Second Chance, Book 01

She had tried to keep things normal that morning. Brent was usually up an hour before the children and would be gone before they rose. For once, she was grateful. There were no explanations to be made. It was a Thursday, and she dreaded Saturday, or for that matter, the next two nights. What excuse would she have for his absence tonight and Friday and then finally, the weekend. She thought about telling the children the truth, but they were so young and innocent. They would never understand; especially Andrea. There had to be something she could say ... there had to be.

As Andrea and Scott left for school, Jeanette picked up the phone and called The Wagon Wheel. There was no answer at this early hour, and she left a message on the answering machine that she wouldn't be in today and that she would call later to explain. She was deeply afraid that if Brent had left her, she would have to provide for herself and the children and she would need a job. This one, as bad as the situation was, paid very well and since she had no other skills, she would need to keep it for as long as she could. It was the worst of all solutions and yet the only one that she could think of.

She thought of phoning Lloyd and asking if he had heard from Brent, but rejected that when she thought of the questions that it would generate. She had tried his cell again and again, but no answer. She had left several messages, but there was no answer. Was he ever going to talk to her again? There had to be someone she could talk to. Think girl, think! She couldn't call Elaine. Adam was Brent's best friend and she would die of embarrassment if Elaine knew what she had done. There had to be someone. Finally, she knew there was only one person she could call who wouldn't blow the whole mess wide open. Her sister, Joanne.

"Jo, it's me, Jeanette. I need to talk to you. It's bad, Jo. Brent has found out. He knows and he's left me. I don't know what to do, Jo. I need to talk to you. Please!" She hung up. She hated answering machines. They were so impersonal and unresponsive. She would just have to wait for her sister to call back. She would understand. She was the one who had got her into this mess in the first place. She poured her third cup of coffee and sat at the kitchen table with her head in her hands. She felt almost barren of hope.

Chapter 6:

Adam knocked on Lloyd's door frame and the big man, currently on the phone, waved him in. Adam closed the door behind him and Lloyd's eyes widened in surprise. He finished his conversation quickly and hung up.

"What's up, Adam?"

"I'm afraid we've got a problem, Lloyd. Something horrible happened yesterday and I don't know what to do about it."

Lloyd had sat up in his chair to pay close attention. "What happened?"

Adam began to tell the story of the birthday lunch and what had spawned it and how they were having a bit of fun until that fateful moment. He related with pain the moment that Brent had recognized Jeanette on the stage and the aftermath. Both Adam and John were very worried about their friend and both had tried to call him on his cell with no result. Adam had called the house, but it just went to the answering machine. He was afraid to call after the supper hour because he didn't know what had happened when Brent went home. He finished his story and sat waiting for Lloyd to respond.

"The poor bastard. No wonder he wants to meet with me privately." Lloyd was looking down at his desk, lost in thought.

"He does? Where are you going to meet him? I need to be there! We've got to help him!" Adam exclaimed.

"Adam, I think it's better if I meet with him alone. He doesn't sound very good, and I don't want to overwhelm him. He must be in shock, and maybe angry. I need to find out what he's thinking and what he wants to talk about. I know you're his good friend, but he called me and I think it's a good idea to let him have his say. Maybe we'll know more when I get back. In the meantime, I want to talk to the sales group, specifically the guys that were at that lunch yesterday."

"Lloyd, someone invited Ron Dixon to that lunch. I have no idea who or why, but he and Dave Terry knew what was going to happen. Both of them knew Jeanette was going to be on that stage and they set this up. Those two assholes are going to answer to me before this is over," Adam spat.

"Cool it, Adam. I assume she was there of her own free will. I don't have any time for Ron, and Dave should know that's not how we act in this place, but just the same, it was Jeanette who chose to be on that stage. Let me find out where Brent is coming from and we can talk then. In the meantime, let's try and keep this from getting all over the place."

"Too late for that, boss. Ron has been telling everyone and anyone about it. He's out to fuck Brent for that problem at the last Christmas party. He now has the perfect way to get even and he's sticking it in to the hilt. I thought he should have been fired last year, but I see that's not part of the corporate doctrine. Groping another guy's wife is allowed, I guess," Adam said in a disgusted voice.

"Cut it out, Adam!" Lloyd said, raising his voice uncharacteristically. "You know better than that. He didn't get away with anything. He's been reprimanded and it's on his record and he knows that the next time that he as much as farts in public, he's gone!"

"Well, show me then. If this isn't the most destructive thing he could do to an employee, I don't know what is. If he gets away with this, he's going to gloat for years about how he didn't just get even, he got ahead." Adam turned, opened the door and stormed out of the office, almost banging into Henry on his way to his office.

"What's got into his bonnet?" the rotund general manager asked.

"Close the door, boss. I've got a sad tale to tell you," Lloyd began.

