A Pearl Drop Necklace Pt. 02

The following afternoon I got a call from my divorce attorney and friend, Angie. This was the day after I, Sam, found Linda, my wife whom I'm divorcing, on my porch when I got home. I told Linda that unless she signs the divorce paperwork my attorney prepared we were ready to depose all her lovers. We were going to parade them all in court so the judge could hear about her serial cheating. I was also going to tell her HR and show them proof that she was sleeping with one of her employees. I was going to get her fired. Probably along with all the people she had affairs with at work.

I knew that I'd be getting a call from Angie but I wasn't looking forward to it. Angie didn't even say hello, just, "Linda got herself an attorney who called me this morning. Evidently, you told Linda our P. I. has found the house where Linda and Carol attended the pool party. That I'm about to depose the host of the pool party as well as people at her job, including the guy she was having an affair with in marketing, her manager there who forced her to take the job in customer service, as well as Fred and Billy. And that we're hauling them all into court. What P. I.? Why am I hearing that I'm doing all this from Linda's attorney?"

I replied, "Linda was sitting on my porch when I got home. She still only admits to having an affair with Fred. Her one mistake. She wants to reconcile. She wants marriage counseling. She wants and wants. I may have embellished somewhat but she needs to understand that none of what she wants is going to happen. Plenty that she doesn't want is going to happen if she doesn't sign the divorce paperwork you sent her.

"She thinks she can still talk her way out of the divorce. Like she still made just this one mistake with Fred that I should forgive and forget. I wanted to make it clear that we're divorcing and that I'm willing to do anything to get rid of her. Including telling her HR about her affairs and getting them all fired. Hopefully, that's what you told Linda's attorney."

Angie said, "She's an attorney I know and have faced in the past. Margo Landhorn. She's competent. Here's their position: Linda wants to reconcile but you won't talk to her. Unless you talk to Linda, start marriage counseling, they'll tell the judge you're being unreasonable. It was only the one mistake with this Fred guy and that only lasted a short time. Linda was foolish but that shouldn't end your marriage. Linda has apologized over and over again and wrote a complete timeline because that's what you wanted. Linda is willing to do anything you ask. She doesn't want to throw away your marriage and neither should you. They'll ask the judge to suspend divorce proceedings and order you to do counseling for six months or so. See where you are after six months of trying to work on your marriage. Margo claims that's what's best for both Linda and you."

Angie continued, "I told Margo we won't consider reconciliation under any circumstances. No talking, no counseling, no trying to work things out. We're only interested in divorce.

"Margo responded that I know what a judge will do. There is just the one affair. Linda is willing to do anything to save the marriage while you won't even talk to her. Margo reminded me that judges don't like to make tough decisions about alimony and asset allocation. The judge will take the easy way out and what's easy is to order marriage counseling. Faced with the facts that Linda wants to reconcile and you won't even talk to her, Margo says that whichever judge we get will order you to try to work it out. Their position is there's no reason to waste our time fighting over a divorce settlement since everyone knows that the outcome will be court ordered marriage counseling. Margo says we should stop wasting everyone's time and you and Linda should start looking for a counselor and get on with your marriage."

Angie went on, "That's what they're going with. I told her that it wasn't just one guy. Linda is a serial cheater. Multiple men over years. There's no way Linda wants to put all that before a judge. Margo responded that, according to Linda, that's not true. And there's no evidence there was anyone other than Fred.

"I told her we have three types of evidence. First, there are the Instagram DMs between her and Fred. Margo said Linda told her about the DMs and those are only about Linda and Fred. No other affairs. I said that's not true. In her DMs with Fred, Linda talks about another guy in the department she transferred from. Marketing. In their DMs Fred admits the guy told him that he'd been sleeping with Linda and Linda was an easy lay. It's hard to keep all the men who Linda slept with straight but I think that guy's name is Jake. That makes two guys so far she cheated with at work. But there's more.

"Second proof: I told her there are the DMs with her friends Janet and Carol from Linda's hidden Instagram account. They describe Linda's affair with an employee of hers named Billy. She was seeing Billy and Fred at the same time. All these men work for Linda's company and I told Margo I'll call each and every one of them to testify at the divorce hearing. I told her I'll also call the boss who told Linda he wanted her to transfer from marketing because her affair with this Jake guy was improper and disruptive.

"Third, Linda spent weeks describing to her friends in the DMs her adventures at the pool party. Men actually lined up to get BJ's from Linda. They sat on the edge of the pool and Linda, standing in the pool, went from one guy to the next. But Linda wasn't finished. She had intercourse with three or four guys. Linda's unsure of the exact number because she told her girlfriends she thinks one of the guys may have come back for a second round. So only three different guys if she did one guy twice."

Angie concluded, "Linda won't be able to claim it was all made up. That she was just entertaining her friends with wild tales. Her friend Carol was also at the pool party, extremely busy herself, but confirmed what Linda wrote about the pool party. And there's a picture of them nude in front of a pool with a bunch of naked people in the background. Also pictures of guys putting sun tan lotion on a very naked Linda. I asked Margo if she thought Linda's friend Carol would perjure herself when I call her to testify about the pool party. No judge is going to order marriage counseling when he hears about the years of multiple men Linda has been unfaithful with. No judge is going to think Linda ever took her marriage vows seriously.

Angie continued, "Margo didn't have much to say to that. She asked me to send her everything I have. I told her I'll get a package ready for her and send it over. I reiterated that we will only accept a settlement with no alimony and a division of assets that awards Linda only what she brought to the marriage. A car and some savings. If Linda does not agree to that, there's so much we have on her it will take days in court to get through it all. Lots of dirty linen aired in public. Since her longer affairs are mostly with co-workers, and at least one of whom was her employee, Linda will also be looking for a new job.

"Margo said she'll get back to me after she sees what we have and talks to Linda. She's smart enough to realize they have no defense. We'll get the settlement we prepared or one that's very much like it.

"At least Linda finally got an attorney. We'll see if that gets some movement out of her. If Linda wants to talk to you again, don't. Tell her to call me. Or have her attorney call me."

I said, "I have one more thing. I'm thinking about asking Beth, Fred's wife, and Jim, Carol's husband, to be in a support group with me. Something to help the three of us get through our divorces. What do you think?"

"I think support groups are a great idea. You're all having to deal with your spouses' infidelity and difficult divorces. You can help each other. Just don't get too far in the weeds about what our plans are. But it's a good idea."

Angie asked, "How are you holding up? Greg [Angie's husband and my partner] and I are going to lunch today. Do you want to come?" I agreed to lunch and we got off.

I called Beth that night. After asking each other how we're doing, I said, "You, Jim and I are all divorcing our spouses. It might be helpful for the three of us to get together on a regular basis to support each other."

Beth asked, "Jim?"

"He's the husband of Linda's friend Carol. Carol is also a serial adulterer and he's divorcing her. Jim's a good guy. You'll like him."

"Why do we need to get together to talk about our divorces?"

"For advice, a sympathetic ear, moral support. Whatever. We're all going through the same thing. The three of us can meet at my place. I'll get carry out and we can see if it's something we want to continue to do. If you don't find the support group helpful, you can drop out. No hard feelings."

"OK, I'm in."

I had the same conversation with Jim. He said, "I'm willing but tell me about Beth. Is she going to be helpful discussing female cheaters? Will she sympathize with our wives or be on our side?"

"You should have seen Linda after Beth caught her with Fred at the motel. I don't think Beth has much sympathy for cheaters, women or men."

The three of us met for the first time that Friday evening. Jim arrived first and then Beth. Beth could not take her eyes off Jim. Jim could not take his eyes off Beth. Everything Jim said, Beth found fascinating. Everything Beth said, Jim found equally captivating. During dinner, we told each other our backstories and why we're divorcing our spouses. Jim said he felt really badly for Beth. All she's been through. Beth commiserated with poor Jim.

After dinner, we sat in the living room. I told them, "I have a tentative agenda for us to talk about. But is there anything either of you want to start with?"

Beth said, "If we continue with these meetings, we should do it at my place. I love to cook and I have two kids at home so it's more convenient at my house."

