Fool Me Twice

"Oh... shit," Dr. Rauh interrupted. "I guess I didn't see that coming."

"Uh, Tom, I hate to tell you this, but none of those people are biologically related to Karrie. Why would you think they are related to her?"

"Son of a bitch, Doc! Because I am the stupidest man on the face of the earth! That's why!" I screamed.

"Tom... Tom!" the doctor called out to me, snapping me from reverie. "Don't go do something stupid."

"Fifteen years too late for that, Doc. She cheated on me and got pregnant, told me it was Rick Gardino's baby. She begged for forgiveness, told me she still loved me. And I bit, like a trout."

"I know this seems cold, Tom, but maybe we can still salvage something out of this. We just need to find out if her lover has children, and if we can get them tested quickly we would still have a chance, but Karrie's going downhill quickly."

"I'm on it, Doc. I'll let you know what is happening."

Forty minutes later I stormed into the office of First National Financial, streaking past the front desk like a man whose pants were on fire. The firm's security guard tried to stop me but never even got close as I got to the elevator and hit the button for the second floor. I shot out of the elevator and into the office of one Traci Sheehy, vice president.

"Hang up the phone, Traci. NOW!" I yelled at her.

She obeyed immediately and stared fearfully at me. I'm pretty sure I was breathing like an enraged bull and drooling like a St. Bernard.

"I need a name, whore! NOW! It wasn't Rick Gardino! He and his kids aren't related to Karrie at all."

I didn't have to explain further. She burst into sobs. I wasn't in the mood.

"Stop the bullshit tears, whore, or I'll come over to that side of the desk and slap the shit out of you!"

"If it wasn't Rick, then it has to be Chester Dowd. He's a First Nat guy from right there in London. I slept with him the one night I didn't sleep with Rick. We only had sex once. I'm sorry Tommy. I truly am. I couldn't tell you about the second guy. I wasn't sure you'd forgive me for one. I knew you'd divorce me for sure for two."

"We'll worry about that later. Right now you need to track down this Dowd fucker and have him and any kids do a bone marrow test. Call your HR guy and get him on that now. Dr. Rauh says Karrie's running out of time."

Chester Dowd had left the employ of First National about three years after he slept with Traci. Traci had to explain to the First Nat HR guy why she needed to contact Dowd, and he went out of his way to get her the info. She then explained what she needed from Dowd. He promised that he and his two children would get tested.

The swabs for Dowd and his children came in a week later. While they were related, they didn't have matching tests.

My wife and I didn't spend a lot of time communicating with each other in the next few weeks. Curiosity finally made her ask me how I tracked down Gardino so fast.

"I've always known where that piece of shit was," I replied. "Trust, but verify. I just had no idea about No. 2, or I would have tracked him as well."

She dropped her head to her desk.

We would go to work and then head over to Karrie's hospital room. Arnie came home from time to time to be with his sister and Ellie spent a lot of time at the hospital, too. Dr. Rauh spent a lot time visiting as well. We knew things were going downhill fast when Karrie stopped being a wiseass.

And then...

After what Dr. Rauh called a miracle, Karrie recovered, although it took about a year. It was a few months after Dr. Rauh said she was in full remission that the kids and I had a family meeting, at which time I explained everything about Traci's affair to the three of them. The older two had already figured out something wasn't kosher, so I figured Karrie needed to know everything as well. It was incredibly difficult to tell my baby that she wasn't mine biologically, but I stressed to all three that I felt there was no difference in the way I viewed all of them.

Arnie and Ellie threw their arms around Karrie as she sobbed uncontrollably for a couple of minutes. Then I watched her face harden as her tears stopped.

"Okay, so you gave her a pass once, but we're all assuming that's not happening a second time, is it?" Arnie asked.

I shook my head somberly. I didn't have to say any more.

"So are you planning a room for me, Dad, 'cause you know I'm coming with you," Karrie declared.

