When the Bastard is a Nice Guy

At this point his head fell forward and he dissolved into fits of sobbing. Mario was not impressed, but allowed the obviously distraught man to let out his feelings. It was also the Italian way. Just to be sure his fellow patrons were OK with this, he shouted them all a free beer. He, himself poured a generous shot of grappa which he kept behind the counter. Displays of such emotions were just so manly for an Italian and it reminded him of his own divorce.

John's sobbing finally sort of ended. He looked up into the teary eyes of the messenger of his reason for such sadness. "Ben. I am sorry. You have also felt what I am feeling. Forgive me for accusing you. It should be me that is the brunt of your anger."

"I admit that I came here to beat your ass to pulp. When I met you and started talking to you, I realised that you were also a victim of this cruel situation. I am lucky in that I have had two weeks to process this betrayal. You have only had one hour."

John's ayes took on a determined look. One Ben had seen in his own mirror days and weeks ago.

"That lying, scheming bitch has to pay. We can't let that level of betrayal go untouched. She has to pay and she has to pay hard."

"I know what you mean John. In about a week, all of her stuff from Perth will arrive at your apartment. Melinda should be arriving in Perth soon, so be prepared for a phone call from her. The house we used to share is completely empty. I moved all of my stuff to a new apartment which she won't find very easily. I left no clues. I left the divorce papers in the hands of a court server who will be waiting at our old home for the moment she arrives, to serve her. I suggest you do the same. No doubt she will think of a way to get back here as soon as possible to see what you know."

John looked overwhelmed by the situation, so over the next three hours, at their apartment, I took him through the steps needed to distance himself from Mel. The financial stuff was taken care of by the end of that day. His business, also, was able to be sold as mine was, also with the same conditions. His clients were only too happy to wait for a re-establishment of his business after his impending divorce. Seems like it was a more common occurrence here in the big smoke.

He knew a lawyer who could get the papers prepared very quickly. As usual, it wasn't a case of what you know, but who you know. Surprisingly, the papers were ready to be served the next day. This speed was unheard of. John's lawyer must have really pulled some strings for it to happen so quickly.

It was during this preparation process that John got his phone call. Melinda couldn't call Ben, because he had blocked her number in his cellphone. There were some numbers from unidentified callers, but he ignored them. She had obviously tried to use different phones to call from.

John looked at his mobile and saw the caller id. He was conflicted as to answer or not. Ben convinced him to, but not give any hint that he knew what was going on.

"Mel! What a surprise. You don't usually call me so quickly after arriving in Perth. Is everything OK?"

John put the phone on speaker, so that Ben could be party to the conversation.

"John, love. No everything's fine here. Has anything unusual happened back at our apartment over the last seven hours or so?"

"No. everything's the same old, same old. Why do you ask?"

Ben admired the way John was keeping it together. He didn't think he could have if it was him receiving that call. It brought on a new level of respect for this bloke.

"Oh, nothing. Just asking, that's all. Hey great news babe. I am able to return to Sydney earlier than expected. Something has come up at work there. I will fly back on Wednesday night. Love you. See you then. You know what time to expect me, bye."

"Goodbye Mel," returned John with a grim sense of finality. He didn't wait for Melinda to question his grim tone. He ended the call abruptly.

They both sat there, lost in their reminiscences of what they had both lost, or were about to lose. They had both been sucker-punched by the same woman.

Ben helped John gather all of his stuff. The packers he had called arrived and took all of his stuff to another apartment which they were able to rent with Bruce's help. They both looked at the half-empty apartment and sat heavily on the remaining lounge furniture.

"You know John, when I first walked into this apartment, it was freaky how so much of it was similar to our house back in Perth. It seems like the bitch wanted both places to be as similar as possible so that she felt like she was at home no matter which place she was in. Is that a bottle of fine Margaret River red I see over there?"

John looked over and a wry smile crossed his lips. "Yep. That collection is Mel's pride and joy. She spent months combing the Margaret River wineries, even all the way to Mt Barker. That collection represents the finest and most expensive reds that part of Australia has to offer. I think we owe it to ourselves and those fine wine-makers to sample at least ninety percent of the collection before we leave here. What do you think?"

