Bittersweet Revenge (10 page)

This needed something stronger than a cup of tea. She opened a new bottle of wine and seated herself on the window bench, looking out at the neighborhood she so loved, watching the fog roll in. She could not believe Rick’s phone call. She didn’t need to play it again. It was forever in her brain. What on earth had made him call to apologize? 

Chapter Nineteen

A week later, Alison was replaying day by day all that had taken place.  She did meet first with Brenda as she knew she would spend days unpacking and didn’t want to be interrupted. They sat in the window bench and enjoyed many of the goodies from the fridge. Brenda has brought cheese cake for Alison, realizing she probably ate many pieces in Europe, but what the heck. Brenda loved hearing Alison talk about the trip, all of the cities in Austria, Germany and Switzerland, the shopping, of course, Alison having her hair down in Zurich, manicures everywhere, great hotel rooms. She even let Brenda think there had been a man while she was in

Vienna. Brenda was wide eyed and loved hearing it all. It never would have occurred to her that Alison was making it all up.

They finished eating and Alison was done with her story telling when she told Brenda about a phone call just as she came in the house. And then she played the phone message from Rick. Brenda’s mouth hung open the entire message, then she stared at Alison.

“Oh, my God, what the hell is that all about? What are you going to do, Ali?” 

“I’m not going to do anything. What am I supposed to do? He said what he needed to say and my answer back would be, ‘I still hate you.’”

They said no more. What was there to say? Brenda left shortly thereafter and Alison decided it was time for bed.

The next two weeks were consumed with unpacking, sorting through clothes and shoes, uncluttering closets, visiting with Emil and Lisa, dinner with Brenda, a visit to her former office, and in general settling in. She caught up on phone calls from friends and emails of all kind. It was time to settle in to life.

Alison had just come back from a run when the phone rang. She answered and the voice came into her head and her heart.

“I’m glad you answered. It’s Rick. I assume you got my last message. Ali, I meant what I said. Everything I said. That I’m sorry. That I love you. I know I must have hurt you terribly and I cannot stop apologizing no matter how much time has gone by. I am in so much trouble and am trying hard to sort out my life. Will you let me talk?”

“Rick, I accepted your apology. I wish I could say that you didn’t hurt me, but it would be a lie. To add to it, I was pregnant and had to terminate the pregnancy.” She couldn’t believe what she was saying, that she was lying to him. She never lied to anyone. But she realized that she had lied to everyone in her life when she went to Boston for a year. 

“Rick, I don’t know what else to say to you. Why can’t I phone you back? Where are you?”

“I’m in prison, Alison. I let my life get out of control just as it was when I met you. My secretary died and I had to hire a temp. She kept the office going but after a year, suddenly my accounts were co-mingled and you know how the State Bar views that. All the sudden the temp disappeared and no one could find her. I have no idea why it happened, but I was responsible for being irresponsible. My wife left me although we were not going to make it any way. She knew I was in love with you and we could never get it right. My kids have stuck with me, thankfully, and I’ve had a good lawyer. But I lost everything. I’ve thought of you constantly and knew I wanted to apologize, but I was terrified to do it.”

“Rick, I am grateful for your call and terribly sorry about what’s happened to you.  I am sorry about your wife. And the kids are being exactly who you brought them up to be and at your side. What is going to happen to you?”

“I will be in prison for five years at least. Good time will shorten the ten years, other programs, etc. But I’m here and I’ve lost the right to practice again. All I am guilty of is not paying attention to what was going on in my office. Why would anyone want to do this to me? Have I harmed people so badly that someone wanted revenge?”

Alison felt herself gagging, thinking she could not go on with the conversation. She got a grip and told Rick she was late for dinner, but he was saying he had to hang up anyway.

Over the next month, Rick phoned several times and they had good conversations. She told him about traveling and just coming home before his first call. She found herself looking forward to his phone calls and they actually began to laugh on occasion.

Alison woke up one day and knew she had to go see him. She had to settle things with him once and for all. She wouldn’t tell him, would just show up to visit one day.

She phoned the Department of Corrections and learned that Rick was at the South Middlesex Correction Center in Framingham. She could visit from Wednesday through Sunday, 10 am to 4 pm, could bring two rolls of quarters and five single dollar bills in order to buy food and drinks. She needed a valid driver’s license or passport and could not be a convicted felon. After contact with Rick’s case manager, she was prepared to make the trip. The case manager, Mrs. Hammond, said she would not tell Rick of Alison’s impending visit.

Mrs. Hammond knew all about Alison. She was instrumental in getting Rick to the point where he could phone Alison and say he was sorry. She also had contact with his children and knew that they were supportive of him throughout his case and prison sentence.

Chapter Twenty

The guard on duty came to Rick’s cell and told him he had a visitor. He could not imagine who was visiting him since the kids told him they were busy. He had shaved and showered that morning and put on light khakis and a blue sport shirt open at the neck. Within ten minutes he was on his way to the visiting room. He checked in with the guard, walked into the visiting room, and there she was, stunningly beautiful, just as she had been that night he’d fallen in love with her.

Alison walked toward Rick, shocked at how thin he looked, noticing the hair on his chest, trying so hard to stay in control of her emotions. She smiled at him and followed him to the table assigned to them. 

“My God, Alison, what are you doing here? I can’t believe it. I thought I would never see you again.”

Alison talked, Rick listened. She told him what she went through after he left and told him about the pregnancy – the truth. He took her hand and held it tightly and she didn’t resist.  And then she asked him what happened in the office to put him in this situation.

