Game of Life Ch. 01-02

"What do you think I am, bloody mad! No one we know comes to this place, too damned expensive." A man's voice replied.

I'm not sure what expression came over my face, but Grace's hand shot out, grabbed the mouse and hit the pause button.

"You know who he is?"

"Jesus Christ that's William, her bloody brother in law. Her sister Stacie's husband."

"What, the one who's just had the baby?"

"Yeah!"

"Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm bloody sure, I'd know that little tosspot's voice anywhere. Fuck, they are always sodding around together, but never in a million years did I think that they'd ever..." my voice must have faded to nothing as I remembered Vivian and the little shit flirting together so many times over the previous few years. Funny how you always think that kind of behaviour is innocent fun when it's with a family member.

"Hold on Jimmy, don't go jumping the gun; lets see what they say to each other?" Grace hit the play button.

Generally the conversation was pretty unintelligible. There was a lot of background noise from the restaurant and often Vivian and Bill were lowering their voices so they wouldn't be overheard by the other dinners.

Eventually Grace went off and found some earphones; she was adept at taking shorthand notes at meetings and although we hadn't used them at our office for years, she was used to transcribing Dictaphone recordings as well. Grace sat there and listened to the recording several times taking shorthand notes as she went. Then she was going to type them up so that I could read them.

I made copious cups of coffee for us both and sat and brooded.

Right from the first time I'd met him, I'd never been a fan of Bill Banks. Well, he was an Estate Agent so that should tell most folks that he was a slime ball; or maybe that's my personal opinion of the profession. He was a dapper looking bloke, always smart and with a pretty smart mouth on him as well. But he had been Vivian's sister's intended (and later her husband), so I'd cut the bugger some slack and tried not to show my natural dislike of the guy.

The few times that I saw him at family dos and the like — I tended to avoid the bugger and the do's, if I could get away with it - he was pleasant enough; maybe a little on the loud side. And he had the annoying habit of flirting with Vivian and her other sister Janice most of the time. But then again, I flirted with both Janice and Stacie at those family do's as well, so I'd never read anything into it. Maybe I just hadn't been cynical enough?

"Yeah well, none of this makes much sense to me, Christ alone knows what Vivian and her sister thought they were playing at?" Grace said, eventually taking the earphones off, after going through the recording several times. "This is going to sound completely bonkers Jim, but it is plainly apparent that both Vivian and Janice have been shagging him regularly so that he'll leave Stacie alone during her pregnancy."

"Do f-ing what?"

"You heard me! I take it that there's been a consensus of opinion that Stacie's miscarriages were down to the idiot's constant demands for sex whilst she was heavily pregnant."

"That doesn't make sense Vivian and I were still at it. Almost until the kids were born."

"That's my opinion as well, but it seems that this Bill guy, is a bit of an arsehole..."

"You can say that again!"

"Yeah well, I'm reading between the lines, but I gather this Bill guy thinks he's something special in bed, but he goes at it like a bull in a china bloody shop. Listen to some of this." Grace began to read back snippets from her shorthand notes.

"Vivian. Jesus you know that you hurt me sometimes going at it like you do. It's no wonder Stacie never went full term."

"Him. Give over Viv, you enjoy every minute of it and so does Stacie. I know you can't wait to feel my monster in you again."

"Vivian. You overrate yourself Bill. I let you shag me for one reason, and one reason only; so that you leave Stacie alone until after the baby is born. But you know, you'll never win any prizes as a stud."

"I think he got a little annoyed with her here." Grace commented and then read on.

"Him. I'm a damned sight better than your old man and that little dick of his anyway. You told me that yourself."

"Vivian. Don't kid yourself Bill, I was just stroking your ego. Jim's a better lover than you'll ever be. And what's more, he's bigger than you as well."

"Him. Balls, you told me that it was my big..."

Grace looked up at me. "The rest of what he said there is unintelligible."

"Vivian. Christ Bill, it's got little to do with size anyway. It's what you do with it that counts; and Jim has more sensitivity in his little finger than you have in your whole body or that bleeding dick of yours. Just to make a point though I'll tell you that he is bigger, quite a bit bigger actually. He's a damned sight more sensitive to a woman's needs and very gentle when we make love. All you seem to be able to do is rut like a bull in the matting season."

