Jennie
The nightmares I used to have almost on a daily basis came back tenfold. Some of them were old dreams coming back to haunt me, but now they featured Lisa and Claudia. Lisa caressing her swollen belly and smiling. Claudia looking toward me with the biggest smile on her face as she placed her hand on top of Lisa's. Lisa looked strangely happy. Oh, the irony.
These dreams occurred almost on a nightly. It got to the point where I gave up on trying to sleep, only falling into a fitful slumber when I finally succumbed to exhaustion. I never felt rested, plagued by all of these dreams, which of course affected my daily life. My grades slowly began to drop, work lagged behind, Emersyn was fussy, and I was so stressed I couldn't keep anything down.
I was getting Emersyn's things together so Magda could take Emersyn to go see Lisa. Every time Magda came over, she gave me the saddest smile. She stood at the door watching me while I packed a bag. "She misses you."
I froze at her words, because yeah, I missed her, too. I placed the last of the items in the bag and zipped it up.
"Anything can be fixed," she said. I didn't say anything as she stepped closer to me and felt the side of my face. "You're not warm, but you have something. Your eyes are sunken in, you've lost weight," she sighed looking me up and down. She paused, and her eyes narrowed. I placed the bag in her hand, because frankly, I didn't have time to decipher any of Magda's riddles.
"You don't have to keep doing this, I'll make other arrangements after this." I went and got Emersyn out of her pack and play.
"I don't mind, you know I love that girl." She opened her arms and I passed her the baby.
"Yeah, but…" I paused. "It's not right to put you in the middle of this, so I'll handle it from here on out."
Magda looked up at me sadly. I felt like a dick for doing this, but I had to. I had to disconnect and remove myself from all of it. They weren't going to be my family anymore, and that in itself killed me. They were the only family I had ever considered family. I now had to dismiss them. It was better that way. I gave Emersyn another kiss as I smoothed down her hair. "Be good to your peupeu, okay?"
"Pupu."
I paused. She finally said it. I smiled as I placed another kiss on top of her hair. "Yeah...pupu."
Rosé took me to dinner later that day. More like she made me go. I was perfectly content to lock myself up in my room.
"I'm about to go into carb overload here. Everything looks amazing," Rosé said, as her eyes grew bigger trying to decide what to order. I looked down at my own menu, and my stomach turned. I sipped my lemon water, hoping that would help. She peered up at me. "You look like you haven't slept in days."
"I'm good, just been busy."
She narrowed her eyes at me, and crossed her arms. "Too busy to sleep?"
Before I could make up a plausible excuse, the server came to take our orders.
"I'll have the lobster ravioli." Rosé smiled as she handed him the menu. He turned to me.
I scanned it, because I obviously didn't read a thing on it. In fact, I felt myself blanching at everything on here. I took a deep breath, hoping I could try to keep the queasiness down. "Just a cup of today's soup." He nodded, leaving us alone once again.
I sat and listened as Rosé told me about work and how her latest client had horrible taste and she was trying to convince him that a certain color scheme wasn't a great idea. I laughed when she laughed. I smiled when she smiled.
I was stirring my soup over and over again, only have had taken a few bites. I was caught up in watching the vegetables swirl when Rosé placed her hand gently on mine. I glanced up startled, almost forgetting she was there.
"Other than the elephant in the room, what else is going on?"
I took a few deep breaths, before finally telling her.
"I'm so happy for you!" I tried giving her a smile, but it came out sad. She frowned. "Honey? You should be thrilled right now."
"I am," I said as I now played with the straw paper, I'd torn into pieces.
"Then why does it look like you'd rather have been told you have weeks to live?" I stayed focus on the paper. Rosé sighed. "What did Lisa say? How did she take it? She must be ecstatic."
I shrugged. "I haven't told her. It seems silly right now. Ridiculous even."
"What do you mean silly? I'm pretty sure this is something Lisa would want to know. By now she would be planning the nursery."
I cringed. Because Lisa was planning a nursery. Just not for our baby. "It's not the right time. She's busy and stressed and dealing with the Claudia thing and they're already having a…" I stopped my rambling. I couldn't even bring myself to say it.
She squeezed my hand. "I know everything is shit right now." I gave her a look. "Okay, enormous shit, it sucks, but that doesn't mean she wouldn't want this. It's a blessing."
