Three The Hard Way

by Glenn, Roy

  As it turned out, although Yvonne and Richard lived a simple life, in their simple, paid for home in Clarkston, it wasn’t because they didn’t have any money. Richard not only left her a ten thousand-dollar policy, there was also one for two hundred and fifty thousand. And that was just the tip of the iceberg. In addition to the insurance policies, there was a trust fund he had set up for her to receive once she turned thirty, worth another three hundred thousand. He also owned a number of properties in Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. Marcus estimated his estate to be worth well over a million dollars.

  A week later, Marcus called Yvonne and asked her to drop by his office that day to discuss her case. She told him she was working that day and asked if he would mind staying late until she got off. "It’s my first job and I don’t want to lose it." He started to tell her that she could quit if she wanted to. But he didn’t want to tell her over the phone that she might stand to inherit quite a bit of money. Yvonne arrived at the office a little after seven thirty. "Thank you for waiting for me, Mr. Douglas. Did you find out something for me?"

  "As a matter of fact, Mrs. Haggler, I have some very good news for you. Your late husband does have an estate to settle and at this point, and mind you I’ve only made some preliminary inquires, but I estimate your husband’s estate to be worth over a million dollars."

  "Whaaat? You’re kiddin’, right? That’s not possible. Richard didn’t have that kind of money. Where’d he get it?"

  "I don’t know at this time, but we’ll find out." It was obvious to Marcus that Yvonne was taken completely by surprise by the revelation that she might be rich. "Do you know if your husband had a Will?"

  "Don’t think so." Yvonne said as her smile widened.

  "Have you gone through his things?"

  "No, I haven’t. I just didn’t have the heart to. It just didn’t seem right to start going through his stuff until he was resting peacefully. So I was kinda waiting to settle this business first, and then I would go through his things."

  "Do you know where your late husband worked, what he did for a living?"

  "He worked as a property manager for Imperial Properties."

  "That makes sense, he owns quite a bit of property. He might even own the company. Mrs. Haggler, what I want you to do is go home, and go through your husband’s things. See if you can find a will or any other legal documents. Have you been to his office to clean out his desk? Or had any contact with them at all?"

  "No." Yvonne said with a shy-type of smile. "I never even called them to say he was dead. They didn’t call tryin’ to find out why he didn’t come to work. I just figured they didn’t care."

  Marcus smiled and let out a little laugh. "Call me in the morning and we’ll make arrangements to go to Imperial Properties. But I don’t want you to go there by yourself."

  Yvonne went home and spent the rest of the night going through Richard’s things. By 2:00 am she had looked at every piece of paper, in every file in Richard’s office, but didn’t find the will. However, if there was any doubt in her mind that Richard was much more financially well-off than she was led to believe, none remained now.

  Yvonne found bank and dividend statements, and she knew she was going to be rich. Yvonne left the office and headed for the closet in their bedroom. She stopped in front of the bed, realizing that this was the first time she had been in there since she found Richard dead of a heart attack.

  Suddenly she felt tired. She’d gotten up early and had been on her feet all day running the register. Yvonne took a deep breath and resumed her search. Still nothing. "Where else?" She wandered around the house, searching, and by four o’clock, she was exhausted. She sat down in the living room and looked at their picture on the wall by the front door. That’s when she saw it. "The hall closet." In a box on the shelf, Yvonne found a small metal box packed under a pile of old newspapers.

  The metal box was locked, and for the next half an hour she tried to pick the lock with a hairpin. Finally, she went out to the garage and returned with a sledgehammer. The box surrendered its contents after her third swing.

  Yvonne picked up the papers and went through them. She found an envelope marked Last Will and Testament. She stood there awhile looking at the envelope, but she was afraid to open it. She put the envelope down on the coffee table, lay down on the couch, and went to sleep.

  Once Marcus reviewed the will, the rest was simple. In addition to the insurance policies, the trust fund and the property, as expected, Richard was majority owner of Imperial Properties and held stock in several companies. There was a provision in his will that in the event of his death, his partners would arrange financing to buyout his share of the company, and the proceeds from that sale be given to his chosen heir, Yvonne Haggler.

