THE YEAR OF LIVING DANGEROUSLY CHAPTER FIFTY TWO: SCORCHED EARTH Written by Rick Archer

FRIDAY, APRIL 27, 1979, the disco years DIVA WARFARE   Victoria overstepped her bounds on Coronation Night, April 27.  I was proud of Patricia for putting Victoria in her place at the end of the night.  Maybe there was hope for Patricia after all.  On the other hand, maybe not.  This Catfight was at best a Pyrrhic victory.  Although Patricia had won a meaningful skirmish, overall she was a decided Underdog in the Battle of the Disco Divas.  To me, it was amazing how Patricia, an intelligent woman whose father was a military genius, kept getting out-flanked at every turn by the newly-crowned Supreme Diva of Disco.  Obviously her father had never properly trained her in Diva Warfare.  The weapons of choice were lipstick, phoniness, blatant lies, veiled insults, mean gossip, guilt and telephone poison.  I hate to say it, but Patricia had a bad habit of overestimating her value to me.  Maybe that's the problem of growing up rich.  Some people think they are more important than they really are.  Victoria was pivotal to my dance career and Patricia meant nothing.  Why couldn't Patricia see this?  Did Patricia really think I would skip next Friday and jeopardize my business just so she could exact her revenge?  Besides, Patricia's nasty stunt with Joanne over the backgammon game still irked me.  Patricia's temper tantrum had cost me my only answer to Victoria.  Now look what happened.  Without Joanne around to keep Victoria in line, Patricia had fallen like a toppling domino.  The loss of the Diva Triangle meant I no longer had the Upper Hand.  Sitting comfortably atop her throne, Victoria was in full control of Camelot.  Victoria's superiority over Patricia had never been more apparent.  If Patricia actually believed I would reject Victoria and risk my career to stick up for her, she was sadly mistaken.  Besides, thoughts of 'George' reminded me to never trust Patricia again. Patricia claimed she didn't want any part of my dance business.  No surprise there.  What did surprise me was why Patricia couldn't see the writing on the wall.  Why didn't she just throw in the cards and fold?  Anyone could see she was playing a losing hand.  Most women would have walked, but Patricia's stubborn pride made her hang on longer than she should.   Patricia had been raised as a Debutante and Princess.  Her life of privilege contributed to her sense of superiority.  In Patricia's mind, Victoria was little better than an overly-ambitious, middle class social climber limited by her sub-par public school education.  Where did Victoria get the nerve to rise above her raising?  How dare she talk ugly behind Patricia's back!  On Saturday morning, Patricia resumed the Riot Act the moment we awoke.  Patricia was still obsessed with getting revenge on Victoria for turning people against her at the Pistachio Club.  However, Patricia had a problem.  Unless I cooperated, she had no way to hurt Victoria.  When I told her no, Patricia turned into the same shrill monster I had seen during her harangue at Thanksgiving.  Back then the argument had been over my career.  Now Patricia intended to bully me until I agreed to help her retaliate against Victoria.  Well, I wasn't going to do that.  Why bite the hand that feeds me?   Finally I had enough of Patricia's diatribe.  I made up a fib about an early private dance lesson on Saturday morning and left her apartment.  I was incredibly relieved to be away from her.  When I was finally able to calm my nerves after all the screaming, I began to think about Victoria.   After the way she behaved on Friday night, it was no longer just my imagination... Victoria was definitely interested in me.  Victoria was ready, willing, and able.  Oh, how I wished Victoria were single.   Victoria was sensational on Friday night.  Maybe the time had come to explore a relationship with Victoria.  I gulped.  If ever there was a more dangerous path to take, I could not imagine what it would be. But first I had to settle things with Patricia.  We were just barely hanging in there.  I wasn't sure I wanted to break up with Patricia, but I would not be terribly upset if we did.  If Patricia was going to avoid the Pistachio Club, then her political value was gone.  If Patricia was going to nag me to death, then her value as a girlfriend was gone as well.  Patricia had little remaining investment in this relationship.  Yes, over the past four months, we had some good moments together, but whenever we got close, Victoria found some way to meddle.  Given that there was no way to rid ourselves of Victoria, why was Patricia still here?  I thought I knew the reason.  Under normal circumstances, Patricia would have been out the door in a split second.  I think the only reason Patricia stayed was her ego.  Over the past weeks Patricia had developed a considerable grudge towards Victoria.  It was personal now.  Patricia was determined to spite Victoria by hanging on to me.  