Enforcing The Pre-Nup

There was a knock at my door, and when I answered it I found her, on her knees.

"Greta! What are you doing?"

"I'm begging, Tommy. You have to go see her. She's stopped eating, they're feeding her through tubes. They're worried about the baby. I'm a broken woman, Tommy. I have nothing, no self respect, no future, and now I'm about to lose my family. I'll do anything, do you understand? Anything, to save my daughter and grandchild. Please Tommy. Please!"

I helped her up and brought her inside.

"You're not alone Greta. I've always admired you, and always thought you'd be a perfect grandmother. Vivian cares for you a lot, whether she says anything or not. I read your statement. None of what happened to you was your fault. It broke my heart. I'll always be here for you. Anything you need."

"I need you to save my daughter, and your wife and child. Please, I'll go with you."

The pain was just too much. I crumbled, mentally. The health of my child was at risk, as well as that of the woman I loved. I hustled her into the car.

................................................

She looked like a ghost. Pale, so thin she looked skeletal. Her eight month belly looked abnormally huge compared to the rest of her.

She had been lightly sedated and her arms restrained so she couldn't pull the IVs or feeding tubes out. I didn't think it was possible for my heart to ache anymore, but I was wrong.

Greta told me a lot on the way over.

"I know how it looks, Tommy, but she never betrayed you. The film clip you saw was the only time she ever came close. She was forced, but in the end she couldn't do it. She was restrained, and when he tried to force his penis into her mouth she moved, and bit him on the thigh so deep he had to have seven stitches. Stanley would have beaten her if I hadn't intervened. He still used the clip to keep her in line."

She hung her head in shame.

"I told him I'd substitute for her. I had to perform oral sex on him three days later, but it kept her safe."

She was crying quietly. I just held her hand, and thought of ways to make Stanleys' life hell on earth every day until he died.

I couldn't help it. The tears started, and I pulled a chair up and held her hand with one hand, stroking her hair and cheek with the other. The doctors decided to let her awaken, to see if me being there would bring her around.

She came to her senses quietly. Greta held one hand, I had the other, but had dozed off. I woke when she tighten her grip, trying to make sure I was really there.

The tears started falling.

She was trying to talk around her feeding tube. One of the nurses removed it gently.

Her voice was a croak.

"Tommy? Tommy! I need..."

I put my fingers in her lips, and brushed her hair back out of her face.

"You don't need to do anything but get well. You'll need your strength, we'll soon be chasing our daughter around, and you need to be able to keep up. If you promise not to do anything silly, I'll take these restraints off. I have an urgent need to hug you."

She was crying. Greta was crying. The two nurses were misty eyed. They helped remove the restraints. She was so weak she had to be helped, but she ended up in my lap, holding tightly, still crying. I held her for two hours, only putting her back in bed when dinner arrived.

Soup. Mashed potatoes and pureed vegetables, with gelatin for dessert. It looked like baby food.

I actually fed her, promising her a kiss for every bite she took, She did her best to clean the plate.

I had a rocking chair brought into the room, and after dinner I held and rocked her, giving her every kiss I promised, and a few extra. Every time she tried to talk about what happened I stopped her, saying we would talk about it when she had her strength back. She did manage to get one thing out.

"I never cheated on you, Tommy, never. That's why I wouldn't honor the prenupt, even though the evidence was pretty damning."

She ate everything placed in front of her. If I had to leave she would become very agitated. I got into the habit of making sure Celeste, Greta, or Vivian was there.

She had just about stopped crying when we let Amy see her. There wasn't a dry eye in the room for two hours, and that included me.

They hugged fiercely.

"Aunt Eve, I thought we lost you! Don't ever do that again, ever! I love you, Aunt Eve"

Eve actually reassured her.

"Baby, baby, I'm right here. And I'll never be far from you, or the rest of the family, ever again. I promise. Please stop crying, I've seen enough tears."

She held her hand and chattered for almost two hours, discussing everything from baby names to boys. I took that as a sign to leave them alone. I took Greta and Vivian to the coffee house down the street. They gave me an update.

