But It Happened Years Ago

"You too Dad." Jerry told the old man, his voice quivering. "I love you. I always will. I heard about the issue with Mom. But that doesn't matter to me one damn bit. Nothing changes between us. It never will Dad."

Frank raised his one arm up. The other one didn't work too well. Jerry finally figured out he wanted another hug. He leaned back down and his Father's one arm held him with surprising strength. He didn't let go right away.

His mouth was near Jerry's ear and was trying to whisper something. Jerry had to listen carefully to get it. Frank's words were slurring but he was saying something that he clearly felt was very important. Yules, or moves, or rules, something like that. Maybe Frank was getting emotional too, because his words were so slurred he couldn't quite be sure what he wanted.

Jerry could sense that his Father was getting frustrated. So he pulled away feeling embarrassed that he couldn't understand him. They stayed with Frank for a little longer as Jerry talked about his wife and various trivial details about his work and family. When he mentioned he wanted to see his mother, Frank's expression went sour. He looked away from his son and went silent.

"I'll be back in a little while Dad." Frank made no indication he heard him.

Edith was in the large, expensively designed kitchen sipping coffee. There were empty plates on the table, so she must have just finished eating. His Mother was wearing a colorful, print robe with slippers on her feet. Her hair was fixed nicely and she had a bit of makeup on. She saw her son enter the room and her face broke out in a grin. She got up when Jerry walked in and hugged him tight.

"Oh Jerry." She gushed. "Its so good to see you. I'm so glad you came."

"Kelly called. So I had to come see Dad." Jerry told her. "We met a little while ago. She told me some interesting stuff about you and Tony. Its quite a story."

"I'm so sorry to keep you in the dark honey." Edith explained with a bit of sadness in her eyes. "But I didn't want to upset you or your Father. You can see how badly he's taking it. I wish I'd never said a word."

No shit, Jerry thought. She didn't seem too upset though, and he was a little startled how well she was taking this. Her admission of guilt is probably why her husband had a stroke. Jerry thought she'd be embarrassed by her infidelity, or at least more contrite, considering it was all her fault.

"I don't know what came over me." She continued with a sigh. "I knew it would hurt Frank to know about my affair. That's why I never told him. It was something just between Tony and I, and Agnes of course. It never infringed on my marriage and didn't effect Frank for all those years."

"How long did it go on?" Jerry asked in a neutral tone.

"Oh, for a while, on and off." His mother told him nonchalantly. "Tony and I dated a little back in school, before he married Agnes. Nothing serious. Everyone was dating back then. Agnes had a couple guys she was seeing occasionally while Tony and I dated. We were all such good friends, even after we split up and Tony started dating Agnes. We were still close and the three of us always went out to parties and things..."

As she told her story her gaze moved from her son's concerned face, to a vague spot on the wall. It was obvious she was reminiscing about a very enjoyable time in her life.

With a wistful expression she admitted, "Even after Frank and I married we still saw Tony and Agnes a lot. We went out often, had them at our wedding and we went to theirs. It was such a fun time. When we had Kelly and Katie, it was one big happy family, all six of us I mean. I wish it never ended."

Suddenly her expression hardened. "But when your Father left me to take that damn class I got so lonely. I was taking care of your sisters by myself, and handling all the house hold chores. It was too much. Tony helped me get past that hard time. I'd have gone crazy without his support. When your Dad came back home, I stopped seeing Tony so often. We still managed to see each other, just not as often. He was so nice about everything. He took me all around town and introduced me to a lot of people. He's really a great man you know."

"I hope you didn't tell Dad that." Jerry replied bristling.

Edith was startled by his exclamation and blurted out, "...tell him what?"

"That the guy his wife cheated on him with, is such a GREAT guy?" Jerry said harshly. "A GREAT guy he considered his friend? A friend that basically stabbed him in the back? Not a good thing to tell a sick old man."

"Oh don't act like that Jerry." She snapped back with a scowl. "Of course I know that. Its easy to judge me now." She waved at him dismissively. "I'm not stupid you know. And I didn't tell him like that. I just let him know the truth of what happened back then. He should appreciate that I was so honest."

"I'm sure Dad's so happy to hear the truth." Jerry said tersely.

"He may not be happy about it." She answered with an edge. "But now that he knows, he's just going to have to get over it. Its all in the past and its too late to worry about it now. Besides, Frank's got a lot more problems to worry about than a silly affair I had years ago. I'll try to help him deal with it as much as I can, but he has to help himself too."

"I'm sure you will." Jerry spat out angrily disgusted by his mother's blasé attitude about something so serious.

He spun smartly on his heels and walked away before he exploded on his foolish mother and her reckless behavior. He wanted to ask about his parentage, but was too upset right now. That discussion would have to wait for another day.

Kelly was nearby and must have heard his angry retort. She came in and sat with his Mom and gave him a strange look as he left the room.

