This is my first attempt at creative writing in a very long time. I hope you enjoy it.
Without the editing skill and generosity of P_Anderer, this story would have never seen the light of day.
Good morning, this is Hugh
Hugh answered his phone with his normal "Good morning, this is Hugh."
The voice on the other end hesitated... "Hugh Vega? Your wife is Sally Vega, brown hair, brown eyes, drives a white Ford Expedition?"
Hugh panicked. "What is this about? Did something happen to my wife? Who are you?"
"Your wife is fine, as far as I know. If the door to your office is open, you need to close it."
"No, you need to tell me who you are and what this is about."
"Just close the goddamn door, Hugh; you'll thank me later."
Hugh got up and closed the door. "Alright, the door closed. Now, tell me who you are and what about my wife."
"My name is Brett and..."
Hugh interrupted and demanded, "Brett who?" He was getting irritated.
"Settle down, it's just Brett for now. This is going to be really important to you, but it's going to take a little time, so you need to be patient. I can call back if you don't have the time right now."
"I've got plenty to do, but I want this resolved, so get with it."
"First I need to tell you about me. I was married right out of high school to my childhood sweetheart. We had two kids, too early, and struggled. At times I felt the only thing we had, was each other.
I finally got on with the Fire Department and still being able to still work construction for my uncle on my days off, we climbed out of the hole. After twelve years of marriage, we had the perfect little middle-class life.
Then the classic 'I came home from work early' scenario played out. My wife had her face in a pillow, bent over the edge of the bed. My 'friend' and neighbor from a few houses down the street, was standing grasping her hips, fucking the hell out of her.
They never saw me come in the bedroom. I hit him on the side of the jaw so hard he flew across the room and crashed into the wall. Then I was on him, fully intent on beating him to death. My wife was screaming for me to stop and finally she threw herself between us. Accidentally, I hit her full force and splattered her nose.
There was my wife - the only woman I had ever loved, my partner, the mother of my children, naked, gushing blood and crying her eyes out.
I was in shock. I backed out of our bedroom and closed the door. The only thing I could think to do was call his wife, Karen.
She picked up on the first ring and said she would be there in two minutes. Karen came in, looked at me covered in blood and calmly said, "Where are they?"
I pointed to the bedroom door, and she went in, closing the door. Not a sound came from the room for the longest time. Finally, Karen came out and said, "For better or worse, you didn't kill the bastard. He's hurt bad, but conscious. I'm pretty sure you broke his jaw among other things. Looks like your wife is going to get the rhinoplasty she's been wanting.
"I think I have a plan to keep you from going to jail. I'm taking them to Emergency, and we'll all say they got in an ATV wreck. I've been threatening both of them with holy hell if they don't go along and they've both agreed to it. We can rehearse the story on the way over. You stay here and clean everything. Wash your clothes and yourself. Make sure there's not a speck of evidence, just in case they don't buy it and the cops get involved."
Brett continued his story: "The Doctor didn't believe them, but he didn't call the cops either. Two days later, I moved out of my house and in with one of the single firemen I work with.
"My wife convinced our family and friends I had got drunk and beat her up. She said she didn't call the cops because I'd lose my job. I couldn't say what really happened or risk my job and jail.
"My wife's cheating partner spent a week in the hospital and six weeks with his jaw wired shut. Karen threw him out of their house, and he moved in with my wife.
"My divorce was really ugly. She turned my kids against me. When it was over, she got the house, child support, spousal support and half of everything else. I got every other weekend with kids who blamed me for everything.
"My life was hell for five long years."
"Brett, that's a heartbreaking story and I really feel sorry for you, but what does this have to do with me?"
"Hugh, you need to understand my motivation here. Stay with me, this won't take much longer.
"As you can imagine, after my divorce I had some serious trust issues. Every married fireman's wife has a single girlfriend or sister, so there were plenty of dates and sex, but no real relationships. My fault, not theirs and I felt bad about it.
"We work twenty-four hour shifts every other day and I get off at eight in the morning. I like the gym when it's not crowded and mid-morning being the best. About a month ago, I noticed a woman at gym. We flirted a little and started talking. She didn't waste any time letting me know what she wanted.
"My new gym friend told me she was a mother of three and her husband had abandoned her. Her parents were well off and they agreed to support her and the children, with a catch.
"They wanted her and their grandchildren to live with them. Her parents hated her husband and had told her not to marry him in the first place. As her punishment for not listening to them, there would be no men while she lived with them. No dates, nothing.
"She thought she had no choice and agreed to their terms. But now she needed sex and she needed it badly. Just two times a week, she said would be enough.
"Did I mention she was very fit and very attractive?
"With my twenty-four hours on and twenty-four hours off schedule, it was a dream come true. That was a month ago and it's usually been two times a week."
"That's really great Brett. I'm very happy for you, but I've got work to do."
"Don't hang up, Hugh, I'm almost done. Give me just one more minute.
"Some little things she did made me a little suspicious. As I told you, I still have serious trust issues when it comes to women.
"Yesterday, when she was in the shower, I took her keys and went down to her vehicle. Unlocking it, I found the registration and that's where I found your name."
"My name, why in the hell would my name be in her car?"
"My gym buddy is your wife, Sally. I'm really sorry to have to tell you. That's why I had to tell you my story. I know how you're feeling right now. I don't want you to go through what I did."
"No, this isn't true. This can't be true; you're making this up. My wife would never cheat on me; we have three kids."
"Hugh buddy, I hate to have to tell you this. I thought about just kicking her to the curb, but she'd just find someone else. You need a plan, so you don't lose your kids and everything else, like I did."
