Chapter 12 - The Service Of Papers
The rain began to fall in large,
heavy drops,
splattering aggressively against the hot concrete driveway,
mirroring the chaotic,
rapidly escalating disaster of David's miserable homecoming.
He stood paralyzed in the center of the dark garage,
surrounded by the cardboard monuments of his ruined marriage,
unable to process the massive,
unstoppable avalanche of consequences that was currently burying him alive.
Julianne appeared in the doorway,
her hair instantly frizzing in the damp,
oppressive humidity,
her eyes sweeping over the massive wall of packed boxes with a look of utter,
horrified comprehension.
"Oh my god,"
she gasped,
her hands flying up to cover her mouth,
her selfish,
narrow worldview finally grasping the catastrophic severity of his situation.
"She kicked you out,
David,
she actually kicked you out."
Before David could formulate a coherent,
defensive response,
a second vehicle,
a dark,
unassuming sedan with tinted windows,
pulled slowly into the driveway,
parking directly behind Julianne's abandoned,
rain-soaked suitcase.
A tall,
broad-shouldered man in a cheap,
wrinkled suit stepped out of the car,
holding a thick,
heavy manila envelope securely against his chest to protect it from the worsening,
torrential downpour.
He walked purposefully up the driveway,
his face a blank,
professional mask of total indifference,
ignoring the beautiful,
panicked mistress and focusing entirely on the broken,
sweating man standing in the garage.
"David Miller?"
the man asked,
his voice loud,
clear,
cutting sharply through the sound of the pounding rain.
David blinked,
dazed,
disoriented,
feeling as though he was trapped in a surreal,
waking nightmare that simply refused to end.
"Yes,"
David croaked,
his throat incredibly dry,
his voice barely a pathetic,
trembling whisper.
"Who are you,
what do you want?"
"I am an officer of the family court,"
the man stated flatly,
stepping under the protective overhang of the garage roof,
extending his arm with practiced,
mechanical precision.
"You have been officially served."
He pushed the heavy,
damp envelope directly into David's frozen,
unresisting hands,
turned sharply on his heel,
and walked briskly back to his idling vehicle,
disappearing into the gray,
stormy afternoon without another single word.
David stared down at the brown paper,
his mind completely blank,
his body numb,
refusing to open the terrifying,
life-altering documents hidden within.
Julianne,
driven by a morbid,
insatiable curiosity and a rising,
selfish panic,
stepped forward and aggressively snatched the envelope from his loose,
weak grip.
She ripped the seal open,
pulling out a massive,
thick stack of perfectly typed,
heavily stamped legal papers,
her eyes scanning the bold,
black headings with terrifying speed.
"Emergency Ex Parte Order for Temporary Custody,"
she read aloud,
her voice trembling,
her eyes widening in absolute shock.
"Petition for Dissolution of Marriage,
Notice of Asset Freeze,
Temporary Restraining Order preventing removal of the minor child from the primary residence."
She dropped the papers as if they were literally burning her fingers,
the stark,
black-and-white evidence of his total ruin fluttering chaoticly to the dusty garage floor.
"You have nothing,"
she whispered,
taking a slow,
horrified step backward,
looking at him as if he were suddenly a diseased,
contagious stranger.
"Your wife took the house,
she took the kid,
she took the money,
you literally have absolutely nothing."
"Julianne,
please,"
David begged,
reaching a trembling hand out toward her,
his pride completely shattered,
his arrogant facade entirely dissolved.
"Just give me a minute to think,
I can fix this,
I just need to call my lawyer,
I need to talk to Sarah."
But Julianne was already backing away,
her survival instincts overriding any fake,
superficial affection she might have once harbored for her wealthy,
married lover.
"I am not doing this,"
she declared,
her voice hard,
cold,
and completely devoid of sympathy.
"I did not sign up to be homeless,
David,
I did not sign up for court orders and angry wives and public scandals."
She grabbed the handle of her suitcase,
turning away from him without a single ounce of hesitation,
marching defiantly down the driveway through the pouring rain.
She flagged down a passing,
unlucky taxi cab,
threw her expensive luggage into the trunk,
and climbed into the back seat,
never once looking back at the man whose life she had carelessly helped destroy.
David was left entirely alone,
standing in the dark,
damp garage,
surrounded by the physical,
boxed-up remains of his shattered life,
holding the legal decree of his absolute failure.
He sank slowly to his knees,
the rough concrete biting into his skin,
the rain pounding relentlessly on the roof above,
and finally,
pathetically,
began to weep.
He had wanted a break from his family,
a selfish,
luxurious escape from the responsibilities of being a father and a husband.
And now,
the universe had granted his wish with brutal,
unforgiving finality,
leaving him completely,
May you like
utterly,
and terrifyingly alone in the dark.