"Him. Well Janice has never complained. And you're never reticent to come back for another session."

"Vivian. You do nothing to make a woman feel she's anything other than a blow-up sex toy Bill. Damn it you've spent too much time shagging those damned pro's, you have no idea how to make a woman feel really good. You know that those pro's will tell you how good you are, just to get you to cum quicker, they don't mean a word they say."

"Him. "Balls Vivian, you can't wait until we get up to that room and I give you a good seeing-to. You need me now; both you and Janice can't get enough of me, you'll be back after the baby is born, I guarantee it!"

"Vivian. Not a hope in hell Bill. Our deal was that you could have one of us every fortnight, providing that you left Stacie alone until the baby was safely born. And that you stayed away from those bloody pro's. Once Stacie has the child, then Janice and I are cutting you off for good."

"Him. Oh no you don't! Come-on, that weren't the deal and you know it. I get one of you every couple of weeks until the doc gives Stacie the all clear for her to resume her wifely duties."

"Vivian. Yeah, that was what we promised. Okay, I'll give you until a month after the baby is born and that's the end of it."

"him. You think? Nah girl, you'll be back for some more, take my word for it."

"Vivian. Not a hope in hell Bill."

"Well that's about the gist of it Jim; the camera appears to have shut itself down then." Grace said looking up from her pad.

"Yeah, it does that; I'm surprised that the battery lasted that long."

"Well I couldn't get it all, some of it was much too faint to hear properly, but I think we can gather what's been going on."

"Yeah my wife and her sister have been letting the bastard fuck them so that he leaves Stacie alone whilst she pregnant."

"I gather that it isn't just to do with keeping him away from Stacie whilst she pregnant though, Jim. I could only pick out a few words of some of it, but joining the dots. Did you know that he gave Stacie VD at one time?"

"No, but I did get the idea that the marriage was on the rocks a year or so back. Stacie lost a baby about the same time. I thought that was what caused it."

"Yeah well, this is only supposition, but I believe that him staying away from prostitutes was part of the deal as well. This guy seems like a real arsehole to my way of thinking. And what the Christ, Vivian and her sister thought they were playing at is anyone's guess. If he goes with pro's and the two of them, behind his wife's back; what's to stop him going with a pro or some tart he's picked up when neither sister is around?"

"Good point, but I can't see that Vivian or Janice's action can possibly be as altruistic as they would like to pretend. They have both had the habit of flirting with the bugger, ever since he appeared on the scene. And I've got to admit he's a good looking bugger and having a bloke ten years younger than them chasing after them must have stroked their egos a little."

"So ... What are you going to do, Jim?"

"Well I don't have much choice do I? Mrs Vivian Standing is about to become the ex Mrs Vivian Standing."

"What, just like that; you're not going to talk about it with her?"

"What's to talk about Gracie? She's my wife and she's been shagging that wanker for god knows how long..."

"But only because..."

"Because of what, Grace? She's my wife, and wives don't go around shagging arseholes like Billy Banks behind their husband's back; at least mine don't. The first time she climbed into bed with the bastard ended our marriage as far as I'm concerned."

"What about the kids Jim, have you thought how they are going to take it?"

"Don't ask me Grace. Ask Vivian, she's the one who made this bleeding mess. The children will have to learn to live with their mother's actions. That's assuming that they are mine."

"Don't be so bloody stupid Jim, of course they are yours. The family likeness is obvious."

"I've got cousins with the same facial features as mine Grace. Or maybe she found herself a man who looked like me."

"Now you are being stupid Jim; you know that they are yours. From what I got off that recording Vivian and her sister are just keeping him otherwise occupied, whilst Stacie is pregnant. Probably they will never go near him again. Isn't there some way that you could see your way to forgiving her?"

"Grace you saw those photographs. She might say that she started it to keep him away from her sister. But those pictures that she's obviously sent to him ... Jesus Christ, or some other lover that she's found, over the Internet. She could well have another stud kicking around somewhere that I don't know about. Anyway, those pictures tell me that she was having the time of her life. I don't see why you can't see that?"

