Close Encounters of the Garden Variety
Part 1
Darci sat behind the defendant's table, tears running unbidden down her cheeks. She swore she wouldn't do this. She promised herself she would be strong today and that Derrik wouldn't get to see her cry again, but her heart had other plans. Inside she was falling apart, just like her decade-long marriage. Betty, her divorce attorney, tried to comfort her, but Darci didn't think it was helping much. Out the corner of her eye, she saw Derrik and his attorney chatting quietly but casually. Occasionally, when Derrik looked her way, she saw a cruel smirk on her soon-to-be ex-husband's face, as if he enjoyed throwing away ten years of marriage and seeing how much it hurt her.
Derrik hurt her, but the man behind Derrik, his attorney, simply destroyed her during this hearing. The man painted her as a woman coldly denying her husband any intimacy while expecting him to do all the work and pay all the bills while demanding money to feed her obsession with plants and gardening. He even called up some of Derrik's co-workers and friends who had visited the house and seen the tension between her and her husband firsthand to bolster the picture he painted of her.
Darci's tearful refutation of the attorney's claims seemed to do little to sway the judge. Betty warned her that waterworks would have little effect in the courtroom. They saw sobbing soon-to-be exes every day, men and women. She also didn't have anyone who could stand up for her like Derrik did. Since her husband finished his schooling, most of her contact had been with her boss at the local greenhouse, Carla, and her best friend since college, Mary. Mary liked Derrik up until he got this latest promotion at his job. Now she often waited until he was away or at work to visit.
The elderly judge looked over his square-rimmed glasses at Darcy, then at her attorney. "Does Mrs. Labarre have anything else to bring to the court's attention?"
Betty glanced nervously at the courtroom entrance and sighed. "No, Your Hono--"
The attorney stopped and looked back again as a man in a grey suit stepped through the courtroom doors, followed by a blonde in a black leather jumpsuit for motorcycle riders. Betty breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of them.
The judge frowned as the gray-suited man sat down in the gallery. "Mr. Knight, are you here for this case or the next on the docket?" the judge asked, his displeasure plain in his voice.
Mr. Knight stood up. "This one, your honor," he answered with a cocky smile before sitting again.
Mary walked up to Betty and handed her three manilla envelopes.
"You were almost too late, and I don't have time to look over the contents of this," Betty hissed. "You swear everything you told me on the phone is in these?" she asked, tapping the envelopes.
Darci's friend flashed the woman a smile filled with malice. "Every last juicy bit," she said, turning the smile on the two men at the plaintiff's table. Derrik looked away from the blonde's piercing gaze as his attorney leaned over and spoke to him in low tones while glancing worriedly at Mr. Knight.
Betty turned back to the bench and held up the envelopes. "Your honor, I do have a few final items to present."
"Approach," said the Judge, waving her forward. "You too," he said to Derrik's attorney.
Betty left one envelope beside her briefcase, handed another to the judge, and the last to Derrik's counsel.
The judge opened the envelope and pulled out some paperwork and a small box filled with memory cards.
As he inspected the items, Betty spoke up. "The paperwork is Mr. and Mrs. Labarre's taxes for the entirety of their marriage. If you look through them, you will see that Mrs. Labarre worked two and sometimes three jobs to make ends meet while Mr. Labarre attended school for his Master's degree.
"That's interesting but not really relevant," said the other attorney.
Betty glared at him. "Does that sound like the actions of an uncaring wife?"
Turning back to the judge, she continued, "The memory cards will show that my client is not nearly as frigid as the plaintiff claims. Instead, Mr. Labarre didn't have the energy left for intimacy with his wife because he was tiring himself out with his secretary."
"You can't be seriou--"
"Look for yourself. The contents of all three envelopes are identical," Betty interrupted.
"Why did Mrs. Labarre not bring this up during questioning?" the judge asked.
"As of this moment, I believe she suspects Mr. Labarre was cheating on her but did not have any proof to present. Her friend, Ms. Mary Barnes, suspected Mr. Labarre of having an affair and told my client of her suspicions. Mrs. Labarre refused to listen then, choosing to trust in her husband and firmly believing her and the plaintiff's relationship would improve. Ms. Barnes then contracted Knight Private Investigations Services for confirmation. Each of those cards is one hundred ninety-two gigabytes of that confirmation."
"You are bringing this to my attention without the defendant's knowledge?"
"In her distress over the divorce, Mrs. Labarre left everything up to my discretion. I can provide documentation if you wish that I have the power to act on her behalf. She has not seen and probably does not want to see the contents of this envelope. At this time, my client just wants this done and over with so she can move on with her life."
"I would like to see that document, counsel. The court will recess for thirty minutes so I can review the footage," said the judge with a sharp rap of his gavel. "Mr. Knight, counsel, please join me in my chambers."
---
Mary came around to the defendant's table and hugged Darci the entire recess, only returning to the gallery when the judge, attorneys, and private investigator entered the courtroom again. The rest of the proceeding went by in a whirlwind, with the judge finding in her favor. Derrik stared dumbfounded, and his attorney shook his head in defeat as the judge awarded Darci the house and significant alimony.
"Finally, the defendant's counsel has submitted a motion that today's proceedings be sealed and that only the plaintiff, defendant, and judgment be made public record. Does Mr. Labarre concur with this motion?"
"Yes, he does, Your Honor."
