Miscarriage and Depression

"Jackson, it isn't what you think!"

"Fuck you Tara. I know exactly what I saw. Don't call me again." Jackson said as he hung up.

She called him back immediately, but he didn't answer. After she had called him five straight times, he turned his phone off. He drove to the bank and cancelled all their joint cards and took seventy percent of the money out of their accounts. He started a new account and got new cards in his name only.

When Jackson got back in his Blazer, he called Joseph and told him everything that had happened. He was sympathetic and wanted to know if there was anything he could do. Jackson told him that wasn't necessary. After they had hung up, he went and bought a bunch of broken down boxes from Wal-Mart and drove home.

He got some duct tape out of the garage, put together some boxes and started packing Tara's belongings. He was simply dumping drawers and tossing clothes in until the box was full. Then he'd tape the box up and put it in his Blazer. He worked the rest of the afternoon and into the evening. He managed to get most of her stuff in the boxes and packed. His Blazer was stuffed. He'd put the backseat down to give him more room.

At five o'clock the locksmith let him know that he had finished changing the locks on the front, back and side doors. Jackson thanked him for rushing over and tipped the locksmith an extra hundred dollars for his trouble, for which he was very grateful. He watched him leave then went and changed the access code for the garage door and the security alarm system for the house.

Jackson called Bill and told him that he was on the way over with Tara's stuff. He heard Bill try to say something but he hung up. A few minutes later his phone rang again. It was Joseph. Jackson answered. He told Jackson that he already arranged for the best divorce attorney in the state to fly in tomorrow morning and a meeting was already setup in his office tomorrow at eight. Jackson thanked him and said he'd be there and they hung up.

He got to Bill's house about twenty minutes later. He honked the horn and then backed into their driveway. Bill had come out and was waiting for him at the end of the sidewalk. When Jackson got out, Bill walked up to him.

"What the hell is going on Jackson? Tara has been crying since she got here."

"I caught her cheating on me with another man at The Marriott today." Jackson replied.

The answer took the life out of Bill. He just stood there and looked at Jackson. They didn't say anything to each other. Bill walked over and leaned up against the Blazer and took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry Jackson."

"Why, you didn't fuck him." Jackson replied leaning back next to Bill.

Bill let out a small laugh as they stood there for a few seconds, before Patricia came out of the house, red faced and making a beeline right toward the Blazer. Bill saw this and intercepted his wife halfway up the front sidewalk. Jackson saw Bill whisper into her ear and then saw Patricia's whole body change. Her head and shoulders fell, and she turned and walked back into the house. Bill then turned around, looking at Jackson and said that he'd help him unpack the boxes.

It took Bill and Jackson forty-five minutes to unpack his Blazer and put everything in Bill's guest room. As they were moving the boxes into the room, Jackson could hear Tara crying. She was in Bill and Patricia's bedroom. He just ignored it. He had nothing to say to her. Bill and Jackson had gotten out the front door to say goodbye when they both saw Aunt Margret standing next to the Blazer.

Margret was a sixty-five-year-old widow. She had been married to her husband Alan for thirty years, before he passed away from cancer. She was about five-foot-seven inches tall and weight around one hundred and fifty pounds. She had wavy, shoulder length white hair with blue eyes. She wore black rimmed glasses. Margret reminded Jackson of the actress Blythe Danner. She raised Tara and Patricia when their parents died in a car accident when they were thirteen years old.

Jackson liked Margret. He had respect for her. She got her Associate's Degree in Nursing and then started working at the County Hospital when she was twenty. She started as a Pediatric Nurse, then moved onto many different specialties. She spent time as an Orthopedic Nurse, ER Nurse, Critical Care Nurse, Mental Health Nurse, and Nurse Manager, before spending her last ten years as a Nurse Administrator. She retired when she was sixty years old after working at the same place for forty years.

Alan had invested their money well, so when he passed away, she received a substantial amount of money from his life insurance and still had income coming in from the stocks. She had also continued to work her six-figure job for another five years after Alan died. She lived pretty frugally, so she wasn't hurting going as she lived out her golden years before rejoining him.

Jackson walked right up to Margret. Bill was standing beside him.