That led to a discussion of Jim's son and Beth's daughter and son. It turns out that Jim's son and Beth's daughter are the same age, both eight. Maybe a play date? Beth suggested, "Bring your son to our next meeting so our children can meet." They agreed that was a great idea. They were both sure their children would become friends.

I thought, 'This isn't working'. I said, "We're here to discuss our divorces, not play dates. Here's what I think we should talk about. First, do we have what we need from each other in terms of evidence for our divorces?

Jim said, "Angie told me the DMs between Linda and Carol are more than enough to prove Carol's long term infidelity with multiple partners. Custody, though, will be a problem. I want custody of my boy."

I asked, "Did you get an STD test and a paternity test?"

He replied, "The STD test shows I'm clean. I was really sweating getting those results. It's a miracle Carol didn't give me multiple STDs. I did a home paternity test for me and my son but the lab reported the test was contaminated so no result. I scheduled an appointment at a local lab for next Tuesday. I'm in no rush. My son looks just like me so I'm not worried. Did you get an STD test Sam?"

"I did and I'm also clear. Another miracle."

Beth said. "I'm also clean. My attorney is getting Linda's confession of her affair with Fred from your attorney and a copy of Linda's and Fred's DMs. Also, the pictures of Linda and Fred on dates. My getting custody should not be a problem. Mothers always get custody. And no one would trust Fred to care for a house plant let alone children."

"Is anyone hearing from their spouses?"

Jim said, "I didn't hear from Carol for a couple of days. Then she called but I'm not talking to her. She left a message telling me she misses me and wants to talk. She asked if I've calmed down. She wants to come home so she can explain. She's going with the story that you, Sam, fabricated the DMs to get back at her for telling Linda to dump a rotten cheater like you. All the pictures of Carol you showed me are also fakes. You wrecked your marriage with Linda so, out of spite, you want to wreck ours too. The good news is that she didn't ask about seeing our son. Until she does, there's no need to talk to her. Except for arranging visits about our boy, Angie wants everything else to go through her."

Beth said, "I'm positive both my kids are mine." She smiled and said, "I was there for both births. Fred calls but I don't talk to him. He left a message asking to see his kids. I texted him back that they aren't his kids. Their real father has a much bigger dick. Unfortunately they really are Fred's but I thought it might be fun to fuck with him. Let the shitbird wonder. Eventually I'll tell him the truth and let him see his kids. Maybe when the kids are in their thirties."

I told them, "It's over a month since I threw Linda out. She came by my house earlier this week and I told her to sign the divorce papers or I'll get her fired. She finally got a lawyer. Linda sounds like she's still in denial so Angie's sending her lawyer everything we have."

Beth was alarmed, "I don't want my scumbag husband fired. I want him working for alimony and child support. The kids are old enough so I'm planning to get a job but I want him to pay. You said you weren't going to get Fred fired."

"It's just a bluff to get Linda to stop pushing for reconciliation and sign the papers."

Next up to talk about was Nico. Linda and Carol have a third BFF, Janet, who participated in their DMs. Her husband is Nico. There is nothing in the DMs I read to suggest Janet cheated on Nico after she and Nico got married. She played around while she and Nico were dating but she didn't disclose any infidelity after they married. She certainly supported and encouraged Linda's and Carol's infidelity.

I explained this to Beth who didn't know Nico or Janet. "Should we tell Nico that Janet knew about our wives' adultery?"

Jim said, "Nico and I work out together Saturday mornings. I'm not in his league but he tolerates me. Gives me good advice about my workout routine. I haven't heard from Nico since I threw Carol out. He's not returning my calls. I had to skip the gym last Saturday. I had an event to go to with my son.

"I don't want Nico to think I'm the one who's been unfaithful. I'm sure that's what Janet's telling him. That's what Carol told me about you Sam. It doesn't make sense that Janet encouraged Carol's and Linda's cheating but didn't do it herself. Nonetheless, Nico should know that his wife knows about and supports her friends' infidelity. Nico may want to ask his wife her views on marriage and adultery." Beth agreed with everything Jim said.

I said, "OK, we all agree Nico should know. How do we tell him?"

Jim said, "I'll show Nico the DMs where Janet supports Linda's and Carol's infidelity. Nico can do what he wants with the information."

I said, "We have to ask Angie if it's OK to show the DMs to Nico."

I called Angie. She said, "I sent everything over to Linda's attorney anyway. It's fine if you want to show Nico the DMs." It's great having an attorney who's also your friend. You don't have to wait for office hours to talk to her.

"I suggested to Jim, "Show Nico the discussion the three of them had after the pool party. Those DMs went on for nearly two weeks. They kept talking about their hookups at the pool party and the blow jobs they had to give as an initiation because Janet kept pressing them for every juicy detail."

Jim agreed, "I'm going to the gym tomorrow. Nico should be there. Showing him Janet's fascination with her friends' hook ups at the pool party should do the trick." Beth agreed with Jim. They smiled at each other.

"Do you want Beth or me to be there when you talk to him?"

Jim said, "It's probably better if I meet with him on my own. Nico will probably be at the gym tomorrow at his usual time. I'll call you, Beth, right after I talk to Nico to let you know what happened. Can you give me your number?" They switched phones to exchange contact information. Jim said to me, "Of course I'll call you too."

Jim called me Saturday night about 8pm, "I saw Nico at the gym and asked if we could talk. Nico told me that he's sorry my marriage is over but he doesn't have any sympathy for cheaters. He asked me why I'd ruin my marriage over some foolish fling. I told Nico that I'm not the one who was cheating. Also, that his wife Janet actively encouraged Carol's and Linda's infidelity. I handed Nico copies of the DMs I printed out and told him to call you or me with any questions."

Jim continued, "Nico called me a about an hour ago. He said he had a long talk with Janet. He found out that Janet has also been unfaithful. He asked me to recommend a lawyer so I gave him Angie's information. Nico was obviously very distressed. I asked him where Janet and his daughter are. He said he threw Janet out and he really doesn't care where she is. The girl is there with him.

"I asked if he wanted me to come over, bring my son. He said he needs some time to think. He also has to make some calls. He has some things he needs to arrange. I asked if he wanted to attend our support sessions. I gave him the details and he agreed to join. I told him that you and Beth would have to give the OK to include him.

"I already asked Beth. I just got off the phone with her. She's OK with Nico joining our support group. What do you think?"

I said, "The more the merrier."

"Tuesday night is good for Beth and me to meet. Beth will make us all dinner. It's also a good night for Nico. How about you?"

"Tuesday it is."

That Monday I had lunch with Angie and Greg. Angie asked how our support group went. I told her, "Beth and Jim really seemed to hit it off. They couldn't take their eyes off each other. Agreed about everything. A budding romance."

"Please remind them that they're both still married and divorcing their spouses for infidelity. If they start hooking up, their spouses can counterclaim Jim and Beth also committed adultery. That makes divorces a real shit show. And if the two of them get serious about each other, they may decide to just get their divorces over with quickly so they can be together sooner. Rushing to settle is always a mistake. The three of you can help each other as friends but not if those two become lovers."

I said, "I know what you mean. During our support meeting, I felt like the third wheel. I'm glad Nico is joining. At least I won't feel as if I'm keeping Jim and Beth from something."

Angie said, "I'll talk to Jim. You shouldn't be reluctant to tell them to go slow. Discussing stuff like this is why you're in a support group in the first place."

When I arrived at Beth's Tuesday night, Jim was already there helping Beth cook dinner. Both of them were dressed in expensive but casual clothes. Both wanted to look their best. Beth really looked good, more like a teenager than a thirties mother of two. I asked, "Can I help with anything?" Beth suggested I set the table and pointed to where she kept her dishes. I asked where their kids were. Beth said at her parents. Jim said he got a babysitter. No play date tonight. Nico arrived just before dinner was ready. His daughter wasn't with him.

Beth, Jim and I gave Nico a summary of our situations and Beth asked Nico to tell us about himself. Nico said, "I joined the army when I was 17, right out of high school. I spent over eight years in the military. I grew up right outside the university town where Janet went to college. We met at a college party when I was home on leave. We hit it off and kept in touch. Whenever I was home and Janet at school, we saw each other. When I left the service, Janet was in her senior year. I spent more time in her dorm room than I did at home."

