Chapter 5

We made it through the weekend and now it was decision time. I called work and told them I would be out for a couple of days. The nice thing about middle management is no one really questions me about what I'm doing. I also have my home office so my work is always done on time.

I contacted a lawyer who was known to be the best with divorce cases. I also wanted a female lawyer for both my case and Nancy's. Sally Hawk, was her name. Smart, intelligent, good looking, articulate and a definite winner when it came to divorce cases, she knew the law. She was considered the best in her field.

After introducing myself I explained that I had two cases for her. I started with Nancy's situation and explained everything that happened to her up to that point.

Sally said she would be over to see Nancy that afternoon and if what I said was true, there would be no problems with the divorce for Nancy. She would probably get everything except the cost for an attorney if his case went to trial.

I then told Sally about my situation.

She looked at me and said, "I could get everything, the house, kids, I could pretty much name my price." What did I have in mind?

After I told her she looked at me and said, "Are you sure about this? You must have really loved this woman to let her off so easy?"

I told her I loved her, and still do, but just couldn't live with her knowing what she did to me.

Sally then stated that she would get to work on the paper work and for me to stop in for the documents at the end of the week.

I thanked her and then headed over to see Nancy to let her know the latest. When I got to the hospital Nancy was looking much better. Her bruising was starting to yellow, and she was able to stand, even though in pain.

I told her about Sally Hawk (the lawyer) and explained that she would be in to see here. I gave her a quick rundown on the conversation I had about her case with Sally. She began to thank me and grabbed my left hand in both of hers. She brought it up to her mouth and kissed it, saying 'Thank you, ' with a tear in her eyes.

She then asked me about my situation, but I told her I didn't want to talk about it. She didn't press me about it at all. That's just the kind of person she was. Why any man would beat a woman like this instead of make love to her is beyond me. She just seemed special to me.

Nancy did say that the County Prosecutor was in and is filing charges against Bob. Assault and Battery, and child endangerment, he figures Bobs attorney would try and plea bargain it out but he would still do time. Bob won't be released from the hospital for a couple of weeks, then will be released to his parents custody after posting bound. His parent live in a nearby city, away from us, The court case won't be up for at least 3 months.

That was probably the only good news I heard that day as I headed home. When I got home I told Marsha that I was ready to talk. She asked our sons if they would take Kyle and Robbie to the park for about an hour, that we needed to talk. The boys knew we had a problem but had no idea what was about to happen. They took Robbie in his stroller, and Kyle walked along.

Marsha looked at me when they left, she was already crying.

I said, "Marsha, I gave this as much thought as I could. I can't live with you any longer, my heart burns, because of what you did to me. I know of no way to forgive you. I wish I could, but I'm human and not able. I talked to a lawyer today and will explain what we talked about."

"We have had a lot of good years together. I can't just throw you out and give you nothing. There's times I feel like it, just throw your ass out, and say take that slut! Go whore yourself and make a living. I'm just not made like that Marsha."

Here is what I propose:

"For now I am getting a separation agreement. You can live here with our sons. They need a home and a mother, even though you feel you don't get the attention you want. I am getting an apartment near by so the boys can see me whenever they want, and we can still attend the sporting events together. I will pay a fair child support for the boys, and even an alimony payment so you will be able to survive."

"If either of us decide to divorce, all our marital assets will be divided 50-50. You can live in the house till our youngest son reaches eighteen and then the house will be sold and the equity will also be divided 50-50. Do you have any problem with this agreement?"

Marsha was crying and said, "Only that you won't be here. I really do love you Roger, I didn't realize what I had till I lost it. I really fucked up good. Do you plan on divorcing me Roger?"

"I need time Marsha, I need lots of time. This isn't just a story about a cheating wife. It's about real people in a real world. I don't know what the future will bring, but I'll have to deal with it.

I leaving it up to you to tell our sons about our breakup. I'll go along with whatever you say. Don't tell them about the affairs, no boy wants to think about their mother that way."

"I will start moving my stuff out this weekend, I really don't need much," with that said I went out to hunt for an apartment.

I found a condo just a couple of blocks from where we now live. It would be in walking distance for the boys if they wanted to visit. After paying my deposit and looking at the apartment I could feel my heart began to ache. All I could say was damn her, damn her, damn her. Reality was beginning to really set in, and reality hurt.

On Tuesday morning Marsha asked if I would be around that evening? She wanted to go see Nancy who would be getting out of the hospital on Thursday and needed to talk over a few issues concerning the boys. She would only be a couple of hours and wanted to get there by six.

I just said, "That would be fine, no plans here. I'll probably just start packing."

Marsha could see reality was setting in also. She explained to the boys that we were going through some major disagreements and that I would be moving into a condo just a couple blocks away. I would always be available to them.

They asked her if we were getting a divorce and she just replied, "She didn't know yet."