Windmills in Spain

"You know damn well what you did. Do the two of you really think that I am that stupid? Go back to your slut sister and tell her that there is no way she will ever get her hands on my daughters. Since you chose to help her, I'll have to ask you never to speak to my girls again also."

Carla was on her cell phone as I walked out of Mickey D's. I can only guess whom she was calling.

I arrived at the Family Services office before it opened.

"Couldn't stay away from me, could you?"

Jody walked into the office with a big smile on her face and a Starbuck's cup in her hand. She motioned for me to sit down and apologized for not having an extra coffee.

"I guess you know that I talked to your daughters yesterday?"

I nodded and smiled. For some reason, I was a little tongue-tied: out of my element. I remembered that the same thing happened the last time I talked to her. Since I was with Janet my whole life, I never really had the opportunity to develop any social skills with other women. Looks like I was paying for that now.

"Is something wrong, John?"

'Other than everything, no." I wasn't trying to be a smart ass. I just wasn't able to put my words together.

"I am sorry, Jody. I think I better go. My head is not into all of this, this morning. I'll call you later."

"Before you leave, I would like you to know that I am getting a restraining order drawn up against your wife. I can't stop her from seeing or being with the girls, but I can stop her from removing them from the state or denying you access to them. It will be delivered to her before noon."

That brought a big smile to my face, but I left the office anyhow. I headed for the nearest Starbucks. That coffee sure smelled good.

Everything was under control until today. Now I was feeling depressed and bewildered. I drove around for a while and then headed for home.

Billy told me that Sarah had gone back to her parent's house near Ephrata, so he was moving back into his place just until he could sell it or rent it out. He spent the morning at the bank, insurance company, and lawyer's office. He wanted to try and get some money out of Gilbert, but they had no company policy against fraternization. His lawyer said it would be an uphill battle.

He went by the hospital and found out that Calvin was being released. His wife was taking care of the discharge paperwork when she saw Billy. Before he could get away, she cornered him and carefully explained that she was trying to get Calvin to drop the charges against him. He was really surprised when she thanked him for all his help. Apparently she had been trying to straighten out Calvin for several years with no success.

After Billy took off, I just sat on the front porch and drank beer. Mom brought me out a meat loaf sandwich and sat with me for a while. She didn't say anything, but she did have a beer. She said dad was coming over for supper and would be staying the night.

When Jody Mitchell pulled up, mom went into the house. Jody sat beside me but refused the cold beer I offered. We sat for a few seconds before she spoke.

"I served the papers on Janet about an hour ago. She was one pissed off woman. She is staying with her sister, by the way."

I finished the longneck that I had in my hand. "I guess that is a good thing, but why do I feel so bad?"

"There is no good thing in cases like this, John, just less bad."

I took out another beer, paused, and then put it back in the cooler.

"Could you stop by and explain all this to the girls? I get along pretty good with them, but no matter how carefully I word things, it will sound like I am dumping on their mother. I am afraid if I do that, that I will alienate them in some way. I don't want to do that."

"How about seven tonight?" I nodded as she got up and walked to her car. She stopped half way and looked back. That was a good sign, and I smiled. She smiled back.

Jody came by that night, and spent a long time with Beth and Brit. Billy and I were busy going through his house and cleaning out everything that was Sarah's or that reminded him of Sarah.

Jody started to come over to the house several times a week. Pretty soon, she was spending as much time with my mom as she was with the girls. I noticed that she was ignoring me. I was comfortable with that, but curious.

One night, after the girls when to bed, she sat down beside me. I felt that I had to talk to her. I didn't get the chance: she spoke first.

"Danny, do you have any wine?"

"Well, sort of." My conversation skills still needed work.

"What does that mean?"

"I don't have anything with a cork in it. I have wine, but it all has screw tops."

She seemed to think that was funny. "Get me something red will you, and bring the bottle."

Well the bottle was more like a jug, but she didn't seem to mind.

I poured, and we sipped. I finally forced myself to break the ice.

"I guess the girls are getting a lot from your visits. How long are you going to have to see them?"

'Oh, the twins are fine. They don't need to see me. I come over her to see you."

"I don't understand. You hardly even talk to me when you are here."

"I figured that was what you wanted."

"Not really. I was just afraid that you had some sort of rules against fraternizing with customers."

Her soft laugh made me feel more comfortable.

"I am amazed that you haven't even asked to see my tattoos."

"What tattoos?" It was evident that she was trying to draw me into some sort of frivolous conversation to try and loosen me up. It was a good plan and I appreciated it.

"I have four of them that I got when I was still in high school. Three are easy to find, but one of them is more difficult."

