Gunny and the CEO

"I've missed you too, princess," he said. "Is your mother here?" Her eyes fell as she shook her head.

"No, Daddy, she's not," Jenny said. "She's working, as usual. C'mon, let's get your stuff to the car. I'll explain on the way." She grabbed his seabag, but it was way too heavy for her. A man in a black chauffeur's uniform came and took it from her.

They put his stuff in the trunk and Bill got in the back seat with Jenny.

"So, what's going on?" Bill asked. Jenny pulled out a small laptop and plugged in a USB stick.

"Things have changed with Mom," she said. "You know she's the new CEO, right?" Bill nodded. "Well, she's been spending a lot of time with that Brad Jefferson guy."

"The Chairman of the Board, right?" Bill asked.

"Yeah, him," Jenny said. "About three years ago, he and Mom began, well, seeing each other. At first, it was just lunch meetings, then it became dinner dates. Now, it's a full-blown affair."

"He's been with your mother for three years?" Bill asked. Jenny nodded her head.

"Yeah, Dad. I'm so sorry. I tried telling her it wasn't right but she refused to listen. Dad, she's so different now. She used to be nice and fun but now she's a bitch," Jenny said. "She orders everyone around and treats them like dirt. She never used to be like that. She started changing after we learned you were a POW. When they changed your status to MIA, she went off the deep end. I don't even recognize her anymore. I told her you'd be coming home but it's like she just didn't care. Then she started spending a lot more time with that Brad guy. She started bringing him home and I could hear them having sex in her room. I hated her for that." She started crying and Bill held her.

"I'm so sorry, princess, I would have been here if I could have," he said.

"I know, Dad," she said. "I did something kinda sneaky to get back at her, though."

"Oh," Bill said. "What?"

"Well, I have friends at school who said I should get video of them for when you got home. So I bought some things online with Mom's credit card and set up some cameras in her room so she couldn't find them. I got lots of videos of them. I only scanned through them. They were too disgusting for me." She turned on her laptop and navigated to the USB drive. She handed him a set of earphones and started the first video.

As Bill watched, Libby and Brad were undressing each other in her room. Before long, they were having sex. Bill was disgusted by what he saw. Brad wasn't in very good shape and was huffing and puffing while pumping his wife with his pathetic undersized cock. Bill only watched a minute or two and turned the video off.

"There's a lot more of that, Dad," Jenny said. "I'm sorry."

"Not your fault, princess," Bill said.

"You may want to listen to the videos from the last few weeks, though," Jenny said. "Mom and Brad have been acting very strange ever since they heard you were alive and coming back. I've heard them arguing a lot lately, mostly because Mom cut him off and won't have sex with him. Some of it doesn't make much sense to me." She pulled a key out of her pocket and handed it to Bill.

"What's this?" Bill asked.

"It's the key to your truck, Dad," she said. "When I heard you were coming home, I pulled your truck out of storage and had it serviced. It's in the garage." Bill smiled. He had bought a 2010 Ford F150 4X4 before his last tour and he loved the truck. "I figured you would need it. Mom got the registration and insurance updated on it, so it's legal."

"Thanks, princess," he said. "You're right, I'm going to need it. And a place to stay, cause there's no way in hell I'm staying in a house with a cheating wife."

"Can I stay with you?" Jenny asked. "I hate what Mom's been doing and she's hardly ever home lately. She doesn't cook or do anything like she used to. She has maids and servants who do everything now. She probably has a servant who does nothing but wipes her ass." Bill laughed.

"Sure, you can stay with me if you want," Bill said. Jenny smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Thanks, Dad," she said.

"But you know a judge will probably make you stay with your mom," he said. "That's what usually happens in a divorce."

"So you are going to divorce her, then?" Jenny asked.

"I don't have any choice," he said. By then, the limo pulled into a gated driveway and stopped at the front of a very large house with giant columns in the front. "My God," Bill said. "You live here?"

"Yeah," Jenny said. "Unfortunately. Brad said she should buy it when she became the CEO. I hate it here."

They walked into the front of the room and the chauffeur handed Bill's seabag to the man who met them at the front door.

"This way, sir," the man said, struggling with the weight of Bill's bag. They went up a long, curved staircase that reminded Bill of something out of "Gone With The Wind." Bill let the man struggle with his seabag and followed him to a door on the second floor.

