Combining Riches (Riches to Rags Book 2)

by Mairsile Leabhair

  “Well, fuck that.” Melinda said loudly, pulling her hand from beneath me, and I instantly felt the cold where it had been.

  I squeezed her leg and gave her a stern look to remind her of her promise. She nodded and leaned back, saying nothing more, but I could still feel her anger.

  “Mr. Clemens, as I was saying about what I learned—”

  “Damn it, Meg! I said I didn’t want to hear it.”

  “You don’t want to hear that he can walk and has been able to walk ever since he checked out of the rehab hospital, two weeks after you hit him? Or that his wife is four months pregnant with their third child, and that he has a mistress downtown that he tells everyone is his chiropractor?”

  Mr. Clemens came charging out of the wheelchair, shoving it back against the wall, breaking several knickknacks as a result. I watched, as if in slow motion, as he stepped toward me, flabbergasted that he could walk. His way was blocked by Meg and Melinda, who jumped up to stop him, and for a tense few minutes, he screamed obscenities at me, and at both of them, until he had no more to scream, and finally he sat back down in the wheelchair, and Melinda and Meg sat down as well.

  Melinda leaned over toward Meg and said, “Damn, you’re good.”

  Meg half smiled. “I only wish I had learned this sooner and saved her the worry.”

  I was visibly shaking, not from his anger, but from Meg’s revelation. Why would he fake it? He said himself that he had no insurance, so that couldn’t be it. And then I figured it out, and my entire body shook with rage, and it was my turn to unleash it.

  “You mother fucking asshole!” I screamed and jumped up, pacing in front of him. “You’ve been faking this whole time so that my father would help you out, haven’t you?” I was too angry to let him speak. “You pretended so that he’d offer you that settlement, knowing that it would never make it to court if you tried to sue.”

  I heard Melinda say, “Son of a bitch!”

  “Why would you torture me like that?” I knew he wouldn’t answer my questions, but I asked them anyway. “What kind of sick bastard are you?”

  “I saw an opportunity and I grabbed it, as any man would. But it’s not what you think,” he said dispassionately.

  I was so confused, and so angry, and now at a loss for words, that I slumped back down beside Melinda, and she wrapped her arm around my shoulder and tried to calm my trembling nerves.

  “And besides,” he continued, “you hit me with your car, and for that you still owe me.”

  “Forget it, dickhead,” Melinda growled. “She doesn’t owe you a fucking thing.”

  Meg joined in, “In fact, I think I owe your wife the truth about your mistress.”

  He became incensed again, which told me that his wife didn’t know about his affair. Meg had hit on a very sore spot, and she expounded on it. “Come to think of it, why isn’t your pregnant wife here with you now? Oh, I get it. That’s why you said come during church, isn’t it? Because while she is praying to God for blessings on your family, you made a deal with the devil for retribution.”

  “You leave my wife the fuck out of this,” he snarled at Meg, and then forced himself to calm down. “Look, all I want her to do is a public service announcement about drinking and driving.”

  I was shocked. “I don’t understand. That’s all you want?”

  He nodded. “Yes, I am a father, after all. I don’t want my children to grow up thinking I was just in it for the money.”

  “You are some piece of fucking shit,” Melinda practically spat at him. “You plan to be in the PSA too, don’t you?”

  I didn’t understand what was so wrong with his idea. “I don’t know, I kind of like that idea, Melinda.”

  “Don’t you see, Chrissie?” Meg waved her hand at him. “He wants to use you to make him look like a hero, not only to his children, but to everyone else.”

  I shook my head, unintentionally naïve about what they were trying to tell me. While he’s not a true hero, he was still a victim of a drunk driver.

  “Chrissie, he wants to humiliate you in front of all of Memphis. He’s probably got some business deal going on that he needs to promote.” Clemens looked down at the floor, which told me that Meg was right. “He wants you to sell your soul to make him look good,” Meg concluded.