They were behind closed doors for over an hour while Lloyd told the story Adam had given him, followed by the ensuing discussion of the likely consequences. In the end, Henry let it be known, in no uncertain terms, that he would be with Lloyd when they met Brent at the park that noon. Lloyd knew from experience that there was no talking him out of it. He wondered to himself just how much would be accomplished at this meeting. Finally, at a little before noon, the two men left the office and drove toward Montrose Park.

Chapter 7:

Brent wasn't surprised to see Henry with Lloyd when their car pulled up next to his. He was sitting at a picnic bench and stood as the two men approached. In front of him were a bag of deli sandwiches and several cans of ice tea.

"Mornin' Brent," Lloyd said in a serious tone, but with his hand extended.

"I see you needed a partner on this call," Brent said with a faint smile.

Henry shook Brent's hand and looked him straight in the eye. "I heard what happened yesterday. I can't guess what's going through your head right now, but I'll bet it isn't good."

"Adam told me," Lloyd explained.

"Figured he would. It wasn't going to be a secret anyway. I'll bet Dixon is having fun with it, though. I wondered why he was there," the grim-faced salesman said.

"Fuck Dixon. I'll look after that bastard. I let H.R. talk me out of firing him last Christmas and now look what's happened. He's gone ... take it to the bank!" Henry spat.

"Yah, well, it was Jeanette on that stage, Henry. I'm still trying to understand what in hell would make her think that was OK." The bewildered look on his face mirrored his every thought.

"There's only one way to find out," Lloyd said. "Ask her. You won't know anything until you talk to her. You guys have been married a long time. Strange things can happen to people. She may be able to make you understand. You'll only know if you talk to her."

"Yah, well ... I know I'm going to have to sooner or later, but I can't handle it right now. I'm too fucked up to think straight and I'm not sure I wouldn't do or say something I couldn't take back later. I need some time to cool off." His voice was steadier now and he had better command of his thoughts.

"What can we do to help?" Lloyd asked.

"Well ... I guess this won't come as a big surprise, but I've decided to resign." With that, he reached into his jacket pocket and withdrew an envelope. "Here's my letter."

"Hey ... whoa ... you can't quit now. You're one step away from my job. You know it's there for you," Lloyd exclaimed.

"Lloyd ... think about it. How am I going to run a sales department after what happened yesterday? I'll never have the respect of the guys. What about social events? Jeanette wouldn't be able to show her face. The gossip, the stories -- you know better than I do how people will react." Brent spoke with the voice of finality. He had thought it out and he was convinced there was no alternative.

It was Henry who brought some clarity to the discussion. "Look, Brent, I want you to do something as a personal favor to me. I want you to take a paid leave of absence. It won't be common knowledge and I can't let it go on indefinitely, but whatever comes from this, you still have a wife and family to look after. Give me some time to think too. Give me a chance to look at what options we've got. The last thing I want is to lose a good employee. This is a rotten situation, but let's not assume it isn't fixable. Can you do that?"

"Yah ... sure ... I can do that. I appreciate what you're doing, Henry ... Lloyd. I hate like hell to leave, but I don't see any other way and still have some self-respect. I'll let you know where I'll be. For now, just call my cell."

"In the meantime, this letter will remain in my desk, unopened. I just hope it stays that way," HENRY said.

They ate their sandwiches almost in silence as the warmth of the sun helped improve the atmosphere of the meeting. They exchanged small talk and Brent reviewed what was urgent on his agenda. Adam, Johnny, and Lloyd would look after the work. They had already volunteered. Brent smiled as he thought of his friends. At last, the lunch was over and Brent stood up.

"I'll be in touch, Lloyd. I'm pretty sure I will go back home in a day or so. I'm sure Jeanette is upset and the kids will be too. I can't leave them like that. I just need to get my act together so that I can try and talk to Jeanette and see what we do next."

The three men shook hands solemnly and walked to their cars. Brent sat down again and watched the two senior managers drive away. They didn't appear to be talking. That wasn't a surprise. He was sure they would be thinking about what they had just heard.

As he sat there, he wondered when he would be able to talk to Jeanette and not explode or attack. When would he have the self-control to try and listen and understand? In the meantime, he needed to talk to someone who didn't have a vested interest -- someone who was a friend, and yet not intimately involved in their lives. There was only one person he could think of -- Walter Francis.

Chapter 8:

Joanne O'Leary had intended to call her sister back early in the afternoon. She was surprised that Jeanette was home, but since her sister's message made it clear that Brent had found out about the new job, perhaps she should not have been. Jeanette sounded distraught and Joanne decided to drive over to her house and talk to her in person. She had barely removed her finger from the door buzzer when the front door swung open and a harried looking Jeanette pulled her in.

"Thank god you're here, Jo. I don't know what I'm going to do. Brent's left me. He's gone and I haven't heard a word from him. He's not answering his cell phone. I don't know what to do," she cried.

