May 30, 2009: The First Reading
PAUL - I’m calling you because it looks like I married a liar, thief and con artist.
TERRI - Would you tell me her full name?
PAUL - Audrey Elizabeth Allen Munson. Can you tell me why Audrey has refused to return the engagement ring I gave her? It was the ring of my mother, kept for me by my father for almost twenty years since my mother’s death. What’s wrong with her that she would be so heartless and immoral?
TERRI - This is because she is repeating patterns from her childhood. She’s not learning the things she came here to learn.
PAUL - One big question: Why has this happened to me?
TERRI - You attracted her to you so you could work on what you need to work on. I feel it will resolve itself, that any judge will rule in your favor, but… it is your reactions that count. Also, you need to relax more, surrender, and be grateful that the marriage did not go on longer than it did. Also, once you get the divorce settlement, you should prosecute her for fraud.
PAUL - Why isn’t her conscience SCREAMING at her to stop this behavior?
TERRI - This is an immoral person. I want you to be at peace, and not react to the process. Be in surrender. You have such a good nature and you can rebound from this. You know, there is something missing in some people’s make-up, and they are in survival mode only. Damages done during childhood. She has no concept of consequences, which is the same thing I see in people who do drugs, the drugs destroy that part of their brain. She planned and she believes she will get away with this, and is even entitled to this. She looks at it like whoring. She believes that since she gave you sexual favors, that you owe her.
TERRI, CONTINUED - I think that there is no way she will settle before court, that she wants to get every last drop of blood from you. You should relax and enjoy your day in court. I feel that Audrey is already lining up her next victim. Also, she has fraudulent tax returns, and you should turn her in to the IRS. Paul, you should try to protect others from her. How, I don’t know. However, anything you do should be done in a state of nurturing, not a “getting even” mentality. Again, she has no sense of consequences, and that is why she didn’t claim her income. Audrey looks for weak and vulnerable men. By whatever actions you take, you will strengthen yourself and discover your true SELF, as a warrior of love, bringing the message of love and protection to others. Audrey is very good at seduction, very good at acting innocent. She was abused as a child, sexually, and she learned to use sex to get what she wants. I feel her energy is so low and slimy, I feel after tuning in to her that I need to take a bath… I’m hearing that you need to run a police report on her, that she might have a record. And an alias. They’re telling me that this is bigger than we think.
PAUL - Really?
TERRI - I am seeing a big sign that says “FRAUD.” She thinks it was okay to defraud you, since she gave you sex. I can tell you that if her lips are moving, then she is lying. She had that child from the second husband only so she could get child support from him. Again, I feel that she might have a long track record, and that you should run her police record.
PAUL - I’ll see what I can do.
TERRI - Paul, this person is like a child molester, she needs to be in jail, off the street, because her sole desire is to inflict financial damage to anyone she can find. You need to contact the IRS about her tax fraud. They have a “whistle-blower” program.
PAUL - Thank you for this information.
I hung up the phone and immediately replayed the recording I'd made of the phone call. The suggestion that Audrey was abused seemed so extreme, but also so believable given her relationships with men and her obvious perspective on sex. The idea of “whoring” also struck a chord with me, and the suggestion that she used her sexuality to gain things from men proved a convincing analogy. More than anything, however, Terri’s recommendation that I dig deeper into Audrey’s past seemed intriguing. It also seemed necessary, proactive, and a far better thing to do than wallow in my own depression. I stood up from the couch and collected an old picture of my parents from their own wedding day, which I kept framed on a nearby end table. Looking at their blissful faces, I couldn’t shake what Terri said about Audrey seeking out vulnerable men. Could I have been that weak? Well, maybe so, I thought, but no longer.
And I became intent on proving that to Audrey as well.
The next day, I called my lawyer and told him of my intent to investigate Audrey. Adam was both agreeable and cautious as he instructed me not to do anything that would jeopardize our standing in court. Assuring him that I simply planned to learn more about her background, her husbands, and her patterns, I hung up the phone feeling invigorated with purpose. I arrived at Adam’s office two days later to effectively begin my life as a P.I.
“Are those the bank statements?” I asked him, as I handed him a cup of coffee. I pointed to a large stack of papers while I took a seat in front of him, eager to begin my research. Adam took a sip from the Starbuck’s cup, closing his eyes for a second while the effects set in, and nodded at the pile.
“I subpoenaed Audrey’s bank statements from January, 2007 to the present. If you find anything interesting, let me know.” Adam slowly pulled back the lid to reveal a plume of steam and a stronger aroma of fresh coffee bean, threw the cap away, and took a big gulp. I briefly wondered how he could handle such hot coffee, thanked him, and walked out the door.
Three hours later, I picked up the phone and was talking with Adam again.
“You wanted to know if I found something. Well, I did.” I was speaking quickly, my energy fueled by my discovery.
“What did you find?” Adam asked, still cautious in tone.
“Where do I start? To begin with, do you remember that $1,600 a month in child support that Audrey told the judge was her only income? Well, that was complete bullshit. The bank statements show monthly deposits of between $4,000 and $5,000. As I said, the child support was only $1,600 and so the difference between those numbers is… ”
“Unexplained,” Adam finished for me, now showing a little more emotion.