  “Oh… oh!” And then I finally understood. He wanted to keep playing the victim in a wheelchair, and I would be the drunk monster who put him in it. I didn’t like the underhandedness he was using to accept my apology. It wasn’t right, but what could I do? Regardless of how devious he was, like he said, I hit him with my car.

  I stood up and walked to the window, trying to organize my thoughts into some sort of less hysterical response. If I played his game, then I would be no better off than I was before the accident. If I didn’t play his game, I would never know forgiveness. But then, was what he’s offering really forgiveness for the accident? No, I don’t think so. I realized that I would never have the absolution I swore I didn’t want, but now realize that was all I wanted.

  Melinda walked over and wrapped her arms around me, and I leaned back into her loving embrace.

  “I can’t do it, Melinda. I can’t lie about something as serious as this.”

  “Good, I’m glad you can’t, babe. Remember when I said it’s not worth selling your soul for. That’s exactly what you would have to do, and still not get the forgiveness you were hoping for.”

  “So then what happens now? I just go home and forget it ever happened?”

  “You won’t ever forget about it, Chris,” Melinda said, holding me tighter, resting her chin on my shoulder. “But you are already trying to make up for the mistake by helping people who deserve it more than he does, now that we know what he’s really after. I think that helping Richard start a new life, or hiring a homeless person and giving her a place to live, or giving a job to a teenage mother, is much more commendable than what he’s trying to do.”

  “I do like the idea of the public service announcement.”

  “Me, too,” Melinda said. “If done right, it could help a lot of people.”

  “Maybe we could tie it in with the announcement of our scholarship program.”

  “Oh yeah, that’s an excellent idea, Chris. But I don’t want you doing them alone.”

  “Alone?” I turned around and looked her in the eyes. The eyes of unconditional love that gave me chills, they were so beautiful. I kissed her hard and whispered, “I love you so much.” I exhaled, and said, “I’m done here, please, take me home.”

  “Gladly.”

  We turned back to Clemens and Meg, and I said, “Come on, Meg, we’re going home.”

  “Wait, I thought you wanted my forgiveness?” He sounded almost desperate. “All you have to do is a few PSAs and you’ll have it.”

  “Oh, I’m going to be forgiven, but not that way, and not by you.” I walked up and stood in front of him. “Your forgiveness doesn’t matter now, not at those prices. And I will do the PSA, but with Melinda, not with you. You had your chance to show your children what a good man you were, and you blew it. That you will have to live with,” I said, and walked away.

  He called after me, “Remember, I have a settlement with your father that says he can’t divulge my name.”

  I didn’t look at him as I said, “And he won’t, but that doesn’t mean I can’t.” I immediately regretted my words, because I would never do anything that would hurt my father. I shrugged my shoulders and turned back to him. “Mr. Clemens, I have no desire to make trouble for my father, because I respect him. You, however, I have only contempt for. You can rest assured that I won’t mention your name or divulge anything about you.”

  “You’ll regret this!” he yelled as I walked out the door. He was probably right, but not for reasons he will ever understand.

  Melinda said she had left something behind, and asked Meg to stay with me, while she ran back into the room to get it. I knew she hadn’t forgotten anything, because she hadn’t taken a
nything in with her. But I had no desire to go back into that room with him, so I could only trust that Melinda would keep her temper under control.

  It was over. The thing that I had feared for almost a year was finally over with. And still I was no closer to absolution than I was the day I sobered up. It felt so anticlimactic to me. What was it all for? All the worry, all the fear, what the hell was it for? As Meg and I climbed into her car, I asked her what she thought.

  “I think you have your answer, Chrissie. Now it’s time for you to forgive yourself.”

  “I don’t know that I can, Meg.”

  “Think of how much more good you can do, if you’d only let it go, and concentrate on helping others.” I shook my head, but Meg continued, “I’m not saying you need to forget what you did. I don’t think you’re capable of that. I’m saying it’s time that you got on with your life, Chrissie.”

  I needed time to think about what she was saying, because my mind was so scattered at the moment, I didn’t know what to think. The thought of being able to get on with my life was enticing, in that I thought I had already, with Melinda, but then I realized what Meg meant, that the only way to get on with my life was to let my old life fall by the wayside.

