"You're not going to help me? She said incredulously, staring blankly at him. "You can't be serious."
"Oh, but I am Jenna. Deadly serious." he paused. "You can look elsewhere."
"But where?" she pleaded. "I have no-one else to turn to, and you know it you bastard. How can you take advantage of me this way?"
Take advantage indeed.
Years back, it was Jenna and his brother taking advantage of him. They had all the money in the world. He was a real success, his brother. Owned a couple of car dealerships, two nice homes and a condo in the mountains. Every nice thing he and his wife wanted, they bought. Nothing was ever too good for them. No car, no boat, no meal, no vacation was opulent enough for them unless it was the best. And they flaunted it at every opportunity.
In the meantime, Vince was working hard for every penny he had. Saving his money, making small investments whenever he could. Then the high technology boom hit. Several of the stocks he had bought in Internet firms and cell phone manufacturers hit the roof, doubling and splitting over and over. Finally, when it became more money than he could even think of spending, he sold it all and "beat the market." Every gambler has to know when to quite. After all was said and done, he had cleared nearly 14 million dollars.
That was just about the time Jenna's life came crashing around her. Jim just up and left without a trace. He did leave one thing though – debt. It turns out some of the business deals that made him so prosperous weren't quite legal. After 15 years of marriage and two children, he took off for parts unknown with his secretary – the IRS and SEC in hot pursuit.
The authorities put a lid on everything they owned and every dollar they had. Took the houses, cars, boat – everything they didn't need to barely survive. Whether she deserved it or not, Jenna was left with no means of support. That's why, as a last resort she swallowed her pride and came to Vince.
"Jenna, you've been taking advantage of us for as long as I can remember," he said. "Always asking for favors, but offering nothing in return. Making sure that the world gave you what you were owed. The nicest clothes, the Mercedes Benzes, the personal trainer. Kept yourself in darn good shape, with the kids in private school or camp all day. Then inviting me to the pool so you could shake your tits and ass in my face." It made him crazy, he neglected to mention.
"I didn't mean to . . ." she protested.
"Yes you did, Jenna, and you God damn know it." he shot back.
She hung her head. She knew he was right, and for once in her life she needed him.
"Vince," she confessed, "I have so many bills and no way to pay them."
"Kept right on spending, didn't you? Why – tell me why I should pay your way out of debt?"
Jenna's face was flush, and she felt a little queasy. "Look, I'm so very sorry for the way I treated you. I wasn't always this way. I was once a nice person, too. Remember how friendly we were years ago? But I let it all go to my head. I did. The money, the houses, all the stuff I had. It just seemed like it would never end. I forgot what it was like to work for the things I had. I always admired you though, admired the way you worked hard and made yourself such a success. Plus, living with Bob and putting up with his shit, I felt I'd sort of earned it."
"What shit?" he asked
"Oh forget it," she replied, shaking her head. "The way he treated me? Like a possession. Just another servant to order around. Nothing was ever good enough. My cooking, the house, the way I looked. And he was always gone. Fishing, golfing, who knows. The kids hardly knew him. Did you know that we hadn't had sex in over a year? Do you know what that does to someone's self esteem?"
"No, I didn't know that," he confessed. "That's too bad." He must be blind, Vince thought. But he wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of saying it.
"He was doing it with his secretary, though, the one he ran off with," she continued. "She's 15 years younger than I am. Do you know that I found films of them in his office? Films of her blindfolded and tied up while they had sex. He shoved everything he could in her, fucked her in the ass . . .. " Her blue eyes began to well up with tears.
"Jenna, " he repeated, "I'm not saying that everything in your life was peaches and cream. But you let him treat you that way because you were living the good life and fuck everyone else. He lost respect for you because you let him. You should have stood up for yourself and demanded respect."
"You're right," she surrendered. "But it's too late now, what can I do? I'll do anything you want, Vince. I still need to live until I can straighten this mess out."