"Margret." Jackson greeted her.

"Jackson." she replied.

"You know what the hell she did." Jackson said. He didn't need to ask; he already knew by the look on her face.

"Yes. I do. Do you know how long?"

"Doesn't matter Margret. One time is too many."

"I know its fresh at the moment Jackson, but is there any way you can talk to me now?"

"I already have a meeting tomorrow with the best divorce attorney in the state. I'd rather piss glass then be around her." Jackson replied with more anger than he meant to portray.

They both had tears in their eyes. He could tell that Margret was fighting not to let them fall, just the same as he was doing.

"Give me half an hour for us to talk tomorrow Jackson. Please?"

Jackson just looked at Margret. He felt Bill put his hand on his shoulder in support. There was another awkward, silent pause, that hung in the air.

"Come over for dinner at five o'clock tomorrow afternoon. I'll give you thirty minutes, only because I respect you Margret. When your time is up, your input on the subject ends."

"I'll take it." she replied.

She walked up to Jackson and hugged him. He hugged her back. As they disengaged, Margret said to him,

"Don't do anything rash Jackson. It really doesn't help anything."

"You mean like knock her lover boy out?"

"Atta boy" Bill said and slapped Jackson on the back.

Margret patted Jackson on his chest and walked into the house. Bill and Jackson hugged each other, and then Jackson drove home. For supper that night he had scotch with more scotch and watched the Lakers piss all over themselves. He fell asleep quickly at eleven and woke up to his alarm clock at five in the morning. He splashed some water on his face, got dressed in his running gear and hit the pavement. The crisp and cool morning air really woke him up. When he got home, he hit the gym for a light workout and took a shower.

While eating his breakfast he went through the text messages on his phone. He had messages of support from Joseph and Bill. There was a message of apology and understanding from Patricia. Of course, there were a lot of messages from Tara. They ran the gambit from "Please call me" to "It wasn't what it looked like" to "nothing happened in the room". He read them all and then erased them.

When he parked his Blazer in his spot at work, he made sure to grab the dashcam so he could upload the video on his computer and laptop. He was uploading the video when Joseph and came in with a woman who looked to be in her mid-thirties. She stuck her hand out and introduced herself as Ms. Christina Caldwell. After introductions, she got down to business.

"You've flown me on a beautiful private jet across the state and my rates aren't exactly cheap. So do you want to have the meeting here in your office or in a room elsewhere?"

"We can have it in the meeting room. Do you want something to eat? I know that you're here early on a Saturday morning and I'm very appreciative of your time."

"No thank you, Jackson. I had two blueberry muffins and two glasses of orange juice on the jet." she replied as they walked to the meeting room.

They started by discussing what he wanted to file under. When Jackson said he wanted to file under adultery, she asked him if he had proof. Jackson showed her the footage from his dashcam and showed her the hotel confirmation papers. She noticed something looking at the papers.

"This is reserved under Mr. and Mrs. Vorst. They were pretending to be married."

"You know what Ms. Caldwell; I don't really give a shit, she cheated, she's gone. End of story."

Jackson told her everything. The miscarriage. Her depression. Her refusal to get help. Her hitting him when she'd get angry. He told her everything from when they first met up until this morning. She was not happy that he'd taken seventy percent of the money, that could cause problems. She informed Jackson that a judge is more than likely going to order marriage counseling, especially considering that the problems started after having a miscarriage. Jackson told her that he'd rather sit in jail. He had tried for months to get her to go to see a counselor. She told him that if he refuses a judges' orders that he just might get his wish. They talked for another hour before their meeting finished.

She told Jackson that she'd draw up the paperwork as soon as she got back to her office. As she was putting her notepad into her briefcase, she cautioned Jackson to make sure that he does not knock out anybody else. To keep any contact with Tara to an absolute minimum, because if she knows he's filing, she could take anything he says and use it against him. Since he was unable to give her all of her belongings in his hasty packing, she could call law enforcement and use them to give her access. She apologized that I needed her services and she'd call me when everything was ready and that I could tell her where I wanted to have the petition served.

Jackson walked her out to a waiting car that would take her to the airport. She told him that as much as she appreciated the pomp and circumstance of a private plane and a car, she'd drive herself to my home or my office for our next meetings. He went back to his office to find Joseph waiting for him.

