Read Quiet As It's Kept Online
Authors: Monique Miller
Quiet As It's Kept (24 page)
Chapter 26
After composing himself enough to sit down, Will sat down in at the foot of the bed and restarted the three-hour recording. Again he saw his baby boy standing in front of the computer hitting the keyboard and moving the mouse around. And in the background he saw what was so astonishing to him. He and Morgan were arguing. The sound on the state-of-the-art system he had purchased was awesome. It recorded every little sound.
On his computer screen, Will watched as most of their argument in the den was being recorded. He listened to the parts of the recording when they had stepped out of view of the camera. The recording showed his version of how he tried to get past her and had barely touched her shoulder to get by, and how she'd fallen like she'd been shoved. The recording also showed how she'd bounced back up like nothing had happened.
Will continually shook his head, not believing what he was seeing on the screen. The recording was supporting to a tee everything he had been saying, right even up until the time that Will left. In the background, he could hear where he had cranked the car and driven off.
A few minutes later, Morgan's body came back into view of the camera. He figured she'd probably realized that the camera was on, and she would probably turn it off. But he pushed that thought out of his head quickly because there was still well over two hours of recording time left.
Morgan disappeared out of view of the camera for a few moments, and then he heard a howling scream just before he saw her run into the wall. He blinked a couple of times, wondering if he had seen right, and sure enough, she ran again headfirst into the wall. Then she picked up a picture frame and hit herself over the head with it.
For the next few minutes Will watched as Morgan went in and out of the camera's view, beating herself up. The entire scene made him cringe as he wondered why anyone would do that to herself. Each time she came back into the view of the camera, she looked worse for the wear. The beat-up session took over fifteen minutes, and, by the end of it, even Will would have believed that someone else had beaten her up.
Will's heart raced as he saw Morgan pick up the cordless phone and dial three numbers. He figured she had dialed 911. Sure enough, in the next words out of her mouth she told an operator where she lived and that her husband, Will Tracy, had just beaten her up. She sobbed as she spoke into the phone, doing her best job to convince the 911 operator that her complaint was valid. And again Will had to admit that her acting job was pretty believable, so believable that he wouldn't have believed she was lying unless he'd seen the footage.
After she hung up the phone, her fake tears ceased immediately. Then Will heard her say out loud, “Take that, Will.”
Will couldn't believe what he had just seen. And the show wasn't over, because Will fast-forwarded the recording and saw Morgan start her act up again when the police got to the house. It was hard to hear them at first since they were at the front door, but when Morgan walked them in to the den to show them the damage that was supposedly done by him, Will saw the same two police officers that had come to Phillip's home. Again, Will couldn't help but shake his head.
“Wonders never cease,” Will said to himself.
He watched the rest of the footage and was surprised to see the laptop being closed by Morgan. She didn't know much about Web cams, but she was a stickler for turning off anything that was taking up too much electricity. It was a blessing that Morgan had no idea that the Web cam had been recording. Had she known, Will would have never had the evidence he needed to show his lawyer and the police to get the charges dropped.
Will thanked the Lord for looking out for him. And thanked the Lord he didn't know how many times for the blessing he held in his lap; the curious blessing who had pushed the right buttons on the computer to make the Web cam record his mother's crazy actions.
Hearing a knock at the bedroom door, Will looked up to see Phillip.
“Hey, man, I didn't even hear you come into the house.”
“I figured that. I called you a couple of times.” Phillip looked toward Will's computer. “I see you finally got your computer. Is the wireless working for you?”
“Oh, yeah, it is working wonderfully.” Will grinned.
“What is that grinning all about?”
“It is about how God can turn a seemingly hopeless situation around in the wink of an eye.”
“I know that's right,” Phillip said. “And with that being said, I want to talk to you again about coming to work for me. I know you haven't wanted to in the past, but I had a sales associate quit today and I have an opening. And before you ask, no, I did not fire him to make a position for you.”