  I saw Melinda come out the door and I scooted over closer to Meg to make room for her. She climbed in beside me, and Meg started the car. I was never as relieved as when we were on that highway again.

  “So, Blackie. What did you say to Clemens?” Meg asked with a smirk. “Should I drive us out of state before they send the cops after us?”

  Melinda laughed. “Nothing as drastic as that, Meg. I just told him what Chris couldn’t.”

  “What couldn’t I tell him, Melinda? I thought I held my own in there.”

  “Oh you did, babe, and I was so proud of you. I just asked him if he knew who I was.”

  “Oh, Melinda. You didn’t?”

  “Yes, ma’am, I did. And then I let him know what a fucking asshole he was, and if I ever saw him anywhere near you, I’d have his legs broken permanently.”

  “For once, I agree with your antics, Blackie,” Meg said, which shocked me more than what Melinda had said.

  “You do, Meg?”

  “Yes, Chrissie, because I feel the same way. He tried to benefit, again, from the unfortunate accident and used you in the process. That is much more despicable than your drinking, because he was stone cold sober.” She looked at me, suddenly sorrowful. “I didn’t mean the part about your drinking—”

  I interrupted her apology, “It’s all right, Meg. My drinking was despicable.”

  “Maybe so, but you’ve more than made up for it with your actions since then,” Meg replied.

  “So what now?” Melinda asked.

  “Well, I think I’d like us to film those PSAs to coincide with our scholarship launch, like we talked about.”

  Melinda nodded. “Sounds good to me.”

  “Hold on a minute,” Meg interceded. “What about your parents? I think you should talk it over with them first, because it could have the potential to embarrass them.”

  Melinda chuckled. “I already know that my parents would say no in a heartbeat, that’s why I’m not going to ask them.”

  “Melinda, you have to at least let them know,” I chastised her. “You can’t let them see it on the television first.”

  Meg offered a good alternative. “Perhaps if you both invited your parents to dinner and told them together in a public restaurant, they might be more inclined to accept of the idea.”

  “You are two for two today, Megs,” Melinda teased.

  “I agree, that’s a great idea. It would be easier on Melinda, if I were there to hold her hand.”

  Melinda looked at me and winked, “Et tu, Brute?”

  I laughed and she poked me in the ribs, and I felt lighter than I had in months.

  That Damn Son of a Bitch! — Melinda Blackstone, Chris Livingston, Carl & Felicia Livingston, Norma Shelby, Meg Bumgartner, and George Kirk

  “That damn son of a bitch!” Mr. Livingston yelled at no one in particular.

  Carl had waited to come over until after we had left, because he was afraid he’d upset Chris too much. And now, seeing his reaction after Chris told everyone what had happened, I’m glad he did. I sat back on the sofa and listened as Chris answered all their questions and retold it all again a couple of times. I was so incredibly proud of her. What control she had under fire. What grace. What beauty.

  If Meg hadn’t had the presence of mind to investigate Clemens, Chris would be doing those PSAs with him right now, and I know he would have made her out to be some sort of monster. I owe Meg a big one.

  “What was that, Melinda?” Chris asked, bringing me out of my thoughts.

  “Uh, I was just thinking how we owe Megs here a big thank you for checking this guy out first.” I raised my beer in salute to her.

  “Here-here,” Chris said, and also raised her glass of soda.

  “Once again, Meg, you have watched over my daughter and protected her,” Felicia said eloquently, “and I, too, raise my glass to you. Thank you.”

  We all stood up and raised our glasses to Meg, who was caught off guard and completely embarrassed by the attention. She poured herself a diet soda and stood up with us.

  Meg lifted her glass toward Chris and said, “A toast, to the bravest woman I know, Chrissie Livingston, who faced her worst nightmare with more courage and more decorum, than I have ever seen in anyone.”

