Deceptions Abound

"What about Bowman?"

She was reluctant to tell me something I already knew but she didn't know I was aware of her date.

"I let Mom talk me into allowing Ted to take me out to dinner. She was convinced you were cheating on me and I should get even. I was so confused I didn't know half the time what I was doing, Patrick. I'm so sorry. I went out with him one night but it turned into a fiasco. Some drunk picked a fight with Ted and pretty much ended the evening for us. Pat, I wasn't going to do anything other than have dinner with the man. I knew what he wanted but I wasn't going there, you believe me?"

I nodded and said yes. "Was that the only time you went out with him?"

She quickly nodded but added, "He did invite me to go with him to Chez Ramonde's. I have to tell you Pat, I was almost tempted. I've never been to Chez's and I was dying to see it. He was pretty upset when I told him I wasn't interested. So was Mom. When she wouldn't let it drop, that was when I went home and found you on the couch."

"Did you put the blanket over me?"

Dani smiled and nodded. "I saw the empty Jack Daniels bottle on the floor. I knew you'd be out until morning so I covered you up and slept in the bedroom. When I heard you in the bathroom, I tried talking to you. I wanted to help you but you were so angry, I fled back to the bedroom. I was on the bed when you stumbled in and fell against the bedpost. Oh Patrick, I was so frightened by all the blood. I thought I'd lost you."

I ran my hand over her hair as I held her close. "Well, you didn't. You rescued me again. I always seem to fall for you."

She laughed at my pun and kissed me.

The next day, I was able to leave the hospital. They only held me over for observation in case I had a concussion, which I did...but a mild one. They wheeled me out of the lobby and Dani was standing there waiting by the car. Once free of the hospital, she drove me home. We didn't say anything until she pulled into the garage.

"Patrick, why don't you go into the bedroom and get some rest, I'll be back shortly."

"Why, where are you going?"

"Oh...just have some unfinished business to take care of, nothing important. But, I want you well rested for tonight!"

I admit I was a little leery. Dani seemed to be up to something. "Dani, is everything good between us now?"

She hesitated before looking at me and said, "Yes...everything is fine. Now, get some rest. Take this prescription medication and get—some—rest. I'll see you in a bit." She leaned over and kissed me and waited as I got out of the car. I watched as she backed out, waive and drive away.

I went inside and shuffled into the kitchen grabbing some aspirin. Downing three of the pills, I nabbed a glass of ice water and moved into the family room settling into my recliner. I read the label for the prescription medication and noted it said to take only one. Shit, this is some potent stuff, I thought, I don't need this right now. Sipping some of the water, I eased back and closed my eyes. Within minutes, I was out.

"Shhh...be careful with him. I don't want him hurt."

"Fuck, alright already...help me with him. He's not a light weight."

I don't know how long I slept but I could hear my wife and someone else talking and trying to pull me out of the chair. They must have thought I had taken the meds and was safe to move me. Something wasn't quite right about all this, who the fuck was the guy? I decided to play along and see where this led.

"Shit, Pat...I forgot how big you are," said my wife, sounding three sheets to the wind, as she and her companion carried me down the hallway and into our bedroom. They laid me onto the bed and, with Dani pulling from the other side; the guy pushed me into the center.

"Now what?" she asked.

"Now, we tie him to the bed. And, make sure the rope is tight. When he sees me fucking you, he's going to want to kill us both," her companion said.

"God, am I doing the right thing?"

"He fucked another woman and you're going to even the score. Come on Dani, you want him to see how it feels to see his wife fucked by another man! Once we do this, maybe...maybe we...ah...you can finally move on."

I didn't hear her reply but felt her little toadie grab my left hand and wrap cord around my wrist. Before he realized what was happening, I curled my hand around his wrist and twisted hard. I was satisfied by the sound of a snapped wrist and a piercing scream.

Holding the screaming asshole, I scrambled off the bed and stared at a surprised, frightened and suddenly sober Dani.

"You stupid fucking bitch! You royally screwed the pooch this time Dani! And, here I thought things were going to be good with us but, fuck no, you just couldn't believe the man you supposedly loved these past twenty years, could you? Well Dani, let me tell you what's been going on.

Your sweet loving mother set us up, or at least you...you stupid cunt. Olivia paid Crystal ten thousand dollars to pose for some sleazy private investigator. He doctored the photos to make it look like your close friend, Crystal, and I were having sex. Crystal was paid by your fucking cunt of a mother to betray you."

