Chapter 17
Xavier Knight
Tuesday: 6:10
P.M
.
At dinner, Xavier felt like he'd traded places with where Travis had been the night before. This time it was he who was unable to finish eating his supper, while Travis ate just fine. Even though the spaghetti tasted fantastic, he just didn't have an appetite.
Charlotte, on the other hand, didn't seem fazed by their earlier conversation. She was eating her second helping of spaghetti and garlic bread. And unlike the previous day, she was talking with everyone like she didn't have a care in the world. Talking to everyone except him, that is.
“Don't you want to go ahead and share your fabulous recipes with us now?” George asked Shelby. He also was on his second helping of spaghetti.
“Can't do that just yet,” Shelby replied.
“I have to give it to you, Shelby,” Nina said. “This spaghetti is almost as good as my mother's, God rest her soul. She used to make the best spaghetti in the world. I've never tasted anything that has ever come remotely close.”
“Thanks. Do you have your mom's recipe?” Shelby asked.
“No, she died when I was seven. And at the time, I took my mom's cooking for granted and I thought everyone's cooking was as good as hers.” Nina's eyes turned downcast and her tone saddened. “But I found out the hard way that everyone wasn't like my mom.”
It was the first time Xavier had witnessed Nina's lack of arrogance. She actually seemed human as she spoke about her mother. He watched as George started rubbing his wife's back.
“Sorry to hear that,” Shelby said. “I'll make sure to give you my secret for the spaghetti, and maybe you can make a few modifications to get it to taste even more like your mom's.”
“Thanks, I'd really like that,” Nina said. She actually looked grateful for Shelby's offer.
“My baby can make some of the best Italian food in the world. You name it: spaghetti, lasagna, baked ziti, chicken parmesan. Just name something, and Beryl can whip it up,” Travis said. He patted his wife's back. “She can tell you some of her cooking secrets also.”
Halfheartedly, Nina nodded her head.
Xavier didn't know why, but Travis was really getting on his nerves. It was like he was trying to impress somebody and like he didn't want to feel left out of their conversations. The guy was always thinking of any and everything he could to add to what was being said.
He was surprised the guy hadn't said anything about something on television or a movie yet.
“My wife can cook so good that one day I gave her a recipe from a movie I was watching, and she made it look just like it did on the TV. I don't know how it tasted to those actors, but it sure was good to me,” Travis said.
Xavier's head was starting to hurt, and the ramblings of Travis were only making it hurt worse. He wanted the guy to be quiet and knew that if he didn't tune him out quickly, he might just tell him to shut up. He didn't have the luxury of time to listen to Travis's trivial comments, especially when he needed to focus on how he was going to get Charlotte to believe he was a changed man.
He recounted the events after Charlotte charged out of their bedroom. Instead of running after her, he'd quickly gotten to work, knowing there was no time for a pity party. If he had caught up with her, she'd probably have just told him to get out of her face anyway.
He needed to quickly figure out what he was going to say to Charlotte the next time they got a chance to talk. Since she was so enamored with dates and numbers, he figured he'd use the documentation she'd gatheredâthe only resource he hadâto help his case.
He'd gathered the pages, reorganizing them by category instead of by month. After he had the categories sorted out, he then organized them by date. Once all this was done, he was able to pinpointâon paper, at leastâthe last time he had either talked to or corresponded with any other woman.
As he had told Charlotte, all communication with the women had ceased the day he found out about the STD. There were a few sporadic places where some calls from Yasmine had gotten through to him. But the timestamps never logged more than a minute. He always either told Yasmine not to call him again, or hung up as soon as he realized it was her.
Looking over the numerous times and dates he'd talked to the women, had made his stomach churn. What had he been thinking? He hadn't been thinking anything really. He'd just gone on his impulses, never thinking of the consequences and never thinking he'd get caught.
He'd been so stupid. Most men weren't blessed to ever find a good woman. And God had blessed him with two. Surely he wouldn't get that chance again if Charlotte left him. And he didn't want to look for woman number three anyway. He'd done enough of that and was just plain tired.
