Wife's Hall Pass

"Who is it Pilar?"

"That isn't any of your concern, now forget all that and let's go to bed." She pulled him up out of his chair and took him by the hand to lead him upstairs.

Nevada just went along with it because he didn't think anything would be gained by more arguing. He was in bed first and Pilar came out of the bathroom wearing nothing but her best smile.

Damn she was still one fine looking woman, it's a shame it all has to come to such an ugly ending. Sorry Pilar it isn't happening tonight and he rolled over away from her side of the bed.

"Suit yourself spoil sport, but you won't be able to turn me away for very long. I know how horny you are!" She said it in an artificially pouting voice.

Nevada realized she was probably right. Maybe he should reconsider because odds were he was in for a long dry spell. His pride wouldn't allow it however. What a waste.

He faked sleeping until he was certain Pilar was asleep and then got on his computer. He didn't need a PI license to find out what he was looking for. His name was Karl Malden. Nevada had actually met him once at a company dinner, but it was an innocuous meeting. He made a mental note to give the information to the investigators in the morning.

The only thing out of the ordinary Tuesday morning was again the death stares from Suzanne as everyone bailed out of the house, Nevada included. Only he wasn't going to work, he was headed to the family law office of Ms. Nessa Sand.

After introductory pleasantries and a declined offer of coffee, they got down to business. Nevada relayed everything in detail to Ms. Sand including him hiring investigators and why he did it. He also gave her Karl Malden's name. When he was finished she asked a couple of clarifying questions of him. She was quiet for a few moments as she chewed on the end of her pen and taped her toe against her desk.

Then she proceeded to give Nevada the facts of life in a no fault state and it wasn't a pretty picture.

An exasperated Nevada asked. "Ms. Sand why am I the one getting screwed in this process? I mean she is the one that is wrecking our family."

"That's a difficult question for me to answer. The no fault laws weren't put in place to purposely give husbands and fathers the shaft. And you have to remember that, despite this being the Twenty First Century I still have a lot more cheated on wives and mothers sitting across from me than the other way around.

"The primary goal in a no fault state is to protect the interests of the children that might be involved. Secondarily it simplifies the process tremendously. I don't want to offend you, but why should the state get intimately involved in a couple's marriage just because they can't handle their own shit and one wants to blame the other?

"However, the only thing your wife may be wrong about is the custody issue. If you and your wife couldn't work out a joint custody arrangement the court, based on your children's ages, might allow them to choose which parent to live with. But I have to tell you in the vast majority of cases custody goes to the mother. Suzanne is eighteen; she could choose whatever she wanted to do without the jurisdiction of the court."

"Yeah well it still makes me furious."

"I'm warning you Mr. Smith, don't do anything stupid. What your wife told you is the best case scenario of what happens in a divorce. It will get much, much worse for you if you threaten or commit any violence against her or Mr. Malden. By the way, if your PI firm does anything illegal you could be held civilly liable for their actions too, so tread carefully. You may certainly give any legally obtained evidence of her husband's infidelity to Mrs. Malden. There is no law against that, but the operative word here is LEGALLY obtained.

"I will have the papers ready to be served to your wife at work on Monday morning. I can make it very public and embarrassing, but I assure you that will be the only satisfaction you will get out of this whole process. I'm sorry to be so blunt. Are you sure you still want to go forward with this?"

"Yes do it. I will not live with what she is doing."

"Mr. Smith you are either the bravest or the stupidest man I've ever met. I guess time will tell. Is your wife the vindictive sort?"

"Well up until a few days ago I would have said no, but now I'm not so sure?"

"Ok then this is what I need you to do to protect yourself and your finances and you need to do them by first thing Monday morning. It isn't as complicated as it seems, but it will take some time. So start today if there are things you can do that won't be noticed, but wait until Monday on the things that will." She handed him a list and discussed its contents in detail with him. "Unless you tell me otherwise I will have her served at 11:00 AM Monday morning.

"Finally as a reminder do not under any circumstance get into even a verbal altercation with your wife between now and Monday. It will only complicate things for you.

"Again do NOT do anything stupid, I mean it! I will drop you as a client like a hot rock if you so much as sneeze on her."

