Chapter 9
"We need to talk."
My throat went dry at the sound of Dr. Wojcik's voice. She was obviously calling to tell me that I would be charged with assault for my attack on her in the medical building earlier that evening. Or perhaps there was to be a civil suit. Whatever it was, my life was certainly about to take a dramatic turn for the worse - again! Never mind that I had been pushed beyond all normal limits, tormented physically, sexually, and emotionally for almost two years now. Never mind that I was to be featured in a new University text book, naked, exposed, rutting her hand like a wild animal in the throes of passion. Never mind that my face would be on display for all to see. No no, that didn't count at all! What counted was the fact that I had finally snapped, and taken matters into my own hands. I steeled myself for the worst, then calmed my voice as I answered.
"Yes, what is it? Aren't you going to call the police? I've been waiting for them to arrive all evening."
I surprised myself with the angry tone in my voice.
Silence. I could hear her breathing. She seemed taken aback. Finally she spoke, a little hesitantly I thought.
"Is that what you want, Mr. Douglas? It could be easily arranged."
A thought suddenly occurred to me.
"You know, it is just your word against mine in all of this. You have no proof that I touched you at all. Perhaps your story won't be believed. I'm beginning to think that..."
She cut me off.
"You are wrong. My story will be perfectly believed. Because it is true. You forget that the cameras were rolling all the time, Mr. Douglas. I have just reviewed all the tapes, and believe me, the attack is exceptionally well documented. I have taken steps to have the tapes duplicated, and stored in a safe place. Furthermore, if anything should ever happen to me, I have provided for the delivery of those tapes to the police, who I am sure will be greatly interested in their contents. No, Mr. Douglas, combined with your previous conviction, and my international reputation, I am afraid that you wouldn't stand a chance if
I were to have you charged with assault."
She paused, letting the effect of her words sink in.
I had nothing to say. If true, those tapes could effectively put me behind bars. And I knew that she had them running almost all the time. I was finished. When she spoke again, she was no longer hesitant.
"You will do exactly as I say, or else I shall immediately take action against you. You are to come to my home Sunday morning at 9:00 A.M. We shall discuss matters further at that point. Is that understood?"
I sighed loudly. There was no way out. I just wanted this woman out of my life for good.
"OK", I mutterred, in a daze again.
"Fine. Go get a pen and take my address down."
I wearily stood up and shuffled over to my desk, returning with a pen and note-pad.
"OK, go ahead."
" It's 128 Willowby Lane, on the far side of the Tucker Nature Reserve. 9:00 Sunday morning then, and don't be late."
And with that she clicked the phone down and the line went dead. I wondered wearily what on earth she wanted now. There seemed to be no end to my involvement with this infernal woman. However, at least it appeared as though she did not intend to inform the police or the court authorities immediately about our little scrap. I drank another beer, then drifted off into an uncomfortable slumber.
Chapter 10
I awoke early Sunday morning, grabbed a coffee, hopped into the shower, and was in my car by 8:40. It was a dark and rainy day, the sky almost black, and I continuously heard the rumble of distant thunder. It seemed to echo the nervous rumblings going on in my guts. I easily found her house, an old, roomy, good quality brick house which had evidently been well restored. It was situated at the end of a dead-end country road, on a well-treed lot, and, judging from the fences around it, I figured the total area was probably around fifty acres or more. Very private. I pulled into the stone driveway, and half-way along there was a metal gate. I was about to come to a stop, when, to my surprise, it automatically swung open. I passed slowly through, and as I looked back in my rear-view mirror, I noticed it swinging shut behind me. I pulled the car up to the covered front entrance, and switched off the engine. As I climbed the front steps, it suddenly occurred to me that I should have contacted my lawyer for advice before taking on this meeting. Come to think of it, I should have brought him along. with me. Another mistake. I lifted up the heavy iron knocker, and rapped loudly three times.
The door opened almost immediately, and there stood Dr. Wojcik. I was taken aback. She looked much classier than I had ever seen her before. She wore a crisp light-brown medium length skirt, with a gold, brown and white silk blouse. An expensive-looking pearl necklace and pearl earrings adorned her face, and, to my surprise, she had on a relatively well-done application of make-up. Dark brown leather shoes completed the picture.
"Good morning, Mr. Douglas. We have a lot to discuss. Please follow me."