He circled dates and times, which would hopefully help Charlotte see that he was serious about being faithful to her. Then on his own separate sheet of paper, he jotted down key points he wanted to show her.
After an hour of studying the papers, he had all the information he could scrounge. Then with heavy legs, he set out to look for Charlotte, hoping that within that time she'd had enough time to cool off.
But when he looked around throughout the cabin and out on the porch, there was no sign of her. With flashbacks of her leaving the day she'd confronted him with the test results, he looked to see if their SUV was still parked around the back of the cabin. He was relived to see the SUV, but she was still nowhere in sight. So he sat on the porch waiting for her to return from wherever she had gone.
The last time she disappeared, he didn't hear a word from her for three days. Three days filled with him pulling out his hair.
After she finally returned, Xavier had asked her where she'd been. Charlotte told him not to worry about where she'd been. And to this day, he still didn't know where Charlotte had been for those three days.
Just before dinner, Charlotte emerged through the trees and returned to the cabin. She was sweating and breathing hard. When Xavier stood to greet her, she'd placed her hand up saying she was tired and needed to clean up before dinner. She kept walking right past him and entered the cabin. She hadn't really talked
to
him, but at least she was talking
at
him.
Now, at dinner, she was talking around him. But at least she was talking. And Xavier didn't want to push. He decided to wait until they could talk in private again, after dinner.
“Did you hear what I said, man?” Xavier heard someone say.
“Huh?” Xavier replied.
The source of the question was Travis. He was still talking. “I said, did you ever see that movie with Glenn Close and Michael Douglass,
Fatal Attraction
? The part where they boil the rabbit?”
“Ah, yeah.” Xavier wondered how they had gotten on the subject of boiled rabbits. And the interruption had caused him not to be able to make his thoughts detour any longer. “Travis?” Xavier said.
Travis looked at Xavier expectantly, as if glad to finally have the man's attention.
“Silly rabbit; tricks are for kids.” It was the closest thing Xavier thought to say without straight out telling the guy to just shut up.
Chapter 18
Phillip Tomlinson
Tuesday: 9:07
P.M
.
Doing a silent attendance check, Phillip mentally checked off where each of the couples were. Xavier and Charlotte were in their room, Beryl and Travis were playing one of the board games, and Nina and George were outside by the lake, roasting marshmallows.
He decided to take time out to spend with Shelby. They decided to go for a walk on the walking trail they'd become very familiar with during their first stay at the cabin. After grabbing two flashlights and donning a couple of light jackets, they set out for a stroll.
That afternoon, the warmness of late summer had turned into a coolness of early fall. The weather in North Carolina was notoriously known for being wishy-washy. One day the temperature might get up well into the eighties, and the next day it might only get up to fortysomething. And likewise, one day it might be dry, and the next day it might pour cats and dogs.
This particular evening, the temperature had gotten down into the sixties, and luckily, it hadn't rained since they'd been there. The weather forecast hadn't predicted any rain the whole week.
The moon was full and bright. Near the cabin there was no need for a flashlight, but as they reached the thick foliage of the trees surrounding the trail, it became a little harder to see. As soon as Phillip and Shelby reached the opening of the trail, they cut on their respective flashlights.
Phillip took a deep breath. “Umm, smell those Carolina pines. Don't they smell good?”
“Fresh and strong,” Shelby said.
They guided the flashlights up and down and back and forth in front of them on the ground, so they wouldn't trip and fall or run into any trees.
“Nice, fresh, smog-free air. That's one of the things I love about being up here in the mountains.” Again Phillip filled his lungs with air, and then let out a deep breath.
They walked along gingerly, avoiding sticks and tree limbs.
“I wonder if that log is still out here,” Shelby asked.
“I figured you'd want to forget about that log,” Phillip said.
“Except for tripping over it and falling face first, no, I don't want to forget it. We had some good times talking on that logâour own little get away from all the other couples and their roller coaster arguments,” Shelby said.
“You know, before coming here, I really didn't know people could have so many problems. Those couples we met our first time here really had some problems. And I don't mean to diminish the problems we had, but we were actually pretty well off compared to them,” Phillip said.
