Unrestrained Behavior: The Pleasure and Risk of Choice (The 'Un'missable Series Book 3)

by Jerry Summers

  “Oh, sweetheart, I’m so sorry. What a fucking asshole. I hope he contracts HIV!” she exclaims, then makes a face. “I’m sorry, maybe that was a little over the top.”

  Wendy just shrugs her shoulders, absolutely devastated. When she finally does speak again, it’s filled with more anger towards herself than Jim. “This is why I never want people close to me, because they always hurt me deeply. And… shit! It felt really good to be with him!”

  Mona puts down her wine glass and takes Wendy’s free hand. “This is not your fault. It has nothing to do with you, and everything to do with the fact that Jim’s an asshole.”

  “But I know better. I should have been able to read the warning signs.”

  “What warning signs?” Mona asks, confused.

  “I don’t know. The one’s I obviously missed,” Wendy replies bitterly.

  “Wendy, you didn’t ‘miss’ anything! The two of you weren’t together long enough for you to pick up on any signs. You just seemed so happy, and I don’t ever remember seeing you giddy until recently.”

  “Well, that side of me is gone forever now,” Wendy says dramatically, downing the rest of her wine in one gulp.

  “No, it’s not. I won’t let it be. Besides, there are plenty of other men who would love to get to know you.”

  “Yeah, how well did that work for me the last time?”

  Mona sighs. “You just haven’t found the right guy yet, that’s all.”

  Mona’s phone rings and Wendy motions for her to answer it.

  After a moment, she can hear Mona’s daughter crying in the background. As Mona calms her down, Wendy can no longer hear Melissa’s voice, but from the look on Mona’s face she knows trouble is brewing.

  Suddenly, Mona blurts out, “He what?!” There’s a pause as Melissa repeats what she said. “Do you still have your thumb drive from school in your backpack?” Mona asks, a hardness in her voice. Tears start streaming down Mona’s face, and Wendy kicks into counselor mode.

  “What is it?” she asks quietly, putting down her wine glass.

  Mona cups her hand over the phone and replies, “Melissa just told me Tyler was taking pictures of her in a thong with no top on, and that he also photographed Justin with and without his underwear.”

  Before Wendy can say anything, Mona replies back into the phone, “Good, baby. Can you copy the photo file on your dad’s computer without him knowing?”

  There’s silence as Melissa replies.

  “Now, listen carefully to me baby, make sure your dad doesn’t know you are copying it and when it’s done call me right back, okay?”

  Mona hangs up and comes back to the sofa, sitting down hard. “I don’t know what the hell is going on there, but I have a really bad feeling. I think I’m going to be sick,” Mona says, and Wendy eases Mona’s head down between her legs.

  “Just breathe,” she says, “How long of a drive is it to Auburn?”

  “Nine hours. Why?”

  “Because we’re going to drive part way there tonight, and the rest of the way in the morning, and we are getting your kids and bringing them back to La Jolla.”

  “What about his visitation rights?”

  “Screw them. He lost them when he photographed your children inappropriately. Even if they aren’t pornographic, I believe the judge will excuse your behavior as that of being a concerned parent for your child’s safety, and I’ll tell him I insisted you do this so it can’t come back on you. Now go get packed, and then we’ll go to my place so I can pick up a few things. We’ll ride together in your car. I’ve had too much wine to drive at the moment.”

  “You’ve got enough stuff of your own to worry about,” Mona begins to protest.

  “Mona, stop! I’ll have plenty of time to deal with my crap. I’m going with you, and we’re leaving tonight. No further discussion, period.”

  Mona’s phone rings again and Melissa tells her she copied as much as the thumb drive would hold. She got most of the file but not all of it.

  “Melissa, you did a great job. Wendy and I are coming to get you and Justin, but we won’t be there until tomorrow morning.”

  “Oh, good. Daddy has a shoot at eleven and will be busy for about an hour. Can you be here by then?”

