You Want What?

"We'll discuss it when we get back," I said. "Right now, we have to get to the hospital. Bill's life takes priority right now."

"What?" she asked.

"Your so-called friends -- the ones who want you to cuckold me -- were plotting to kill Bill. Did you know that?"

"Oh my God," she said. "I had no idea."

We headed out to the only major hospital in the area, figuring that's where he would be taken. On the way, Rhonda's cell phone rang.

"Hello," she said when she answered it, placing the phone on speaker.

"Rhonda, we got arrested," I heard Renee say. "I've been charged with sexual assault."

"I know," Rhonda said. "I saw it."

"You saw it?" Renee asked. "How much did you see?"

"All of it, you bitch," Rhonda said angrily. "I can't believe you wanted me to do all that to my Jimmy. And I can't believe you'd actually want to kill your husband. I hate both you and Jake right now, and I never want to see or hear from you again. I hope they lock you up for life. You're one sick bitch!"

"Rhonda, please," Renee begged. "You have to bail me out. I can't go to jail."

"Wrong, bitch!" Rhonda yelled. "Your husband is going to the hospital and we're on our way there now. Goodbye, and don't ever call me again." She ended the call and looked at me.

"I'm sorry about all this," she said. I nodded my head and kept driving. By then, we had made it to the hospital.

As we walked into the emergency room, I spotted Detective White at the nurse's station. Our company had set up a lot of the servers at the local police department and I had gotten to know him fairly well. I walked up to him.

"Detective White," I said. "Are you here about Bill Burton?" He looked at me and nodded his head.

"As a matter of fact, I am, Jimmy," he said.

"How is he?" I asked.

"He was bleeding pretty bad from whatever his wife did to him," he said. "He's going into surgery now. I can't tell you any more than that. Privacy rules, you know. So, why are you involved in this?"

"I'm the one who called 911," I said. "And I have evidence you might find interesting."

"Oh?" he asked. "Were you there? Did you witness what happened?"

"I wasn't there, but I did witness it," I said. He cocked his eyebrows in confusion. "In fact, I have video of the entire incident."

"And how did you come by this video?" he asked.

"Is there someplace we can talk in private?" I asked the nurse. She pointed to a small consultation room. We went in the room, closed the door and sat down. After we were situated, I explained the whole story. He didn't seem too impressed with what Rhonda wanted to do, but didn't say anything.

I then explained that Bill and I set this up to give Rhonda a bird's eye view of what actually took place in Bill's marriage. As I explained to Detective White, I hoped the video would finally convince Rhonda to forget her plan to cuckold me. Neither one of us had any idea this would happen.

"And you have this video with you?" Detective White asked. I nodded my head and pulled out the player. "Let's take a quick look," he added. I hit the play button, starting the video from the beginning. After Renee and Bill's discussion, he had me replay the beginning so he could hear it better. He watched the rest of the video, taking notes as he went. After it was over, I pulled the DVD and handed it to him.

"You just made my job a lot easier, Jimmy," he said. "From what I see here, it looks like we have enough to tack a few extra charges on both Mrs. Burton and her accomplice. You know I'm going to have to take formal statements from both of you and it's possible you'll need to testify in court."

"I understand," I said. The detective stood up, indicating the meeting was over. Rhonda and I got up as well. He shook my hand before leaving.

"Thank you, Jimmy," he said. "I'll be in touch."

We drove home in silence and entered the house, still shocked by the events of the evening. I grabbed a beer for myself and asked Rhonda what she wanted.

"I'll have a Coke," she said. I grabbed one and handed it to her. We sat down on the couch and said nothing for a while. Rhonda finally looked at me, a tear falling down her cheek.

"I'll understand if you want a divorce," she said. "I won't fight it. You can have everything, I'll just keep my car and my clothes."

"Why should I divorce you?" I asked. "Did you cheat on me?" She shook her head.

"No, never," she said. "I swear it." I nodded my head. I believed her, but only because I had seen her emails.

"But you wanted to," I said. She looked down at the floor.

"I only wanted to liven up our sex life," she said. "That's all. I got stupid and started listening to Renee's bullshit instead of listening to what you were telling me. And those stories didn't help any."

"So, I should divorce you for being stupid?" I asked. She chuckled at that. "I didn't know stupidity was grounds for divorce in this state." I held her to me and kissed her.

"Can you ever forgive me?" she cried.

"I forgive you for being stupid," I said. "Just don't do it again, okay?" She smiled through her tears and kissed me hard on the lips.

"I won't," she said. "I love you so much and I never want to lose you."

"I love you, too," I said. We held each other for a while before heading to the bedroom, where I thought she was going to fuck me to death.

Renee and Jack were both fired from their jobs the next day. Rhonda, Bill and I were called to testify in their trial, but the video sealed their fate. Both Renee and Jack were convicted of sexual assault, assault and battery, unlawful detention and conspiracy to commit murder. The judge sentenced them to 20 years in prison.

Bill's divorce went through without a hitch and my father hired him on as a consultant specializing in Linux. He promised to start upon his return from a three-month "sabbatical" in north Idaho. When he returned, I hardly recognized him.

Gone was the scared, skinny kid who ate at my table and stared at the floor. In his place was a strong, confident man ready to take on the world. I put him right to work and so far, he's more than proven his worth.

One last thing -- Rhonda told me the other day she's pregnant. I don't know who's happier -- me, her or my dad.

"I can't believe I almost screwed it all up," she told me as we sat on the couch.

"You know what my dad says about 'almost,' right?" I asked her. She looked at me and shook her head.

"No, what?" she asked.

"Almost only counts in pitching pennies, horseshoes and throwing grenades," I said. She laughed as she slapped my shoulder. She wrapped her arms around me.

"Know this, Jimmy Carson," she said. "You're stuck with me -- for life." I held her close and kissed her.

"Works for me," I said.