Love Conquers Infidelity

"Oh, my God! What happened? Is she going to be alright?" I asked.

"We cannot comment on her condition. Can you tell us where you have been today?" he asked.

"Sure .... I guess so. My wife and I had breakfast at home and I arrived here at my office at 8 am. Shortly before 9 am I left for a business appointment and returned back here at 11:30. When I entered the building, I went to the sandwich shop on the main level and I bought a sandwich. I rode the elevator up and I have been in my office ever since. When I arrived back here at my office, I was given a telephone message from my wife that she would be late in arriving at home tonight. Here is the message slip from my receptionist," I said.

The taller detective took it and put it in his pocket.

"Can you give me the name of your client that you met this morning?" he asked.

I went through my business card file and handed him the one for my client.

"So this man will confirm your meeting this morning?" he asked as he pocketed the card.

"Yes. There were three others in the meeting. I left there about 11:15 and I was back here at 11:30," I replied.

"And can anyone confirm that you were in the sandwich shop at 11:30?" the shorter detective asked.

"Here is the food sack and the potato chips bag. I am certain the sandwich shop staff will remember me buying a sandwich because my credit card did not work in their stupid machine and I made a loud ruckus. My receptionist and others here will tell you that I have been here all afternoon. Why do you ask?"

"It is just routine to ask everyone where they were at the time of the incident. How are you and your wife getting along?" the taller one asked.

"We are very happily married. I was going to make a special dinner for us tonight but she left that phone message not to cook for her tonight," I replied.

I hoped that I sounded a bit wimpy. I do not want to give the appearance of an angry husband.

"Does your wife work?" the shorter detective asked.

"Yes, she does. She is the office manager for the West Denver Dental Implant Center near the University Hospital West," I replied.

"Do you know if she had the day off?" the shorter detective asked.

"I do not think so. She was dressed for work when she left this morning," I replied.

"Does she often come home late?" he asked.

"She rarely has to work late, but never very late and she always calls me," I replied.

"Do you think that you wife might be seeing other men?" the shorter detective asked. The taller one stared at him with an angry look.

"No! Certainly not! She never goes out for drinks after work and she always comes home at the same time. She is always home during the evenings and on the weekends. She does not travel with her job. She really doesn't have the time to be with someone else," I replied.

"Any unusual phones calls or hang ups if you answer?" the taller detective asked.

"No. Our home phone is through the internet and all calls are logged into my home computer. I have not reviewed the calls lately but I certainly can tonight. She accidently left her cell phone at home this morning so I can go through it or even give to you to analyze," I said.

"Do you have it here?" the taller detective asked.

"No. It is home on the kitchen counter where she left it along with her lunch bag. I guess she had something special on her mind when she left the house this morning because she forgot her phone and her lunch," I said. I hope that I am sounding wimpy enough.

"Do you know anyone who might want to harm your wife?" the taller detective asked.

"No, everyone loves my wife. The dentists really like having her as the office manager because she is so friendly and outgoing," I replied.

"Do you know a Ryan Barnes?" the taller one asked.

"No, I don't think I have ever heard that name," I said.

"He was with your wife," the shorter detective said.

"Was he the one who hurt her?" I asked.

"They were found nude, having sex at Mr. Barnes' house. They both appear to have been beaten and were lying on a bloody bed when we found them," the shorter detective said. The taller one looked at him like he should have kept his mouth shut.

"Oh, my God! So are you saying that this Ryan Barnes person was fucking my wife? And someone beat them up?" I asked.

"If you knew that she was having an affair with Mr. Barnes, you might want to hurt her and her lover. It gives you a motive for the crime," the shorter one said.

"I didn't know that my wife was having an affair until just now and I don't know any Ryan Barnes. If fact, I don't even know where he lives so I could not have harmed them. Plus, I can account for my time. Besides, I certainly would not want to hurt my wife. I love her!" I said.

"Mr. Reynolds I see several trophies on the credenza behind your desk. The trophies appear to be in martial arts. Do you consider yourself a fighter?" the taller detective asked.