  “We will be there. Call me when your dad leaves to go to the shoot.”

  “He’s not leaving. The shoot is in his studio here at the house.”

  Mona bites her lip and shakes her head. “Okay. That’s okay. Just make sure both you and Justin are packed, and don’t let your dad know. When we get there, you both need to get in the car right away so we can go, okay?”

  “Okay, I’ll take care of everything,” Melissa replies in her best grown-up voice.

  “Baby, I love you and Justin, and we will see you tomorrow.”

  “We love you, too. Hurry please.”

  “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  After Mona is packed, they head over to Wendy’s. They walk in the front door and it’s obvious that Jim and his lover have left. The key is on the dining room table with a handwritten note under it, which Wendy throws away without reading. She grabs an overnight bag and packs a few things and they head to Auburn in Mona’s SUV.

  They both vent about what a horrible day it’s been for each of them. They drive until they reach San Jose where they rent a hotel for maybe five hours of sleep, knowing they only have two hours left to go in the morning.

  Before they know it, their wake up call comes in. They jump up, get dressed, and hit the road again. They arrive into Auburn at ten thirty, just in time for Melissa to call and tell Mona her dad’s appointment arrived early and the session has begun. Mona verifies that Melissa and Justin are packed and ready and when she hears they are she tells them to watch for the car because she will be there in fifteen minutes.

  “I want to avoid a scene, so please just come out and get in the car quickly so we can leave immediately,” Mona reiterates to Melissa, and Melissa says she understands.

  When they get there, the kids are waiting. Wendy jumps out of the car and loads the kids’ luggage while they jump into the backseat and everyone is on their way in just a few minutes.

  As they are on the road heading home and they enter onto the Foresthill Bridge, Wendy sees a vehicle approaching their SUV rapidly.

  “Mona, we have company. I think it’s Tyler. If he catches up, let me out, drive away, and call 911 to report the incident. We shouldn’t put the kids in the middle of this mess.”

  Mona just nods, and suddenly Tyler whips his vehicle in front of Mona’s SUV, screeching to an abrupt stop in the middle of the bridge. Wendy jumps out and distracts Tyler while Mona maneuvers her car around his vehicle and calls 911 leaving, Wendy alone on the bridge with Tyler.

  As Tyler starts to yell and demand answers, Wendy calmly begins to explain. “Mona is taking the kids back to La Jolla because we have proof you were taking pornographic photos of them and presumably other children as well. Why in the hell would you do that to your own kids, much less anyone else’s?”

  “Money, you bitch! I get thousands of dollars a day from those photographs. There is a certain look that sells extremely well, and my kids have that look!”

  “You’re a pig, and you don’t deserve to be a father!” Wendy exclaims.

  Tyler hears the sirens of the police vehicles approaching from both directions, then glares at Wendy. “What have you done?”

  “We called the police. So the way I see it is you have two choices. Be a man, do the right thing, and jump off this bridge, saving you and the kids all the embarrassment about to be unleashed when I turn over the thumb drive of your photo file to law enforcement. Or get arrested and become someone’s cafeteria bitch in prison.”

  Tyler looks a bit confused by her comment, and she laughs.

  “Oh, I see you don’t understand the term. A cafeteria bitch is the term inmate’s use for the guy they bend over the table and rape anally without mercy, while grabbing his hair net from behind.” We
ndy then smiles, “They are going to love your sweet little ass, Tyler! The choice is yours, but either way your life is over. You will never be able to visit your kids without supervision again, and your career is completely fucked, especially after you are charged with possession of child pornography, exploiting children for financial gain, and distributing child porn over the Internet.”

  He looks over her shoulder and sees a Placer County Deputy vehicle coming onto the bridge, anger turning to fear in his eyes.

  “There’s another one coming up behind you. Only one way out now, Tyler,” Wendy says, just loud enough to be heard over the sirens.

  He looks over his shoulder then turns back to her. “I hope you die an agonizing death, you fucking cunt!” Then bolts towards the edge of the bridge.

