Chapter 48
She arrived at her appointment earlier than expected. She couldn’t believe that she was actually ready to see the therapist that Dr. Vorite suggested.
She began by telling the doctor what she had witnessed when she went by Matthew’s office for lunch.
“…and he was all over her. I mean, he calls me there for lunch for me to catch him with his ex-wife. He could have told me that on the phone.” She said as a tear slid down her face.
“Why are you so angry?” Dr. Cervantes asked.
“Because he had me believing that he actually loved me.”
“So when you told him how you felt…”
Cheryl cut her off, “I didn’t tell him, I just walked out.”
“Why didn’t you confront them?”
“What good would it have done? It wouldn’t change the fact that he was practically having sex with her, right there in his office.” Cheryl blew out a breath and closed her eyes to keep the remaining tears hostage.
“Cheryl, you need to stand up for yourself, for once. Do something for Cheryl, not because someone says it’s ok, but because it is ok. When, and only when, you do that, you will see that you are the one who deserves to be loved unconditionally but it has to start with you. Like the Michael Jackson song says, start with ‘the man in the mirror.’
Agony was not only on her face but in Cheryl’s voice as she spoke. “How do you start with the man in the mirror, when the man is scared to look in the mirror?”
“Why are you scared to look in the mirror?”
After a long pause, Cheryl answered “…because I don’t know what I am going to see.”
“What do you think you are going to see?”
“I don’t…
“Well, why not start right now?”
“I really don’t think…”
Dr. Cervantes pulled her from the seat and guided her towards the mirror that she kept on the wall beside the bathroom. She stood behind Cheryl as she struggled to lift her eyes to look in the mirror.
“You need to look at yourself Cheryl. I mean, really look at yourself.”
A tear formed in the corner of Cheryl’s eye and she looked away.
Dr. Cervantes allowed her to walk away from the mirror as she spoke, “Cheryl, you need to re-adjust your self-image. Only you can do that. You have to stop letting your son, your ex-husband, the new man in your life, and now your daughter, define your self-image. You let your husband take away your identity. You became his wife, then a mother, then a soccer mom, a part-time valet and yet he didn’t allow you to be the one thing you wanted to be, his partner in and out of the bedroom. You let your son become your friend, instead of being his mother. You let this new man become your rescuer, you are letting him fight your battles for you, you are looking for him to be your answer when you don’t have one, you are looking for him to solve your problems and now you are letting Kayla take the place of Kevin. You are handing control over to her, she tells you what she will and will not do, and now she is hitting you. Yes, I can still see the bruise. I am sure you were going to try and explain it away as something else, but I kind of figured when you called and said it had something to do with Kayla that the bruise on the side of your face wasn’t because you ran into a cabinet or something.”
“You don’t understand what it’s like.”
“Then tell me.”
“My entire life I have felt unloved, and Kevin comes along. He was a knight in shining armor, he swept me off my feet, but quickly dropped me soon after we got married. However, I never thought about leaving him, I never considered leaving him because that is not what I was taught.”
The doctor looked over her glasses, “What were you taught?”
Cheryl got up and started pacing around the doctor’s office like a caged lion at the circus, “I was taught that you stay with your man, no matter what. You don’t leave a marriage when you get tired of it. The only way you leave is if you catch your husband in adultery.”
“Didn’t you catch him with another woman?”
“Well, not at first…”
Dr. Cervantes pressed harder, “and when you did…”
“When I did, I begged him to stay.” Cheryl let out a nervous laugh. “He even asked me for a divorce when he was out of town on a, quote unquote, business meeting. Called me from his hotel room and said it like he was asking for a cheeseburger in the drive thru, and I begged him like a crack addict begging a dealer for a hit. I even caught him in his office, riding that tramp like a damn dog. I still didn’t leave him. It wasn’t until Donnell graduated that I left, and only then, I did it because Kevin had went out and bought a townhouse and announced that he had asked Rebecca to marry him. Then I left, but do you want to know why? I left because I was embarrassed. Can you believe that? I was embarrassed and to save face, I left. How sick is that?”
Cheryl laughed and then broke down into a hysterical cry. A cry that racked her entire body. She fell to her knees and Dr. Cervantes rushed to her and wrapped her arms around the crying woman.
Cheryl was able to compose herself enough to get to the chair.
“Cheryl, let me ask you a question. You seem as if you have been holding that in for a very long time. You really need to slow down, you seem to be overwhelmed and that is not good. You are losing weight. I have noticed a little hair loss and you are packing on the makeup in the morning. I am not trying to make you feel bad, but you are wearing yourself out. I think you should think about going into treatment…”
“No, I can’t do that. Kevin…”
“This is not about Kevin, this is about you and your mental state.”
“I can’t go into a hospital for crazy people. I just can’t…”
“Well, I could prescribe something for you, something that will take the edge off. Let me ask you, are you sleeping very well?
She shook her head no and the doctor went to her desk, wrote out a prescription and handed it to her. Cheryl walked out of her office feeling exhausted. She sat in her truck and closed her eyes.
She looked at her phone when it vibrated and noticed several missed calls and that she had four messages.
