“Hmmm, it seems like you may be coming down off your high huh? You want to talk now?” She slammed the fallacy in her hand multiple times as she talked. There was a clear indication of euphoria that came over her as she watched him squirm around.
“If I take your gag off of your mouth to see if you can speak clearly enough for me to understand you, will you be a good boy? Because I promise you, I have way more in my bag of tricks that will shut you up for good. But I am interested in seeing what you may possibly have to say. Do we have a deal?”
The man shook his head vigorously to communicate that he understood. Placing down the toy in her hand, Vera removed the cloth that had been covering his mouth. Before saying anything, he took a few moments to breathe through his mouth. Panting heavily, he shook the tears in the corner of his eyes. He opened his mouth to attempt to speak but the only thing that escaped his lips was that of stale air and moans. He looked up to the ceiling trying to hold back more tears.
“What? I can’t hear you.” She knew that eventually the drug she gave him would wear off and he would want to speak again. She had another dose just in case she needed more time. For the moment, she was intrigued with what he might say. He bought himself some time.
Again, the man tried to speak. What was in his head simply wouldn’t come out. He finally remembered why the two of them were connected and the words wouldn’t come out to save his life. His life literally depended on it and nothing. Not a single, solitary word.
“I know what you need. Some water. Let’s try to get those wind pipes moistened and see if that helps. If not, well you can always pray for redemption, ‘cause I have none for you.”
Vera walked over to the kitchen. His condo really was nice, an open floor plan. You could see every inch of the home from anywhere you stood but it still didn’t feel crowded. Looking around his place, she could tell that he had had it redecorated. Clearly this was not done by the taste of a man. Or perhaps he had one of his women friends help him out. Whatever it was, she could appreciate the time that was taken to make the place pop. It was a shame that he wouldn’t be able to enjoy it for much longer.
Coming back to his side with an opened water bottle from the refrigerator, she held it to his lips and watched it spill over a bit as he struggled to take a sip from the position he was in. Untying his hands was not an option, so he would simply have to drink it the way she served it to him. She didn’t care if he ever got a sip of water honestly. If it hadn’t been for the fact that this might benefit her, she would not have given him any.
“That’s enough of that,” she said as she abruptly took the water bottle from the range of his lips. She was not there to be his caretaker. Her only desire was to get him drinking just enough to quench his thirst, wet his pipes, or to make it plain, make him talk.
The man struggled to catch his breath. Never in his life had he desired a sip of water as he just did. It was as if he had just been to an oasis in the middle of the desert. Only this wasn’t the desert and there was no oasis. He had no idea when the next sip of anything let alone water would be.
“I’m waiting and growing impatient.” She picked up the large toy again, bringing it in his view. “I’m sure you don’t want me to make you talk, do you?”
In the faintest sounding voice he could muster, he began to speak, “Nigel… Nigel Washington, right? You’re… his wife.”
“Oh, so you do remember? Well let me make one small correction for you. I was his wife. We were happily married until the night you showed up and took it all away. Do you remember that?”
The man whimpered as he searched for the words to say. His head was still sifting through memories to put two and two together. He did however remember the man Nigel and the proposition he offered. One that he simply could not refuse.
It was now or never. The information he had could possibly save his life and his manhood for that matter.
“Nigel… he paid me… he paid me to sleep with you. I can prove it.”
Vera was shocked for a moment. She had always assumed that the incident while strange was just a case of a man taking what he wanted. Her mind was blown. It appeared that she would have to take a little more time out to spend with the man then she had originally planned for. She needed the drugs to wear all the way off. This was a confession that she needed to hear all the way out.
“Well, well. I guess you really do want to save yourself. Looks like your night just got longer.” She pulled up a chair to sit directly in front of him. No more pacing. She wanted to hear every single syllable.
8
Five Years Prior
(A week before the Washington’s Anniversary)
Nigel Washington walked down the busy street with an air of confidence. It was something he always had. A sense of self. A sense of superiority. He had always felt as though he were better than everyone around him and he often treated people in that manner as well. And he had the one thing that allowed him to get away with it.
Money.
Money could buy attention and his money had come from an old source. It could also buy time. Respect. And contrary to popular belief, love. Take his wife for example. He knew that she put up with the majority of his antics and attitudes because of his money. He had always been generous with it. And while she didn’t exactly give off gold digger vibes when they met, she sure as hell enjoyed the benefits of it.
However, as with most things, he had become bored quickly. Nigel was surprised that she hadn’t noticed this. He had long stopped paying as much attention to her as he used to. Instead, he paid for whatever she wanted. Shoes, clothes, trips, cars, whatever. And by doing this, she often excused his absence and lack of attention.
