***Willow Pond***
Jonathan came inside the house and headed to the bar and fixed himself a cocktail.
Jennifer looked so hurt when he signed those papers. He could only hope she would begin to understand that it was for the best. That's all he ever focused on, what was best for her, or them. He never focused on what was best for himself because he already knew-she was what was best for him.
The house was too quiet without Jennifer and Max. He didn't like the quiet. He liked the noise. Her noise. How she hummed as she worked on an article. How she sang when she was in the kitchen or getting ready to go somewhere with him. Max whistling….Freeway's collar jingling. He missed the noise of his life and wanted it back.
He called the rehab where Jennifer was staying.
"Yes sir, she's here. She isn't permitted any phone calls though. However, she will need you to bring her some clothes. She will need outfits for each day, plus underwear and socks. She will need hygiene items for each day, and she will need pajamas and a robe. If she sleeps with a special pillow, you can bring that too. She will also need a brand new, never used journal for writing, and a pack of pens. You can drop all of that off tonight, before 10 at the front desk. You are permitted to leave a note for her, but you won't be permitted to see her".
"Thank you. Can you please tell her that I love her?"
"Will do."
They hung up, and he went upstairs and packed her things. He packed her several pairs of blue jeans, and several shirts. He packed her several pairs of underwear and bras, and socks. He threw her tennis shoes in the bag, as well as a pair of sandals that she liked to wear. He packed her some tank tops and shorts in case she got to sit in the sun, and he grabbed her pillowcase and put it on an extra pillow from the closet.
He threw in her travel makeup bag and her curling iron, and on the very top, he put a picture of them that she kept on her vanity. He grabbed a sticky note and wrote "Always remember I love you". He stuck the note to the picture, and zipped the bag up.
He went downstairs and wrote her a few love notes and put them in the pocket of her bag.
He headed out, and stopped to get her a journal, and some of her favorite pens. And then he headed to the rehab center.
***Bel Air Community Rehab Center***
He walked in and stopped at the front desk. He had her bag and the bag with the journal and pens.
"Hi, I need to leave these things for my wife, Jennifer Hart".
"Oh good. She is going to be so happy. She left a note for you, Mr. Hart. I will see that she gets these".
"Can I wait while you give it to her, in case she wants to give me another note?"
"Certainly".
She took them right away, and he sat down with the first note.
He opened it, and began to read.
"How can you do this to me? I am the victim of those horrible people, I am not an addict. Why you are treating me like one is beyond me. I cannot believe you are doing this to me, Jonathan. I am your wife. If this is your way of telling me that our marriage is over, then fine. You didn't have to go to such drastic lengths, though. I cannot stop you, but I will always love you and will always be in love with you."
-Jennifer.
His heart broke. He had hoped that she understood that he wasn't leaving her. And that he would be right there when she got out. He thought he had impressed that upon her, but apparently not.
The nurse came back and had a note for him.
"Darling, I love you but this is wrong. I don't belong here. I can't believe you went along with this. We are going to have a serious conversation when I get out of here".
He wrote her one back that said "This is just to make sure you are totally healthy when you come home. I am not divorcing you, I will be right here waiting on you when you get out. I love you, and I fall more in love with you, each day. I hate being without you, but you need this to be healthy. Please try to understand that. I love you more than anything, Jonathan".
The nurse agreed to send it back to her, and he told her he was heading home.
"Will she be allowed visitors tomorrow?"
"There are no visitors in the 5 day program, sir. If she gets released before that, we will call you to come pick her up."
"Ok, thank you".
He headed home, barely noticing the tears on his face during the drive home.
***San Francisco***
Max had been admitted to the hospital for dehydration. They had hooked him up to an IV, and they were monitoring his blood pressure. He had been told he would be there for a few days.
He was glad this was over, but he was embarrassed that it had happened. For all he knew, the Harts had probably found someone to replace him and were very happy. He thought about calling them, but it was late, and he figured they would probably be in bed.
He closed his eyes and tried to get some sleep.