"Well said good sir," replied Ben with an equal sense of mischief. "Shall we start with this pinot noir? I am sure the light fruitiness will help pave the way for the more solid shiraz, and maybe, the cabernet sauvignon."

The drinks began and with each new glass, the two compared notes of their lives with Mel/Melinda.

The first bottle of wine, a fine pinot noir, saw them comparing her dress habits. The quirky way she put on her stockings under her power suits. How she always put on her left shoe first. How she adjusted her blouse at least three times before putting on her business jacket. How she looked in the full-length mirror at least three times before being satisfied. How the colour of her briefcase always had to match that of her suit.

The second bottle, a fine merlot from Swan River Winery, saw them comparing her speech habits. How she always came home with the same greeting. "Hi babe. How was your day? Mine was the same old busy, busy, busy. Can't wait to tell you all about it." How she always complimented the meal they were having with the same words, "Oh my god! What have you done to these,(whatever)? They're delicious!" How she always left in the mornings with the same words, "Ok babe, I'm off to conquer the world today. Catchya! And love ya."

The third bottle of wine, a stunning cabernet from Mt Barker, saw them comparing her love making. By this time the two were feeling no pain and were open about their most intimate moments with Melinda.

"Did you notice that just before she orgasms, her eyes do this little flutter? That's when you know it's on." They both nodded in agreement, being careful not to spill the wine. "She loves to be eaten out using the alphabet technique. That's always a sure fire way to get her to squirm. I always get to about 'w' before she loses it completely!" Again, the nodding in agreement. "We couldn't get enough of each other during the night before she left. We made love for hours. I sometimes envied her the first class ride back to recuperate. She wouldn't have sex on the first night back though. I always thought it was the 'red eye'. I now know different. It was because of the intense fucking she endured before the flights." Nodding followed by laughter at this stage.

The fourth bottle of wine, a deep shiraz, saw them quietly sitting, eyes hooded, speech slurred. Thy weren't going to get anywhere near ninety percent of the cellar's offerings! "That bitch has to pay. I haven't been so glutted, I mean gutted in my whole life."

"You're right brother. What can we do to make her pay?"

They may have come up with some sort of revenge plot, but as is the way of over-use of alcohol as a tool for creativity, it completely wipes the memory clean before the next session of consciousness begins.

The next morning was not pretty. Both Ben and John stumbled to the kitchen where toast and vegemite were in order. To their credit, neither of them 'drove the porcelain bus' to sobriety. It took them until lunch time to be in any way respectable. It was time to visit Mario's again, this time John's shout. Mario greeted them with a knowing look and a promise to give them just what they needed to overcome their obvious pain. Lasagne! He came to join them after they had finished and placed the bottle of good Tuscan grappa and three glasses on the table. "So, my friends, I see that you have sorted your woman trouble out." Bruce had filled him in, along with any in the bar who would listen. "You know I am Italian, from Sicily. We have a way of sorting out such matters, but I do not think that it would be allowed here in Australia. What do you propose to do about the putta?"

Both Ben and John were taken aback by Mario's up-front statement and question. They each had the same question. "What happens in your village to be so bad?"

"Ahh," Mario replied. "The bitch is simply escorted to a waiting fishing boat and taken across the sea to Libya. There are lots of rich Arabs wanting a sex slave for the right price. We are renowned negotiators, so the husband gets a fair reward for his loss. The same also happens to a straying husband, although the offended wife usually gets double for him." He laughed with that deep belly laugh that can't help but be infectious. They all laughed while Mario poured out generous shots of grappa. "Salut!" he shouted and they all downed the shots. Ben and John spluttered and coughed which brought on more bouts of laughter followed by another generous pouring.

"Always catch the snake where it thinks it is safest," said Mario suddenly. "Where does this snake think she is safest?"

Ben and John looked at each other and then at Mario's grim face. They said simultaneously, "At work."

"Then that is where we must cut off its head," stated Mario while pouring another.