  When it was all said and done Richard’s estate was worth $2.2 million. Yvonne had Marcus liquidate his entire holding. Marcus was able to convince her to keep the stocks and make some investments that would provide her with an income from dividends.

  After all the transactions were completed, Yvonne moved to Los Angeles. Marcus received a letter five years ago from a lawyer named Tom Mack, informing him that he had been retained to handle her financial interests and that Marcus’ services were no longer required. Marcus never saw or heard from her again.

  Until now.

  Marcus moved closer to her as Yvonne read the label on the box of hair coloring she was holding. There was a certain sophistication about her now. She was no longer the innocent young girl he had turned into a millionaire. "Yvonne? Yvonne Haggler?" he asked.

  She jumped when he spoke, and she started to back away from him. Yvonne stopped and looked at Marcus. Then she smiled. "Marcus Douglas. How have you been?"

  "I’m doing okay." Marcus replied, knowing he was lying. Other than seeing her, he felt terrible. "How about you? You look great."

  "Thank you, Marcus. Are you still practicing?"

  She was even prettier than he remembered. She had lost her Mississippi accent in the last nine years. "Yes, I am. The practice is doing quite well. I’ve added a few new associates since I last saw you. Why?" Marcus smiled. "Do you need a lawyer?"

  "No, Marcus, I don’t think a lawyer is what I need right now." Yvonne replied as she walked to the registers. Once she paid for her hair color she turned to Marcus. "It was great seeing you, Marcus. Maybe I’ll see you again while I’m in town."

  Marcus took out his wallet and gave Yvonne his card. "Give me a call and maybe we can have dinner or a drink."

  "I’d like that." Yvonne said, but she knew she wouldn’t be around long enough to take him up on it. Nine years ago she had what she called a schoolgirl crush on Marcus. She tucked his card in her purse. "Good night, Marcus." While the cashier scanned his items, Marcus watched Yvonne as she walked out of the store.

  Yvonne started walking through the parking lot when she noticed two men standing by her car. She stopped dead in her tracks and looked around the parking lot. There was nobody in sight. She looked around again. When she saw Marcus coming out of the store, she walked toward him quickly. Just as he reached his car. "Marcus!"

  "Hello again." Marcus said, his smile growing.

  "I was wondering about your offer for that drink. If maybe I could take you up on it?"

  "Sure. You’ve got my card, just give me a call and we’ll get together anytime you’re free."

  Yvonne looked back at the two men standing by her car. "Actually, I was talking about now. That is if you’re not busy."

  Marcus looked at Yvonne curiously. "No," he said slowly. "I’m not doing anything right now."

  "Good." Yvonne said and walked around to the passenger side of the car.

  "What about your car?"

  "Ahh, it’s not—it will be alright here for a while." She got in quickly. Marcus closed her door, shrugged his shoulders, and got in on the driver side. He started the car and started out of the parking lot.

  As they passed her car, Yvonne dropped her purse and busied herself picking
up the contents until they were well on their way. I don’t think they saw me, Yvonne thought. She looked out the back window, and there didn’t appear to be anyone following, although she couldn’t be sure. Yvonne looked at Marcus and smiled as he drove, and continued to look behind her.

  "Is everything all right, Mrs. Haggler?"

  "Huh? Oh, everything is fine. Where are we going?"

  "There’s a Applebee’s not too far from here."

  "Applebee’s? Isn’t there someplace a little more quiet? So we can talk and get reacquainted."

  "I’m staying at a Residence Inn not too far from here. I think they have a bar."

  "Sounds good to me. Mind if I ask why you’re staying at a Residence Inn?"

  "It’s a long story, Mrs. Haggler."

  "Yvonne, you can call me Yvonne."

  "Okay, Yvonne, but it’s still a long story."

  "Okay, okay, I won’t push it. You don’t have to cop an attitude."

  "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you." Marcus turned into the parking lot. "Maybe I do need a drink. Maybe two or three."