  “No!” Wendy yells as he grabs the railing and flings himself over the side, falling to his death in the shallow waters of the north fork of the American River some five hundred feet below.

  Wendy rushes to the side of the bridge as the deputies reach her side. Feeling the incredible rush of forcing someone to take their own life through psychological means, Wendy knows she needs to stifle these emotions and appear distraught for the deputies.

  She drops to her knees and cries out, “Why?!” and begins sobbing, thinking about how Jim has hurt her in order to maintain the charade. When she reaches a fevered pitch of uncontrollable crying, paramedics place nasal tubing under her nose and over her ears, delivering a steady flow of oxygen so she can catch her breath.

  As her breathing returns to normal, the deputies ask if she is up to answering a few questions back at the station. Wendy just nods.

  “Is that your car, ma’am?” They ask. She shakes her head.

  The deputies have her sit in the back seat of one of their patrol vehicles and transport her back to the station.

  “Before this interview starts, I really need to call my friend, Mona,” Wendy says, and the officers begin to protest. “I’m sorry, I have to. She’s the ex-wife of the man who just jumped off the bridge. She and her children should probably also come to the station.”

  “Oh, well, yes, we’re going to need to speak with them also. Go ahead and do that and just let us know when you’re ready,” the officer says, and the deputies leave her alone to make the call.

  Mona answers her cell phone and Wendy’s asks, “Are you driving?”

  “No, I stopped at a fast food place for the kids and they are playing right now. Why?”

  “Listen to me and try not to react so you don’t disturb the kids, okay?” Wendy says carefully.

  “Okay, but you’re scaring me. What happened?”

  Wendy sighs. “Tyler jumped off the bridge. I’m so sorry, I tried to stop him.”

  “Oh, my God!” Mona pauses and waits for a moment for the shock to dissipate. She’s surprised when all she feels afterwards is relief. “Well, good. That’s probably best for the kids, the sick bastard. Is he dead or did he fuck that up, too?”

  Wendy struggles for a moment to stifle her pride for how far Mona has come, then cautions, “That’s probably not the best way to express your emotions, right now for yourself or the kids’ sakes.”

  Mona recognizes the subtle message in Wendy’s voice then asks, “Are you at the police station right now and can they hear you?”

  “Yes. I need you to bring the kids to the station with the thumb drive. The police will have counselors available for them when you get here, so don’t tell them about their dad. The counselors will do that. Do you understand?”

  “Perfectly. We’ll be on our way as soon as they finish eating. I’ll just tell them we are picking you up there and that’s all.”

  “Great. I’m glad you understand.”

  “Well, I’ve worked with you long enough and I know the subtleties in your speech. I’ve received your messages loud and clear. Thank you for everything you have done for me.”

  “You’re so very welcome. Thank you for being a true friend of mine.”

  Wendy thanks the Deputy for letting her call Mona.

  “They should be here shortly,” she says, and the deputy escorts her to an interview room.

  “Okay, Ms. Stevens, this interview is being recorded by video. Do you understand?” the deputy says.

  Wendy nods.

  After collecting the basic personal information, he asks, “Why were you on the bridge, and how did you get there without a car?”

  Wendy explains her background with Mona and the kids, the telephone calls Mona received from Melissa, and the emergency trip to Auburn to pick the kids up. She continues with Tyler speeding past them and coming to a screeching halt in front of them on the bridge.

  “I told Mona to get the kids out of there and tried to reason with him. He demanded to know why we were taking the children, despite his visitation rights, and I told him what Melissa had relayed to Mona, then asked why he would do that to his kids much less anyone else’s. That’s when he told me he made thousands of dollars a day from those photographs and I was absolutely stunned. When he saw your vehicles approaching, he bolted for the railing and jumped before I could stop him. Did you see me try to stop him?”