He talked about his secretary being hurt, possibly had been pushed onto the tracks but no proof. He talked about having a temp who was a very cold person and he didn’t interact with her much. He mentioned the office was a little crazy, that he and his wife were having problems and he had trouble focusing on anything. She went through an enormous amount of money, forcing him to borrow, which he had never done in his life.

Time went by and visiting hours were over. Rick asked Alison if she planned on coming back tomorrow and Alison said she would be there, that she had not committed as she didn’t know how things would go between them. She said she would see him tomorrow and was gone. He didn’t even know where she was staying.

Alison was starving so drove to the Denny’s she had passed going in. At least there she could eat whatever she wanted and not worry about the food. She ordered a BLT and a vanilla ice cream milk shake, which she ate as if she didn’t have a care in the world. 

She could not sleep, stared at the ceiling for hours, then it was time to go to the prison. At least she didn’t have dark circles under her eyes so she didn’t have to wear makeup. She was tired but the coffee she had while waiting for Rick to come into the visiting room seemed to help her wake up. He looked better that he had the day before and she actually was glad to see him.

They talked about Rick’s kids and his wife so that he could explain to Alison about Elizabeth. This day they bought things from the machines and laughed about comparing them to fabulous restaurants. They drank sodas and popped popcorn and then it was time to go.

This time he gave Alison a hug and she responded. He asked if she would return the next day, Friday, and she said she would. This time she turned around to wave goodbye to him. And she headed for Denny’s. 

Rick told Alison all about his wife, how the relationship came about, what happened at Christmas that year. And he explained how their marriage ended when she would not be associated with Rick because of his “crimes.” She had not taken his name anyway, but she didn’t even want the connection. Her parents went bonkers, which he described, terrified that somehow Rick would get their money. He got nothing that belonged to Elizabeth and she got nothing more of Rick’s.

Too quickly, Sunday at 5 pm arrived. Alison had a flight at 8 p.m. so she planned on driving directly to Logan airport. They cleaned up their snack wrappers and bottles, making sure Rick had no coins in his pockets. They walked toward the door and Rick put his arm around her. Alison turned into him and she began to kiss him, feeling incredible energy from his arms around her. Rick kissed her with all the energy he could muster – a kiss of love. Alison walked out but turned to wave to him.

She got into the car and felt extraordinary love and warmth around her.  There was no doubt that she was in love with Rick and she knew he had been in love with her the entire time. It was urgent that she figure out what to do. It was important to have truth between them but she had a truth that might be too much to handle. Could they spend their lives together with Alison knowing she was responsible for what happened to him.

This was a plane ride where she did not sleep. She was troubled and knew that she had to figure out what to do. Arriving in San Francisco an hour later than scheduled meant it was after midnight, so she took a taxi home. There were messages from her parents wondering about her trip to Boston, and a message from Brenda to see how things were. And there was a message from Rick saying how much he loved her and how much he was going to miss her.

Alison knew that he loved her. She had never doubted that, only was confused and deeply hurt by all the circumstances that happened. But she knew he loved her.

Chapter Twenty One

Rick and Alison sat in the visiting room and marveled at the fact that they had been sitting in that room every weekend for the past two years. It was hard to believe so much time had passed. She had met his parents and his children, all of whom clearly cared about her and were happy to have her in Rick’s life. His lawyer also met Alison, who tried to figure out a way she could help Rick. Without him knowing it, she gave his attorney a check for $100,000 to let her have some of her unpaid salary and use it for any items she had to pay for. Melinda Hayes was a prominent defense attorney who was appointed by the court to help Rick, but she was an exceptional person and she and Alison had become friends.

The conversation naturally turned to the issue of Rick and Alison getting married, not waiting until he was released. He had one more year of his sentence and then he would be free. There was no parole attached, which made life easier. Alison had been flying to Boston every Tuesday, spending the rest of the week through Sunday with Rick. She thought about getting an apartment and just staying there. They talked about her moving to Boston, but they also talked about moving to San Francisco when Rick got out so that he didn’t have to go through the community wrath that would face him. They had already discussed the fact that he would have to live off Alison’s money until he could write something, do some kind of work to produce income. 

It was the middle of October, a time when Alison loved the New England area. Since the heat of summer was over, she decided it would be best to rent her apartment in San Francisco, then find an apartment for herself close to Rick. She and Rick decided to get married in November and he would find someone who would do the ceremony. His case manager would help him with the arrangements. Alison would now have to face the truth with her parents and friends, the reason why she was in Boston every week. It was time.

And it was time to tell Rick the truth. She had to do that before they married or she could not live with herself. He had dealt with so much of his pain and regret, but he could not get over what had happened, that he had lost control of his life to the point that someone possibly could have set him up for disaster. He could never answer the why, or the who. Alison decided she would tell Rick on their next visit, before she signed a lease on the apartment she had found in Boston.

It was time to make some notes to guide her through the conversation, explaining her decision to do what she did, how she went about it, Rick’s secretary and all that happened with her death. Rick needs to know that. And he needs to know about the year he spent with Charla.

Alison spent the next week making notes, clearing her head, preparing to tell Rick the truth. She had decided to stay home for one week so that she could get her life in order, as she exclaimed to Rick. Then she decided to go in a day early for the next visit and meet with his children and parents. They had to know and let her know whether or not they would be able to support the relationship and marriage. 

All she told them was that she wanted to talk something over with them. No, she was not abandoning Rick. Nothing of the sort, reassuring them that she was going forward with the marriage, that she loved Rick every much. Alison had a horrible feeling about the conversation, but it had to be done no matter what.