Betrayal: Candy

"Not yet, but I warned her not to fight the divorce," he said. They commiserated with him for a bit, then finished packing up the rest of her things. A half-hour later, they left the apartment, giving Tim a hearty hug and wishing him well.

Later that day, as Tim sat watching television, there was another knock on the door. He looked through the peephole and saw Jake, Mike and two of Tim's former work colleagues. He went into his office and grabbed his pistol from the gun case and called 911. Holding the gun behind his back, he barely got the door opened before they barged in.

"We're gonna kick your fucking ass," Jake growled. Tim pulled his pistol and held it on Jake, causing them to pause. "You're not really gonna shoot us," Jake said. "You don't have the balls."

"You really want to put that to the test?" Tim asked. "Just so you know, I've already called 911 and police are on their way over here right now. If you're here when they get here, you're going to jail for violating the restraining order."

"Uh, Jake, I think he means it," one of the other two men said. Jake looked at him for a moment then turned back to Tim. Just then, they all heard a siren nearby and saw the flashing red and blue lights.

"Yeah, Jake, I mean it," Tim said. They turned to leave but two very large uniformed police officers were at the door. Tim lowered his pistol.

"Put the gun down, sir," one of the officers said. Tim obeyed, putting the pistol on the kitchen counter.

"Sir, these men are violating a restraining order," Tim said. "They barged into my apartment and threatened me. I want them arrested."

"Do you have a copy of the order?" the other policeman asked. Tim nodded his head.

"I do, officer," Tim said. He pulled an envelope sitting on the kitchen counter and handed it to the officer, who examined the order carefully. After a few moments, he handed the order back to Tim, then turned to the four men.

"Turn around, hands behind your back," the officer said. The four men glared at Tim as the officers cuffed them and read them their rights. Once they were cuffed, one of the officers turned to Tim.

"Do you have a license for that firearm?" he asked.

"Yes, I do," Tim said. "Would you like to see it?" He pulled out his wallet and showed the officer the license card and his NRA firearms training card. The officer nodded his head after examining the cards.

"Alright," he said. "You be careful with that thing, you hear me?"

"I hear you, officer," Tim said. "Thanks."

...

The next three months were a blur for Tim. He enjoyed working at Empire, much more than he ever did working for Jake. His weekly counseling with Rose also helped him deal with his trust and anger issues.

At the same time, he joined a gym and worked out three days a week. In addition, he began taking classes in martial arts, more for the mental discipline than anything else. On top of that, he took a course in diet and exercise that Rose recommended to him.

The divorce went through the system with ease, especially since Candy didn't contest it. The alienation of affection lawsuits, however, were somewhat different. Ruby had warned that they might end up dismissed, and two of them were.

The case against Jake, however, surprised both Tim and Ruby. After listening to testimony, reviewing the evidence Ruby put forward and reviewing Jake's financial disclosures, the judge summarily found in Tim's favor and ordered Jake to pay $1 million in restitution. He had no kind words for Jake at the end of the trial.

"Mr. Hudson, your behavior in this matter is beyond reprehensible," the judge said. "Not only did you take advantage of a man who considered you a friend, you abused your position as his employer in order to deliberately destroy his marriage and his family. I also notice that you defied the restraining order against you on more than one occasion. Therefore, I find in favor of the plaintiff and order you to pay restitution in the amount of one million dollars."

"Your honor, this is highly irregular," Jake's lawyer said, standing up.

"Mr. Winthrop, this court finds Mr. Hudson's behavior not only irregular, but absolutely despicable. The order stands," the judge said.

"When is this restitution due?" Winthrop asked.

"Immediately," the judge said. "Unless, of course, your client would rather spend some time in jail for contempt."

"No, your honor, my client will pay as ordered," Winthrop said, sitting back down.

"Good," the judge said. "And may God help you if this check bounces. Case closed." He banged the gavel, ending the hearing. Jake wrote a check and passed it to his attorney, who handed it to the bailiff. After the judge made note of the check, the bailiff handed it to Ruby, who, in turn, gave it to Tim. To Tim's surprise, the check actually cleared the bank, and he paid Ruby her share of the judgment.

