Take a Break
Prompt Sixteen: Take a Break
“Fitz, are you coming home soon?” Jemma said into her phone. She placed a hand on her forehead, her temperature was reading warm. She had been working too hard to try and manage everything at home.
“Soon, Jemma, I need to get this project finished. I can’t leave without it being done; you know how much is weighing on it. The team and I believe we’re so close to the breakthrough,” he replied, he sounded out of breath.
“Your family really misses you,” Jemma said with disappointment cutting through her voice. She looked around the corner to peek at their daughter, happily working on a Rubik’s cube. She was four and a half and had finished it for the first time last week. And Fitz had missed it, just like he had been missing everything else that was happening at their homestead the past two months.
“And I miss you, too,” he said. It sounded like he meant it. The edges of Jemma’s lips twitched, she couldn’t be mad at him. The project he was working on would revolutionize the world. She knew that for how hard it was to work, look after their daughter Elena (named after the first woman to hold a doctorate degree, Elena Cornaro Piscopia) and the house, Fitz was doing his work so far away from them. And that wasn’t easy either.
“Well, if you can spare a weekend or two if the work isn’t tying up fast enough we’d really appreciate it. Daisy is coming and staying for a few weeks. We’re going to the lake house. You should take a break and run away with us for the summer,” Jemma said, knowing it would be a dream.
There was a polite chuckle at the other end.
“God, I wish I could,” he said. But he was thinking maybe he could swing a weekend. Daisy would be on his case otherwise.
He could hear Jemma sigh with defeat on the other end. He wanted to apologize, but he knew being home wasn’t the worse thing he had done. In fact, he was up to something much more shameful. He was on his way to her house at the very moment…
Fitz had met this woman in the street on a scorching hot day. She had looked like a wreck, said her boyfriend had hurt her and she was looking for a safe space. Fitz invited her into his temporary apartment. One thing led to another, and Fitz was filled with so much shame. He couldn’t pinpoint why he continued to let this affair continue, he figured it was due to convenience. He did not love this woman, Ada, but enjoyed the loneliness she lifted from his life. Fitz wasn’t getting any sleep, the thoughts he had about his infidelity kept him up at night. He rang the doorbell to the woman’s apartment, and bowed his head, running a hand through his hair. His fingers thumbed an envelope he had in his hand. He avoided looking at his face in the reflection of her door, knowing what he would see would disgust him.
Daisy arrived a few days after the call and helped Jemma pack the car up. They drove the few hours upstate to the lake house they owned and went to every summer. It felt odd to be there without Fitz, but Jemma was getting used to him not being around. Elena still seemed okay with the arrangement, she missed her father, and Fitz never missed his daily video chat with his daughter, where he would read her a bedtime story before bed. Elena always begged him to read ad reread Curious George Discovers the Sun. Jemma was certain Fitz would have the whole story memorized by now.
As Elena went off to sleep over at the neighbor’s house, Jemma and Daisy were free to enjoy the day and night without the responsibility of a child. Which meant, Jemma could drink as much as she pleased, and she took the opportunity. They spent most of the day lounging on the lake, laying on the water mat, and drinking a gallon worth of Sangria. Daisy, pleased with the seclusion of the lake house, created little tremors in the water, flexing her powers freely.
As Jemma became intoxicated her drunk mind began to speak a sober heart, and conversation quickly centered on Fitz’ absence.
“Our phone calls have started to become short. He tells me less and less about the project. He says it’s still going well and that they are almost done with it, but there’s a sound in his voice that tells me otherwise. Maybe he’s been feeling sick? Maybe he isn’t close to the end of the project? I don’t know but he doesn’t sound all right, and that makes me worry because Fitz would work himself to death,” Jemma blabbed.
Daisy, who had been circling a finger in the water making figure eight’s and adding a tremor, listened intently. She remained silent, thinking what to say to her best friend.
“Oh, and a few days ago and called and said not to freak out as he had to take a few thousand dollars out our bank account. He said one of his coworkers was in a crunch and he wanted to help him out. I ask him for names in case I know the poor fellow and he shuts his mouth. I don’t know why he is being so distant. I know he is distant, geographically, but he doesn’t need to be that way in our marriage. He’s missing out on so many moments with Elena,” Jemma continued.
