The events that led to my
divorce
years
ago nearly wrecked my entire life. My troubled relationship with my ex wife was
a valid emotional addiction. Getting over her was perhaps the most difficult
struggle I have ever faced. Now years later she has returned out of the blue!
"
That woman is like a bad penny!" My mother exclaimed as she
sat with my daughter,
Claire, over
tea and bagels. I was away on business and my 15 year old daughter was left to
hold down the fort. We had compromised that she could have some girlfriends
over but there were to be no parties. There was a knock at the door and my
daughter answered to see a very attractive woman standing on our porch. The
way
the woman was dressed reminded Claire of a viper.
The woman lowered her shades and gave my daughter a head to toe evaluation.
Claire was instantly made to feel inferior by the woman in one single glance.
But my daughter was not taken completely by surprise. She had seen this woman
before among my old pictures. The woman was her father's ex wife. "
I'm
sorry but my father isn't home, Ma'am. I can't allow strangers inside but I can
leave him a message if you like."
Claire's deliberate emphasis on the words "
Ma'am and Strangers"
was a counter strike for the snooty glance the woman had given her. She
pretended not to know the woman and placed herself in the center of the
doorway. Claire's grandfather had once said this woman had broken a
thick
whiskey bottle over a girl's head and threatened her with the jagged edge.
Claire studied a particularly vicious form of martial arts known as
Krav Maga.
The woman was older, thinner and smaller than my daughter. My daughter was very
fitness conscious. She was taut and muscular and boasted of having almost no
excess body fat. Within mere seconds of meeting each other it was clear neither
approved of the other.
Without a word the woman returned to her beautiful black BMW and drove away.
Claire rushed to her phone and called my mother who lived next door. My mother
was at the door a few moments later. She inquired if the woman had said
anything. She admitted that her silence was a bad sign. From previous
experience, this could indicate that she had personal motives for showing up.
Claire saw concern in my mother's eyes. The return of my ex wife would most
certainly end badly regardless of the scenario. She warned my daughter to steer
clear of the woman. She was dangerous in a way few had ever given her credit
for. My mother should have noticed that my daughter remained quiet and did not
say either way if she would leave the situation alone.
My ex wife worked as a nurse at a local hospital. The prospect of anyone being
In the care of this woman made my mother and Claire's grandmother shudder.
Unlike me, my ex wife continued to gain infamy after we split. She had
remarried twice after our divorce. Her second husband's career as a police
officer was destroyed as a result of their marital problems. The third husband
had been shot in the back. The husband recovered and the incident was deemed
accidental.
When the woman appeared in the hospital parking lot my daughter was there
parked beside her BMW. She leaned against the front of our SUV. Today my
daughter was not dressed in sweatpants and a flannel shirt. She was in
knee
high leather heeled boots, tight blue jeans and a cropped halter top. Her
auburn hair was no longer in her typical pony tail but draped across her
shoulders. I knew the outfit and thought my daughter had gotten rid of it as I
had commanded. When my ex wife saw my daughter she stopped in her tracks. She
seemed uneasy as she approached. She inquired how my daughter had found where
she worked. My daughter ignored her question and stated, "
I think we
should talk."
Claire stated innocently that she understood if the woman was frightened to get
in the SUV. My ex wife boldly accepted the ride. My daughter drove to a well
populated Mexican restaurant in the mall. Claire smiled as my ex wife took it
upon herself to order warm milk for the
child and a tequila shot for herself. Before the
discussion began Claire's phone rang and she politely apologized stating the
call was important. My ex wife stared at her as Claire cooed and flirted with
the voice on the phone. My ex wife's jaw dropped as Claire ended the
conversation with her caller. "
I'm actually having lunch with your
mother at this very moment. I will call you tonight and let you know how it
went."
Claire sat the phone down and informed my ex wife she had met her son. She
confided that she had repeatedly reminded him they are technically step
siblings. But
Gage did not seem to mind, he seemed determined
to pursue Claire. He had called her every day since they met at a party nearly
a week ago. Claire then asked the astonished woman how a mother would feel
watching helplessly as her son's life was systematically devoured by a caustic
and toxic relationship. "
How do you think my grandmother felt watching
you destroy her son's life? How would you feel if someone were to put your son
through that same hell, knowing there was nothing you could do to stop it?"
Claire sat a $20 on the table and got up. She took her glass of warm milk and
gulped it down until it was gone. She pointed at the tequila shot warning that
long term alcohol use will add 10 years to her appearance. Claire gave the
older woman a saddened final evaluation. She left the woman at the restaurant
to find her own way back. My ex wife has not returned since.
My daughter spent the next four weeks of her young life grounded. My mother
disagreed with my decision to place Claire under house arrest but understood
my
reasons. Perhaps my daughter's approach was the only solution to the threat
posed to her family. But my concern was the danger in which she had placed
herself.