"So, how bad is the news?" he asked.

"Judge could order counseling even though she's refused to go whenever I brought it up before. I'd rather sit in jail then go now." Jackson replied.

"I'm not gonna lie Jackson. I am so God damn happy you had that prenup drawn up." he told Jackson as he hugged him and left.

Jackson tried working but he couldn't concentrate. He ended up leaving his office at two in the afternoon and going home. He called Easy Eats Delivery Service and put in a double order of Chicken Broccoli Fettuccine Alfredo with Garlic Cheese Bread, from Luigi's to be delivered promptly at four-fifty. Then he decided to finish packing the rest of Tara's belongings. He had the rest of it all sitting by the front door by four-thirty. He jumped in the shower and threw on a t-shirt and sweatpants, just in time to hear the doorbell ring. He paid the delivery driver and tipped him a Hamilton, plated everything up and waited.

At exactly five o'clock the doorbell rang. Jackson opened it to let Margret in. Once inside they hugged, and he led her to the dining room. Jackson and Margret sat down, said grace and then started eating.

"This is wonderful Jackson. Thank you."

"You're welcome Margret. Let's get this started though."

"I'm going to tell you a story, because I know that you are capable of getting things to yourself.

"OK." Jackson replied while eating.

Margret took a big deep breath in and said, "I cheated on Alan once when we were married."

She proceeded to tell Jackson her story. In 1995, she was a Critical Care Nurse. She was sent to Kobe, Japan to provide medical care in the aftermath of the Great Hanshin Earthquake. There were over six thousand fatalities, and the devastation was beyond anything she'd ever seen with her own eyes to that point. Between the physical, mental and emotion toll, the long hours, being away from home, she ended up having a brief affair with an English doctor.

Jackson listened to Margret and watched her dry her eyes, as she recounted how devastated Alan was when she confessed to him. She told him about Alan sleeping on a camping cot in their bedroom because he refused to share a bed with her. It took them over a year of therapy with a marriage counselor and talking with their priest before things started to get better. She reached into her purse and handed Jackson a piece of paper that was tattered along the edges and slightly discolored. He opened it up,

My dearest Margret,

Here at the end of all things, I could not have chosen a better partner to share all of life's ups and downs with than you. I wouldn't change a thing. I love you more than you will ever know, and I'll be waiting for you at those pearly gates.

Jackson folded up the note and handed it back to Margret.

"I'm not going to push you in one direction or the other. I know firsthand the pain and damage of what she has done. I am here to tell you that there is hope and life in a marriage after someone cheats. It's not easy. The pain for you and her will always haunt the both of you, even after years have passed." Margret was telling Jackson.

"Margret, you cheated on him. He didn't cheat on you. You have no real understanding of the pain."

Margret put the note back into her purse and took another deep breath.

"As a favor to me Jackson. Please just try marriage counseling. If do end up filing for divorce, which I wouldn't blame you for doing, I can almost guarantee that the judge will order it anyway. Go to counseling with Tara. It might actually help save your marriage. If it doesn't help and you still want a divorce, you and your attorney can then prove to the judge that you at least tried."

Jackson sat back and took a drink of his tea. Margret made a good point. His attorney had made a similar point in their meeting this morning.

"Alright Margret. I'll go to marriage counseling. However, Tara is paying for it. She fucked up, so she can carry that burden."

"Deal. I'll set up an appointment, then I'll call you and let you know when the first session begins. Thank you, Jackson. I know this is a very difficult decision and situation for you. I also know that you still love her, and though you can't see it right now, she loves you too."

"Thank you for coming Margret. Enjoy bingo and tell Pastor Keith that I'm looking forward to the rematch."

After seeing Margret off, Jackson decided that he needed to go for another run to clear his head. He had just walked out the door when a police car parked on the street. Jackson met him at his cruiser.

"How can help you officer?"

"Are you Jackson William Brown sir?"

"Yes I am"

"I have a warrant for your arrest."

"OK. What are the charges officer?"

"Assault."

"Can I make a quick phone call, I'll put it on speaker phone so you can listen?"