Daisy digested the information and carefully calculated her words.
“I know a way to help but you may not like it or feel comfortable doing it, so it’s really up to you,” Daisy said.
“What?” Jemma sat up, causing her body to dip a few inches in the water on the mat. She quickly steadied her cup of wine.
“We could hack into his accounts,” Daisy said flatly, she stopped making tremors in the water.
Jemma looked conflicted. She knew it was wrong to invade his privacy, but wondered if it was really wrong if he wasn’t okay. The information they could find out could give Jemma a way to help him, and maybe he would be able to come home faster.
“I mean, I wouldn’t be doing the hacking, it would be you,” Jemma said, using that as her way to clear her conscience. Daisy lifted her eyebrows and smiled. She stood up on the water mat, and on wobbly legs walked over to the dock. From there she grabbed the pitcher of sangria and motioned for Jemma to come with her back up to the house. Jemma followed in Daisy’s footsteps, and the two women hurriedly rushed back to the house.
Jemma sat across the table from Daisy. She would let Daisy do her work without anxiously standing over her shoulder. Besides, Daisy wouldn’t let her get too close with a glass of sangria to her computer.
Getting in to Fitz’ accounts was a bit difficult. His knowledge in engineering helped him set up tight security. But Daisy was a master and hacked into his email accounts in just a few minutes time.
At the top of the email list was a chain between Jemma and Fitz. Daisy scanned through some of those emails and they were basically little love notes they sent back and forth to each other. Daisy noted that Jemma sent all of hers in the early morning hours, just when Fitz would be waking up, and Fitz sent him around bedtime hours, probably thinking of her before he went to sleep. Daisy nearly threw up in her mouth from how nauseatingly cute their relationship was.
Then she saw an airline receipt and confirmation. She passed over the date but didn’t register it as today’s date as she saw an flagged email that immediately caught her attention.
A few emails down was an email marked with high importance, with the subject line simply a row of dollar signs. Any other email like this, Daisy would know it was a scam or a virus, but she ran it against her computers processes and it came off clean. She clicked into it, and then read.
“Dear Mr. Fitz,
I hope this email finds you are doing well, both physically and fiscally. Fiscally speaking, I see an arrangement in our future. My name is James Reynolds, you may have heard of me from the mouth of one Maria Reynolds. I bet she hasn’t been wearing her wedding ring.
Now, I know you are a very important man, your work in engineering is all over the top search results on a quick Google search, and it looks like you have a wonderful family as well. So I bet you don’t want to tarnish all of that good reputation. You can go on screwing my wife, and for as long as you like, if you pay up. Otherwise, I’m telling your wife. Bring an envelope of $1500 cash the next time you see her, which according to Maria is tonight. You do that and you keep your precious reputation.
I’m glad we can make this arrangement, Mr. Fitz.
- James Reynolds”
As Daisy read the email she gasped, and her jaw dropped. Jemma was intrigued to see what she found, but Daisy realized this wasn’t something she should show Jemma. Or was it? This could still be a scam, a lie. The man had put Jemma’s home address, Elena’s name, on the bottom of the email, so maybe not. She weighed the repercussions it could have on Jemma, and her goddaughter Elena. Swallowing on a now dry throat, Daisy flipped to read Fitz’ reply email, hoping it would be a refute and a misunderstanding.
“Dear Mr. Reynolds,
I don’t suppose I have any choice at this point. I’ll give the money to Maria, but I’m done seeing her.
- Leo Fitz”
Fitz had confessed, confirming Daisy’s nightmare. The email was dated just a few days ago. Jemma got up from her seat and began to walk over to Daisy. She didn’t have time to think.
When Maria opened the door, she smiled and quickly let Fitz in. He followed her to the living room. She went to take off Fitz’ shirt, to which he swatted her hand away.
“What gives?” she asked confused.
“How could you?” Fitz growled.
What are you talking about?” her voice tried to convey disbelief.
“Did you know about the email?” Fitz jeered, anger rising.
“I didn’t know any better!” she exclaimed, her voice becoming despondent. “Just give him whatever he wants and you can have me,” she continued.
Fitz threw the envelope on the floor, a few bills slipping out.
