10 Commandments

by Angel, Dark

  I take my seat on the opposite side of the wooden table so that I’m as far from Barry as possible.

  Jeremy takes his seat. "We are here to settle the divorce between Elena and Barry. Both parties are present with their assigned counsel. Proceedings will begin now."

  Barry’s lawyer, Paul, begins, "My client, Barry, is seeking damages because his profession as a pastor has been ruined by the ending of this marriage. My client maintains that Elena chose her career over him and that led to the dissolution of this marriage."

  What? I knew Barry was being difficult about the divorce, but I had no idea he was actually going to take his pettiness to a fiscal level. This is unbelievable!

  "Barry, we talked about this," I say directly to him. "I thought you understood. I didn’t know we were going to blame—"

  My lawyer and his lawyer both advise our silence, and Barry won’t even look at me.

  "This is the truth as I know it to be, " Barry says nonchalantly. There’s an iciness to the words that tell me he doesn’t care about my feelings here. It’s hard to imagine that I could’ve married a man that I thought loved me, yet he could have no regard for me and decide that I’m damaging him by trying to have a career and by trying to amicably dissolve our obviously failed marriage.

  "All right, let's return to these proceedings at hand," my lawyer says. "I'm sure we can come to an agreement."

  "Well only if your party can agree to substantial damages," Paul says.

  "I will not be dragged through the dirt and rung out for what I have," I say, my voice getting a tad frantic. I can’t help it as I feel myself going into shock. My palms are sweating, and my stomach hurts. I was nervous before, but now I’m mad. "This isn’t how this is going to work at all. I have to be treated fairly, not accused and held up for whatever you decide you want, Barry."

  I know that Barry is opposed to the divorce and wanted to salvage a marriage he never fought to make good, but he isn’t going to get damages out of me and accuse me of ruining him with my career of all things. His unwillingness to sleep with me was one thing, but when he started to refuse to talk about anything, I knew Barry and I wouldn’t work out. Still, I’m shocked by his demands. He brought me here today to shame me and to get me to pay him for it. I can tell by the crooked smile on his lips that he thinks me paying damages is some kind of retribution he can seek for me to admit I’ve done something wrong.

  "You know what, Barry?” I say, trying not let my words come out in a huff. “You never deserved me. I never should've trusted you. And for a pastor, you're just a giant liar. I would love for people to see who you really are. You made promises to me when you married me, but when I saw you didn’t want to keep them, I tried to make a responsible decision with you. But you never acted as my partner before, and you don’t want to even end this without trying to humiliate me." My lips form a thin line and hold back any of the thousand things I’d love to shout in anger.

  Barry leans back in his chair and has a very smug smile on his face.

  He seems to think I’ve done something in his favor by calling out just how ridiculous his accusations are. He looks so proud of himself.

  I'm just disgusted.

  "Well, well," Barry says. "It seems your true colors are coming to light. It's so unladylike for you, Elena." He looks at me for a brief moment before turning to his lawyer Paul. "You see what I have to deal with? She never has composure."

  That’s it! I am so done with this meeting. It's obvious Barry doesn't know how to act like an adult, and I don't know why I’m surprised by this. “We are never going to get anywhere here. And I'm sad I came up here with expectations of a civil agreement,” I say, standing and leaving the office. Jeremy attempts to talk to Paul, but I don’t bother to hear what’s going on with our lawyers because I’m getting the fuck out of here.

  I'm surprised by Barry’s behavior, hurt really, and now I realize this divorce may drag out because I’ve been wrong again about who Barry really is. My freedom is still out of grasp.

  Elena

  I'm sitting in Gerri's office trying to pull my head together. It's been a rough couple days. The cool green lines and modern architecture of her office inspires me. I'm so glad I work here. I've got to put my game face on and not disappoint Gerri today, but I just don't know how. If I could’ve only convinced Barry, my lame soon to be ex-husband, not to be such a jerk then maybe my spirits this afternoon would be higher. Or if I'd been a little luckier in love and my date last night hadn't been a total disappointment then this morning would be a different story. I love my job, but I'm just not feeling up to it now. I hope Gerri doesn't even notice. I put on my poker face . . .