***Willow Pond***
Jonathan came in and headed straight to bed. He wasn't looking forward to sleeping without her, but he was so tired, he knew he would be able to fall asleep.
He changed into pajamas and then climbed into bed. He turned on the TV for company, and fell asleep.
***Hart Industries***
A man is sitting at a desk, with his back to it. He is looking out the window.
"Did it work?"
"Yes, it did. I am the new CEO of Hart Industries".
Jack Bolivar turned around.
"What about your sister and her husband?"
"They are in jail, and I am working on getting them released."
"And what about Anna?"
"She's the unfortunate victim, in all of this, I suppose".
"So what's your plan?"
"Well, now that I own Hart Industries, I am going to fire everyone and sell off most of the companies he owned and then Hart Industries will be a memory in everyone's mind".
"Why are you doing this?"
"He fired me years ago in the most unceremonial of ways, and was rude as he did it. This is payback. It has taken me a long time to get here, but I made it".
The man nodded.
***Willow Pond***
Jonathan woke up and made himself breakfast. After breakfast, he went and picked up Freeway.
He decided to write Jennifer a love letter each day, and take it to her.
He sat down in the study.
"My darling Jennifer- I miss you so much. I know that you are getting healthy and that's all that matters. I did some research on Ketamine, darling. It is a very addictive substance and it causes lots of issues in your body. That's why you have to do this, you have to get it out of your system. I promise you I will be right here waiting for you when you get released, and will spend every day for the rest of our lives showing you how much I love you. I can't wait to hold you and kiss you again, I love you so much".
-Jonathan
He folded it up, and put it in his pocket.
***Bel Air Rehab Center***
He walked inside and handed the note to the nurse at the front desk.
"Can you please give this to my wife, Jennifer Hart?"
"Yes sir. She hasn't left any notes for you".
"That's ok. Just as long as she gets that note from me".
"Yes sir."
He left. The nurse took her the note right away.
"Mrs. Hart, your husband dropped this note off for you".
"Thank you". She took it and read it. She had tears in her eyes.
She went back to her room and grabbed her journal. This place was all about journaling your feelings.
She wanted to understand that she needed this to be healthy. But she was having a hard time getting past the fact that she didn't feel listened to. She just wanted to be home. She wanted to sleep with Jonathan by her side for days. She wanted to hear Max say "Hey Mrs. H.". She wanted Freeway to jump up on their bed. She was very emotional still.
She had to meet with a counselor in 10 minutes, so she didn't have time to write him back. She put the letter in her journal and headed to the counselor's office.
The counselor was Mrs. Parker, and she was a very sweet, caring, and kind middle-aged lady.
Jennifer walked in and sat down.
"How are you doing Jennifer?"
"I am beyond ready to go home. When can I go home?"
"Well, we have to do at least 2 sessions, before I can recommend you for release. And you will have to have a physical".
"Ok".
"So, I want you to tell me why you are here, so that I can see if you understand what has been going on".
"I am here because my husband signed the papers for me to be here."
"Ok. And before that?"
"We hired people to work as our household staff. And my husband says they were poisoning me."
"Did you feel the effects of the poisoning?"
"Yes, I suppose I did. I had headaches, and body aches and my legs stopped working. I was emotional, and confused, and tired all of the time. And I lost my appetite most days".
"According to your records, the doctor at the hospital found Ketamine in your system. Do you know what that can do to a person?"
"No. I had never heard of it till this".
"Well, it's a very dangerous chemical. It can be put in food or liquids, and it can also be put on napkins and used to knock someone out, or even mixed into paint. Inhaling it can cause headaches, confusion, dizziness, nausea. It can cause your body to produce extra hormones, which will cause the emotional responses, and the confusion. But the thing about ketamine is, you have to completely get it out of your system. If you don't it can cause serious long term effects, such as liver failure, kidney failure, or heart issues. And some people have become addicted to it, and then find themselves addicted to opiates and pills trying to replicate that high they felt from the ketamine. That's why you are here, so that we can give you the medicines to get it completely out of your system, and monitor you while you do it, so that you don't have any adverse reactions".