The officer said OK and Jackson called Joseph. He told him that he was being arrested and needed an attorney. Jackson was handcuffed, put in the back of the car and taken down to the police station. He was fingerprinted, had his mugshot taken, and strip searched. He was then given a small bottle of lice shampoo and taken to a shower. After being in a jail cell for probably an hour, he was taken to an interrogation room. Inside the room was their company attorney and another man in a suit.

The man in the suit introduced himself as the District Attorney and sat down across from Jackson and his attorney.

"I'm going to keep this short and sweet." He said as he opened his briefcase.

"Good because my client has no business being here." Jackson's attorney replied.

The District Attorney pulled out some pages stapled together and started talking.

"You assaulted Mr. Bryan Vorst at the Marriott Hotel, after catching him in a hotel room with your wife. Mr. Vorst and your wife gave their statements at the scene. You are also on video telling the front desk attendant "clean up in room 567" as well Mr. Brown."

Jackson's attorney spoke up.

"Is this a serious offer?" he asked, putting the papers down on the table.

"Yes it is. Mr. Brown was not in control of his emotions at the time. I'm willing to drop the charges down to Disorderly Conduct. Mr. Brown would have to pay a one-hundred and fifty dollar fine and twenty-four hours of community service. If Mr. Brown agrees to plead guilty, I can have him first in line to see the judge on Monday and he can be out by lunch.

"Why would we not take this to trail? You admitted that he wasn't in control of his emotions, and do you really believe that a jury will find him guilty, after catching his wife in a hotel room with another man?" Jackson's attorney said.

"All three of here are smart businessman. Yes, I know who you are Mr. Brown, and I'm truly sorry about your wife's affair. However, I absolutely can not look like I'm soft on crime. Pleading this down is not only very fair to Mr. Brown, it saves the taxpayers the money of a trial, and it also makes me look like a reasonable man to the voters."

Just then an officer came in and whispered in the District Attorney's ear and he got up and left.

"This is good deal Jackson, especially considering the witness statements and video. We could bargain over the community service if you want, but I highly doubt they'll drop the number or even altogether."

Jackson had agreed with his attorney and had decided that he was going to take the plea deal, when the District Attorney came back.

"Mr. Brown, you are free to go. We will not be pursuing the charges against you. I hope that this unfortunate situation does not make you harbor any ill will against the Office of the District Attorney or the Law Enforcement Agencies of Jefferson County." he said, then walked out. Jackson was then allowed to get his stuff, sign out and was released back home. As they were walking out, his attorney asked if he knew what happened. Jackson informed him that he didn't but was glad that he wouldn't be staying the night in jail. They laughed, shook hands and departed after Jackson expressed his gratitude.

As Jackson got closer to his house, he saw Tara's car parked out front. He drove into the garage and then walked back out front. When she went to talk, he put his hand up. Jackson turned his video onto voice recorder and then said they could talk.

"Joseph called me and told me you got arrested. I'm so sorry Jackson."

"Yeah, it was just loads of fun too Tara. Nothing like being stripped searched and forced to shower with lice shampoo."

"I just wanted to make sure you knew that I had nothing to do with you getting arrested."

"Of course you did Tara. The District Attorney told me that I was arrested based on you and your boyfriend's statements given at the scene."

"He's not my boyfriend Jackson. Please can we just go inside and talk."

"I have been informed by my attorney to keep all contact with you to a minimum, so I have to ask you to leave. Thank you for coming and checking on me Tara. Goodnight." Jackson said, as he clicked off his phone and walked inside.

Monday was business as usual at work. Jackson went into the office and continued working on a new security program. He stopped by everyone's office or cubicle and talked to his employees about how their weekends went and their families. He and Joseph worked hard and took care of their employees. They cared about them, and it showed. Everyone currently employed had been there since they first opened their doors. Some of them had even turned down offers for more money to stay. Jackson took incredible pride in that loyalty.

On Tuesday morning, Joseph came into the office to sign the new contract extension that Jackson had gotten from their client. There were a few media members present to take pictures and they interviewed a few people including Jackson. After that Jackson and Joseph had a long meeting with their payroll company and the bank about the bonus their client had given the company.