BREACH OF PROMISE

by Perri O'shaughnessy

  Cliff: Can you tell us how you voted and why?

  Bob: Oh, I don’t think the woman should get anything. They weren’t married. I picked Mike because the law’s on his side, but I’ve got an even better idea. I think we ought to take their money and divide it between ourselves. Now that would be fair. Bet we’d make better use of it, too.

  Several others get off on his idea and fantasize on the topic until Cliff Wright intervenes.

  Cliff: Ignacio?

  Ignacio Ybarra: I’m twenty-three and I work for the telephone company as a lineman. My wife died two years ago. I have a son who is three, and for my recreation, I do community theater.

  When we talked at lunch the other day, I already said what I think. I think she should get something.

  Cliff: So you think she’s got a legitimate claim? Remember this is a legal case.

  Ignacio: That’s not so simple to say. I agree the law should guide us to do the right thing but if it doesn’t give you a clear direction, you must look into your heart for what is right. I voted for Lindy.

  Cliff: Care to say why?

  Ignacio: I’m ready to hear the other people first.

  Cliff: Okay. How about you, Maribel?

  Maribel Grzegorek: I’ve lived up here twenty-two years. Came here to ski, and never left. I’m over forty and under seventy, not that that’s anybody’s beeswax. Used to work as a dealer in the casino. Now I cashier at the Mikasa outlet store.

  My biggest problem with this case is that I just can’t stomach Riesner.

  He reminds me of this old cat I had, the meanest animal you ever met. You know Mike Markov loses points in my book just for picking a lawyer like that. And that day Reilly tripped? I’d swear that lawyer put his foot in her way on purpose!

  Man: Well, if he did she was asking for it.

  Others interested in this line of discussion chime in. Speculations continue for a long time, then . . .

  Cliff: You know, Maribel, I didn’t like that lawyer either. And it’s so easy to be influenced by those feelings, isn’t it? But I know when it comes time to decide, I’ve got to put that feeling aside, and really use my head. Now, I can tell you’re a smart woman who can tell the difference between what you feel and real evidence. . . .

  Woman: You know what struck me about Reilly? She looked funny wearing all those pale colors, kind of unprofessional. . . .

  Man: Don’t you remember all the noise when Marcia Clark wore a light-colored suit during the Simpson criminal trial? They do it so we’ll like them better.

  Woman: (laughing) What baloney!

  They discuss the lawyers’ clothes.

  Cliff: Let’s go back to Maribel, okay? What about Lindy’s claim?

  Maribel: You know, I’m thinking about the real evidence, don’t you worry. But I have to say, where do you think Mike Markov would be today without Lindy? Coaching kids at the YMCA, if he was lucky. She had all the imagination and drive. He’s an old fighter, a loser by the time she met him. He was rollin’ downhill. Now, here she came along with all this perked-up energy to pull him up with her. She was his ticket to a better life. But, let’s face it. The law’s not always fair. I remember once this gal I knew—

  Cliff: So you think the law doesn’t really support her claim; but you feel she should get something.

  Maribel: Well, I do feel that, on the other hand, we do have to think about the law.

  Cliff: Sonny?

  Sonny Ball: Pass.

  Cliff: (pause) Okay, Sonny. We’ll move on for now. But at some point, I hope you’ll want to share your thoughts with us. Courtney?

  Courtney Poole: Wait, I want to say some more about that lawyer, Ms. Reilly. Can I do that?

  Cliff: Let’s try to stay on the point. . . .

  Mrs. Lim: I think Courtney should say what she wants to say . . .

  Courtney: Because I thought she really made sense when she said, why should Mrs. Markov come away with nothing, not even a toothbrush? I mean, probably she took her toothbrush, but it sounded to me like she’s the one who picked everything in that house. He had no interest. And then, he turned around and kicked her out.

  Bob: Well, but remember, they were not legally married. Legally, the house was in his name.

  Cliff: Could we hold off on discussion until we finish going around the room? We’re almost done here. What are your thoughts, Kevin?

  Courtney: Excuse me, but I’m not finished.