Nico continued, "Janet grew up here. She came back from spending Christmas and semester break at home her senior year and told me she was pregnant. We married right after she graduated. Janet insisted we live in her hometown so her mother could help with the baby. I didn't care where we lived. Janet's father owns a string of laundromats. He hired me to collect the cash from the laundromats' washers, dryers and soap dispensers, count it and make the bank deposits. Janet has been a stay at home mom."

I said, "What happened when you confronted Janet with her DMs about the pool party?"

"Janet's initial story was that the DMs Jim gave me were fake. Jim was mad at Janet because she supported Carol's decision to divorce Jim for cheating on Carol. She also supported Linda in divorcing Sam for adultery. Janet claimed Jim and Sam cooked up the fake DMs to destroy our marriage too.

"I told Janet I didn't believe that you, Jim, cheated on Carol or you, Sam, cheated on Linda. I straight out told Janet that I know she supported her friends' infidelity. Was she also unfaithful? Janet knew I was angry and figured this wasn't going away. Janet broke down and admitted that she was covering for her friends. She participated in the DMs only because she wanted to hear about her friends' adventures. It was just like watching a soap opera, an ongoing drama. Better than a soap opera. It was amusing listening to her two crazy friends discuss their hookups. She offered advice and encouragement so she could participate in their drama. But she never participated in the cheating.

"Janet told me that she figured Carol and Linda would do what they do regardless of what Janet did or said. Why not be entertained by their escapades? It was not her place to tell Jim and Sam their wives were unfaithful. Linda and Carol are her friends, not their husbands. But there was nothing in any DMs that show that Janet ever cheated on me with anyone. Then I asked to see her phone. Things got heated really fast.

"Janet and I argued for almost an hour. Janet was enraged that I would even ask to see her phone. What hurtful distrust. What a horrible controlling thing for me to ask of her. She told me this proves that I don't really love her. How could I say I love her but not trust her. Who do I think I am? Her parents? She's an adult. If I want to know something, I should ask her. She told me she's always been honest with me. I pointed out that she just lied to me when she was covering for her friends' infidelity. That stopped Janet for a while. Then Janet said she's not giving me her phone. Period, the end.

"She told me she's so upset she needs to take a walk. Get some air. I told her that first thing Monday, I'll call an attorney. She can walk all she wants, but if she doesn't give me her phone right now, before she can delete anything, our marriage is over. Period, the end.

"Janet started crying. She opened her phone and gave it to me. She told me she's sorry. She never intended to hurt me. Just remember she loves me, no one else. Please forgive her. She'll do whatever I want to stay married. I'm giving you the short version. This went on and on."

Nico sighed and said, "Janet told me shortly after we met that she had a boyfriend throughout high school. She talked about this boyfriend because he was the only long-term relationship she had before me. She broke it off with this guy their senior year in high school because he cheated on her. She dated some at college but none of that was serious and happened before we met. She occasionally bumped into her ex, but that was just hello and goodbye.

"The texts on her phone tell a different story. Her high school boyfriend is named Tommy. Tommy has recently been working the night shift as a security guard. Janet gets our daughter to school in the morning, then makes breakfast for Tommy at his place and spends the day with him. She leaves in time to pick up our daughter at school and start dinner for us.

"A lot of their texts are like those between an old married couple. Stuff like: She has a dental appointment so she won't be able to make him breakfast. She was late getting the kid because he wanted to keep fooling around. She's going for groceries. Anything he wants her to get besides the usual? Maybe they can go out for dinner and a movie if she can figure out what to tell me.

"The texts that tore my heart out were those about our daughter, Sylvie. She told Tommy he made Janet late picking up their daughter. Tommy told Janet she spoils Sylvie too much. She replied that Sylvie is Tommy's daughter too. Tommy should care more about the girl."

Nico shook his head, sighed and continued, "Janet never broke it off with this guy. She saw him on college breaks and summers. After we moved here and the baby was born, Janet took the kid to her mother's so she could be with Tommy while I was at work. And Tommy never seems to have money. Janet has been buying him groceries, clothes and other stuff for years. With my money.

"I asked Janet if Sylvie is mine. She insisted I'm Sylvie's father. The stuff in the texts about Tommy being the father was just to guilt trip Tommy so he would be more considerate of the girl. I asked Janet if Tommy spent any time with Sylvie. Did Janet take her when she saw Tommy? "Janet claims when the girl was a baby she occasionally took Sylvie with her when she visited Tommy. But that stopped when the girl was old enough to talk. Janet didn't want Sylvie talking about some man they visited. And Tommy never wanted the girl around.

"Honestly, I think I got the husband and father job because Tommy isn't father material. Or husband material. I got DNA tests done for us and I'm waiting for the results. But Sylvie is my daughter regardless of what the tests say."

I said, "Wait. Carol and Janet talk about who their children's fathers are in their DMs. I saw those DMs but I skipped over them. We don't have kids so they didn't apply to me. I began reading their DMs at the time when Linda transferred to customer service and met Fred. But she told her friends she was forced out of marketing because her boss discovered she was sleeping with a co-worker. So I went back further in their DMs to see who that co-worker was.

"What I found was Linda telling Carol and Janet that I was talking about starting a family. Linda said she wasn't ready so they gave her advice about how to put me off. They also talked about their children. And their children's fathers.

"Beth, do you have a laptop I can use? I think I can find what they said. If you guys want to look at it. Carol also talks about your son, Jim. Neither of you might not like what they said." Both of them told me to find the DMs. They wanted to see them.

I did. They're from about a year ago. Here's what they said:

Linda: "Sam is bugging me about having children. I'm not ready to have children. I'm having too much fun. If I go off birth control, I'll have to be exclusive with Sam. I don't want to give up Jake just yet."

Carol: "You won't end up giving him up. I vowed to only have sex with Jim when we decided to get pregnant. But you tell yourself that you're not going to get pregnant if you do it just one time with someone else. You don't get pregnant from having sex once. Then every hook up becomes, 'It's just one time. I can't get pregnant from one time.' Then you tell yourself, 'Who cares who the biological father is. Jim will raise the kid.' I have no idea who got me pregnant. It doesn't matter who's sperm it was as long as Jim believes it's his kid. The good news is that our boy looks like Jim. Maybe the kid is Jim's. Anything's possible."

Janet: "I know that Nico is Sylvie's father. When I got back from school after semester break my senior year I told Nico I was pregnant. He had spent a few days with me and my parents over Christmas. I told him that's when he got me pregnant. It was a lie. I wasn't pregnant. I was still on birth control and had my period just before returning to school for that Spring semester."

Janet continued: "I was graduating in a few months and didn't want to get a job or have to live with my parents after graduation. I told my parents over that semester break that I planned to marry Nico. They threatened to cut me off if I married him. My parents were adamant that Nico wasn't good enough for me. But I knew they would have to accept Nico if I was having his baby. They'd have no choice if they wanted to see their grandchildren.

"Nico and I talked about marriage or just living together after I graduated but Nico was vague about what he wanted to do. He seemed to want to wait until we were older and more settled. Since Nico left the military, we were spending almost all our free time together. But Nico didn't seem ready to commit to a more permanent relationship. Nico wanted to wait. I didn't want to wait.

"I made up the lie about being pregnant to find out what Nico would do. If Nico balked at marriage, since I wasn't really pregnant, I wouldn't be stuck with a kid. But Nico agreed to marry so I got pregnant as quickly as I could. The discrepancy about when our daughter was conceived could easily be explained away. And Nico never noticed the discrepancy. At least he never asked about it.

"And I only had sex with Nico after I returned from semester break. Nico was basically living in my dorm room. I didn't want him finding out about some other man and calling off the wedding. If Nico bailed after I got pregnant, and he would if he knew I was playing around, I'd have to live with my parents. That would be a slow death. I know Sylvie is Nico's.

"Two problems solved: My parents would have to accept Nico and I would be a stay at home mom with Nico supporting me and our baby after graduation."

That was the end of their DMs about paternity. I looked at Nico and Jim. Nico shrugged and said, "I'll wait for the paternity test to come back. But it doesn't really matter. Sylvie is my daughter regardless of the test."

Jim said, "I'm sure my boy is mine. He looks just like me. I guess I'll know for sure in a week or so."

