by G M Barlean
“So, how are you ladies this afternoon?” Gloria took a seat and Josie shoved the plate of cookies in front of her. Peanut butter. A smile stretched across her face.
Betty looked at her watch. “We’re fine, dear, but we want to get started if it’s all the same to you. The Bachelor starts tonight and we’re going to need to get a nap in before supper so we can stay awake to watch it.
The Bachelor?
Why it surprised her, she had no idea. These women had done nothing but surprise her from the beginning. Gloria pulled out her legal pad and said, “By all means. Let’s light a fire under this.”
Betty at the Law Office—1974
I stood over the sink and washed my hands, then looked into the mirror. A little more hairspray on my bangs and I was good to go. Still didn’t have any gray. I turned and looked over my shoulder to examine my rear end. Not bad for forty. Now if I could find the right man, if such a thing existed. I dried my hands on a paper towel, tossed it in the basket, and went back to my desk at Meyer Law Office.
As I aged, the more I wondered if being alone was such a bad thing. It’s not like I had ever wanted to have kids. And at forty, most of the men I dated came with kids or grandkids, anyway.
I had been dating the guy who delivered office supplies. I checked the clock. Almost noon. He might stop by after lunch to deliver three reams of paper, a box of number-two pencils… and to flirt with me. He really wasn’t my type, but he’d been willing to move heavy furniture and do plumbing and it’s why I’d agreed to date him in the first place. Now all my furniture sat where it needed to be, and I had a newly installed showerhead and garbage disposal. Sadly for Office Supply Guy, he no longer held much appeal.
I glanced back at the closed door to my boss, Hank Meyer’s, office. I shook my head. Naomi Talbot made weekly visits to Hank. I knew what they were doing in there. Pity. He had such a nice wife at home, but he couldn’t keep it in his pants.
This affair had surprised me. Rumors still had it Naomi and Darby Pederson’s age-old tryst continued. At first, I assumed her visits to the law office were legitimate. Why I had given the shrew the benefit of the doubt was beyond me. It took a few visits before I realized what was really happening in the back office when Mr. Meyer told me to hold all his calls.
The door opened and Naomi came out, primping her hair and adjusting her skirt. No shame. I tried not to stare as she passed my desk and left the office. None of my business, I told myself. Still… what a sad marriage Doug Talbot existed in. Maybe he had it coming.
About ten minutes later, the bell above the entry to the office tinkled and Mari peeked her head around the door. “Knock, knock.”
“Hey, Mari. What brings you here? Not legal issues, I hope.” I worked for an attorney who made a decent living handling mostly divorce cases. I knew Mari didn’t have a perfect marriage, but divorce would never be an option she would consider. She was a stand-by-your-man kinda gal.
“No, no, Betty. Everything’s fine.” Mari sighed. But her eyes didn’t agree with her words.
I knew better than anyone Mari had never gotten over Doug Talbot. Her marriage was content and happy—safe even—but there wasn’t a flame like she and Doug once had. Mari respected Stan. He treated her like a queen. He’d hand her the moon if he could arrange it. But I suspected Mari had never been in love with Stan. She’d lost her heart to Doug Talbot all those years ago and had it broken. Everyone had hoped Mari would forget about Doug, but I knew she’d only managed to put thoughts of him to the back of her mind.
“I stopped by to see if you wanted to go to lunch.” Mari offered me a hopeful look.
“Sounds great. Let me tell Hank I’m leaving.”
After I let him know, I returned to the front room, picked up my handbag from behind my desk, and joined Mari as we headed out the door. “City Diner?” I asked.
“Oh, perfect. The Wednesday special is chicken à la king.” Mari’s joys included the smallest things.
We walked down the block to the small café, chatted about what we’d each done so far that day and what yet needed doing. We entered the busy restaurant, and I looked around for a place to sit. Two spots were open—one by the kitchen and the other by Naomi Talbot, who sat alone at a large table. We went to the table by the kitchen. No conversation was needed to make the decision.
Mari leaned across the table. “Wonder why Naomi is here all alone?”
