Did I really need to know this?
It is hard to know if any of the requirements I spelled out last week to Ping and Merly will ever come to fruition, but I did get a call from a local attorney yesterday asking for the details of what was needed to satisfy me.
I explained what was needed, and he suggested that, as it was my need, that I should be his client. By shifting it over to me, I would have had to pay the bastard. So I politely told him, no. This was Ping and Merly’s problem. The damage to me was done. But the damage to Ping’s business was ongoing. If Ping wanted relief from that, he would have to pay the bill.
The attorney was not happy but indicated that he understood the situation. Then the creep suggested that some of the work he may do might be faulty if I didn’t pay for it. Such as, the affidavit confessing her actions as grounds for separation might look good on paper but fail in the courts, or the trust for the property might be faulty.
I told the asshole, Ping and Merly would pay the price of such a failure, as the agreement I made with them would be void. If the instruments they provide are faulty, the deal is not complete. My agreement with them is for these things to happen, not just an attempt to do these things. As to whether we will hold you responsible, attorney, at fault too, will depend on what Jomar and I decide once I tell him of this attempt at coercion.
That, I suspect was enough as he said very quickly that he made no attempt to coerce and I told him I disagreed. The call ended at that point.
Right now my phone is ringing and it appears to be Ping’s phone.
Hello?
Roland, this Ping. Why you make my attorney quit?
He quit?
Yes. Why that?
Tell me honestly, Ping. Who went to your attorney to ask for the help? Was it you or was it Merly?
Merly go.
Ping, you have a problem with Merly. The attorney tried to coerce me into paying his bill. He said, if I didn’t, that the legal work would be faulty. I told him that I was going to talk to Jomar about this attempt to coerce me. I also told him there was no deal between us if the work he did failed. At this point, if the work is complete, I will honor it as far as you are concerned, but not Merly. She is as evil as Charline.
Please there be no more problem with us. Please honor for both. I promise you, no more problem. I find another attorney. I talk to the attorney alone. I will fire the attorney I have now. Please allow this.
I tell him, the deal only covered him if there was one more problem with Merly and then we end the call.
That was a few days ago. I haven’t heard from Ping or anyone else about it since the call.
Two days ago I got a weird text from someone I do not know. All it said was,
Am told you met Rachelle. Interesting girl.
I text back that she is a niece of a friend and not a girlfriend, but that, yes, I know her. I asked,
Who are you?
A past boyfriend, briefly, of Rachelle’s.
You the one who took her to Boracay?
Yes. Rachelle says you have five girls living with you. Is that true?
Yes. She told me you have two with you.
Ah, she is thinking of Jun.
Who’s Jun.
The waitress we met on Boracay. Yes, Jun is with me.
And there is another?
Yes. How are the five working out for you?
Fine. It’s all good. And you, how are your two getting along?
All here are happy. No problems.
One of my girls tells me that Rachelle can be a real handful. She said it is like she is part of a teleserye.
Yeh, I gave her the nickname, Drama. She was all of that.
Is that why you dumped her?
Partly. The other part is that I could never trust she would do as we agreed. I don’t want a slave, but I don’t want intrigue, either.
So why do you continue to chat with her?
Oh, she sees me online and asks for a chat. I figure, there is no harm in that. But I do not seek her out. She seeks me out when she needs cash. I know it, and assume she is doing the same with other guys. What the heck. She was not a gal I can deal with long term, but she was fun to be with for a few days. She’s got a kid she really does care about and so sometimes I give her a hand.
Your two don’t mind?
I’m not sure they even know, but I don’t keep it a secret. It’s just no big deal around here. Rachelle has no clue what my life is really like and I am not going to tell her.
So there is more going on then you having two gals?
Yeh. But let’s leave it there. I don’t need any shit getting back to Rachelle. I do find it interesting that your girl has Rachelle pretty well scoped out. Are the two friends?
No. The one who told me is half Rachelle’s age and is a scarily good reader of people. Rachelle is the cousin of another girl here. She comes here on occasion to play cards with others from my girl’s extended family. She never comes alone and she is not friends with my girls other than to play cards.
OK, I will mention it to Jun. I don’t think she will be interested, but what the heck. OK got to go now.
Fair enough. Interesting chat. Bye now.