  The hotel did have a bar but it was closed. "That’s okay, Marcus, we can talk in your room." Yvonne said and led Marcus away by the arm.

  "My room." Marcus replied sheepishly.

  "Don’t worry. I promise I won’t bite you. I haven’t bitten anybody in years.

  When they got to his room, Marcus opened the door and Yvonne went in. "Make yourself comfortable," Marcus said as they entered his room.

  Yvonne immediately walked from room to room and opened every door. "A little paranoid, are we?"

  "Just a habit. I like to know where I am." Yvonne answered as she peeked out the window. She wasn’t sure if she liked the fact that the room was on the first floor. She sat down. "Don’t just stand there, sit down. This is your room." Marcus sat down in a chair across from Yvonne. She made him feel nervous and uncomfortable. He tried not to show it, but it was too late.

  "Am I making you feel uncomfortable, Marcus?"

  "No, no; of course not. It’s just that—well, you see . . ."

  "Marcus."

  "Huh."

  "Just relax and say what you’re trying to say."

  "Well, Yvonne, I—ah, I left my wife today."

  "Oh, Marcus, that’s too bad." Yvonne said. Her accent had suddenly returned, only now it sounded phony. "Or maybe it isn’t."

  "What do you mean by that?"

  "You could be happy you left your wife."

  "No, Yvonne, I’m not happy about it." Marcus said quietly and slumped down deeper in his chair.

  "You wanna tell me how you feel about it?" Yvonne asked, kicking off her heels and curling up on the couch.

  "I don’t—wait a minute. I’m the one who is supposed to be on the couch."

  "Oh, you mean like a shrink. I been in therapy before."

  "You’re not crazy, are you?" Marcus said with a smile.

  "No, I was just depressed about some things. Therapy helped me deal. But you gotta really get into it. You know what I mean? Dig deep down and get in touch with the source. I know it sounds kinda dippy, but it worked for me."

  "So what were you so depressed about?"

  "Some things were happening to me, but that was just at the surface. What was really happening was I had never really dealt with what my mother did to me."

  "What did she do?"

  "Marcus, I was a sixteen-year-old virgin when I met Richard. I liked him but I barely knew him. He arranged the whole marriage thing with my mother. They came to me after they had worked it all out and she told me that I was going to marry Richard. That it was the best thing for all of us. She said that she couldn’t afford to do anything for our family and Richard said he would send her money every week. She sold me to him."

  "I didn’t know that. I mean, I just thought that you were a young bride who moved to Atlanta with her new husband. I didn’t know. I’m sorry."

  "It all turned out all right. Richard was so sweet. He treated me good and I learned to love him with time. But she sold me, like I was a slave or something. Suppose Richard wasn’t a good man. She didn’t know him from a can of paint. Anything could have happened to me. She didn’t care. I was just another mouth to feed. So I had to go. She did the same thing to my sisters when they got old enough. Found some old man, and sold them too. Beverly’s husband wasn’t bad. He just worked her like a slave, but so did my mother, so she was used to it. But Virginia, she wasn’t that lucky. Denny was an animal. He stayed drunk most of the time. He treated her like dirt, beat her, and raped her when he felt like it. Forced her to have sex with his friends."

  "My God. Is she still with him?"

  "No."

  "How did she get away from him?"

  "The hard way. He hit her in the face with an iron because she wouldn’t have sex with him. She ran out the house screaming and just by chance, the police were driving by. They took him to jail. She was so afraid of him. We had to beg her to press charges. They gave him ten years and I moved her out to L.A. with me."

  "That’s good."

  "Not really, Marcus. She was pretty shot out when she got out there. Fell in with the wrong people, started smokin’ crack. Let some nigga turn her out. He made her turn tricks to support their habit."

  "Where is she now? Is she all right?"

  "I don’t know. I haven’t seen her is years. I hope she’s all right. I used to go looking for her when I hadn’t heard from her in a while. The last time she disappeared I never did find her."

  "I’m sorry, Yvonne."