"Madame said you are to stay here," the man said, opening the door. Bill took the bag from the man and tossed it on the bed. He looked around, and thought the sterile room looked like something one might find in a high-priced hotel.

"I won't be here long," Bill said. "Thanks," he added, dismissing the servant. He looked at Jenny.

"Where's the master bedroom?" he asked.

"This way," Jenny said, walking to a set of double doors at the end of the long hall. She opened the doors and led Bill inside. He looked around, noticing that there was nothing to indicate she was married. There were a couple pictures of Jenny and a picture of her with Brad, but no family photos and no mementos of their time as husband and wife. He looked at Jenny.

"Everything has been put in storage," Jenny said. "Brad said she shouldn't have anything to remind her of her life with you." He nodded his head and walked around, opening drawers and looking inside. In one drawer he found a legal folder and pulled it out.

He opened the folder and read the paperwork, shocked. It seemed that Brad had convinced her to have the courts declare him dead. The paperwork hadn't been filed yet, fortunately. The folder also included a notarized copy of the prenuptial agreement he and Libby signed so long ago. He looked around some more and left the room, taking the unfiled paperwork with him.

Jenny followed him as he went back to the room assigned to him by his soon-to-be ex-wife. It was bad enough that she cheated on him, but to have him declared dead... He picked up his seabag and travel bag and looked at Jenny.

"Where's my truck? I have to get out of here," he said.

"What's wrong, Dad?" she asked.

"Did you know that your mother was going to have me declared dead?" She shook her head.

"No, Dad, I didn't," she said. "How could she?"

"I have to leave," he said. "I'm sorry, Jenny, but there's no way I can stay here, not for a minute. I need to find a hotel room and think for a bit."

"Will I see you again?" she asked.

"Yes, I'll let you know where I'm at," he said. "But I have to confront your mother with this, and it won't be pretty."

"I understand, Dad," she said. "Before you go, though, I have a couple things to give you." She left the room and returned a couple minutes later with a laptop bag, an envelope and a smartphone. She handed him the phone. "I got you this so we could stay in touch," she said. "It's got all the latest tech on it and I've already activated it for you."

"Thanks, princess, this will come in handy," he said.

"You're welcome," she said. "I've already programmed my number in it for you." She gave him the laptop. "You'll also need this. Mom doesn't know I got it for you. Everything you need is in the bag." He thanked her for the laptop. She handed him the envelope.

"What's this?" Bill asked.

"It's an invitation for a big company social event Mom will be at tonight with Brad," she said. "She always gives me invites for those things, but I can't stand to be in the same room as her and Brad. So I thought it might be interesting if you went in my place. I hear the media will be there as well."

He opened the envelope and made note of the time - 9:00 pm. He smiled at the possibilities.

"Thanks again," he said. "I think it will be very interesting indeed. Now, where's my truck? I have a lot to do."

"Follow me," she said. Bill grabbed his gear and followed his daughter. When they got to the bottom of the stairs, the servant who carried his gear stopped them.

"Sir, lunch will be served in 15 minutes," he said. "Will you be staying with us?"

"Not no, but fuck no," Bill said. The man's eyes grew wide as he recoiled from Bill's verbal assault.

"What should I tell Madame?" the servant asked.

"Tell the cheating whore she can kiss my fucking ass," Bill said. "And you'd better use my exact language or I'll come back and wipe the floor with your face. Got it?"

"Um, yes, sir, I'll tell her she can, quote, 'kiss your fucking ass,'" he said. Bill smiled.

"See that you do," Bill said as he followed his daughter out the back door and into the garage. He saw his big blue pickup next to a sporty Mercedes. He was tempted to redecorate the paint job with his key, but decided not to. He tossed his gear in the back seat of the dual cab and turned to his daughter.

"I'm sorry about everything, Dad," she said as he hugged her. "Please stay in touch. I'll always be here for you."

"It's not your fault," he told her. "I'll call you when I get settled in somewhere. And thanks for everything. I love you, princess."

"I love you too, Dad," she said. Bill got in the truck and fired it up. He smiled when the beast roared to life. He looked back at his daughter.

"I'll be in touch, princess," he said. She smiled and waved as he pulled out of the garage and headed out. He knew of a motel that rented rooms by the week and headed there, hoping it was still in business. It was, and it even had a vacancy. He rented a room with a kitchenette and settled in.