It was one thing to concede the Crown of Supreme Disco Queen to Victoria, but Patricia was damned if she would let Victoria have The Trophy too.  To let go of me would make her bitter rival Victoria the grand winner.  Patricia wouldn't stand for that!!  In my opinion, Patricia was acting like a dog who doesn't really want the bone, but doesn't want the other dog to have the bone either.  Patricia disgusted me.  She didn't want me any more.  She just didn't want to lose the Beauty Contest. What a stupid reason to hang around.  THURSDAY, MAY 3, 1979 FOOTSTEPS IN THE DARK   Following Victoria's Coronation and Patricia's Riot Act, Patricia and I had no contact for several days.  On Thursday afternoon, May 3, Patricia called me at home.  I was not happy to hear from her.  Six days had passed since the Coronation and I had not recovered from the weekend bickering.  To be honest, I was ready to break up with Patricia, but to call her would invite more hostility.  Well aware that my relationship with Patricia was hopeless, what was the point of going through more arguing?  Patricia wasted no time reminding me why I was fed up.  She began by announcing she was still angry over Victoria's dirty tricks.  Then she resumed demanding I skip tomorrow night's Camelot event.  When I said no, Patricia blew up.  She screamed at me, then slammed down the phone.  I mulled things over.  I was tired.  Very tired.  This call was the last straw.  Should I break up by phone or in person?  Probably phone.  I decided to think it over and then I would call her at work tomorrow Friday.  I doubted seriously she would object, not the way things had been going.  Enough is enough.  After class ended on Thursday, I said goodbye to Victoria as I headed out the door.  She had been teaching her own class in another room and wanted to talk about last Friday.  Oh, great.  Now what?  The moment she started bitching about Patricia, I interrupted her.  "Listen, Victoria, say no more.  You are absolutely right.  Patricia is a major pain in the ass.  I am sorry about the scene she caused last Friday.  In fact, I am headed to her apartment right now to break up with her, so I gotta go.  I will see you at Pistachio tomorrow night." My irritation with Victoria was the reason I changed my mind about using the phone.  As a face-saving way to avoid fire-breathing Victoria, I made a spur of the moment decision to drive to Patricia's apartment and get it over with.  It was a good idea.  This way I could drop off her key, grab my stuff and be done with Patricia once and for all.  Even better, knowing I was rid of her, I could enjoy myself at Camelot tomorrow night and begin looking for a candidate to replace the useless Princess. Patricia was not expecting me, but I didn't care.  Patricia was more trouble than she was worth and I wanted to move on.  However, to my surprise, Patricia was not home.  It was 10:15 pm, kind of late on a weeknight to be out and about.  I immediately felt suspicious.  This had happened once before back in December.  Her late night disappearance had taken place right after an ugly fight over the private lesson with Victoria issue.  Right now, history seemed to be repeating itself.  On the previous occasion, I had gone home and kept my suspicions to myself.  This time I had a key, so I decided to follow my hunch.  I entered Patricia's apartment and turned off the overhead living room lights.  Then I sat down in a chair over in the far corner.  I turned on a small reading lamp and looked at a magazine to pass the time.  Twenty minutes later, I heard Patricia's fancy sports car with its distinctive roar pull up.  Then I heard the sound of Patricia's laughter down in the parking lot.  The laughter told me she was not alone.  Okay, let's see who's with her. Hearing two sets of footsteps climbing the stairs, I turned off the reading light and waited in the darkness.  Patricia opened the door and walked into her apartment without bothering to turn on the lights.  There was enough ambient light from the kitchen that she didn't need the overhead light.  Patricia was still giggling about something.  She was so preoccupied she didn't realize I was sitting in the corner staring at her. Two steps behind was a tall man who followed Patricia in without hesitation.  I took this as a likely sign he had been here before.  The man closed the door behind him, then flipped on the lights.  Once the living room was lit up, Patricia gasped when she saw me waiting in the corner.  She stopped cold and nearly toppled over from fright.  Startled to see me, Patricia turned pale white.  She had been caught red-handed.  To her credit, Patricia recovered quickly.  Pretending like nothing had happened, Patricia put on her dignified personality and greeted me. "Rick, I am so glad you are here!  I want you to meet my friend Bob.  He is a friend of mine from work.  We had to work late on a project.  Bob offered to escort me to the door."  'To the door'?  