  Cliff: Sorry. Please go on.

  Courtney: It’s not like she’s going to go out and get a job easy. She’s really old. Also, did you notice how she always defended him? She still loves him, even after all he’s done to her. I guess he owes her something probably.

  On the other hand, does she have any legal rights? How can we judge what they agreed on? We don’t get to go in the bedroom, or the church with them. We saw them in court, where they both fibbed and forgot things. You can never really know what goes on between two people. So I have a lot of doubts.

  By the way, I’m twenty-two and I’m living with my mom at the Keys while I go to the University in Reno. I’m a psychology major and boy, I am learning a lot here already.

  Bob: Yeah, here you are in a locked room with a buncha loonies!

  Maribel: Hey, people! Remember that! Bob Binkley openly admits to being loony.

  Laughter. They adjourn for a fifteen minute break. Takes them several minutes to get back to their chairs.

  Cliff: Kevin, I believe you’re next.

  Kevin Dowd: I have to say something about what Bob said first because I think we have a basic difference. In my opinion, Lindy and Mike Markov owe the world nothing. It’s every man for himself out there, and you have to work to survive. If you fall and you can’t get up, tough. They earned what they have. They should decide how to spend it without being under constant attack by spineless punks.

  Now, I know something about this situation. Not to put too fine a point on it, I’m a wealthy man. And I’ll never say a thing against the ladies, God bless ’em. Where would we be without them? She helped him in a lot of ways, no doubt about that.

  But the fact is, and here’s where I do agree with Bob, she was an employee of the corporation. She received a salary. And the fact is, she was Mike Markov’s lover. But that doesn’t make her his wife. And it doesn’t entitle her to any of his hard-earned money.

  Cliff: What about you, Kris? What do you say?

  Kris Schmidt: I’m a housewife with two kids, and I should be at home right now. My kids need me, especially in the afternoon to help them with their homework. These people’s problems are pretty darn far-removed from Joe’s and mine. He repairs boats, and does dry-dock work at the marina. We scrape by. What’s amazing to us is that there are people like the Markovs—I mean, their biggest worry has to be which yacht to take out today.

  I just wish I could say I knew the right thing to do so we could all get out of here. Some of the legal stuff really goes over my head. The other night Joe and I were talking . . . we didn’t talk about the case, of course. I know what the judge said. But we did talk about this kind of situation in general. Joe says that women almost never get any money out of these palimony cases. I thought that was strange, I mean why not, if there’s plenty to go around.

  Then I remembered how hard it is for me to wring a dime out of Joe for clothes for the kids, a night at the movies, anything. I think men are fighting a losing battle to keep women under their thumbs.

  By the way, you know where that expression came from? A man used to be able to whip his wife with a stick no thicker than his thumb. That was perfectly legal.

  I guess there’s no reason she should go off poor when Mike Markov could buy all of us, except maybe Kevin here, a few hundred times over. You notice the way he said he’d take care of her? He’d like that. He’d like her to come begging to him for the rest of her life. That’s pretty pathetic.

  Cliff: Grace?

  Grace Whipple: I’m fifty-four, divorced and taking care of a grown child who has
some disabilities. Like Kevin, I also think I know something about this situation, but in my case it’s not because I’m rolling in the dough.

  It takes a helluva lot of character to stick by someone who needs you. It’s an underrated virtue to be loyal. Not that she should be rewarded for her love, but maybe she should have some kind of compensation for giving so much of herself, so much of her life, to these enterprises that totally benefited Mike Markov. She really built something out of not much.

  She’s close to my age. I like to think I’ve got a lot of years left to live. If she goes away broke, she’s got to start all over. Just imagine a woman like her out there applying for jobs. Nobody’s gonna want her. It’s not like it’s going to be a hardship for him to give up a few of those millions.

  Cliff: Frank.

  Frank Lister: I’m a retired biologist. I’ve been involved lately in organizing an organic food co-op. In my opinion, you have to reduce the issues here to basics. What Mike Markov is doing is simple mating behavior, finding a younger mate now that his partner is past childbearing age. Our purpose here is to procreate. We have that in common with almost any animal.