“Yeah, you never really know what goes on behind closed doors with people.”
Phillip figured she was alluding to the fact that even though they had only been there two days, two of the couples had already discussed their mounting frustrations out in the open. He was glad the couples were finally starting to warm up and share. A lot of their concerns were being manifested through not only their words, but with their body language as well.
“Speaking of arguments,” Shelby said, “what about Xavier and Charlotte?”
Phillip nodded his head. “It's a start. At least they are talking.”
“I know they're talking, but I meant about all that stuff Charlotte had on him. I didn't know what she was going to pull out of that file next. I was scared she might have a video or something,” Shelby said.
This time Phillip shook his head. “Baby, I'm so glad my days of running around were over by the time I met you.”
Shelby stopped dead in her tracks, causing Phillip to jerk back slightly. “Come again? Your running days were over when you met me?”
“You know what I mean. Once I realized how serious we were, I quickly let the other couple of girls I was talking to go. I hate to think what could have happened if I'd brought the same kind of mess I was doing from college into our marriage. I could have ended up like Xavier.” Phillip shuddered at the thought.
“You know, that's right. But I don't think I could have sat around acting like nothing was wrong with me while I collected evidence for months on end.” Shelby started walking again. “I would have freaked the first time I saw you making more than twenty calls to the same number in a month, much less over a hundred.”
“I know what you mean. But you never know what you'd really do unless you're in a person's shoes. We all have different reasons for doing what we do,” Phillip said.
“I hear you, but I'd be doggone if I'd keep collecting copies of your little chats on the Internet. For real. I'd be all over you like white on rice after I saw the first message.”
“Violence, honey? That's not like you at all.”
Shelby positioned the flash light under her face to illuminate a smile she was displaying. “Like you said, baby, you never know what a person might do, given the circumstances.”
“You didn't go off on me when you heard about Jeana,” Phillip said.
“That's because I was all banged up in a hospital. With all those wires and IVs hanging from me, I couldn't reach you. Besides, I was so confused about what she'd told me and what I'd seen, I thought you were up to no good for sure,” Shelby said.
There was once a time when Phillip's ex-girlfriend Jeana's name couldn't be mentioned in their house. And soon after, Phillip had to tread lightly when mentioning anything about Jeana and her son Tarenâwho had also turned out to be Phillip's illegitimate son. But now, after a couple of years and numerous counseling sessions, they'd gotten past those problems and moved on.
“And for the most part, it was all a misunderstanding,” Phillip said.
“No, not for the most part. But yes, some parts were very pivotal,” Shelby said.
“Okay, when you take some truth and add a few lies, and then you add a sprinkling of misunderstanding, then what you have is an ungodly mess,” Phillip said.
“Which is what we had,” Shelby said.
“Which is what Xavier and Charlotte seem to have right now.”
“We got through it,” Shelby said.
“And with the help of God, I hope they can get through it also.”
“Prayerfully,” Shelby said. Then she shook her head. “But I don't know. Charlotte had some pretty damaging evidence.”
“Baby, how many times have you watched
Matlock
and seen where the person being accused has a mound of evidence against them, but in the end, Matlock always finds out the truth, clearing the person of the supposable wrong doing?” Phillip said.
Shelby laughed. “Now you sound like Travis.”
“Ah, you got jokes now? I'm serious. Sometimes things look worse than what they are. Even when all the evidence seems to point in a certain direction, there's always hope and sometimes, even a legitimate loophole.”
“You must have the faith of a mustard seed to believe that. She's got cell phone details with date and time stamps, copies of online chats, and full voice mail messages,” Shelby said.
“And with all that, she still doesn't have this man red handed on tape, nor does she have a personal witness to any of the alleged activities,” Phillip said, trying to convince his wife that anything was possible.
Shelby stopped walking again, causing Phillip to jerk backward for the second time.
“Baby, I might need my arm for writing tomorrow. If you keep stopping, sooner or later you'll dislocate my shoulder.”
Now Shelby was the one with the serious look on her face. “My dear husband. Let me let you in on a little something. I know I've only known Charlotte for a couple of days, but she looks like a very smart woman to me. And if she is the smart woman I think she is, then she wouldn't have pulled out everything she had on her husband.
