Chapter Ten

Ethan

 

From my texting session with Frederick, I head for the Bradford & Campbell law offices. While texting with Frederick, I inadvertently hang up on the law firm and/or miss calls from their office. Probably Riley, hopefully with some new information on my charges and what it means for my court date. It was supposed to be for today I think, given the initial paperwork I received, but it seems that’s been moved out. Due to further investigation, it seems.

But I’m not sure, since I was only able to hear partial voice messages due to my clumsy fingers on the keyboard. I don’t know how, but it somehow messed up the caller’s ability to leave a coherent and complete message for me.

It’s fine by me though. With everything that I’ve done and shouldn’t have done over the last 24 hours, I think it would be best for me to go in and talk to Riley face-to-face.

So I get in my car, finishing my last bit of late breakfast — eggs on toast — and head in that direction. The polishing off of my coffee takes longer than the actual drive. Believe it or not, I’m still drinking the last drops of my straight black coffee even as I hustle my way into the law office and into my favorite parking spot. Favorite, because of the shade available there even in the late afternoon.

Again, as happened during my initial visits, I don’t need to check in with the receptionist. She just waves me off and away like she has something better to do. And she probably does. These law offices don’t just run on the presence of a 47-year-old Navy SEAL with recent charges pressed against him.

I mouth my thanks and make a beeline for Riley’s office.

She calls me in before I even have time to knock or peek my head around the door. It’s like she’s got a sixth sense for me— for all of her clients.

“Come on in, Ethan.”

I don’t waste any time. I step in and head for my seat in front of her desk. I sit in it stiffly and quickly, feeling somewhat like I’m a little kid in trouble with the principal.

“Thanks for making the time to see me again on such short notice.” I look down some, shaking my own head. “I really need to quit doing that to you. Really need to get better at giving you more notice when I’m planning to come in. It’s only proper.”

Riley waves me away.

“Your charges were dropped on you kind of suddenly so it’s really no problem.”

She opens the file on his desk. The one I’m assuming contains everything on my forming case. My charges and evidence she’s been able to gather on me and my accuser. Possible witnesses or other pertinent information I’m sure she’ll share with me at any moment.

“Anyway, I tried to call you this morning.”

“Yeah,” I say, “I got those messages. But they were partial. Garbled in some places. I don’t know what happened.”

Riley shrugs, folding her thin, exacting fingers together.

“Don’t know either, don’t care. What I’m interested in is giving you an update, Ethan.” I nod, and she takes this as her cue to continue.

“I’ve been assembling your case here. Working on talking to people who know you. Other people who served with you on base in the past, and those who serve with you presently.” She pauses, clearing her throat.

“I’ve also talked to a number of people who know your Frederick buddy intimately. And I mean intimately. Old boyfriends and whatnot. Turns out he’s a bit of a firecracker. A loose cannon in some situations.”

My stomach knots, not sure how I feel about this piece of information. Exes are never reliable. Whether they are men or women, they have motives for saying and feeling what they do. I hope you have something better than that for me, Riley. The poor boy deserves better than a bunch of hearsay. A bunch of testimony from people I’m sure didn’t care for him nearly as much as he did them.

Riley continues, oblivious to my inner turmoil.

“Quite a few people have said that he has misjudged and misidentified certain things and people happening in his past, as being real,” she says, being sure I hear every word. Especially the words about Frederick’s unreliability.

“They also have confirmed that his history of abuse has led to having unstable parts of his personality. Trauma, which he’s obviously projected onto you, and that’s where we get these charges from.”

Oddly, Riley smiles here, looking victorious. Like she just landed the kill she’s been after, and sunk her big ol’ velociraptor toe in it, and ripped it down the seams.

“But you already knew that. I just wanted to let you know that I’ve been firming up that little bit of the case. But here’s where it gets really interesting, and why I was so anxious to speak with you.” A pause.

“Others are coming forward. Other officers are coming forward with allegations.”

Nausea hits at me. A bout so strong it takes all of my Navy training not to barf all over her rug. I manage a curt, collected nod, but I’m feeling far from collected. More young men coming forward? But I didn’t even harm the one? How can there be more? How can they all be saying that I did something to them?

As if Riley can read my thoughts, she says, “Typical in these kinds of cases, Ethan. Some of these kids can be like sharks in chum-infested water. Once one cries foul, the rest follow, whether they actually remember you doing something to them or not. They’ve experienced similar trauma, so they’re more than ready to get on the bandwagon as it were.”