There were certain things that he still did for the most part. When they were in public, he still put her on a pedestal. Vera was beautiful. She could easily win any pageant simply by stepping in a room. Nigel wasn’t bad looking himself, but he recognized that the expensive clothes he wore and car he stepped out of made him look better. She simply was gorgeous even in a trash bag. And for that reason, he kept her on his arm at every function that required a beauty of her caliber.
Still, he wanted more. And he got that much from the women he often entertained on the side that as far as he knew she knew nothing about. For years he had carried on extra marital affairs with the belief that his wife knew nothing about what was happening because in his mind he believed that he was cleverer than she was. To him, that wasn’t even a question. The fact that he had gotten away with all his antics only solidified in his mind that he was smarter than she.
Even with that he never denied her just as she never denied him. There was only one thing that he really wanted of her and she could not provide it. And that was a child. Vera had been to every specialist possible and nothing helped the fact that she was barren. She simply could not provide him with a child to carry on his name and legacy. And while he did what he could to appear empathetic to her plight, he did not allow that to stop what he wanted.
For the early part of their marriage he made it seem like he was okay. As though he accepted it. The truth was, he had already started making other plans.
Swinging the door open to the piano shop, Nigel looked around the room for who he had come to see. The store was surprisingly busier than he had expected at that time of day. He marveled at the glistening pianos that sprinkled throughout the showroom. He had already seen a few that would be a perfect upgrade to the one that he owned. Not that he played it. His wife was the one who was adamant that a piano elevated the elegance of their home.
“Have you been helped, sir?”
Nigel turned around to come face to face with just the person he had come to see. One of his women friends had told him about a male escort who worked by day in the piano shop as a salesman and was also gifted with playing the keys. This combination would prove to be in his favor as he planned to have the man meet his match. Nigel could sell a fly trap to a dozen flies; he was just that gifted.
“Just the man I came to see. Herschel Jefferson, I presume. My name is Nigel. Is there somewhere private we can speak?” He flashed his award-winning smile at the man who looked at him completely puzzled.
How did the man know his name? How did he know how to find him there? What was this about? Herschel hoped that his extracurricular activities had not finally caught up with him. For the most part he lived on the right side of the law. However, in college he paid his way through by serving as a male escort. While this mostly consisted of him going on dates with older women who had become widowed or were just lonely, every now and then he would have sex with them for a larger check. It was something he had proved to be good at.
For the most part it was a care free way to earn extra money. He had always been honest with the women. There were no emotions involved. But for the right price he would give them a night that they would not soon forget. It was seldom that he would have a run in with a husband of one of the women. He hoped that this wasn’t going to be one of those times.
“Sure, my office is right this way.”
Nigel followed the man to a room that he almost laughed at. He couldn’t believe the man called the tiny broom closet an office. He could barely fit in the space sideways. Nigel could fit this office in his own five times over and still have room to maneuver. He actually felt sorry for the man. Now he understood why Herschel felt the need to sell his body for extra money. There was no way he made a living wage in this industry, Nigel thought.
Closing the door behind him, Herschel started the conversation, “I’m sorry. I don’t recall where we may have met before.”
“No need. I was referred to you by a friend. I’ve come to discus a proposition that may be worth your time.”
Herschel looked the man up and down. It looked as though the man was wearing his entire salary on his back. Everything about the man who walked into his place of business screamed over-confident. This man was a snob and it was annoying to be honest. All Herschel wanted to do was hear what this man had to say then show him the door.
“I’m listening.”
Nigel looked around before continuing the conversation. “How much would you say you make a year? Count everything. Sales on the show room floor, private piano lessons and your side business. How much would you say you bring home? Don’t count after taxes either, not that all of your money is taxable anyway.”
Already, Herschel had heard enough. He wanted to kick the pompous jerk out of his office as quickly as he had entered. How dare he approach him in such a manner.
“Look, I don’t know what you are into, but I don’t think I can help you. I’m not in the market for a job thank you very much. And I hope you have a good day sir.” He got up to show Nigel the door. Nigel didn’t budge.
“Thirty? Fifty? One hundred thousand a year? What if I told you that you could make that much in one night?”
Herschel stopped dead in his tracks. He took his hand off the doorknob slowly. “I don’t know what you are trying to offer me, but it doesn’t sound legal. So, if it’s okay with you, I’d like to end this conversation.”
Nigel remained seated. “We both know you aren’t new to skirting just around the law. Now I’m not saying that I’m trying to clue one of my very good friends over at the fifth precinct on to what it is that you really do for a living. I’m just trying to hire you for one night.”
Maybe it was him, but the last statement sounded a lot like blackmail to Herschel. He had always wondered how long he could get away with doing his night job. It appeared that years of doing a little more than selling pianos was about to catch up to him.
“I’ll hear you out. But I’m not agreeing to anything just this very moment. I also should let you know that I don’t take too kindly to threats.” He looked the man that wore his clothes like it was fresh pressed money directly in his eyes. He was by no means a punk. If need be, he would take the man out. First, he would hear what the man had to say. He wasn’t trying to do anything drastic in his place of employment.