There followed a detailed discussion about how to create the maximum amount of hurt at work for Melinda. Work was everything to her while she was everything to Ben and John. She had betrayed their trust and love to the ultimate degree and now it was her turn to be betrayed to the maximum degree.

The lawyer who was engaged by Ben was in Perth, but had provided a colleague here in Sydney who could do the work required. Basically, both Ben and John wanted to sue Melinda for damages brought about by her marriage to two people at the same time. In New South Wales, section 92 of the Crimes Act 1900 makes it an offence punishable by a maximum penalty of seven years' imprisonment to marry a person whilst already married to another. This is known as bigamy. This made the betrayal enacted by Melinda a criminal act which would have to be dealt with in a criminal court before any civil action could be taken. The criminal element had to be dealt with first. This was the job of John Bills Esq, barrister, to deal with. He accepted the brief from Ben's solicitor's friend with glee. He hadn't seen such a clear cut case of bigamy for many years. Melinda's company, so eager to be settled amongst the big businesses in Sydney would not take kindly to having a convicted criminal in its top rank executives.

Also, in the wings, John's solicitor was prepping to sue Melinda for civil damages.

All of the legal ducks were in a row, so to speak. What both of them dreaded, but both needed was closure with Melinda. The showdown was looming as her flight was due within the hour. Both Ben and John prepared the apartment. There were tissues, wine and coffee, along with a tape recorder hidden carefully amongst the sparse furniture. The wine was mainly for Ben and John.

When she arrived, John greeted her at the door as usual. "Hi babe. Am I glad to see you. All sorts of shit has come down here at the office and the boss allowed me to return here as soon as this." She hugged John as normal and entered the room. Ben winced at the obvious show of affection from Melinda to John. This was how she normally would greet him. The pain of the situation again came to bite him. He couldn't help but stifle a small sob. At first it didn't register with Melinda who was there, but the sparseness of the room alerted her first to the scenario to come. "What the hell babe! What did you do the apartment? Where is all of your stuff?"

She scanned the apartment again and saw Ben for the first time.

"Oh shit! Oh holy shit! Ben. What are you doing here? I tried to call you while in Perth babe, but." She paled significantly and her knees shook noticeably. Her normally deep green eyes took on a hooded look. She didn't know where to look.

She stopped talking as the reality of the situation dawned on her. The tears started flowing and the sobs were genuine, but both failed to impress Ben and John. They waited grimly while she got her emotions under control. "I can explain," she whimpered. They waited.

"Ben, I, John, I," she started.

"We just want the truth please," Ben stated. "Not that it will make any difference to the outcome of this betrayal, but please, just please explain why! Why would you betray our years of marriage to lure another man into believing he was the one? Why? Just why?"

Melinda took a deep breath. The game was up. She was cornered and to her credit, she didn't attempt to lay any more bullshit on either of them. Her determination, normally an admirable character trait, kicked in to allow her to tell the truth. "I loved you both. I still love you both. Ben, when I left to take on this job, I honestly thought we could survive the two week separations. What I didn't bank on was the utter devastation of my infertility. I felt as though I had failed. Failed as a wife and failed as a future mother. I missed you terribly Ben, but I didn't want to admit my weakness. My pride wouldn't allow me to give in. I knew you were there for me. You always have been. But I needed to be stronger. I needed to succeed at this no matter what my feelings were. I realised soon after that this pride and determination were only driving me deeper and deeper into the pit of despair.

"I don't know how I managed to hide it when I was again with you in Perth, but I did. I focussed this devastation into my work and felt a little relieved that it filled the void somewhat. My work kept me busy. Busy interviewing new employees. New employees like John. When I first met him, I was stunned at how like you he was, Ben. I was drawn to John like a magnet. He had the same mannerisms, the same style of dress, shit even his walk was like yours. My loneliness for you Ben only increased every time I saw John. After a while it was like you two morphed into the same being, my loving husband. John, do you recall all of those so-called follow-up interviews for your role as a software developer for our company? Only the first one was needed. I knew you were right for the job after the first interview. The others were solely for my benefit. I was stricken by you, just as I was stricken by my first husband, Ben. I thought that I didn't need to feel that loneliness anymore. I willingly made a play for you John. Part of me admitted the wrong, but I was too weak to say no."

