by Ian Fox
She leaned on her elbows, thinking. “I suppose you’re right. Why postpone it any longer? We should get married.”
Happy, he lay on her ample bosom and murmured, “I love you madly.”
Chapter 99
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Anita thought of Jerry while walking up the stairs. “Thank God I got rid of him. He’s a loser. I hope I never see him again.”
Unlocking the door, she shouted, “Henry, you home?”
There was no answer.
Disappointed, she sighed and put down her shopping bags. “He said he’d wait for me here. This is getting on my nerves.”
While putting the food in the fridge, she thought about what to prepare for dinner. Anita had never been a good cook, but she had found a few recipes. She decided to make toasted sandwiches and add peppers and tomatoes. Henry adores peppers. I’m sure he’ll be pleased.
At nine in the evening he finally showed up.
“Where have you been?” Her voice was angry.
“Sorry, Anita.” Henry pulled her to him, hugging her tightly. “I had a long conversation with Valerie and couldn’t get away any sooner.”
She pushed herself away from him. “I don’t understand. You were with your wife again?”
“Don’t be jealous. We finally had a normal conversation. I think she understands at last that there’s no point anymore. She promised to sign the divorce papers.”
“I hope she does. You’ve been talking about this divorce for ten months. It’s about time.”
He gave her a quick kiss. “Getting divorced is never easy. Especially when there are joint assets involved.”
“I don’t want you to give her more than her fair share.”
“Of course not. If everything goes as planned, we can get married next month.”
She jumped up in excitement. “Oh Henry, I’m so glad it’s finally happening!”
When he’d showered and put on a sweat suit, she told him about meeting Jerry.
“What did that idiot want?”
“He’s still in love with me,” she boasted. “He asked me to take him back.”
“I can’t believe it. I’ll have a talk with him tomorrow. Did you tell him we’re getting married?”
“Of course I did. Don’t get all irritated.”
“How could I not, after news like that.”
“I like it when you’re jealous.” She smiled at him and sat down on his knees. “I was never into Jerry. I need a real man, like you. Kiss me.”
“And you’re the right woman for me, Anita.” He lifted her up.
“Oops, where are you taking me?”
“Guess.”
“Don’t you want to eat first?”
“No. First I’ll deal with you, then I’ll eat.”
“You always have to have it your own way,” she added with a giggle.
Chapter 100
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Throughout the time Simon was in prison, only one person visited him regularly. That person was Edna Weiss, who was there every Thursday at visiting time. She never missed. Dr. Patterson was pleased to see her, but didn’t want her wasting her time on him. He’d said this to her on several occasions, but she couldn’t be persuaded. She’d answer, “I like coming to visit you and as long as I like it, I’ll come.”
Simon slowly got used to the idea. He looked forward to her visits as she was his only connection with the outside world.
A year after she began the visits to the prison, Edna’s husband died from a heart attack.
When she next came to see Simon, he comforted her, knowing she was attached to him. Then he thought of something.
“Listen, Edna, I have an idea and I hope you like it. As far as I know, you’ve been living in a rented apartment, right?”
Edna nodded.
“I don’t see why you should keep living there, paying high rent. Why don’t you move into my house? It’s better than it being empty.”
Edna resisted. “Oh no, Dr. Patterson. I can’t do that.” She wanted him to rent it to someone else and earn some money. “Think how much money you could earn in twenty years.” She instantly felt bad for mentioning the number of years. She could have said “in those years.” “I meant—”
“Money doesn’t mean anything to me. And I don’t want to lease it to people I don’t know. I have a laboratory in the basement and I don’t want anyone changing anything. Really, I’d be more than glad if you moved in. What do you say?”
She thought about it for a bit, and then nodded. “If you insist, even though …”
“Good, we have a deal. Now I can relax, knowing someone will be looking after my roses. And I’d like to suggest something else.”
“Yes?”
“How about we start calling each other by our first names? We’ve known each other long enough, I think.”
Edna blushed. “I … I don’t know, I’ve kind of gotten used to …”
“Let’s drop this barrier, shall we?”
She looked down. “If you say so, I’ll try.”
“Good, I’m pleased. The next time you come, you’ll call me Simon.”
One day Edna came in a flurry to tell him that two men had rung the doorbell with a repossession warrant. “Because of unpaid obligations to the bank, they said. They searched your house and picked out something they could sell at auction. They took your microscope. I’m so sorry I couldn’t stop them. They were such big, strong-looking guys.”
“Don’t worry. What use is a microscope to me when I’m in prison? The bank was only after what’s theirs. Now they’ll sell it and if any money’s left, they’ll probably put it into my account.”
“Good, I was scared the news would affect you more.”
“I am a bit down, but not because of the microscope.”
He told her he missed his colleagues and felt bad not being of any use anymore. “Now that I’m not doing my job, I miss it.”
Edna listened to him for a while and then started talking herself. “I have a friend who works as a nurse in the trauma ward. I’ll tell you something if you promise to keep it to yourself.”
