Vengeance Delayed

Vengeance Delayed

There is no sex here. This is just a simple little story about an honest man with principles who waits to balance the scales of justice.

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Spring, it's a time for new beginnings. And scotch, it's a drink for quiet celebration. Put them together on a sun-filled deck behind your own house and you have one of those moments in time that needs to be savored. This was that moment. I'd waited five years for this day, and I was going to take my time to enjoy every minute of it.

When I bought this place two years ago, I went on a mission to find the most comfortable deck chairs on the market. They were my gift to myself. I bought five and then I got three small tables to go with them so there would always be a place to put a glass. Sure, I had the obligatory round table with chairs that were the right height for dinner, and I had a grille, and I had friends over often enough. In fact, my brother and his family were coming over tonight for burgers, but this next hour was all for me. I was celebrating freedom and revenge.

It's been five years, five long and sometimes painful years since the betrayal. I've had those five years to think about it, to try to understand, and I was still no closer to an explanation. I suppose that's the way it often is. One person is happily married while their spouse is looking elsewhere. One is clueless while the other knows all and tells no one. She was a master of deception. Everyone loved her. She was the daughter by marriage that my parents doted on and not a soul in the family escaped that horrible feeling of betrayal when she left to marry her lover. There was no warning, no clue, no hint, no nothing to tell us she was moving on.

How can a husband be so blind and unaware of the lies all around him? In all the time I've pondered that question, I have come up with just one answer: trust. It's no more complicated than that. When you trust someone, you aren't looking for lies. If she tells you she is working late, or she is going out with the girls from the office, or she is going shopping, you believe. If she is showering after work, it's because the office was hot, and she wants to be clean and sweet for her husband. Trust is blind. Trust is stupid. These were the thoughts that could keep a man awake at night.

I was deep in my thoughts when I heard the French doors open and my brother Tom stepped out of the house and onto the deck.

"How long have you been sitting out here all by your lonesome?"

"Just about an hour. It's been a long cold winter and I've been letting the sun warm my bones."

"You sound like dad."

"Dad knows what he's talking about. Funny thing about dad, the older I get the smarter he seems."

"You weren't so happy with him when he caught you in the basement with... what was her name?"

"Cheryl? Oh, no. That was a bad day."

"How old were you?"

"I was a senior in high school. Cheryl had her top off for the first time and I was in heaven. Dad catches us, his eyes went wide, and for just a moment I thought he wanted a piece of the action for himself. Then he just shook his head, said 'You two get dressed', and walked back up the stairs.

"I was embarrassed, but Cheryl was mortified. I took her hand as we climbed the stairs and I promised her I'd stand by her with dad. She was shaking like a leaf. I remember facing dad and saying, 'I'm sorry, dad, but we love each other.'

"He just shook his head and said, 'Not yet you don't, but maybe someday. It isn't love until you can balance it against all the unsheltered realities of life."

"What did he mean by that?"

"I'm still not sure. Then he looked at Cheryl and said, 'Cheryl, my wife and I couldn't think better of you if you were our own daughter, but this boy has a raging case of hormones, and you need to get him under control. You understand?' She nodded her head and never stopped shaking. Then he says, 'Believe me, I understand, but you have a long life ahead of you both and you need to be smart about it. Now, I'm sorry I barged in on you two, but that's also a part of life.'"

"He actually apologized for catching the two of you?"

"Yep. He had a few other choice words for me after I walked Cheryl home, but with her he apologized."

"Wow. I've never heard dad apologize."

"It was the only time."

"Whatever happened to Cheryl?"

"We dated the rest of that year and then the relationship fizzled out. Dad was right. It wasn't love, but it was the best case of lust I'd ever had!"

"She married a banker or something, didn't she?"

"He's some kind of investment type. I met him. He's a good guy. At least, he seems like it. Cheryl is happy. They have two kids the last I heard."

"It's funny the curves life throws you. As a matter of fact, I got a very angry call today."

"Yeah?"

"You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"

I said nothing, but my smile gave me away.

"You waited five years?"

"I figured it wouldn't happen right away and I was patient. I started hearing stories. She was here. He was there. Each was with someone else. I figured it was time."

"So you hired a private investigator?"

"Hey, I'm a busy guy!" I couldn't suppress my smile.

"You knew it would happen, didn't you?"

"Once a cheat, always a cheat. When a cheater marries a cheater, it's just a question of who cheats first."

My brother was looking at his feet and shaking his head. "What exactly did you do?"

"I sent her a copy of the PI's report with pictures on what he was doing, and I sent him a copy of what she was doing. Then I sent copies to her parents and her sister, and his parents, and the company they work for."

Tom was enjoying the mental image he was building. "I've got to tell you, she is steamed! She called me every name in the book and a few I think she made up."

I was laughing quietly to myself. "So she's not happy with me?"

"With you? She thinks I did it!"

"Sorry, Tom. I should have signed them."

"Don't you dare! Let her think I did it. Hell, I want her to think I did it. This has been the best day of my life since my wedding to Marie and the day she told me she was pregnant with Julia."

There was no holding back the laughter for either of us.

"So, how much do I owe you?"

"Nothing."

"You sure?"

"Hey, what are brothers for?"

We spent the next half hour enjoying our drinks and talking about our young and growing families until we heard the front door open and the sound of young feet running down the hall. The girls had arrived! Soon, Tom's wife, my wife, and our two girls were all on the deck and telling us about their shopping trip. We tried to listen, we nodded, we showed some surprise when we thought the timing was right, and then we got kisses from the women in our lives as they went back inside. By then the sun was going down, so Tom and I decided to head inside ourselves. Not long after that our parents arrived with Tom's two-year-old daughter and there was a whole new set of stories to hear where my parents regaled us all with the wonderful and amazing things this child had said today while the older girls showed their grandparents all the new clothes they'd bought. Every child deserves grandparents.

Eventually, we grilled some burgers outside along with baked potatoes and the wives made a nice salad to go along with the burgers and spuds. It was the perfect end to a very good day.

Funny thing about wives, they pretend they don't know what their husbands have been up to, and then they spring it on you. I was drying the last of the plates when she said, "I heard about the little stunt you pulled today."

"Me? I behaved myself today!"

"I hear you dropped a bunch of bombs around town. I hear that Tom's ex is very upset."

I tried not to appear proud, but I failed. "Just a little payback on a cheating bitch who earned it five years ago."

She looked at me for a long time as if she was trying to make up her mind about what to do. Then she kissed me on the cheek and said, "You're right. She deserved it. Family takes care of family. Are you coming to bed?"

"I'll be up in a minute."

"Jimmy?"

"Yes?"

"Are you over it now?"

"Yeah. I think so. She never felt any pain when she betrayed Tom. She feels it now."

I suppose I was a bit vindictive. Tom had moved on and found a truly good woman. He was happy and he had left the pain of his first marriage behind him. I was the one who never quite got over the betrayal. Should I regret what I did? No. I didn't do anything. I just let a little light shine into the darkest corners of their lives. Vengeance delayed? Vengeance deserved.

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So, maybe I was wrong in the prologue. Maybe this is a story about two honest men with principles, good women, loving children, and grandparents. You tell me who the real winners are.