Chapter Five
Monday morning was a new day. Chuck realized he had no clothing suitable for the office so he put on his rumpled suit and headed in. He had no tie, no socks and wearing deck shoes and felt very conspicuous. He was used to blending in and now felt like he was completely out of the norm. Since Bev had to be in the classroom he clocked out about ten and headed to his former dwelling place. He should have been uninterrupted as he retrieved some suitable office wear but when he drove by the house he could see that Bev was home. She must have taken the day off expecting him to try and sneak in. Damn her.
He went back to work and called Thomas about where Bev was. Thomas advised him to just stay put and he would take care of getting some of his clothes.
He then made an appointment to see the apartment at noon instead of eating something. The apartment was a nice two bedroom with a good space. The boys could be happy to visit here. There was also a community room and a workout room. The only thing better could be a pool but the apartment was in a high rise and that kind of space was too much to expect. He paid the first and last month's rent and arranged to move in the next weekend.
Thomas called him back at four thirty and asked to meet at Chuck's hotel. Chuck advised him of his new digs and why he moved. Thomas agreed that was for the best.
The meeting was enlightening. Thomas brought two suitcases full of clothing and accessories. Those were sent up to his room while they met in another small conference room. Apparently these kinds of meetings were not unusual in their city. This room was appointed like a study. Large overstuffed chairs and a separate large desk. The walls were paneled and many books were in the bookcases. Chuck made a mental note to himself to make a room like this in his next house. He would be able to afford it.
Thomas gave him some papers to sign. "This first is acknowledgement of an order of protection against Bev. She cannot come within a 1000 feet of you at any time. The judge actually wanted to make it even worse but that would have meant that Bev would have had to move to another city. He was not pleased with the video and Mark's sworn testimony about the investigation."
The next was a different contract for the automaker. The payments would be scheduled differently with a small sum being deposited into a new bank account that Bev would have to get a court order to access. The rest was structured in multiple stock deals along with an unspecified amount to a new holding company that Chuck wholly owned but was registered oversea to keep Bev away. The proper federal paperwork would be filed so that the IRS got their fair share but Bev would be thwarted.
The last paperwork took Chuck's name off the joint checking and savings accounts after moving half the money into the new account. Their joint credit cards were paid off and new ones were going to be issued but only in Chuck's name. Bev could qualify for her own cards. Lump sums were placed in trust accounts for Jeff and Jon's future education that Bev could not access. A new account was also set up for the boys' everyday needs. Bev could draw on it but only for direct expenses for the boys. She had been offered a pittance for maintenance and she had grudgingly accepted for now.
Thomas had been to the bank and paid off their mortgage and remortgaged the house in Bev's name and Chuck held the note. If she failed to make even one payment the note was in default and he could evict her. His name was also off the all of the utilities. Bev would have to carry the load from now on.
In return Chuck had promised to not out Bev and her relationship with Darcy and would not file for divorce in the near future. Any breach of the agreement by Bev and Thomas was going to bury her in legal briefs and deny her any recourse. The video where she talked about what she was doing to Chuck would also be shown to the school board and she would be fired for violating the morals clause. Bev had also signed a codicil that allowed Chuck to behave as if he were single. Any relationships that he had from now on were not to be brought up in event of a divorce.
Thomas also talked about his visit to the Endo household. As Chuck had deduced from his drive by earlier, Bev had taken the day off in anticipation that Chuck would try to come home while she was gone to work. Chuck also related to Thomas his message that Bev had found him and that she would probably have shown up and created a scene if he didn't change his address again.
Thomas agreed that this was a wise move. "I don't know Bev all that well but she is very different than the woman that shared a meal with us a few weeks ago. She goes from being contrite about harming you to acting like a queen and that nothing should hamper her from her plans.
She is also very upset with your visit to her parents to see your boys. When she went to pick them up on Sunday she tried to tell them that you were very tired and sleeping in. She was not happy when her father didn't buy her story and kept after her until she told them some kind of cock and bull story half based on the truth about Friday night. All in all, they are not very happy with her and her treatment of you and told her so."
Chuck had to smile about that comment. He wondered if she had been successful in destroying him Friday night would she have destroyed his reputation to her parents also. The only thing he could surmise was that she would happily throw him under the proverbial bus if that meant she could control the money and all relationships.