Beth asked Nico, "What was the outcome of your confrontation with Janet. What did she say about her ongoing relationship with her boyfriend from high school? Tommy?"

"Nico said, "There was lots of crying, begging, pleading, and denying. Janet wanted to explain. I told her to save her explanations. She's leaving now and not coming back. And she's leaving with only the clothes on her back. Whatever she needs from now on, Tommy or her parents can buy for her.

"I also told her that she will have no further contact with me or Sylvie. None. No negotiations, no compromises, Janet is out of both our lives for good. Janet won't get any of my assets and I won't support her in any way going forward. If a judge does not grant me sole and full custody or if a judge orders me to give Janet anything, I'll ignore the judge's order. Janet told me I can't do that. I said, 'Just watch me'.

"I told her if she has someone who can pick her up, call them now. Otherwise, I'll pay for one last thing, an Uber to take her away from me and my daughter. Janet scheduled an Uber. I told her she can take her coat but leave her rings and watch here. I'm keeping her phone. They belong to me. Janet said she needed her purse. I got her purse, gave Janet her driver's license and told her the purse and everything in it belongs to me. I told her to wait for the Uber outside. She asked if we could talk after I calm down. I told her I'm never going to talk to her again. Janet asked if she could talk to my daughter before she leaves. I said no and to get out."

Nico chuckled and said, "I was wrong about never talking to Janet again. Later that evening, after I finished putting Sylvie to bed, I heard the doorbell. It was Janet with some guy I assumed was Tommy. When I opened the door, the guy was cleaning under his nails with a six inch gravity knife. Cheap knife. It would probably break apart if the guy ever used it on someone. But it had a decent size blade so it could do some damage.

"The guy, Tommy, introduced himself as Janet's friend. He said Janet told him that I hit her, took all her clothes, credit cards and money and threw her out. I looked at Janet. She looked terrified. I was sure this was not Janet's idea. She isn't stupid enough to bring this guy anywhere near me. The guy continued that he's brought Janet home where she belongs. She will continue to live here and Janet and I will remain married. There is nothing for me to be upset about. He and Janet are just friends. But regardless of his relationship with Janet or how I feel about it, Janet is not going anywhere. He told me to move aside, he and Janet are coming in the apartment.

"The guy stopped cleaning his fingernails and held the knife down at his side, blade up. I told him they're not coming in. Janet is no longer welcome here. The guy took a step toward me and I punched him hard in the solar plexus. That knocked the wind out of him. He dropped the knife and collapsed on his butt, trying to catch his breath. I kicked the knife into the apartment.

"I asked Janet if she's lost her mind bringing this piece of shit here. Janet apologized and said she told him this was a very bad idea. But he thinks he's a tough guy. He knows Janet's parents won't give her any money if she's with him, so Tommy thought he could scare me into taking Janet back.

"Tommy was slowly beginning to catch his breath. I told him to stay down and that I'm keeping his knife. If he wants it back he can just knock on my door. But if he ever knocks on my door again, I won't be so gentle with him. Janet asked me if we could just talk. She wants to be with me, not Tommy. I went inside and closed the door. They left.

"Jim gave me Angie's contact information and I met with her this morning. I removed all the money from our joint account. Then I got STD and paternity tests. I told Angie that Janet gets nothing in the divorce and I get full and sole custody of my daughter. Janet will have no contact with me or Sylvie. I told Angie I won't negotiate about any of this."

We all had questions. Beth went first. "Why would you confront a guy with a knife? That's pretty scary. Why not just go back inside and lock the door?"

Nico said, "Tommy was not going away. It's always better to resolve these things with the guy in front of you instead of him sneaking up behind you later." Nico laughed and said, "I spent sixty three weeks training with guys who tried to stab, shoot and blow me up. And those guys knew what they were doing. After training, I spent the next three years stabbing, shooting and blowing up enemies of the U. S. Tommy isn't all that scary. Nowhere near as scary as the guys I served with."

I asked, "What happens now? You work for Janet's father. Can you still do that?"

Nico said, "My father-in-law called and apologized for his daughter's behavior. She's been living with Tommy so her parents know what must have happened. Janet can't bullshit them. Now Janet wants to live with her parents for a while. Tommy evidently didn't mind her cooking and cleaning and giving him money but he doesn't want a live-in girlfriend. Especially one with no money. Her parents won't have anything to do with Janet as long as she's seeing Tommy. They won't let her move in with them and they won't give her any money. Her father said they hope Janet will get so desperate she'll finally dump the asshole. He apologized again for his daughter's behavior and said they had no idea she has been seeing Tommy.

"Janet's father told me I can have my job as long as I want. Both Janet's parents know none of this is my fault. They still think of me as their son and look forward to spending time with me and Sylvie. I thanked him and got off the phone."

Nico continued, "They never considered me their son. They always thought Janet could do better than me and made sure that Janet and I knew that's what they thought. His call was only about them being able to see their granddaughter. Janet must have told them I won't allow her to see Sylvie. Her father called to find out if that applies to them too. Without asking directly."

Jim asked, "Why in hell do you think you can get away with not giving Janet alimony or any part of your joint assets. And no judge will deny Janet access to her daughter. More likely the judge will give custody to Janet and you'll be fighting for visiting rights. You can't just ignore court orders.

Nico replied, "I don't want my daughter to have a role model who thinks it's OK to have a separate, secret life and cheats on her husband. And I certainly don't want my daughter around someone like Tommy. Janet had no real regret, no real remorse. Just sorry she was caught. Janet and I are not going to be together and she won't give Tommy up. My daughter is not going to be subjected to that mess.

"As for assets, there's not much. I already took the money out of the bank. Janet has been driving the car I bought when I left the military. It's still in my name. I'll either sell it or junk it. I rent so there's no house to get rid of. There's some furniture but that's it for what I own.

"My money supported Janet's secret love nest all these years. My money made it nice and comfy for her and Tommy. They can start supporting themselves. Janet gets nothing more from me. I'm no longer their ATM."

Nico continued, "Janet has a choice. She can agree to my terms and hope I'll change my mind and let her see the kid. Or she can go after alimony, visiting rights, whatever, but she knows my daughter and I will disappear. She'll never find us."

Jim asked, "How are you just disappearing? It's not possible to just disappear. The judge will have the cops track you down and throw you in jail."

Nico smiled and said, "We'll see." We pressed Nico to explain but he said it's better if we don't know his plans.

Jim was getting angry at Nico, "Regardless of what you think, you'll end up negotiating with Janet over everything. Including custody. Why don't you understand that? You're living in a fantasy world."

Nico just replied, "There will be no negotiations about anything. And Janet knows that."

We ended the meeting. Nico and I left but Jim stayed to help Beth clean up. I decided to wait to have the discussion with them about getting involved romantically too quickly. It was Nico's first meeting with us and hearing about him took up most of our time. I will talk to Jim and Beth about their budding romance at our next meeting scheduled for Saturday.

Nico and his daughter did disappear. Angie called me Friday morning and asked, "Do you know where Nico is? His cell is disconnected and he hasn't been to work. I called him Wednesday to tell him Janet hired an attorney and her attorney got a judge to grant an emergency hearing to get Janet immediate custody of their daughter. The hearing is this morning. Nico didn't show up with his daughter and I can't find him. Have you seen him or talked to him?"

"Not since our support group Tuesday. We're supposed to have another group meeting this Saturday night. Did you ask Jim about Nico?"

"I just got off the phone with him too. He hasn't seen or heard from Nico either. Let me know if you hear from Nico."

Two local detectives came to talk to me at work that afternoon. They wanted to know if I knew anything about where Nico might be. I told them I didn't. They asked, "Has he talked about paramilitary organizations, military contractors, either here or abroad? Or someone who might be from a military contractor?"

I thought, 'Military contractors? That's crazy,' but said, "No. I really don't know what his plans are or where he might have gone. He told us specifically he didn't want to talk about his plans. He said it's better if we didn't know."

The detectives gave me their cards and told me to call them if I hear from Nico. An Amber alert was issued for Sylvie.

Beth, Jim and I, and Nico, were supposed to have our support group on Saturday, the day after Nico skipped his custody hearing. But Jim cancelled for Saturday so we postponed until Sunday night. I arrived before Jim and met Beth's two children. Great kids, very polite but bubbling with excitement because Jim was bringing his boy. It would be the first time the children were meeting. Beth said the children will all have eaten so they'll go play while the adults eat dinner and talk.