Mari’s question was still hanging in the air like the aroma of greasy French fries when several women came through the door. Naomi raised her hand and waved.
“Ah. The Fourth of July planning committee.” I nodded toward them.
For the last seven years, these women—wives of prominent men who worked around town—gathered to plan a community Fourth of July party on the courthouse lawn in the town square. Each office in the courthouse would be given responsibilities, and games would be organized as well as contests and prizes. The evening would culminate in a patriotic program put on by select girls in the community… most of whom were their daughters, of course.
These women called it a gala event.
The people who worked at the courthouse called it doing slave labor for society women.
The community called it free food.
Mari cleared her throat and drew my attention back to her.
“I have news, Betty.” A worried smile tugged at her mouth.
“Oh? What? Something good, I hope.” I took a drink of my water.
“I’ve been offered a job,” Mari answered, raised her eyebrows, and waited for my response. It looked like she was holding her breath.
“Really? It’s been like sixteen years since you worked outside the home, right? This is big news. Is Stan on board with this?”
“Yes. Actually, Stan suggested I look for work.” Mari looked down and wrung her hands. “Money is tight now that Diane’s in college. We need the extra income.”
I reached out and put my hand on hers. “Money is tight for all of us. I’m proud of Stan for letting you work outside the home. I know he takes pride in taking care of you. I never would have guessed he’d embrace women’s lib.”
Mari and Stan Gestling had four children, the youngest now in sixth grade, the next in eighth, then tenth, and the oldest a freshman in college—like stairsteps. Expensive stairsteps. Mari had been a wonderful mother and Stan had done a fine job providing. He was old school, like so many other men in our small town. A woman’s place was in the home. I’d even heard him say as much. If Stan Gestling had agreed Mari could take a job, I knew they needed the money.
“You know, Diane won a nice scholarship, but there are a lot of expenses those funds don’t cover. Plus, Greg needs braces.” Mari shook her head as she made excuses. “Stan doesn’t want to dip into savings if we don’t have to.”
Mari stirred her coffee with a spoon, laid the utensil gently on the saucer and took a cautious sip. “Betty, you’re not going to believe who offered me the job.” Her eyes darted over to Naomi.
My eyes followed her glance. “Well, it’s a small town. There are only a few places to work. The bank, the factory, a few restaurants… the courthouse.” I ticked off the main places a job might be had in Rosewood, Nebraska.
Mari swallowed hard and looked up at me as she nodded. A worried look haunted her eyes. “The last place. The courthouse. I’m going to work for the clerk of the district court.”
I nodded, then understanding overtook me. I almost spit out my water. I forced it down my throat and my mouth dropped open and I rushed to cover it with my hand. “No. Not…” I held my question as I gasped, but I already knew the answer.
“Yes. I’ll be working with Judge Doug Talbot.” Mari looked away and across the room at Naomi. “I sure hope I’ve done the right thing.” Her words were almost inaudible. By the way she chewed at the corner of her fingernail, I could see she wasn’t sure at all.
I didn’t know what to say, but I probably shouldn’t have gasped and stared openmouthed at Naomi.
Mari pushed the chicken à la king around on her plate and tried to act casual.
“Doug had something to do with hiring you?” I leaned forward and whispered the question.
“No. I don’t think so. I was in the courthouse to renew my driver’s license when the clerk of the district court came by.”
“Connie?” I asked. In small towns, everyone knows everyone. Just the way it is.
She nodded. “She stopped to say hi, and we chatted. Out of the blue, she asked if I’d ever thought of taking a job outside the home. I told her I was looking for work and before I knew it, I had the position.” Mari beamed.
I could see self-worth in her eyes. Mari had held a clerical spot at the courthouse in the county clerk’s office before she got married and had children. The office had hated to see her leave. Heaven knows, Mari juggled a myriad of tasks taking care of her kids and home. She was capable of anything.
“Mari, it’s wonderful, but…” I let my words fall away as I bit my bottom lip.