"But what if I don't want it? I asked her to leave. I don't see how I can make this work between us."
She sighed, looking just as conflicted as I did. "So, you're thinking of not having it? Sweetie, maybe it's just your hormones right now. Plus, you're overwhelmed."
I laughed. "Yeah, that's an understatement. Overwhelmed that my soon to be ex-wife is having a baby with someone else. Oh, and let's throw in that I'm pregnant, at the worst possible time." I wiped away the pending tears that finally fell.
It was quiet for a few minutes, as I stared at my now cold soup. "I'll support you in whatever decision you make. I'll even go with you. But please think on this."
I nodded, feeling even more confused as before.
"Would you like milk with your tea, dear?"
I smiled at the elderly lady named Opal who sat a tray in front of me. "That would be lovely, thanks."
She nodded as she retreated back into the kitchen. While everyone assumed I was being some grieving wife, sad over her marriage, I was researching instead. I recalled that day Claudia came into my office. She had a lapel pin on the coat of her collar. The only reason it stuck with me was because it was the only hint of color on her all-white pea coat.
I found the video of Claudia giving her press conference online, and she had that same purple lapel pin. Claudia's resume said she went to Yale. Last I checked, Yale didn't have purple colors. So, here I am in a small town called Ogden, right outside Manhattan, Kansas. This town is so small, it doesn't have a stop light. It seems to be more of a passing ground for people going to the military base, or actually heading into Manhattan.
Opal returned with the milk, and I poured a little bit in my cup. "It's so great to meet some of Claudia's friends." I cringed at the word friends. "She never had any come visit her, when she was here."
I sat my cup down. "Did Claudia live here long?"
"Oh yes. She had to. Her parents died when she was seven. After that, she went to live with a few of her aunts and uncles, but none of them could get a handle on her. She was often disrespectful and a ruckus every chance she got." She paused as she sipped her tea. "But she eventually came around, especially during her final years of high school." Opal smiled as she leaned forward, as if she was going to tell a secret, even though we were the only ones here. "That's when she got herself a girlfriend."
I raised my brows. "Wow, that must've been nice. Did her girlfriend visit her often?"
Opal waved her hand. "No, she never came. She said her girlfriend was always busy, but she had lots of pictures of her."
"How did they meet?"
Opal thought for a moment. "I'm not sure. She never told me. She just went on and on, about how great she was and how when she was done with school, they were going to be together."
I nodded. "And then she went to Yale, right?"
Opal looked taken aback. "Yale? Oh goodness no, that girl couldn't get into Yale if she paid them. She didn't have the grades, so she went here to Kansas State, and after she graduated she left. I'll occasionally get a birthday or Christmas card, but other than that, I never hear from her."
"I'm sorry, that must be hard to deal with. Especially after all you've done."
Opal nodded and sighed. "I just hope she's alright and doing good. I'm glad she has people like you to take care of her."
I cringed again. Not even close. Opal yawned, and I knew that was my cue to leave. I stood up, a little disappointed that I hadn't really gotten much information.
"Would you mind taking some of her things back to her? I'm sure she'll love them."
I gave her a small smile. "Sure. Lead the way."
We didn't have to go far, because we were in a single wide trailer. "Here's her room. Let me grab a box." Opal walked away, and I tentatively opened the door. My eyes grew wide at everything around me. I jumped at Opal's voice behind me.
"That's the girlfriend, pretty lad isn't she."
I slowly nodded, still staring at the room in shock. "Yeah…she is." I turned to face Opal. "When was the last time you received a card from Claudia?"
She frowned for a moment before raising her hand and leaving the room. She came back just as quickly. "Just this past Christmas, and one not too long ago. She must be doing well with that girlfriend of hers." She handed me the Christmas card that also held a picture of Claudia and her girlfriend. It was a great picture of her girlfriend…Lisa. And the person Lisa was standing next to was Claudia. Only it was her head photoshopped on my body.
Opal handed me another picture. "I would like to see her soon, especially my new grand baby." I stared at the picture. It was me and Lisa again, along with Emersyn. All I could do was nod. Opal walked past me, as she contemplated which pictures of Lisa to take down from the wall. While she did that, I discreetly took pictures of what I could.
I left, feeling a sense of accomplishment. This was what I needed. Claudia was an obsessed stalker. I really needed to talk to Lisa about the women she attracts.
