The Accident Ch. 03-04

"I have no plans to come to the states Betty. There is nothing for me there anymore."

There was a shocked silence on the other end. Betty was stunned. She had been so sure that Tom would want to come home now and bring the boys. She had never considered anything else. She didn't know what to say.

"Tom, you can't mean that. You have to bring the twins home to see their mother. She will be devastated if she can't see them. You can't do that to her."

"I didn't do anything Betty. She did. Have you forgotten? I haven't and the boys have gotten over her so I don't plan on reminding them of something painful."

"Tom, please reconsider. She has to see the boys. It would help so much in her recovery if they were here. Please, Tom?"

"I'm sorry Betty. Give my regards to Harry. Good night."

Tom hung up before Betty could say anything else. He wasn't ready for this and probably had never planned on her waking up in spite of what the doctors said. It had been almost two years and he had just begun to move forward with his life. He was not going to make the mistake of going back to relive all of the pain and heartbreak. That part of his life was over.

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She dreamed of Tom. It was their first anniversary and he had booked them a room for the night. He was there with her in the hotel room and he was watching her as she stripped for him. She was teasing and he was smiling at her. She removed her bra and panties and stood proud before him. He moved to take her in his arms and she felt the strength and comfort he had always given her when he held her like that. He crushed her mouth with his and took her breath away with her power. She was his to take.

He moved with her to the bed and laid her back; her head on the satin pillow, her hair spread across it like a fan, and her arms raised to take him to her breast. He unbuckled his belt and pulled his pants down over his hips, freeing his wonderful cock to her sight. She knew it well and welcomed it. He moved between her legs and placed his rigid manhood at the entrance to her waiting sex. He penetrated her in one strong push and she bucked in joy. She gripped him with her legs and pulled him to her bosom, urging him on with passion. She looked into the face she loved, expecting to see her love returned, but was suddenly frightened! What she saw was an angry face and it was changing as she watched from her loving husband to Harris Templeton! His face was suddenly enveloped in fire and she felt incredible pain. What was happening? What did the pain mean and why would Tom change into Harris? She was suddenly very afraid and confused.

She jolted awake, shaking, with heart pumping and breathing rapid and thready. She was disoriented for a moment until she calmed down. She was not sure what had just happened but she knew she must have had a bad dream. She hugged herself as she quieted. A nurse came into the room and asked her what was wrong. She mentioned a bad dream and the nurse came over with a warm cloth and wiped her face and talked softly to help her calm down. She was quiet now and fell back asleep as the nurse watched.

Nicky slept through the rest of the night and looked much stronger by the next morning. She was beginning to eat some solid food and her kidneys were functioning well. The nurse had taken her for a few steps and she had wanted to sit in the chair for a while as she ate her breakfast. She also used the bathroom for the first time and felt much better once she had splashed some water on her face. She looked awful but she was awake. Small steps.

Her mother and father came in shortly after she had finished her breakfast and they both exclaimed at how much better she looked. She had been walking around the room and she paused, holding on to the bedrails. She didn't want to sit down. She smiled at them but couldn't shake the feeling of dread that had been with her most of the morning. She listened as Betty and Harry talked about things and people and places, most of which she ignored, just enjoying the sound of their voices. She had been in a quiet place for so long, that any sound was welcome. Her mind just drifted until they began to slow down.

"Mom, where are my husband and my children? You have been avoiding it now and it is time you told me the truth."

"Nicky, I don't know if you are ready for too much more just yet. Why don't you wait until we can take you home? We'll tell you everything then, OK?"

"I want to know right now, before you say anything else. Where is Tom and why isn't he here? Why aren't Jason and Joshua here to see me?"

"Honey, how much do you remember of what happened? Do you remember the accident at all?" That was from her dad.

"The last thing I remember is Tom calling to say he was going to be late. I had dropped the twins off at your place and..."

Suddenly a picture of Harris Templeton came unbidden into her head. He was naked and looking at her in a room somewhere. She saw his face in a mirror. She noticed that she was also naked! What the hell? She wiped her face with her hands willing more to come. She concentrated on the room she was in and suddenly it all came rushing back. She remembered everything and with that memory, she staggered and fell to the floor, her father reaching for her futilely. She remembered, and the pain that came with that memory was more than she could bear. She fainted, falling into oblivion.

It was now two weeks since Nicky had awakened. She was ready to come home and Betty and Harry were there to pick her up. Harry pulled the car up to the front and there was a small group of nurses and staff waiting to say goodbye to Nicky. After all she had been there with them for almost two years and they had all tended to her at one time or another. They were proud of her since they had taken care of her all that time to insure that when she did wake, she would be in good health. As she was escorted out in the wheelchair, she smiled and shook hands and had a word for most of them. She was happy to be leaving but would miss some of them greatly.

She was quiet on the ride home, thinking of her life now. She was alone and had no one to share her life with. Her husband had left her, her children were taken from her and now living thousands of miles away, and she had nothing left worth living for. Most of her friends had moved on and some had died. She was more alone now than she had ever been, even with her parents. They couldn't help her now except for the physical and that was pretty much back to normal.

