Kenzie

"But, having learned from the videos that SHE was the one who had sought out and seduced that asshole ... sorry, Honey ..."

Amanda nodded and said softly, "It's okay, Dad."

I picked up where I had left off. "It was she who set all of the infidelity and betrayal in motion. And, from her conversations captured in the videos, this was not the only time. There evidently have been two others before this. So, no ... I just cannot see any recourse other than divorce."

Amanda sighed and Ben just sat there, frowning. I had thought he was about to shed a tear, but then I heard him say, "Bitch!" quietly under his breath.

"Ben," I told him. "Please don't call your mother that."

"But I have heard you call her that; and not just when you are talking ABOUT her. I have heard you call her that in person on the phone, ever since ... ever since ..." At this point, the anger and frustration caused him to experience a momentary emotional overload and he turned away so that we would not see him shed the tears that had appeared in the corners of his eyes.

"Yes," I said with a sigh, "But she is not MY mother. She IS yours. She hurt me at a very basic level that is different from the disappointment that you are experiencing. She will never again be my wife, but she will ALWAYS be your mother. So, don't forget that; and do not lose the connection that you have with her."

There was some more conversation among the three of us, but we had to take a break when Ben sniffed, forced a grin, and noted, "Hey, it is past supper time. Can we do Chinese tonight?"

"I guess," I said with a sigh as my stomach rumbled, causing Amanda to giggle, despite the emotional upset of the moment.

"Kenzie!" I said; then I paused for a bit.

"Yes, Lowell." Came the response.

"Please order our family special to be delivered here from Zhurou Wang," I requested, and then added, "but without the coconut chicken this time; and update the family order to exclude that from now on, please." That had been Loni's favorite, but none of the rest of us had liked it very much.

"As you wish, Lowell," was the reply from the automated voice that sounded suddenly warm and familiar for some reason.

The food arrived within an hour and we dug in; although the conversation was somewhat restrained, since we were all feeling a bit down about the separation and upcoming divorce.

We had just about finished eating and were putting away the trash. Ben and Amanda wanted to have us all settle in to watch some show on Amazon Prime, and they left me to finish up in the kitchen while they went to the den to set it up.

As I was leaving the kitchen, I said, "Kenzie, please turn off all the non-essential lights all over the house and get the house temperature set for nighttime."

"Whatever you say, Lover!" came the sultry response.

I was almost to the den when I saw the intense green glow from the LED on the hallway monitor and what I had heard in the kitchen but had taken for granted finally registered in my brain.

"Wait ... what?"

THE END