  "Hi, Gerri, I'm here, finally. Sorry I'm a little late, crazy morning."

  "Oh, Elena! There you are. Just the person I was looking for," she says, all bright and charming as usual.

  "We can get started right away. I have this new building project for us that I'm really excited about. Lots of opportunity to go green and change the world," she says.

  At the mention of a new project I do feel excited, but my emotions are troubling me inside. I wish I could tell her why and just lay it all out on the table, but that would be so unprofessional. She is my friend and I can tell her anything but most of all I look up to her, and I wouldn't want any part of my personal life to sway her opinion.

  "You know, Gerri, that sounds fantastic. I can't wait," I lie through my teeth.

  "Alright, well let me pull out the building plans that the architect left this morning. I think you're really gonna like them. There will be lots of opportunity to prove yourself as project manager."

  Oh great, I think at the mention of my promotion. Don't get me wrong, this is my dream job. But with so much to prove, I just wish I had less on my mind. I mean, who can forget the morning I just had? And what about that date last night? It was hands-down horrible. Is this really who's out there for me to date? Is this what I have to look forward to? Endless nights with mediocre men who I could never really love. I mean, I knew dating would be hard, but this is just depressing. I wish I had never gone out. I wish I had stayed snuggled in bed and binged on Netflix or something. It would've been a better idea than wasting my time going out with a creep. What was I even thinking? Couldn't I have been able to tell by his picture? Normally I have such a good read on people. Well, I guess that isn't true of my ex either. What a jerk he's turned out to be. I feel totally blindsided. And the more I think of it, this must mean I have rotten taste in men. I’m so sad.

  "So, the entrance will go there and it will be a giant statement piece. And you saw the other floors I mentioned, right?"

  Oh shit. Gerri's been talking about the new project, and I haven't even lent her an ear. I've been so consumed in my own personal world that I completely zoned her out.

  "Um, yeah, yes. I mean, could you show me those floors again?"

  "Elena, what's wrong? Have you even heard a word I've been saying?"

  Oh man, I've been caught. This is so unlike me not to pay attention. I better just come clean if I still want my new role as project manager.

  "Well, the truth is, I had a terrible night and an even worse morning. I don't know what to say. I dropped the ball. I'm sorry, Gerri; you know this isn’t who I am."

  "What's going on, honey," she asks. "Is it your ex-husband? Is he trying to drag more money out of you? Is that what it is? He knows you got promoted, right?"

  "Yes. Yes to all of it," I sigh. "He's trying to ruin my reputation, and he's just spreading lies."

  "Oh no," she says. "Well, I think he's just trying to prolong the divorce. He knows you've got money now. You have to be strong. And you can’t let him win. Take it from me, your freedom is worth fighting for. You deserve to be happy, and the sooner you realize that the better. Don't waste your time on someone who isn’t even close to worth it."

  Her statements make me feel better. She's really got her life together. She owns this beautiful company, and she's got a mission and a purpose
. I want to be like her, but my life is just so messed up right now. I should probably just take her advice, but she doesn't know the half of it. I decide to tell her about my date.

  "Thank you for the advice. But that's not the only reason my head's in the clouds. I had a terrible date last night. I mean, it was bad. I thought I was ready to enter the dating game, but not if it's going to be like this. This guy was so rude and condescending that it really left a mark on me. I can't seem to forget what happened."

  "You know what? You seem to have had a tough time of it.” Gerri gives me a warm smile and places her hand on my shoulder for a moment. “Why don't you take the rest of the day off? Go relax, spoil yourself. You deserve it, and I can handle things here. I want you back when you're fresh."

  "Wow, thanks for that.” I release a breath that I didn’t even realize I was holding. “I hate to take you up on your offer, but I think it would do me some good."

