Siblings (23 page)

Chapter 50

Lt. Brody stopped by Ron’s office to update him on their investigation. “Hazleton’s offices were clean, but just a few minutes ago I received a call from the lead detective over at his apartment. They found a large envelope taped to the back of the refrigerator. It contained enough evidence to justify putting the doctor under arrest. My men are taking him down to the station now. By the way, we’ve released your wife. It doesn’t appear that her relationship to Dr. Hazleton was connected in any way to the break-in, so we have no reason to hold her.” Brody was obviously uncomfortable discussing the subject.

“Thank you for stopping by, Lieutenant. As far as you know, is anyone else here at the Center involved?”

“As far as we can tell, it doesn’t look that way. We also picked up the owner of an antiquities studio called Treasured Things. He may have been the ring leader behind the thefts. With the evidence we uncovered at the apartment, the doctor’s office is no longer a crime scene. Feel free to remove the tape on the door.”

“Well, thanks again, Lieutenant. If I can be of any help with the prosecution’s case, please let me know. Thanks for your discretion,” Ron said awkwardly after a short pause.

“No problem, Doctor.”

The first thing Ron did after Lt. Brody left was call Peter to fill him in on what had transpired. Peter had agreed to keep a low profile while the warrant to search Hazleton’s office was being executed, letting Ron be the official representative for the Center. His first reaction was not surprising. “I knew he couldn’t be trusted. Ever since he started cooperating with us again, I became suspicious. It was so out of character for him to apologize and offer to work closely with us. He’s too political an animal to be so docile. I don’t want to jump the gun, but with Hazleton gone, we might be able to sign up our candidate. That is, if this whole mess doesn’t scare him away. From what I recall of my last discussions with the doctor, he really likes the Center for its mix of practices and for the location. I think I might be able to pull it off.”

“Well, you go for it, Pete. I’ll officially disband John’s committee so you can go ahead on my authority as CEO. I’m going to shut down early today and catch up on some paperwork. I may even take it home and work there.”

“It looks as if most of the practices in the building are doing the same thing. Tomorrow will be soon enough to deal with the ramifications of this incident. Enjoy your evening.”

He wondered if Peter had heard anything about John and Marilyn through the grapevine. If he did, he was certainly giving no indication of it. Then again, he would be too much of a gentleman and a friend to bring it up, but Ron believed that he could tell by the tone of Peter’s voice, if he had heard anything and was betting that he hadn’t.

Ron had already sent his secretary home early and had cancelled his two appointments for the afternoon. Still, he was in no hurry to go home. Marilyn would probably be there already and he didn’t know if he could face her right now. He thought about going to McGinty’s for a few scotch and waters, but the more he thought about it the less he wanted to be around people. He got up and locked the outer door and then the door to his office.

He entered his private restroom and stepped over to the sink. He looked at his reflection and then closed his eyes for a moment. “Dad, I need to talk to you again.”

I’m here, Ronnie. What’s the matter, son?

“Everything seems to have blown up at once. The police came to the Center today with a search warrant for John Hazleton’s office. From what I can piece together, they broke in on Lynn and Hazleton naked on the floor of his exam room. They searched for over three hours and didn’t find anything at his office, but apparently later they found enough evidence in his apartment to make an arrest in their investigation of the break-in. The details are still sketchy, but it looks as if he conspired to have antiquities stolen from his office so that he could collect the insurance money for them.”

It looks as if you solved your problems, son. I don’t see why you need me.

“That’s the easy part, Dad. It’s Lynn that worries me the most. It pained me to see her sitting next to him on the couch in his office with her bra and panties lying on the floor at her feet. I was surprised when I realized that the pain I was feeling was for her and not me. I want to go home, but she’ll probably be there waiting for me. I’m not sure how I’ll react when we’re alone with this. I know that I would never strike her, but something in me wants to grab her by the shoulders and shake this all away. How could she do this to me? What I want to do is go to McGinty’s and have a few drinks, but I’m afraid that I would go home in a worse state; lose control, and say or do something to her that I would regret for the rest of my life.”