"You act like you expect me to do something stupid."

"I'm sorry Nevada, but you're a man so you aren't that smart. And usually by now the cheated on husband is either blubbering like a baby or plotting his revenge. You are way too calm about this, and frankly it is scaring the shit out of me. I truly hope this works out for you." She sounded almost human for a moment.

She stood and shook his hand. "Good luck Mr. Smith. I'll be in touch."

As Nevada was driving home he questioned himself as to why he was so calm. He figured it was because he was locked into a course of action now. He had no illusions about how hard his life and certainly his children's lives would be impacted by the divorce, but he was comfortable that he was doing the right thing. He felt strongly that it no longer mattered if Pilar went through with her tryst or not. He couldn't be married to her any longer. He sincerely felt that Pilar was the one who wrecked their family, not him. So there really wasn't anything left to be nervous or unsure about.

Nevada took to heart his lawyer's admonitions and was nothing but pleasant to Pilar the rest of the week. He was proud of his acting abilities. The one thing he couldn't do though was have sex with her. Pilar tried everything in her power to seduce him and at one point playfully accused him of having become gay, but it was to no avail. He managed to put her off by telling her that he would think about it when 'this was all over.'

Pilar thought this a positive sign assuming he meant after her weekend hall pass, and nothing more was said until Friday night.

"Nevada I'm leaving now."

He ignored her. He argued with himself if he should make one more attempt to stop her, but decided against it.

"Good bye Pilar." He said it firmly and with a finality, the meaning of which she missed entirely.

"Relax sweetheart, I will be home Sunday evening and then I promise it will be over and I will be your loving and faithful wife for the next twenty-one years." She laughed cheerfully and was out the door.

Nevada closed his eyes for a minute. He sighed took another swallow of his drink, and prepared to get on with his life. He looked towards the doorway and saw Suzanne standing in it with tears running down her cheeks.

"You heard that didn't you?"

"Yes Daddy I did, but I knew before because last week I overheard a phone call Mom was on. What are you going to do?"

"Here come sit down and let's talk about it." He moved to the couch and patted the cushion next to him. "I'm sorry to be so direct sweetheart but I'm filing for divorce. Your mother will be served on Monday."

She did sit down next to him crying more openly now. "I guess there really isn't any other way to handle it is there Dad?"

"No there isn't baby. I'm sorry it's going to be so hard on all of us. How do you think your brothers will handle it?"

"Honestly Dad, they're teenage boys, as long as their food supply chain isn't interrupted they'll be fine. What about you Dad, will you be fine?"

"No sweetie, I won't be."

"I'm so sorry this is happening to you Dad, I love you and will help you get through this, I promise." And she just squeezed him as hard as she could and started weeping gently onto his shoulder. "I promise."

Saturday morning Nevada told Steve and Pat what was happening. They were of course saddened. Pat asked where they were going to live and Nevada told them probably right here in their home with their mother.

Steve stood up and said, "well that's probably for the best because Mom is a much better cook than you anyway," and he headed to his room with his brother. At least he was smiling when he said it.

Nevada gave a sardonic laugh and became lost in his thoughts again.

Later in the evening around 9:30 with the boys fully ensconced in their rooms Suzanne came back downstairs to talk with her dad.

"Dad please don't think I'm being selfish with this, but do you think I will still be able to go to USC in the fall semester?"

"Yes baby I'm sure. You might need to pick up a part time job at some point to help out, but somehow your mother and I will make sure you get to go. I promise."

"Dad why is she doing this to us? I can't believe my mother would do something like this to her own family." Suzanne was teary eyed and very emotional. "I mean a 'hall pass?' Why would she think that is ok?"

"You know sweetie when she first broached me with this I really thought it was about the promise I made her on our wedding day, but then I realized it was just an excuse she was offering up to rationalize something she would have done anyway. That's the part that really ended our marriage. If she didn't have the 'hall pass' excuse it probably just would have been the 'if you really loved me' justification. She was going to do it regardless."

"Excuse my language Dad, but that is so fucked up!"