Will laughed. “I may just do that for the time being. But I have to say, boss, I may not be there for long.”
“No, why?”
“I got a phone call for an interview today.”
“You did? That's great, man.”
“It sure is, and I haven't told you the best part.”
“What's the best part?” Phillip asked.
“It is the same company that I was supposed to interview for the day of the accident.”
“You're kidding me. Did you apply for another job there?”
“No, they just called me. I mean, after the accident I did notify them to let them know why I didn't make it to the interview. And I also told them that if anything else came open I would like to be considered. I guess they remembered.”
“Man, that is awesome.” Phillip put up his hand to give Will a high five.
Will high fived Phillip's hand so hard that it stung. “Man, ain't God good? I mean, I don't have the job yet, but I feel like my favor from God is being taken up a notch.”
“You think?” Phillip asked.
“No man, I know this for a fact.” Will closed his eyes, lifting his head toward heaven. “Man, let me tell you the best part of God's favor that I am still reeling about.”
“What's that?”
“You got three hours?”
“Don't you mean do I have three minutes?”
“No, I mean three hours, or at least time enough for me to show you a few things and fast-forward through some others,” Will said. “So maybe about an hour total.”
“Are you serious?”
“As a heart attack,” Will said. “And I am talking about the ultimate favor of God and His divine intervention.”
“Whoa, hold up. Hold that thought. I need to pick P.J. and Nyah up. Can it wait until I get back? Because I want to hear this and I want you to have my undivided attention.”
“Yeah, I can show you when you get back, because this is something that you won't want to have any interruptions.”
“Is it that good?” Phillip asked.
“Even better.” Will smiled.
Chapter 27
“Hello, my brothers,” Will said to the group assembled in the circle, in the hidden office of New Hope Church. “A couple of months ago, I was in turmoil over the direction my family life was taking. I prayed to God for answers, and He led me to Brother Tyler.” Will looked over in the direction of Tyler, who was sitting two people down from him.
Will looked around the room at some familiar faces, and a few faces he had never seen before. He was pretty sure by now that there were quite a few men in the Secret Brotherhood who were victims of domestic violence, who had come to the semimonthly meeting. Present in this meeting were Brother Chrispin and Brother Nelson. Will was glad to see both of the men again.
Both brothers had called and checked on him after the arrest. They both offered to help him whenever and however they could, and they let Will know that he and the baby were in their prayers. It all meant a lot to Will to know that he was not alone. The Lord had sent into his life like-minded men who had been through some similar circumstances.
“The first time I came here I had no idea what to expect. Brother Tyler was vague in what the meeting was about, but, by the time I left, I understood the reasoning for his secrecy and vagueness. I understand the importance of keeping the confidentiality of the persons present, not only for personal privacy, but also for their safety.
“Because, sadly enough, there are many different forms of domestic violence. I think Brother Tyler said it best the last time I was here, that while men often use physical force to control their mates, women are crafty and they often use different devices to get the same results.”
Tyler King nodded in agreement.
“I didn't speak at my first meeting, as I was trying to fully understand why I was even here and what exactly I had in common with all of you. I left that meeting with a wealth of information that helped me tremendously. You see, I was at a point when I was first starting to realize that my wife meant me ill will. Just like one of the brothers said, my wife didn't touch me physically to harm me; she did things on the sly to hurt me.
“It took a little while for me to realize it, but my wife was trying to get rid of me and get insurance money. And there wasn't anything concrete that I could put my finger on, and many of the things she was doing were things that she tried to justify. I believed her, I think, because I wanted to believe her. I mean, nobody wants to think that another person means him harm.
“But I found out all too well that she meant me harm. I also found out she had been lying to me ever since the very first day I met her. In a nutshell, the name she went by was not her birth name. I've recently found out from a private investigator that she had used the name of some baby who had died. She'd used its name to get ID cards made, to start up credit lines, and to even put the information on a fake diploma and other documents. The investigator also found that she had taken out three extra insurance policies on my life.”
