Chapter 6

The next morning Ron offered to stay home with her, but Jennifer insisted she only needed a little rest and persuaded him to go on to the office. She did need the rest, as her body was still so sore she could hardly walk, but what she needed far worse was to erase the memory of the events of the last few days.

She was still sitting at the breakfast table, head in hands, sobbing, when the doorbell rang.

Opening the door, Jennifer was so surprised Cindy spoke before the door could be closed in her face.

"Jennifer, I know what you must feel toward me right now, but please let me explain. Please?"

As much in resignation as any interest in what Cindy had to say, Jennifer left the door open and walked into the living room. Cindy quietly closed the door behind her and followed.

"I only want you to know that the warning I gave to you the night you and Ron came to our place for dinner was real. If I had said too much and you had refused to go, they would have known I warned you."

"And yesterday?"

Cindy hung her head.

"I'm not proud of what I did. Yes, I set you up to go see Dana Tremper and what I did to you yesterday was reprehensible, but by now, I'm sure they have blackmailed you with the videotape."

Jennifer nodded.

"Who were the men?"

"I don't know them personally. The corporation sponsors a semi-professional basketball team. They just won the regional championship. You were probably their reward. Please understand, I was told to say and do all those things yesterday. They tape every one of those kind of sessions. Tremper is holding not just one, but dozens of those episodes over my head as well."

"You told me you brushed him off."

"I lied. He seduced me that day in his office. I don't know, I guess I felt flattered when he made a pass. He was the president. He was handsome. He was white. I guess I just let it get out of hand before I knew what was happening."

"Did he drug you?"

"Not that first time. To my shame, he just talked his way into my pants, but he started making me use it from then on with his "clients". Since then I've used JP4, that's the pheromone he used on you, dozens of times. We call it Jip. Sometimes it's the only thing which can get you through an evening with his friends."

"You said we?"

"You and I are not the only ones he's blackmailing. Virtually every wife of every junior executive is performing what he calls a "service" to the company. You, of course, didn't have any way to know, but he researches the wives as carefully as he does the husbands for these company positions. If the wife isn't attractive, her husband doesn't stand a chance."

Jennifer was beside herself.

"Isn't there anything was can do?"

Cindy returned her look with one of resignation.

"I'm sure you've racked your brain the same way we have. There just doesn't seem to be any way out without destroying our husbands and our marriages."

"Couldn't we go to the police?"

"And tell them what? Anything we do to expose him will also lead to our husbands viewing those tapes. We've even discussed killing him, but he has let it be known that the minute anything happens to him those tapes will be made public."