She thought again about Harris Templeton's death. It seemed strange that he would die in a robbery. She was told that his sister was living with him at the time but was not there when he was murdered. Well, life was strange but she could only remember her shock when she read the letter he had sent to Tom just before his death. Tom had given copies of it and her letter to him to her parents before he left for Europe. In it, he had confessed to lying about Tom and admitted he had done it only as a way to lure her into sleeping with him. She felt cheated that she couldn't confront him for wrecking her life.

That evening as she was sitting in the family room staring off into space, Betty came in and sat down beside her.

"How are you doing dear? Isn't it good to finally be out of that dreary place and back in your own home? We're so glad to have you here with us." She patted Nicky's hand and smiled fondly at her.

"This isn't my home mom. I love you and daddy but my home is gone, along with my husband and children. I lost everything I loved when Harris made me believe that Tom was cheating on me." She paused for a minute, thinking back.

"Why did I believe him so quickly, mom? What in the world was I thinking? "

"Please don't talk like that, dear. You have your whole life ahead of you. Things will get better and we can still try to get Tom to bring the twins here soon. I believe he will as soon as you are better."

"I'm better now mom and he already refused to bring them home to me. You know that and so do I. He will never forgive me. I don't think he will ever let me see them until they are adults and can make their own decisions."

Betty watched her daughter for some time before coming to a conclusion. She rose from the couch and walked over to the desk. From it she took a manila envelope and brought it back to Nicky. She and Harry had discussed this and Harry was in favor of giving it to Nicky from the very beginning, but she was not so sure.

"This is from Tom. He left it by your bedside on the day he left for Belgium. It was marked for you only so we never opened it. I think it's time you read it and maybe it will give you some hope." With that, she rose and left Nicky alone with the envelope.

Nicky just stared at it for a long time. She looked at her name, written in Tom's scrawl. Why would Tom write a letter instead of talking to her face to face? Didn't she deserve at least that much from him? As her anger began to build, she suddenly remembered that she had done exactly this to Tom: she had left him a letter instead of asking him for the truth. She had written a letter designed only to hurt: a dagger to his heart. This was what she deserved, no more.

She was torn with curiosity to know what Tom was thinking when he finally left her. She wanted to know, but at the same time, she was afraid to know. She finally went into her bedroom and shut the door. She got a drink of water and came back and sat on the edge of the bed and with shaking hands, opened the manila envelope. Inside she found a plain white envelope sealed with a sticker like the twins used to use on everything. When she saw the elephant sticker, she broke down and cried. It represented everything she had lost. She cried for almost an hour before finally getting herself under some control. She had not cried like that since she awakened.

She opened the envelope and began to read.

Dear Nicky,

By now, you will know that the boys and I have gone to Europe to begin a new life. The twins and I will be living in Brussels, Belgium and I am now Vice President for European Operations. It is what I was working for and why I spent so many hours away from you. It was to have been our most exciting adventure: you and I and the twins on a new continent. We could have been so happy. But it was not to be.

You may wonder why I left you and divorced you even though I know that you and Harris actually did nothing that day in the hotel. You deserve to know and I will try to tell you.

I spoke with Harris after he left the hospital and he told me that you said that you couldn't cheat on me regardless of what I had done. I'm glad for your sake. He also told me that the accident occurred because you wanted to get home to remove the letter you wrote. He admitted he was also anxious to get the letter to stop me from finding out his part in the deception. After that one conversation, he and I parted and I never spoke to him again. He was gone later, struck down by evil.

You may also know that I invited Shelly into my home to help care for the house and the children. It was done initially to help Shelly after Harris' death, but it grew into deep affection and she shared my bed. In the end, we both knew that we shared only a fondness for each other and happy memories, but not love. I offered to take her with me but she refused.

Now as to why I divorced you. You believed the story Harris told you about my infidelity. You accepted his word and never asked me if it were true. You believed it was possible that I could do that to you and to our life together. That lack of trust in me was the worst thing that I could imagine. The pain that brought to me was more than I would have believed. I never thought it was possible to love someone without trusting them, but that's exactly what you did: you said you loved me but didn't trust me. Therefore, I must believe that you never truly loved me. Love without trust is not a marriage: it is a sham. I couldn't continue in a marriage without trust.

It may be hard for some to understand this, but you are one of the few people who know my background and know that I consider trust to be one of the most important things in my life. More important to me in many ways than love. I trusted you completely, and I loved you totally, but you didn't share that love and trust.

I have made sure that you will be taken care of until you recover. Your parents are good people and I know they will make all the right decisions in your care. When you are better, you will find the proceeds from the sale of the house are yours, and you will have a monthly check that should take care of most of your needs. I wish you the best and hope for your recovery.

I ask that you not try to contact the boys when you wake since they have a hard time learning to live without you. By the time you read this, it may be they will have forgotten you. For their sakes, I will hope. Goodbye, Nicky.

