by Lin Stepp
Jenna squared her shoulders. “I just thought I should go to see him and tell him in person why I went away and why I am seeking a divorce.”
Maury cleared his throat. “I think he knows the answers to both. And I’m not too eager, nor is Sam, for him to have a chance to have an abusive field day with you. He won’t do that if I’m with you. He’ll watch what he says. If he doesn’t, I’ll caution him legally.”
Jenna thought about this. “All right. He probably is still angry right now. Elliott hates sickness and being around hospitals. I’m sure he’s found a way to blame me for all of it in his mind. When he gets the divorce papers, he will be angrier. I’m sure he has been planning how he can make me pay for all the inconveniences I’ve caused him. I don’t think, even now, that he has even conceived of the idea that I will divorce him. Certainly Mother has not suggested it to him. I’m sure he truly expects I will take care of him when he gets out of the hospital until he gets well enough to return to work.”
Sam gave them a guilty look then. “Actually, he might be a little suspicious that something is up, Jenna. I said a few choice words to Elliott when he came here.”
Jenna’s eyes flew open. “Sam you didn’t tell him I was planning to divorce him, did you?” she asked.
Sam’s expression was stubborn. “No, but I told him you ought to. I let him know pretty much what I thought of him, and that I knew the kind of man he was. I told him he wasn’t worthy to be in the same room with you. He said some pretty foul things to me, and then insisted again that I knew where you were but wasn’t telling him.”
Anger flared in Sam’s eyes. “I was mad, and I as much as admitted that maybe I did know where you were but that I’d never tell him. I guess that’s what tipped him over the edge. He flipped out and came at me then. I shouldn’t have provoked him, but it really surprised me when he attacked me. It was a good lesson for me that even being disabled doesn’t mean I don’t have to be careful of people. If Henry hadn’t come in, I think Elliott might have really hurt me. He was getting ready to kick me when Henry picked him up from behind and started pounding on him. I was lucky. I gave Henry a raise, too.” He chuckled, but Jenna looked worried all over again.
“There, there, girl. You see that I’m okay.” Sam soothed. “And it’s Mr. Elliott Howell that’s laid up in the hospital paying penance for his temper. All of this came to a right and just ending. If it gets the man out of my building and out of my sight, then it will all have been worth it. And that’s the truth.”
Maury frowned at him. “Sam, I’ve already given you my legal and personal thoughts on the foolishness of provoking a man like Elliott Howell any time. So I won’t go into that more today.” He gathered up his coat and briefcase preparing to leave. “Any more questions from you, Jenna, before I go?”
Jenna thought. “I hate to take more of your time,” she said. “But perhaps I should ask you what I ought to do about my mother and father. Should I let them know that I am pursuing a divorce before the papers are served or after? I don’t want to do the wrong thing.”
Sam put in his comments on this. “Jenna’s parents are really bad news.” He said this with a regretful shake of his head. “I don’t think Jenna can trust them to act in her best interest.”
Jenna chewed on a nail nervously. “But Mother knows that I came back. She is sure to call or she may even come over. She is going to be very angry, too, that I went away and didn’t tell her where I was going.”
Maury thought this over briefly. “Don’t answer the phone for a while,” he advised. “She doesn’t know you’ve arrived yet. Wait and call her late tonight. Tell her you just got in and that you are going to come over to see her right after you go to the hospital to see Elliott tomorrow. If she presses for answers, say you’re just exhausted from the trip and that you’ll talk to her tomorrow about everything. Tell her you know she deserves an explanation, and that you will give her one then and answer any questions she has. If she presses, find a way to hang up. I don’t think she’ll come straight over when it’s late, even if she’s mad.”
Sam rolled his chair away from the table. “Maury, why don’t you go with her over to her mother’s tomorrow,” he suggested. “I’ll pay you extra legal fees to do so. The girl needs someone to go with her to face that dragon when she tells her she is filing for a divorce. I know that woman. She’ll be a terror. But she’ll behave herself more if you’re there.”
