A wife for my brother

After his argument with Deanna, Harry was having a hard time with everything. Work was boring him, Laura was boring him, even the music was starting to annoy him. He couldn’t get her tearful look out of his head, the grimace on her sad mouth. Guilt, he felt a guilt that tortured him. In the course of those days he tried many times to call, but he didn’t even get to dial her number; what was he going to tell her? How would he apologize to her?

Laura didn’t know what to do or who to turn to, the marriage she wanted so much was going down the drain. If this continued it was certain that after the baby was born it would all be over. The only thing she could think of was to turn to Camila, maybe she could talk to her son and find out what was happening to him.

She arrived at the house unannounced. Camila was with Arlene and Beverly catching up “socially”. When she saw her come in with her sad face and a hand on her belly she immediately stood up.

– Laura, I wasn’t expecting you… are you okay? –

– I’m sorry, Camila, I didn’t know you had visitors –

– Don’t worry, dear. Look at that face! Are you feeling bad? – Arlene told her.

– No, no… I’m fine… –

– Sit down, Laura, you’re not well – Camila told her.

– Thank you…

– Tell me what’s wrong –

– I need to talk to you about Harry, but… –

– Don’t worry, you can talk confidently in front of Arlene and Beverly –

– But, it’s… it’s very personal –

– Darling, we are all women and we have known Harry since he was born, be confident – Arlene just wanted to hear the gossip.

– I don’t know what’s wrong with Harry, since your birthday party he’s been different… Weird… –

– Weird? What is that boy doing now? –

– I don’t know, I don’t know… –

Anguish gripped her and her eyes threatened to start crying. Beverly remained silent.

– Don’t cry, Laura, for God’s sake! What is my son doing to you? –

– Camila… I think there’s another woman –

– What?! It can’t be! –

– I can’t find any other explanation… What am I going to do? Our baby wasn’t even born…

Arlene put her hand to her mouth and Beverly leaned her body a little forward.

– I’m going to kill him, if what you’re saying is true, I’m going to kill him –

– I’m not sure, but from the way he’s been behaving it looks like it. He’s started drinking at night, he’s taciturn… we don’t have any intimacy anymore… –

– What you’re describing, Laura, is a heartbreak – Beverly was astute.

– A heartbreak? –

– Yes, Camilla, an unrequited love. Maybe he’s in love with someone else, but from what Laura says it’s not reciprocated… and you say it all started on Camila’s birthday, Laura? –

– Yes… that night I found him unconscious in the garden. He drank all night without stopping. Even Susan tried to stop him… He’s not like that… –

– It’s true, my son is not a big drinker. But to be unconscious is the last straw! He’ll listen to me! –

– The night of Deanna’s birthday at Daniel’s house he came back with a long face, not even meeting our friends cheer him up… He was dodging them all the time, he hardly spoke to them and he didn’t want to play anything either… We hardly spoke, sometimes I find him in the living room in the middle of the night sitting there staring at nothing… –

Laura broke down, she was desperate.

Her marriage was in a maelstrom of confusion and going straight to the precipice. If she couldn’t fix it, everything they had gone through to get married would have been for nothing. She would be left alone with her child and divorced shortly after becoming a mother.

– Don’t cry, Laura! It may have repercussions for my grandson… Harry is a difficult young man at times, but I’m sure he loves you. All this must be because he is not used to his new life; he always did what he wanted and now he has to settle down and do what he has to do.

– Camila is right, my dear. You mustn’t get upset like this, it must be something temporary – Arlene told her.

– Come, come with me… Let’s go lie down for a while and rest. In your condition you have to put your health first… Let’s go…

– Do you think there really is another woman? – Arlene asked Beverly when they were alone.

– I don’t know… I don’t think so… –

Beverly didn’t say anything else. Not for nothing was she known to be one of the best lawyers in town. You didn’t need to be a genius to figure it out, you just had to pay attention to the details.

According to Laura everything started to go wrong after Camila’s birthday, he even fell drunk on the floor, what could have led to that? That same night Daniel and Deanna were performing their personal “dance”, anyone who had observed them would notice it. They were provoking each other, shamelessly. Deanna had known Harry since their college careers began and from what little she knew they were very close. So much so that she ended up marrying his brother.

And the comment about the other birthday, hers. Could it be possible that Harry’s long lost unrequited love was Daniel’s wife? No, of course not, right? It would be too much. Had Daniel stolen the woman he loved from his brother? It was true that in the office they hardly crossed paths and hardly talked about work. In the general meetings Harry barely looked at him and disappeared as soon as they finished, as if he didn’t want to be in the same room with him. Oh, for God’s sake, could it be?

It was pure conjecture, probably if Harry was in love with another woman it couldn’t possibly be her. It was too obvious, even Laura would have to have noticed. Besides, Daniel wouldn’t do something like that to his brother, unless… he didn’t know. And those rumors that had been spread about his wife and Harry having had an affair, if they were true Laura wouldn’t have allowed a wedding like that. She wouldn’t have allowed Deanna to even come near him. What was missing in all of this?

Her instinct and sense of smell told her there was more behind a simple unrequited love. She works with both of them daily, she just had to sharpen her focus a little and maybe something would emerge. If she could check it out she would find a gold mine. It would require patience and perseverance, two things she had plenty of. Perhaps she wouldn’t even have to employ “unorthodox” methods to achieve her goal.

But it wasn’t going to be enough just to see them interact, she needed the third factor in play: Deanna. She needed to see them together in some situation to be able to analyze their reactions. In her profession she had witnessed almost everything: what they say is not true, what appears to be a lie is the truth, and what is overheard is usually the opposite. For a sure victory, you first have to put all the pieces on the board and analyze how they fit together.

Camila returned after calming Laura down.

– I’m so sorry about all this… Poor Laura… –

– Don’t worry, my friend, it’s understandable –

– I can’t believe my sons are behaving like two insane people. First Daniel marries that woman and now Harry does these things… –

– What is Laura going to do? – Beverly asked her.

– She doesn’t know, she just cries. I’m worried about the child because of the mother’s nerves. But I will talk to Harry very seriously, it can’t go on like this –

– It’s the best thing you can do, Camilla. Maybe he’ll hear you –

– And if he doesn’t I’ll get Charles to intervene. This is nothing more than the result of his slackness with Harry, always allowing him everything… –

– Do you think he can accomplish anything? –

– Charles is as strict as Daniel, if he tells him to do something he’ll have no choice but to do it –

– I hope so…

– Oh, dear! Next week is the annual company party, Harry has never been to one before because he just started working there, can you imagine a scene like the one on my birthday, all drunk and lying on the floor? What a disaster, please! –Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.

And there was Beverly’s chance. Daniel would have to go with his wife and Harry with Laura. This year that party would be quite an event: the CEO would introduce his wife and not only to members of the company, but also other guests, even from the competition. She could watch them without them noticing and finally get her answer.

If Harry’s “other woman” turned out to be Deanna, his path to Daniel would narrow considerably.