The Cheater

by Nancy Taylor Rosenberg

  “You’re right,” Mary said. “I’ll see what I can find out. Bulldog, if someone answers this ad you placed, string them along. But whatever you do, don’t meet them. If you do, you may end up in a body bag.”

  TWENTY-TWO

  THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 30

  VENTURA, CALIFORNIA

  The sound of her windshield wipers clicking was somehow reassuring. Although it was a miserable rainy day, Lily was eager to get to the courthouse. The empty house had turned into a nightmare, where she ran into her past in every room.

  Bryce should have called by now, regardless of the circumstances. She had stayed up half the night checking with hospitals and jails in the Lexington and Charleston area. He was scheduled to return today at noon. Knowing she wouldn’t be able to pick him up, he had told her he would take a shuttle. If she wasn’t in trial, she would drive to the airport herself and give the bastard a piece of her mind.

  She kept asking herself if Bryce was mad because she nagged him all the time about his drinking. If he was, he had a strange way of showing it. They’d made love the night before he had left.

  When she arrived at work, Chris Rendell appeared beside her in the corridor. “Can you talk?”

  “I’m sorry I haven’t been able to get back to you,” Lily told him. “You don’t have to apologize for the other day, if that’s what you’re concerned about. I pried into your personal life, so you had every right to ask me about mine.”

  “I shouldn’t have brought up what happened to you and your daughter. I wasn’t thinking. Will . . . will you see me again?”

  “I’m seeing you now.”

  “I don’t mean right now,” Chris told her, flustered. “Can I take you to lunch again? I wanted you to have a nice time, then I ruined everything.”

  “Sure, Chris, but not today. Check back with me next week. This week has been a disaster.”

  “The Stucky trial?”

  “That and other things.” She turned and placed her palm in the center of his chest, feeling the warmth of his body. “I’ll call you one day next week, I promise.”

  She speculated what would happen if Bryce never came home. Maybe he had decided he wanted a divorce, and had left rather than confront her in person. An unbroken chain of nights stretched before her. She couldn’t live alone. The demons she’d been battling wouldn’t stay in the shadows much longer. And someone like Tessa couldn’t make her feel safe. Being with another woman reminded her of that terrible night with Shana.

  Even though her daughter had been a child at the time, Lily perceived all females as inherently vulnerable. Men didn’t get raped. That is, if you discounted the men in prison. Rendell was tall, strong, and sympathetic. “Do I have your home number? You know, in case I want to call you the night before to arrange our lunch date?”

  “Here,” he said, scribbling the number on the back of a business card.

  “Thanks, I’ll be in touch.”

  That morning in court, James Kidwell asked for a continuance. Lily told him, “Approach the bench, Counselor.”

  When Kidwell stepped up, she pushed the microphone aside and covered it with her hand. “We talked about this yesterday, didn’t we? I told you my calendar was too tight to grant a continuance.”

  “I know,” he said, a string of perspiration popping out on his forehead. “But I still haven’t heard back from the pediatrician. And since Brian went to a private school, I have to subpoena the records. If what you suspect is true and the boy was retarded, we’ll have to reorganize our entire case.”

  “You have until Monday,” Lily said abruptly. “And need I remind you I’m putting extra pressure on myself and this court to allow you this time? I expect results, understand?”

  “Of course.”

  Lily continued the case and adjourned for the remainder of the day. She should call Hennessey and inform him of the status, but she would rather try to deal with the situation on her own.

  She returned to her chambers and checked her calendar. Jury selection in the Burkell homicide began on December 26. The prosecution was far from putting on their case in the Stucky homicide, and then there was the defense, which could last for weeks. After that were closing arguments. Even without the continuance, the schedule had been tight. They might have to resort to night sessions.

  Glancing at the clock, Lily saw that it was almost eleven. If she left now, she might be able to reach the airport in time to pick up Bryce. Just as she was about to leave, Jeannie buzzed her on the intercom. “I have a Detective Carl Smith with the Las Vegas PD on the line. Do you want me to put him through?”

  “What does he want?”

  “He wouldn’t say.”

  “Tell him I’m in court and ask him to call back.” Lily picked up her purse and her umbrella. A moment later, Jeannie called again. “Your husband’s on the phone, Judge Forrester.”

  She punched into the line and immediately started shouting, “Where the hell are you? Why didn’t you call me, for God’s sake? I’ve been worried sick.”

  “I’m in jail, Lily,” Bryce said weakly.

  She flopped back down in her chair, relieved but furious. “I was afraid that’s where you were. I told you this was going to happen if you didn’t stop drinking. What were you arrested for? DWI?”

  “No,” Bryce said. “The police have charged me with attempted rape. Please don’t scream at me, okay? You have no idea what I’ve gone through.”

