A Family Torn

Cayla remembered something she thought might help. "Ah...a couple years ago my girlfriend caught her boyfriend cheating on her by cloning his phone. What about doing something like that. Does she have her own phone?"

"Yes, of course she does. What do mean cloning...like being able to listen in on her calls and seeing her text messages?"

"Yeah, I'm not sure how you feel about spying on your daughter but it sure worked for my friend, Amy."

Yeah, I'm not crazy about spying on her, that's for sure, but if it works it'd be worth it. How did she learn to clone his phone?"

"She looked it up on the internet. I'm not sure how you do it but I think you need another phone or something. I could ask her to call you. I'm sure she could tell you how to do it."

"That's not a bad idea, Cayla. Yeah—even if she won't talk to us maybe she talks to a friend or maybe even the son-of-a-bitch himself keeps in touch with her...yeah, I like that. Would you have your friend call me?"

"Sure thing, Tom, I'll give her a call right now."

While waiting to talk to Cayla's friend, the doctor's office called back. He confirmed an appointment for the following Wednesday afternoon. He was blocking the time out in his calendar when Cayla came back into the office and handed her phone to him.

"You'll have to take it off of mute," she said. "I didn't tell her the circumstances, only that you needed to clone someone's phone."

He thanked her as he tapped the mute button and spoke. "Hi, Amy."

"Hi, Tom. Cayla says you need to clone somebody's phone. You do know it's illegal, right?"

"Well, in this case it's my own phone so I think I'm okay in that respect."

"Oh," she said, thinking for a second, "I honestly don't know for sure but I don't see how they could get you for cloning your own phone. Okay, the hardest thing for me was figuring out how to get a hold of my boyfriend's phone but it doesn't sound like that's a problem for you."

He didn't say anything but, yeah, that was going to be a definite problem. Like most girls her age, Lana always had her phone with her. Hell, she never let it out of her sight. He listened to Amy intently. He took notes and wrote down the name of the software she told him about. After hanging up, his biggest problem was how to get his daughter's phone without her knowing about it...impossible, he thought.

The rest of the day was spent getting ready for an advertising shoot he had coming up on Tuesday but his dilemma was never completely free from his mind. He still hadn't figured anything out as he crawled into bed that night. He remembered what his dad used to tell him, "Don't overthink a problem. Break it down to the basics. Usually the best answer is the simplest answer."

After a couple hours of tossing and turning, Tom finally decided he needed some sleep. He closed his eyes, cleared his mind, and started to drift off. Just as he was about to slip into unconsciousness, it hit him. He opened his eyes and smiled. It was so simple, "Thanks, dad."

The next morning, after three attempts and almost two hours of aggravation, Tom finally reached an actual person in the customer service department of his cell provider. It took a little persuading but after threatening to change companies, he eventually got them to comply with his request.

Even though nothing had come to pass yet, Tom felt that he was at least doing something; something he hoped would ultimately help his daughter. With only an hour left before his client showed up, he could now at least concentrate on his work.

The following day both Tom and Angela were a little nervous meeting Dr. Zarkowski. Her assistant, Cathy, met them in the outer office, took them inside, and introduced them all before offering coffee. It was all done friendly but very professionally. Once Tom and Angela were seated with coffee in hand, Dr. Zarkowski started things off.

"Thank you for coming in. I always like to talk to the parents before starting therapy with a child. It helps me get some perspective. I know you're divorced from one another so is it okay to call you mister and Ms. Hayden?"

"Yes, of course," Angela answered.

"Okay, thank you. I've been in touch with Ms. Donahue from the school and she informed me of the problems with which Lana is struggling. You know, of course, that they suspect she is also being sexually molested. Under Illinois law, in the case of a minor, I can report a crime to the authorities. Believe it or not, that's not the case with all states, although it certainly should be.

"Ms. Hayden, I understand your fiancé lives with you and Lana. How does he interact with her?"

Angela wasn't ready to be put on the spot. She had to be careful how to phrase things with Tom in the room. "Well, he understands Tom is her dad and he respects that relationship, but he also understands that he will be the head of the household."