"But you were already married Melinda. Married to me. I was completely devoted to you. Why would you need another to take my place?" sighed Ben.

"I don't know Ben, my love. I just knew that I could. I missed you so much, but my pride wouldn't let me come home and admit that to you. I couldn't let John go. John, I honestly loved you and still do. You were, are, so much like Ben, it was like you were cloned. How could I not love you as well? Ben, I loved you and still do. I don't know how I can ever make it up to either of you. I cannot choose between you. I need and love both of you." Again, the sobs and tears. Tissues were produced but the grimness and hard-heartedness of Ben and John remained. When she again regained control, Melinda looked at both men. She saw the grimness and loss of love in both of their eyes. She knew then that what she had done had lost the love of both men that she professed to love. There was nothing more she could say. Her betrayal was laid bare for everyone to see. The pragmatic part of her psyche took over. No amount of tears and begging was going to make any difference to her destiny. She knew it. The di was set, the game was set in motion. She had to accept what was coming. Her body seemed to shrink as she resigned herself to her fate.

Ben added, "There is only one thing I can say Melinda. You betrayed me and set aside our love and trust, simply because you thought you could. All of the times I have comforted you, encouraged you, supported you in those dreaded days we faced together, all of that was swept aside like so much rubbish. I can never forgive you for what you have done. I also will never forget what you have done. You have destroyed a valuable part of my psyche. My ability to trust those I love and will love in the future has been destroyed thanks to your selfish actions. I hope and pray that I can recover from this poisoning of my soul and live a satisfying life. Thanks for nothing. John, brother, you know where to find me." He got up and left without another word.

Melinda sobbed again and hugged herself in a vain attempt to find comfort. "John," she began. Her pleading eyes displayed the desperation she was feeling. Could she at least find comfort with one of the men she so cruelly betrayed?

John interrupted her. "Don't Mel. Don't even try to justify what you have done. You have destroyed a wonderful part of Ben's character as well as mine. I thought the world of you Mel. When you came into my life, I thought that I had died and gone to heaven. I loved you so much. When you explained about your work situation, I readily accepted it. I accepted it because I loved and trusted you. I would have given my life for you Mel. What was a small time of two weeks apart as a sacrifice, compared to that? Like Ben, I don't know if I can ever trust another person like that again. You know what they say, 'once bitten, twice shy'. Goodbye Mel. Enjoy your future, but know that neither Ben, nor I will be part of that future." John left and left the door open.

Melinda collapsed onto the floor and remained there until well after dark. The desolation felt in her soul was mirrored by the starkness of the nearly empty room of the apartment. When she roused herself, she didn't know because everything she did from that point on was a blur. Worried neighbours, saw that the door was open to apartment 276 and Mel, the lady they occasionally saw, was strewn across a lonely lounge seat quietly sobbing. The ambulance attendants took her to Sydney North Shore Hospital where she was kept for observation.

Epilogue

Ben left for Perth on the next available flight. He never visited Sydney again. It had only sad memories for him. Fortunately, the divorce proceeded without contest and after six months, the decree nisi arrived in the mail. The last nail in the coffin of his marriage. His mum remained mystified by the whole sorry tale. She would often tell anyone near her, or anything near her, "I liked that girl. What happened?"

John also had his divorce completed. It was quicker for him as the court decided that his marriage to Mel was null and void in the first place.

Melinda's boss got a very legal-looking letter informing him of the circumstance surrounding the strange behaviour of his protégé. It was enough for the company to sack Melinda immediately, but not enough to stop a lawsuit brought on by both Ben and John regarding the apparent condoning of this bigamist behaviour. The company settled out of court.

Melinda was tried by the Perth Supreme court of one count of bigamy and sentenced to five years in Sydney's Long Jail.

Both Ben and John have re-started their businesses thanks to the start-up funds granted by the successful civil action. They remain good friends to this day and often meet up in Uluru, the mid-point between Perth and Sydney. They call each other, 'the good-guy bastards'.