Jerry went to the library to think. He saw Agnes through the sliding glass doors out on the patio in back of the house, sitting at a table sipping coffee. He went out and sat down at the table with her. She hugged him and poured him a cup of coffee as they began to chat.

"We never thought it was a bad thing." Agnes told him honestly. "Edith and I were so close back then. We were roommates you know. And we used to do everything together."

As she said everything, she gave Jerry a knowing look.

"She dated Tony before I did. But when I started dating him she would still join us on our dates. Tony still had feelings for her I think. So it was just natural to have her around. She was such a pretty girl, everyone loved her and I enjoyed her company so much. Tony did too. We didn't think of it as bad."

"So when Dad went away for that class," Jerry asked tentatively, "You and Tony just started taking her out to dinner?"

"Yes. Dinner and dancing and drinking and laughing..." She sighed staring thoughtfully into space, reliving the memory. "Oh gosh Jerry we had such fun in those days. Edith, Tony and I were like the three musketeers. Your Dad wasn't into going out that much. He was a bit of a home body and didn't give your Mother much of a social life."

"He was probably working too hard...for his family."

"Probably." Agnes instantly agreed. "I don't think he made much money back then. But you're right, he did work hard. When he went away to school, it was normal for Tony and I to include your Mother in our plans, just like back in college. We had such fun."

"So you consented to Tony's affair?"

"I guess I did." She said nonchalantly. "Tony's a handsome guy, bigger than life you know. We've always been social. I knew there was a chance he'd fool around on me. I felt that if he was going to stray, it'd be better to do so with Edith than anyone else. She was not going to try to take him from me, and we were already very close. It was just a natural fit. Like I said, we didn't consider it bad."

She glanced over at Jerry and noticed his dejected look. She reached over and patted his hand. "Oh, don't feel upset honey. No one got hurt. I mean no one would have if Edith didn't blab it out the other day. And don't blame your Mom too much. She was alone and Tony caught her at a weak moment. He can be pretty convincing you know."

She let out a cackling laugh, "He's a charmer all right. Always has been, and always will be."

"I'm sure he is."

Jerry was even more disgusted than when he left his Mother. Neither of them seemed to find the affair with Tony as anything to worry about. He left the older woman alone with her pleasant thoughts of days gone by and went back inside the house.

His thoughts were troubled, until it suddenly occurred to him what his Father was trying to say earlier.

"Tools. He wants his fucking tools." Jerry exclaimed with excitement, happy that he finally figured it out.

Frank has always been proud of his tools. He had a matched set of Craftsmen tools he bought years ago that he kept in his garage. With little money at the time those tool cost him a fortune. In his mind they always represented a symbol of his talents as a master mechanic.

Jerry decided it was nostalgia, and he must want them near to remember his better days. He went back in to his Father's room and saw him staring out the window.

"Its tools, right Dad?" Jerry announced proudly. "You want me to bring you your old tools in the garage."

The old man's bitter frown instanly disappeared. His eyes lit up and his head began nodding up and down eagerly.

"Okay. I know where they're at. I guess you want them here with you. I'll go get them Dad. Be right back."

Jerry drove to his parent's house. It wasn't far. He had his own key and he went into the garage, remembering the many days that he sat here and watched his Father working on a car, trying to make some extra money on the side for their struggling family.

That was just like him, working side jobs so he could afford to do a few extra things for his wife and kids. He was a great Father. Jerry felt a sad tear fall down his cheek and he wiped it away. He just wished Dad had been spared the pain of finding out his wife had been unfaithful all these years, with his best friend.

Jerry drove the tools back to Uncle Tony's. Tony was gone but his Mom, Kelly and Agnes were in the middle of a heated conversation in the kitchen. They didn't even notice him enter the house as he went straight to his Father's room.

Even with all his handicaps, Jerry couldn't help notice how excited his Father was to get his tools. He waved his one good arm in the air, pointing to the corner. Jerry put the tools down where he gestured and sat down by his Dad.

They didn't speak. Both knew it was too hard to understand him. Jerry just stared at the old man with all the love he had. He could see his Father's eyes peering out from his disfigured face, those alert eyes brighter than they were earlier.

When he got up to leave, Frank motioned him over for another hug. They hugged a long time this time. The old man didn't want to let go. There were tears in his eyes, running down his cheeks when they finally parted.

"You're gonna make me cry." Jerry openly admitted, feeling quite emotional.

He told the old man, "I'll be back tomorrow Dad. Don't worry, I'm gonna help you get back on your feet. I didn't know all of what was going on before, but I do now. I'm here for you and I'll help you. You'll be better than ever in no time flat. you hear me old man!"

Frank nodded enthusiastically. He watched him intently as his tall, muscular, dark haired son walked out of his room. Jerry and Kelly left together. She was anxious to leave as there seemed to be tension between Kelly and the two older women. She didn't tell him what it was.

But as she passed by Jerry, she whispered, "Mom's a fucking bitch."

"What?"

Kelly shrugged but said nothing. Out loud she said, "You coming over Jerry. You can stay with me if you don't have a hotel room. I'd love to have you."