While working at Empire, Tim was contacted by several of Jake's clients. It seemed that word of the lawsuit had gotten around, and a number of businesses were leery of doing any further business with someone who deliberately set out to ruin another man's marriage. In their view, a man who would deliberately destroy a friend's marriage simply couldn't be trusted. At the rate things were going, Tim figured that Jake would be out of business within a year.

Throughout this time, Tim refused to date, even though he had been approached by several very nice women in the company. In his mind, he would be a married man until he got his final decree. Once that happened, then he would be free to pursue a relationship, but not before. When the final decree finally arrived, he went out to celebrate with some friends from work. Part of that celebration included a lap dance from a very well-endowed stripper.

A couple months after he got the final decree, he received a phone call from Candy's mother.

"Tim, this is Bernice. Do you have a few minutes?" she asked.

"Sure, Bernice," he said. "What's going on?"

"It's Candy," she said. "She's HIV positive. She just got the test results."

"I'm sorry to hear that, Bernice," Tim said. "But to be honest with you, I'm not surprised. Besides, we're officially divorced now, so there's nothing I can do. She's not on my insurance and I'm not responsible for her."

"I know," Bernice said. "I was just hoping that maybe you could see it in your heart to talk to her for a little bit."

"Well, I guess I can, but I don't know what good it'll do," he said.

"Please, just come over and talk to her for a few minutes," Bernice begged. Tim thought for a minute before responding.

"Alright," he said. "I'll come over for a few minutes."

"Thank you so much," Bernice said. Tim drove to Bernice and George's house and was shocked to see how thin and frail Candy looked. She started coming toward him, but he waved her off. Saddened, she sat down and invited him to sit on the couch.

"You're looking good, Tim," she said. "Better than I remember. How are things going with you?"

"Good, Candy," he said. "New job, new friends, a new outlook on life. How are you doing?"

"Not well at all," she said. "You know that I'm HIV positive."

"That's what your mother said," he told her. "I'm sorry to hear that, but frankly, I'm not surprised. Do you know when you got infected?"

"I think it was one of the days I spent at Jake's," she said. "I had a lot of unprotected sex with several men that day."

"Does Jake know?" he asked. She shook her head.

"Not yet," she said. "I'll have to tell him so he can get tested as well."

"I'm sure he's not going to take it well," Tim said.

"No, probably not," she said. "Listen, Tim, I just wanted to apologize to you one last time and I was hoping maybe you could see it in your heart to forgive me for what I did to you. I realize now my actions have destroyed a lot of lives. I could have said 'no' at any time, but I didn't. I was stupid and greedy and I let my hormones overrule my rational mind. And now, I'm paying the price. I had the best husband and lover a girl could ever want, and I threw it all away for a big dick. I know you hate me and you have every right to, but I don't want to go to my grave without your forgiveness."

Tim considered her words carefully. This was the first time he could recall that she actually took responsibility for what she had done, and the first time that she acknowledged what her actions had done to others. Sure, he could continue hating her, but he recalled his sessions with Rose. Holding a grudge against Candy wouldn't help him move on. He nodded his head.

"Alright, Candy," he said. "I forgive you." She began crying as she sat in the chair. He thought about taking her in his arms, and began to stand up, but she waved him off.

"Thank you so much, Tim," she said through her tears. "That means more to me than you know. Listen, I want you to find a woman you can love and trust, marry her and have children with her. I'm done. I'm finished, but you have your whole life ahead of you, and you deserve to be happy."

"Thank you," he said. "I'll do that. And if you ever want to just talk, let me know, okay?" She nodded her head as she wiped the tears from her eyes.

"I will, Tim," she said. "Thank you for coming over and talking with me. I've missed you so much these last few months."

"I've missed the woman I married," Tim said calmly. "How are things with Jake and Mike, by the way?" She shook her head.

"Not good," she said. "He's gotten very abusive lately. He didn't take losing to you in court very well. You probably know his business has taken quite a hit lately."