“She might have a video somewhere or credit card receipts for hotels. She's not going to let him know everything she's got, for two reasons. Number one, she might need the other information if she has to go to court for divorce. And number two, she may really want her husband to fess up to anything else he might be hiding from her, to once again give him a chance to redeem himself.”
What Shelby said made sense to Phillip, but he still asked, “Do you really think she has something else on the guy?”
“I'm willing to bet she does.”
Phillip shook his head. “You women are something else.”
“You men are something else. The difference is, we women pay close attention to detail, and we have memories like an elephant. Often, not because we are looking for anything, but when we think something is off kilter, we pay even closer attention until we find out where the problem truly lies.”
“Are you serious? I think I pay pretty good attention to detail,” Phillip said.
“And don't discount our women's intuition,” Shelby added.
“So pretty much what you're saying is, when women pay attention to detail, remember things, use women's intuition, and all these modern resources available today, y'all can be lethal?” Phillip asked.
“Bingo,” Shelby said.
“Whew. Remind me never to make you mad at me again,” Phillip said.
“All I know is that when you finally called for a break in that session, Charlotte didn't look like she was losing any steam. And she probably did have a couple of other things she might have to pull out in their bedroom,” Shelby said.
Phillip pulled at Shelby's arm again so they could continue walking. “I hope not. You know I'm being impartial because I have to be. I do have to admit that all that stuff Charlotte has on him does look pretty damaging.”
Shelby nodded her head in agreement.
“There it is.” Phillip pointed his flashlight in the direction a little ahead of them. “Our log.”
They walked up to the log they had so many fond memories of.
“Somehow it doesn't seem as big as I remember it,” Shelby said.
Phillip examined the bark closely with his flashlight, looking for dirt and bugs. They both took a seat after seeing that it was safe to do so. The so-called log was actually the trunk of a tree which had fallen along the path of the trail.
“Ah, it's just right,” Shelby said. “I wish we could take a chunk of this tree home and have it carved into a bench or something. I'd sit it in the backyard and we could pretend like we're out here in the woods.”
“Yeah, right. How are we going to tune out the sounds of traffic and the smell of smog?”
Shelby smacked Phillip playfully on his arm. “We could still listen to the crickets and swat mosquitoes.”
They sat for a few moments, enjoying the silence and the smell of pine.
“Okay, enough about poor Charlotte and Xavier. What about Beryl and Travis? What are your thoughts there?” Phillip asked.
“I see the love in Beryl's eyes as well as the frustration. Travis seems to be a fast talker, when he isn't zoning out in one of his daydreams.”
“You've noticed that too?”
“Yeah, but with his fast talking, he's actually trying to cover up the fact that half the time, he doesn't really know what is going on,” Shelby said.
“I wonder if all the guy does all day is watch TV, because that's all he talks about.”
“Deep down I really feel like Beryl wants to try to make things work out between them, and Travis only wants to do enough to get by, whether it be getting a job and keeping it just long enough to collect an unemployment check, or only helping around the house when Beryl asks him to.”
“Wow. You gathered all that?” Phillip asked.
“That and more,” Shelby said. “Beryl and I had a chance to talk this morning before anyone else came into the kitchen. She confided some things in me. I think she's been itching to talk to someone about her situation, but was too ashamed. Many of her friends and family don't know she's the one who's been carrying their family financially, and she hates the fact that she has to basically beg her husband to do stuff around the house. She feels like she is dealing with an adult sized child to go along with her two young children.”
“That's got to be frustrating. Maybe Travis has a side to the story, and it isn't as bad as Beryl is making it out to be,” Phillip said, still trying to remain neutral.
“I think his job turnover indicates that something isn't right, and playing the race card, saying the establishment is trying to keep a brotha down is just a cop out.” Shelby rolled her eyes.
“Bottom line is that a man knows when he isn't working, he isn't contributing to the financial health of his home. Just like he knows that every time a light switch is turned on, the phone rings, and the toilet flushes, that means that somebody pays for it, and that somebody isn't him.”