"YOU ARE FUCKING CRAZY, PAT! My mother would never do that. You're trying to deflect the blame for what you and Crystal did and, like the wimp bastard you are, won't admit it."

I stared at her, fury and rage twisting the woman I loved into a something repulsive. I looked at Ted Bowman kneeling on the floor holding his injured limb whimpering like a baby. He flinched as I stepped over him for the closet, reached in and slid my hand into the pocket of my jacket. Pulling out my voice recorder, I threw it at her.

"When you have the time, listen to what you refuse to believe, you stupid bitch. I'm out of here. Make sure you and this lowlife piece of shit is out of here by the time I get back!" I looked at Ted and shook my head in sympathy. "You dumbass; I told you what would happen if you tried anything funny. All bets are off now. You're on that recorder too, you dumbshit. Oh, and both of you...don't worry about destroying that recording, I've got copies for my lawyer."

Stomping into the kitchen, I grabbed my bag from the hospital, snagged the keys to my truck and bolted from the house. Seconds later, the neighbors heard the screech of my tires as I tore out of the neighborhood.

******************************

Dani stood there, her chest heaving as she seethed from the confrontation with Patrick. That son of a bitch has the audacity to blame my mother for his fucking around, she angrily thought.

"Fuck, my wrist hurts," cried Ted Bowman still on the floor next to the bed.

Dani stared at the moaning Ted and moved toward him helping him to sit on the bed. "Here, let me look at that. Oh god, I'm so sorry Ted, Pat must have fractured the wrist when he grabbed you. We'd better get that looked at."

Still holding the little voice recorder, she stuffed it into her pocket and helped Ted to her car. At the hospital, she waited as his wrist was x-rayed and then sat with Ted until the doctor returned.

"Mr. Bowman, it's not fractured...just a simple sprain. Let me wrap this wrist and take this. It's a prescription for an inflammatory."

"Doctor, you sure my wrist isn't broken? I'm in a lot of pain here."

"It's not broken Mr. Bowman. When you get home, wrap some ice around it to stop the swelling. In a few days, it should be better."

"Thank you, Doctor," said Dani as she followed a grumbling Ted from the ER room.

"Ted, let me take you home. Your car is at my mother's but I don't know if you can drive."

Dani saw Ted smile and nod saying, "Thank you but I'd rather get my car. Besides, I think you need a friend tonight."

"Thanks Ted, I...I'd like that."

As she pulled into her mother's driveway, her mother came out. Dani could see she had been crying.

"Momma, what's wrong?"

"It's your father!"

"Daddy? What's wrong with Dad? Is he alright? Where is he?" Dani was running to her mother as she asked about her father.

"He's...he has left me!" her mother wailed.

"What! Why?"

"I...I don't know," simpered Olivia as Dani helped her into the house, Ted following close behind. "We had a fight and he said he had had enough, packed a suitcase and left. He wouldn't tell me where!"

"Mom, you must have some idea why he would just leave like that! What was the fight about?"

Dani helped her mother into a chair and she went into the kitchen to get her a glass of water. When she returned, she again asked, "What was the fight about?"

Olivia's red eyes stared up into her daughters and sobbed. "Mom, tell me...what happened between you and Dad? Tell me!"

"It was...it was over you and Patrick!" she wailed.

"Me and Patrick? What about me and Patrick?" asked Dani.

"I told him Patrick didn't deserve you and that he cheated on you and refused to confess his affairs. Your father disagreed and said I was trying to set Patrick up, trying to railroad him into a divorce. He wouldn't believe me when I told him how wrong he was. We got into a horrible fight and he packed up and left me. Oh Dani, your father left me!"

Dani was blown away by all this. What was going on? She thought. First, Crystal tells her about her affair with Patrick. Despite photos and Crystal's confession, Pat denies ever touching Crystal. Then, her moving in with her parents and agreeing to go out with Ted Bowman, shit what a disaster that was. Somehow, she knew Pat was involved with that little fiasco. Finding Pat in the house, unconscious. Getting Ted to help her get even and now her father leaving.

Leaving her mother with Ted, she went into her room and closed the door. She fell on the bed and started crying. She missed Patrick something terrible but how could she forgive him without getting even, making him understand her pain. Dani heard a soft knock at her door.