What complete and utter bullshit.  How about 'THROUGH the door'?   I didn't believe a word she said.  Bob was a distinguished-looking gray-haired man in his forties.  He was a good fifteen years older than Patricia.  Dressed in an expensive business suit, I assumed he was an executive of some sort.  Or maybe he was one of the doctors from the hospital.  This guy probably earned the kind of money Patricia was looking to hook up with.  I had not heard two cars drive up, just the sports car.  So why were two people who worked late driving in one car?  That probably meant Bob's car was here already in which case Patricia had just lied about working late.  Or it meant she had driven Bob here from the hospital in which case maybe she would drive him back in the morning.  What difference did it make?  Patricia was lying.  That was the bottom line. Bob had walked in uninvited.  Indeed, Bob had walked through the door with a confidence that suggested he did not require an invitation.  Since Bob knew where the light switch was, that was another indication he had been here before.  I was angry, but not in a hot way.  I felt cold, very dark.  Recalling the Curse of Vanessa, Betrayal was something I was all too familiar with.  I had played this lying and cheating game with Vanessa six years ago and vowed I would never play it again.  In a strange way, I was actually kind of relieved.  Patricia's treachery meant there would be no second-guessing this decision.  I stood up, put the key on the coffee table, walked past Patricia without looking at her, ignored Bob as I passed him, and closed the door behind me.  No one said a word. It was supposed to end right there.  Too bad it didn't.  UNFAITHFUL Was Patricia planning to cheat?  If asked, no doubt Patricia would deny it.  However, given the preponderance of circumstantial evidence, my verdict is yes.  Running into Bob at Patricia's apartment was quite a coincidence.  Keep in mind my decision to visit Patricia's apartment that night was a spur of the moment thing.  The moment I finished dance class, Victoria started to bellyache about Patricia's Catfight.  I did not want to hear another word about it.  Sick of it!  Feeling that familiar nausea, I lost my temper.  Knowing this crap between Kong and Godzilla would never end until I got rid of Patricia, I cut Victoria off and hopped in my car with full intention of ending this toxic relationship.  To me, the odds of running into Bob were slim.  In six months, I only went to Patricia's apartment unannounced twice.  Both times she wasn't there when she should have been.  Very curious.  Was this spur of the moment decision my idea or did I receive a telepathic suggestion?  There is no way for me to prove that telepathic suggestion exists.  However let me point out that humans have long believed God has the power to speak to us.  If we accept that our Lord has this power, why is it so hard to believe that God or an agent of God such as a Guardian Angel would exercise this power for the purpose of guiding my Fate? RICK ARCHER'S LIST OF SUSPECTED SUPERNATURAL EVENTS     MAGIC CARPET RIDE:  THE DISCO YEARS    072 Suspicious Coincidence  1979   A last-minute decision to visit Patricia's apartment catches Patricia red-handed with Bob    071 Suspicious Synchronicity  1979   The Year of Living Dangerously:  Joanne's Christmas Party performance, Patricia's Bombshell, the Dangerous Liaison, and Victoria's Tirade lead to an entire year of serious trouble.    070 Suspicious Coincidence  1978   Joanne appears out of nowhere to steal the show at Victoria's Christmas Party    069 Serious Synchronicity  1978   The Interaction of Victoria, Patricia, and Joanne forms the Temptation Triangle   THURSDAY, MAY 3, 1979 SCORCHED EARTH   As I walked to my car, I shook my head in disgust.  I assumed Bob was Patricia's way of paying me back for not giving in concerning her demand that I skip Camelot tomorrow night.      Back in December, Patricia had lost her temper over my decision to take private lessons with Victoria.  Strangely enough, Patricia had not been home at 11 pm the night before the December Pistachio Party.  Either some boy got lucky or Patricia had stayed out very late looking for a viable candidate to replace me.   Back at Christmas time, Patricia was furious with me for refusing to give up my dance career to attend law school.  Next thing I knew, she was on a plane to Los Angeles to see George.    Last Friday, Patricia demanded I skip going to the Pistachio Club the following Friday as a show of loyalty to her.  When I refused, Patricia turned to Bob for companionship.  'One is an incident.  Two is a coincidence.  Three is a pattern.' Faced with three incidents where I assumed Patricia had been unfaithful, there was no doubt in my mind... Patricia was a cheater.  Shades of Vanessa.  I returned home around 11:30 pm.  I was bitter, angry, and disgusted with Patricia.  To my surprise, my rotten night was not over.  