"I have competed in Judo events since I was in college. However, since I started my own business, I no longer have time to train anymore. And no, I do not consider myself a fighter. Judo is purely a defensive martial art and there are no movements that would draw blood. We just immobilize and secure the opponent," I explained.

The detectives just stared at me - I am not certain they understood my explanation.

"You said that my wife's car is at this guy's house. Can you give me the address so that I can retrieve my wife's car?" I asked as I grabbed some paper and a pen.

"It is at 1447 Sycamore Street in Wheat Ridge; however, it is a taped off crime scene so you cannot retrieve your car until we release the crime scene," the short detective said.

"We will be back in touch with you, Mr. Reynolds," the taller detective said.

"And don't leave town," the shorter detective said and they left my office. I saw them stop and talk with my receptionist as they were leaving. Hopefully she confirmed my story.

I grabbed my briefcase and walked out to the receptionist and said, "My wife is in the hospital. Some sort of an accident so I am heading there to be with her. Have Will Martin fill in for me. I will not be in for several days but I will check in by phone or email. If it is an emergency, call my cell phone."

"I understand and am sorry about your wife, sir. The policemen asked when you arrive back here from your appointment. I told them that you were here at 11:30, sir. I am sorry that I was late getting back," she said.

"It is OK and thank you," I said and hurried to the elevator.

At the Hospital

I drove to the hospital and finally found a parking space. There are always so damned many cars here that it is very difficult finding a space. I locked my briefcase in the trunk of my car and then hurried into the emergency room area.

I asked the lady at the desk where my wife was. She asked to see my identification so I showed her my driver's license. She told me Room 4A down the hallway. I asked if Mr. Barnes was also there and she said he was in Room 5A but I could not see him because I was not family.

I entered Room 4A and saw my wife with her head bandaged up and wires connected to sticky pads on her head and on her upper chest. She had an IV hooked up to her left arm. She looked terrible. Her eyes were closed and the right one was turning black. I reached for her hand and held it. I did observe that she had her wedding rings on.

Just then a doctor came in and started checking my wife so I went out into the hall and waited. When he was finished, I stepped up to him.

"I am her husband. What can you tell me?" I asked.

"I am Doctor Frazee. I have been attending to her since she came in. She was impacted on the side of the head very hard. She has a serious concussion and we had to put 6 stitches in to close a laceration on the side of her head. She has several smaller cuts on her cheek from broken glass. She is going to have a blackened, right eye for a while. Her concussion is serious enough that we will keep her heavily sedated for a day or two. We need the swelling in her brain to go down before she can go home. She will have a difficult time remembering the event, but her memory will eventually return unless she has brain damage. We won't know that for a while," he said.

"How is Mr. Barnes? I understand that he was also hurt?" I asked.

"Do you know him?" the doctor asked.

"No, I do not. The police told me that they were found ... ugh ... together inside his home," I said.

"They told me the same thing. Mr. Barnes has three broken ribs, severe head injuries, a serious concussion and his nose is broken - smashed flat actually. I would say that he ran his face into your wife's head at 60 miles per hour," the doctor said chuckling at his joke. "We have not put him into a drug-induced coma yet because we need to run some tests this afternoon to see if he has brain damage."

"Doctor, one last question. Were there any signs of sexual activity?" I asked.

"Yes, there were -- both vaginal and anal with your wife. Her rectum has some damage. The police indicated that it was most likely consensual sex so we did not do a rape procedure. However, we did run blood tests for STDs," he said smiling and he left.

A nurse came in and injected something into my wife's IV line. My wife was unconscious so I went across the hall and stepped into room 5A. Mr. Barnes had his head and nose bandaged; his lips were puffy and split in several places. Even with all the bandages, I could see that he was young and very handsome.

He appeared to be sleeping. I thought I would be a bad ass. So I took out my mirrored sunglasses and put them on. I know that it is silly but I wanted to give him an impression that I was a badass. I walked over to him and I slapped his face but not very hard. He opened his eyes and looked at me with a confused look.

"Mr. Barnes?" I said sternly.

"Yes, I am Ryan Barnes. Who are you? Are you a cop?" he sounded drugged up.