"The grand jury is in. Stanley will die in prison if convicted of half the charges. He'll be surrounded by a lot of friends, though I doubt they view him as such right about now. Our lawyers have gotten the district attorneys to take our testimony behind closed doors, because we're the victims. I'd do it on network television if I thought it would get him another year, but we have to think about Eve. Are you going to testify?"

I reached out and took Greta's hand.

"Yes, as loudly as possible. I want that bastard fried."

The baby came two weeks early. As it happened, her water broke as we were leaving the hospital. she tightened her grip on my hand.

"Turn around, Tommy."

I didn't understand.

"Did you forget something?"

"Yes, I forgot I'm having a baby. She's coming honey, Now!"

I totally freaked out, picking her up her and rushing back through the doors.

"THE BABY IS COMING! HELP! THE BABY IS COMING!"

The duty nurse had seen it all.

"Put her in this wheelchair, Paul Revere, and let us do our job. You might as well come along. It doesn't look like she's going wait long. Let's get you suited up."

She held my hand the whole time, yelling and screaming. She was in labor for less than three hours.

Vivian Greta Yount came into the world at 1:55 p.m. with a lusty scream. Her vocal ability was proven often over the years, she was the loudest child I had ever seen.

They let me cut the cord,then took her, cleaned her, and handed her back to me. I had the great honor of placing my daughter on my wife's breast, and she soon found her nipple. Eve just looked on in wonder, before looking up at me.

At that precise moment in time, I knew we were going to be just fine. I stroked her hair.

"You owe me two more, but I think we need to wait at least two years for the next one, all right?"

She couldn't speak, but her eyes spoke volumes.

My whole family was in the waiting room, along with Greta, Vivian[her husband came two hours later]and surprisingly, Jerry.

They all trooped to the nursery, and oohed and ahhed over her while I stood, bursting with pride.

The women went into the room at feeding time. Greta got to hold her first, followed by Vivian, then Celeste, then Amy. They had to almost pry her away from Amy, she really didn't want to let go.

.................................................

Eve was in therapy, alone and with me for almost two years. She still sees her every three months.

It wasn't all sunshine and roses, we were really uncomfortable around each other for a long time. When things would get tense, we developed a habit of going into the baby's room. We usually left holding hands. And we vowed, almost every day, to always talk, and trust each other completely.

We didn't make love until Vivian was almost seven months old. It was slow, tentative, like we were afraid the other would shatter. But it was beautiful, and very satisfying. Soon our intimacies grew in intensity, and we were almost back to where we were.

Greta was in therapy a long time also. In a shrewd move, she had kept her money separate. Stanley was fine with this, thinking if things went south her money would save him. It didn't quite work out that way.

A year later, she started seeing Jerry, six months later he moved in, eight months later they married.

Vivian and John were very active in her 'granddaughter's' life, becoming her godparents. So it came to pass her grandmother were the Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court, and her grandfather on the other side was the Director of the State Bureau of Investigation. Talk about connected.

Fred put his twenty years in with the sheriffs' department and retired. I made him a full partner, and he runs the business for us now.

I had a new job.

.................................................

The political fall out from the scandal was enormous, going on for a long time as new information came out, damaging both parties. Jerry proved to be a bulldog, never giving up once he hit a scent.

There were several emergency elections the next few years. They appointed a political flunky to take Stan's seat, and he was so inept when the term was up he didn't even get a nod from his party.

The election was pretty well contested, due to the addition of an independent candidate. Me.

I was interviewed at the beginning of the primary season. I had no idea why.

"You know, the American Revolution was fought in part for financial reasons. Taxation without representation, career politicians, etc. The Constitution was pretty much written to discourage career politicians. You were supposed to come off the plantation or ship, out of the shop, do the best you could, and go back home, leaving it for the next guy. Now, unless you do something monumentally stupid like Stanley Wallace and his cronies, you have over a ninety per cent probability of being reelected. The system is broken again, and I don't see a way to fix it."