And with that, she turned on her heels without awaiting my response, and headed off down the hallway. Shutting the door behind me, I followed several paces behind. The hallway was adorned with tall paintings, probably copies of 18th century stuff, I supposed, and area rugs intermittently covered the floor. Simply yet tastefully decorated, I noted. Nothing great, but no glaring mistakes either. Probably done by your run-of-the-mill interior decorator, I imagined. We continued on until Dr. Wojcik turned to her right, opened a door, and stepped into another room. Switching on a light, we entered a study, filled with books, a globe, a desk - all the usual stuff. Against the far wall was a television and a VCR. Thick curtains completely covered the window, creating a sombre mood. There were three comfortable stuffed chairs arranged around a coffee table. At Dr. Wojcik's beckoning, I sat in the far one, and she situated herself across from me. She reached into a magazine rack, and pulled out a pen and paper. Sitting back, legs crossed, she regarded me with a curious look on her face, as though still trying to make up her mind about something. Finally she broke the silence.
"I have been making inquiries about you since our little incident a few days ago. It seems that you now live alone, is that correct?"
I nodded, surprised at this line of questioning.
"And apparently, your business is not doing particularly well. Barely making ends meet, to be perfectly blunt. Probably bad enough that the cost of a trial lawyer would be enough to put you under for good. I don't suppose that any good lawyer would even take you on as a client. They make their own inquiries, you know."
She paused, then went on.
"I am going to play you a tape of our incident the other day. Watch carefully."
She stood up, and took a video from the desk and placed it into the VCR. Returning to her seat, she clicked the remote.
The screen was blank at first, then came a title page. On it was the name of a videotape lab in a nearby town, and the words 'AUTHORIZED COPY NUMBER 6' underneath in bold red letters. After a moments delay, the TV was filled with the image of me sitting in Dr. Wojcik's office. The sound seemed distant, but you could definitely hear me arguing with Dr. Wojcik about the University text book she was planning to produce. Suddenly I saw myself leap up and grab her by the throat. I was dismayed. I looked even more villanous than I had imagined. The entire sorry episode played out on the screen in front of me; the attack, the shouting, my hands at her throat, and ended with my choking, pepper-sprayed exit from the room. The screen went blank, then a few seconds later, the entire scene was repeated, this time from a different camera angle. My words were much more clear in this version, and my face sharper, better lit, so that my facial contortions appeared even more ghastly. When it was over, Dr. Wojcik clicked off the machine. I sat in a stunned silence.
"As I mentioned to you on the phone, I now have many copies of this tape stored in several safe locations. If I were to disappear, for any reason, my lawyers are instructed to hand them to the police. I spoke to my lawyer yesterday, and he assured me that I could easily have you charged anytime within the next twelve years. It is not something that must be done immediately. Furthermore, a civil suit, for pain, suffering, emotional distress and the like could conservatively net me fifty thousand dollars. I also would like to remind you that I
can
proceed with my University text book project if I so choose. So you see, Mr. Douglas, I could ruin your life on several different fronts tomorrow if I so chose. Do you understand?"
She glared at me, a little of the old anger creeping back into her eyes.
I nodded.
She shifted in her seat, crossed her legs in the other direction, then sat silently, staring at me, thinking. I hunkered down, awaiting her verdict. I did not want to do anything to provoke her at this point. Finally, she took a deep breath, and spoke in a commanding voice.
"I can be persuaded to not take any action against you, Mr. Douglas, but only on my terms. You have committed a terrible offense against me, and I cannot let you off without any punishment. However, you have no financial capacity right now, that much is clear. On the other hand, you are unemcumbered by any family committments or other demands on your time and activities. This was important to me as I pondered what to do with you."
I wondered what on earth she was getting to. She paused, then continued on.
"I took a look at my own situation, Mr.Douglas. I am forty-five years of age. I am very successful, professionally and financially, quite healthy, and held in high esteem by my family and relatives back in my home country. I am the only one from my small town that has - how do you say? - ah yes!, made good, so to speak. I enjoy my life. I have been able to take numerous trips around the world, and have met many interesting people. In short, I seem to have everything that one could wish for. Except for one thing."
She paused for breath.
"Twenty years ago, when I was just a young woman, I was married for a short while. It was not my choice, for the man was not to my liking, but my family wished it, so I complied. It turned out to be a complete disaster. He was an awful brute, a drunk, a gambler, and lazy as well. The day I divorced him was one of the happiest in my life. I've never felt I needed a man since then. That is until I began our experiments together. It was then that I felt a stirring within me that made me dream of fulfillment in this area of my life. And yet I am unwilling to ever tie myself to a man again, to be under his control, to do his bidding, to be just his wife. No, never again will I let a man lord over me. From now on, things must be done my way, or not at all. Do you understand, Mr Douglas? I want a man, to do with as I wish, to be under