Jim arrived without his son. Beth looked for the boy and asked Jim where he was. Jim seemed very distracted so Beth had to repeat her question. "Why didn't you bring your son?" Jim just looked down and didn't answer. Jim looked miserable. Beth told her disappointed children to go upstairs and play in their rooms. Both Beth and I were alarmed and said next to Jim on the couch.

I asked Jim, "What's going on?"

He said, "Nothing," and then, "I don't want to talk about it."

"Where's your son?"

"I didn't want to bring him so I left him with a babysitter."

Beth said, "Talk to us. We're here for you." She took his hand in hers.

Jim leaned back on the couch and stared at the ceiling looking defeated. He said, "I got the paternity test back. I'm not Tim's [his son's] biological father. I don't know what to do. I can't be around the kid without thinking about Carol fucking other men. I look at him and only see her betrayal. I know Carol has been unfaithful. I've seen the pictures and read her horrible DMs. But now it's real. Some other man actually fathered my son. My son is no longer my son. How is that possible? I look at Tim and all I see is my wife laughing at me. When I look at Tim, I just study his face to see if he looks like anyone I know. I don't know what to do."

"Does Angie know the results of the test?"

Jim answered, "No, I got the results in the mail Saturday. I don't know if I should tell Angie. I don't want Carol to use it against me in a custody battle. If I tell Angie, I'm worried that she may have to disclose that to Carol or to the judge. I don't want Carol to figure out some way to use the kid's paternity as leverage against me."

Beth asked Jim. "What do you want regarding the boy? Do you want to drop Tim off with Carol and wash your hands of him? Do you want to be a father to the boy? How much do you want to be in Tim's life?"

Jim said, "I love the boy. I can't imagine not having him with me, not being a part of his life. But now, when I look at him, I just see another man's son and proof of my wife's treachery. I hate this. I can't bear to be without my son but it's too painful to be around him."

I suggested to Jim, "You should leave now, get Tim from the babysitter and spend as much time as you can with your boy. Tim needs a father now, not another absent parent. The betrayal you feel when you look at the boy will begin to fade. Tell yourself it's not the boy's fault his mother is a pig. You should probably seek counseling. With help, if you give it time, you'll have your son back. Can you give it time?"

Jim replied, "I don't want to give up my son. You're right, it really doesn't have anything to do with Tim. He's completely innocent. I'll just have to work through the other stuff. I got a referral for therapy. I'll make an appointment. My boy and I will probably both end up needing therapy." He got up to go, "Thank you for helping clarify things."

We agreed to meet again the following Friday, again at Beth's. Beth and Jim hugged. Jim left, I stayed. We hadn't eaten and Beth said she made a lot of food and that I should stay for dinner. I did.

I asked. "What's happening with your divorce? Is Fred being a problem?"

Beth said, "We sent Fred the divorce paperwork but Fred is planning to charge me with infidelity." She laughed and asked, "Do you remember me telling you that I texted Fred that the kids are not his?" I nodded. "Fred's going to use that to show I'm the one who's been unfaithful. Fred doesn't want to give me any alimony and, since he's claiming they're not his kids, no child support."

Beth continued, "They're Fred's kids and he knows it. But he's refusing to do a paternity test, saying there's no need since I admitted he's not the father. He's not giving me and the kids any money now. My attorney says not to worry. We asked for an expedited hearing to discuss money. If Fred continues to deny he's the father, he'll be forced to get a paternity test and support his children. Fred's nonsense will actually speed things up. Refusing to support me and the kids gets us to a judge quicker."

Then Beth shook her head and said, "He knows they're his kids. Can you imagine this scumbag doesn't want to support his children? Since he claims they're not his, he won't see or talk to them. Try explaining to an eight and six year old that their father is an asshole."

Beth asked me about my divorce. I explained the settlement that we submitted to Linda and that we're waiting for her to sign it."

Jim was a wreck so I decided to ask Beth about Jim and her, "You and Jim really seem to have hit it off. I can see that you're very fond of each other. But you're both still married and you both have just come out of horrible relationships. If you don't watch yourselves, your spouses can come after you for infidelity. You'd both be giving up a lot. You should slow things down until you're both divorced. Plus think of your kids. It must be confusing enough for your children without adding a lover to the mix. All I'm saying is to wait."

Beth stared at me. Her face darkened. After a bit, her face softened, "You're right. It's foolish to start a new relationship for all the reasons you said. But I like Jim's attention and Jim is very, very attentive. After you're rejected as not good enough by your spouse, it's nice to feel wanted. And Jim makes me feel wanted, appreciated, and beautiful. There's no question there's an attraction between us. But don't worry. We haven't slept together and won't. If we're still interested after our divorces, we'll figure out things then." I told her I'm happy to hear that. I'm not sure I believed her.

Late afternoon Monday, Angie called with news from Linda's attorney. "They're going with the story that Fred was her only affair. The rest of the stuff you found is made up. They want marriage counseling which they claim will make a divorce unnecessary. In other words, they're going to fight the divorce."

"That's crazy. In her DMs with Fred she and Fred talk about the affair Linda had with another co-worker before she met Fred. What are they doing?"

Angie replied, "I think they understand that you don't want any of this and want to get the divorce over. Telling us that they're going to draw this out might get you to soften your stance on the terms of the divorce. If they give up counseling, because they know you really don't want that, maybe you'll be amenable to alimony and a more favorable division of assets."

"What do we do?"

"Fight it out. We have all the cards. It may take longer but you'll get your divorce. All they have is that they think you want this divorce quick and easy. That you'll cave to get it over with. We have to show them we're in it for the long haul."

"OK. How soon can we get before a judge?"

"We won't need to get before a judge. They know if a judge looks at this, they'll lose. If we hang tough, they'll fold. It might not be until we're ready to walk into a courtroom, but sooner or later Linda will sign the settlement we sent her. Or that settlement with a few minor changes."

I said, "OK, we'll hang tough."

After work Monday, I went to the gym to work out and then went to a sports bar for dinner. My townhouse has a fairly wide front porch which was dark when I returned home. I parked in my driveway and was fumbling with my keys when Linda came off my porch yelling. Scared the shit out of me.

Linda was screaming and crying, "How could you tell Angie all those horrible things about me. How can you and I remain friends with Angie and Greg, have them over for dinners and parties, go to their house for social occasions, after you told Angie all that shit about me. It's bad enough that Angie knows about the silly fling with Fred. If Angie understood it was only Fred, just one stupid mistake, Angie would tell you to go to marriage counseling and reconcile. Since you always listen to Angie you and I would be back together by now. That would have been the end of all this nonsense. But you had to tell Angie about that made up fantasy shit you found about pool parties and other guys.

"Why did you poison Angie against me? Have you lost your mind? How could you do that to me? Do you understand how uncomfortable it will be for me to be around Angie and Greg socially now? We'll probably have to give them up as friends." Linda was really screaming now. And really crying. "Who else did you tell this shit to?"

I was stunned. This woman is completely delusional. I told her, "The only time you and I will see Angie together is in court. We won't be having them over. There is no "we". You need to leave. We should only communicate through Angie."

Linda screamed, "I live here too. I'm not going anywhere. We need to talk about how we can work things out. You're just making everything worse by staying mad at me. And saying bad things about me to everyone. I love you despite how horribly you've behaved toward me. How can you do this to me? You're my husband."

I began to hear sirens approaching. One of my neighbors must have called the police. Good. I thought, 'They'll get her out of here.' Linda started yelling louder.

Linda was still screaming and crying hysterically when the cops arrived. They pulled in behind me in my driveway. Two young, uniformed officers. I was about ten feet from Linda but I moved even further away. One cop asked me to step over to his police car while the other went to talk to Linda. The cop with me asked, "Do you have any weapons on you? Any needles?"

"No."

"I'm going to search you. Empty your pockets and put everything on the car. Put your hands on the hood of the car and step back." He found no weapons, no drugs, no needles. "Pick up your wallet and give me your ID." I gave him my driver's license. He called it in.

