Chapter ch 183

-Ryan O'Brien-

Ryan O'Brien stares down at the stack of papers in his hands, the ones just

handed to him by a server.

TO: RYAN O'BRIEN

YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the Complaint in this action, which is

brought to obtain a divorce, and to appear before the Ravenswood District Court

of the State of New York, Greenwood County, within twenty (20) days after service

of this Summons upon you."

Complaint:

PARTIES:

Plaintiff: JULIE JENKINS (currently known as JULIE O'BRIEN)

Defendant: RYAN O'BRIEN

GROUND FOR DIVORCE:

Adultery (Domestic Relations Law 5 170(1))

+13

The world blurs for a second. A divorce Summon?

He reads it again, slower this time, each word grating against his mind, and his

grip tightens on the paper. Somewhere in the background, he hears a faint hum.

It's Emily. She's hovering beside him with her hand on the back of his chair.

"How did she manage that so quickly?" Emily asks. She doesn't sound unhappy

about it. In fact, Ryan could swear there's a hint of amusement in her voice.

Ryan doesn't answer. He can't. He's barely breathing, each word still sinking its

sharp little claws into his brain. The room feels like it's closing in on him; he forces

himself to focus on the summons, but all he can see is the stark finality of Julie's

name.

He hears a cough. The server, still waiting, his hand stretched out as he points to

the line marked for Ryan's signature. "Mr. O'Brien," the server says. "You'll need

to sign here to acknowledge receipt."

Ryan's hands tremble as he scrawls his name in a jagged, barely legible line. The

server thanks him with cool professionalism, nods once to Emily, and exits,

leaving the two of them alone.

As the door clicks shut, Emily lets out a breath. Her fingers trace the back of

Ryan's chair as she leans closer. "Wow," she says. "Adultery. Julie's been busy.

It's not even been a day since she left the house. How in the world did she pull

this off?"

Ryan forces himself to swallow, barely managing to control his breathing.

"Are you alright?" Emily asks.

"Excuse me," Ryan mutters. "I need to be alone."

Emily hesitates, confusion flashing across her face, but finally nods and steps

back, letting him go. He waits until the door closes behind her. Then, like a reflex,

he snatches his phone from his desk and dials Julie's number.

Chapter

It rings once. Then twice. And again.

Nothing. Her voicemail clicks on.

He hangs up and calls again. His hands are shaking as he paces the room, his

breaths shallow. Pick up. Just pick up. But there's no answer. Only that infuriating

beep that signals her voicemail.

A growl escapes his throat, and in a rage, he hurls the phone across the room. It

collides with the wall, shattering, pieces clattering to the ground.

He stands there, breathless, staring at the remnants of his phone on the floor. The

divorce summons sits on his desk, waiting, haunting him.

This can't be. He won't let this happen. He grabs his coat and storms out of the

office. Emily looks up from her desk as sees him approaching.

"Call and find out where they're keeping Elaine Jenkins, Julie's mother," he says.

Emily's eyes widen. "Is there a problem?"

"Just do it."

She fumbles for her phone, pressing it to her ear as she dials, giving him a look

that's part concern, part confusion as she speaks to someone on the other end.

After a short exchange, Emily scribbles an address on a notepad and hands it to

him, hesitating just a moment before letting go. He grabs the paper, glancing

down at the address of the detention center. His mother-in-law's current

residence.

Just before he leaves, he turns back to Emily. "I'll need a new phone by the time I

get back."

Ryan's in an office at the detention center, eyes fixed on the door. He's spent the

last hour shifting in his seat, waiting impatiently for Elaine to be brought to him.

The door creaks, and finally, Elaine Jenkins enters, shackles and all, with a guard

who, after a pointed glare, leaves them alone in the room.

Elaine settles into her chair across

from him, brows raised. "What the

hell took you so long, Ryan? I asked

for a lawyer yesterday, and it's been

hours. My arraignment hearing's in a

couple hours, and I don't have a

damn lawyer. Do you actually want

me to go to prison? It's your fault I'm

here in the first place. Why aren't

you doing anything about it?"

Ryan's jaw ticks. He tries to clamp

down on it, keep it steady. But it's

hard not to explode. "You tried to

throw my wife off a bridge, Elaine.

What the hell is wrong with you?" He

spits the words out, low and hard.

"All I asked was for you to talk to her.

Talk. Maybe make her rethink things,

drop that boyfriend of hers. But you

decided to-what? Shove her off a

fucking bridge?"

"I wasn't going to push her, Ryan. Jesus, give me some credit. If I wanted her

dead, there are much easier ways to go about it. I just wanted to shake her up a

little, get her to come to her senses. Where the hell is my lawyer?"

He stares at her, biting down a furious retort. "Julie asked me not to send one."

"Are you serious right now? You were the one who sent me, remember?"

"I'm not going to accept that," he hisses, voice dropping to a dangerous whisper.

"Don't try to make me your accomplice in

this mess."

"Sure you are."

"I'm not," he snaps, fighting to keep his voice down, looking around to make sure

no guards are eavesdropping. "And keep your voice down."

She rolls her eyes, leaning forward. "If you're not here with my lawyer, then why

are you here, Ryan?"

He takes a deep breath, running a hand over his face, as if it could somehow wipe

away the mess he's in. "Julie took some things from the house last night," he

says, almost to himself, his voice low and pained. "And left."

Elaine's eyes narrow, but she says nothing.

"This morning," he continues, "she served me divorce papers. On grounds of

adultery. And it's your fault." He points at her. "We were still okay before you tried

to throw her off a bridge."

Her eyebrow arches. "How is it my fault you cheated, Ryan?"

"Well," he says, "I asked her to drop the charges against you, and she ...

exploded."

For a split second, something flickers in Elaine's eyes, maybe guilt or some faint

shadow of sympathy. "You did?" she says, giving him a small, almost affectionate

smile. "That's... oddly thoughtful of you. But I don't see how any of this is my

business."

Ryan clenches his fists, words

spilling out as he fights to stay calm.

"It's your business because you have

to fix it, Elaine. I don't want a divorce.

Besides the scandal it would cause

with the press and my family I don't

want Julie to leave me. That's the

reason I asked you to talk to her in

the first place! But you did the exact

opposite. So do whatever you can to

fix this."

Elaine tilts her head, watching him. "Well, well. You really do love her, don't you?"

She pauses, eyes narrowing. "I know I messed up with the whole bridge thing, but

was doing it for you. I just wanted her to see reason. I didn't know she had it in

her to actually file for divorce. I'm almost... impressed."

"Really?" he says. "That's what you have to say to me?"

"I don't know if you've noticed, Ryan, but I'm in prison."

"You're in a holding cell, Elaine. Not prison."

She glares at him. "What difference does it make? The key point is, I'm locked up,

and you're sitting here whining about your marriage."

He leans forward, fists on the table. "What do you expect me to do about you

being locked up?"

Elaine considers him, tapping her finger against her lips. "Like I said, my

arraignment is later today. Say you get me out of here before the end of the day,

I'll see about helping you get Julie back."

Ryan stares at her, mouth slightly open. "You're here for a possible assault

charge.... maybe even attempted murder. You think I can just waltz you out of the

courtroom after the arraignment?"

She waits a beat, letting the silence settle between them before she leans in,

voice cool and steady. "Do you want your wife back or not?"