Chapter 8 - The Desperate Plea
Two weeks later, the Virginia rain poured heavily outside the gates of Riverridge Manor.
I sat in the library, reviewing the final terms of the divorce settlement. Arthur sat across from me, sipping tea.
"Richard’s lawyers have completely folded," Arthur reported. "He has no funds left to fight. The embezzlement charges are being held in abeyance pending his full surrender of all marital property and signing of sole legal and physical custody over to you."
"And Evelyn?"
"Living in a small one-bedroom extended-stay motel near the highway," Arthur said dryly. "Paid for by the remaining balance of Richard’s personal checking account, which is rapidly hitting zero."
Suddenly, my phone buzzed with an alert from the gate security.
I looked at the monitor. Standing in the pouring rain outside the iron gates was Richard. He wasn't in his white BMW—it had been repossessed three days ago. He was soaked to the skin, wearing a muddy suit, holding a small cardboard box.
"Do you want me to have Marcus remove him?" Arthur asked.
I looked at the screen for a long moment. "No. I'll talk to him one last time."
I put on a dark coat, took an umbrella, and walked down the long paved driveway to the front gates. Marcus stood nearby, ready to step in if necessary.
Richard looked pathetic. His posture was shattered, his hair plastered to his forehead, his eyes sunken and red from sleepless nights. When he saw me step up to the iron bars, he pressed his wet hands against the metal.
"Laura," he wept, his voice shaking. "Please... just five minutes. That's all I ask."
"You have two minutes, Richard," I said smoothly, staying dry under my umbrella.
"I lost everything," he sobbed. "The company is gone. My car is gone. My friends won't answer my calls. Mother is screaming at me every single hour of the day... Laura, I'm sleeping on a broken sofa in a motel room that smells like stale smoke. I don't have enough money to buy dinner tonight."
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"Actions have consequences, Richard."
"I was blind!" he yelled, grabbing the iron bars. "I was so focused on making my mother proud, on feeling like the big man, that I didn't see what I had right in front of me! You were the genius! You were the strength! Laura, I still love you! Please, give me a job... any job! Let me see my daughters!"