The doctor gave a small sigh. The school counselor had already clued her in as far as the problems they had with each other and knew exactly why Angela answered like she did. "Mr. and Ms. Hayden, if I am going to help your daughter I need both of you to act like adults. Mr. Hayden, I know how hard it is to think of another man being an authority figure in your daughter's life, believe me. But not accepting the situation is not going to help Lana. It will be a detriment. She knows how stressed out you are. Believe me, kids pick up on that kind of thing real quick and it only adds to her own stress."

"I don't like him living there," he told her. "She had no right moving someone into the house so quickly. I don't believe anyone can fall in love that fast unless..."

"Unless, what, Mr. Hayden?"

"I've got no proof but unless she was already sleeping with him when we were still married."

That brought a gasp from his ex. "Jesus, Tom, what's wrong with you? First you accuse me of poisoning our daughters mind against you and now you're accusing me of having an affair?"

"Angela, living with you the last couple of years was like living with a stranger. I honestly have no idea if you're capable of those things or not, anymore. How could you possibly fall in love with somebody that quickly and move him in the house like that?"

"Tom," she responded with tears welling up, "you have no idea how devastated I was when you moved out. I cried continually, at home and at work. Dayton helped me forget my troubles for a while. He took me out for lunch and a couple of times for dinner but he was always a gentleman. He supported me and helped me. When he told me he was going to look around for a new apartment I thought how nice it would be to have a man around the house...as a border, nothing else. He moved into the spare room. He helped with the housework and the lawn AND paid me room and board..."

"Then how did he wind up your fiancé?" Tom asked.

"He...he...it had been several months...I have needs like any other woman. At first we'd make sure Lana was asleep then he'd sneak into my bed. After a while... " She stopped talking and looked toward the doctor, "I thought we were here to talk about Lana, not air out our dirty laundry," she said, a little aggravated.

"Yes, that true, but I wanted to get a sense of what Lana's been dealing with," responded Dr. Zarkowski as she wrote a few notes on a yellow pad lying on her desk.

"Now, without being afraid of making Mr. Hayden angry, tell me again how Lana and Dayton get alone."

"Okay, I guess. She pretty much avoids him when she can. At first he tried hard to make her like him but lately I think he's just decided to let nature take its course."

"I see. Does she ever talk about him; have any complaints...anything?"

"No, not really. Lately she hasn't done much talking about anything," answered Angela.

"What about you, Mr. Hayden, has your daughter expressed any dislikes or concerns about Dayton to you?"

"Ah-well, I got the impression she didn't like him very much when he first moved in. I didn't know he was sleeping in the guest room," he mentioned, glancing at his ex then back to the doctor. "I just figured they were sleeping together from the start. Lana didn't say anything and I wasn't about to ask her."

For the next forty-five minutes the doctor asked a lot of questions and took a lot of notes. She had some advice for the couple as the session closed. "Mr. and Ms. Hayden, thank you for coming. From listen to the two of you it's not hard to see and feel the great amount of animosity you both have toward each other. You both seem like good, loving parents and yet you've been totally unaware of how your constant fighting has affected your daughter. I would like to suggest couples counseling..."

"coup... isn't it a little late for that, doctor? I mean, don't people usually do that before the divorce?"

"Yes, that's true, Mr. Hayden; however, this would not be for your benefit but for Lana's. There were times during our discussion when the tension was so thick in this room you could cut it with a knife. If I, a complete stranger could feel it, imagine the atmosphere it creates for your daughter."

Tom looked over to his ex. She was visibly shaken from the frank discussions of the past hour concerning both their daughter AND their marriage. She was wiping her eyes again. "I don't know. What do you think?" he asked.

Secretly Angela welcomed the doctor's idea. Even if they were divorced she'd never stop loving him and knowing the way he felt about her now was very hurtful. Maybe with some therapy they could at least become friends again. She didn't want to sound too enthusiastic for fear of scaring him off. "If it helps Lana I think we should do it," she countered.

Tom turned back to Dr. Zarkowski. "I guess we could do that," he said. "Maybe it would help if we just cleared the air about a few things. Do you have any recommendations for somebody?"