The interviewer was intrigued.

"So you're saying in a perfect world there would be no career politicians?"

"I doubt it would be a perfect world, but I bet it would be a lot better."

He wouldn't let it go.

"So, in a world like that, you'd run for office?"

I laughed.

"Maybe. But I'd be the worlds worst politician. I'm too honest."

I made a major mistake, thinking that people wouldn't read it, or if they did, they wouldn't take it seriously.

Wrong.

People I never heard of were calling me, asking if I would run. I steadfastly refused. Then one day, out of the blue, my old political team showed up.

Billy Grant, Zane Williams, Jerry Smith, and of course Thad Emerson. To say I was surprised was putting it mildly. I looked at their grins and had a bad feeling.

"Hi boys, long time, no see. What's up?"

Thad grinned.

"You are, baby. How'd you like to be a state representative?"

I hugged them all and invited them in. We caught up.

Billy was a political science teacher at a small University two states over. Zane and Jerry ran a think tank that analyzed election prospects of various candidates, mostly for their parties. Their track record was ninety three percent. Most of their failures were due to scandals and undisclosed information by the candidate in question. They researched and bought a small investigation service, strictly for in house use.

Thad was a political consultant who often used his friends for support. He had successfully managed the campaigns of five state officials, three U.S. Senators, and two congressmen. He had also managed the campaign for several mayors in major cities. His record was eleven and three.

Eve greeted them warmly, remembering better days. They loved the baby. Billy had two, Zane one. Thad was divorced, no children. Jerry was gay, and didn't have a permanent partner.

"About what you asked earlier? Not no, but hell no. Why on earth would I want back into that world after what it put us through?"

They had apparently thought this out.

"Because it gives you a chance to show people how to do it right. This is a golden opportunity to give the government back to the people. Don't say no right away, talk it over together, and with your closest friends. See what they think. What have you got to lose?"

I had thought it out, too.

"Sleep. Peace of mind. You guys no doubt read about what we went through. You weren't here, so you really have no idea what it was like."

I turned to Eve.

"Surely you don't think this is a good idea?"

She looked deeply into my eyes.

"I think it's an excellent idea. What kind of world would this be for our children if somebody doesn't take a stand, show them there were decent people trying to make their future better? It would do me a world of good personally, sort of an atonement for past mistakes. Balance the books for my family, so to speak."

I never in my wildest dreams thought I would ever have this conversation. After a couple of hours, they talked me into asking around.

Vivian was all for it. So did John, and Greta and Jerry. My family, especially Celeste, thought it was an excellent idea.

Thad and the group came over three weeks later.

"We have to form a party."

"Why?" I asked.

"Why can't I just run as an independent?"

Jerry laid it out for me.

"It would send the wrong message. Even with the grant fight, you were a part of a group of like minded individuals. You need to give them something to believe in, to draw them out. You'd come off as a bitter loner without it. And you'd have no chance."

Eve listened with interest. Sometimes I forget how smart, or how politically savvy she was.

"They're right. I've been thinking, and I have some suggestions." She said.

We were all ears.

"Your basic premise in the interview was that career politicians were a bad idea. Build on that. Push the idea that a man should have one shot at doing the right thing, before making way for someone with fresh ideas. Build on that."

She sighed.

"Besides, I don't think I could stand the thought of being a politicians' wife for more than one term."

So we took her idea and ran with it, forming the One Chance Party.

Bill started a viral campaign, broadcasting bits and pieces of our theory, before launching a website.

The premise was really simple. If you were a politician at the state level and above and a member, you had to pledge to serve only one term. If you were a voting member, you had to pledge not to support any candidate who runs more than once. That simple. Serve with pride and integrity, leave with dignity and honor. It became our motto.

Of course it was funded with Eve's money. It was just a grassroots movement, not formally registered, with no candidate running, so we were able to spend as much as we wanted.