While he was doing that, I heard the cop with Linda telling her, "Calm down, quit yelling. What happened? Why are you so upset?" Linda continued to howl.

No outstanding warrants for me so my cop asked, "What's going on?"

I told him, "Linda and I have been separated for over a month. We're divorcing. I got home to find her on my porch screaming and crying. I just want her out of here." The cop told me to sit down on the curb and went to join the other cop talking to Linda.

Linda had calmed down enough to talk without screaming and told them, "He beat me up and threw me out of our house a few weeks ago. I want to come home. This is my house too. He changed the locks so I can't get in."

The cop asked, "Did you file a police report about the previous incident?"

"No, I was too afraid."

Then the cop asked her, "What happened tonight?"

"I came here hoping to talk. I was calmly waiting for my husband on the porch. When he arrived I asked if we could just talk. He became furious, threatened me and was just about to hit me. Thankfully, you arrived before he could hurt me again."

"Do you want to press charges?"

"Yes."

Both cops came over, asked me to stand up and turn around. They cuffed me and read me my rights. Then they put me in the back seat of their police car. I asked, "Why are you arresting me?" They ignored me, both got in the front and we left. I glanced back at Linda. My loving wife was smiling.

I asked again, "Why am I being arrested?"

The cop in the passenger seat in the front said, "We have a zero tolerance policy here for domestic incidents. If a wife claims abuse or that her husband threatened her, our orders are to arrest the husband. We're not allowed to make any decisions about who is telling the truth or what actually happened. That's for a judge or jury to determine." I asked if I could call my lawyer. They said after I'm booked.

The booking process took forever. Fingerprints, mug shots, DNA, paperwork. When they finished, I was allowed to call Angie. I explained what happened and told her where I was. She said, "Give me thirty minutes."

I was put in a holding cell until Angie arrived. They released me into Angie's custody. I told her, "I thought I'd be in jail until I saw a judge in the morning. That's what they told me."

"I talked to the Assistant D. A. who's on duty. The ADA okayed releasing you to me."

"How did you get the ADA to do that?"

"They have a lot of discretion and he knows me. I promised to keep you away from your home tonight. Just in case Linda's still there. I'll drive you home in the morning. You're staying overnight with Greg and me."

"What happens now?"

"What happened tonight with Linda? Do you remember my mentioning that you should stay away from her? Not talk to her?"

"She was waiting for me on the porch. I didn't see her and got out of my car. She started yelling and screaming. The cops came and she told them I've hit her before, was threatening her now and was about to hit her when the police arrived. They arrested me. What happens now?"

"Unless Linda or the D. A. drop the charges, we'll have a trial. Or a plea deal. " She glanced at me, "Don't be too concerned. Linda has never filed a police report. One of the first things I do when I take on a client is get their arrest record, looking for reports or arrests for domestic violence. We have years of her DMs to her friends where Linda describes every part of your body, including the size and shape of your evidently very tiny little Sam along with intimate details of your love making. She tells her friends everything about you and your relationship but never claimed that you ever physically harmed her in any way."

Angie, laughing, said, "By the way, if you don't know already, you're a very disgusting human being. You need serious help. Whenever I'm forced to read about you and Linda having sex, I feel I need to take a shower."

I said, "Reading about little Sam, who's not that little, and Linda's and my love making really turned you on didn't it? You want to see for yourself. Should we tell Greg tonight or wait until morning?"

Angie responded dryly, "The only thing I want to talk to Greg about is why he has a pervert for a partner. I don't think my marriage is in any danger."

Andie continued, "If Linda thinks the arrest gives her some sort of leverage, she's wrong. She may offer to drop the charges if we drop the divorce or give her more favorable terms. We'll tell her if she doesn't drop the charges, we'll go after her for lying to the cops. Lying to the cops and having you arrested is no joke. And the divorce judge really won't like what she's done. This is just the sort of BS in divorces judges hate. Having you arrested will backfire against her."

"Can we sue the police and Linda for false arrest?"

Angie said, "I'm going to explain police policy; I'm not defending it. When they respond to a domestic incident, if the police believe there's a potential for harm, the police don't want to leave without making sure everyone's safe. If there's a restraining order or there's clear evidence of harm, they arrest right away. If there isn't clear evidence, they listen to the parties. If one of them says they're afraid, they are obliged to separate them. Unless one is trespassing, they can't just order either of them to leave. Even if one or the other agrees to leave, the cops can't be sure they won't come back and continue where they left off. Unless they make an arrest.

"The police checked Linda's ID. Her driver's license has your address as her home so she's not trespassing. They couldn't tell you to leave for the same reason. Linda told them she felt threatened, was afraid of what you might do, and that you've hit her before so they arrested you.

"Usually, unless there's a restraining order or there's evidence of harm, the person arrested is kept overnight and let go the next morning. That keeps the spouses away from each other so there's time for the parties to cool down. Usually, the accuser says she won't testify and the charges are dropped. If the accuser decides she wants to press charges, the D. A.'s office investigates to see if there's any history or current evidence of violence. If they can't find evidence to bring to trial, just 'he says, she says,' they tell the complainant that there's not enough proof to get a guilty verdict and they're dropping the charges. That's usually it.

"This sort of thing happens a lot in divorce cases. The wife believes that having her husband arrested will help her with the divorce. Look what she's been putting up with from her despicable husband. She deserves more in the divorce.

"In your case, Linda told the police to arrest you. Unless she drops this, the D. A.'s office is forced to investigate." Angie glanced over at me and said, "Unless there's something I don't know, they won't find anything and they'll drop the charges. Is there anything I should know?"

"No. What about a law suit?"

"No, at least not against the cops. It's S. O. P here to arrest if there's any possibility of physical harm. They responded to a call a couple of years ago and didn't arrest the husband. The guy killed his wife right after the cops left. So now they always arrest.

"If Linda swears to something that's not true, and we can prove it, then she's committed perjury. And we can go after her."

I stayed the night at Angie's and Greg's. Angie drove me home the next morning. She told me, "Leave the porch light on from now on. If you come home and see someone on your porch, drive away. If you look out the door and see Linda, don't open the door. And call me, not the cops."

That was Monday night and Tuesday morning. Tuesday afternoon, Angie called, "Linda is pursuing charges against you for domestic violence. I heard from the ADA who's handling your case. I know her pretty well and she's a straight shooter. She and I were in law school together.

"Linda told them you discovered her infidelity, forced her to write an confession, then beat her up and thew her out of your house. She didn't report that assault to the police because she was hoping to patch things up with you. She didn't want you even angrier because she had you arrested. But she did tell her parents that you beat her up after she left your place. Her parents will testify that when they asked her about her cuts and bruises, she told them you hit her. They took pictures of Linda's injuries soon after she arrived at their place. The ADA has their statements and the pictures. This is contemporaneous documentation, not something Linda told her parents weeks or months later. They're going forward with the prosecution.

"I convinced the ADA not to re-arrest you. I told her I'll be responsible for you. She seemed OK with that. You'll be arraigned tomorrow morning. You have to pick me up at 8am at my house. We have to be in court at 9am. She'll ask for bail and we'll deal with that.

"I can handle tomorrow but if this goes any further, you'll need to hire a criminal defense attorney. I can recommend one. But there's time. My guess is this is going to be more about your divorce than any crime she claims you committed. Let's see what happens."

I said, "I didn't touch her. I've never hit her. Her injuries are from what Beth did to her when she found Linda and Fred at the motel."

Angie responded, "Linda obviously planned this. With or without her parent's knowledge. It's now serious. They'll offer a deal to avoid a trial but you'll end up with a conviction for domestic violence. That will follow you for the rest of your life. Will Beth testify that she's the one who beat up Linda? Will she be able to look at the pictures of Linda's injuries and say she gave Linda those injuries?"

"Beth saw Linda when she dragged her husband to my house to confess his affair with Linda. Almost as soon as they arrived Beth looked Linda over and commented on the bruises on Linda's face. Something about her having let Linda off too easy. So if Linda claims that I beat her up after I found out about her affair, Beth, and Fred for that matter, can testify Linda had those injuries before I found out about anything. And that they're the result of Beth beating her up, not me."

