Fallout 03: Assumptions

The next day, I got to the office early, hoping to catch Gerald when he came in. I had already advised security to confiscate his badge when he came in and had a couple security officers waiting by his office. When he arrived, he gave me a smirk but lost it when he saw the officers.

"What's this all about?" he asked.

"They're here to confiscate your badge and make sure you don't take any company property when you leave," I told him.

"Leave?" he asked. "I'm not going anywhere."

"Wrong answer," I told him. "As of today, the partnership is dissolved. You no longer work here."

"Bullshit," he said. "You can't do that."

"Read the agreement we both signed," I said, tossing a copy of it on his desk. "I highlighted the appropriate clause. The dissolution of partnership is being filed this morning, and the company is temporarily being reorganized as a sole proprietorship. I'll give you 15 minutes to pack your trash and get off the property before I have you escorted out."

"Is this all because I fucked your wife over the weekend?" he asked.

"Partly," I said. "It's also for deliberately exposing her to HIV, which, I've been told, is a crime in this state."

"What?" he asked.

"I saw your test results," I said. "Judy showed them to me. That's what we were discussing that day in the restaurant. She told me you infected her as well. I was planning to make you a silent partner so you could keep your medical coverage and still earn an income. But what you did this weekend was beyond the pale. You know you're infected, but you still chose to spend the weekend with Rhonda without informing her. That's illegal in this state. The two of you had this all planned out, except she didn't know you're HIV-positive. In my view, what you did violates the terms of our partnership agreement. I had considered giving you a severance package, but in light of your actions, I've changed my mind. Now, get out!"

"You can't do this," he exclaimed. "I'll fight you on this. So help me God, I'll start spreading rumors that you've been screwing half the female staff here, threatening their jobs if they don't go along with what you want."

"Really?" I asked. "You'd deliberately slander me in the community for revenge? On top of deliberately infecting my wife with HIV so she could infect me?"

"Goddamn right," he said. "By the time I'm done, you won't have any business at all." I smiled and pulled an audio recorder from my pocket. I hit a button and played our conversation back to him.

"I think that should add a few million to the lawsuit and help secure a conviction," I said. "Not to mention the fact that you made your claim in front of at least two witnesses. Right?" I asked, looking at the two security guards, who smiled and nodded their heads. I looked at my watch. "You know, I used to think you were my best friend. I also used to think you were quite intelligent. I see now that my initial assessment of you was wrong. You have 10 minutes to pack up and get the hell off my property." I looked at the guards before speaking again. "Keep an eye on him. Make sure he doesn't touch his computer and only takes what's his."

"Yes sir, Mr. Hastings," one of the guards said. Gerald packed his stuff as the security guards watched. On his way out, he stopped by my office.

"I'm sorry, Ron," he said.

"Just go," I said. "Get out." After Gerald left, I called a meeting of all employees. It was crowded in the main office, but I felt they deserved to know there would be changes. I told them that Gerald was no longer with the company and the partnership had been dissolved. I assured them that this change wouldn't affect their jobs in the long run, but could cause some short-term disruption. One of the employees asked why Gerald left, but all I would say is that it was a personal matter.

The next several weeks were a blur. Rhonda was served with divorce papers at her place of work on Thursday, which prompted a great deal of gossip. Her mother told me she had gone to see the doctor on Tuesday but it would be a while before she got the results of her tests. Thankfully, Rhonda didn't deluge me with calls or texts. It seems she finally realized that she had made a huge mistake -- one that would affect her for the rest of her life. Realizing there would be no reconciliation, she signed the papers. Jim told me the divorce would be final in 90 days.

Judy filed for divorce against Gerald on the grounds of adultery. She told me he was living in a motel room that rented by the week until he could find something else. But he had another problem. After Rhonda's visit, Dr. Barnes reported Gerald to the authorities.

From what I learned, the state we live in requires those infected with HIV inform their partners before any sexual activity takes place. Since Rhonda said Gerald never informed her, he could receive up to 20 years in prison. I also learned that this was one of those laws many prosecutors didn't like to enforce, since there was too great a chance of backlash.

But the local authorities decided to go after Gerald, based on Rhonda's testimony. A week or so after being kicked out of his house, police showed up at the motel where he was staying and took him into custody. Concerned that he could present a danger to the general population, he was placed in solitary confinement.

Gerald's trial became something of a circus. The prosecuting attorney painted him as a cruel, manipulative SOB who deliberately set out to infect me -- his partner -- with the disease by first infecting Rhonda. Rhonda testified as did I. Judy also testified. The prosecutor also played the audio I captured in my office, putting Gerald in an even worse position.

It didn't take long for the jury to convict. Disgusted by what he heard, the judge sentenced him to the maximum allowable by law -- 20 years in the state penitentiary. But Gerald's problems were far from over. Now he was in the middle of a divorce as well as civil litigation.

After Judy's divorce was finalized, she sold her home and moved out of the area. Rhonda contacted me a few days before our divorce was final and asked me if I would have dinner with her. After thinking about it, I agreed. I felt it was time for closure. We met at a quiet restaurant where we enjoyed a final meal.

"I hope you're not too scared or ashamed to be seen with me," she said.

"We're not going to be swapping any bodily fluids, so it shouldn't be a problem," I told her half-jokingly.