  "Don’t sweat it, Marcus. I’ve come to grips with all that. But we’re supposed to be talking about you, not my dysfunctional family. Tell me about your wife."

  "My wife." Marcus stood up and walked around the room. He picked up his jacket. "You mind if I smoke?" he asked, pulling the pack of Kools from the pocket.

  "I am so glad you said that." Yvonne replied, digging in her purse for her pack of Benson and Hedges 100’s. "I’ve been dying for a cigarette all night." They both lit up, inhaled deeply and exhaled, like a common sigh of relief. "Now I need a drink."

  "Are you sure that you don’t want to go somewhere and have a drink?"

  "No!" Yvonne said quickly and firmly. "I’m sorry, Marcus." She laughed. "Now tell me about your wife."

  "My wife Randa. What can I say about my wife Randa?" Marcus returned to the chair and sat down. "She was a wonderful woman. She was beautiful, intelligent and she had so much energy. She was always doing something for somebody. She volunteered at a retirement home a couple days a week. She had a teenage girl she was mentoring. We were very happy together. She was my best friend. We had so much in common and we would spend hours together just talking. That’s the hardest part of dealing with this. I loved her, sure, but we were so close. I feel like I lost the best part of myself. We did just about everything together. People called us the poster children for the perfect relationship."

  "Sounds like you guys had a good thing going. I mean, you do make her sound like she was just the perfect little woman." Yvonne rolled her eyes and took a drag.

  "And like a fool, I bought into it, hook, line, and sinker. But she wasn’t right. I was such a fool. I was so blind. How could I have been so blind?" Marcus leaned forward quickly in his chair. "I saw so much in her, but I guess I saw what I wanted to see. I put her on that pedestal; she was bound to fall off."

  "What happened, Marcus?"

  "What happened? You really want to know what happened to make this the worst day of my life?"

  "I’ll try not to take that personally."

  "Please don’t. Seeing you has been the only high point in an otherwise fucked up day. Excuse my language."

  "That’s all right, Marcus, I’m a big girl now. All grown up. I’ve heard people curse before. I’ve been known to say a curse word or two, myself. But you stop trying to change the subject. Tell me what happened."

  "The day started out like any other. The alarm went off, we made love to ea
ch other, just like we did every morning."

  Yvonne smiled. "I like it in the morning too. Makes the day go so much better," she said, seeming to purr like a kitten as she stretched. "I’m sorry, Marcus, go on."

  "We showered together and she cooked breakfast while I got ready to go to the office. Randa mentioned that she might go shopping with her girlfriend, Deloris. I asked her to pick me up a new tie."

  "What color?"

  "Black. Anyway, we ate breakfast and I left for the office, just like we do every morning. I had been working at home the night before, getting ready for a meeting with a client that I had this afternoon, and I left the papers at home. I called Randa to see if she could bring me the papers and we could have lunch together, but there was no answer. I needed those papers, so I went home to get them. When I got home her Benz was in the driveway. I figured that Deloris came and picked her up, and she had gone shopping.

  "I went inside and called her name a few times, she didn’t answer. I went into the den and I couldn’t find the papers, so I turned on the computer so I could print them. I had just picked up the papers off the printer when I thought I heard a noise. I stood still for a second, but I didn’t hear anything. So, I turned off the computer and headed for the door.

  "I was out the house, Yvonne, and I was just about to close the door when I heard the noise again. I turned around and walked up the steps straight to the bedroom and opened the door. There she was. My wife. Pullin’ her hair out, ridin’ some man’s dick. I stood there. I couldn’t move. I stood there . . .

  "I guess it couldn’t have been too long before I went back downstairs. I just walked outside and I sat down on the steps. I don’t know how long I’d been sitting there when I heard the door open and close and open again. When I looked up Randa was standing in front me." Marcus lit another cigarette from the one he was smoking.

  "What did you say to her? Better yet, what did she say to you?"

  "She asked me if I had been in the house. I just looked at her. I guess she got tired of me staring at her not saying anything, so she went back in the house. The two of them came out, got in the Benz I pay for, and left."