I think that’s a wise decision, Ronnie. Do you remember our last discussion? I asked you then to do a little introspection. I know that if you had a choice, you would like it all go away, but it isn’t going to. This is a situation that will require a cool mind and a loving heart. I think you have both and if you want to live the rest of your life with the woman who has made
you happy all these years, the woman who has nurtured your three wonderful children, the woman who has demonstrated her love for you over and over again, then you have to find a way to forgive her for what she has done and put it behind you as quickly as possible.

I know Lynn well enough to know that she deeply regrets what happened. She probably doesn’t even know why she had an affair with Hazleton. Maybe there was some psychological factor where she was trying to thank him for keeping her alive. The mind is a funny thing; the female mind, even more so. Often we don’t even know ourselves why we act in a certain way, but there is one thing that you should know for sure—Lynn loves you and she never wanted to hurt you.
I don’t know what more I can say that you can’t figure out for yourself. When in doubt, try a little tenderness. I think that’s good advice in this situation.

“I know that you’re right, Dad. It won’t be easy, but I’m willing to give it a try.”

I wish you two the best, Ronnie.

***

Marilyn was waiting in the living room when Ron arrived home. The rims of her eyes were a deep red from hours of crying and wiping away the tears. Beyond the redness he could see remorse and fear. Ron was moved by her demeanor, but he restrained himself from running over and taking her into his arms. It wasn’t out of spite that he held back, it was more out of his own fear that he might give the wrong impression or say the wrong thing. There was no guidebook for this specific situation. How does a man act when he has been cuckolded?

Ron hesitatingly took a first step towards the couch. As he did, Marilyn looked up into his eyes and she opened her arms. “Please hold me.”

He quickly covered the rest of the distance and sat down next to her. He put his arm around her shoulders and gently drew her head to his chest. He rested his head on hers. “I want you to know that regardless of what’s happened, I love you dearly. I always have and I always will.” He kissed the top of her head and her body relaxed.

Trying to reduce the tension, he jokingly said “Here’s another fine mess we’ve gotten ourselves into.” This was a line he used often, sort of an ice breaker, usually needed to ease a mini-crisis in their lives that required collaboration for one thing or another. Most of these occurrences had to do with the children and problems they had with other parents or neighbors. They always got through those times by sticking together. They weren’t always in agreement about a solution. They both had their instances where they were the predominant party in the resolution of the problem. Of course none of those issues could ever challenge their relationship, as this one did.

Remembering his father’s advice, he tenderly cupped Lynn’s face in his hands and kissed her gently on the lips. She returned the kiss and the flow of tears resumed. “I’m so sorry, Ron, how can you ever forgive me?”

“It’s not hard, darling. I just have to think about the weekend when you started to have heart palpitations. You felt so ill I thought I was going to lose you. I prayed for God to save you and promised him and myself that if you got through that, that I would love and protect you with every fiber of my being for the rest of my life. I’ve kept that promise and nothing will prevent me from doing it for the rest of my life. I love you, Lynn. I love you for the wonderful person that you are. I love you for the loving wife that you are. I love you for the wonderful mother you are. You are the most precious thing in the world to me. I don’t want to lose you. Whatever happened, let’s put it behind us. We have now and the rest of our lives, and that’s all that matters to me.”

“You are such a beautiful person, my Ronnie. I don’t feel that I deserve a man like you, but I will spend the rest of my days showing you how much I love you.”

They embraced, knowing in their hearts that they were going to be all right.

Her cell phone began vibrating on the coffee table. She picked it up and saw that it was a call from Wilson.

“It’s Wil.”

“Answer it.”

“Hello, dear. Yes, wasn’t it awful? Your father was just telling me all about it. Everyone was surprised when they arrested Dr. Hazleton. Yes, your father is safe; in fact he’s right here.”

She handed the phone to Ron.

“Hi, son, it’s nice of you to check up on my safety.”