"I got the results of my test," she said. "I'm positive."

"I'm not surprised but I am sorry to hear that," I told her.

"It's not your fault," she said. "You tried to warn me, but I wouldn't listen. It's a mistake I'll be paying for the rest of my life."

"So, what is the doctor doing?" I asked.

"He's got me on an antiretroviral therapy," she said. "It'll never be cured, but he tells me I can live a fairly normal life if I take the drug every day. Of course, I had to let my boss know. He's letting me telecommute, so I can work from home and Mom says I can stay with her as long as I need to."

"That's good to hear," I said.

"My lawyer is also filing a lawsuit against Gerald," she said. "I've been told it's pretty much a slam-dunk with his conviction, but collecting may be an issue with him being in prison and all."

"I see," I told her. "Well, I happen to know that his 401K was pretty substantial, even after subtracting Judy's portion. She also sold their house, so maybe you can get his half of that. Have you spoken with her recently?"

"I have," she said. "She's out of the area, but we still talk from time to time. I'll mention that to her and see what she says."

"What happened to you, Rhonda?" I asked after a while. "I don't get it. I wanted to have kids with you, spend the rest of my life with you."

"I don't know," she said quietly. "When Gerald showed me those pictures of you with Judy I lost it. I just knew you were having sex with her. I really jumped the shark on that, didn't I?"

"Just a bit," I said. "But why didn't you just talk to me?"

"I was angry," she said. "I didn't want to hear anything you had to say. Judy tried to warn me as well, but I figured she was in cahoots with you and would say anything to stop me."

"I even told you that Friday about Gerald," I said. "Twice. I hoped you would've gotten the hint."

"Frankly, I didn't want to hear anything you had to say," she told me. "And now, I'm paying the price. I'll be paying it for the rest of my life. Can you ever forgive me for being so stupid?"

"I don't know," I said. "Right now, it's all I can do to be civil around you."

"I thank you for that, at least," she said. "I know it's probably not easy for you. So, how are you holding up?"

"I manage," I told her. "I stay pretty busy with the business. Now that Gerald is gone, my workload has doubled, so there's no shortage of things to do."

"Any women in your life?" she asked.

"No," I said. "I'm not in the market for a relationship. Probably won't be for quite a while. Once bitten, twice shy, you know."

"I'm sorry," she said.

"I've learned a thing or two myself from all of this," I said.

"What's that?" she asked.

"Never trust anyone," I said. She looked at me, shocked. "I knew Gerald for years before I met you. That is, I thought I knew him. I had no idea he was capable of doing what he did. And the things I learned about him during their divorce frankly makes me sick to my stomach. And what you did certainly didn't help."

"I'm sorry," she said.

"Yeah, well, it is what it is," I said. "I see you're still wearing your rings," I added, looking at her left hand.

"We're still technically married," she said. "At least for a few more days. If you want them back you can have them, but I was hoping you'd let me keep them."

"I don't want them," I said. "I'd just take 'em down and sell them anyway. Why would you want them?"

"As a reminder," she said. "Of what I once had and threw away."

"They're yours," I said. "Do with them what you want."

"Thank you," she said quietly, a tear falling down her cheek.

"I'd better get going now," I said. "I have a lot to do yet tonight. Tell your mother I said hello and good luck."

"I will," she said. "And thanks, Ron. I really am sorry about all this."

"Yeah," I said as I stood. "Me too, Rhonda. Goodbye." I could hear her sobbing as I left. I wasn't as angry as I was when this all first went down, but I still felt sad. It's not easy ending a decade-long relationship with someone you thought you'd spend the rest of your life with.

Epilogue:

Work went on as normal and within a year, things had settled down to a steady roar. I had plenty of opportunities, but chose not to date or pursue a relationship. I still had some serious trust issues after what Rhonda and Gerald had done. For me, life consisted of working, eating and sleeping. I had no social life whatsoever.

A year and a half after my divorce, Denise, my secretary, introduced me to her younger sister, Angela, at a company event. She was a couple years younger than me and had just gotten through a divorce from her husband, who left her for another woman.

We began dating, taking things one step at a time, slowly. Both of us had been burned by our previous spouses and still had some trust issues, but as we spent more time together, our trust in each other grew. We dated several times over the course of a month before we ended up spending the night together in my bed.

A few months later, I popped the question and she said yes. Our wedding is set for the spring, to be followed up with a five-day Caribbean cruise. We extended an invitation to Rhonda's mother, but we don't know if she plans to attend.

I'm still hurting from what Rhonda and Gerald did, but Angela has done a superb job in healing the scars. I've done my best to help her heal as well and I'm certainly looking forward to spending the rest of my life with her.

Thinking about Angela, I'm often reminded of the old saw that says, "Sometimes the bad things that happen in our lives put us directly on the path to the best things that will ever happen to us."

...

Notes: For those who like to nitpick (and you know who you are), every states deals with the intentional transmission of infectious diseases like HIV differently. A few states do have some very strict penalties for this, and some states are softening their stand on it.

In North Dakota, for example, one lawmaker sought to ease the state's law, making it an infraction instead of a Class A felony, but the measure was soundly defeated. In that state, a Class A felony can carry a penalty of up to 20 years in prison and a $20,000 fine.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 37 states still have laws criminalizing intentional HIV exposure.