  She remembered the call from the detective in Las Vegas. She hadn’t taken it because she had assumed the call had been misdirected. There was no case on her calendar that involved the Las Vegas authorities. “You’re not in Las Vegas, are you?”

  “How did you know? God, how can I explain this to you? I know I told you I was going on a business trip. I lied, okay? I came here to meet a woman.”

  Lily’s mouth fell open in shock. She tried to speak, but the words were stuck in her throat.

  “I made a mistake, honey,” Bryce went on. “I love you. I swear, I never wanted to hurt you. I tried to make it so you wouldn’t find out. I just wanted . . . I don’t know how to explain it. There’s no excuse for what I did, but I didn’t rape anyone. This woman is insane. I swear, I never laid a hand on her. I need you to line me up a good attorney. You can sign on my bank account. There’s fifty grand in there. Give them whatever they want. I have to get out of this place. My life is at risk.”

  “Your life,” Lily hissed at him. “What about me? Who is this woman? Where did you meet her?”

  “I—I’ve been seeing her for a month or so,” Bryce stammered. “She’s no one, Lily. I met her in a bar over by the country club. She enticed me to meet her in Vegas. I was a fool.”

  “How did she entice you?”

  “She refused to sleep with me unless I went away with her. I had a few drinks while I was waiting for her at the Aladdin, maybe more than a few. I must have passed out in her car. All I know is when I woke up, blood was dripping into my eyes. She told the police she hit me in self-defense. The bitch is a sadist or something.”

  Lily took several deep breaths. She wanted to kick him in the balls, claw his eyes out. He was an animal, a lying, perverted bastard. “You tried to rape her, didn’t you?”

  “No, I swear,” Bryce pleaded. “God, you have to believe me. I could go to prison. Please don’t let them do this to me.”

  She wanted to stop, hang up, but she couldn’t. She needed to hear every sordid detail. “Where did the crime occur?”

  “There was no crime, Lily.”

  “Stop bullshitting me, Bryce,” she snapped. “I need to know what happened. How can I help you if you don’t tell me the truth?”

  “I must have passed out on the floor in a parking garage at the Sands. The hotel is closed. They’re about to knock it down and build something else. When I woke up, the cops were there. They cuffed me and put me in the back of the police car. She was just standing there, looking pathetic, like I’d done something awful to her. Maybe I made a move on h
er. I don’t remember. How could she possibly say I tried to rape her? She came here to have sex with me, for Christ’s sake. I was too drunk to do anything. I was blasted, man. I’ve never been that wasted in my life. I’ve been trying so hard to please you and stop drinking. I needed to let loose and have some fun for a change.”

  “Don’t you understand what attempted rape is?” Lily said, her words crackling with venom. “The moment a woman says no. If a man continues to force himself on her after that point, he’s committing a crime, and one that carries considerable penalties. I’m not sure you have a defense, Bryce. Being drunk isn’t a defense against attempted rape.”

  Lily could see her career skidding off track. Her marriage was obviously over. How could she remain married to a man who would sexually assault a woman? “I can’t talk to you anymore, Bryce. You make me sick.”

  “Please, I know you’re angry. I’d be furious if you’d done something like this to me. Get me an attorney, Lily. That’s all I’m asking. Once I make bail, I’ll come home and we’ll work through this. I’ll find a way to make it up to you somehow.”

  “Get your own damn attorney,” Lily said, slamming the receiver down.

  She stood and walked around the room, her hands clenched into fists at her side. That he’d tried to rape someone was bad enough. What made her blood boil was his belief that he could worm his way out of it. While she’d been frantically worrying about him, he’d been trying to get his dick into another woman. Who was this hideous man? Had her entire marriage been a sham?

  Thirty minutes passed and she finally cooled off enough to buzz Jeannie and ask her for Detective Smith’s phone number. She would never get the truth out of Bryce, and at the moment she had no intention of helping him.

  “Detective Carl Smith,” a deep voice said.

  “Ah, Detective Smith, I’m sorry I couldn’t take your call earlier. I spoke to my husband, Bryce Donnelly, and he explained the situation. Since you called me, I assume you know I’m a judge. I’d appreciate it if you told me precisely what occurred?”

  “Well, central dispatch got a call from a woman named Anne Bradley at one-fifteen this morning. She said Mr. Donnelly—”

  “Anne Bradley!” Lily was flabbergasted. Could it be the same person? “What does this woman look like?”

  “Nice-looking blonde, short hair, pretty face. As I was saying, Ms. Bradley called in from her cell phone, saying your husband tried to rape her. The patrol unit responded to the garage at the Sands Hotel. Damn place is closed and they still haven’t blocked off the parking facility. The Sands is scheduled to be demolished next week, in case you don’t know. We’re losing a lot of these old hotels. Kind of sad, if you ask me.”

  “Was the victim injured?”

