She turned up as the party was starting to wind down. We had an office in the house, and as Claire actually spent time cleaning up with the girls, I sat with Melissa to discuss what was happening on Wednesday.
“She has another ‘business trip’ come Thursday. She’ll come home Wednesday night and prepare to leave on Thursday morning.”
“Who will be with you when you sit her down?”
“You, Bill, and the girls. Before you say anything, they want to be there. And if they want to say something, I’m not going to stop them.”
“What are the chances of her signing?”
“Once certain people let her know just how well I’ve planned this, and yes, I know it verges on blackmail, she’ll sign. She won’t want to lose her career, because then she’ll lose him.”
“What do you know about him?”
“He’s fucking my wife, that’s all I need to know.” I sighed. “I know a lot more, obviously, but it doesn’t matter. I know he isn’t married, so she can go live with him.”
“Never looked at the pictures or video?”
“Ignorance is bliss. I ensure I don’t hate fuck her for three days after one of her trips. Not that I do it often anyway.”
“How are you feeling?” she asked softly, taking my hand.
“I just want this over, Mel. Three years of this shit. All I want is her gone and my girls in my custody. I say my girls as, apart from giving birth, she’s barely done fuck all for them for fourteen years.”
“Trust me, that’s exactly what you’re going to get.”
Driving the girls to school in my ute the next day, they both leaned over to give me a hug before getting out, whispers of ‘Love you, daddy’ in my ear. They knew what was coming. I’d tried not to tell them too much, but they were not stupid either. They’d seen the relationship between their parents utterly collapse. Thing is, there were very few arguments. I remained polite as I could. Claire was smart enough not to rock the boat, believing she was getting away with it.
Finishing work early on Wednesday, something I can do when self-employed with my own business — okay, it was owned by my father, having dissolved my own business once her affair came to light — picked the girls up from school, taking them out for ice cream, before driving them home. Sending them to their rooms to do their homework, I tidied up the house and began preparing dinner. Bill and Melissa would arrive before Claire. I’d already sent her a text, letting her know friends would be around for dinner.
I think Bill was more nervous than I was when he arrived, handing him a beer. Melissa was cool as ice in her blazer and skirt. With her long black hair, rather pale skin but gorgeous brown eyes, I blushed when she noticed I was drinking her in. “You’ll be somewhat single in a few hours anyway, Mark,” she said.
“Any last minute hiccups?”
“Nope. Her lawyer has been sent a copy of the agreement with a note that his client will be calling her in a couple of hours.”
I took a deep breath. “Come on, dinner is nearly ready.”
The girls appeared from the other end of the house. They adored Bill, calling him ‘Uncle’. Melissa they knew as daddy’s shark lawyer. We sat down and started to eat dinner, nothing spectacular but I’d been putting together simple but tasty dishes for years now. The girls got into cooking at a young age, and it was one of the many activities we liked doing together. Daddy cooked, the girls would clean up, though I’d still help out anyway.
We were nearly finished when the front door opened. Claire dumped her things on the couch and walked through to the joint kitchen and dining room. Her face dropped when seeing Bill with me, who she recognised, and Melissa, who she might have seen briefly the previous Saturday.
“Take a seat, Claire,” I said, keeping my tone neutral.
“No dinner for me, Mark?” she asked, walking to give me a kiss on the cheek.
I glanced at her and she stopped in her tracks. “Take a seat, Claire,” I repeated. I cooled my tone significantly.
She smiled awkwardly but took the empty seat at the head of the table. “You’ve already eaten?”
Katie snorted. “Least of your problems now,” she muttered.
“Katie,” I warned. She looked away, blushing.
I looked at Claire, who didn’t have a clue what was about to hit her. “What’s going on? Nice to see you, Bill. And who is your lady friend?”
“This is Melissa Bonny, Claire.” I glanced at her. “Melissa, the first folder please.” She placed her briefcase on the table and opened it, passing across the first manila folder. I placed it front of Claire and tapped it. “Take a look.” I hadn’t seen the pictures though I knew what rested inside. There was absolutely no way she could refute the evidence. “Bill, please call the first number I gave you and rest your phone on the table. With the speaker on, please, so we can all hear.”
I watched Claire as she opened the folder and saw the pictures. With shaking hands, she picked up a few of them. Bill had told me what the photos showed. Her jaw dropped wide as she glanced in my direction. I grinned. It was the sort of grin that would send a shiver down anyone’s spine.