Angie said, "So Beth has to say she beat Linda up in a motel the day before you found out about Linda's affair. And she also has to say that the injuries in the photos her parents took of Linda are the result of what she did and not another beating you gave her later before you threw her out. Beth will be admitting to a felony. Will she do that?"

"I don't know. I told you Beth's brother made a video of Beth hitting and kicking Linda in the motel room. Beth said she was going to destroy it. Maybe she didn't. I saw the video. It shows the damage Beth did to Linda. She wasn't in any worse shape when she arrived at her parents the following Sunday."

"I can't tell the ADA about Beth if Beth is simply going to deny she did anything to Linda. Probably the best way to approach Beth is for you to explain the situation to her and ask for her help. Are you comfortable talking to Beth?"

"I'll talk to Beth. I don't have much choice."

I called Beth and we arranged to meet at her house after she put her kids to bed. I didn't tell her why I wanted to talk to her. I arrived at Beth's at 9pm sharp. She let me in but told me her kids are in bed but not asleep yet. We have to be quiet or her kids will get up to say hello to me. Then the whole bedtime procedure begins all over again. "Let's talk in the kitchen. But speak softly."

I told her what happened with Linda. My arrest and Linda's claim that I beat her up. "I don't know what Linda's game is. But the only way out of this is if you are willing to come forward and say the injuries in the pictures her parents took are those you inflicted. No additional injuries. That gets me off the hook. Your coming forward also shows Linda lied to the prosecutor."

Beth stared at me for a while. A long time while I waited. Finally she said, "They can send me to jail. They can give my kids to Fred. It would also implicate my brother for beating up Fred. If you were me, what would you do?"

"Probably tell me to go fuck myself."

Beth sighed and said, "I don't want you to be hurt by something I did. If we can't figure out another way to get you out of this, I'll come forward. I don't believe you hit Linda but I'll need to look at the pictures her parents took to see if they show anything different from Linda's bruises and cuts when I saw her."

Beth looked at me, "Is there any other way? Than me admitting to beating her up?"

"I'll do my best to figure out something. Do you still have the video of you hitting Linda in the motel?"

Beth didn't answer for a while, "There's still a copy somewhere I think."

I said, "I want to push back against this. Is it OK if we tell Linda that you're going to testify that you gave her those injuries? It doesn't mean you have to testify. But if she thinks you will, and that we have a video of you beating her up, she may get the charges against me dropped. Linda knows you have a video. You showed it to me in front of her when you and Fred came to my house.

"We'll just tell Linda and her attorney that and see if we can scare them into dropping the charges. We won't tell the prosecution anything about you. Just Linda and her attorney."

Beth thought for almost a minute, "It seems to me you can tell them anything you want. If you think that'll work, her dropping it is the best solution."

I said, "Let's leave it like this. We'll tell Linda that you hate her so much you'll testify against her and show the video. If that doesn't work, Angie and I will try to figure out something else. Another way around this. If we can't, before we tell the prosecutor about you, we'll have another talk. In the meantime, think about it some more and maybe talk to your attorney. If you want to back out, I'll understand. But we won't involve you until you and I talk again." We left it at that.

I called Angie as I drove home, "Beth says she'll come forward if she has to. She'd be giving up a lot if she does. Maybe even her kids. I really want to keep her out of this.

"Beth's willing to let us tell Linda that she'll testify against her and that she has the video of her beating Linda up. As Beth said, we can tell them anything we want. That doesn't mean Beth will confirm or agree to any of this later. I told her we won't say anything about her to the prosecutor until she and I talk again. Linda knows Beth has or had a video. What do you think?"

Angie replied, "I don't think Linda is doing this because she wants you to go to jail. Although, with Linda, who knows? I think we'll hear from her attorney. My guess is she'll tell us she'll drop the prosecution if we give her something in return regarding the divorce. There's time. Let's see if we get a call from Linda's lawyer and I'm right that Linda wants to use your arrest as a bargaining chip."

I was arraigned Wednesday morning. Felony domestic violence. My bail was set at $50,000 which Angie handled through a bail bondsman. Linda's antics cost me $5000 plus what Angie is going to charge. Angie says that in a plea bargain they'll probably be willing to reduce it to misdemeanor DV. But I don't want to be convicted of either charge.

Wednesday afternoon, Angie called me, "We heard from Linda's lawyer, Margo. Linda is willing to drop the DV charge if we agree to six months of marriage counseling."

"She has me arrested and now she wants to talk about our marriage? Tell her attorney Linda needs counseling. She's crazy."

Angie replied, "I don't think they're after counseling. My guess is that they understand you'll say no to counseling and then they'll offer to drop counseling if...... I don't know, maybe alimony or a better division of assets for her or even your townhouse. What she thinks you'll trade to avoid prosecution."

"What'd you say?"

"That I'll talk to you. So we know this is just a way of getting something from you in the divorce. Linda doesn't want to go to court. She knows that Beth is out there and Beth can testify about what really happened. Now's the time to tell Linda and her attorney that we have Beth ready to testify that Linda's lying.

"I'll call Margo back now. I'll tell her we'll give Linda until the end of the day Friday to tell the ADA to drop the charges or first thing Monday morning we'll give the ADA Beth to depose along with the video. We'll see what happens. It'll be embarrassing if Beth doesn't come through for us but I'll take the chance. Linda knows that we're not making up what Beth can tell the ADA. Her lawyer will explain the possible consequences of making false statements to the police and the DA's office."

I got a call from Angie just before 5pm on Friday. She just heard from the ADA. Linda is refusing to testify against me so the charges have been dropped. I asked Angie, "Can Linda decide she wants to testify at some point in the future? Can the charges be reinstated?"

Angie replied, "The ADA said that Linda told her that she's not going to testify because Linda thinks she can still save her marriage. That's not uncommon. The spouse says they want to try to work it out and putting the husband in jail isn't going to help with that. So, yeah, Linda can go back some day and say she's ready to testify. But Beth is still there to testify that Linda is lying and there's still the video.

"The real question is if the DA's office will charge you again. Linda flaked out once so the DA won't want to invest time and resources into reopening the prosecution and chance her flaking out again. I told you that I know the ADA fairly well. She told me they had to bring charges but she always thought the case was sketchy. Linda said that you beat her up on Sunday after she was finished writing her confession and then threw her out of your home. She went directly to her parents who took the pictures of her injuries right after Linda arrived. But Linda's bruises in the pictures weren't fresh. They were at least a few days old. It's clear they didn't happen in the hours right before the pictures were taken. Linda would have been more credible if she said you beat her up on the Friday after Beth and her husband told you about her affair.

"Anyway, Linda's refusal to testify gives them an excuse to close the case. If Linda comes back and says she now wants to pursue charges, this ADA will tell her she missed her chance. They can't waste time with on again, off again cases. They won't reopen it. You're off the hook.

"I haven't heard from Margo, Linda's attorney, but I'm guessing that they'll begin negotiations on the settlement we sent them. It's too late today to call Margo. I'll call first thing Monday and tell them to sign the settlement, propose changes or we'll going to ask for a court date and let a judge decide everything."

I thanked Angie and told her I want my $5000 bail deposit back. Angie said, "You can kiss that money goodbye. If you want, we'll ask Linda for the money. Is the $5K something you want to fight and die over?"

"Let's see what they want. But, yeah, ask for the $5k. She owes that to me."

We got off the phone and I called Beth. She picked up and I said, "Linda had the charges against me dropped so you won't be involved. Telling her that you were ready to prove she was lying did the trick. Thanks for offering to help but it looks like it's over. Angie says they won't reopen the case even if Linda wants them to."

Beth said, "Thank God. I was really worried about that. You're back to just getting a divorce?"

"Yup." We talked about our upcoming support group meeting. I asked if she's heard from Jim.

"I called him but he still sounds miserable. It's going to take him a while to get over finding out Tim's not his biological son. We have to help him." I agreed and we got off.

Angie called me on Monday after she talked to Margo. "Margo says Linda is willing to sign a settlement but she wants half of everything and alimony. I told her we'll see her in court. If she wants to waste everyone's time, she can make her demands to the judge. That's where we left it. Hopefully, Margo will talk some sense into Linda. Oh, by the way, Linda is not going to reimburse you for the $5K you gave the bail bondsman."

"What do we do?"

