Chapter 13
I was in a near panic after the video came to an incomplete end. I was frantic to know what had happened but could find no other videos posted to the site showing my wife. Maggie was still not due back for a few hours. The longer I waited, the more agitated I became. I needed to get out of the house. I didn't know what I would do, but I knew I could not be there when she came home.
I ran upstairs, grabbed a suitcase, and stuffed as much in it as I could. Was I wimping out? Maybe. I wanted to confront Maggie, but I couldn't stand to see her. I wasn't sure I could control my anger, and the last thing I needed was to act out physically. I needed to separate myself. If she wanted to talk to me, she could do it through a lawyer. I was not going to be one of those husbands who hangs on, desperate to make things work, and I would not be a cuckold.
I found my essential papers, like my passport, titles, deeds, and other things that I thought best to take with me and put them into a portable metal box. Then, I went to the computer and started wreaking havoc.
I went to the ATT website and turned off her cell phone, reporting it stolen. She never managed any of our accounts, so good luck with her figuring that one out. I then went to the bank website and reported her credit card stolen. Fortunately, I made a habit of paying off our credit cards monthly, so there was only a small balance. I paid it, then canceled the account.
To make things more complicated, I took all of our laptops and tablets and put them in the trunk of my car. Having everything I thought I needed, I left, drove downtown, and checked into a hotel. I spent the next few hours looking for a lawyer, but there were so many. I remembered that a friend of mine had divorced a couple of years ago and gave him a call. He raved about his lawyer, a woman, and gave me her information. I planned to call her first thing in the morning.
As I sat in the room staring at the walls, my phone started lighting up with calls and texts. I knew it wasn't Maggie since her phone was no longer working. I checked, and they were all from Trina, my loyal daughter.
I kept tapping the little red "disconnect" button every time she called. Finally, on about the twentieth call, I answered.
"What do you want?" I asked coldly.
"Dad! Finally!" she exclaimed. "What the hell is going on? Mom's phone is dead. Her credit card doesn't work. It's not what you think! Why are you doing this?"
"Sorry, I don't talk to sluts," I said and hung up.
She called back, and I answered. "Yes?"
"Dad! Please!" Trina began again, "You don't understand!"
"Oh, I understand! I know all about Round 2! I saw it all! She's a slut! You're a slut! And I'm a fool ever to trust either of you."
"No! Dad! You have it all wrong!" Trina tried to tell me.
"Fuck, off, Trina," I snapped. "Tell your whore of a mother to get a lawyer." I hung up and turned my phone off.
I was livid. My entire body was trembling with anger and the adrenaline that was pumping through my blood. It was a good thing I had not stayed home.
I was more determined than ever to divorce the bitch. I wanted to focus on meeting with the lawyer and planning for the divorce, so I knew I couldn't go to work. I called into the office and left a voicemail for my boss, letting him know I needed to take time off for a family emergency. I followed it up with an email to him and HR, just to cover my bases.
I tried to eat something, but I had no appetite. Instead, I went to bed and tried to sleep, but that was impossible. I couldn't stop thinking about what Maggie had done. I also replayed the conversations I had with Doug, TJ, Amber, and the others. I knew I had misbehaved, but nothing I had done compared to the level of depravity and betrayal I had witnessed on those videos. Yeah, sure, Maggie was drunk. That didn't excuse her actions. I saw her consciously deciding to do everything she did.
Eventually, I must have drifted off to sleep. I woke up to the sound of someone knocking on the door. A few seconds later, the door opened, and a maid popped her head in, calling out, "Maid service." I looked at the clock. Fuck, it was already nine-thirty. I jumped up, fully dressed, still wearing the clothes from yesterday.
"Give me a few minutes!" I shouted at the housekeeper. She jumped back, frightened, and left the room. I quickly splashed water on my face and brushed my teeth, then gathered my stuff and left the room.
On my way to the car, I turned on my phone and found a massive number of text messages and phone calls from Trina. I ignored them and called the lawyer, making an appointment for later that afternoon.
I skipped breakfast, but by lunchtime, I was starving, so I pulled into an In and Out to grab a burger. My phone rang, and seeing it was Trina again, I answered.
"Make it quick," I said.
"Hank, don't hang up," Maggie said. Her voice was so hoarse I almost didn't recognize it.