Cheryl, this is Matthew, I am sorry I missed you. I tried calling but I guess you are tied up. Call me as soon as you get this message.
The next message was from Kevin telling her that he was going out of town and to check on Kayla, since she was home alone.
This is Matthew again. I was hoping you were coming by. Call me as soon as you can. I love you baby.
She gave a half laugh. “Really, you love me. Well I couldn’t tell this afternoon.” She said out loud to no one.
The next message was from Dee but she deleted it since she had no intention of going anywhere but to bed. But before that could happen she had to check on Kayla.
She walked in to find girls half naked sprawled across men old enough to be their father. She smelled the marijuana and alcohol as she made her way to the kitchen. Not finding her daughter, she climbed the stairs and opened the door to her daughter’s room. The man was standing at the bed and her daughter was bent over it. Cheryl wasn’t sure what she screamed but the man looked at her with a smile and wink. Cheryl went to the bed, yanked Kayla upwards and told the man that her daughter was 15 and that she was calling the police. His smile quickly left him and he bolted from the room while Kayla sulked on the bed.
Cheryl ran down the stairs but the house was clearing out as if the SWAT team was on its way. She pulled her phone out and made one more call.
“Look, I need to get back to Maryland, there is an emergency with Kayla.”
Rebecca only half listened.
“Ok, well, I have the meeting in the morning with Mr. Mickey and Steven will also be there. Is there anything that you want me to bring up?”
“Uh, no, but there is something we need to discuss before I leave.”
Rebecca’s face showed annoyance, “ok, what is it?”
“The running of this office.”
“Ok.
I think it is going just fine.” She said with a grin.
“I’m glad you think so. However, I will start to interview people next week.”
“For what?”
“As office manager. I will need you more in the Maryland office. I hired Toni to help you out, so now you can spend more time on our clients there.”
“You hired Toni because you needed an office manager.”
“Yes, and now that we have acquired Alpine Hotels and Spas, I need both of you to work on that, not running…”
Rebecca came from behind her desk, “I will not give up the Atlanta office. You promised.”
“And here we go again. I didn’t give you anything…”
“Oh, but you will.” she said as she walked over to the file cabinet.
“What did you say to me?” Kevin said as he grabbed her arm.
“Get your hands off of me! I didn’t stutter, I said you will give this to office to me.” She opened up the drawer and took out the manila envelope. “I suggest you look at these before you go.” She said while handing him the envelope.
Kevin threw the envelope back at her. “I don’t need to look at shit! This is my company, not yours.”
“I don’t want your fucking company. I want this office and I want 5%.”
“5% of what?”
“Stocks. I did my research. Your company is growing at a faster rate, than even you and Corey ever realized. You and Corey started with a 50/50 split. All I’m asking is that I get some of that.”
“You are fucking crazy!”
“Like a fox. The way I see it, you don’t have a choice.” she walked over and picked up the folder, stretching it out before him. “Before you say no, I suggest you open up that envelope and do a little reading, then give me your answer when I get back to Maryland.”
“I don’t take too kindly to threats.” Kevin said while his jaw clenched.
“It’s not a threat my dear, its insurance. When I first started you always told me to keep my eyes and ears open, because you never knew when an opportunity would present itself. I only did as I was told, and now my opportunity has come. Now, happy reading, I have a meeting to get to and you have a flight to catch.”
Kevin arrived back in Maryland and was fuming by the time he reached Cheryl’s house. Cheryl had barely opened the door when he pushed by her and was yelling for Kayla.
“Tell me what emergency you had with Kayla that made me rush all the way back here.” He said as he walked into the living room.
“Your daughter was caught with a man old enough to be you and there was drinking and smoking.”
Her words were cut off by Kevin yelling for Kayla.
“She’s in the kitchen.” Cheryl said.
Kevin brushed by her on the way to the kitchen, where Kayla was sitting at the table.
“You have ten fucking seconds to start talking or so help me, you will need to dial 911 right now!” Kevin said while slamming his hand down on the counter.
Cheryl moved in front of her daughter, “Look, stop screaming and let her talk.”
Kevin shouted and took one step towards the table, “Shut the fuck up! I wasn’t talking to you!”
“But…” Kevin took another step and Cheryl stopped talking. He walked over to Kayla and snatched her up from the chair. He raised his hand,
“Kevin, don’t!” Cheryl said while grabbing his arm.
“Get off of me!” Kayla said while snatching away from him.
“Don’t you ever…” he yelled before slapping Kayla so hard that the pins holding her hair on top of her head, flew across the kitchen. Cheryl ran over to pull him away from Kayla. “Who in the fuck do you think you are? I didn’t leave you in my house to throw a fucking party!”
“Get your hands off of me!” Kayla yelled while trying to pull from his grasp.
Cheryl did her best to stop the ruckus from getting totally out of hand. “Kevin wait a minute! Let’s calm down…”
He turned towards her. His chest heaved and he gulped in air.
“Calm down! Are you fucking kidding me? You called me to tell me that my fifteen year old daughter has an emergency and I come home and you tell me that there was underage drinking going on. Do you know what could happen if the police had run up in there? Do you?