As a 15-year-old, Karrie could choose the parent she wanted to be primary. Considering she had just found out she wasn't mine, biologically, I wasn't expecting her announcement. I choked up and it was my turn to sob. I soon felt three sets of arms around me.

When I regained my senses, I looked at all three kids, but spoke to Karrie.

"Obviously, your mother and I have been in contact with your bio-dad, who didn't even hesitate when your mother asked him to get himself and his kids tested as quickly as possible when we were trying to find tissue matches. He didn't even know you existed until we tracked him down, so you can't hold that against him. That's on me as much as your mother, because I told her not to tell Gardino, who she said was your bio-dad. So of course she wouldn't have told Chet Dowd, especially since she never admitted to me he was in the picture.

"He has since told his wife about you, and their whole family would like to meet you, if you want to meet them. I think we could make a vacation trip to Great Britain later this year for the four of us."

We hugged again.

Traci actually tried to fight the divorce, pointing out that I had forgiven her for the affair with Gardino, and the Dowd indiscretion was done during that same time period.

"Are you fucking kidding me, slut? You don't get a two for one discount special on this, Traci," I said. "You cheated on me multiple times with two different men. One is my limit."

Karrie spent very little time with Traci after the divorce. All three kids expressed the opinion that their mother had done me wrong, but Karrie took it the hardest. I found out that Traci complained to Karrie once, accusing me of ruining Karrie's relationship with her out of spite.

"I made a mistake, Karrie. I'm sorry. But that's no reason for your father to be so spiteful," Karrie told me she said.

"Really, Mom? You slept with two men -- two men -- in a week's time while on a business trip, and got knocked up like the cheap slut you were. And Dad sucked it up like the man he is and stayed married to you so we could remain a family. He gave me his love and his name when he didn't have to do either. How about you just shut your whore mouth."

I guess Traci didn't take that very well. I probably should have reprimanded Karrie for the "whore mouth" crack, but then again she's 15... and I didn't totally disagree with what she said.

Epilogue:

My daughter had a full head of steam as she headed downfield with just one defender and the opposing goaltender to beat late one fall afternoon during a junior high school soccer game. I rose from my bleacher seat and continued my verbal encouragement as she made a head feint to the right, then crossed over to her left and sped past the defender. The goalie hesitated, made her own feint to the right, then dove left. Anticipating the goalie's play, my daughter unleashed a hard, low screamer into the lower left corner of the goal.

My wife and I both rose from our seats to celebrate the goal. We high-fived each other, then as she sat down I looked to the team bench and smiled at the team's coach. Karrie smiled back brightly and pointed at me in triumph. I returned the point and smiled back.

Now 26, Karrie was the head coach of the John Adams Junior High School girls' soccer team. After making a miraculous recovery from leukemia, Karrie had starred for her high school team, earning a scholarship to Duke University, where she played soccer for four years and graduated with a degree in education. Four years later, she was the head coach for the same junior high school team she had played for more than a decade ago.

I sat down, put my arm around my wife and gave her a squeeze. Lorraine gave me her usual dazzling smile back. God, how I loved this woman and the stepdaughter whom I considered to be my fourth child.

Lorraine came into my damaged life three years after I divorced Traci. I hardly dated anyone until I met Lorraine. She was 180 degrees the opposite of Traci, being tall and lithe with short brunette hair. She was 15 years my junior at 40, with an athletic 8-year-old daughter. Her daughter, Stephanie, immediately took to my Karrie, who taught her the ins and outs of soccer.

Lorraine and I dated for a year before I asked her to marry me. Her ex-husband had cheated on her after 10 years of marriage, so she understood completely when I expressed my opinions on the importance of fidelity, trust and respect.

Stephanie was just about the second coming of Karrie, and she and I bonded quickly. I was back to being a soccer dad to a mouthy pre-teen. My wife and I spent many a great hour together sitting on bleachers watching soccer.