Jenna stuck her chin up. “Look, I’m trying to be a grown-up here and deal with my problems by myself. It’s hard to do that with you both wanting to insulate me in everything.”
“Let me ask you this, Jenna,” said Maury. “If you could have been here to be with Sam when you knew he would be facing Elliott, would you have done so?”
“Well, of course, but …” She stopped in mid sentence, watching Cheshire smiles form on both their faces.
Maury nodded at her. “It’s the same thing, Jenna. It’s not cowardly to have someone with you when you expect to face an unusually difficult situation. Sometimes, it’s wise. Particularly when legal action is under way.” He paused. “Sam’s right. I’ll make time tomorrow to go by with you to break the news to your mother. I’m not in court on Wednesday, and I can rearrange the few appointments I have. There will be a lifetime of opportunities later for you to talk to your mother about this issue on your own if you like. But for now, I think I’d like to go with you. I also know your mother socially. I think it will help if I am there.”
Jenna frowned. “A friend told me I needed to learn to face things by myself. It doesn’t seem like I’m doing much of that so far.”
“Sometimes facing things involves doing things correctly.” Maury’s eyes met hers. “I actually think you have handled things rather wisely. Most people who are in your situation react, flail out in anger, have fights, say things that are not to their benefit and that they later regret, especially when some of their words and actions are brought up in court. Stopping to think and act before reacting is much wiser. You actually showed good restraint in what you did versus the cowardice you accuse yourself of. You kept yourself to yourself until you could think everything out deliberately. You went away to consider what you wanted to do.”
He patted her on the arm. “Putting distance between yourself and a problem often makes it clear how it should be resolved. Then you hired a private investigator before alerting your husband you were wise to his indiscretions. You started legal discussions before alerting Elliott you were going to seek a divorce. Actually, you have kept all the legal advantages in your own court and been very wise. Sometimes restraint is the greatest wisdom, Jenna. I think you are actually to be congratulated in how you have handled every piece of this problem you’ve found yourself in. I wish all my clients acted so wisely.”
“Really?” Jenna looked at him in surprise.
“Really.” Maury smiled at her. “Allowing me to go with you to help you present the facts to your husband and to your mother is wise, as well. You’re well aware that you will not have their support in your actions so why open yourself to their abuse right now? Handle it officially, with your friend and lawyer tagging along. Let them see that it is official and that you are serious. If necessary, I can affirm that you are totally serious and deliberate in what you are doing. Sam is right. If he could go, or if you had a parent or relative here who would stand up with you as a support, you might not need my presence. They could go with you. But since you do not have anyone else, I am the next best choice.”
It was sad to Jenna to realize his words were true. “Carla and John might be able to go,” she said.
Maury waved away that idea. “They can be a support afterwards,” he said. “You will be living near them, and they might need to buttress you if Elliott or your parents come to your apartment later to threaten you or to try to create difficulties for you. I have not forgotten how your mother acted years ago when Lydia broke her engagement.”
Jenna jerked her eyes to his. “You knew
Lydia?”
“Lydia and I were school friends.” A faint smile played over his lips. “I was in law school when her fiance’s scandal hit the gossip columns and began to circulate around society. I gave her free legal advice. I connected her to an attorney friend of mine in the business. She needed some of her money freed to get away and make a new start and my friend helped her get it. Your mother never felt happy about that action of mine. Like I said, I know your mother. I know what she can be like.”
“Small world,” muttered Sam.
Jenna regarded Maury thoughtfully. “I think I’ll be glad to have your company, Maury.”
He stood up then. “Good. I’ll call you in the morning to tell you when things are in place, and when you should head to the hospital. Plan to be ready about mid morning. If all goes well, our paperwork should be served by then. We’ll make our visits, and then I’ll take you out to lunch. I don’t get an excuse to take a pretty woman to lunch very often. It will be my pleasure.”