  Cliff: Frank, what about your vote?

  Frank: The most rational approach is to look to the law. In this case, I don’t think there’s any question. She shouldn’t get anything. The law doesn’t support it.

  Cliff: Um, Diane?

  Diane Miklos: I’m thirty-nine and I’m a professional climber. And I . . .

  Bob: Somebody pays you to climb?

  Diane: I raise money from sponsors, like outdoor clothing stores, camping gear manufacturers. Then I take the gear with me and photograph it while I’m climbing. They use the photos in their ads. I do slide shows and get people to contribute. My goal is to be the oldest woman to climb the seven summits, which are the seven highest peaks. So far, I’ve done three.

  Woman: (very softly) Better move fast Di, because if you’re thirty-nine I’m the queen of Sheba.

  Diane: What we have here is a typical situation. Like that black lawyer, Reynolds, kept saying, “He’s a chiseler.” That bastard Mike oppressed Lindy Markov for years. First, he chained her to him. Then, when he got what he wanted out of her, he dumped her.

  She should have protected herself better. She counted on him to take care of her and that was her big mistake. That leaves us to go in and even things up for her.

  Cliff: Susan?

  Mrs. Lim: Please, If you don’t mind, I prefer Mrs. Lim.

  Cliff: Go ahead, Mrs. Lim.

  Mrs. Lim: My business is selling houses. I’m a real-estate broker in addition to a realtor. Married to Mr. Lim for twenty-three years, and I have two grown children.

  I voted for Lindy Markov. You know, when you’re listening carefully, you can’t help noticing how people feel up there when they are testifying. I saw her cry. I saw Mike Markov suffering, too. But what we need to look at in a case like this is very simple. We examine the evidence. The judge told us to figure out the “effect and value of the evidence,” and to decide questions of fact, so that’s what we should do.

  Bob: If you look at the evidence, how can you in good conscience vote in her favor? What about the agreement?

  Mrs. Lim: That’s a good example. Not all the evidence can be taken at face value. Remember in the instructions that a valid contract requires a lawful objective and sufficient consideration. The consideration must have some value. They had no money, nothing, then. She was given nothing in return for signing away all her rights for eternity.

  Diane: Why would she sign a paper like that anyway unless he forced her somehow or promised her something? It doesn’t make sense.

  Frank: She felt he was losing interest in her. She held on as hard as she could. See a woman alone in this society is going to suffer. They’re going to be poorer. They lose all prestige. Doesn’t mean he forced her.

  Diane: That’s just ridiculous and insulting. She may have been stupid to sign, but let me remind you, she said he promised to marry her if she signed. Since he didn’t marry her, its unenforceable. Guess that means she deserves at least some of their company.

  Kevin: Even if you believe she told the truth, and even if you believe that agreement wasn’t valid, it laid out the terms for both to see. How can she claim she didn’t know that was their understanding if she signed that paper?

  Diane: She signed to help him deal with his insecurities. Just like every good woman since time began, she bent over backward to support someone weaker. She never took it seriously. Why should she? There was no money involved at that point.

  Cliff: Sonny? Got anything to add?

  Sonny: No. Let’s just get this over with.

  Cliff: Okay, then. That’s all of us. I’ll keep my spiel short, so we can move on to discussion. I’m forty-five. Married for twelve years, very recently separated, unfortunately. I consider myself to be a feminist. Most of you already know, I served in the state assembly a couple of years back. I’m campaign manager for a congressman at the moment, but I’m thinking about running again this November. I spent a few years in my twenties in law school, then worked as a paralegal and decided to go into politics instead and dropped out.

  Bob: Everyone knows you don’t need an education for that.

  Everyone laughs.

  Cliff: That’s right. So believe me, I don’t think I know more than anyone else here. We all heard the same evidence.

  Like several of you, I found the arguments for Lindy’s claim very persuasive. And I agree, there does seem to be plenty of money. If we were only interested in fairness, she should get something, for sure. I support a lot of liberal causes, including equal pay for women, and even poor old affirmative action.