"Oh I can, Jim. But I just want you to think of all the alternatives before the balloon goes up. Once the ball starts rolling, there's sweet FA that can be done to stop it, you know. You've got to have it all worked out in your mind before you start. There's the children and your financial situation to think about. You know that Vivian will get the children and most likely the house as well, don't you?"

"Yeah, I had that figured. But the house is almost paid for, and the children will only be around for a few more years. They both intend on going to Uni, and once they've gone, I can insist she sells the house and we split the difference. Or she can have the house as part of her cut of our communal property."

"Okay, if you're sure about what you want to do, then I suggest you see a solicitor first thing in the morning. You can use Judy, she handled my divorce and she's shit hot. But first thing I suggest is that you go to the bank and withdraw a hunk of cash to tide you over, just in case Vivian gets smart. If she decides to fight you, then the first thing that will probably happen, is your bank accounts will get frozen. And don't go opening another account in your own name in a hurry, the courts are wise to that and they will freeze that bugger as well."

"But I can't run around with twenty grand in cash in my pocket."

"You don't have to Jim; you trust me don't you? Christ, I've worked for you long enough."

"Of course I do Gracie."

"Well in that case we can open an account in my name and you can have full access to it. Damn it, if we put a debit card on the bugger, I'll cut mine up and you'll have almost exclusive access."

The next morning Grace and I stuck our noses in the office for a little while, to prove we were both still alive, then hit my bank and followed that with a visit to her bank; before going to see her friendly solicitor. I'm not too sure that friendly was the right way to describe her though.

Anyway she went through all the "are you sure that you want to do this" rigmarole. Then informed me that there were arbitrators and counsellors to be seen before we could get a quickie divorce. And that if Vivian put up a fight over just about anything the battle could go on for some time and prove to be expensive.

We worked out an outline plan. We weren't talking millions, but I'd do well as far as my salary is concerned and Vivian didn't do too bad either, even if she was only working part time. Our savings, the house, our communal property and how it was going to be divided, were going to be the biggest problem.

After dropping Grace back at the office I headed for home, I wanted to be ready for Vivian when she came home from work at one.

But Vivian didn't arrive home at one; she didn't turn up until half two. My mind did wonder where she'd been and what she'd been up to?

"Hello Jim! What are you doing home at this time of day?" Vivian called as she entered the front door. She'd obviously seen my car in the drive.

"I'm in here." I called from the kitchen, "Where have you been until this time?"

"Shopping," she said joining me in the room, "I brought that new dress I told you about, for Saturday night. Look at this I'm going to kill them at the Parsons' party." She said, pulling the little black number she'd been raving about for a couple of weeks from her bag and holding it up for me to see.

"What's up, Jim; are you all right?" she said when her eyes met mine, expecting to see approval of her purchase in them.

Instead she saw anger. I'll give you controlled anger, but I was on the limit and we'd been married long enough for Vivian to be able to recognise the fact.

"No, I'm not all right Vivian. Sit down and let's get this little lot sorted, before the children get home."

She took a seat opposite me, for a moment I thought she knew that I knew about her adultery with Banksey. But she didn't, she didn't work it out even when I shoved the forms at her and told her to fill it in.

"But this is a divorce petition?" She suddenly gasped out after studying the forms for a few seconds.

"Yeah, now I think that you should stay here with the children; if you like we can add our net worth up and when we divide it down the middle the house can come in your half."

"What are you talking about, why should we divide anything?"

"Well, I don't intend to walk away from this marriage with nothing Vivian, although you can if you wish. Oh, but don't go expecting me to pay you any maintenance by the way; I'll of course cough-up my share for the children, but you can earn your own bleeding living."

"Jimmy, I don't understand; what's all this about?"

I've got to admit Vivian did look like she had no idea what was going on. She's an accomplished actress, but not that good. I really think that she hadn't put two and two together.

"Adultery Vivian!" I said sternly, "Your repeated adultery with your sister's husband."