Her heart sank. Jonathan was telling the truth.
She had known all along deep, deep down that he was. She just hadn't wanted to believe it.
"Can I please call my husband? Or have him come visit me? He wasn't the one who was poisoning me".
"I understand. We cannot allow visitors, but I can call him and you can talk with him for just a moment".
"Ok."
"I am only allowed to call him on the phone number that he put down on the paperwork. So, let me dial that, and I will then put it on speakerphone so you can talk to him."
She nodded.
Mrs. Parker dialed the number.
"Mr. Jonathan Hart please…Oh, I see. Well, thank you".
She hung up.
"That was Hart Industries. They said he no longer works there".
Jennifer was stunned. It was her worst nightmare coming true. He had played her for a fool. She was locked away in here, and he was leaving for parts unknown. She couldn't believe he had walked away from the company. She couldn't believe he had left her in there.
Stunned, she got up and went back to her room. She laid down on the bed and cried for hours. The staff couldn't get her to eat, shower, participate, nothing. They gave her a shot of the medicine regimen, and she was so upset she didn't even flinch.
She had never been so upset.
She finally sat up around 9:30. She got out the paperwork they had given her when she got here. She read it thoroughly, and then went to speak with a nurse.
She approached the nurse's desk.
"If I wanted to leave here against medical advice, what would that look like?"
"We would give you the pill form of the medicines that you are to take every day for the next 5 days. And then you would be given $40 for transportation, and allowed to walk out the door."
"Let's do that".
"Right away, ma'am."
Jennifer went and packed her things, and was out of there within an hour. She left implicit instructions that her husband wasn't to know that she had left.
She took a cab to the beach house. She went inside, locked the door behind her, and fell asleep.
***Willow Pond***
Jonathan woke up to the phone ringing. It was Stanley Frieson.
"I'm sorry sir. The board voted to remove you as CEO. They appointed Jack Bolivar. They had me pack up your things, would you like me to bring them to you?"
"That's fine, Stanley. I'll be here all day".
They hung up.
Jonathan would normally be upset, but he was too worried about Jennifer to really care about the office right now. She was his only focus.
He called the rehab center and asked to speak to her counselor.
"Hello, this is Mrs. Parker".
"Hello, this is Jonathan Hart. I am trying to find out how my wife is doing".
"Jennifer Hart is no longer a patient here, I'm afraid. She checked out against medical advice last night".
"Ok, thank you".
He hung up. He had a hunch where she might be.
He grabbed a quick shower, and got dressed.
Stanley arrived just as he was leaving.
"Hey, thanks for bringing these things. I can't talk, I have to go see Jennifer."
"Ok, Mr. Hart".
He handed him the box, and Jonathan put it on the piano. He decided to take her car, and as soon as he opened the door, he was overcome with the most horrible smell. He found the cause of the offending smell, a washcloth under the seat of her car. He tossed it on the porch, and opened all the windows and the sunroof to let the odor out. He got in the car and drove to where he figured Jennifer might be.
***Beach house***
She was sitting on the terrace staring at the ocean. She was crying. She hated feeling like this. Everything was so messed up.
She was so hurt that he had put her there and then sold the company without telling her. She figured he was waiting for her at Willow Pond, but she didn't know how she could ever go back there. Willow Pond was where they shared their love story, and right now, it felt like they no longer had one.
Jonathan pulled up and parked, and went inside.
He saw her sitting on the terrace and got an idea.
He saw that the sliding glass door was open about halfway. He went over to the stereo, and turned it on, to the station they loved to dance to.
She turned around, saw him, and got mad.
She got up, and came storming in.
"What are you doing here?"
"I came here to see you. Dance with me?"
She shook her head no.
"Dancing isn't going to fix this".
The timer went off, and she moved past him to take her medicine.
"Fix what, darling?"
"You and me. You lied to me about why you were putting me there. You sold the company without telling me it was for sale. You and I have serious issues, Jonathan".