After a month, with twenty five thousand signatures, the minimum for establishing a party, we went public and registered, announcing my candidacy for the office of state senator in the ninth district. It caught the political establishment by surprise, and they scrambled to block it, but thanks to Thad's group and the LLI, with John at point, they couldn't. In light of the federal scandal over the Tea Party, they didn't try very hard, considering us a nuisance.

Our lawyers kept us in line, being scrupulously attentive to detail.

The seed money was ours, but soon we had donations coming in. It was explained to everyone who wanted to donate that any amount over one hundred dollars would be posted on our site, so anyone could see at a glance who our supporters were.

Greta, Vivian and John gave the largest legally allowable donation possible. Amy was one of our first donors, giving twenty five dollars from her babysitting money, through Celeste.

Because I was registered, I was able to attend and participate in any debate. I was always third, but used it to my advantage. During the first debate I kept pretty quiet, until the Republican pushed me, wanting to know what I would do about certain state problems.

"Probably very little, at first. I plan on taking the first year to learn. After that, I'll probably make a lot of noise."

In a later debate I challenged them on their party records.

"Sir" I said, addressing my Republican opponent. "Last year, your party voted the straight ticket eight times out of ten, nationally and locally. Do you agree with that statement?"

He had to, because it was public knowledge. The Democrat snickered. I turned to him.

"And you sir, your party voted the straight ticket nine times out of ten, also verifiable? Do you agree with this statement?"

He had to admit it.

"Then sirs, I need to ask. If you were both working for your parties, who was working for the American people?"

When they weren't able to give an answer, the applause brought the debate to a standstill.

.................................................

The party was growing by leaps and bounds. Other states started their own branches. We made absolutely sure they agreed to the tenets of our party.

I was campaigning, doing radio and television ads in limited number. Thad had picked a key phrase from my last debate. He flooded billboards with it.

"Who's working fr the American people? Call your representatives in government and ask them. If you don't like their answers, go to One Chance Party.com."

The hits were amazing, and our numbers grew.

Eve and Greta stood by me during the campaign. They were worried about it at first, but I insisted. By now most details of their past had leaked out.

"They need to see you, let everyone know while you may regret your past, you're looking towards the future. It might hurt me, but I'm not ashamed of either one of you, and I'm really going to need you by my side."

Greta was invaluable, her insights dead on. She hadn't been a political wife all those years, even in the situation she was forced into, without learning a few things.

Vivian and Jerry had to stay away, for obvious reasons. Didn't stop them to appearing during dinners, and giving us support.

I made it clear to the press right away that the past was just that, the past. Anyone who made comments or asked questions any way ended up at the bottom of the list when question time came. They got the point and stopped pretty quick.

Amy was in junior high now, and they held a mock election. When she found out the One Chance Party had been excluded, she went all the way to the school board in protest, where it caught the interest of the local reporters.

The school was forced to allow the party, and Amy ran. She won, getting sixty per cent of the vote. The advertising was priceless to us.

In the end, I won, being declared the winner before seventy five per cent of the precincts were in. In the end, I got eighty thousand more votes than the registered members of my party. The national media gave us a lot of attention.

You may remember my term, I certainly got a lot of attention, exposing waste, and graft, refusing to make deals if it wasn't in the best interests of my district and state. When it was over I did indeed return home, despite pleas from all over the state. I refused, graciously. In my farewell speech I thanked everyone who believed in me, and reminded them of the promise I made at the start.

Our little party was nationwide, an established third party. One state got discredited after allowing two state and two federal candidates to run again, using the party banner.

The billboards went up all over that state, showing the candidates with the word LIAR over every face, urging people to go to the website and view the pledge forms with their signatures. They all lost, Two rejoined their old parties, and two disappeared from public life.

Was our system of government better because of it? History will have to be the judge. ..................................................

After I left office, I made a trip the a medium security prison downstate.I was really surprised to see he put me on the visitors log.

He was thinner, most of his hair was gone, and what was left was almost white. I knew he had gotten beaten up a few times, his tough on crime stance was widely known. There were probably inmates in every prison in the system who had a few years added to their sentence because of his policies.