She grabbed a small note pad from the corner of her desk and wrote down three names. "Here, give this to Cathy on the way out and ask her for their business cards," she said, handing the paper to Tom. She stood up and walked around the front of her desk to shake their hands and thank them again for coming in. "I hope I wasn't too hard on you but it's imperative that I have as much information as possible if I'm going to help Lana," she told them.

They both said they understood. On the way out they got the cards from Cathy and confirmed Lana's first appointment at three-thirty the following Friday.

"How do we approach Lana about coming here," Angela asked as they reached the parking lot.

"Yeah, I was wondering the same thing." He glanced at his watch. "School's letting out right now; you got someone picking her up? Please don't tell me Dayton's getting her."

"No, Tom, he's at work. Mom's picking her up for me."

"Okay, good," he said, thinking for a minute. "I haven't seen your mom in a while. I suppose she's pissed at me. Do you think she'd mind if I went over there with you. I won't stay. I just thought it might be a good opportunity for you and me to talk to Lana together."

"I think mom would be happy to see you," she answered with a smile.

They got in their cars and drove over. Angela was right. Her mother, Eileen, treated Tom like a long lost son-in-law. Even Lana cracked a small smile when she saw her parents walk in together.

In spite of the warm reception, Tom was uneasy at first. He had always felt so at-home at his in-law's but now it was all different. Before he was considered family, he belonged. Now he was just a guest. It was a lonely sensation.

He accepted his ex-mother-in-law's offer for coffee and the three of them sat at the kitchen table while Lana worked on her homework in the living room. The conversation was kept light with no mention of anything having to do with marital problems. After a few minutes, Tom lowered his voice and told Eileen why they were both there, then looked at Angela. "What do you say? Shall we go talk to her?"

Neither one of them were looking forward to it and neither had figured out what they'd do or say if she flat out refused to go but they couldn't put it off any longer. Eileen stayed in the kitchen as they walked out and took a seat on the sofa on opposite sides of their daughter. Tom started...

"History huh? That was always one of my favorite subjects."

"I know, dad. You've told me that before," she said, not even looking up from her book.

"Honey, can you put that down for a minute. You're mother and I have something we want to discuss with you."

Lana bent the corner of the page then closed the book with a small sigh and laid it down on the coffee table. Without saying a word she looked at her dad.

"Honey, your mom and I are very concerned for you. We know how devastating our divorce must be for you and..."

"How would know?" she asked, cutting him off in mid-sentence. "Your parents are still together. So are yours," she said, turning and looking at her mother.

Angela took her daughter's hand and squeezed it with affection. "We can see the pain in your eyes, honey. We can hear the hurt and anger in your voice."

Tom picked up the conversation again. "Honey, we can't stand to see you hurting like this. Unfortunately, since we're the cause of your pain, we're the last ones capable of helping you. We know that you've been talking to Ms. Donahue at the school. She thought your conversations were helping but suggested we take you to see someone with more experience—a regular therapist."

"What--like a psychiatrist? I'm not crazy," she exclaimed.

"Honey," said Angela, taking over. "No one is saying you're crazy. She's not a psychiatrist, she's a psychologist, there's a difference. Your dad and I just came from talking to her and she's really nice."

"Honey, you know yourself from discussions with your social worker, sometimes just talking to someone can make you feel better. You obviously can't talk to either of us and Ms. Donahue really thinks someone who is better trained could help you more than she can," added Tom. "Honey, you can pour out your feelings, your anger, and your frustrations to her and not be afraid of being judged in any way. You said we can't understand how you feel and you're right, but she's trained to understand, honey. "

Lana didn't say anything but just stared down at her shoes. She had actually been forewarned that her folks might do this. Inwardly she welcomed the help but she was scared. She'd have to be so guarded to make sure she didn't slip up. Would this psychologist pry her darkest secrets from her? She couldn't let that happen. She worked hard to keep the tears away as she wondered what to do. "I don't want to go," she said.

"Honey, listen to me," pleaded Tom. "Just because your mom and I are no longer married doesn't mean we're not still family. She will always be your mom. I will always be your dad and we will always be connected through you. It's been tough on all of us but your mother and I are going to go to couples counseling so..."

"You are? Does that mean you're going to get back together?"

"No, honey, I'm sorry but we can't go back to the way things were. Your mother has someone else in her life now and I've got to move on as well, but with help I think we can make things better than they are now...for all of us."