“I’m calling the police!” Kayla yelled while holding her hand to her face. She pulled her cellphone from her pocket.
“Kayla sit down!” Cheryl walked quickly towards her daughter and took the phone from her hand.
“…are you serious, I’m not you, I’m not letting him hit on me!” Kayla shouted at her mother.
“What the fuck does that mean!” Kevin said advancing towards his daughter again.
“It means, that you beat mom all the time and she never called the police. Well I am not her.”
Kevin’s face contorted in anger, “How dare you say that to me!”
“It’s the truth!” Kayla shouted back.
“What have you been telling this girl?” Kevin said as he walked towards Cheryl.
“How dare you! She has seen you.” Cheryl yelled.
Kevin now beside Cheryl, “You better close your mouth.”
“No! I’m so sick of it, always trying to run shit over here. God only knows I put up with it while we were married but this is my house!”
“Only because I pay for it!”
“You are only paying for it because you don’t want the truth to come out!”
“What truth would that be?”
“That you are a wife beater and…” something stopped her from continuing.
“And what?”
“Nothing,” she said and tried to move away. Kevin stood firmly in front of her. “I think you should go.”
As she tried to move around him, he pushed her.
“Answer me, and what Cheryl?”
“Nothing, just leave.” she said as she managed to get away from him.
“Answer my fucking question, what were you going to call me?” he challenged as he walked behind her. When she reached for the door, he grabbed her arm.
“Get off of me Kevin!” she yelled trying to free herself from his grasp.
“You better tell me or so help me…” he squeezed her arms tighter.
“Stop it, you’re hurting me!”
“Tell me!”
“A rapist, you are a rapist!”
Before she could brace herself, he had slapped her so hard it knocked her into the door and then the floor.
“Don’t you ever call me that!” Kevin said, while spit flew from his mouth.
“You are,” she said while holding the side of her face and scooted away from him. He grabbed her by the shirt and picked her up, he back-handed her and sent her falling to the floor again.
Cheryl continued, “You raped me while we were married and not more than a month ago. You can’t stand that somebody might want me. You are a hateful man, an evil, hateful man. For years, you made me feel less of a woman, made me feel like I didn’t matter, but you know what, I do matter, not because you say so, but because I say so. You have some issues, something that you need to get counseling for, maybe something happened to you in your childhood that…”
“Don’t ever bring up my childhood.” He said as he slapped her again, drawing blood from her mouth.
She sucked her bottom lip and steadied herself against the wall. She continued to speak, “You hide behind your business. You think that everyone owes you something. No one owes you a damn thing. You are sick Kevin, and you need help.”
“No, what I need is for you to stop nagging me all the fucking time!”
“And what I need, is for you to get out of my house.” she said after she pulled herself up from the floor. She walked into the kitchen to get a cloth for her bleeding mouth. She knew the decision she was about to make would change her life forever.
Chapter 49
Kevin got home and poured himself a drink. He glanced down at the manila envelope on the desk. He opened it and
found the letter from Rebecca.
Kevin, I didn’t want to have to do this, but you leave me no choice. Enclosed in this envelope are computer printouts of conversations you have been having with ‘kissmehard.’
I’m sure your mouth is hanging open, and if I know you as I think I do, you are most likely having a stiff drink right now, go ahead take a sip, because you are going to need it.
First, I tried to be reasonable with you, but you weren’t doing the same with me. I asked you nicely about the Atlanta office and you laughed in my face. Well, guess who is laughing now. I am, because you see, kissmehard is my good friend, Stanley, and he is as gay as your son. If you don’t believe me, look at the pictures that I have taken. See, the one with him on the computer about a month ago, I took it on my cell, notice the time stamp, I highlighted so you could see it clearly, and turn the picture over, you will see your entire conversation. I think you got a little upset when he wanted to do anal, tsk, tsk, tsk. What a shame, sometimes Stanley gets a little carried away, but he always called and told me how nice and horny he would leave you.
Secondly, look at the last ten pages, does that look familiar to you? I am not unsympathetic to you, I know it must have been hard to bury your mother at such an early age. I am sure that your mother couldn’t stand the fact that the man in her life was doing all of those perverted things to you. Your poor mother must have been scared to death when she found out that her son, had been raped by her man, or did she get mad because you had him and she didn’t. You see, Calvin, I think you remember him, and my friend, Stanley, well they are partners now and he started telling Stanley all about this crazy ass man, named Henry, who would beat up his girlfriend and then offer her to the highest bidder, and how old Henry would be fucking her son. I’ll give you one guess on her son’s name. I guess you didn’t hide your skeletons too well.
It’s a damn shame that I had to resort to this, but you left me no choice. Now, as I have been asking, I want the Atlanta office. I am even willing to forego the 5% in the company, if and this is a big if, you give me Atlanta, that means, you get no income from it, and neither does Corey. Ok, since it was your money that built it, you can come down to see how it is running, you can even give input if you would like. For the first three years, it will stay under the K & B Alliance umbrella, however, after that it will become my company. I will pay you a handsome fee of at least one million dollars, but no more than five, regardless of how much money it makes, because I know this office will be as successful as the one in New York and the one in DC.
Let Me Say This, Again Page 18