  “Yes, ma’am. It was all recorded on our dash cams. We didn’t get any of your conversation, but we saw you yell to him and rush toward the railing. There was no way you could have prevented his suicide. Desperate men do desperate things, and this is in no way your fault.”

  Wendy lowers her head, allowing tears to cloud her vision once more. “I suppose you’re correct.”

  Right then, Mona walks into the station, and Wendy gets up and gives her a huge hug. Before they break apart, Wendy whispers, “Tell them everything except the sense of delight you experienced when you heard about the suicide.”

  Mona gives her a squeeze of acknowledgement then turns towards the deputy and introduces herself. She is questioned in much the same manner as Wendy and, after reviewing the thumb drive from Mona, they ask if she is on the title to Tyler’s house.

  Mona shakes her head. “No, he moved up from La Jolla immediately after our divorce and bought the house. I don’t know if anyone else is on the title or not.”

  The deputy nods. “Well, there are definitely pornographic photographs of children on the thumb drive, many of which are not your children. We’re going to get a search warrant, and there is a good possibility the kids could be witnesses in later prosecutions.”

  Mona acknowledges the possibility. “If at all possible, I would really rather not get them any more involved than they already are. They need to heal from this whole ordeal.”

  After the kids are interviewed and statements are taken, the deputies express their condolences to everyone involved and Mona, Wendy, and the kids begin their long trip home.

  CHAPTER 16

  life after death

  After arriving back in La Jolla, Mona drops Wendy off at her house.

  “I’m so sorry all of this happened,” Wendy says. “Take Monday off and spend some time with the kids. If you need more time, just let me know and I’ll take care of the office no problem.”

  Mona nods. “Thank you so much. I’ll call you tomorrow afternoon and let you know if I’ll be in Tuesday.”

  The kids are thrilled to be back with their mom, but struggle with knowing their dad committed suicide after such a horrible experience with him during this visitation. Continued counseling is scheduled for them and it gives Mona some time to get enrolled in her graduate courses.

  Wendy arrives at the office bright and early Monday morning to a ton of telephone messages taken by the answering service, most of which are from Jim. She opens her emails and finds pretty much the same thing, and she deletes all of them without opening a single one. Wendy expected it. She had ignored all the calls to her personal cell phone over the weekend, and had deleted all text messages he sent without reading more than the first line of each.

  She decides it is time to call Jim back in order to stop the constant calling, emails, and texti
ng. Sighing, she dials his cell phone.

  Jim answers immediately. “Thanks for finally returning my call.”

  “Look, there really isn’t anything further we need to discuss, and I’d appreciate it if you would stop will all the messages. I respect you as a business associate, and I won’t let anything that has happened between us affect our professional relationship. But as far as any type of continued personal relationship is concerned, there’s no chance. It’s over.”

  “I know I’ve hurt you, but I think we need to get together and talk about everything face to face, please,” Jim says, an edge of desperation creeping into his voice.

  “I don’t think that is necessary or even possible. I trusted you enough to let you close to me, a place where very few men ever get the privilege of being, and it took you an extremely short time to violate that deep trust. I’m more than happy to deal with you on a professional level without any animosity. Let’s just keep it that way.”

  “And on a personal level?”

  “On a personal level, I think you’re a worthless piece of shit and I’ll never trust you again. End of story.”

  “Wendy, please, we really need to talk. I’m not the person you thought I was.”

  “We certainly agree on that point.”

  “So that’s it? No further discussion with regards to any of this?”

  “Wow, you’re finally catching on. Congratulations. I’m sleeping in the guest room until the furniture company brings me my new bed. I just can’t ever sleep in that bed again after the way you defiled it. Why did you have to do that in my bed? Why not a hotel room? I mean if he makes you happy that’s fine, but you should have been honest with me from the start and told me you are at the very least bisexual. Instead, you’re just a dishonest, inconsiderate jerk.”

  “I’m sorry, but there is so much more to everything that you need know, and I’d like an opportunity to at least explain everything from my perspective,” Jim says.