I really should have been a little bit quicker in my reactions. But she took me completely by surprise and I had to get right around that bleeding table. So there was no way that I could make it in time to catch her. Vivian had just keeled over and disappeared from view; plus there was an almighty crash as her head hit the cooker before it hit the floor.

Vivian had split her head open on the cooker and knocked herself out cold when her head hit the tiled floor. So I made a panicked 999 phone call for an ambulance with one hand, whilst I damped a tea towel to place on her forehead with the other. Another clean tea towel I placed over the large cut on her scalp. Then I gently put her in the recovery position, before rushing out to open front door ready for the medics, when they arrived.

But the medics weren't the first to arrive on the scene; the police were! Unfortunately for me, the WPC who was first to show up, was a very observant police officer, and she soon noticed the divorce petition forms lying on the table. From there on in, things spiralled completely out of my control.

I suppose that you do have to look at it from the policewoman's perspective. There was Vivian lying on the floor unconscious, bleeding from a wound on her temple, and with a bloody great bump on the back of her head to boot. On the kitchen table were the shiny new divorce papers filled in and all ready to be signed. It stood to reason that any bugger who spends several nights a week watching police crime shows on the telly, is going to figure that quite possibly, Vivian and I had had an argument about the divorce and I had gotten violent with her.

Look they dragged my mate away and locked the bugger up, when his wife unfortunately got injured during some over-ambitious sexual gymnastics, and his wife had been fully conscious when the emergency services arrived.

Net result was, Vivian - still unconscious - went to the hospital in an ambulance and I took a ride to our local Nick in the back of a police car. There followed several hours of probing questions before Vivian came around long enough to convince the police that she had fainted and injured herself accidentally. I'm not sure that the station sergeant was at all convinced by her story, but eventually he told me that I was free to go.

It was forty-eight hours before the hospital released Vivian. I came home from work that evening to find her waiting for me this time. Her sister Janice was sat beside her. Vivian pushed the completed form across the table to me.

"You won't change your mind whatever I say, will you?" Vivian asked.

"Nope, not a hope in hell." I replied.

"Look Jimmy, aren't you being a bit hasty here." Janice butted in.

"Tell me Janice what's Graham going to do, is he going to divorce you?"

I thought for a moment that Janice was going to do a Vivian and faint as well. But she recovered quite quickly."

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh Christ, don't you try any of that bullshit with me, Janice. I know all about you and Vivian's little arrangement with your arsehole stud, so don't try to treat me like a bloody idiot."

I could see by looking at Vivian that she'd realised that I knew everything. She'd known that when I'd turned up at the hospital with the children and didn't get closer than ten feet from her. The children had been with us all the time so we hadn't had a chance to discuss anything; it was all said and done with our eyes. The children - and the hospital staff - I think were confused as to the reason why Vivian kept bursting into tears all the time, when I was around.

"You're not going to tell Graham are you, Jim? We've been married twenty one years." Janice said, with tears welling up in her eyes.

"I can't see that there's much point, Janice. After all, he rolled over and took it the last time you stepped out on him."

"You knew about that?"

"Yeah of course we did, didn't your loving sister here tell you that Graham sat in the same seat as you are sitting in now and cried his eye's out like a little kid. I told him to dump you, but Jezebel here persuaded him to go back home to you. Was that the plan, were you trying to repay the favour to her now?"

"No Jim, I know you better than that, Janice would be wasting her time." Vivian had at last decided to speak. "I'm sorry ... things kind-a got out of hand. It was all a big joke, until it wasn't any more; I think both Janice and I got carried away. Neither of us thought of the consequences, we'd been drinking and ... well you know how it is, it seemed like a good idea at the time. But once we'd started, we couldn't very well stop because he threatened to tell you about it."

"Bollocks, Vivian. You knew exactly what you were doing and don't try to lay the blackmail excuse on me. Jesus that arsehole knew as well as you did that I'd have killed him if he'd tried to tell me some cock and bull story, and so do you. You thought you could pull the wool over my eyes and get away with it, but I'm not as dumb as I look." I took a breath and calmed my temper. "Right there's really no more to be said on the matter, you can explain it all to the children when they get home. I'll see them Saturday when I come for the rest of my things. I'm leaving now." I said, picking up the completed forms.