Ron went silent as Wilson took over the conversation. Marilyn watched his face as it began to show a wide grin. “Congratulations, that’s fantastic. Yes, let’s get together tomorrow and you can tell us all about it.”

He put the phone down and turned to an anxious Marilyn. “Wil had the most exciting news. It appears that he’s been working undercover with the government and he just found out that he’s been granted a full pardon for that incident back in 2009. They wiped the slate clean.”

“Oh! That’s so great.”

“Then why do you have a look of sadness on your face?”

“It’s just that my behavior has marred what should be a happy day for us.”

“It still is. Wil doesn’t have to concern himself with the past anymore and neither do we. The Symington family has a new beginning. We have three wonderful children and they all seem to be living a charmed life. What more could a couple ask for?”

Author’s Note

I would be remiss if I did not take advantage of this opportunity to mention National Siblings Day.

Every year since 1999, many Americans have celebrated National Siblings Day (or just Siblings Day) on the tenth of April. One of the least known of national celebrations, this special day is to honor, appreciate, and treasure the special bond shared by brothers and sisters. While it is not recognized as a national holiday, the day is, however, supported by the governors of forty-four states, who issue proclamations officially recognizing Siblings Day in their States. The holiday was originally the brain-child of Claudia Evart in memory of her brother and sister, who died tragically.

The Siblings Day Foundation is working to make Siblings Day a national holiday as a complement to Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.

Even though the majority of us have had one or more brothers or sisters in our lives growing up, we often take our relationship with those siblings for granted. Brothers and sisters are, after all, the people we were closest to as we were growing up; that is, during our formative years.

Of course, the familial group, being honored by this special day, might be in our minds every day anyway and not require an honorarium of any sort, but those who have a love/hate relationship or no relationship at all with their siblings might use Siblings Day as an opportunity to take an essential first step to renewing or improving their interaction with their brothers or sisters.

An email, phone call, or letter is all it might take to mend a relationship with a sibling who, even though they may have driven you crazy during your entire childhood, may now be in a position to bring immeasurable value into your life and/or you to theirs.

Acknowledgements

I am indebted to Lori Whitwam, Jessica Gunhammer, Jennifer O’Neill, Dixie Matthews and all the folks at Limitless Publishing with special thanks to Toni Rakeshaw for her patience, wise counsel and insightful editing.

About the Author

I am a multi-genre novelist living in Ohio with my wife and miniature Schnauzer. I was born in St. Louis, Missouri, but moved to Long Island, N.Y. when I was 8 years old.

Reading and writing fiction have always been a big part of my life. As a child I wrote about outer-space and in high school I was the editor of the school’s literary newspaper. During that period I wrote mostly short stories and novellas.

I write because I feel that there are stories that need to be told. I enjoy the process of writing and firmly believe that you do your best writing when you are well read. To that end, I read at least one novel a week.

Blood Money, my debut novel centers on a private investigator, Mark Matthews, turned FBI agent. In the novel he topples an association funneling money to terrorists. It was published as an e-book in November, 2011.

Fatal Dose, the second Mark Matthews Mystery exposes a drug mafia distributing counterfeit prescription drugs and revisits some of the villains from Blood Money. It was published as an e-book in March, 2013.

Family Matters is a multi-genre work about three generations of the Kingston family. The protagonist, Adam Kingston, provokes each of the main characters with a series of ruthless actions until one is driven to hire an assassin to kill both Adam and his father and burn Kingston Manor to the ground. It was published as an e-book in March, 2015.

Siblings, is a captivating family saga and an introspective of the hierarchy in sibling families. Gambling, drugs and infidelity are rampant in this tale of the Symington family. It will be released in August, 2015.

Before starting a novel, I do extensive research. For example, while writing Blood Money and Fatal Dose, that feature an FBI agent as the protagonist, I met with local FBI agents to verify details used in my stories. For Siblings I needed to learn about abortion procedures.

With three published thriller novels under my belt, I am turning to novels addressing social issues and topics with spiritual/inspirational themes.

I am a member of ITW and INTA.