Tom

As Nicky read the last part of the letter, she felt very little. It was as if she were watching from a distance, as the room around her began to fade. She saw the letter drop to the floor and she watched as she walked into the bathroom. She watched the door close and then, nothing.

Chapter 4

By the time Harry found Nicky she had almost succeeded in her attempt to end her life. After reading the letter, she had gone into the bathroom and taken a razor blade from her father's safety razor. She was very careful to lock the door and make no sound. She had filled the tub with water before slipping in and then had slit her wrists. She tried to do it right, but Betty had been worried about what the letter might contain and had Harry check on her. He had found the locked door and knew something was wrong when she didn't answer his knocks. He broke open the door and found her.

The 911 operator had the ambulance there in no time and the paramedics were able to stop the blood flow and began plasma transfusions while they got her ready for transport. They knew exactly what to do and were not bothered by what they found since it was actually fairly common in their experience. She was taken to emergency and sewn up. She was fine, except for the loss of blood and the doctors began transfusions to build her pressure back up. She would live.

Because it was an attempted suicide, and with her parents support, Nicky was confined to a mental hospital where she was forced into therapy. Her situation was not unusual to the therapist on staff and she was very well versed in standard treatments. She treated it first as acute depression, and Nicky was put on medication while she attended therapy every day for a month. With the meds and the therapy, Nicky slowly began to find a way back to some semblance of normalcy. She was still unhappy but she was finding ways to cope with it. She was released from the hospital two months after her aborted attempt to end her life.

With continued therapy, Nicky began a slow recovery. The hardest part was learning to live without her little boys. She accepted Tom's condition that she not try to contact them even though she wanted desperately to see them. They were 3 and half years old now. At least she had the pictures that Tom sent to Betty. She kept them all and had each one pasted into the scrapbook she kept. In it she had all of the pictures and letters that Tom had been sending and she had clippings about the company that Tom headed in Europe. She kept the book always where she could look at it and it did help to ease some of the loneliness.

The pain was still there but it began to ease and she could sometimes go days before she remembered again. But time heals all wounds and she slowly regained her stability. She still lived at home with her parents but she was beginning to think about a future on her own. One thing she wanted was to go back to school. She wanted an advanced degree in psychology so that she could go into counseling. She had become fascinated with the counseling sessions she was forced into during recovery and she vowed then that she would do something like that as soon as she could. She wanted to make a difference to others like herself: people who made bad choices and were trying to live with the consequences.

She checked with Tom's lawyer and found that the trust fund Tom had set up using the proceeds from the sale of the house and the settlement from the insurance company were enough to pay for the small tuition at a local university. She told her parents what she was going to do and they were supportive. With Betty's help, she found a small apartment just off campus, furnished it and she moved in that month. Her new life had begun.

Since she had a degree in psychology already, all she had to take were some advanced level courses in therapy and do some sessions with a practicing therapist. Her counselor told her that she could be finished in just about 2 years. After an apprentice program lasting 6 months, she would have her certificate and she could go into practice by herself or with someone else. She set up a schedule and program and began her college career. She was looking forward again for the first time in a long, dark time. She was on her own and she was going to make it. It was a promise she made to herself.

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Jason and Joshua ran up to their father and tried to tempt him back to the water. They were scuba diving in Moreton Bay off the north side of Australia and exploring the reefs and it was truly something to see, but he was beginning to get tired and just wanted to rest and relax for a while. Not so for the twins: they simply couldn't get enough and they were off again. After all, it was the first time they had been away from their home in Belgium for over 3 years. They were 8 years old now and they were good, solid boys. He was so proud of them and he often wondered how he had managed to raise such great kids alone. God knows he had his problems but they seemed to have survived in spite of him and his stumbling ways.

The boys were identical twins and looked so much alike that even he had trouble keeping them straight unless he was close enough to see the minute differences. They loved making trouble switching but he was one of the few that could tell them apart and they had stopped trying with him. Not so with others, however, and they were notorious at their school. All good clean fun though so he was content. Their mother would be proud. At that thought, he angrily stood up and grabbed his gear and called the boys to get ready to go back to the Brisbane Marriott Hotel and their room. He was angry with himself. He had thought he was past that but thinking about the boys and raising them alone brought painful memories back to the surface.

Once in the room, he grabbed a beer from the cooler and dropped down into one of the cane chairs so popular in this resort. He reflected back on the past 6 plus years and remembered.

He remembered more now than before and without the pain that he experienced earlier. He had received regular letters from Betty over the years and she kept him informed of all that was going on. He in turn sent her pictures of the boys and told her of their progress in school. He never knew whether she showed the pictures or his letters to Nicky and never asked. He didn't want to know.

He knew that Nicky had recovered from her coma and that she had attempted suicide. He also knew that she had been confined for some time in a mental institution but that she was released. He knew all of her battles and successes, her return to college for an advanced degree in psychology, and that she was now fairly successful in her career as a guidance counselor for teens in trouble. She would have been very good at that he knew, and wondered how she was doing with her life. Betty had never mentioned a man, just as he had never told her of any of his ill-fated attempts at romance.