"Why should I talk to you? All you've done is lie to me!" I fired at her.
"Hank, please, let me explain!" Maggie pleaded.
"You don't need to explain," I told her, "the video on the internet showed everything."
"What video?" she asked.
"The one showing what happened in the room marked private," I replied. "With you and Keesha getting naked on stage and then what you did with those men!"
"Oh God, Hank!" she cried, "I didn't do anything!"
"Didn't do anything? You pulled a fucking train! Do you call that not doing anything? Goodbye, you lying slut. Get a lawyer! You're going to need one!"
"No! Hank!" she called out, but I hung up. I turned the phone off again, not wanting to be bothered by her attempts to lie to me. I'd had enough of her deception.
I met with the lawyer and explained to her everything that had transpired over the weekend, well, not exactly everything. I left out any hint that I had done anything remotely inappropriate. I had simply been on a golfing trip. I showed her the videos that I had downloaded. She agreed to take the case and felt I had sufficient proof of infidelity to allow us to petition a judge to file for divorce on the grounds of adultery.
"It helps a bit, but not much," she explained. "Mostly, it's just a great way to embarrass your spouse into agreeing to a more favorable settlement."
"I don't want to pay that bitch alimony," I told her.
"Don't worry, this is Texas," she laughed. "Texas doesn't really have alimony. Women are expected to take care of themselves here. She may get minimal support until she gets a job, but she'll have to do that. Now, if she could prove you committed adultery, she would be able to get more, but without that, it is trivial how much she may get. Under the circumstances, the judge may give her nothing."
"So, I don't have to keep her in the lifestyle she was accustomed to?" I asked.
"Oh, no, not at all," she explained. "Texas law says that an unemployed spouse is only entitled to enough money to have a minimal lifestyle. They are expected to go out and get a job to support themselves."
"Awesome," I said. "I'm fine with that."
"It sucks to be a woman in a divorce here," she elaborated. "I represented a woman whose husband had an ongoing affair with his lover for over a year, and he moved into her house without filing for divorce."
"Did she get a lot?" I asked naively.
"She had a job," she replied, "so the judge gave her nothing. They had to sell the house, and she got sixty percent of that, but no spousal support at all."
"Wow," I said, legitimately surprised.
"Maggie hasn't worked in a long time, so they'll take that into consideration," she explained. "But, don't worry, you won't be paying her living expenses."
I let out a sigh of relief.
"I do have to ask, though," she said, staring at me. "Is there no way you can get through this? Maybe if you get counseling? Could you forgive her and get past it? For all you know, it was just this one time."
"I don't know that," I replied. "For all I know, Maggie's been fucking men like crazy behind my back. She has plenty of time and opportunity to do it. She sure didn't seem like a prim, faithful wife in the videos, did she?"
"I don't know," she answered, "that's not really for me to say. I was just asking. So, when do you want me to have her served?"
"As soon as possible," I declared.
"Ok, how about tomorrow?"
"Perfect."
Chapter 14
My phone was blowing up so much that I canceled it and ordered a new phone from a different carrier. Finally, it was quiet, and I was pleased. However, at the same time, the silence made me realize how alone I was. I had nobody to talk to, no one in my corner, nobody to have my back.
So, I called Doug.
He was supportive but disappointed.
"Hank, you know I'll support you, but are you sure about this?" he asked. "I mean, divorce? It was one time. She was drunk. Things got out of hand. Don't you think divorce is too far? Can't you confront her, let her know how disappointed you are and find some penance or some way to get back to where you guys were?"
"No," I said flatly, "I can't."
"Ok," he replied. "But, don't get mad at me, but isn't it kind of a case of the pot calling the kettle black? You had your cock in Amanda's mouth and practically fucked her."
"But, I didn't," I said. "I realized I was going too far, and I stopped myself. I didn't do anything wrong."
"Yeah, ok," he replied. "Keep telling yourself that and you might start to believe it."
"It's true!" I snapped. "If Maggie had stopped herself before crossing that line and left there, I would be fine. I could deal with it, but I saw her face, and I heard what she said. She chose to do it and to keep going. There's no way I can accept that." My voice had risen as my anger swelled, to the point that I was shouting.
"Ok, ok," Doug said, trying to soothe me. "I get it. I got your back, bro, really, I do."