"Sure if you don't mind."

They drove back to Kelly's and had a long talk about what their family was going to do. When he felt tired Jerry went to the room Kelly had for him. He was undressing in the bedroom when he heard a loud explosion from far away. Even at that distance it was so powerful it shook the windows of their house.

He ran out of the room and nearly ran into Kelly. "What the hell was that?" She asked with a worried look. They both looked outside and could see a glow in the distance, as if there was a big fire somewhere close by.

"Oh shit." Jerry cursed as a terrible thought hit him. "I hope to god I'm wrong. But I think we better head back over to Tony's."

"Why?"

"I just need to check on Dad."

She wanted to know why, but he wouldn't say.

Jerry went back inside and put on his clothes in less than a minute. Kelly dressed quickly as well and rode with Jerry as he zoomed back to the Blaylock's mansion. It was about half an hour after the explosion. As he pulled around the last corner they saw emergency lights flashing with fire trucks and police cars in front of the Blaylock's house.

Tony's house was nearly destroyed. It seemed like the bottom floor had blown out and the rest of the house fell down engulfed in fire. Firemen were pulling hoses, spraying water and trying to douse the flames. But it seemed a useless effort as most of the house was already gone.

"Oh god!" Kelly sobbed. "Mom and Dad! Are they dead?"

"I'm afraid they are." Jerry said hugging his sobbing sister.

They told the police who they were, and the man just shook his head.

"I don't think anyone could survive." He said sorrowfully. "When we got here the house was already in flames. No one could have got out. It seemed like there was an explosion of some sort, maybe a gas explosion. We'll investigate and find the cause. But tonight there's nothing we can do. I'm sorry for your loss."

Jerry took Kelly home. They sat around the living room and got little sleep.

The next day they went to the house and saw the Detectives poking around the smoldering ashes. Jerry identified himself and was allowed to get closer. He was questioned by the Detectives about what they knew. Jerry didn't mention the tools he brought over. He did tell them that he thought there were four people inside the house.

"Did you find anything?" Jerry asked anxiously. "Any sign of my parents?"

"Yes. We did find four bodies." The man told them. "Three of them seemed to be in the upstairs area. The place was damaged so badly it was hard to tell. We'll have to identify them at a later time, during the autopsy."

The man looked askance at them and said, "Funny thing was the fourth body. It was hard to tell, but we think it was downstairs in the kitchen."

"In the kitchen?" Kelly said. "But Dad was living in the den, right."

"Yeah."

"Well this body was in the kitchen." The man went on to say. "We know because it was near the stove, or what was left of it."

"What was funny about that?" Jerry asked.

"Well don't tell anyone I told you this." The man said moving closer, speaking in confidence. "But since you're family...I think the problem was by the stove, that it was a gas explosion. In fact I'm sure of it."

"Really?"

"Yes. The gas line had been disconnected. I don't know how. The connection was damaged but it survived the explosion. I could tell from experience that this was no leak. That line had been purposely unhooked."

The man leaned even closer and spoke softly to the two siblings.

"Funny thing was the body near the disconnected line was holding a pipe wrench in his hand."

"In his hand?" Kelly asked with surprise. "It wasn't blown up in the explosion?"

"No. The wrench was wired to his hand. Literally attached to it." The man said with an almost amused expression.

He wiped the amusement off his face and continued more soberly.

"Obviously he or she must have purposely disconnected the line, then it exploded and blew up the house. But why the wire? The wire went around his hand a couple times and kept the wrench in his grasp. I've never seen that before. Why would someone have to wire the wrench to his hand?"

"I don't know." Jerry said. "Maybe he wanted to make sure he held onto it. Can't think of another reason."

"Okay." The man agreed cautiously, "But why do that? For what purpose?"

"I don't know."

Jerry glanced at his sister's troubled face. When she started to speak, he quickly interrupted to stop her and told the man quickly, "Okay then. Thanks for the info officer. Good luck."

"Here's my card if you have any questions." The man said, politely handing him his card. "I'm sorry about your parents. I don't know what happened, but this doesn't look like an accident right now."

Jerry and Kelly shared a glance as they walked away.

He now knew for certain that his Father got his final revenge on his cheating wife and her lover, or lovers if Agnes was involved, and Jerry had every reason to believe she was. He was positive Frank wanted to make sure his son knew that he was the one taking his revenge on them. It was no accident.

Jerry whispered sadly, "Message received Dad...", as he walked away with his arm around his sobbing sister.

Jerry felt bad about losing his mother, and some sadness for losing Uncle Tony and Aunt Agnes. After all, they'd been so close to him growing up. But he couldn't help respecting his Dad, proud soldier and a man of honor, now reduced to a feeble, almost helpless, illness racked man, getting his final revenge on the worst indignity a husband can face. It was just like his bullheaded, tough-minded Father not to let this pass.

"God I love you Dad." Jerry let himself sob. "I'm going to miss you."