The Arrangement [Box Set] Read online

  —Good afternoon Mrs. Masterson. Let me just look up their schedule.

  April waited nervously while she was put on hold. Some classical music played and she supposed it was meant to be soothing. To her it was anything but soothing. It seemed to take forever before the woman came back on the line.

  —I’m sorry, Mrs. Masterson but I’m not seeing a call on the schedule here.

  —What do you mean? I just want to talk to them.

  —I’m sorry. All calls with students have to be scheduled in advance.

  —I’m their mother.

  —I understand that but our phone call policy is an important part of our overall school policy. It was all in the information you received.

  —I just want to talk to my little girls.

  —I understand, Mrs. Masterson, but unless there’s some emergency I’m going to have to ask that you schedule a call.

  April couldn’t believe it. Was it even legal to keep a mother from talking to her own children? She didn’t know.

  —Look. Put them on the line right now or I’ll call the police.

  —Please calm down, Mrs. Masterson. The girls aren’t available right now. That’s why we ask that you schedule calls in advance.

  April tried to remain calm. It would do no good to create a scene with the school. She knew that much. She’d been getting into enough trouble already. Both Walter and Kit had been upset with her. The last thing wanted to do was upset them again.

  —Ok, she said. Let me make an appointment.

  —Please hold.

  The woman put her on hold and again she was forced to listen to the infuriating classical music. Her hand was shaking by the time the woman came back on the line.

  —I’m sorry, Mrs. Masterson, but I don’t see your name here on the file.

  —What file?

  —The pre-approved file.

  —Are you kidding me? I’m their mother.

  —Your name has to be on the file to schedule a call.

  April was almost in tears at this point. All she’d wanted to do was talk to the girls. It would be Lucy’s birthday in a few days and she didn’t even know if she’d be able to see her for it.

  —That’s it, she said. Who am I speaking to? This is ridiculous.

  —You’re speaking to Kathy at reception.

  —And just out of curiosity, whose name is on the file.

  —I have a Herb and Kit Kingsley here for billing and contact.

  —Herb and Kit? That doesn’t make any sense.

  —I’m sorry. Those are the names I have on the file.

  April could hardly believe what she was hearing.

  —Herb works with my husband. The firm is paying the school fees. That’s why he’s listed for billing. But there must be some mistake regarding the file. The names on there should be Walter and April Masterson. We’re the parents.

  —I’m sorry, Mrs. Masterson. Would you like me to transfer you to the billing department to get the file amended?

  —Look. I’m their mother. I dropped my girls off at the school with my husband last week. I was assured I’d be able to contact them. I haven’t heard a word about them since then.

  —I understand that, Mrs. Masterson. This must be very distressing. All I can suggest is that you speak to billing and have the names on the file amended. They must have put in the Kingsleys by mistake when they paid the fees.

  April looked across her vast living room out toward the pool. This was the price of having someone else pay the bills. They got all the control. She could sort of understand Herb’s name getting on the account by mistake when he paid the fees but why was Kit’s name on there? It didn’t make sense.

  —I better speak to Ms. Forrester, she said.

  —Yes, I think that would be best. I’m so sorry about the mix up with the file but we’ll get it amended as soon as possible.

  —Thank you, April said before finding herself back on hold.

  April looked at her hand as it held the receiver. She was visibly shaking. She couldn’t believe she wasn’t on the pre-approved list to phone her own children. It made no sense at all. She thought about calling Kit and asking her about it but the truth was she was too scared to go anywhere near Kit if she didn’t have to. She was still on hold when a red light came on the phone telling her she had a call on the second line. It was Walter calling from the office.

  —Honey, what’s going on? Herb just came into my office and said he’s getting a call from the girl’s school. Something about a mistake with the account.

  —Yes, April said. She could tell she was speaking too fast but she couldn’t help it. She didn’t know if she was relieved or apprehensive that Walter was on the line. Walter, my name’s not on the pre-approved list. I can’t talk to the girls unless I’m on the list.

  —Calm down, honey. We’ll deal with this tonight when I get home.

  —I don’t want to wait, Walter. It’s been two weeks and you keep telling me not to call the girls. I have to give them time to settle in. Well I’ve given them time and now I’m trying to call and I can’t even get past the receptionist.

  —I know, April. I know. It’s just, Herb just stepped into a meeting with some very important clients from Andersen Strathern.

  —I don’t care who he’s meeting with.

  —I know, honey, but he asked me to take care of this while he’s in the meeting. Can you just wait a couple of hours till I get a chance to speak to him and we’ll get the list amended?

  April felt the tears falling down her cheek. She’d never felt so alone in her life. She couldn’t even talk to Lucy and Mary and here was Walter telling her to calm down about it and wait for Herb to get out of a meeting. Through sheer determination she held it together and kept her voice steady.

  —I understand, she said into the receiver. She didn’t understand at all but she knew there was nothing she could do about it now. It would be best to remain calm and let Herb amend the list when he had time.

  —Thank you, honey.