“Of course I will, who can I tell?” He gave a sarcastic laugh.
Edna told him about the problems that had occurred in neurosurgery after he’d left. “There was a huge scandal in the hospital. A lot of talk. If I understood correctly, a young surgeon had worked there for a while.”
“Yes, that was Jerry Duncan. What happened?”
“This young surgeon was in a relationship with the main anesthetist, right?”
“That’s right, with Dr. Anita Carter.”
“Well, after you left they hired another experienced neurosurgeon. And he had an affair with the anesthetist.”
Dr. Patterson nodded his head. “Not surprising.”
“There are rumors about him walking in on them when they were …”
“Yes?”
“You know, in bed.”
“Awful. And what happened then?”
“The young surgeon lost his mind and went after his co-worker. They say he broke his jaw.”
Simon asked enthusiastically, “And?”
“The next day he quit. He said he was sorry about everything and couldn’t work at the hospital anymore.”
“My God! And what happened to the new guy?”
“He was on sick leave until his jaw healed. Then he came back and is now living with the anesthetist.”
“That really is news.” He scratched his chin, shaking his head. “Did you hear what happened to Jerry Duncan?”
“They say that he let himself go and is still mourning for her. I don’t know anything else.”
“Poor Jerry.”
And that’s how he and Edna Weiss became real friends. Simon looked forward to Thursdays, knowing that Edna would visit him. Only once did she miss, and he was beside himself, scared that something had happened to her.
Something had: She had been clumsy and fallen down the stairs. Du
e to her sprained ankle she couldn’t visit him. She wrote him a letter, telling him she was OK and would be there the following Thursday.
Chapter 101
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Valerie Lawson was a simple, hesitant woman who had stood by her husband her whole life. A year ago, he’d told her that he’d fallen in love with his colleague Anita Carter, and that pained her. Her first thought was to leave him. But she still loved her husband and because she’d spent twenty years of her life with him, she couldn’t imagine living without him.
At forty-one, Valerie was average-looking, with a short, practical haircut, and thick, plastic-rimmed glasses. She’d started letting herself go, putting on weight and dressing in baggy clothes.
When she told her friend that her husband was leaving, her friend gave her two options: “You can either accept his decision and leave him, or you can fight for him and if you’re lucky, he’ll come back to you.”
Valerie chose the second option. She held Henry’s decision against him, but still decided to make the divorce as hard for him as possible. Every time he brought up the subject, she said she’d sign the papers but wasn’t feeling well at the moment and would rather do it the next month.
The months went by and because Henry was considerate, he didn’t insist, and waited for the right moment. But within that time, Valerie changed. She lost the extra weight and did aerobics. She worked out regularly because her friend had said she had to feel beautiful and attractive to seduce her husband again.
She also had plastic surgery. She got a face-lift, had her lips and nose fixed, a breast enhancement, her teeth whitened, and she also had laser treatment for her eyesight. She didn’t dare think about the money she had spent on all the operations, but when she took a look at herself in the mirror, she cried with joy. Her previously average-looking face had become pretty and unbelievably symmetrical. Before, her nose had always bothered her and she’d found her lips too thin. Now an attractive woman stood in front of her, without those hideous glasses. And her breasts were pleasingly large.
“You think they’re too big?” she asked the surgeon.
“I don’t think so. They’re just what you wanted. You’ll have to get used to them.”
“They’re very beautiful, but ….” She cried from happiness.
When her surgical wounds had healed and the swelling had gone down, she picked up aerobics again. She also visited a hair stylist at the beauty clinic. She had grown her hair for months and it nearly reached down to her shoulders. The hairdresser said, “You have very beautiful, strong hair, but a lighter color would suit you more than the dark. It would make you look younger and I also recommend a perm. You have a narrow face and your hair needs some volume.”
Accompanied by a stylist, Valerie visited a few clothing shops and was astonished when her acquaintance recommended mainly light colors and tight-fitting outfits. “That way you’ll emphasize your beautiful body,” was the reply.
Valerie felt uneasy. “Are you sure that’s right for me, though?” Before, she’d preferred to wear dark pants and loose tops and rarely wore light colors.
“More than sure.”
Valerie had told Henry she was taking a vacation. Finally, the time came for them to see each other again. They met in an elegant restaurant on River Lane. She was deliberately late and even from a distance she could see Henry wearily drinking his beer and checking his watch. She was wearing a white silk pantsuit and her hair bounced as she walked toward him. Her elegant stride in the high heels caused several men to look her way.
“Hello, Henry. Sorry for being late,” she said in a quiet but decisive voice.
Henry started, turned, and gave her a weary look, which was immediately followed by astonishment. His jaw dropped open and he stared at her as if he’d never seen her before. Half-closing his mouth he let out a couple of strange sounds. Finally he got up, took hold of her hands, and kissed her cheek.
“My God, Valerie, is that really you?”
“Of course it’s me, who else would it be?”