Nevada laughed, then got serious. "Listen Suzanne, I want to tell you something. I'm not sure why, but I think I owe this to you. In the twenty-one years we have been married, I have never, not once, even come close to cheating on your mother. I don't think men by nature are monogamous, so that is the most precious gift a husband can give to his wife. I just assumed your mom felt the same.

"Promise me something honey. Don't ever marry a man that you have any doubts about his ability to be faithful to you. You shouldn't marry if you have any doubts about yourself either." Nevada was lost in his own thoughts for a second. "I guess in retrospect I should have taken my own advice.

"Your mom told me, albeit it was only thirty minutes before the wedding that she had her doubts about her ability to be faithful and I ignored it. Maybe I should have just walked away at that point. The only problem with that is then I wouldn't have you or your two hungry brothers! So I can't say that I wasted the last twenty plus years of my life. But her betrayal still cuts like a knife."

Just at that moment the front doorbell rang. Nevada got up to answer it with Suzanne trailing behind him. When he opened the door he saw two uniformed police officers standing on the porch.

"Sorry to disturb you sir. Are you Nevada Smith?"

"Yes officer, is there an issue?"

"Who is the young lady with you?"

"That's my daughter Suzanne."

"It might be better if we spoke alone sir."

Nevada had an uneasy feeling but he knew that this had something to do with Pilar. He felt that Suzanne was an adult and she had the right to hear what was coming. "She's an adult officer, I would like her to stay."

"Okay, I'm sorry to tell you Mr. Smith that your wife was severely injured tonight. She is currently at Memorial hospital in surgery. It is imperative that you go to the hospital immediately."

"Oh my god!" Suzanne gasped from behind Nevada.

"Was she in an accident?"

"No sir it was a crime. I really can't tell you any more about it. However there are detectives at the hospital waiting to talk with you. Good evening sir." And they walked back to their patrol car.

Nevada turned to face Suzanne who had her hands over her mouth and her eyes were wide with fear. "Sweetheart, you are coming to the hospital with me. Go tell your brothers that you and I are going out for a while, but don't tell them where and why just yet. I want more information first." She sprinted up the stairs two steps at a time. Five minutes later they were on their way.

When they arrived at the hospital they were immediately directed to the OR waiting area by hospital security and they were told a doctor would be in to see them in a while. Both Nevada and Suzanne were stunned. Confusion and anxiety is the normal condition for relatives of loved ones in their situation. The minutes crawled by like hours.

"Mr. Smith?" Asked a tall exhausted looking man in an equally tired looking suit.

Nevada looked up and saw two men who were obviously the detectives the uniformed cops had told him about. "That's me, and this is my daughter Suzanne. Whatever you have to say to me you can say to her."

"No sir I can't. My name is Detective Lieutenant Cipriano." He quickly flipped open and closed his wallet badge and returned it to his coat pocket. "I need to speak with you alone, please come with me now. My partner Detective Bonnell will talk with your daughter."

Nevada followed Cipriano to a quiet part of the hallway. Without preamble Lt. Cipriano asked him where he was around eight o'clock tonight.

"I was at home with my daughter talking. My two sons were also there with us." Nevada wasn't a fool. He knew exactly why Cipriano was asking that question.

"What was you wife doing with..." He paused and looked at his notes. "With Mr. Karl Malden?"

For a brief moment he thought about lying to the detective to minimize embarrassment to the family but then surmised, Fuck it she made her bed, she can lay in it.

He sighed sadly and told Cipriano. "Malden is her boyfriend and the two of them were spending the weekend together fucking each other's brains out." He practically spat it out he was so disgusted with and becoming angrier by the minute at his wife. The fact that his phone was constantly vibrating in his pocket wasn't helping his mood either.

Lt. Cipriano didn't even blink. "We figured it was something like that, so I guess you understand why I'm talking with you?"

"Yes sir, I do, but I had nothing to do with anything that happened to them. What did happen?"

"They were leaving a restaurant and were attacked by two unknown assailants and both were severely beaten with what appeared to be baseball bats.

"I'm guessing your daughter will corroborate your story, but we will definitely be talking with you again in a more formal setting. If you don't currently have an attorney I Strongly suggest you find one." Cipriano handed Nevada a Business card and left without any further comment.

Holy shit, this must be bad! And he headed back to be with Suzanne.