  —We’ll fix it tonight though, right?

  —Sure, honey.

  Walter was gone and she looked at the indicator on the phone and saw that the receptionist at the school was no longer on the line either.

  II

  APRIL WAS ASLEEP ON THE sofa when Walter got home. She’d been waiting by the phone all afternoon in case the school called back to tell her the file had been sorted out. No one had called. She’d opened a bottle of Merlot and had a glass and then fallen into a deep sleep. Walter slamming the front door woke her.

  He stormed into the living room and picked up the phone. With a single jerk he pulled the cord out of the wall and threw the phone across the room.

  —Carla, he called. Carla. Get down here.

  April felt sorry for Carla as she came running. Walter was turning into a brute.

  —Get me all the phones in the house, he said to her.

  —What’s going on? April said, growing scared at how aggressive Walter was being.

  —I can’t even speak to you right now, Walter said. Have you any idea how embarrassing it was to have Herb come into my office and tell me he was getting a call about you and your stupid file?

  —Honey, I didn’t know they were going to call Herb.

  —Who did you think they were going to call? He’s the one that pays all the fees. Do you know who was meeting with at the time? He had two senators and a federal judge in his office.

  —Walter. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset him.

  —Just shut up, April.

  April was stunned. She looked down at the floor. Carla came back with four house phones in her arms. By now, April no longer pitied the maid, she envied her. She could always quit her job if things grew too intolerable. April, on the other hand, was married to this bully.

  —Put them in the trash, Walter barked at Carla. All of them.

  Carla took the phones, including the one Walter had flung across the room, and left.

  —What’s go
ing on? April said. Why are you taking all the phones?

  —When you learn how to use them properly and not have me mortified in front of my boss on the most important day of the year, then you can have a phone. Until then you’re cut off.

  April didn’t know how she’d survive without a phone. How would she even be able to call the girls now? She’d be completely isolated from the world. It felt like just one more way in which Walter was cutting her down, making her weak so that he could control her more easily.

  —Walter, you’re being cruel. All I did was try to phone the school. I didn’t know they were going to call Herb. I don’t know why Herb should be involved at all. They’re our children.

  —Cruel? Walter said, and there was an edge to his voice that April hadn’t heard before. I’ll show you cruel.

  April was literally frozen to the spot in shock as she watched Walter come across the room toward her. She couldn’t believe what was happening. Walter reached her and slapped her across the face and it was so hard her cheek stung and there was a ringing in her ears.

  —Get upstairs, you stupid bitch, Walter said.

  April ran up the stairs and when she got to their room she locked the door. She went into the bathroom and locked that door too. She sat by the side of the bath and tried to process what had just happened. She didn’t understand how she’d managed to create so much trouble simply by trying to get her two daughters on the phone. She burst into tears and cried until she couldn’t cry any longer. Walter never came to the door of the bathroom and she was grateful for that. She didn’t think she could stand him right then.

  She put on the water, as hot as it would go, and ran a bath right to the brim of the tub. When she lowered herself into the near scalding water it flowed over the sides of the tub and onto the tiled floor. She didn’t care. She submerged herself entirely in the water and screamed as loudly as she could.

  When she got out of the bath she put on a robe and determined that whatever Walter did or said she would remain calm. Reacting only made him madder. She went into the bedroom and found him waiting for her.

  —Come on, he said, we’re going for a ride.

  He didn’t seem angry now. Just calm and calculating and unforgiving. She’d never been so afraid of him in her entire marriage. He was unpredictable and cold.

  —Where are we going? she said but he didn’t answer.

  —Can I get dressed first?

  —You don’t need to, he said.

  Once in the car, April immediately regretted no being dressed. Her hair was wet, she didn’t have any makeup on and apart from the bathrobe she was entirely naked. She could not have felt any more vulnerable. Walter drove aggressively and erratically down the hillside toward the city. She tried to reason with him but it was no use. As he swerved violently around the dangerous bends she was afraid he might crash the car and kill them both.

  —Where are you taking us, Walter?

  He said nothing. The sun was beginning to set and the sky turned a spectacular crimson as reached the edge of the city. He got on the beltway and didn’t exit till they were on the south side of the city. The neighborhoods grew progressively poorer as they made their way downtown. DC has some of the wealthiest neighborhoods in the country but south of the city it also has some of the poorest. April had seen them many times as a child and still found it difficult to believe such deprivation and poverty existed so close to the wealthy places she was used to now.

  It was to one of these neglected neighborhoods in the south of the city that Walter drove. He pulled up outside a filthy looking motel and shut off the engine. It was one of those places used by crack whores and their pimps and drug addicts. It was called The Half Moon. The sign said they rented rooms by the hour or the night and had refrigerators in them.

  The place reminded her of the very lowest points in her childhood, those times when her mother hadn’t been able to get her act together and find them a proper place to stay. There had been stints when she and her sister had hidden in the bathroom of motels like this while their mother went out all day and tried to earn some money. Sometimes she would come back with a bag of groceries and they never asked her how she got the money for them.