  "Listen, sweetie, it's all gonna work out in the end. It always does."

  If only I could know that she were right.

  Elena

  I nudge my door open with my left shoulder, carefully balancing a stack of reports on one side and a messenger bag on the other. Kicking off my heels immediately upon walking across the threshold, I unload the contents of my arms onto the nice, clean dining room table. These days it’s more of a work space than anything else.

  I look around, breathing a little sigh of relief at this little window of downtime. I head to the kitchen to open a bottle of wine. As I pop the cork on a bottle, I decide a bath will be a great place to start project relaxation. My head fills with images of myself in a hot bath with soft music. Maybe slipping into a robe and letting my hair down will do me some good. Something about being at home immediately makes me feel a little better. A place of my own, just big enough for one.

  When I moved in, I thought it would make me feel lonely. If anything, living in a house meant for two was the loneliest thing I’ve ever done. My thoughts drift to the home I shared with my ex-husband. At the time, I thought it was everything I wanted. Eventually, it became like living in a museum. It looked like a home, but it had stopped feeling like one long ago.

  I push the thoughts out of my head with a sip of wine. Grabbing, my bag, I decide that it won’t hurt just to check a few emails, maybe make a few phone calls. Before I know it, I’m sitting on my bed with a half-empty glass of wine, still in my clothes, typing away at an email. Getting ahead on my work will make it much easier to relax later. All thoughts of a bath put off for now, I pick up my phone to make a call to one of my clients. As if she knows I’ve gone into full work mode, the screen lights up with Gerri’s name before I’m even able to dial a number. With a little sigh and a hint of a smile, I answer the call.

  “Hello, Gerri.”

  “Good evening, Elena,” Gerri says. I can hear a grin in her voice, “How is the night off going?”

  “Oh, I feel fantastic already. A bath, a little wine. I think it’s exactly what I needed,” I say, trying to sound sufficiently revitalized.

  “That’s very interesting,” Gerri replies, barely concealing the amusement in her voice, “I just got a call from a sales rep to thank me. He said he’d just received an email from you confirming that we liked his estimate and want to move forward with an order. He’s very excited to supply us and hopes we can work together again in the future.”

  “Oh, well, you know, I just thought I’d try to—” I begin to say, but a soft thumping coming from the direction of the garage cuts me off. After a tiny moment of panic, I realize that the stack of reports on the dining table probably just tipped over “—get ahead a little bit so I can fully focus on resting up.”

  Gerri sighs audibly. “Elena, I know you really care about your work, and I know you’ve been through a lot lately. Just try to take some time for yourself. You deserve just as much care as you give to your job.”

  Her heartfelt response takes me a bit by surprise. As I’m searching for something to say in response, another noise from downstairs catches my attention. There’s no mistaking that it’s coming from the garage. A breath catches in my throat as I listen to the sounds, soft at first and then harder. My heart jumps every time I hear another noise, and I unconsciously hold my breath. Maybe a neighbor’s dog got in somehow. Just as I start to be a little comforted by the idea, I hear the unmistakable creaking of feet on the stairs up to the door leading into the kitchen.

  “Everything okay over there, Elena?” Gerri asks. She’s noticed that my silence has gone on too long to be natural. I don’t think she realized my silence was from fear. Gerri’s still slightly amused tone suggests she thinks I’m feeling too awkward to respond to her concerns for my well-being.

  At first, I’m unable to answer, my full attention on the sounds coming from downstairs. A particularly loud thud snaps me out of my trance, and I realize I can’t sit here and do nothing. I don’t remember getting up, but I’m standing now, staring at my bedroom door. I realize at that moment that I have no idea what I should do next.

  Gerri’s voice begins to sound worried, “Elena? Look, I’m sorry if that made you feel uncomfortable. I just want you to take care of yourself. You’re important to this company and—”

  “Gerri… I… I think there’s someone inside the garage,” is all I manage to say. My breath is short and shallow now, waves of adrenaline flooding my body. Gerri’s voice cuts through my panic. She sounds tense, but her voice is calm but firm.