Suzanne was in tears and jumped up and hugged Nevada when he returned. "Daddy, what is going on, I'm so scared right now. The man asked me where you were earlier. They think you had something to do with what happened to Mom don't they?"

"Honey, obviously your mother and her boy toy, for that matter must be hurt very badly and yes, the police think that I had something to do with it. Where are the doctors? We really need to find out what is going on." Nevada's anger kept rising and he was worried that he would lose control soon. He needed to stay calm if for no other reason than to prevent Suzanne from breaking completely down.

A few minutes later a short somewhat rotund woman in blood splattered surgical garb came into the room and identified herself as Dr. Mason. "I was the primary trauma surgeon working on your wife. She is stable now but it was a very close thing."

Jesus. "Doctor please tell me..."

"What's wrong with my mother is she going to be alright?" Cut in a traumatized Suzanne. "Tell me what is going on!"

"Mr. Smith, Ms. Smith. Pilar was severely beaten. The most serious injury which needed immediate surgery was a fractured skull. There was significant swelling of the brain caused by the trauma and bleeding in the cranium and we needed to relieve that pressure stat."

"Oh my god!" Suzanne had lost it completely by now and was seated with her head in her hands, crying hysterically.

Dr. Mason focused her attention on Nevada. Mr. Smith I'm sorry to be so blunt, but that isn't her only serious injury. She has two fractured vertebrae in her lower back. We refer to them as the lumbar or L-4 and L-5 vertebrae. We don't think there was too much damage to the spinal chord or nerve roots associated with them, but we can't be positive until the swelling recedes and we can get a better look at it. We aren't sure if she will need surgery there, but it's highly likely.

"She also has an assortment of other injuries including the broken ulna and radius bones of her right arm. The forensic folks would call that a defensive injury probably caused as she tried to block the blows to her head.

"There are a myriad of other injuries that aren't nearly as serious. I am not telling you this to be salacious but to prepare you for the extensive care your wife will need after what will be a rather lengthy hospital stay."

Suzanne just wailed louder and louder as Dr. Mason listed her mother's injuries.

"Can we see her?"

"There really isn't any point. She has been placed in a medically induced coma to try to reduce the swelling in her brain, and she will likely be unconscious for several days. My best advice is to check in with the ICU before you leave tonight and give them your contact information so they can provide you any updates on her condition. I'm very sorry sir." And she was gone.

He and Suzanne did as the doctor had instructed and then headed home. It was after midnight but they woke the boys and called them down and related what had happened. To say they were in shock would have been a massive understatement.

Nevada thought that perhaps something was wrong with him because he felt absolutely no sorrow at what had happened to his wife. Maybe it was a defense mechanism but he thought that given the circumstances he should have felt more emotion? The three children were traumatized and inconsolable. Why wasn't he?

He knew the answer. His anger at what his wife had done to her family overwhelmed ever other emotion he had. She did this to herself. The blame was all on her. He had a lot of decisions to make as to his next steps, but they could wait.

He remembered the phone calls to his cell and he checked it. The voicemail was full and every call was from the same number, it was his PI. In all the excitement he had forgotten about the fact he had contracted them to do a sub-rosa surveillance all weekend on his wife's activities.

Despite the late hour, Nevada called Bart Hudson the owner of the PI firm. Hudson answered the phone on the first ring.

Without any preamble Bart Hudson spoke with venom. "Listen carefully Mr. Smith, if I find out that you had anything to do with what transpired tonight I will personally kill you! Do you understand me?"

"Whoa, whoa there Bart I had nothing to do with it. Do you really think I would hire you to watch me attack my own wife?"

"It's happened before and more than once. It's not an uncommon misdirection technique. Jesus what a fucking mess it was.

"Listen Mr. Smith to cut to the chase, yes they were having sex together. Hell we have video of them in a motel parking lot Friday night fuc... ah, having sex on the hood of Malden's car. Not very subtle at all for supposedly first time cheaters.

"But that's really not my reason for trying to reach you. I have excellent footage of the whole attack from my team following them at the time. In fact I think we can provide clues to the identity of the attackers to the police. I am obligated by law to turn everything I have over to the police ASAP, but I wanted you to know in advance."