He actually liked his job. It allowed him to interact with a lot of new people. Every now and then he was even able to pick up new clients for his night job. Most of the people that shopped there had an influx of disposal income. In his mind, anyone who had enough money to buy a piano for personal use and pay for lessons for themselves and everyone they knew could more than certainly afford him.
“A week from today I’m going to have my wife call you to book you to play at our home for our anniversary dinner. I’m going to arrive home late. I want you to stay behind until she goes to sleep. I don’t care what she says to you, keep playing and let her know that you don’t mind waiting for me so that you can finish the job you were paid for. Only the job you will be focused on and the one she thinks you are referring to will be much different. Once she has been asleep for an hour, you are going to text me so that I know it’s time to make my way home. Then you will go up to our bedroom and start having sex with her while she sleeps. By then I’ll be there. I’m going to walk in, catching you in the act and then you can leave. I won’t follow you. I won’t attack you. I will focus on her only. You will never hear from me again if done right. You will however be handsomely compensated. One hundred thousand dollars. Half paid the moment you accept, the balance once the job is done.”
Herschel could not believe his ears. The man couldn’t be serious. If he was, then certainly he could get more. “Two hundred thousand. I’m going to be risking a lot to do this. What you are explaining sounds a whole lot like rape.”
“If you are good at your job, her body will give you all the consent you need. Two hundred thousand it is. All I need is the bank account you want me to send the payments to and the rest will fall into place.” Nigel took a business card off the man’s desk and slid it into his wallet.
It only took Herschel a few minutes to make the decision to proceed. Call it lack of judgement on his part but it didn’t sound as though he would be losing out on too much. But there was that pesky issue still lingering in the back of his mind.
“How can I be sure your wife won’t cry rape, man? I’ve never had to take sex from any woman before. Seems like you are aware of this. I don’t want any problems for real.”
“She won’t be a problem. I’ll have her so tied up in litigation around our divorce that she won’t have time to think of anything else.”
“Why do you want to do this? What did she do to deserve this?” He didn’t really care to be honest. He was more curious than anything.
“My wife didn’t necessarily do anything. Time has just run out for us is all. It’s time to move on and it’s a bit more complicated than just coming out and saying I want a divorce. I need to be able to tie her to infidelity so I can get the divorce uncontested.”
“Shits cold man but whatever,” Herschel said as he began to write down his bank account information. It seemed as though this was one of those once and a lifetime opportunities. One he would be foolish to pass up. All of that to the side, he would be two hundred grand richer in about a week. “If you are serious, I’m in.”
Nigel sat back and smiled. Everything was going according to plan.
9
Present Day
Vera sat back in the chair after hearing the man’s version of what transpired between him and her now ex-husband. She was in a state of disbelief. The information she was just provided confirmed suspicion she had since that fateful night. It also angered her more than she already was.
Mad enough to spit fire, Herschel could see it behind her eyes and wondered if he had done the right thing to tell her what he knew. He had done everything he could to prove that he was telling the truth. Right down to having her log into his online banking account to pull up bank statements that showed the two wire transfer payments made to his account in the amount he had previously specified. Right on the line item it clearly read her husband’s name.
Thinking back to a week before her anniversary night, Vera remembered being surp
rised by a ring of the doorbell and a new piano being delivered. She had no idea it had all been a part of a massive plan by her husband to cause the disruption in their marriage where he would play the victim to this day.
After the events that transpired, she remembered how she started to feel very alienated from the circles they had once socially frequented. She was made out to be an adulterer as he had told anyone who would listen to his side of the story regarding what happened between them. And she had felt so bad about everything that she never even thought about another angle he had been playing all along.
For years Vera had been focused on finding out everything she could about the man she was now torturing in the middle of the night that she didn’t think of any alternate outcome. She truly had believed that he was the hired help who had taken advantage of her weakest moment.
Shit.
She had fallen off of her game. Their entire marriage now had to be brought into question. Her mind was evaluating everything. Nigel had always been a man who liked his control. Now she was finding out that he never let go of control of any outcome as it had pertained to her.
Anger filled every single part of her being. She thought back to the embarrassment she had endured the last few years. There were a lot of things she simply accepted because in her mind she had let herself down. And to find out all of that was a lie only caused the eye of the storm to circulate in her mind.
Herschel assumed he was out of the woods, but he wasn’t sure. He had succeeded in displacing the blame of what he had done back onto her husband. After all, it was Nigel who had paid for him to set her up from the very beginning. He didn’t know the woman. He was a good looking man. There never was a reason for him to have to have sex with someone unwillingly. That was not the type of person he was. He was however the type of person to take advantage of a situation where he could possibly profit.
The Confident Woman Page 4