“I’ll tell you all about Lydia then.” Jenna smiled. “I visited her on my way down to Tennessee.”
Maury raised his eyebrows in interest. “I’ll look forward to that very much,” he said. “We kept in touch for awhile, but then, you know, life moved on.”
After Maury left, Jenna and Sam talked and caught up. Then Jenna excused herself to go start her packing.
“There will be lots of time for visiting later.” She reached across the table to pat his cheek. “But now, I want to get as much packed as I can, Sam. I want to be ready to move by the end of the week, and I need to go find packing boxes so I can get started.” She yawned. “Also, I’m tired. I didn’t sleep much last night. I probably will go to bed early tonight.”
Sam wheeled his chair away from the table. “Mary made you a take home box for supper. She said to tell you it’s in the kitchen refrigerator. Take a piece of cake with you, too. I’m sure you don’t have much food in the house for tonight.”
“Thanks.” Jenna leaned down to give Sam a hug.
He gave her a worried look. “Will you be all right over there tonight by yourself? I don’t see why you couldn’t sneak over here. Who would know?”
“I would,” she said, lifting her chin. “At least this is something I can face all on my own. I need to face down some of my fears by myself - just for my self-respect, Sam.”
“Hummph.” He frowned.
“I’ll be fine,” she assured him. “Don’t worry. And I promise I’ll come by and tell you everything that happened after I meet with Elliott and Mother tomorrow. Okay?”
He nodded. “Eventually, when things are settled out, I want you to tell me all about Orchard Hollow.”
Her eyes filled with tears then. She couldn’t help it. She was sure Sam wondered about it after she was gone.
Chapter 15
Jenna worked on packing her things all afternoon. Although her new apartment, above Tate’s Bookstore, was only five or six blocks away, it was on Madison Avenue instead of Fifth, with no park views. Standing on the balcony looking out later, Jenna shivered and hugged her arms against herself. It was still cold in New York, even in April, and nothing here seemed as green and inviting to her as it had before. She smiled, realizing she’d grown used to looking out over the mountain views and green valleys of the foothills of the Smokies.
Jenna arrested her thoughts as they began to drift wistfully southward. Thoughts of Boyce lay always at the edge of her mind - trying to crowd in - but Jenna pushed them back with resolve. It would only lead to crying, and there was too much to do to indulge her emotions right now. She took a deep breath and straightened her shoulders. Time to get back to work, she told herself, as she went back inside to finish the last of her packing.
At the end of the day, Jenna sat down on the sofa, exhausted. Her life from her marriage was all boxed up, and it seemed sad to see how little she was carrying away.
Jenna studied the phone beside her, realizing she couldn’t put off calling her mother any longer. It was nearly ten now. When she returned from Sam’s earlier, there had been a curt message from her mother on the answering machine.
“You call me as soon as you get in, Jenna Chelsea Howell. Do you hear?” Her voice sounded sharp and brittle.
Gathering her courage, Jenna dialed her home number. Her mother answered almost immediately.
“Hi, Mother, it’s Jenna.” Jenna tried to keep a calm voice. “I’ve just gotten in and I wanted to call and let you know.”
Her mother’s voice snapped back angrily. “You have a great deal of explaining to do, Jenna Chelsea, going off and not telling anyone in your own family where you were. What in the world were you thinking? This whole state of affairs is outrageous. It reminds me of those infantile capers you and Carla used to get into at that girls’ school. You’re twenty-two years old now, Jenna. I would think you had more sense by now than to do something foolish like this. Where have you been all this time, anyway?”
Jenna took a breath. “Staying at Sam Oliver’s cabin in Tennessee. I wanted some time alone to think, Mother. I did tell you I was having marital problems. Space away sometimes helps with that sort of thing.”