I drove two hours back to the airport, but wasn't able to get a flight out until the next day. I hesitantly turned my phone on. The notifications were ridiculous. 87. That's how many times Lisa called. My mailbox was full and was no longer taking messages. I scrolled through the texts and stopped when I got to Rosé's.
Rosé: She knows something's up. Her hearing is tomorrow at 5. Please call her before she blows up the entire city!!!
I sighed, disabled the tracking on my phone, and sent a message to Lisa.
Jennie M: I'm fine. Have a good night.
Yeah, I know it was a shitty text, but it was the safest. Before I turned my phone back off, I placed another call to Lisa's friend Jack and told him everything I had. Jack knew where I was. We'd been planning this the moment we found out Claudia was pregnant. I set my alarm, got in bed, and prayed that this would work.
I was late getting back. By the time I arrived at the place the meeting was being held, Lisa had just walked in. While this wasn't an actual court proceeding, it was instead a private hearing, or a mediation if you will, with just the lawyers, the arbitrator, and their clients. This is all with the hopes that this doesn't go to trial. Lisa, wanted this dealt with as privately, and quickly, as possible. Even though there would be no jury to rule a verdict Lisa was about to be questioned like there was one.
I stood outside the door, debating if I should go in. Right when I was about to my name was called.
"Mrs. Manoban?"
I turned and breathed a sigh of relief. It was Francisco. I rushed over to him. "I have something that can help." I pulled out everything I had and gave him my phone, showing him all the pictures I took. We were only able to talk for maybe a minute, but in that minute, I didn't take a single breath as I told him everything I could.
Francisco gave me a nod and ushered me in behind him, pointing to a small section in the corner of the room. Lisa was sitting across a large wooden table, with Syed by her side and Francisco joined her on her other side. Across from them, was Cuntia, and her one lawyer. Both of them were looking smug, as if this whole thing was a waste of their time. Lisa was already being questioned so she didn't see me come in. I was, however, surprised to see Sandara there. She met my eye and smiled.
"What are you doing here?" I whispered.
"Support. She didn't think you'd show."
My heart instantly plummeted. "I would've."
She took my hand in hers. "I know this is hard for you, for the both of you, but she loves you."
I shut my eyes briefly. "I'm trying to find a silver light in all of this, but…it's faded. And now a baby is involved. The baby is innocent in all of this."
"Objection, that question is an assumption not a fact. My client will not answer that."
We both looked up at Syed. They were fighting for her today, even if the outcome wasn't what it should be. Francisco was still looking at my phone. Suddenly his head popped up.
"Ms. Schaffer, according to your resume you went to Yale, is that correct?"
She held her head high. "That's correct."
"And you received very good recommendations from your professors."
She nodded.
"When was the first time you and Ms. Manoban met?"
She looked as if she was thinking. "It was shortly after I started. She offered me the job, and then a relationship started shortly thereafter."
I could see Lisa's hand clenching into a fist. "And how long would you say your relationship lasted?"
"Up until our time in Paris. We were rather discreet, obviously since she's married."
"And that didn't stop you from pursuing the relationship? The fact that she was married?"
"She said she wasn't happy and hadn't been for a while—"
Lisa cut her off. "That's a damn lie, and you know it!"
"Ms. Manoban, please." Claudia's lawyer spoke. "This is the exact aggressiveness that my client has gone through. The sudden outbursts. They all have my client fearful for her well-being, as well as that of the unborn child. This is not the type of environment in which my client wishes to raise their child."
"This is fucking ridiculous." Lisa whispered something to Syed.
"There are pending allegations, but Ms. Schaefer is willing to forgo for a settlement."
Lisa glared at Claudia. "Yes, how much to make this all go away."
She cleared her throat. "Fifty million, plus ten thousand a month for child support."
Lisa scoffed. "Are you serious?" She turned to her lawyers. "Is she fucking serious?"
"Based on your acceptance of the terms, my client has agreed to not release information regarding the father of the unborn child, as well as any information that Ms. Manoban no doubt had illegally covered up about her family. Particularly the drug usage of her sister, as well as losing custody of her children. There's also the information of the relationship surrounding Mrs. Manoban and the now deceased V Langer. I'm sure these are cases the courts would be very interested in reopening."