"I've noticed," Tim said. "Has he hurt you? Physically?"

"Not yet, but he's very abrupt," she said.

"Do you want me to be with you when you tell him about your diagnosis?" Tim asked.

"No, but thanks for asking anyway," she said. "This is my responsibility and I need to handle it. You know, I keep thinking that if I had just told him to leave that first day at the camping trip we'd still be together."

"That's quite possible," Tim said. "But I have a feeling it would've happened at some point anyway. He'd been after you for quite a while."

"I think you're right," she said. "Listen, I'm getting really tired and I need to rest before I go back. Thank you for coming over. It really does mean more to me than you know."

"You're welcome, Candy," he said. "And remember, call me if you just want to talk or something, okay?" She nodded her head weakly.

"I will," she said. "Goodbye, Tim," she added. "Think of me every once in a while, okay?" He detected a bit of finality in her last statement and wondered if she intended to commit suicide.

"I will," he said. "Just don't do anything stupid, okay?" She smiled.

"I won't," she said. He stood and walked to the door. Bernice came over to him before he walked out.

"Thank you, Tim," she said, giving him a hug. "This means more to her than you know. And to me as well."

"You're welcome, Bernice," he said. "Keep an eye on her, okay?"

"I will," she said.

A couple weeks later, Tim was sitting on his couch, eating dinner and watching the evening news when he heard a report that caught his attention.

"The bodies of a local businessman, his son and a woman believed to be the man's lover were found earlier today, in what police believe was a double murder and suicide," the anchor said. "Jacob Hudson, President and founder of Hudson Consulting, along with his son and a woman whose identity has yet to be released, were found dead. According to authorities, all three were the victims of gunshot wounds. Police are investigating the incident and more details will be provided as they are released."

After recovering from his initial shock, Tim called Bernice. She was sobbing when she answered the phone.

"Bernice, what's going on?" he asked.

"We just got informed that Candy is dead," she said. "It looks like that bastard Jake shot her, then his own son and himself."

"Oh my God," Tim said. "I saw a report on the news and I was hoping it wasn't her. I'm so sorry."

"It's her," Bernice said.

"Do the police have any idea why it happened?" Tim asked.

"They're not 100 percent certain," she said. "But I'm pretty sure she told Jake about her HIV, and he lost it. They're doing autopsies on them now."

"I'm really sorry, Bernice," Tim said. "I want you to know I never wanted this to happen."

"I know, Tim," she said. "Candy made her own bed and paid the price. Still, it's hard to lose an only child like that. I'm just glad you were able to make peace with her. I like to think she's in a better place right now."

"Well, let me know if there's anything I can do," he said.

"Thank you, Tim," she said.

Candy's memorial service took place a couple weeks later, and Tim took time off to be there for her parents. According to the autopsies, both Jake and Mike were found to be HIV positive, along with Candy. From what police were able to piece together, Candy told Jake about her diagnosis and said they should get tested. When Jake and Mike learned they were also positive, the older Hudson shot her in the head, then his son, and finally shot himself.

Tim spent a few days mourning Candy's death, thinking back over the good years they had together. Then one day, out of the blue, he got a visit from Cynthia Stone, another rep who worked on his team.

"Hey, cowboy," she said. "You wanna join us for happy hour tonight? You look like you could use some company." Tim thought about it for just a moment. He almost turned her down, but then had second thoughts.

"What the hell," he said. "I could use some good company right about now. Sure, I'll join you."

"Well, then, come on down to the Hitchin' Post after work, okay?" she asked, smiling.

"I'll be there," he said. "Thanks for the invite." And so, the circle of life continues, he thought as she walked away. Then he heard a familiar female voice in the back of his mind.

"Go for it, big boy. She's got the hots for you," the voice said. Surprised, he looked around but saw no one. He felt a chill go up his spine for a moment. No, he thought to himself. That isn't possible. Or is it?

...

Note: For those who wish to nitpick (and you know who you are), I used some artistic license in the courtroom scene with Jake. Remember, this is fiction...