She sniffled hearing Ted's voice gently ask "Dani? You alright? Can I come in?"

A second later, he opened the door and stepped into her bedroom. After entering, he closed and locked the door. She felt him sit on the bed and begin to rub her shoulders and neck, his touch felt good.

Still sniffling, she could feel his palms travel down her back and slowly back up. She moaned as his fingers dug into her flesh massaging the muscles. They moved upward until they settled over her bra strap, the fingers gently caressing her skin beneath. When his hand fell away, she realized her strap was loose. Now both his hands were sliding over her skin beneath her blouse, his finger tips lightly stroking the soft curves of the sides of her breasts.

A gentle kiss fell on the back of her neck and continued along her shoulders. She languished in the soft touch of those lips on her bare skin as she felt the other hand ever so softly slide over her ass and down the back of her upper thigh. When the fingers slid upward, they explored her more intimate region, gently pushing against her crotch. She felt herself becoming moist as Pat began to fondle her pussy through her...wait, it wasn't Pat, it was Ted, and he was the one touching her, kissing her...not her husband.

"What the fuck are you doing, Ted! Get out of here!"

"Come on Dani, you know you need this...forget about Pat, he's with someone else by now," crooned Ted as he slid his hand inside her pants, fingers sliding into the crack of her ass. "Besides, weren't we about to do this earlier in front of your husband?"

She spun around and kicked him off the bed, Ted flying backward striking the wall. "I said get the fuck out of here! I made the mistake of getting drunk and listening to you and mother! But, no more...get out!" she screamed.

Ted looked at her dazed then scrambled up throwing open the door and running out. Seconds later, her mother ran in and cried, "What's wrong, why did Ted run out of the house?"

"Mom, he was trying to seduce me in my bedroom!" she sobbed.

"Dani, the man likes you, he wants to be with you...Dani he's a fine catch!"

Dani turned and stared in shock at her mother. "What? You approve of what he was trying to do, to have sex with me...now...in my room? Please leave mother, I want to be alone."

"Now, now baby..."

"Please leave...now mother!"

Olivia was startled by her daughter's demand and stood. "Well, when you're feeling better, call me. We need to talk." Olivia looked down at her daughter before she left the room. Dani immediately got up and shut the door making sure it was locked.

Dani was so confused. Ted was right when he said they were going to have sex in front of Pat but she had been so angry at her husband then. She didn't feel that way now.

"What the fuck is going on?" She sobbed. She sat up and re-hooked her bra and straightened her clothing. As she smoothed out her pants, she felt an object in her pants pocket. Reaching in, she removed a small silver voice recorder.

What did he mean by 'listen to what I refuse to believe?' she thought. She sat on the edge of the bed and turned the recorder on. Immediately, she recognized her friend, or ex-friend, Crystal's voice. Dani sat there dumbfounded by what she heard. Patrick was right all along, her mother set her up!

"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, Patrick, what have I done?" she cried. Dani fell back on the bed, her faced shoved in the pillow muffling the sounds of her bawling. Soon, she had fallen asleep. A rap on the door failed to rouse her as her mother tried to enter.

"Dani? Dani, you all right?" Not receiving an answer, Olivia picked the lock and found her daughter fast asleep. It was evident she had been crying for awhile. As she approached, she shook Dani's shoulder but her daughter didn't stir but she did notice an object clutched in Dani's fist. She gently pried the device away and wondered what it was. After a moment, she understood it was a voice recorder or player. Pressing a small button with a green arrow, she frowned when she heard her son-in-law's voice emanate from the recorder. As she listened, she gasped as she heard Crystal's voice telling Patrick about how his mother-in-law set him up. She told him about the private investigator, the doctored photos and the ten thousand. She screamed when she next heard Ted Bowman's voice explain what Olivia had tried to do. Oh my god, she thought, no wonder Harvey left her. And, now she would lose the only thing precious to her, Dani.

Despair quickly turned to rage and then hate as she thought of Patrick. He did this; he turned her family against her. Olivia shrieked and leapt off the bed running to her own bedroom. She rummaged through the top shelf of her closet, finding her father's old Colt revolver. She remembered when he taught her how to shoot and clean the gun. Opening the cylinder, she quickly loaded the handgun with .357 magnum rounds from the box of ammo her father gave her. Snapping the cylinder shut, she placed the four inch revolver into her handbag and grabbed the keys to the Cadillac. Time to finally take care of that bastard of a son-in-law, she thought as she ran from the house.