Will shook his head. “I still have to shake my head when I think about it. The past two years have been a roller coaster, especially with my being out of work. But the main part of my testimony is that I used much of the information that I got from that last meeting when I decided to leave my wife. I was able to grab the important documents that I would not have even thought about taking had I not come here and gotten the pamphlets and handouts.
“And when I was arrested for assaulting my wife . . .” Will started. He paused. Sounds of astonishment came from a couple of men in the circle. “No, I assure you I didn't lay a hand on my wife. Well, I put my hand on her shoulder only to walk around her so I could get out of her way that night, but I did not assault my wife.”
Will looked over at Brother Chrispin, who nodded to agree with Will. He had been privy to the truth of what had happened.
“I was blessed to have brothers here in the brotherhood who were there for me during my time of need. Even at the police station, when I wasn't thinking straight, I remembered that Brother Chrispin was a police officer there. And as soon as I remembered he worked there, I asked for him. He came and gave me words of encouragement. And, let me tell you, that went a long way, because I needed it.”
Will took a deep breath. “It was hard, because the police officers who interrogated me acted as if I was guilty of the crime I was being accused of. And I guess I can understand that because there are so many male-on-female crimes that occur each and every day. And it didn't help matters that my ex-wife had bruises to show that I had beaten her.”
Curious eyes stared at Will as he held his hand up. “To make a long story short, my wife beat herself up after I left the house that evening. When I left her, her body was intact. But when the police interrogated me they were armed with pictures of my wife beaten and bruised. I myself couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the pictures.”
Speaking out words he was thinking, one of the brothers asked, “What happened?”
“My wife beat herself up. How do I know this, you might ask?”
A couple of men nodded.
“Well, what I am saying is not just speculation on my part. My little boy recorded the whole ordeal. I have a Web cam and my baby boy hit the right buttons on my computer to make the Web cam record. And the recording supported my statements to a tee, even down to the time-stamps on the recording.”
“Man, ain't God good?” said one of the men sitting in the circle.
“He sure is,” Will replied. “God is so good that He restored my health after the accident I was in. The Lord also gave me a new job. And He blessed me to be able to have custody of my son. And not only that, I am back in my home.”
“What about your wife?” asked a brother wearing a blue dress shirt.
“Well, as it turns out, legally she is not and never was my wife. She is in jail right now for a number of crimes she committed, one of which was identity theft. She won't regain custody of my son if I and the state of North Carolina have anything to do with it. One of the things I found out about her past is that she already had children taken from her by the state, for abuse and abandonment.”
Tyler King shook his head. “My brother, the Lord has truly been with you. And I am glad you are here to tell the story.”
Many of the men in the group said, “Amen.”
“You know, the sad thing is that there are so many people who do suffer from domestic violence, especially women, who go through horrible problems that sometimes even end in death. And I believe the reports are not accurate. There are more men experiencing problems with domestic violence, and it is a quietly kept secret.
“My ex-wife used the male-on-female domestic violence ploy, exploiting the women who do suffer from domestic violence. And not only did she exploit real women who suffer from domestic violence, she made the good guys look bad.”
“It is a sin and a shame,” Brother Nelson said.
“I don't want to take up all the time here tonight, but I did want to thank you brothers for welcoming me into this support group. I never realized I was a victim of domestic violence until I came here. I had a crash course in finding out that domestic violence doesn't just stop with physical violence, but can also include financial, emotional, and psychological abuse as well.”
Will directed his attention to Brother Nelson. “So I thank you for starting this group, and I will help in any way possible to continue to help the Secret Brotherhood in its quest to help abused men. There isn't much help out there for men who are abused. There needs to be more help to support men in need. This group is one in a million, and I thank you.
“Most of all, I thank God for His grace, mercy, and salvation, because who knows where I would have been if it weren't for Him,” Will said.
And the group said, “Amen.”
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