“You’re wondering if I’ll be okay working with Doug.” She finished the sentence for me.
“Well… I don’t know where things stand with you two. And what about her?” I tilted my head in Naomi’s direction. “Aren’t you worried about what she’ll do?”
“Oh, Betty. I’m sure Naomi Talbot would never give me a second thought. She’s far too busy running the world.” Mari laughed, but it sounded hollow.
“Well, that’s true. Still…” I hoped Mari was right, but Naomi hadn’t given a second thought to ruining Mari’s life back when she stole Doug. What would stop her now?
“I’m sure I’ll only see him on court days. Connie is the person he deals with most, and she’s who I’ll be working with. I think it will be fine. Besides, Doug and I were ages ago. I don’t think of him that way anymore. I love Stan. You know I do.”
Mari preached the words like gospel, but they didn’t bear complete resemblance to the truth. I knew, though, she would never betray Stan. It wasn’t in her nature.
“Well, I know you’ll do great in your new job, and I’m happy you found something so quickly. It’ll be good to have the extra income.”
I glanced over to Naomi. She glowed in her role as supreme leader while the other women hurried to take notes. Maybe Mari wouldn’t have to deal with Naomi on a daily basis at work, but I suspected Naomi would grind Mari under her heel at some point. Probably at the courthouse Fourth of July event. And probably for the fun of it. I had a bad feeling. Trouble was about to begin for my old friend.
The weekend came and went and Monday morning came along as it always did.
Hank Meyer was in court. I had a stack of papers to file and three full tapes of his notes to type up. The phone rang. Glad for the distraction, I snatched it up. “Meyer Law Office, how may I help you?”
“Oh, Betty, thank God you answered. I need help, all right,” Mari said with a worried voice.
“What’s going on?” My eyes darted to the calendar and I remembered it was her first day of work. Wow. It hadn’t taken long for a crisis to arise.
“I don’t know what I was thinking when I took this job. I must have been kidding myself.” Her voice wavered and she spoke in hushed tones.
“Tell me what happened.”
“It was completely innocent. I don’t know how I set her off,” Mari began.
“Naomi?” I’d known that bitch would sideline her, but I didn’t think it would be right out of the gate.
“Yes, Naomi. Doug… I mean Judge Talbot, stopped by my desk to welcome me to my new job. He was only being nice. It wouldn’t have been right for him to ignore a new girl in the office. I mean, there are only three of us. Of course, it was right when Naomi walked in.”
“What happened?” I asked. I could imagine Naomi throwing a tantrum.
“I can’t talk right now, but maybe we could meet for lunch?” Mari sounded distressed as she whispered into the phone.
“Of course. The diner again?” I asked.
“No. Come to my house. I’ll make us sandwiches. I don’t want Naomi or anyone else to overhear us. Rumors fly fast.” I could imagine Mari with her hand cupped over her mouth as she looked over her shoulder like a frightened prisoner worried about the cruel guard.
She was right about rumors. In my forties and still single, the town had rumored me to be pregnant many times and from many different men. I feared eating a bowl of ice cream lest I’d gain weight and start a new line of gossip.
“I’ll be there.”
“Thank you.” Relief warmed Mari’s tone.
Poor thing. Now what fresh hell did Naomi have in store for her? I couldn’t let that woman mess up Mari’s life again. She’d done enough damage when she stole Doug out from under her in the first place. Plus, she’d harassed all of us over the years. It was time for someone to draw a line in the sand and deal with this bitch head-on. If not, she’d continue to pop up like an ugly zit. I had always managed to avoid Naomi, but maybe the time had come for me to step up and stop the problem instead of waiting to clean up after my friends were already upset. Josie, Tanya, Debbie, Mari… they’d all had some kind of run-in with Naomi over the years. I knew I would eventually deal with the scourge. I was smarter than her, but smart didn’t always trump evil. She’d stoop to lies, so if I planned to step in the ring, I’d better be ready to fight. But I had a little magic bullet… and I’d need it if I had to go head-to-head with Naomi Waterman Talbot.