“I know, Claire. I know everything. I’ve known for three years.”
I cleared my throat as the phone call was answered. “Evening, Mark. I assume it’s time?”
“It is, Tanya. At the moment, I’m with Bill, my friend and lawyer, Melissa, my divorce lawyer, my two daughters and Claire. She is currently holding photos that show her being intimate with and fucking Jake Hargreaves. I understand he is a rather important person at your company, correct?”
“That he is, Mark.”
“Tanya? From work?” Claire asked.
I ignored her. “Tanya, please remind me. What is your company policy regarding inter-personal relationships between staff, particularly staff who work at different levels, such as between non-management and management?”
I heard her suck breath through her teeth. “Well, to say both employees would be looking at dismissal is only the start. We would immediately begin reviewing matters such as expense accounts to ensure nothing untoward was taking place. The Board are quite clear about expectations from their employees.”
“I assumed so. I have spoken with the Human Resources department there. They were wondering why I was so interested.” I glanced at Claire as I asked, “Do you have the same photos, Tanya?”
“Holding them right now.”
“And the DVD?”
“I’ve watched a bit of it. No mistaking who is on video. Definitely your wife being intimate with the same man. I’ll hold onto these in the event she doesn’t prove co-operative”
“Thanks, Tanya. Stay on the line. Might need you again later.” I glanced at Claire. “Second folder, Melissa.” She passed that down and I placed it in front of Claire. I opened it up. “You’re sloppy at covering your tracks, Claire. Secondary bank account where you’ve put at least forty percent of your wage for the past two years. Put enough in the joint account for the bills and for the girls. Then there are all the transactions made when you’re apparently out of state for business. Funny,” I pointed at a copy of an itinerary, “For the past three years, I’ve kept track of where you apparently are, then cross-referenced them to the transactions made. Every single time, you were not where you were supposed to be.” I tutted her. “You sometimes barely left the city, let alone the state. Poor form, Claire. Poor form.”
“Such a slut,” Hannah whispered.
“Hannah!” I barked, “We will show respect for the time being.”
“Sorry, Daddy.”
“I’m not angry at you, sweetheart. Keeping a lid on my own emotions is rather difficult at the moment.”
“Mark, wait…”
“Quiet, Claire. Now is not your time for talking. Melissa, the final folder.” She passed that down to me and I placed it on top of the other two, opening it for her. “This is the divorce settlement. You have one hour to discuss it with your lawyer. I know who it is. He’s waiting for your call. Putting it very simply, Claire. You will leave this house tonight with one bag of your things. You will return Saturday morning, as we know your ‘business trip’ is bullshit, to collect anything else you wish to take. You will not fight anything within the agreement. This house? Mine. You will not sleep here another night, though you will continue paying towards the mortgage for x amount of years, yet to be decided. The kids? I will have sole custody. Lift that sheet of paper there.”
She lifted and read it, looking at me wide-eyed. “You can’t…”
“He can,” Melissa replied, “For three years of abuse of your husband and children, the no contact order will be in effect from six pm on Saturday until your divorce is settled and visitation is approved. Your children will take the stand against you if you fight it.”
Her face paled as the implication was she’d abused our own children. I’d heard some of the cutting remarks she’d made in the past couple of years. The girls had already told me they’d flat out lie in court to ensure I got custody. I didn’t know whether to hug them or be slightly afraid, though it proved how much they loved me and disliked their mother. As for her ‘abuse’ of me, it was based on neglect and alienation of affection, something like that. I just wanted some sort of restraining order that had her out of the house immediately. It was bullshit but Melissa ensured entirely above board and legal.
“Three years, Claire. Three years I’ve swallowed all the hate I feel for you. Not a day longer. The children are now old enough that they will easily be able to sit up in a court and state who they wish to remain with.” I glanced at them. “Who would you want to stay with, girls?”
“Daddy,” they replied in unison, smiling at me.
“Who has been your primary caregiver for at least the past decade?”
“Daddy,” they replied again.
“I expect no money from you except child support, Claire. The court will decide how much that will be. Myself? I don’t want your fucking money. All I want is you out of my life from tomorrow onwards. The only time I want to see you again is when you’re sitting opposite me in a court to confirm we are no longer husband and wife.”