"Are you going to show them to me, or do I have to look for them?"

"It's more fun if you look, but I'll need a little bit more wine, if you are going to do that."

We both laughed when I filled her glass to the brim.

The hunt was far more exciting, because we had to keep quiet, so that we wouldn't wake the girls. The fourth one was indeed in a very private place, and I ended up admiring it for a long time, before she pushed me away. She left before the twins got out of bed, but I had the funny feeling that they knew what happened.

I told my telephone-book lawyer to finish up the divorce papers and have them delivered. Janet was going to have to live with what I offered, or do it her self. She was still staying with Carla when the papers were served. There was no response and I did not even get a phone call.

Several more weeks passed. Things were not going well with my dad. Mom was spending more time there, than at my place. Luckily school was just finishing for the year, so the girls moved in with her for the summer. By the end of the summer, dad had been moved to an assisted living facility. Billy and I helped mom get the family house ready to sell, and mom moved back in with me. Jody had been visiting the girls at mom's place all summer, and spending three or four nights a week with me. They went on shopping trips and out to eat together, and I was happy for the attention that Brittany and Bethany were getting. At least I wasn't jealous of them any more. I was pretty sure they knew what was going on between Jody and I.

Janet called the girls about once a week, but the conversations were always short, and, according to mom, seemed stressed. Most of the time the twins didn't even tell me that she called.

Billy's divorce from Sarah was finalized. I had no idea what the status of mine was. He had also decided that he wanted to start his own surveying business and asked me to go in with him. I was a little short on cash to contribute, until mom came to the rescue. When she and dad ran out of money, Medicare would take over his expenses. Rather than watch it all dwindle away, she felt that I should use it for the business. I believe that she was also thinking of it as an investment in her future. Three months later, Billy and I had our own little survey business. Luckily, my drafting skills converted over to drawing plots.

About a week after school started for the new semester, the twins got a visit from their mother. They thought they were going to the guidance office to see Jody, and were both disappointed to see Janet. They tried their best to be polite and respectful to her, but it still didn't go well. She told them that she loved them both and was sorry that things worked out like they did. She was going to Spain to see the windmills and she would send them some postcards. She promised to call them every year on their birthday, and she would send them fabulous Christmas presents. They said she was crying when she left.

Janet never called me or notified me that she was leaving, but her parents showed up at the house the next week. They apologized again for what Janet did, but did not attempted to defend her or justify her actions. Brittany and Bethany were their only grand children, and they wanted to be able to see them. I had no trouble with their request. They said Carla was too ashamed to come see me. She was torn between her sister and her parents.

Two months later, my divorce was final. Jody and I went to Red Lobster to celebrate. It was a rare night out, without the girls. They didn't seem to mind, in fact, I believe they were glad in a way. We spent the night at the local Holiday Inn. The twins were excited when I got home at ten o'clock the next morning. They didn't say anything, but spent the whole day grinning from ear to ear.

A year later, the business was doing great, but unfortunately dad passed away. Mom expressed an interest in moving to Florida with her sister, but didn't want to leave the girls. The twins felt that grandma should go. They carefully explained to me that Jody could take her place, even though she couldn't cook as well as my mom. They also insisted that they were old enough for separate rooms. It was an obvious plan and a good one.

The girls got birthday cards from their mother, but no phone call. She also sent lots of postcards. All of the postcards had Spanish windmills on them. I wasn't sure what the significance of that was. She sent them two fancy embroidered dresses for Christmas, but hadn't anticipated the growth spurt that young girls reaching their teen years go through. Neither of them seemed disappointed that the dresses were too small.

Gilbert Engineering became our biggest client. Billy was glad to learn that Calvin was now teaching electronics at the Lebanon County Vocational School: a big come-down from his previous position. He was no longer married. Sarah remarried and moved to California.

Ken Sanders did not last six months at his new job. He was now working in the states, but nobody seemed to know where. Billy had contacted his high school alumni association, to see if he could find out. My best friend always felt that I left Ken off too easy.

The odd thing was that the girls were still getting postcards with the windmills on them. There was never any information on the cards, just generic sentiments. Cameron told me that Janet called them several times. She was working for a travel agency in Barcelona. She never mentioned Ken, or gave them any information about what had happened between them.

Jody and I took a quick trip to Maryland for a quiet marriage. Within a year, she was expecting. Brittany and Bethany were as excited as we were. They were looking forward to having a little Goth girl for a sister. I believe that was some sort of private joke between the girls and their new mom. They never let me in on it.

I never did understand the significance of the Spanish windmills.