“You bet. And that’s not all. These deposits, which are made throughout each month, are in random figures, such as $456.83, and $308.84, and so on. All very odd amounts, don’t you think? I’m guessing they’re either interest from CDs, or else dividend checks from stocks.”
“Could be. If I remember correctly, Audrey claimed in the interrogatories that she had no assets other than her car,” Adam said, as if he were thinking aloud.
“So, what can we do with this information?” I asked, hoping the impact would be significant.
“I will file a motion to 'compel better responses' to the question about assets, and tell them we want to know the exact source of these funds.”
“Oh, and there’s one more thing-- her debit charges. There are absolutely no charges for gas, food, or anything else in Cocoa Beach. However, on the days that she was supposed to be in Cocoa Beach with her grandmother, there are lots of charges at stores right around here, especially the Palm Beach Mall. This confirms what Bob Thompson, Audrey’s second husband, already told me over breakfast. Audrey was never in Cocoa Beach.”
“It sounds like we have ourselves a real con artist. She really set you up, Paul.”
“It sure looks like that now, doesn’t it?” Had Adam made that comment months earlier, I may have acted more emotionally, but now was different. I was on a mission to uncover everything I could about the real Audrey, and find a way to put an end to her cons. Audrey had hurt enough people.
* * *
Thirty days later, Adam called me with their response to the motion to compel, which he had filed immediately after our conversation.
“Paul, I got their response and, believe it or not, they came back with the same thing as before: Audrey has no additional assets.” This time, becoming accustomed to Audrey’s true nature, I was not at all surprised.
“Do they think we’re stupid? Why do they keep delaying t
his information if they eventually have to tell us anyway? By law, they have to provide it, right?”
“Right, but by delaying it as long as they can, they are also delaying the trial and thereby continuing your monthly payments of $750 to her.”
I was disgusted. “What’s next then?” I asked, disappointed by the outcome.
“I will file a motion for contempt and we'll get a hearing. Unfortunately, it will probably take another thirty days.”
And it did. Four weeks later, in July of 2009, we were again seated before Judge Andrews for a contempt of court hearing. Though the judge had seemed reasonable up until now, I was curious to see how he would handle this new information, especially since I had stopped sending Audrey the monthly payments he had ordered. Both sides presented their arguments and within ten short minutes, Judge Andrews was ready to rule.
“I see that you have asked for alimony in this case, Mr. Smith,” he began, peering down at a paper through his glasses. “By law, since you have done so, Mr. Goldman has the right to discover any income Ms. Munson might have. You have ten days to get Mr. Goldman the requested information.” And with that, we had won another, very small victory. In ten days we'd know everything, I thought. Great, we're finally going to get to the bottom of this.
Exactly ten days later, I received a call from Adam explaining that Audrey again claimed to have no additional assets. Angered and surprised by her dishonesty and indifference to the court, I practically shouted at my lawyer, “She says she's unemployed, with no assets, no trust fund. Do they think that $3,000 a month over and above her child support income materialized in her bank account out of thin air? It’s ridiculous. Now we need to get a motion for sanctions, and let the judge slap a nice penalty on them.”
“Calm down, Paul,” Adam replied. “I agree she's hiding something, but, I don’t want to move for sanctions. It will be more effective if I simply ask her during the trial about the source of those funds.”
“You’re the expert,” I agreed, though I would have enjoyed watching Audrey incur the judge’s wrath. I hung up the phone with Adam and decided that I might be looking forward to my trial after all.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The Revelation
August 1, 2009
Three weeks after the contempt of court hearing, I was back in my lawyer’s office, looking to further investigate Audrey’s background as Terri had advised. Instead of financial statements, however, Adam had subpoenaed Audrey’s cell phone records, something I didn’t even know could be done.
“As a matter of course, I always subpoena the spouse’s cell phone records,” Adam explained, while he scribbled some notes in a folder. I stood before him, too eager and too excited to stay any longer than I had to. “If you find anything interesting, let me know.”
“I will, thanks,” I said hurriedly, as I grabbed the box full of papers. Adam returned to his work, and I turned toward the door, and headed out of his office.
The outside air greeted me with a blast of heat that did nothing to slacken my pace. Hopping into my car, I only took a moment to turn on the car and the necessary air conditioner before diving into the extensive stack of papers, covering Audrey's calls from January of 2007 to June of 2009. My eyes poured over the endless numbers on page after page, straining to make out something recognizable or repetitive amid the blur of digits. The more I scanned, the more I saw one number over and over again, a number I didn't recognize. This must be her latest boyfriend, I thought. It wasn’t her parents’ or either ex-husbands’ number, and since it was called many times each day, I was confronted with the obvious: Audrey had found a new victim. I wondered when they began seeing each other, so I flipped through the logs, going back in time. April, March, February, January. Still, there was this number, called every day. Strange, I thought. From what I've learned, Audrey can't maintain a relationship for more than a few months. I wonder... and I turned the stack completely over and looked at page one, September 18, 2007.
Our wedding day.