L8R
Exactly why the guy contacted me, is unclear, but I suspect he was gently warning me off the girl. I never got his name or anything else about him. I wonder why? I do think Jelou will get a kick out of what the guy confirmed about his reasoning.
I haven’t given it any thought for a couple of days, but this being Saturday, Jelou is home. I will show her the chat when I see her later today. But right now I am going to pick up the wood I have been working on. That can happen later.
I am of two minds. Are the meetings, calls and crap that I must deal with, interruptions from my efforts with the wood, or, are my efforts with the wood my way of filling up extra time between the elements of my real life? Which is the important part and which is extraneous shit?
The five wooden maidens I found in the first burl are on a ledge watching me. Whenever I am on the terrace, I feel their presence. They don’t take sides. They don’t scold. They just want honesty in my movements. The movements of the blade. The words I utter. The path I take in life. It matters not to them what the results are, so long as it is truth. And with that I am at peace. I look at them to appreciate, but not to befriend. They are not friends. They are truth.
Myra is working a half shift this morning. I expect her home a little after lunch. Yesterday she asked me if I might have some alone time just to talk. This afternoon may be that time. I don’t know what it’s about, but she didn’t seem distressed, so I am hopeful that we do not have another problem.
We have not heard one word about Alida since her mom showed up here. I don’t think Myra’s concern regards her sister, but who the fuck really knows?
The wood continues to talk to my blade as I remove extraneous material. I feel calm and right with the world.
It is close to lunch time and Vieve calls me to wash up and eat. And so, I put the wood down.
Lunch is a simple thing, a vegetable stew of sorts and rice. It is nutritious and tastes fine. It’s no big deal, and I finish it quickly. I am about to return to the terrace when I see Jelou. Motioning her over I take my phone out, click through to find the chat I did with that unknown guy and indicate she should read through it and then bring the phone back to me.
Jelou has remained inside reading the texts, and I am just now back with the wood in my hands as Myra comes through the gate.
This good time to talk?
Sure, it’s fine, Myra. What’s on your mind?
Why you want me to go back to college? I have a four year degree! I need this for my job.
What is the degree in?
It an AB in Communication.
And are you working in the fields of media, advertising, or public relations?
You know I not!
OK, so you are not able to move ahead at Mercury with your degree, correct?
OK, yes.
So no chance to make more money, right?
Yes.
If you have a second degree, maybe you have a chance to make more money?
Maybe.
So you have your answer.
Why you care if I make more money. You not get my money. I keep it.
You want my children?
Yes, of course.
How will you afford to care for them as well as you and I might want, if you don’t make more money?
Oh! You dying? What happen?
No, I am not dying right now. I am planning for the future.
That why you want Jelou and Jecim to go to college?
Yes, exactly. I want all three of you to get better paying jobs to support the family after I die.
How I do that when I am working?
How are you going to work, when you are pregnant and give birth?
OK. OK. So have babies, get another degree, get a better job?
Yes.
You not love me, why you worry about what happen when you dead?
I want my children to be well cared for. OK?
Yes, that true. OK. You are crazy, but OK. When you want me to start this?
Get pregnant. Work until you must stop and then when you are ready to start again, do college and not a job.
That appears to be the end of it. I get a kiss and she enters the house.
The wood, having never left my hands, is again consuming all my attention until Jelou comes out, places my phone near me, kisses me and returns into the house with a giggle that cannot be missed.
The rest of the afternoon passes without interruption. It is hot today, with little breeze. I have a fan running and, though I am warm, I am comfortable. It’s a fine day for me, though I suspect the intense sun is not welcome for the girls, as it keeps them inside.
The scene at the supper table has me entirely confused. All have their phones out and appear to be chatting.
Hey, can you all knock off the texting until supper is over?
Myra seems to be the only one with the presence to answer. Sorry, you right. Girls, tell them we text after supper over!
What? Who the fuck are you girls texting?
To which Jelou answers, Rosemarie, Jecim answers, Abbey, Myra says, Joy, Jezryl says, Jovelyn, and Vieve says, Mitch! This one is Abbey’s cousin.
A cousin to the one Jecim is chatting with?
Yes that one.
I have never heard of these people before. Who are they?
Jelou smiles, giggles and informs me. Most Jake’s girls.
Who the fuck is Jake?
Rolie! You chat him.
Jelou what are you talking about?
The chat you give me to read. That Jake.
How do you know his name is Jake?
