While it was true there were a few aspects of the teaching profession she had not missed, the overall experience had been amazing. Returning to the classroom would be a good place to start rebuilding her life. But before she could do that, she needed to talk with Bennett. It was time to face her past and start working on the future as an independent woman. Time to grow the hell up!
Chapter 9
Carrington Office
Searcy, Arkansas
November 24, 2023
Taylor, who had been talking for a while now, suddenly stopped and looked at Harvey Cox. He looked like a man who had just been hit by a Mack truck. Realizing he might need a break, Taylor, the perfect hostess, said, "I know this is a lot. Do you need a break to take it all in?"
Chucking softly to himself, Harvey replied, "No, I was just thinking that you have suffered so much in your life. And, yet, you are not bitter or angry. Loss can do that to a person. Even now, as you are recounting all of this to me, you are more worried about how it is affecting me than you. I am sure that it can't be easy talking about this. It was a really rough time in your life."
"It was," replied Taylor. "At the time, I was just realizing that I needed to grow up and stop being a little girl. I think part of me stopped maturing when my parents died. It took another tragedy to force me to stand on my own two feet and figure out what I wanted out of life."
"I don't know why, but I always thought Bennett was the one who wanted the divorce. It sounds like you had decided to end themarriage long before he did in the spring of that year. What caused that change?" asked Harvey.
Nodding her head in agreement, Taylor said, "Yes, you are right. That was what any reasonable person would have done. Only when you are in the middle of something like this can you find yourself calm and rational one minute and then stark, raving crazy the next. That's what happened here. I am not proud of what happened next, but I would not change it for the world."
"That sounds interesting. I can't wait to hear the next part," replied Harvey, with his pen ready to begin making notes.
"Well, get ready; it is a doozy."
Stone Cottage
Gulf Shores, Alabama
March 2012
After her shower, Taylor called Bennett on his cell.
"Taylor, is this you? Are you okay? What's wrong?" Bennett sounded worried, but his voice had an edge that Taylor had never heard before. He was sort of whispering. It was as if he was doing something he thought he shouldn't.
"Yes, it's me. I am fine. Nothing is wrong, but I thought we could talk for a minute if that's okay?"
"I only have a second, but not on the mobile phones. Are you at Edna's?"
Taylor replied, "Yes, but—"
Bennett cut her off, "Good, I will ring you right back on the landline. Your absence has created too much interest. You never know when a reporter will hack the cell lines and hear everything we say."
"Umm, okay, but…" Why was talking to her husband always so complicated?
"Just hang up, and I will call you right back." He was starting to sound irritated, like she was the one who was not making any sense.
"Wait," she snapped, “do you even know the number?" Taylor didn't even know the number. She and Joules had been talking by cell all week. She knew there was a house phone but didn't know the number.
"Yes, I will call you in a sec."
"Okay, bye." Taylor hung up. The house phone rang almost instantly, "Okay, it's me. Is this better?" Taylor tried to be polite, but all this cloak-and-dagger stuff seemed a little over the top for Bennett.
"Yes, I don't want you to call me on my cell unless it is an emergency. Your absence has been noticed, and I want to avoid any nosy reporters intercepting our calls. There is no telling what they might discover if they did."
"Do you really think things could get that out of hand? And how did you get this number anyway?" From Taylor's voice, it was clear she thought Bennett was overreacting.
"Joules gave it to me the night she arranged the cottage. Also, as for how this mess might go, it could blow wide open at any time if the press knew what they were looking for and where to find it. I don't want to help them in any way. So please do me a favor and don't talk about this with anyone, even Joules, unless you are both on a landline. They are the safest. Okay, onto other matters, why did you call?"
Typical Bennett, he was all business. In the days since the "incident," his tone had gone from that of contrite and begging in voicemail messages to that of the annoyed politician whose wife was bothering him at work. Taylor thought about calling him on thecarpet about his change in attitude but decided against it. This was supposed to be a friendly call.