"We wait. Linda is going to sign the divorce settlement. She can't have her dirty linen aired in public at a divorce hearing. She can't chance her employer hearing she's had these inappropriate relationships with co-workers, including one she supervises. They won't have any choice but to fire her. We won't get to court. She's just waiting to see if we blink first. We won't."

Margo and Angie talked almost every day following their Monday talk. Margo would suggest this or that revision to our settlement. Angie said she always answers with, "Nope."

After about ten days of this, we were down to Linda keeps the engagement ring I gave her and gets the newer of the two cars we own jointly. She's not giving me the $5K. She'll sign the divorce settlement Angie prepared with those revisions. Angie asked, "What do you want to do?"

"I want the engagement ring and the newer car. And the $5K."

"I'll let them know."

"Angie called me back about an hour later, "You get the engagement ring back but she gets the newer car. She says you purchased both cars together and she's been driving the new car. She's not giving you the $5K. I have the information about your two cars in the list of assets you gave me. We looked up Blue Book on the two cars and you're talking about a couple of hundred dollars difference. If I have to keep going back and forth with this shit, you're going to spend more money paying me than the difference in the value of the two cars. Give her the fucking car she wants."

"OK."

"Also, forget the $5K. After she pays Margo, she won't have $5K to pay you. Let it go."

"OK."

That was on Wednesday. I swung by Angie's office and signed the revised divorce paperwork on the way home. I asked Angie, "Once Linda's signed this, can she back out?"

"She can try but what is she going to say? She didn't know what she was signing? She has an attorney who advising her and we negotiated for weeks. A judge isn't going to say, "You changed your mind? No problem. We'll just tear everything up and start over." Linda and Margo are coming tomorrow morning to sign the paperwork here. Once she's signed, that's it. We submit it to the court and wait for a judge to sign the divorce decree. You should be divorced in the next thirty to sixty days. Depends on how backed up the judge is."

"Call me after it's done tomorrow." Angie gave me a thumbs up and I left. Shortly after 11am the next morning I had a signed, sealed and delivered divorce agreement.

Time to get Linda fired. I found an email for Linda's HR director and sent him the DM's Linda sent to Carol and Janet describing Linda's affair with her employee Billy. I included the picture of Linda sitting on Billy's lap at a bar. I left Fred out of it for Beth's sake. Also, the guy Linda was fucking in marketing. Linda's DMs about him implicate Fred as Linda's lover.

I went back and forth about using my email or creating a fake email to use. I wanted Linda to know it's me who's getting her fired but I wanted deniability. I ended up using a fake email account.

The HR director didn't know who I was, I didn't tell him anything about myself, so he didn't know if I was someone he should be concerned about. Someone he has to be nice to. I got a response back from him: they suspended Linda and Billy while they investigate. The investigation, he emailed a week later, resulted in Linda being fired for violating strict company policies about relationships between managers and their employees. Billy was asked to resign and he did.

I got a long voicemail from Linda. She sounded a bit drunk and she went from calling me all sorts of names, to self-pity about what she's going to do now, and then back to calling me names. She mentioned a few times how sorry she is that she had the charges against me dropped. I saved her voicemail. If I ever begin to miss the good old days with Linda, I'll just play that voicemail.

It's now about six months after Linda was fired. The support sessions Beth, Jim and I were doing petered out. Mostly, I think, because Jim and Beth wanted to spend time together as a couple and I really did become a third wheel. But we still see each other occasionally, have dinner together.

Where's Nico? Jim needs to interact with Carol about Timmy and money and their interactions are civil. Carol and Janet remain friends so Jim asked Carol if there's any news about Nico and their daughter. Jim told Beth and me, "Carol says Janet told her, 'Nico left work right after his lawyer called to tell him there was an emergency custody hearing in two days, the following Friday morning. Janet wanted to get custody of Sylvie. Nico didn't show up for work the next day or call in. His cell number was out of service. Janet's father went by their apartment to check on his granddaughter. When he arrived, there were men taking the furniture out of the apartment. They weren't putting it in a moving van but into a big trash container, the kind you see at construction sites.'

"'Janet's father asked one of the guys if they knew where Nico is, the guy who lives in the apartment. The guy told Janet's father that they were given keys, told to toss everything left in the apartment and then give the keys to the resident manager. Her father went to talk to the manager. She said Nico called and told her he's giving up the apartment. He'd be gone in the next few days. He'll hire some guys to get the furniture out. They'll have the apartment keys and will give them to the manager when they're finished. There is no forwarding address and no way to reach Nico. When the manager asked about where to send the security deposit, Nico said they can keep it. The manager told Janet's father that's all she knows.'

"Carol continued, 'Janet told me her parents forced her to get an attorney, a guy at the law firm her father uses for his business. Her parents wanted to get Janet custody and they wanted to settle the custody issue as quickly as possible. Janet said her parents didn't believe that Nico would take Sylvie and disappear. And, her parents argued, if that's really Nico's plan, they better get the daughter before he can make arrangements to leave. They convinced Janet they could get custody before Nico could take off with their daughter.'

"Carol said she asked Janet, 'How can he just take off? Where would he go with a young daughter?'

"Janet told her, 'Nico was in the military. He was accepted into special operations training and had to fulfill a thirty-six-month commitment to the army after training. Some of the guys he trained with left after the thirty-six months to hire on with military contractors or to set up their own paramilitary shops. The pay is way, way better than the army pays so some guys leave for the private sector as soon as they can. Many of these paramilitary organizations are headquartered in the Middle East or Africa so, as long as they keep their host country happy, no one cares who they hire or what they do.'

"Janet told Carol, 'The army taught Nico a unique set of skills. Nico trained as a weapons specialist. Just the skills these paramilitary organizations are looking for and pay plenty for. Since he left the military, Nico got constant calls from recruiters hoping to get him to join up with them.'

"After Janet and Nico married, they talked about him joining up with one of these private military contractors. After a few years he'd make enough money that they could do what they want, go where they want. But Nico insisted if he were to sign up, Janet and their baby daughter had to come with him. He would sign up with a paramilitary organization that provided accommodations for his family. Janet told him she's not going to some far off country. Their life is here. If Nico wanted to go off and fight, he's going to do that without his family. She also said she doesn't understand why anyone would want to go to some backwater and spend years getting shot at.

"'According to Nico,' Janet told Carol, 'some guys sign up with these contractors because they have nowhere else to go. They're wanted men in the U. S. or Interpol is looking for them. If they have the right skills, they get new identities, new passports, the whole works if that's what they need. No one cares about their past, just their skill set. Nico had his pick of outfits to join. Janet believes that Nico and Sylvie have new identities and are living somewhere overseas. No one has heard from Nico since Angie told him about the emergency custody hearing."

So here's where the rest of us are now. My divorce is final. All that Linda got was the newer car and a division of assets which favored me. And terminated from her job. Jim says Carol and Linda have remained friends. Carol told Jim Linda's is trying to make a go of it as a realtor a few towns over. I couldn't care less.

Fred is still working at the place Linda was fired from. Beth and Fred are fighting it out over division of assets, primarily the house, and the amount of spousal and child support Jim has to pay. They're waiting to get before a judge. At the earlier emergency hearing about money that Beth requested, Fred was ordered to pay her spousal and child support. She and her kids are still living in their house so she's good. Beth says that her attorney told her not to worry. She'll come out all right in their divorce. Fred won't be living on the street in a cardboard box but his accommodations won't be much of a step up from that.

Jim says, according to Carol, Janet isn't doing well. She blames her parents for forcing her to take Nico to court to get custody and making him disappear. Janet also told Carol that, a few months back, Janet's boyfriend Tommy was severely beaten on his way home from work early one morning. It wasn't a mugging: his money, watch, nothing was taken. Tommy told the police that there were two assailants but he's not able to identify them. After his assault, Tommy completely ghosted Janet. He refuses to have any contact with her. Janet's living with her parents and spends much of the day in bed. She's in therapy, something her parents insisted on.

Jim and Carol are also divorced. The big surprise is that Jim didn't fight for his son Tim and let Carol have custody. Jim is not paying alimony but decided to be generous with child support.

I asked Jim why he didn't try to get custody of Tim. He said, "I'll support Timmy and I still spend time with him but he should be with his real parent. That's not me."