Dani awoke when she heard the front door slam shut. For a moment, she thought her mother was trying to wake her and pulled her hands up discovering the recorder was gone. She searched for the little machine but didn't find it. When she saw the bedroom door open she realized her mother must have gotten inside. She's got the recorder, Dani thought. Shit, if she heard it she knows she's been discovered. Dear god, what is she going to do? Worried Dani. I've got to find Pat.

*****************************

I had no idea of the latest developments. I only knew that I was belly up to the counter of The Hold in the Wall sucking down dark drafts caring less about Dani, her mother or Ted fucking Bowman. She wants him, she can have him. I'm done with all of them. They could all screw themselves silly. That fucking harpy of a mother-in-law finally got what she wanted, me out of her life.

"Think you had enough, Pat?" The deep voice boomed across the counter and I stared into the enormous black eyes of Black Mike, a six-five, three hundred pound behemoth of African descent and one of my closest friends.

"Nah, I can still think. How bout another boiler maker?"

"Sure...as long as you stay here the night, okay?"

Black Mike always kept a room open in the back for his close friends.

"Yeah, yeah...no problem. Just as long as I can no longer see my wife's face banging around in my brain pan. Then you can do anything you want with me."

Black Mike laughed and brought me another draft with a shot of Jamison's Irish whiskey for a chaser.

"Ahhh..., there ya go Mike! You are definitely one in a million. Hey, what do ya think of gay marriages? I'm gonna be available soon. Ya may not be a beautiful blond with big tits but ya got a bar."

"No, don't think so Pat, Carol doesn't like sharing."

"Shit, forgot bout her. Crap, she'd kick my ass for sure. Forget what I said. Just keep the brew a comin."

"Okay Pat."

Mike walked away as I dropped the shot glass in the beer. Staring at the foam, I drew the glass to my lips and with effort tried to drown my sorrows in the cold amber liquid. It wasn't much longer before I felt someone pull me off the stool and help me into the back room and bed. I had enough presence of mind to feel myself stripped down to my skivvies before I passed out for good.

The next morning, I opened my eyes and regretted doing so the instant my eyelids were able to pull away from the buildup of crust that tried to glue the two lids together. My eyeballs suffered a flash fire of blinding sunlight causing me to cry out and squeeze my eyes shut.

"Back with the living I see, about time too. It's going on two o'clock in the afternoon."

Groaning my frustration, I growled, "What the fuck are you doing here? I thought I made it very clear we were done, over, through, finished, kaput, finito!"

Startled, I could only stare as Dani started crying, no...not crying but sobbing uncontrollably. What the hell, I thought to myself. Then, I remembered. I threw the recorder at her. She must have listened to it after all.

"Patrick...sniff...I...I am so very...sob...sorry. Please, PLEASE forgive me, Patrick...honey!"

"Heard the recording did you?" I asked scornfully.

Between sniffles and gasping for air, she nodded. "Yes, I heard everything. I still can't believe my own mother capable of such an insidious betrayal of our marriage. Jesus, I am so, so sorry for what I put you through." She turned away and muttered, "I don't deserve you Patrick, I am nothing more than a vindictive bitch!"

I closed my eyes savoring those words. For the moment, I didn't give a rat's ass for her god damn apologies. I had tried to tell her over and over she was wrong but would she give me a chance. Well, fuck her!

"Dani, you have fucked me over for the last time. I've always been number two in your life and you know it! Olivia has done her best to try and break up our marriage and, now, she may have succeeded." I sat up, moved off the bed and began pacing around the room. "You know, in many ways you're just like her. You jump to conclusions, won't listen to reason and constantly disrespect me. The best thing that came out of this marriage is Katy and Ash and they're old enough now to handle our separation and divorce."

"Divorce...please Pat, no!"

"Why not? You were going to dump me before you discovered the truth! You were leaving me without any explanation...so why should I do otherwise? Tell me, why?"

Dani sat on the edge of the bed, her face hidden in her hands, her body quivering from her deep sobbing. "I...I love you, honey. I love you so much, that's why I lost it when Crystal confessed about your affair."

"There was no fucking affair, Dani!"

"I know that now but at the time I didn't. She was very convincing and she had those damned photos of the two of you. Pat, you know I don't know much about that kind of technology. I would never have been able to see they were fakes."