Too wound up to sleep, I was watching TV at midnight when my private phone rang.   Ring ring ring.  Irritated, I assumed it was Patricia.  Out of morbid curiosity, I decided to answer.  I was surprised to discover it was Victoria.  She was really upset.  "Rick, I need for you to come over to my house right now!  Michael is furious with me!  He is so angry I think he might hit me." "Has he ever hit you before?" "No, but he's never been this angry before.  Get over here and calm him down.  NOW!!!!" "Now?  It's midnight." "Yes, NOW, goddamn it!!  Get your ass over here!" "Okay, but first tell me what this is about." "Patricia called Michael and told him you and I have slept together.  They've been on the phone for the past hour and Michael is out of his mind with rage.  That's all you need to know.  Now get in the car!" Based on the urgency in Victoria's voice, I hung up the phone and headed out.  Apparently Patricia had flipped out after I left her apartment.  In an act of pure desperation, Patricia turned around and called Victoria's husband Michael at home.  I had no idea what Victoria did during Michael's conversation with Patricia, but I am pretty sure she had visions of her marriage slipping away. I imagine every minute Michael lingered on the phone added to her panic.  Hmm.  So Patricia had decided to exercise what she referred to as her atom bomb option.  Whenever she was in a bad mood, Patricia liked to speculate what would happen if she blew the whistle on Victoria's increasingly aggressive Camelot behavior.  However, Patricia had never seriously suggested Victoria and I had begun an affair.  I guess Patricia figured our relationship was over, so why not try a Scorched Earth strategy?  Let's go ahead and make everyone more miserable than they already are.  Pure evil.  Patricia and Michael were friends.  They had developed a rapport during their Friday nights together at the Pistachio Club.  Whenever they grew tired of playing second fiddle at Camelot as the King and Queen cavorted on the dance floor, they would talk.  Over the phone tonight, I imagine Patricia had made convincing arguments regarding Victoria's flirtations towards me.  As they say, Patricia made for a credible witness.  But it was wrong to lie about Victoria and I having sex.  Patricia had gone too far and I intended undo the damage. I had no idea what kind of reception to expect.  I was met at the door by Victoria.  She was pale as a ghost.  Extremely shaken, she led me into the living room.  Michael was sitting down.  Since he did not get up or offer to shake hands, I headed to a nearby chair.  Victoria asked if I wanted something to drink, but I said no thanks. Michael spoke up.  "Victoria, would you mind leaving the room?" To my surprise, she obediently left without a word or glance back.  She appeared scared out of her mind.  Right now her marriage was on the line.  It was up to me to save it.  When we were alone, Michael spoke up.  "I assume you are aware that Patricia called me around 11 pm to reveal my wife has a serious crush on you.  Patricia added there is a distinct possibility that a certain sensitive threshold has been crossed.  Needless to say, I am very upset.  Victoria denies everything.  What do you have to say about this?" I took a deep breath and began.  "You have nothing to worry about, Michael.  Once I explain where Patricia is coming from, you will understand better.  But before I start, I want to assure you that Victoria and I are friends only, nothing more.  I respect you, I respect your marriage, and I apologize for Patricia's behavior." Michael looked at me quizzically, but said nothing.   I could scarcely imagine what kind of thoughts ran through his mind.  There aren't very many men who get phone calls quite like this.  It took a while to collect himself, but finally Michael replied.  "Why would Patricia say these things?" "Spite.  Patricia is a spoiled brat who doesn't like to lose.  Did Patricia tell you I caught her red-handed inviting a man into her apartment tonight at 11 pm?" Michael was shocked.  "What?!"  I smiled.  "It's true.  I guess Patricia failed to include this small detail in your hour-long conversation." "Are you serious?" I nodded.  "Yes, I am quite serious.  So can I assume she failed to mention this when you spoke?" Michael nodded.  "Do you mind telling me what happened?" "No, of course not.  Patricia and I are having serious problems.  She is very jealous of the close relationship I have with Victoria and that colors her perception.  Furthermore Patricia has a bad temper.  She and I had a serious fight last weekend over Victoria's successful Camelot project.  Patricia didn't get her way, so I believe she invited a man named Bob over to her apartment in retaliation.  Without warning her, I went over to her apartment tonight.  Believe it or not, I intended to break up with her.  When she wasn't home, I used my key to walk in and wait for her.  Half an hour later I caught them walking into her apartment together at 11 pm.  