There it was, again. Audrey placed three calls to this guy during the day, the last one only a half hour before our ceremony, and then THREE MORE CALLS TO HIM THAT NIGHT, OUR WEDDING NIGHT, after we had made love and I had fallen asleep. Calls were made at 11:30, 11:45 and then one shortly after midnight, at 12:14 a.m. I was in shock. A feeling of dread crept over me. Who was this guy? After we made love, my bride was making phone calls? To whom? Why? I had to find out.
Not only that, but Audrey called him, and received calls from him, ten times per day, the next day, the next, and the next, day after day, week after week, month after month. Even married couples don’t call each other ten times a day. What the hell was going on?
I kept telling myself there had to be an explanation for it, something I hadn't considered. I threw the box onto the passenger's seat and stared out at the parking lot, the pavement smoldering from the heat. Shaking my head, I slowly began the drive home, not sure what answers I might find.
Arriving home, I strode through the door and climbed the stairs to my office, intent on the only source for answers I could think of: the internet. I entered the room, turned on the light, and sat down at my desk, the glow of the monitor beckoning me. Without even the briefest of hesitations, I went to Google and typed in the mystery number.
The number brought me to a website for a man selling a boat. Not the result I had expected. I was expecting to see somebody who could be Audrey's love, not this fat, scruffy-looking character with a twenty-something blonde sitting next to him. He seemed to be just a man selling a boat. He identified himself as Royce from the small town of Hobe Sound, located twenty miles north of Jupiter. Though the information provided was simple enough, I found myself even more puzzled. Why was Audrey contacting this particular man every day, all day and all night, including our wedding night? I needed to find out more.
I reached for the phone and began to dial a man with whom I had never expected to share very much in common, until now. The man was Bob Thompson and I knew if anyone could help me uncover some clues as to who Audrey truly was, it would be her second husband. Even though we hadn’t really spoken since our revealing breakfast at the IHOP a few months back, Bob didn’t seem at all surprised that I might have more to ask him about Audrey. I warmly greeted him.
When he, in turn, inquired about me, my voice struggled to mask my emotions. I was feeling helpless, alone, and more than a little lost. I was spiraling, but I did what any man with pride would do: “Fine, fine. Things are, you know, fine. I was, uh, hoping to run a couple questions by you. About Audrey. Is this a bad time?” My voice may have said I was fine, and I may have even tried to believe it myself, but there was nothing fine about me, and Bob knew it too.
“Not at all. What’s on your mind?”
“Well, actually, I’m not completely fine. I mean, I’ve just been to see my attorney and he gave me copies of Audrey’s cell phone records. So, I started to look through them… ” When I began to talk I became keenly aware of the fact that I was talking quickly, like I needed to get everything out before I lost control, or lost my mind, or both. “And there’s this one number that she calls all day long. I thought it could be her boyfriend, which made me wonder how long they’ve been together. So, I went backwards in the logs, all the way back, to our wedding day, and she called this guy even on that day. And not just once. She called him throughout the day, and even three times in the middle of the night when I was asleep, after our, you know, wedding night activities. So, I put the guy’s number through Google and some website came up with him selling a boat, and I don’t know... ” I stopped myself. I had to catch my breath. The words were tumbling out, belying any attempt I might have made to try and seem fine.
“Oh, I’m not sure… Royce. His name is Royce. Do you know anyone by the name of Royce?” I spat his name out and was met with silence.
“I'm so sorry, Paul,” Bob said after a moment. Here it was; the answer I’d been looking for. Had she been having an affair throu
ghout our entire marriage? Had she ever really loved me? Was my entire married life with Audrey a lie?
But, as it turns out, that was the least I could hope for.
“That’s Royce Rocco,” he continued, “and he’s been Audrey’s boyfriend since 2003. He was the reason I made the court order a DNA test for my son. I couldn't be entirely sure I was his father and, like you, I needed answers. I'm really sorry, Paul, I thought she might have broken up with him, at least during the time you two were married.”
While Bob was speaking, I began to feel an entirely new wave of emotions wash over me. Feelings of confusion and bewilderment gave way to anger and vulnerability.
I never imagined myself to be so easily duped, and though my emotions were intensifying by the second, nothing felt more apparent to me than the realization that all the time she was pretending to be my wife, Audrey was keeping a lover on the side.
“I guess not, Bob. I’m going to look into these phone logs some more and see if I can come up with anything else. There are just so many numbers, I’m not even sure what to look for. But I'll tell you one thing. Even husbands and wives don't call each other ten times a day. There must be something else going on. I'll let you know what I find out.”
At that point, Johnny walked into the room, covered in mud from head to toe from what must have been a good time playing outside at the baby-sitter's. I heard her call up a goodbye as I motioned him to me, and he looked at the floor and warily approached. Believing that he was about to be scolded again for tracking mud through the house, Johnny kept his eyes averted and, at that moment, I was completely struck by his innocence. His single most significant worry was whether or not a simple punishment resulting from play was upon him. I was overcome with emotion, with the need to protect him, and with the need to reclaim my life for him. I pulled him close and held him longer than a typical embrace.
Duplicity - A True Story of Crime and Deceit Page 15