  She knew what Walter was doing. He was threatening her with her very worst fear. She began to panic.

  —Get out of the car, he said. I’m throwing you back to where you came from. Apparently the life I’m offering isn’t good enough for you. Maybe you’d be happier here.

  —Walter, please. I know where I’d be without you. You don’t have to do this.

  —Get out of the car, he said and there was no emotion at all in his voice. He had become like a machine.

  April tried to think what had made him so cruel and heartless during the last few weeks. Since he’d become partner and moved up to The Oaks it was like he’d become a new man. Maybe he was afraid April would jeopardize all that he’d achieved by challenging the arrangement and the life that the other partners had created.

  With tears flowing freely down her cheeks she begged him to forgive her. She clutched him by his shirt and begged him not to kick her out. She held on and wouldn’t let go. Walter slapped her hard across the face. It was the second time he did it that evening and it stunned her to silence. In the same heartless, monotonous voice he repeated himself.

  —Get out of this car, right now.

  April could see that pleading with him wouldn’t do any good. In desperation she thought of other ways she might try to convince him not to kick her out. She’d spent her entire life trying to leave behind the lifestyle that her mother had led and now here she was, at the very verge of falling right into it. She couldn’t allow that to happen. Anything would be better than this—anything at all.

  She scrambled and clutched at Walter’s pants and opened the button and unzipped them.

  —What are you doing, you slut?

  She took his small, flaccid cock out of his pants and dived on it with her mouth. Up and down she moved her head and sucked at the little piece of meat and tried to make it bigger.

  —I always knew you were no better than your mother, Walter said.

  April ignored her tears and licked and sucked until she felt the cock begin to stiffen.

  —Take off your robe, Walter said.

  She let him pull the robe off her. It fell to the floor leaving her completely naked. She continued sucking him, hoping that if she could just make him come to orgasm he wouldn’t kick her out.

  —What did I expect? Walter said, and his voice sounded so cruel and mean she hardly recognized it. I found you in the gutter and that’s where I’m going to leave you. I don’t need you, you ungrateful bitch.

  April looked up and to her terror Walter had opened his car door. At first she was afraid he was about to get out and drag her from the car, but then she realized he was up to something far more sordid. She was entirely naked now, with her mouth full of cock like a cheap whore, and Walter whistled over to some lowlifes who were hanging around on the street outside the car. They were the lowest of the low, old men with bottles of liquor in brown paper bags and kids with glazed eyes and scabs on their arms. All of them looked like addicts or criminals or both.

  —Hey fellas, Walter called out. Want to see a show?

  Before long there was five or six of the lowlifes standing in a group outside the car watching her suck Walter. Their presence seemed to excite Walter but it terrified April. They were laughing and joking and telling her to suck harder and all she could think was that she hoped Walter wouldn’t leave her here with them. She could feel his dick grow and tense up as she sucked it until finally he pulled her head up off of his cock and squirted his sticky jizz onto her face. The crowd of lowlifes cheered as he came. April was scared to look up at them and kept her eyes down as she wiped the cum off her face. If Walter kicked her out here she’d likely be raped, maybe murdered.

  —You want to get out of the car? Walter said.

  She shook her head.

 
; —I can’t hear you, Walter said.

  —Please, Walter. Don’t make me get out.

  —Then this is your last chance, April. You shut up, quit complaining about everything and do exactly as you’re told from now one.

  She nodded.

  —Do you hear me?

  —I hear you.

  He shut his car door and she breathed a sigh of relief. Walter looked at her.

  —If I play my cards right I can become one of the most powerful lawyers in Washington. I will not let you jeopardize that. Do you understand?

  —Yes, Walter.

  —You come from some two-bit dump like this. Now, you make up your mind, do you want to go back to the dump you came from?

  April shook her head.

  —I can’t hear you, April.

  —No, Walter, she said.

  —Your mother was a whore and a slut. Your sister is a drug addict. If I kick you out you’ll be right where you started, right where you belong. Is that what you want?

  —No, Walter.

  —Then stop fucking with me.

  April picked the robe up off the floor of the car and wiped the jizz of her face with it. Walter gave her a look filled with utter disgust.

  —I’ve got some clients to entertain tomorrow. You better be perfect, or else you’re out.

  III

  WHEN APRIL GOT HOME THAT night she saw her house differently from how she’d seen it before. While it was still luxurious and beautiful, she also saw it for the prison that it was. She wasn’t able to come and go freely, she always had to have one of the firm’s drivers take her where she needed to go. She realized that despite all the shopping sprees and expensive things she had received, she had no money of her own. Her children had been taken from her control. And now she didn’t even have a phone in the house. The house was beautiful but it was a prison and everything she did was under Walter’s control.

  With Walter in the house she began to feel claustrophobic. She couldn’t even stand to be in the same room as him anymore. He’d been that close to kicking her out, he’d come on her face in front of a crowd of hobos and homeless men. She had no love left for him and she needed to get some air.