Chapter 2: Cindy's Pain

It was two weeks before we heard anything at all from Karen. Cindy was the one who took the call since I was at work. Summer vacation had just started so Cindy was at home alone. (I had wanted to get someone to come in and watch her but she swore up and down she was big enough to be by herself. I didn't much like the idea ... but I've never been deny Cindy anything she really wanted. We finally settled on a compromise. If she got stuck or needed help she would go see Rachel, our next door neighbor. Rachel was around 30 and divorced. But she was bubbly and friendly and, most importantly, she seemed to like Cindy.)

After only two weeks we had already fallen into a pattern of sorts. I'd leave for work around 6:30 and start work at 7:00. At 9:00 I'd call to wake Cindy up. She had a jobs list we had worked on together. Monday was wash day, Tuesday was vacuuming and dusting, etc. It was flexible enough that she could see her friends or if she had something she wanted/needed to do she would have time to do it. I'd get home around 3:30 and we'd either go out to eat or fix something to eat in the microwave. (Cindy had learned a little about cooking from her mother but the microwave was just easier.)

It was around 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday that I got a frantic call from Cindy. "Mom and that man just pulled into the driveway." I immediately went on high alert. "Lock the doors and don't them until I get there. I'm on my way."

On the way out I told Suzy, our secretary, "Tell the boss I've got an emergency at home." I literally ran to the parking lot and was on my way. It normally about twenty minutes to drive from work to home. I made it in twelve. I pulled into the yard so I wouldn't block their car. They were going to be leaving in a few minutes whether they wanted to or not.

As I jumped from the car I saw that the two of them were standing on the porch in by the front door. The bitch's mouth was going a mile a minute. I overheard some of what she was saying, "Cindy, honey, I just want to get the rest of my clothes and my make-up. We won't be here long." The stupid slut and her "stud" boyfriend hadn't even seen me pull in.

They jumped when I spoke. "If that's what you want, go sit in your car and I'll bring them to you. And then you can get your asses out of here and never come back."

The big guy (about 6'2" to my 5'9") thought he was tough, "You can't talk to us that way." He stepped off the porch and walked toward me. I heard the slut yell, "Honey don't do it!"

He ignored her and ran toward me, intended to grab me in a bear hug. The only problem was that I wasn't there. I punched him in the kidneys on the way past. I have to give him credit. He didn't go down but I could see the pain and fear in his eyes. He walked toward me and cocked his arm. How stupid can some people be to telegraph their punches like that? Before he could even throw it he was laying on the on his back. (I hadn't been studying karate and judo for ten years for nothing.) "If you get up again except to go the car I'll break your leg," I snarled.

I sensed rather then heard the slut coming to help her boyfriend. She jumped on my back but before I could respond she was gone. I heard her groan as she hit the ground. I heard Cindy's voice, "You leave him alone, he's my DAD."

I stepped back to see what had happened. Karen was lying on her stomach with Cindy sitting on top of her with her mother's arm pinned painfully behind her back. (I guess Cindy had learned something from going with me to Karate classes for last couple of years.)

"Let her up Cindy," I told her. She stood up to allow her mother to roll over. As she started to do so, Cindy kicked her hard on her hip. "Cindy," I barked. "That wasn't nice."

"Well, she wasn't nice when she left us, Dad."

I tried unsuccessfully to stifle a chuckle. "Well that's true, Kitten, but it still wasn't a very nice thing to do."

I looked at the two pieces of scum that by that time were sitting with their arms around their legs. "Now listen you two," I said in a calm voice. "I understand that you need more clothes than you took with you, Karen. But you chose to come over when you knew I wouldn't be here and when you knew Cindy would be alone and THAT wasn't very nice. Now I'll tell we're going to do." I looked at the man, "You're going to go and open your trunk and then both of you sit in the BACK seat of the car. We'll go and throw everything we can find in some garbage bags and put them in the trunk of the car. While we're doing that you are going to write you're mailing address on a piece of paper to that my attorney knows where to send the divorce papers. Cindy run in and get the pad and a pen from the telephone stand."