"Darling, let's sit down. I will explain everything to you, I promise".
"I don't feel like it".
Just then, the phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Hi, Mr. Hart, it's Frank, the PI. I am glad I tracked you down".
"What did you find out?"
"The Max in the hospital is your Max. His Anna is the sister of Mr. Manley. Jack Bolivar hired her to date Max, and then move him out of your house so that his sister, Mrs. Manley and her husband could move in and take Max's place, so that they could poison you and Jennifer and then she would be so sick that you would have to step down from Hart Industries. Except when you didn't step down, they removed you as CEO. I called the Bel Air Police department, and they told me that the paint samples from your home tested positive for Ketamine poisoning, and so did the tea that your wife had been drinking. The Manley's have confessed to putting it in everything they made for you guys, in various amounts. Max should be released in a couple of days. He was severely dehydrated, and his blood pressure was sky high."
"Ok, thank you. Can you send me a detailed report on that?"
"Right away".
They hung up.
He went up and wrapped his arms around her.
"I missed you so much".
"Then why did you put me away?"
"I didn't. Come on, let's sit down and I will explain everything to you".
She finally agreed.
They went and sat on the couch.
"Darling, the Manley's worked for a guy named Jack Bolivar. He and Mrs. Manley are brother and sister. Mr. Manley's sister is Anna, the girl that Max was dating. Jack paid Anna to move and take Max with him, and that gave the Manley's the in they needed to work for us. They put Ketamine on the walls in the house and in our food and beverages to make us sick. The plan was they wanted you to be sick so that I would have to walk away from the company and take care of you, and then the board could appoint Jack as CEO. That's why all this happened. And I'm willing to bet that Jack got to the doctor in the hospital and forced him to admit you to the rehab".
"But you didn't have to sign the papers".
"I did it because they said that your health depended on it".
"Jonathan, I am fine. You locked me away like a crazy person".
"Nobody said you were crazy".
She dropped her head a little.
"It feels like I am. Everything is so messed up".
"I know, baby. I know. But we are through the worst of it, and we are going to figure out the rest. But we gotta figure it out together".
"You still want to figure things out with me, as crazy as I've been?"
"Of course. You are the most important thing in my life".
"Jonathan, you lost the company. You nearly lost Max. You cannot tell me that my headaches are more important than either of those".
"Yes I can, because without you, nothing is sacred or special to me. You are the reason I do anything".
She shook her head.
"Darling, didn't you see the letters I put in your suitcase?"
"No".
"Did they go through your things at the hospital?"
"No, they just handed me the bag".
"Well, then lets go look. They must still be in there".
They went upstairs to the third floor, and she put her suitcase on the bed. He started to unpack it, and pulled out her clothes.
The notes were all in there, in between the clothes.
He handed them to her and she sat down and read them.
"Darling, in case you have forgotten, I love you. I fall more in love with you every single day. The Manley's poisoned us, mostly you. That's why you are here, to get healthy so that we can have our life back. I am ok, just missing you terribly. I can't believe I came so close to losing you. I love you, stay strong, just a few more days. -Jonathan".
The second one said:
"Darling, you are my everything and I can't wait to hold you again and kiss you and tell you how much I love you. I am so proud of you for getting healthy and I promise we are going to spend more time together. We are going to be just fine. Focus on getting healthy, and we will figure out the rest. I love you more than anything. -Jonathan".
She had tears in her eyes.
She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"I'm sorry I doubted you. This has been so hard".
He hugged her close. 'I know, baby. I know".
She was crying so hard, and he just held her for several minutes.
"Hey, remember, we love each other. We can't ever forget that. We have to do this thing called life with each other, not against each other".
She nodded.
"Please don't make me go back there".
"I won't. But we will do the medicines and we are going to stay here till the house is completely repainted. And then we are going to take you to have bloodwork done to see if the medicines worked ok?"
She nodded.
He held her some more.
"I was so scared, Jonathan."