First pulling out a chair for her, he then sat down. “I can’t believe it. Obviously you weren’t on vacation, but at a beauty clinic, right?”
“Does that mean you don’t like the change?”
“Just the opposite. My God, Valerie, you’re a beauty. How is that possible?”
“I don’t know. I said I wanted to be beautiful, they did the rest. They really can perform miracles.”
He stared at her low neckline. “You also had your breasts enlarged.”
She picked up her napkin and unfolded it in embarrassment. “Don’t stare at them like that. Some of the guests are looking at us.”
Quickly he checked who was looking. “You’re right, but they’re not staring at me, they’re staring at you.”
She became serious. “So, where are these papers I should sign?”
“There’s no rush, Valerie. We can deal with them after dinner. Why don’t you tell me something about yourself instead? What have you been up to lately?”
She told him she’d finally managed to finish her psychiatry studies and that she’d gotten a job at the clinic. “Tomorrow’s my first day and I’m already nervous. I’ll be working with children.”
“Unbelievable. You surprise me. I thought you’d never finish.”
“Neither did I. But I decided I had to a few months ago. I had to do something.”
“I can’t get over it how much you’ve changed. It’s as if I was talking to another woman. It’s still you, but you look different and seem more confident.”
“Stop it, Henry. Tell me, what have you been up to? How’s it going with Anita?”
“OK, nothing special. We’re expecting a baby. Anita is excited about getting married.”
She gave him a sad look. “How come we didn’t have children?”
“Maybe we postponed it for too long, who knows. Anita and I didn’t plan it. I didn’t really want this and I recommended an abortion, but she—”
“She wants to have you.”
“Let’s forget Anita now. Let’s talk about something else.”
They reminisced about the old times when they were happy and in love. They remembered the nice places they’d visited and laughed at their adventures. When it was nearly eleven, Henry got a call from Anita, asking him where he was. He told her he’d be home soon.
“You need to go home. It’s not right, you sitting here with you ex-wife,” Valerie joked. “Where are the papers?”
Henry handed over her the papers with a heavy heart. “You have to sign right at the bottom, Valerie. I’m sorry about us.”
“Me too, Henry, me too.” She could barely hold back her tears while signing the divorce papers with a shaky hand.
Chapter 102
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Several tabloids reported on the magnificent wedding between the plastic surgeon, Dr. Robert Miner, and his police officer bride, Caroline. They got married on Golden Beach, about a hundred miles from Medford. Robert Miner hired a yacht and invited over a hundred people. Even the minister had to come from Medford and marry them on the ship. The tabloids noted that there hadn’t been such a lavish wedding for years.
The yacht drifted toward the mainland, and dancing went on all night, until it reached the pier in the early morning hours. The invited guests were tired but pleased with an unforgettable night.
A white limousine was waiting next to the boat for the bride and groom and it whisked them away to a luxury hotel.
Caroline was full of energy in spite of the long night. “You’ll see what I’m going to do to you when we get into the room,” she threatened affectionately.
Dr. Miner’s legs began to shake.
She shone with pride when she looked around the spacious rooms. “I never thought I’d get this lucky.” She leaned over and kissed him.
“It’s all for you, honey. I’m not stingy.”
“And that’s how it should be.” She stood up straight
. “I’m now officially your wife and everything should be as I want it.”
“Yes, yes …”
“I warned you about my bossiness.”
“Of course, and that’s why I love you.”
“Off to the bathroom with you now, you silly! You’re all sweaty from singing and drinking all night.” She checked the clock. “You have exactly five minutes. If you’re late, you’ll be punished.”
“Punished?” he repeated and hurried into the bathroom. While showering, he repeated to himself, “Thank you, God, for sending me this woman.”
Chapter 103
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That evening Dr. Lawson told Anita that his wife had finally signed the divorce papers.
“Thank God, the witch has finally done it.”
He didn’t like Anita calling her names. He was lost in thought and still couldn’t understand how Valerie could have changed so much.
Anita said, “This calls for a celebration. I mean, we have been waiting for this for nearly a year.”
“Yes, you’re right.”
“Let me invite you for a drink to a new bar called the Mysterious Ray. Apparently, that’s where all the rich people go.”
They went out. While drinking champagne, they laughed and joked and planned their future.
“My last name will be Lawson,” Anita said.
“You’ll get used to it.”
“Who knows if I’ll be a good mother.”
“I’m sure you will be.”
In the evening, when they lay in bed, Anita wanted to make love. “Take me, please.”
“Honey, I think I had too much wine. I have an unbearable headache.” He didn’t find her quite so attractive since her stomach had grown.
She let out a sigh. “Shame. It would have been such a perfect evening. Well, tomorrow then.” She turned over and fell asleep almost immediately.
But Henry couldn’t sleep. His thoughts were with Valerie and he was remembering how she’d walked toward her car and how the wind had tousled her long, wavy hair. Shame it didn’t work out between us.