Noon. I drove to Mari’s house. Simple—a two-story farmhouse with a screened-in porch. They lived a couple of miles out in the country. Stan farmed part time and also worked as the school janitor. They couldn’t afford much, but Mari did the best she could with what she had, and her house was always clean with a kitchen full of good food. It’s the way Mari was. Always doing everything the best she could.
I knocked on the screen door. A gray cat circled my ankles.
“Come in. I hope bologna is okay,” Mari said from inside.
I went into the kitchen, halted by the disarray on the counters. Dishes were piled in the sink, mail strewn across the table, and the trash can overflowed. This didn’t seem at all like Mari. I looked at the table. White paper plates waited for us with sad little bologna sandwiches and a few carrot sticks. What was going on?
My eyes wandered to Mari. She looked wonderful—her face was made up and her hair looked great. Not at all normal for her to do herself up. Such a pretty dress, too. She must have bought it special. She even had on nail polish. Making herself pretty for her new boss?
“Coffee?” Mari asked.
“Sure,” I answered and took a seat. “Now, what happened?”
Mari brought two cups and a pot of coffee to the table. She sat down but pushed her plate away and began to tear a paper napkin into little pieces. Not the kind of nervous habit I was used to seeing Mari do. Tanya, sure. Mari, no.
“Well, Naomi waltzed into the office and spotted Doug by my desk. From across the room she said, ‘Mari. What in the world are you doing here?’” Mari imitated Naomi and tried to act haughty. She didn’t pull it off. “She made it sound as though she thought I was too inept to have a job.”
Mari stood up to throw away the pile of napkin pieces she’d created. “Doug told her Connie had hired me. Naomi said, ‘I wasn’t aware Mari had any skills.’ Doug tried to lead her away from my desk, but Naomi told him to go on about his work because she wanted to talk to me. Then Doug went into his office, like a little boy who’d been told to go to the corner.”
I shook my head. What in the heck was wrong with him, anyway? “Naomi wanted to talk to you? About what?” I took the last bite of the pathetic little sandwich. Not even any mayonnaise. The Mari I knew would have normally gone to at least the trouble of mayonnaise. She really was distracted.
Mari waved a carrot stick in the air as she talked. “Oh, she went on to tell me about how the Clerk of the District Court’s office always headed up the food and drink tables for the Fourth of July celebration on t
he square. Several times she asked if I could handle it… acted like I might not be up for the task. She even yelled across the room to Connie to ask her if she thought it would be too much for me.” Mari rolled her eyes and tossed the carrot stick onto the plate. One bite of a sandwich and half a carrot stick. Poor kid had no appetite. This was worse than I had imagined.
“This is all classic Naomi. She’s trying to upset you… and I can see she did. Was there more?”
“Yes.” Mari wrung her hands and stood up, then took her plate to the front door and tossed the food outside for the cat to eat. She came back, threw the paper plate in the trashcan, then paced around the kitchen. “When Naomi finished going over what she expected from our office, it seemed as though she was about to leave, but she turned back and said, ‘Say, didn’t you used to date Doug or something back in high school?’”
I shook my head. What a piece of work. “So, what did you say?”
“Betty, I told her it was so long ago I could barely remember.” Mari crossed her arms over her chest.
“And what did she say?”
“She said good. Then she stared at me with the coldest eyes. It gave me the creeps. She looked like she wanted to kill me. It really shook me up.”
“I don’t blame you. And you shouldn’t trust Naomi. I think she’s capable of almost anything.” I stood up and went to put my arm around Mari’s shoulders.
“Do you think I’ve made a huge mistake? Should I quit the job?” Mari’s eyes filled with tears.
“What? No. Absolutely not. But if I were you, I’d avoid Doug at all costs.”
Mari nodded and looked like she was about to cry.
“I hate to tell you this, but I think Naomi will try to use this celebration as an opportunity to get to you. I’m worried, Mari. I’m going to come on the Fourth to keep an eye on you. I’ll make sure the others are there, too. You’re going to need your friends.”