Based on the laughter and flushed look on their faces, my guess is they were headed straight to the bedroom." "That is amazing.  But why is Patricia so mad at Victoria?" "Michael, I do not know what Victoria tells you about Patricia, so let me explain.  Patricia believes Victoria has turned people against her at the Pistachio Club in an attempt to freeze her out.  Apparently Patricia thinks this justifies telling an awful lie." "How do I know it is not a lie?" "I am not a cheater, Michael.  I admit I am fond of Victoria, especially since she has gone far out of her way to help me build the dance program.  My gratitude to Victoria is endless, but I also know right from wrong.  You should know me well enough from observation that I am not a womanizer.  So let me ask you a question.  One of us is lying, me or Patricia.  You have to decide which of us is telling the truth.  Did Patricia add details?  How convincing was she?" Michael hesitated to reflect.  "There were no details.  It took some questioning on my part, but Patricia eventually admitted it was her woman's intuition that told her you and my wife had gone too far." "Fair enough.  But consider the facts.  Did she tell you about her fight with Victoria last Friday?  Did she tell you about being caught red-handed with a man in her apartment tonight?   In my opinion, you are dealing with an immoral, emotionally-disturbed woman who feels humiliated by Victoria's continued brilliance." "Why do you say she is immoral?" "This thing with Bob is not the first time this has happened.  Patricia pulled a similar trick back in December."  I went on to share the details of how Patricia retaliated for my decision to take private lessons with Victoria.  I wanted to add George to the mix, but decided that was information better left unsaid.  Fortunately the combination of Bob and the pre-Christmas Party incident was sufficient to make Michael question Patricia's credibility. "So you are saying beware the wrath of a woman scorned." "Yes, that sums it up pretty well.  Bitter and embarrassed being caught with Bob, Patricia decided this was all Victoria's fault.  So she decided to lash back."  At that, Michael seemed to relax a little.  I could tell our face to face talk had worked wonders.  There's something comforting about a man who looks a husband in the eye and speaks with a calm voice and a mostly-clear conscience.  While it was true I had lust in my heart, I had no intention of acting upon it.  I was able to answer every one of Michael's questions without hesitation or evasiveness. However, Michael still needed a little more convincing.  "Patricia said she believed you were hiding something from her." I smiled grimly.  Damn her anyway.  Was Patricia referring to rumors about the Dangerous Liaison?  I doubted it.  More likely she suspected I was hiding a guilty conscience for lusting for Victoria.  But I didn't see any value in sharing this uncomfortable information with Michael.  Instead I replied calmly, "Patricia is grasping at straws.  I give you my word that Victoria and I have done nothing to be ashamed of.  As I said before, I respect you and I respect your marriage.  That is the truth, Michael." Michael frowned.  "It is very hard for me to understand what provoked Patricia to tell me these things." "Patricia is a sore loser.  She blames Victoria for sabotaging our relationship.  She also blames me for not standing up to Victoria.  She decided to pull a nasty stunt in revenge and got caught.  Patricia was so angry at being caught in the act that she was determined to get back at both me and Victoria by calling you as an act of revenge.  That is why she went scorched earth on Victoria.  If you don't believe me, give Patricia a call back.  You have her number, right?  Ask her to tell you about Bobby Boyfriend."  Michael did not reply, so I pointed to the phone.  "Call her.  I have nothing to hide.  I will sit here all night if that's what it takes.  Give Patricia a call and explain that I am sitting here available to answer any questions.  Then ask her to tell you about Bob.  Hand me a Bible if you wish."  Michael smiled grimly.  "That won't be necessary.  I believe you." Now that Michael had a legitimate explanation for Patricia's behavior, he seemed on the verge of accepting my explanation.  However, Michael was not done yet.  He called Victoria to come back in the living room and explain further why Patricia was so upset towards her.  Victoria did a nice job of spinning last Friday's Camelot Catfight in her favor.  When Michael nodded, I knew the damage had been contained.  Michael looked relieved.  As she walked me to the door, Victoria looked like she had survived a hurricane.  As I drove home, I was unaware this would be the last time I would ever see Michael.  What a shame.  I really liked Michael.  I also thought he got a raw deal.

 

THE YEAR OF LIVING DANGEROUSLY Chapter FIFTY THREE:  DANCE WITH THE DEVIL

 

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