The first order of business for him was coffee. The room came with a complimentary coffee maker and a few packets of coffee, so he made a pot and turned to his second order of business, which was a divorce. He looked through the massive phone book and began making calls. He finally reached an attorney who said she could see him that afternoon. He made an appointment and settled down with a cup of coffee.

He pulled out the laptop, plugged it in and turned it on. There was a note with Jenny's email address on it, so he set that aside. After going through all the new computer setup stuff, he set up an email account and sent a message to his daughter letting him know where he was. He pulled out the USB drive Jenny gave him and looked at the long list of videos.

It hurt like hell, but he went through the videos, fast-forwarding through much of the sex scenes, which did nothing for him. He already knew they were screwing, so he had no desire to see that. He was looking for something else - clues as to why she was doing this.

In one of the most recent videos, which he saw was a few weeks old, Libby and Brad were arguing. Brad wanted to have sex but Libby told him "no," saying she wouldn't have sex with him as long as her husband was still alive and they were still married. Libby stormed off and went into her master bathroom, slamming and locking the door behind her. Brad pulled out a phone and made a call. Bill only heard one side of the call.

"Mahmoud," he said. "I need you to do me a favor... You'll get paid when you finish the job... Don't give me that shit. I'm not the one who lost him... You had one job, and that was to keep Masterson out of circulation for five years. You fucked it up big time... Do this and you'll get the balance of what I owe you... No, she doesn't know anything about this... You keep away from her... You agreed... I have to go. Just get it done, hear me? Bye." He hung up just as Libby came out of the bathroom.

Bill stopped the video, shocked at what he heard. Could it be that this Brad Jefferson was the one behind his captivity? Was Libby just a pawn in some sick game? At that moment, it didn't really matter if she was or not. She knew his opinion of infidelity and had to pay. But this Brad needed to face the consequences for what he had done. He copied the videos to his laptop, then got ready for his appointment with the lawyer.

He changed out of his uniform and put on a pair of jeans and a polo shirt he was given at Bethesda. He locked everything up and headed for the attorney's office.

Sally Clemens was a no-nonsense lawyer who seemed to have a chip on her shoulder regarding men. At first, Bill thought he was in the wrong office and stood up to leave. Sally looked at him, surprised.

"Are you leaving, Mr. Masterson?" she asked.

"Look, Ms. Clemens," Bill said. "I just told you my wife has been cheating on me for three years while I was in captivity. I went through hell to get back to the States and learned that she was going to have me declared dead as well. All I've heard from you since I got here is a bunch of feminist psychobabble. If you're not willing to represent me because I'm a man, tell me now and I'll find someone else." Her face softened a bit.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Masterson," she said. "I don't represent cheaters and in my experience, many of the men who come to me do so because they think I'll help them dump their wives so they can ride off into the sunset with their secretaries. I assumed..."

"That's right, Ms. Clemens, you made an assumption without even listening to me," Bill said. "I think I'll find someone else." He began to leave, but she stopped him.

"Please, Mr. Masterson," she said. "Let me take a look at what you have." Bill sat back down and pulled out his USB drive and handed her the folder with the prenuptial and the unfiled paperwork to have him declared dead. She looked through it all, before turning back to him.

"How much is your wife worth?" she asked. Bill shook his head.

"I have no idea," he said. "She's the CEO of Whitman Enterprises and has a huge house. I've been gone for years so I don't know how much she's worth. Maybe millions."

"Are you sure this isn't a ploy to get her money?" Sally asked. She quickly realized that was a mistake.

"How dare you," Bill growled. "I don't give a shit about her money and never have. We had a great marriage until that asshole came along. I have every reason to believe he's the one responsible for my captivity. I just want a quick divorce based on the prenuptial so I can get on with the rest of my life."

"Again, Mr. Masterson, I'm sorry," Sally said. "You say you have a daughter. Do you want custody of her?"

"Yes, and she wants to stay with me," Bill said.

"Well, she is 16, so the judge may take that into consideration," Sally said. "In reality, though, I doubt you'll get custody. The courts almost always give custody to the mother and your military service means you could get sent overseas again. It would probably be best if we go for joint custody with your wife having physical custody but with you getting liberal visitation rights."

