two very pissed off people waiting for you if they get wind of this. Both of you being late may have them watching.

Vic grinned and said, "I'll wait. But if you are counting Michael as one of those waiting, I don't think so unless we visit him in the hospital."

Alan told him he hadn't heard that last remark and admonished him to be careful what he did, that he could be charged with assault.

Vic grinned and said, "I'll just have to take the chance."

Completing the work with Alan before five, Vic called Terry to see if she would like to go out for a bite to eat. She accepted immediately but told him she was not very hungry.

They each had a small salad and talked, with Terry making it very clear that she was very worried and upset.

Vic calmed her as best he could but remained adamant that they were going to smash this unholy alliance.

Vic and Terry live in an older section of the city. The area was once the elite section, but has been up-scaled with bigger and newer homes on the West side. It is a single story "fix-it-up" home that they have almost completed. In remodeling they have taken what were two bedrooms and converted them into one master bedroom with a bathroom. The bathroom has been enlarged at the expense of another bedroom on the other side. That bedroom has become an office. From the hallway you have access to the bedroom and the office. The original door from the hallway into the bathroom was eliminated in the work.

The arrangement was such that Vic could stand in the bathroom with an almost unobstructed view of the bedroom. The foot of the bed faces the bathroom. He could enter the bathroom at will through the office.

Back at the house, Terry went to dress herself for what was to come. It took every bit of her strength to turn the tears off so that she could apply and keep her makeup on. She dressed nicely but nothing suggesting anything sexual. She was damned if she was going to put on a show for this son of a bitch. She wore a simple skirt and blouse along with standard daily under things and a pair of low heel pumps. In short, she looked like a plain, ordinary housewife who was ready to enjoy the evening in front of the TV.