"I am James Reynolds. I understand that you have been fucking my wife, Ann," I said firmly.

"Ann .... Yes she is very beautiful. Love her red hair," he said like he was drunk or drugged up.

"Do you remember fucking her today" I asked.

"I ... I can't remember anything about today," he said.

He started to doze off so I grabbed his hospital gown below his chin and I lifted him up and off his pillows. It startled him and his eyes opened wide.

"What? Are you going to hurt me? Did you do this to me?" he asked.

"If I had caught you fucking my wife, you would be dead and I would be in jail," I said angrily.

"Oh shit!" he said. He was ghostly white and his hands were shaking.

"You are going to pay for fucking my wife! I will have another talk with you soon. I just wanted to introduce myself to you," I said.

I let go of his gown and he fell back onto his pillows. He watched me as I walked back to my wife's room. She was still asleep so I pushed a chair over to her bed and took her hand.

While she was sleeping, I called Ann's secretary. I explained that my wife was in the hospital and she would not be returning to work for at least two weeks and maybe longer. I asked her to notify all the dentists. She asked how Ann was hurt and I just said the police were investigating and I could not comment. Then I called my office and told the receptionist that I would be out for two weeks, but I would be checking in.

Later that afternoon, I heard a commotion in the hallway outside the door. I got up and saw a short, very pregnant but attractive woman with black hair arguing with a nurse.

"Where is that son-of-a-bitch?" she said loudly.

"Please calm down, Mrs. Barnes. Your husband is in this room here; 5A," the nurse said.

The nurse smiled at me standing in the doorway to my wife's room and said, "Sorry!"

I heard the lady talking loudly to her husband and he was not saying much. When she finally calmed down, I walked into the room and I put my hand on her shoulder. She turned around and asked, "Who are you?"

"Mrs. Barnes, I am James Reynolds. Could we talk privately for a moment?" I asked.

Ryan saw me approach his wife and speak to her. He turned white and was shaking his head no.

"What do you want?" she asked angrily.

"It is about your husband," I said pointing to her husband, "and my wife. I am just as angry as you are. Let's go down to the waiting room where we can talk quietly."

She nodded her head and we walked down to the waiting room which is quite large. There were several people sitting near the main desk so I moved to a quiet corner away from the others sitting there. I sat down and motioned her to sit in the chair beside me.

"Do you know what happened?" I asked her softly so as to not be heard by others across the room.

"I had been staying at my mother's condo in Colorado Springs. She is living there temporarily for medical treatment and I wanted to spend some time with her before I gave birth. She always likes to watch the lunch time news on the TV. We had just started to eat lunch and were watching the news, when on the TV I saw them taking my husband and a woman out of our house on stretchers. The reporter on the TV said they were found nude in bed and had been beaten. She said they were being taken to this hospital. They did not give any names on TV but I saw the house number and I recognized my Ryan. I re-packed my suitcase, jumped in my car and drove straight here. It took me a good hour and a half to get here - terrible traffic," she said.

"The police interviewed me earlier and told me that a neighbor reported that your house had been broken into. (My story - not from the police.) When the police investigated your house, my wife and your husband were found in the nude, beaten up and lying on a bed. The police believe that a burglar broke into your house and while searching your house, he discovered them. He probably hit them to keep them quiet while he looked for stuff to steal. My wife is in the room across the hall from your husband and she is sedated so I cannot talk with her. Her doctor told me that there was evidence of vaginal and anal sexual activity. That is all I know," I said.

She started crying so I ran up to the desk and got several tissues for her. I handed them to her and she wiped her eyes.

"That son-of-a-bitch is having an affair. We have not been able to have sex for 5 months now due to problems with my pregnancy. I have seen him ogling other women. I knew that he would not wait the 5 or 6 months; I knew that he would cheat on me," she said.

"I am sorry to hear that your pregnancy has been difficult. I assume that this is your first child. How long before you deliver?" I asked.

"It is our first child and I am due in 3 weeks," she said.