"I know. I was scared too. And I promise you, as soon as I get the detailed report from Frank, I am going to call all the board members and demand that they call a meeting, and you and I are going to expose Jack Bolivar once and for all".
He kissed her a few times, and held her tight.
"I have really missed you, you know that?"
She nodded.
"Jonathan, I'm sorry."
"For what?"
"For everything. Being emotional these last few weeks, driving you crazy with off the wall demands, having headaches that woke you up in the middle of the night. I promise I am trying to get back to myself".
"Jennifer, none of this is your fault. Not a bit. You were poisoned, darling. And everything that you are sorry for is a result of the poison. Plain and simple. And you know you can always wake me up. Don't be silly. I love you so much, babe".
She kissed him. "You are too good to me".
"How are you feeling?"
"I still get headaches, but nothing like I was getting. And I was a little shaky last night, but today, that's not occurred."
"Well, I tell you what. You and I are going to have dinner delivered, and we are going to stay here till the house is completely stripped and painted."
He suddenly remembered the odor from her car.
"Darling, I brought your car here. And when I opened the door to it, there was a horrible odor. I found it-it was a washcloth that stunk to high heaven".
"The last time I drove the Porsche, that was when I went to your press conference and had the horrible headache when I got there".
"I bet our friends the Manley's put ketamine on the washcloth so that you would inhale it".
Jonathan was really getting mad at the thought that because of them, she could have been killed.
"How about one of my famous massages?"
"Yes please".
She immediately took her top off and laid down on the bed. He got the tingly stuff that he kept in the bathroom, and came back to the bed. After giving her an amazing massage, they switched.
After his massage was over, she climbed off him and laid beside him on the bed.
He pulled her close and they made love, and then fell asleep.
They slept till almost dinner time. He called and ordered them dinner from La Scala. After they ate, he told her to get dressed.
"I have a surprise".
"Ok".
She got dressed and he blindfolded her and put her in the car.
***Surprise location***
It was a short drive, and when they arrived, he told her to wait right there and he would be right back.
He went and grabbed the surprise, and then came back.
"Ok, you can take the blindfold off".
She took it off and looked at him.
They were at Willow Pond. He was holding Freeway.
"Oh, Freeway! I am so glad to see you!". She took him from Jonathan and squeezed him tight.
"Darling, do you need anything while we are here?"
"Yes, I don't want to go inside and get it though. But I would love for you to get the tea mixes, and some sugar. And a tea kettle. And some of my nightgowns".
"Ok, be right back".
She sat and played with Freeway and just loved on him, while Jonathan got everything she asked for.
He was back at the car in no time, and they headed on their way.
"We are going to stop at the grocery store and get a few things".
"Let's take Freeway to the beach house, first, darling. I don't want to leave him in the car".
"You got it".
She was starting to get tired, but she was determined to push through.
She leaned her seat back and continued to pet Freeway.
Jonathan took him into the beach house, and filled his food and water bowls, and gave him some toys and then returned to Jennifer.
They made a quick grocery store run and stocked up on just about everything, and then headed back to the beach house.
***Beach house***
They came inside and unloaded everything. She made some of the tea Mrs. Manley had been making from the recipe Jonathan had given her in the hospital.
They put away the groceries and then when the tea was ready, he poured her a mug and brought it to her on the couch.
She drank it rather quickly. She really did enjoy it, because it didn't taste like regular tea.
They stretched out on the couch and Freeway jumped up into her lap. She leaned back against Jonathan, and he wrapped his arms around her.
"So, darling, I know you told me before. But I am having a hard time remembering things. What is next?"
"Next is tomorrow, I am going to go call a board meeting, as soon as I get the report from the private investigator. And I am going to expose Jack Bolivar. And then we will see about getting Max home".
"Oh yes, I remember now."
"That's tomorrows 'next' list. Tonight's 'next' list is a little different".
"I don't understand".
"Tonight's 'next' list only has one item on it."
"What's that?"
"Romancing my beautiful wife". He kissed her.