Authors: Patrick Abbruzzi
He was sorely missed after his departure.
The night went quickly for Charlie. He finished writing his summonses an
d
the lieutenant finished his tale of the Washington Square Park demonstration.
Whil
e
sitting at the water’s edge, both men enjoyed the sight of the sun as it spread across the horizon. After a while another sector car drove down to the seclude
d
spot where they were parked and Charlie saw that it was Police Officers O’Dell and Rizzo. Their sector covered Jerse
y
Street and they stayed out all night looking for collars. They onl
y
took a break when things quieted down, usually around 6:00 A.M. which was when they would usually get their breakfast at The Clipper, an old Greek diner at 40 Bay Street. Eventually most guys who frequented the joint simply called it 40 Bay Street and no longer referred to it as The Clipper.
Charlie didn’t want to put the lieutenant on the spot so when he saw O’Dell and Rizzo coming into the coop, he started the RMP and pulled out without asking or saying
a
word. The lieutenant knew the score an
d
didn’t say anything either. He knew that the men driving in were good cops an
d
workers and they deserved a break, too.
Nineteen
The lieutenant decided to call it a night and told Charlie to take a slo
w
ride into the barn. When they got there, Charlie grabbed all the gear and the lieutenant walked in ahead of him.
Lt. Raymond Velez, the Platoon Commander for the day tour, was already preparing the roll call. They exchanged some pleasantries then th
e
lieutenant went up to his locker room and changed into his civvies. Charlie did the same. This was just one of the advantages of driving th
e
boss.
When he got into his car, he wanted to call Terry but forced himself no
t
to. Lately every time he thought about her he found himself mired down with guilt. On this morning and, after what had been a good night, he decided to go home to Annette. It was Saturday morning and he knew she would be home.
He stopped at Alfonso’s Bakery on Victory Boulevard and bought a piece of apple strudel, Annette’s favorite. He als
o
purchased a piece of Baklava, a Greek delicacy consisting of filo interlace
d
with honey and walnuts. It was his favorite and Alfonso’s only occasionally made it.
Charlie then drove the three miles to his house and was stunned when he pulled into his driveway. Annette’s car was not there. He was in a state of shock but thought perhaps she had gone food shopping earlier than usual to beat the heavy Saturday crowds. He went in and walked directly into the kitchen. There he found a messag
e
held onto the refrigerator by a heart shaped magnet.
Dear Charlie,
it began,
I had to work overtime today. I probably wil
l
be home late tonight so don’t wait up for me. If I get a chance I’ll cal
l
you. Today’s work will probably have me in and out of the office all da
y
so don’t worry if I’m not there if you call or come looking for me. Love, Annette.
Charlie felt as if she had covered all of her bases remarkably well. H
e
really didn’t want to think she was having an affair but she had never worked overtime on a Saturday before. Here he was, off all day, and he didn’t know where his wife was.
He called her office frantically and got the answering
machine. The recording was a general message left by most establishments when their office is closed.
“Hi, you have reached J. Blum and Sons. Our office is closed until Monday. Please leave your name, number and a brief reason why you called an
d
someone will get back to you.”
Charlie found himself going to pieces and, although it was all he could think about, he knew he couldn’t continue on this way because he would cause himself to get really sick. Now he had no doubt that he and Annette needed to have a serious talk abou
t
their relationship. All of a sudden the thought of Terry didn’t seem t
o
bother him as much. He didn’t want to lose his wife and couldn’t help but fee
l
that he was responsible for driving Annette into someone else’s arms, or bed.
He decided to take a couple of Excedrin PMs and go to sleep, having no doubt that the little blue devils would knock him out and kill most of the da
y
for him. He went up to his bedroom, closed the drapes and put th
e
television on low. As he got into bed, he realized that Annette had left he
r
lingerie drawer slightly open.
He got up to close it but stopped when his gaze focused on the items held within. As he examined some of the colorful pieces of material tucked away inside, he couldn’t help but notice that her red teddy was missing. Upon further inspection, he realized there were several other pieces in the drawer that he’d never seen before. He kne
w
Annette was not generally in the habit of buying expensive lingeri
e
but the itty bitty panties he saw, if you could call them that, looked very expensive.
That was when he finally had to admit to himself that someone else was buying sexy outfits for her and she was probably wearing them for him.
Charlie sighed with exhaustion, knowing there was nothing he could do about it right at that moment. He was mentally weary and physically tired. He had to get some sleep. He downed his pills and concentrated on the T.V.
He finally fell asleep and dreamed of Terry. When he woke up close to 7:00 P.M., he felt like he had a hangover. He went downstairs to get some orange juice and heard Annette busy somewhere behind the kitchen door. She said hi when she heard him
and gave him a nice kiss on the cheek. H
e
didn’t know how to react. He didn’t want to appear as if he had no trus
t
in her.
“Hi, honey. How was work?” he asked.
“Busy, sweetheart. Did you try to call?
”
she responded.
“I gave it a shot when I walked in. I thought I might have been able t
o
reach you before you left the office. I didn’t know you worked on Saturdays,” he managed to get out.