"Mrs. Barnes, we should not discuss the details with our spouses here in the hospital. It is not very private and word spreads quickly here. I plan to wait until I can get my wife at home where we can fully discuss what happened privately. I know that at home I can get loud without bothering anyone else, if you get my meaning," I said.

"Have you thought about what you will do about her infidelity?" she asked.

"I really love her so if it was a one-time thing, I will try to work through it with her, but I will be a bear to live with for a while. However, if this has been going on for some time, then I will divorce her. I cannot live with a cheater because you never know when they will do it again. Sure, they say that they will never stray again and that they have learned their lesson, but many of them do cheat again," I said.

"Are you going to stay here with her until they release her?" she asked.

"Yes. She is heavily sedated so I was just going to leave to get some dinner. I will be back tomorrow morning again," I explained. "What about you? The police told me that your house is now a roped off crime scene so where will you go?"

"I don't know. I do not have any friends or family here; they are all in Trinidad. I guess I will just sit in his room tonight. Maybe sleep in a chair out here," she replied.

"I know that you have not had time to eat so let me take you to dinner," I suggested.

"I have been so upset that I didn't think about eating until now. I never got to eat my lunch. Are you sure that you don't mind taking me to dinner?" she said.

"Do you have any favorite foods or favorite restaurants?" I asked.

"I am craving protein," she said.

"Let's head to Texas Roadhouse. I would love a nice steak," I said.

"That would be nice. Thank you," she said.

We walked out to my car and I helped in. With her big belly, it is hard to maneuver into a car,

"Since you have no place to stay tonight, if you will permit me, I will rent you a hotel room and charge it to my company. Let's get your suitcase from your car. Tomorrow I will meet you for breakfast and then bring you to the hospital with me. Would that that OK with you?" I asked.

"This is all so generous of you. Are you sure that you want to do this?" she asked.

"Yes, I want to do this for you. We are both in an awkward position thanks to our spouses, plus you should not be home alone if someone has broken into your house. I think we need to help each other for a while," I said.

Then we drove to her car. I put her suitcase in the trunk of my car and we left for the restaurant.

After we ordered, I decide to get to know more about her.

"Mrs. Barnes, ...." I started to say.

"Please call me Annette. My real name is Annetta," she said. "Tell me your name again."

"Annette it is. My name is James but you may call me Jim. I noticed that you have lovely olive-colored skin, beautiful black hair and dark eyes. I would guess that you are Italian. My home town is half Italian and I almost married an Italian lady from there," I said.

"Yes I am Italian. My maiden name is Francini," she replied.

"How long have you been married?" I asked.

"We just had our one year anniversary. We met while we both were in college in Pueblo," she said.

Our meals arrived and we both ate without talking. When we were finished, we resumed our discussion.

"In my hometown, I noticed that the Italian women ran the family, not the men. So I have a suggestion of how to handle your husband that might work for you," I said.

"What is that?" she asked.

"With a baby coming, you do not need the stress of a divorce right now. Besides if you are Italian, then you are Catholic and you cannot divorce him. You will need a lot of help after delivery and for several months afterward. You will need him to help you but you need to control him, so put a guilt trip on him. Make him feel responsible and guilty. Be a strong Italian lady and run your family. You be the boss. Tell Ryan that if he does not want a divorce and a lot of trouble, then he can stay married to you but you will be in charge of the family. He must do exactly as you say, otherwise, he better look for a cheap place to live because the courts will award you a lot of money for maternity expenses, hospital and doctor expenses, child support and alimony to pay for food and your house mortgage. I bet you can do this," I said.

"I haven't had time to think about any of this. You are right -- I am Catholic so I cannot divorce him; however, I do love him. I appreciate your suggestion and you're helping me, Jim," she said. "Would you have helped me this much if I were not pregnant?"

"That is a good question. Yes, I would like to think that I would help you regardless; however, I am concerned for you because you are so close to your due date. I know that you have no one here to take care of you. I am not wealthy but I am able to help you," I replied. "Would you share your cell phone number and email with me? We may need to discuss issues about their affair."

"Good idea. Give me your cell phone and I will put my number in it. If you have something to write on, I will give you my email address," she said.