“I couldn’t believe it when I saw the photos of you fucking that son of a bitch without a condom. What the hell were you thinking about, Peggy? Were you going to bring HIV or something home to me and the kids as some kind of gruesome present?”
“He said he didn’t have anything,” Peggy said faintly. Beyond a momentary consideration of the risks at the time, she hadn’t thought of the possible consequences.
“Yeah, I bet he did say that,” Kyle said sarcastically. “Exactly what else was he going to say? But you know what? He also told his wife he was escorting big wigs around. She thought he was working so hard he was completely exhausted every night when he finally got home. She didn’t complain though…she didn’t like having sex with him, I hear.” Kyle laughed hollowly. There was no humor in the laughter.
“How does it feel to have wrecked two marriages, Peggy?” he asked.
“Oh, God…what did you do?”
“What do you think I did, Peggy? Did you think I’d let him get off scot-free? You were wearing your wedding band the whole week long. It shows up in just about every picture I have of you and Dipshit. He knew damned well you were a married woman and that you were off limits. Do you really think I would let an SOB like that get away with dishonoring our marriage? Huh-uh. Sorry, dear. He’s going to get what’s coming to him.
“His wife was actually pretty appreciative, Peggy. From what I’ve heard through the private investigators, she was grateful for us bringing to her attention just what he was doing while he was away from her. Get this…it seems she caught him doing a young woman from off the streets a few months ago. The girl was into some pretty heavy drugs from what Mrs. Lowery said.”
Kyle chuckled again. There was no more amusement in his voice than there had been the last time.
“Actually,” he said in a confiding tone, “she is the one who’s been making Shithead use condoms. She’s been afraid he might have picked up something.”
Peggy could say nothing. The tears stopped flowing while she contemplated what her husband was telling her about Harold. She felt an icy hole in the pit of her stomach begin to grow. She was suddenly nauseous. She might die because she had wanted to have sex with that man.
“She isn’t going to wait for her dear husband to go out and fuck someone else on her time,” Kyle added. “She’s dumping his ass and she’s going to take him for every dime he’s got,” Kyle said in a satisfied tone. Peggy couldn’t respond. There was nothing to say and the lump in her throat wouldn’t let her speak anyway.
“Well, anyway,” he said after a while, “I’m not willing to let you around the kids when you might have been exposed to HIV. I don’t care about that politically correct bullshit when we’re talking about my children. Plain and simple, Peggy…you are not going to be around them until I see a clearance from the doctor, is that clear?”
She nodded, then realized she had to say something.
“Yes,” she croaked. It was getting progressively harder to speak.
“Good,” he said, “that’s good. Well…then if you don’t fight the divorce, and when I have the lab reports in my hand, Peggy, I’ll make sure you get to see the kids as often as you want,” he told her.