  But here, our focus has to be the law as it stands today, not how we want it to stand. And nowhere in California law is there financial provision for a woman who is not legally married to a man. There isn’t even a reference to so-called palimony. The only exception might be on a local level, where what they call domestic partners are covered by insurers in San Francisco, and maybe some other cities.

  Frank: How do you know that?

  Cliff: I just knew, but to verify it, I checked some of my old books.

  Mrs. Lim: Didn’t the judge say not to do any research on our own?

  Cliff: I looked it up before he gave us his instructions. And anyway, as I’ve said, I didn’t find anything at all about palimony, which should tell you something about how off-the-wall her claim is.

  Based on the law, in my opinion, we can’t give her anything. I wish I could say different. But you know, Mike Markov said he would take care of her. He doesn’t have to, under the law. But I believe he will.

  Diane: What happens five years down the line when he’s got a passel of kids and Lindy is just a grim memory?

  Cliff: Well, you can hate men and never trust them. But I think most people try to live up to their obligations.

  Diane: That’s just bullshit! He’ll toss a few coins at her and feel he’s done his duty. No, it’s up to us to force him to do the right thing.

  Maribel: Well, you know Cliff’s got a point there, and I have to admit I liked what Kevin said, too. We’re supposed to follow the law. And just because the man has money, doesn’t necessarily mean she should get some.

  Diane: I don’t believe this. You’re going to pull a switcheroo, aren’t you? Two minutes listening to the men, and you change your mind.

  Maribel: I have a right to change my opinion after listening to other people speak. The judge said so.

  Diane: Some women will do and say anything for a lick of male attention.

  Maribel: Oh, what would you know about male attention? Didn’t your mother ever tip you off about the connection between too much sun and wrinkles?

  Cliff: Please, ladies, ladies.

  Diane: Please, men, men. Quit calling us ladies.

  Cliff: What would you prefer?

  Maribel: “Lady” fits some of us here.

  Cliff: Enough, people. Le
t’s get back to work. I guess the next step is to work through the testimony and see if we can firm up our opinions, and do this quickly as possible. I know everyone is eager to do the parties in this case justice, and get out of here!

  Now, before we move on, just to remind you all, our two alternate jurors are Patti Zobel and Damian Peck. They’ll be listening in on our discussion here, but they don’t participate. So let’s give them a lot to think about.

  Kevin: I got something on my mind right now.

  Cliff: What’s that, Kevin?

  Kevin: How do they handle lunch around here? I’m starving.

  >Click<

  24

  >Click<

  Jury, Day One, Afternoon:

  Wright: Let’s get to work. Now who wants to go first?

  Kevin: Who decided on lunch? Fast food gives me indigestion.

  Bob: You certainly gave a good imitation of a man enjoying his meal.

  Kevin: Look who’s talkin’.

  Maribel: You never eat anything, Cliff. We’re all snacking like crazy here, then we scarf lunch. Wish I had your self-control.

  Cliff: It’s nothing to do with discipline. I just have some strict dietary requirements.

  Frank: A vegetarian? That’s the only way to go. Wish I could stick to it.

  Cliff: Well, yes. Also, I have bad allergies.

  Courtney: I can’t eat garlic. Or if I do, you all better take ten steps back!

  Cliff: This is more severe.

  Courtney: What can’t you eat?

  Cliff: Fresh apples, if you can believe that. Now, here’s something strange. That particular food allergy can be seasonal.

  Frank: Are you serious? I’ve never heard of that.

  Cliff: I’ve done a lot of research, believe me. When I eat uncooked apples my throat swells. I can’t breathe. It could kill me.

  Diane: Now there’s a fluky way to go. Choked to death on an apple.

  Frank: How about the normal allergies? Strawberries, peanuts, that kind of thing.

  Cliff: Yeah, they are both on my list of no-nos.

  Courtney: Is this like those people who die from bee stings?

  Cliff: Same thing, yeah. I’m going to tell whoever it is that arranges our lunches about a good lunch place that uses lots of fresh food and vegetables, if we get stuck here for much longer. Everyone like Chinese?