“Well, I certainly hope so,” she said sarcastically. “And I hope your time away has brought you to your senses. You know you may have created more problems for yourself with this idiocy of yours going off on your own as you did. And lying to so many people. Your father and I did not raise you to lie to your own family members. I told Elliott that emphatically, too, after he figured out you were no longer in the Poconos. I apologized for you as well.”
Her mother paused to catch a breath. “You owe that man an explanation and an apology yourself, you know. He was very upset when he learned you weren’t at Carla and John’s place - or at that woman’s next door to them. Elliott cut his trip short from Paris to come back because of your childish escapades. He was worried sick, Jenna. And now look at the mess you’ve caused! The poor man is laid up in the hospital from that distressing incident with that dreadful employee of Sam Oliver’s. I don’t know what Sam is thinking hiring people as aggressive as that. Do you know what that man did to Elliott? He literally attacked him. Elliott has broken ribs, a broken leg, and his face and arms are covered with bruises. It is just shocking to see. Have you been over to the hospital yet?”
Before Jenna could barely acknowledge she had not been to the hospital yet, her mother set in again.
“This has all happened because of you, Jenna.” Her tone was becoming venomous now. “I hope Elliott will forgive you for this. Elliott deserves better, and your father and I both think he has just cause to be upset. Really, Jenna, all of this has just been inexcusable on your part. Simply inexcusable. Elliott’s parents are horrified, as well, and there is tittering all through the social parties we’ve been to these last two days. Your father and I have been deeply disappointed in you.”
Jenna listened patiently to her mother’s tirade. It was just about what she expected. When a pause occurred in her mother’s ranting, Jenna slipped in a question. “How did Elliott find out I wasn’t in the Poconos, Mother?”
“A friend of his, Peter something – someone he works with - also has a place near John and Carla’s in Pennsylvania. Elliott called that Mrs. Bynam several times and could never find you there. He worried something might have happened to you. She rattled on like a crazy woman, he said, and made no sense. So he asked his friend to check on you when he drove up last weekend. He asked Peter to find you and have you call him. He wanted you to come back to the apartment. Elliott thought that Bynam woman was unstable. He didn’t think it safe for you to stay there with her. I have to admit I tried to talk with her myself and she was certainly odd.”
Jenna tried not to giggle.
“Were you ever at that Bynam woman’s place or at Carla and John’s in Pennsylvania at all?” her mother demanded.
Jenna answered honestly. “No. I went directly to Tennessee. Carla and John actually invited me to go to the Poconos wi
th them. Originally, I told Elliott I was going there, too.” Jenna embellished the story a little to protect Carla and John at this point. “But then I decided I wanted to get away on my own. I needed to do that, Mother. I asked John and Carla to cover for me so I would have time to think through my situation without anyone trying to influence me.”
Jenna’s mother paused, trying to make sense of this story. “But I received letters from you and so did Elliott.” Jenna heard her intake of breath as the answer suddenly seemed to dawn on her. “You had someone else mail them to us. You purposely deceived us, Jenna – planning all this to the point where you had letters ready to be sent to us. I’m shocked.”
“Perhaps it seems deceptive,” Jenna admitted. “But my main thought at the time was just to get away on my own for a while. I’d just seen my husband cheating on me with another woman, Mother. I was upset.”
“Well, I thought we talked about that earlier,” her mother said with obvious annoyance. “I can’t believe Elliott’s little indiscretion upset you that much. But, of course, you’re very young. The young are so idealistic. I hadn’t realized you were taking all of this so seriously. However, I’m sure if you just talk to Elliott about everything, Jenna, that the two of you can reach an amicable agreement over this.”
Jenna smiled to herself. “I’m going over to see Elliott in the morning, Mother. And I am hoping we can reach an amicable agreement over several things we need to discuss. I’ll stop by your place afterwards if you want me to. I’ll tell you how things went.”
Her mother sounded relieved. “Good, you do that. I don’t have anything on my calendar until two.”