He tell me. I text him. I tell him I am Jelou, the one to tell you about Chelly. He ask how old am I. I tell him and he say I to text Rosemarie. He ask for my cell, because I using yours. I give it him. Later Rosemarie text me. She thirteen! She ask, who else here? I tell her and she say give me cell numbers. Hehe, all the cells here go crazy.
Is Rosemarie his daughter, or niece?
No silly, she one of his girls! Like me. They all almost like us. Rolie, you know what different?
No, Jelou, what is different?
Jake loves them. All of them. Real love. He say it. They know it. That different. You know what the same in a weird way?
I have no idea. What?
He make them get good education. All! No exception. I tell them we have exception here, because Vieve and Jezryl not complete high school. She say I should tell you about the ALS program. They can get same as high school diploma with the ALS certificate. Then they can go to college too! You do that now?
At this point my head is spinning. The bastard said he had two girls, right? Did he lie? I grab my phone and run back over my texts with him… damn it, he didn’t. He admitted two were there but not that it was only two. That was my assumption and he never corrected it.
We will cover the rest of this after supper.
I guess not, as Myra needs to add, Rolie, Jelou is almost right about one thing, but not exactly. The one I chat with is Joy. She in her late thirties. She not graduate high school. He not have her go back to get an education.
Are you suggesting she is like Alida?
No! She not the boss of the house. She say others as important. She share a room with Jun. They lovers. She say all girls belong to Jake. She not interfere with that. So not like Alida.
Rolie! That not true! I talk to Mitch. She say Joy like the wife. All know she special to Jake.
Vieve, I suspect that their lives are based on different circumstances than are ours. I am sure Joy is special and I am sure Myra is right, she is not like Alida. I know it is exciting to find others like us, but let’s all relax a bit and have a nice supper.
Rolie, it not just one family.
OK, Jezryl. I give up on a quiet supper. Why isn’t it just one family?
The one I speak to, she from a different family and she say there many girls there too. But her guy, he is married.
Wait a second… are you saying that this guy is more like me? Married, but with other girls?
No! She with him. She OK with it. Jovelyn say she nice.
That is beyond weird, but if it works, then good for them. Like I say, each family is different.
Jovelyn say it the same in one way. All the girls do with other girls and no one do anything outside the home. We all the same that way. See? That another way Alida not like them. She tell me that her guy not want anyone below fourteen. Jake take them at twelve mostly, but sometime at eleven.
Oh Jesus, that is something I just didn’t need to know. I grab my phone and text this Jake.
Loose lips sink ships! Tell all your girls to be careful what they say! Tell the guy who has this Jovelyn the same thing!
I get back a,
Roger that! Tnx.
Girls, you may continue chatting with the others, but for the next twenty-four hours, no chatting. Jake needs to get control of some things over there. You have done nothing wrong, but I have heard things tonight that I should not have learned. That means you learned things you should never have heard. Are we clear?
I get eyebrows around the table.
Jecim puts her spoon down, takes a drink of water, before asking in a plaintive voice? You going to add more now?
Why do you ask that?
The others, they have more.
Didn’t I just get done saying each family is different?
Yes.
OK, well, we are done adding. No more.
Jelou shakes her head, looks right at Jecim and, I gather, in Cebuano, tells her that she is stupid, because Jezryl, now clearly not happy that her sister has insulted her best friend, asks, Why you say that? She right to ask!
No! Are you stupid too? He not want more! You not know this man? He not want girls all over, all the time. He say, go to school! Go to work. Leave me alone with my wood. Leave me alone with my brandy. He not grabbing us. He never grab us. We go to bed with him, but he not worry if we not fuck. How many time you go to bed with him and he just sleep? Yes he hold you, but he not do sex. It OK with him. He like us. He like us more than want our sex. Why you not know this? He just not want to be hurt again. If we all here, then if one is bad and leave, we here to protect him. We protect his heart. Why you not know this? Now he know, we not leaving, so he plan for our future. He say, go to college! Why you not understand him?
Myra has been quietly eating, listening, but not interfering with the back and forth. She looks at Jelou and then me, and then Jelou, pushes some food around with her spoon, looks again at Jelou, lifts her head up and says, as if to the universe, There times that we think people are broken. Maybe because they come from bad places. We think we need to fix them. But no, they are special. They are not broken. They are better for it. God works his miracles.