"Lana, your dad and I want to make our situation better. We don't like always being mad at each other and..."

"Could have fooled me," mumbled Lana.

Angela ignored the sarcasm and went on. "...and going to a professional therapist will help us deal with our feelings, but the only way it will help is if we're all willing to put in extra effort. Please, honey, we need you with us on this or it won't work."

She felt trapped. What could she say? If she refused to go it was like telling her parents she didn't care--and she did care; but it was dangerous. He wasn't going to like it. He'd be mad. She couldn't hold them back any longer. Her fear brought tears to her eyes, tears that Tom and Angela misconstrued as sadness. They both wrapped their arms around her.

"Honey, I'm so sorry this is hurting you so badly," Tom said. "Please, honey, her name is Dr. Zarkowski. I think you'll like her. Will you give it a shot, honey...please?"

Lana had nowhere to go. If she said no they'd probably start fighting about it and wind up making her go anyway. She would just have to assure him that she won't say anything. "Okay," she said with a faint voice, "but only as long as you guys go to therapy too."

"Deal," Tom agreed with a smile.

Later that night Lana was alone in her room when her phone buzzed with a text message. Her heart started to pound with fear as she answered.

Unknown caller: What happened?

Lana: They are making me go.

Unknown caller: You should have said no. Remember what I told you.

Lana: I couldn't. They were going to make me go no matter what I said. I won't say anything, I promise.

Unknown caller: You better not.

***

Angela was downstairs trying to determine just how she was going to tell Dayton about the therapy sessions with her ex. He thought they were a waste of time for Lana, she could just imagine what he was going to think about her going with Tom. She was pretty sure he wasn't going to like it. "Honey, got few minutes to talk?"

"Of course, what's up?" He took off his reading glasses and laid them on the coffee table along with paperback he was reading.

Angela sat next to him on the couch. "Ah, well, you know I went to see Lana's psychologist today."

"Yeah, I'm sorry. I meant to ask how that went but it slipped my mind. Did Tom behave himself?"

"Somewhat," she replied with a small chuckle. "Her name is Zarkowski. She asked a lot of questions about Lana and about the divorce and things. Tom is still pretty mad and he let it show a few times during the interview."

"Good old Tom. You'd think he'd be over it by now, wouldn't you," Dayton commented.

"Yeah, I'm hoping he'll lose some of that anger now. I think what made him so mad is that he thought I was cheating on him when we were still married."

"Cheating...with whom?"

She poked him in the chest with her finger.

"With me? He thought you and I were sleeping together when you were still married? Why? What'd you do to give him that impression?"

"I didn't do anything, but think about it, honey, you moved in only about a month after he moved out. He had no idea you were sleeping in the guest room."

"Certainly Lana told him."

"Evidently not," countered Angela, "and I doubt he would ask her. I mean, how do you ask your daughter if her mother is sleeping with the guy who just moved in?"

"Yeah," he snickered. "I see your point."

"Anyway," she said, getting back to her main topic, "the psychologist suggested that Tom and I go for couple's counseling."

That caught Dayton's attention. He twisted around so he could look Angela straight in the eye. "I hope you said no."

"Dayton, it's not actually for us, it's more for Lana. Dr. Zarkowski said the animosity that Tom and I have for each other is hurting her. If we can learn to get a long a little better it'll take some of the strain away from her."

Dayton jumped up and started pacing back and forth in front of the couch. "This is ridiculous, Angie. We're getting married soon and you're going to go to couple's therapy with your ex-husband. This whole thing stinks. I'm telling you, kids do things for attention and the more attention you give them the worse they get."

"Dayton, what she says makes sense. We're not going to reconcile, only

clear the air so we can at least be civil to each other...for Lana's sake."

"Yeah; and what if, after all the counseling sessions, Tom wants to get back together, what then?"

"Dayton, I love you," she assured him. "First of all I can't picture Tom ever wanting me back. Jesus, just getting him to say hi to me without including the word, 'bitch' would be a major breakthrough. And even if, by some miracle he did want to get back together, it's too late, honey. I have you now, and there's no way I'm giving you up," she told him with a big smile.