“I don’t want you,” he said firmly. He quickly walked back towards the door, and in a fury stormed out. Now he had being extorted added to his shame. As he walked back to his apartment, just a few blocks away, he started to calculate a trip to visit home.
Jemma reached the computer before Daisy could wipe the screen clear. And as she tried to fend Jemma off, her attempts to swat her away only fueled Jemma’s nervous curiosity. Jemma outsmarted Daisy, and slid her chair away from the monitor.
Daisy watched from the side as Jemma’s eyes scanned over the email. Jemma’s face deflated, and when Daisy presumed she reached the end, in a very cold and monotonous voice, Jemma made a request in the form of a statement.
“Daisy, I would like to be alone for the day.”
Daisy stood up from the chair, not sure what to do or say at first. She went to put a hand on Jemma’s shoulder, but Jemma shifted harshly. Daisy recoiled her hand.
“I… I will go over the neighbors and see how Elena is doing,” Daisy said.
“Thank you,” Jemma replied, in the same chilling monotonous tone. It made Jemma sound like she was holding in anger and rage.
Daisy exited the kitchen, and ran to the guest bedroom where she was staying to change clothes and head over. She didn’t know what Jemma was going to do, but trusted that she could leave Jemma alone. When Daisy entered the kitchen again, to get to the door, she saw that Jemma was pouring herself another glass and looking out the window to the lake. Daisy made a note to check on her in a few hours.
After Daisy left, Daisy lowered all the blinds in the kitchen and dining room area. She shut all the lights off. She closed Daisy’s laptop and placed it in the center of the table, the words seared into her mind. Jemma sat down at the table, in the darkness, and stared straight, occasionally sipping at her wine. When she finished the first glass, she continued, and the cycle went like this for three more glasses.
The door opening interrupted her. Her first thought was to give Daisy a piece of her mind for not letting her be alone to figure things out. But from the footsteps, and the sounds of a bag being set down, she could tell it wasn’t Daisy. The light in that area was turned on, and she could hear lightly disgruntled huffing. Huffing, she knew was all too Fitz. She remained concrete.
She heard him gently close the door, still not having any idea she was only in the kitchen. If she turned her head she would be able to see him. Fitz shuffled further in, he said something to himself that the girls were probably down by the lake. First he climbed the stairs to put his bags in their bedroom. He came down the steps a few minutes later, humming cheerfully, and began to cross the dining room, where Jemma was sitting, to get to the side door that led down to the lake.
Just as Fitz got to the door he noticed Jemma’s reflection, it gave him a fright as he hadn’t expected her to be there and so quiet.
“Wow, Jemma you scared me, what are you doing up here all by yourself… and in the dark?” he sounded so oblivious to Jemma.
She didn’t speak, but continue to stare off to nothing in the distance.
“Hey, hey, no warm reception, huh?” Fitz turned from the door and walked up to the table. Jemma ignored him. He noticed her eyes shined in the darkness. There was something wrong, he pulled out the chair next to her to sit.
“Are you okay, Jemma? Where’s Elena?” he said softly, seeing as she was upset over something.
Jemma slowly turned her head to look at him. Her fingers readjusted on the stem of her wine glass.
“James and Maria Reynolds say hello,” she said coldly.
The color in Fitz’ face drained. His world began to crash. She knew. How did she know? He looked on the table, to see if there was a paper or something sent from James. Nothing of the sort, except for Daisy’s laptop… Daisy’s laptop.
“I…I…” he began to stammer, but there wasn’t nothing he could say.
Jemma got up from the table, grabbing the half finished pitcher of wine.
“Until I figure out how to deal with this, you will be sleeping in the office. If we are in the same room with Elena, I will act as if nothing is wrong as not to alarm her. You don’t have anything to say to me,” Jemma spoke with a menacing authority in her voice. She moved nearly silently up the same set of stairs he had just come down from. He could hear her move his bags out of the room, and then the door slam. He set his hands on the sides of his head. He had lost and he was very well going to loose everything all because of his stupidity. He wondered how he could have failed his family on such a terrible level. He wondered if there was anything he could do to make it up to Jemma, how he could become a better man, a better husband, and a better father.
It was his turn to sit in the darkness and let seep in the repercussions of his actions.