  “Yeah, he roughed her up. She’s got some scrapes on her knees where he pushed her down on the concrete, and her clothes were torn. She’s also got skin under her fingernails. Won’t know if it’s Mr. Donnelly’s until the lab processes it, but he’s got scratches on him.”

  Anne was a fairly small woman. Lily felt her stomach turn at the thought of her trying to fend off a man the size of Bryce, and how frightened she must have been. “My husband says he was beaten.”

  “Oh, that, well, the little lady fought back. He evidently tried to assault her in the car, a Cadillac Escalade she rented from Hertz when she got into town. Victim bailed out of the vehicle and tried to escape. She called for help, but no one was around. The suspect gave chase.” He paused, flipping through some papers. “After the suspect caught her, a struggle ensued. The victim found a piece of plywood on the ground and used it to defend herself. When did you last see your husband, Judge Forrester?”

  She didn’t answer. Her mind was going in a thousand different directions. “I may know the victim, Detective. Does she reside in Ventura?”

  “Yep. Is she a friend or something?”

  “Anne Bradley is a common name,” Lily continued. “Did she say what she did for a living?”

  “She’s a lawyer, but she’s not affiliated with a law firm right now. Said she just moved to California from New York.”

  Lily said, “My husband claims he met Ms. Bradley at a bar in Thousand Oaks. Is that what she told you?”

  “Yep. Says she met the perp at the Indigo Lounge. I’m sorry, Judge Forrester. Guess I shouldn’t call your husband a perp yet. Talking to a judge isn’t something I do every day, so please excuse me.”

  “Go on, Detective.”

  “Victim said she mentioned something to him about a trip she had planned to Vegas. Mr. Donnelly asked if he could meet her for a drink since he was going to be in town at the same time. When she met him in the bar at the Aladdin, he was already intoxicated, even made a scene with the bartender. He insisted they go to MGM because the bars were nicer. Ms. Bradley intended to drive him there and then ditch him, but he forced her to turn into the parking lot of the Sands, where he proceeded to assault her.”

  Lily swallowed hard. It didn’t sound like a concocted story. It sounded like all the other crimes against women she had handled over the years. The only difference was the perpetrator was a man she had loved and trusted. “Has he been arraigned yet?”

  “Set for tomorrow morning at nine, Division Thirty-four.”

  “I see,” she said. “Thanks for your time, Detective.” She started to hang up when she heard him talking.

  “I can understand how something like this could be embarrassing, you being a judge and all. I wouldn’t lose any sleep over it. Things like this happen all the time in this city. If we broadcasted all the bad things people do in Las Vegas, we’d lose a lot of business. You know, we sweep the streets clean every morning.”

  “Goodbye, Detective Smith.” Great, Lily thought. Now my husband is no better than garbage. Someone tapped lightly on her door. “Is that you, Jeannie?”

  “May I come in?”

  Before Lily could answer, Jeannie opened the door to her office and walked in. “Are you okay, Judge Forrester? I heard you, um, talking loud and I wondered if something was wrong. Can I help you with anything?”

  “No one can help me with this problem, Jeannie, but I appreciate your concern.” Lily picked up the phone, but her assistant didn’t move.

  “It’s your husband, isn’t it? He sounded terrible. You’ve been asking if he called for several days, so I knew something was going on. I wondered if he’d been in—”

  Lily cut her off. “Its not your job to wonder,” she told her, a muscle in her eyelid twitching. “I’ll call you if I need you, Jeannie.”

  After Jeannie left, Lily called Tessa on her cell. “Can you talk?”

  “Yeah, it’s recess.”

  “Isn’t it still raining?”

  “When it rains, we let the kids run around in the gym. You didn’t come to the club again this morning. I was going to call, but I figured I’d bothered you enough this week.”

  “I need to ask you about Anne Bradley.”

  “Oh, yeah,” Tessa answered, sounding peeved. “She didn’t show up this morning, either. Are you two working out somewhere else? Every time she’s absent, you are, too.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous,” Lily said. “How long have you known Anne?”

  “I don’t know. A little over a month, I think. Why?”

  “Just bear with me,” Lily said, feeling as if her head were about to explode. “Have you ever been to her apartment?”

  “No. Why are you asking me these things?”

  “She’s claiming Bryce tried to rape her.”

  “You’re shitting me. Bryce doesn’t even know her, does he?”

  “He does now,” Lily said. “He met her at a bar in Thousand Oaks. Then he met up with her in Las Vegas. Bryce is in jail, Tessa. Anne called the police and told them he tried to rape her.”

  “Jeez,” Tessa said, taking time to assimilate what she’d just heard. “Bryce wouldn’t do something like that, Lily. He adores you. Besides, he’s not some asshole that goes around trying to rape wo
men. Have you talked to him, heard his side of the story?”