"Yeah, okay," Bill said. Sally nodded her head. "So, when can you have her served?"

"I can have the paperwork done and have her served at work in two or three days," she said. "We'll file based on the prenuptial. You know that California is a no-fault state, so you can't file for adultery. Do you want any support from your wife?" Bill shook his head. "Okay," Sally said, "but I will ask that she pay attorney's fees and court costs."

"That's fine," Bill said. He paid a large retainer and left. He spotted a bar and grill on his way back to the motel and pulled in. Looking at his watch, he realized he had several hours before the social event that evening and he was a bit hungry.

He went inside and ordered a burger and a beer. After eating, he nursed his beer and wondered who he should contact about Jefferson. He had no doubt that Jefferson was the one responsible for his captivity. Looking around the bar, he spotted two men who seemed intent on watching him. Both had dark complexions and one had a mop of unkempt, curly hair and what looked like a single thick brow over both eyes.

He heard a voice speak next to him as he picked up his beer.

"Hello, Gunny," said an older man with mostly gray hair parted just to the left of the center of his head.

"How do you know I'm a gunnery sergeant?" Bill asked. The man twitched his head and smiled.

"You just look like a gunny to me," he said. Bill smiled.

"Maybe we should just do away with uniforms, then," he said. The man chuckled. Bill extended his hand. "Bill Masterson, Gunnery Sergeant, U.S. Marines." The man shook his hand.

"I know," he said. "I've seen your picture on television. Helluva thing you did, walking halfway across equatorial Africa without a map, avoiding all the terrorists looking for you, living off the land. MIA for nearly five years. You must've had one heck of a SERE instructor."

"Yeah, I did," Bill said. "So, who are you, and what do you want from me? Cause if it's an interview for the paper, forget it." The man smiled and pulled a set of credentials out of his pocket. Bill saw the firearm under his jacket.

"Lee Gibson, NCIS. Is there someplace we can talk?" he asked. Bill nodded his head.

"Yeah, I've got a motel room just up the street," he said. Lee got off his barstool.

"Lead the way, Gunny," he said.

"My truck is out back," Bill said. "Follow me. And keep an eye on those two. They've been eyeballing me ever since I got here."

"Actually, they've been following you for some time," Lee said. "Follow my lead if they come out behind us, okay?"

"You're the boss," Bill said. Lee chuckled at that. As they left the bar, the two men got up and followed them out. Lee noticed and turned to Bill.

"Think you can handle curly?" he asked. Bill nodded his head.

"Yeah, no problem," he said. As they got to Lee's SUV, which was parked next to Bill's truck, he saw the man's reflection in the back window. The curly-haired man had pulled out a knife and had what looked like a bag hooked in his belt. As he was getting ready to lunge, Bill stepped to the side, ducked and sucker-punched the man in the stomach, causing him to double over. As he did, Bill brought up his knee and smashed the man's nose. He dropped the knife as he fell to the paved parking lot. Bill kicked him in the groin a few times and kicked the knife away as the man laid on the ground, moaning in pain.

He looked over and saw Gibson had the other man in cuffs and was talking to someone on his phone. A few seconds later, another black SUV pulled up and two men got out. One of them put "Curly" in cuffs as the the other spoke quietly to Gibson. They put both men in the back of their SUV and drove off. Gibson looked at Bill.

"Not bad for an old gunnery sergeant," he said.

"I'll show you old," Bill said, smiling. Lee got in his SUV and followed Bill to the motel.

Once inside, Bill made more coffee and handed Lee a cup. He grimaced as he took a sip.

"What is this shit?" Lee asked.

"They claim it's coffee," Bill said. "Sorry, I haven't had a chance to go grocery shopping yet. So, what does NCIS want with me?"

"You know someone named Brad Jefferson?" Lee asked.

"I know who he is," Bill said, "but I don't know him personally. I do know he's the Chairman of the Board of Whitman Enterprises and the asshole who's been screwing my wife for the last three years. I suspect he may be behind my captivity in Africa, but that's it."

"Well, you may be right about that," Lee said. "He's been on our radar for a while now, thanks to a tip from intel sources in Addis Ababa. We've traced several calls from him to known terrorists overseas as well as ISIS sympathizers right here in LA. We've also noticed quite a few transactions between him and some questionable companies in the Middle East."