"Calm down, Jeanette. This isn't going to solve anything. Let's try and figure out what happened and then maybe we can decide what to do," her sister said in an authoritative voice.

Joanne was three years younger than Jeanette, but somehow had assumed the leadership role for the two sisters. She was the decisive and positive one. She was the one to remain calm in the heat of battle. She was also the one who got her into this mess in the first place.

"God, if only I hadn't listened to you. I didn't need that job. It was supposed to be a bit of harmless fun. What the hell was I thinking? Now everyone will know. I won't be able to face anyone," she wailed. The headache had returned.

"Well, you can blame me or anyone else you like, but it was your decision in the end, and what's done is done. Now you have to figure out what to do about it." There was no sympathy in her sister's voice, and Jeanette looked at her strangely. She was beginning to get angry.

"Who was it encouraged me to audition? Who was it thought it would be good for my 'middle-aged ego'? Who was it said Brent would never find out because he didn't ever go to places like that? You've got a very convenient memory, Jo."

"Oh grow up, Jeanette. You're a big girl now. You've fucked up, so live with it. Besides, he's likely just gone off to sulk for a while. He'll be back. He too domesticated to be on his own for long." It was an almost sneering voice on the younger sister that set Jeanette off again.

"Jesus, Jo, he's my husband, not some one night stand that you so happily play with. We've got two kids and a mortgage. He's got a good job. I may have cost him that. Maybe you don't think that's a big deal, but I do. If you don't have anything constructive to contribute, then go back to your home and count your alimony payments, or whatever it is you do to amuse yourself in the daylight hours. I thought you were my sister, but I'm beginning to wonder if you give a damn about anyone else but yourself," she yelled loudly. The headache was getting worse.

"All right, all right, calm down. I'm sorry if I don't sound very sympathetic, but I think you're making too much of this. You wait, given a bit of time, he'll see the funny side of this, and it'll all blow over. Like I said in the first place, it was just a bit of harmless fun.

It was at that point the phone rang and Jeanette literally jumped up to answer it.

"Hello, Brent?" she asked hopefully.

"No ... sorry Jeanette, it's me, Lloyd. I wanted to talk to you and find out some things about what happened yesterday." Lloyd's normal kindly voice completely disarmed Jeanette. He was so easy to talk to, more like a father than her husband's boss.

"Yes, yes, Lloyd. I'd like to talk to you about it. I've been going crazy all day wondering who I could talk to. I should have called you earlier." Jeanette had begun to wander toward the den and hoped that Joanne wouldn't follow her. She wanted at least a bit of privacy with this conversation. Joanne remained seated in the living room as Jeanette entered the small, private room Brent had used as an office.

"Jeanette, Henry and I talked to Brent today."

"You did! How is he? Is he alright? Do you know where I can reach him?" Jeanette exploded.

"We can reach him on his cell. We just leave a message and he said he'll call us back."

"Oh no, he's not returning my calls, Lloyd. I must have left ten messages until I finally gave up. He won't talk to me. I don't know what to do," she wailed.

"Neither does he, Jeanette. He's confused and hurt and trying to decide what to do. He tried to resign, but Henry asked him to put that on hold until he had a chance to see what options were available. In the meantime, he's still on the payroll and the checks will still get deposited twice a month until a final decision is made."

"Thank you, Lloyd. Please thank Henry for me too. I'm just so sorry I've caused this whole mess. I'll never forgive myself for it. I can't believe how stupid I've been."

"Well, it's all water over the dam. All you can do now is try to repair the damage as best you can. I know Brent still loves you, and he would never leave the children, but he needs some time to work all this out in his mind. I think the best thing you can do right now is give him that time. I know he's going to call you, and he's going to want to talk to you, but I just don't know when that will happen."

"Thank you again, Lloyd. You've been a big help. At least I know he's OK and he's not far away. I guess I'll just have to wait for him to call. It's all I can do," she said sadly.

"Goodbye, Jeanette. Keep your chin up. Somehow, this will all work out. He's a good guy and he'll find a way," Lloyd ended optimistically.

Jeanette hung up the phone and sat in the office chair, staring at the framed photograph on the desktop. It was the four of them, taken last Christmas and the look of happiness on their faces was genuine. If she had damaged or possibly even destroyed that happiness, she didn't know how she would be able to live with herself. She turned in the chair and saw Joanne standing in the doorway with an unhappy expression.

"I'm sorry, Jeanette. I guess I haven't been very helpful to you, have I? I know you're hurting and all I can do is try and help if I can. Just tell me what you need and I'll do my best to make sure you get it, OK?" It was the first sign that her sister was beginning to understand the seriousness of what had happened in the last twenty-four hours. Maybe she wasn't an insensitive bitch after all.