  Everyone cheered and clanked glasses together. As we sat down again, Chris began to cry, softly at first, and I thought it was because of the toast. But then the tears flowed heavier, until she was sobbing almost uncontrollably in my arms. Her mother grabbed the tissue box and handed it to her. I was starting to panic, because Chris was crying so hard that I thought she must be in pain. Thankfully, Felicia knew what was behind the tears and explained to me, and everyone, how Chris had kept her emotions bottle up tight for so long and now there was no need to do that any longer. The dam had burst, and the tears were escaping the flood gates. I was still worried, until Felicia told me that this was the best thing possible for Chris.

  “That damn son of a bitch!” Mr. Livingston repeated again. “I’m so sorry, Chris. I thought he was a nice guy or I never would have helped him as much as I did.”

  Chris choked back her tears and shook her head. Between sobs she said, “No, Dad. I think he was just desperate and afraid. I think there still may be some good in him deserving of our help. If not for him, then for his wife and children, who are really the innocent victims in all of this.”

  “My God, woman!” I couldn’t help it, to my way of thinking, she was behaving irrationally now. “Are you trying for sainthood or something? The man is a bastard who doesn’t deserve your pity.”

  “I hit that man with my car while I was drunk, Melinda. At the very least he deserves my benevolence.”

  “But you won’t leave it at that, will you, dear?” Norma asked.

  “Very good question, Norma,” I said, thinking that Norma saw something else in Chris’s statement that I didn’t.

  “I can’t, Norma. I can’t leave it like this, no matter how devious he was.”

  “Even after what he conned me into doing for him, Chris?” Carl said, also making a very good point.

  “Even after that, Dad.” Chris stood up, and with the tissue box in hand, sat down on the arm of his chair and leaned against his shoulder. I could so easily picture her as daddy’s little girl. “Don’t worry, Dad. I’m not seeking absolution from him anymore. But I was thinking that if I could get him to help someone else, maybe he wouldn’t feel so desperate about helping himself.”

  “Desperate?” Felicia asked, surprised by that. “Why do you think he’s desperate, sweetheart?”

  “Because, Mom, all he really wanted was to make his children proud of him. He just went about it in the wrong way.”

  “Chris, honey, you know I love you,” Carl said, “but I think you’re nut
s.”

  I held my breath to see how Chris would take the insult, but she just laughed, and punched him in the arm. Then she zinged him right back. “It’s okay, Dad, I learned from the best.”

  It was actually a sweet moment between father and daughter, one which I couldn’t recognize at first, because I’d never had one of those moments with my father, or mother, for that matter.

  “All I’m saying is,” Carl took her hand in his, “don’t waste the rest of your life trying to change someone who doesn’t want to be changed. He has money now, and you know better than anyone that money can change a person. If it weren’t for your mother here, I’d probably be just like him.”

  “Oh, Carl, stop. That’s not true and you know it,” Felicia said. “Well, it’s not entirely true. But you are a good man, and that’s why you didn’t let money corrupt you.”

  “Yes, dear, whatever you say, dear,” Carl joked, and winked at Chris. “Honey, I think Meg was right, he’s got something else going on that we don’t know about, and he’s using you to sell it. Listen, we’re going to head out. It’s getting late and tomorrow is a Monday, after all.”

  “Your favorite day of the week,” Chris teased.

  He smiled at her, and then kissed her cheek. “Think about what I said, sweetheart. Think about what everyone here has said.”

  “Your father’s right, honey,” Felicia said as she also kissed Chris on the cheek. “You’re young, live your life the right way now.”

  “I will, Mom.” Chris walked them to the door. “I love you both so much.”

  After the Livingstons hugged Chris and left, Meg left also, apologizing again for not finding out about Clemens sooner. Chris reminded her that everything happens for a reason, and then hugged her goodbye.

  Norma waited her turn to say goodnight, and then retired to her room. That left only George, Chris and I sitting by the fire, and it wasn’t long before George left also.

  “Chris,” George said, as he stood up to leave. “I’d like to write your story. I’m already writing part of it in conjunction with Blackie’s biography. But I’d like to write your biography, too.”