“Since when have you been interested? I have worked Saturdays quite a few times since you started making arrests on Friday nights and don’t come home until 2:00 or 3:00 P.M. How would you even know I was working? I alway
s
thought that the boss’ driver didn’t have to make arrests? Or at leas
t
that’s what you’ve always led me to believe.”
She stared at him for several long seconds then added with a serious glare, “You know, Charlie, I just don’t know wha
t
to think or believe anymore.”
Charlie was tongue tied. In his heart he knew she was completel
y
right. He was the one who had been screwing around and now perhaps his wife was as well. He was certain it was his fault for driving her further away. As he stared back at her, unable to speak, he suddenly realized he had to save his marriage. Now was the time when he ha
d
to say, or do, whatever it took.
“Annette, I’m sorry you feel the way you do, and I know I have bee
n
neglectful. I don’t want it to be like this anymore. I truly want to work o
n
our marriage and relationship. Is it too late for me to try?
”
he pleaded.
She stared at him with disbelief.
“Honestly, I don’t know, Charlie. I have tried so many times before with you. I have waited for you and I have dressed sexy for you, yet I don’t seem to tur
n
you on anymore. Don’t you find me desirable? Don’t you want me?
”
she asked, but she didn’t give him a chance to answer before she continued, her eyes flashing. “I want someone who is there for me 100% of the time. I want someone to want me. I want someone who finds me desirable and wants to make love to me every day.”
Feeling as though his marriage was about t
o
hit rock bottom and smash into a million pieces, he struggled to find the right words.
“Annette, I’m sorry for my behavior and I am ashamed of myself. Can yo
u
forgive me? Honey, I love you. Do you still love me?
”
he asked.
“I really don’t know, Charlie. To be completely honest I wis
h
you no harm or ill will but I just don’t know if I love you in that sense anymore,” she said, her eyes filled with sadness.
“Annette, is there someone else?
”
he asked meekly. Although he suspected what her answer would be, it was still a surprise to hear it.
“Yes, Charlie. I have been seeing someone.
”
“Who is it?
”
he asked, unable to hide the jealousy in his voice.
“Is it really important?
”
she asked as her eyes flashed defensively.
“I guess not,” he said quietly.
“How about you, Charlie? Are you seeing someone else?
”
“I was, but it’s over. I realize that I love you,” he replied.
Charlie knew he wasn’t telling the entire truth, but he had no doubt now that he wanted to end it with Terry.
“You know, Charlie, I knew from the start. A wife can always tell. I had hoped it was just a fling like most cops have with a bar maid o
r
waitress. Men fool around for the sex, but women are more vulnerable an
d
cheat for more than sex,” she explained.
“What are you telling me? Have you fallen in love with this guy, whoeve
r
he is? How do you know he isn’t just in it for the sex, too?
”
h
e
asked.
“Charlie, we can go around and around with this all day. Let’s just agree to b
e
civil right now, okay?
”
“Yeah, I can agree with that, but before we do, I need to know if you going to end it with this guy?
”
Charlie wanted his answer and he wanted it now.
Twenty
“Are we going to try to work this out now, Annette, or do we wait until yo
u
decide if you want me again?
”
he asked.
He was full of so many questions and wanted, no
needed
, them answered.
“Charlie, no more questions, please. We’ll get along better without both them and the pressure that you exert on me,” she said.
He felt completely helpless. He was losing his wife to some unknow
n
schmuck who probably just wanted to get laid like he did with Terry. As he stared at her, not knowing what to say, he suddenly realized that he was now on the other side of the fence and he didn’t like it, not one bit. H
e
decided to give Annette room and space. He would treat her better and tr
y
to woo her like he had done years before. He knew which buttons to press.
He would also contact Terry and break off their relationship. He decide
d
not to call her because he couldn’t take the chance of running out of th
e
house to use a payphone. He was down and forlorn but he didn’t want t
o
give Annette the impression that he was not happy. He thought if h
e
could be jovial and optimistic, maybe some of it would rub off on his wife.
He would do some chores around the house he’d been keeping on the back burner because of all the time and effort he had been giving t
o
Terry. He needed to catch up on some painting but did not want t
o
drive to Home Depot by himself. He also didn’t want his wife to think he was running out to call his girlfriend, so he asked pleasantly, “Annette would you like to take a ride with me over to Home Depot? I have some painting equipment I want to get.”
“No thanks, Charlie. I have some house work that needs catching up.”
After mentally running through his honey-do list, he headed down to his basement to tinker around. He had been wanting to organize his workshop for a long time and now seemed like a good time to do just that. He spent a few hours sorting through tools and other gadgets, happy to find that the work helped his mind to relax and kept his thoughts away from his marital problems. When he was finished, his workshop never looked better. He threw away so much junk and clutter tha
t
it took four huge garbage bags, which he promptly hauled out to the curb. Now he had a lot mor
e
room to work in, and he’d found tools and equipment he’d forgotten he had to boot!