Her lawyer sat back in his chair with smirk on his face. I heard Sandara take a deep breath, and I turned to her, placing my hand on hers. "Lisa won't let them do that. She'll protect your children." She nodded.
"Did I ever thank you for saving my daughter. For selflessly giving up your own life for my daughter?" she asked in a trembling voice.
I shut my eyes briefly. I couldn't forget that day if I wanted to. Ella, and I were having a girl's day, and Lisa and Noah. Lisa and Noah were going around town wearing capes, and Ella and I had just gotten our nails done. I felt off all day, and remember texting that to Lisa. She wanted us to come home, but Ella wanted to make one last stop first, and I couldn't say no to her. That's when it happened. Kai, my stepbrother, whom we thought had been killed, turns out wasn't dead after all, showed up. He drugged and kidnapped me and brought Ella along. He threatened, that if I didn't let him do what he wanted to me, that he would kill her. My thoughts went back to that day:
"I'll make it easier for you. I can bring her down here, and make her watch us. I can kill her right in front of you, or I can simply fuck you. Which is it?" He pressed his erection into my back, and I felt myself dry heave. His grip on my hair tightened.
I shut my eyes.
"Do whatever you want to me," I finally choked out.
I slowly nodded. "And I would do it again and again and again, if I had to."
"And that's why you're the best person for our family. You are the most honorable, giving person I know. You risk your life for the people you love without even giving it a thought, and you never hesitate."
She gave my hand one last squeeze, reached for her phone hitting several buttons, and stood up.
"Excuse me."
Everyone turned around, and that's when Lisa's eyes landed on me. Our gazes were transfixed until Sandara spoke again.
"I'm Sandara Meyers, Lisa's sister." The arbitrator's eyes narrowed, but Sandara kept talking, begging with her eyes to be allowed to continue. The arbitrator gave a slight nod, allowing her to continue. "I was a drug addict several years ago." She nervously swallowed but kept going. "I was addicted to heroin. It got to the point where I craved it, more than I craved anything else. Food, water, love, and most of all the love for my children." She took a wavering breath. "My sister, Lisa Manoban, saved me, and she also protected me. Since my husband was deployed, I temporarily signed over parental rights to Lisa, and I was sent to rehab for six months. Six months I remained at a facility, with no contact to my children, other than letters and the occasional video chat. When I finally left, I wasn't permitted to see my children for two more months. I had to prove that I was capable of caring for my kids." She took a deep breath before continuing. "During those two months, I worked hard. I worked hard to prove not only to the courts, but to my family, my husband, and my kids that I loved them and would do anything for them. Eventually I won. I'm not proud of what I did, and it's not something I could ever forget. But, I am proud of who I've become now, and I'm even more grateful that my kids love me."
She turned to Claudia and her lawyers and held up her phone. "That was live-streamed on social media. So, whatever lies you were planning on telling were interrupted."
She grabbed her bag, gave me one last smile before heading to the door. She gave Lisa's shoulder a squeeze before exiting.
Francisco motioned to the arbitrator. "Request to have a short recess?"
He nodded. "Five minutes."
"Ms. Manoban…" Lisa had already stood up and was walking to me. She looked a bit nervous as she approached. Hands moving in her pocket, as if she didn't know what to do with her hands.
She looked around before speaking. "Can we talk? Please."
I got up, and her hand went to the small of my back briefly before letting go. We walked toward the end of the hall, where we had a little privacy. "You came." She studied the ground briefly before looking up. "Where were you?" I started to open my mouth to speak, but she cut me off. "And don't say it's not my concern. Everything you do is my concern."
She sighed running her hand through her hair, before reaching into her pocket and pulling out an envelope. She stared at it for a long moment before speaking. "I'm losing you, aren't I?" She said it more to herself than to me. She shut her eyes for a second before continuing. "I won't make you stay and deal with something that's not your problem. It's not fair for me to ask." She gave me the envelope, but hesitated briefly first. "You and Emersyn will be taken care of." My eyes shot up. Lisa rarely called her by her actual name. "You can sign them and give them to one of my lawyers. They'll take care of it."
She looked like she wanted to say more, but instead she turned and walked away. I stared down at the envelope and slowly opened it. My hand flew to my mouth. They were divorce papers. She was giving me the divorce.