I’ve seen people act in a herd type of mentality — seen them act like lemmings from time to time — but I never thought they would do so around something like this. Especially around claims of sexual abuse, which I thought had to have some basis in reality. Some proof in the putting? But the more I listen to Riley, the more I’m beginning to doubt there has to be any truth or proof at all. Just putting out the ‘looks and smells like proof’ is enough apparently.

“The bad news,” says Riley, getting my attention back on her and further developments in my case, “is that while there are more people coming forward in your case who are making similar claims to Frederick’s, it’s hard to tell whether these men are coming because of something you did, or from another Captain. From what I can see, there seems to be a mix up — a crossing of some wires somewhere in all of these young men — and it seems like some of these claims might not be for you after all. And for whatever reason, yours is the only name they dare say.”

She stops talking for a moment, looking about as sick as I felt for the last five minutes.

“It’s just doesn’t add up. It doesn’t work, no matter how I try to arrange how these claims could possibly be yours.”

She bites on a fingernail, which is too well polished and taken care of for that kind of treatment.

“You and I both know that you are not the kind of man to take advantage of anybody. Let alone young men who look up to you.” Her face hardens, resolute. “But don’t worry, Ethan, I’ll get to the bottom of this.”

 

There’s a knock at the door and a new person comes into the room with us. Though he’s not really that new to me at all. It’s Jensen Bradford, Riley’s husband. He actually used to oversee a number of officers himself, before he decided to work in the private sector. Despite being married and no longer serving with us, he hasn’t changed a bit. He’s smartly dressed, kept the military styled hair, and looks confident, self-possessed. And I might add head over heels in love with his wife—the way he looks at her!  

“I think I might have already gotten to the bottom of something,” Jensen announces, breezing the rest of the way in. He waves cutely at Riley before turning to me. “Those other men coming forward that Riley told you about?”

I nod, not sure what else to do. I’m still a little confused as to why Jensen is here, looking like that.

“Oh, sorry,” he says, going over to snuggle up to Riley.

“She and I have a lunch date, that’s why I’m here. But since I heard the two of you talking, I wanted to let you both know about something that I’ve noticed.”

His eyes focus back on me, even though he’s stroking her arm like he’s been away on deployment.

“All of those additional claimants — men coming forward with allegations of abuse – they all served under Captain Stern at one point. Even your boy Frederick.” He lets that sit there for a minute.

‘Your boy’ sits with warmth over me. In that moment, I remember my plans to meet up this afternoon at a café an hour outside of Albuquerque. I hang my head, smiling at my idiocy.

I can’t believe I agreed to do that with him with this legal situation swirling around us. I must’ve used up all of my smarts and common sense 47 years ago to be acting this way. Either way, I can’t go back on it now. If I did, that would just make me feel even worse. And that’s worse than how any of this will look later to those on the outside looking in.

“The Navy will use all of these claims to build a strong case of sexual misconduct,” says Riley, almost as if she can read on my face, the stupid and secretive plans I’ve made for later in the day. Maybe even the guilt from my tryst the night before, though if she doesn’t ask, I’m sure as hell not telling.

“Still, my husband makes a good point. All of these men are or were under Captain Stern. They’ve all said similar things to each other as well.”

“Which makes me think you are just being used to divert attention from Captain Stern in some way.” Jensen hums thoughtfully.

“They seem to be throwing themselves at you, Ethan, and after years and years of not even the slightest infraction.”

The irony isn’t lost on me. I often fantasized about men throwing themselves at me— but certainly not in any way shape or form like this!

“I’m sure Captain Stern is involved in this somehow,” says Jensen walking back over to me. “Either in encouraging these boys to say what they’re saying, or in doing something to them to make the situation worse. Aggravated.” He pauses. “I’m going to find out what it is. Until then, don’t go do anything stupid.”

Well, already fucked that up. Briefly, I wonder how much more idiotic I would be if I actually told them what I had done last night — that I had slept with Frederick, my accuser — and that today I have plans to meet him for coffee! I’d probably not only be dismissed dishonorably before retirement, I’d be committed!

“I won’t,” I say, “I just want my case resolved.”

I feel a buzz in my pocket from my silenced phone. Probably Frederick. I’m not sure what time it is now, but I’m sure it’s getting close to 1:30 or 2:00 PM. And I want to get with you again, but I can’t have both. Not without one tarnishing me beyond repair.

As I sit there in my thoughts, Riley and Jensen move arm in arm to go on their lunch date. As they do, Riley pats me on the shoulder and says.

“Don’t worry, Ethan. If Captain Stern is the thread between all of this like Jensen thinks, we’ll get to the bottom of this. It’s just a matter of time before all the strings of the web bring in the spider.”