  “Listen to me very carefully. Call 911 and leave the house.”

  I breathe into the phone, frozen in fear.

  “Right now, Elena!” Gerri says, raising her voice a little in urgency.

  I jump in surprise, but it’s just the shock I need to get me moving again. I hang up the phone and clumsily dial 911 with shaking fingers.

  “There’s someone in my garage,” I say, before the operator finishes answering. She asks me several questions with a serious but calm tone, and I can hardly hear myself answering them. I’m focused on the noise from downstairs. The thudding has gotten louder now, and more rhythmic. The garage door rattles on its hinges with each noise as whoever is on the other side tries to break through it into the house.

  Leo

  Nighttime is descending over the city. The flickering lights of the buildings are starting to come on, and the streets are relatively quiet. The air feels fresh and cool, and I’m actually glad to have been called away from my latest conquest. Nothing gets me out of tricky situation with a girl than a call from work. You can’t ignore that, right?

  Bobbi has just picked me up after we got a page about some crime. What’s new, right? There’s always something going down on these streets and for once it might be more than a pile of paperwork, though doubtless. I never get sick of my job. Bobbi, thankfully, is the best partner a guy could ask for. In fact, without her assistance I could’ve been in a lot of trouble many times. She’s saved my ass and I’ve done the same for her, so we’ve got a great connection. We know each other so well. When you’re staring life and death in the face it just has to be like that. Trust is so important. It’s takes a lot for me to trust somebody, but through our trials I’ve come to more than trust Bobbi, I rely on her. And for me to rely on someone is rare. She’s giving me shit right now, though.

  "Leo, I know you just came from a sex session. Get what you want?"

  "Shut up, Bobbi, what else am I supposed to do?"

  "Um, settle down?"

  "Yeah right, can you see me tied down like that? Besides, I've never met anyone even close to worth it."

  "Well, you can't continue fucking every waitress you see."

  "Why not? Besides, you should take your own advice."

  She laughs, "Noted."

  I know we’re both struggling with this whole sleeping with too many women thing, and I’m glad to call Bobbi not just a partner, but a friend.

  We’re driving to our latest assignment It sounds like some woman with a burglary issue or so
mething. Bobbi knows the way, and I’m just taking the opportunity to relax. We never know what we may be up against in this job, but this perpetrator has already left the scene and I know we’re just going to talk to the woman and to gather evidence.

  "So, Bobbi, tell me more about this case?"

  "There's not much to say yet. This woman called in all terrified about noises in her garage. There’s not much to go on yet; burglary, potential stalking."

  "Okay, well, I hope it’s a quick one and doesn't take too long. Maybe it is a damn raccoon, or some really stupid intruder we can grab and go."

  "Yeah, it should be real quick, so you can get back to what you were doing!" She laughs like my sex life is just hilarious. We pull up to a house that's on a quiet street. And to my total surprise, sitting there on the porch is the last person on earth I ever expected to see.

  "Fuck, Bobbi, I know that girl. I think that’s my sister-in-law."

  "Wait, what? No way, man, it’s gotta be somebody else. Let’s just go see."

  My thoughts are lost now. Could it be Elena? That would be amazing, and she’s definitely someone I’m excited to see. She's fucking perfect in every way, and a part of me will always be sad that I didn't meet her first. What she sees in my idiot brother I'll never know. I've only met her once before at her wedding. I haven't seen my brother since our dad’s funeral. He raised us because our mom passed away years before when we were little. I guess you could say now we’re orphans. Too bad we can’t rely on each other for support, since Barry and I haven’t been on good terms in years, not since college. In fact, I learned that it was this perfect woman, Elena, who insisted I come to the wedding because I was family. I never forgot that kindness she extended to me. My brother and I are still at odds and it's never felt like family again, but I always thought what she did was a classy move. Barry still didn't want me at his wedding, but she did. And that's the only time I've seen her. Up until now.