Black Widow Part 3

-3-

Soon was too soon. They went through the same procedure with Gabriel Coffin. Gabe was seventy-five and very forgetful, not interested in sex as much as looking at her. He made her walk around the house in an apron, nothing else. She spent most of the time posing while he took pretend pictures. If he didn’t like her pose, he used the fly swatter on her butt. The next time she posed the same way, he was pleased. He took her grocery shopping and forgot where he had left her. A very frustrated man, he took his forgetfulness out on her. Once, she hid the fly swatter and she told him he left it somewhere, so he hit her with the slotted metal spoon that left huge welts. The fly swatter magically appeared because it hurt less and didn’t bite into her skin.

She wished that Gabe were not just mentally sick, but he was healthy and she thought that he could go on like this for years. She began to hate him; he knew it and he remembered enough to let her know that if she filed for a divorce, he wanted every dollar of his money returned. It was then that she realized her parents had sold her to him. Her parents would have to sell their new cars and they would take it out on her. She decided he was the lesser of two evils and tried to make it work.

He had an accident and the doctor said he couldn’t drive anymore. She had to take driving lessons and get her license to take him for his doctor appointments and shopping. They bought a used car and she had to hide the keys. They had some awful arguments about it, because he would forget that he couldn’t drive. She felt as if she was living in hell and wondered what she had done wrong to deserve it. One day, he found the keys when she was taking a shower. She didn’t hear him start the car or drive it down the gravel driveway. When she came out of the bathroom, he was gone with the car. She called the sheriff’s office with the tag numbers, explaining the situation. Two hours later, an officer was at the door, Gabe had another accident, wrapping himself and the car around a tree.

After the funeral, the lawyer handed the check to her father; he explained that since she was under-age, he would take care of it for her. She didn’t even get the house, nothing but her clothes. At their house, she accused them of selling her for their gain and it had nothing to do with finding her a good husband. A horrific beating and a night in the basement, made her more receptive to their finding her a husband. She insisted they look for a younger man with a stable mind or she wouldn’t do it. Another beating and two nights in the basement and she became submissive. Mallory was not quite seventeen.

Two weeks later, she was standing in front of the Judge again. The man they picked for her was a little on the chubby side, but he had all of his hair and teeth. She became Mrs. Joseph Rica. He did insist she call him Joseph and not Joe, but he seemed a pleasant sort, a man about sixty. He owned a cute little stucco house on the edge of town with flower gardens in the back yard. She did wonder why he had to pay for a wife when he could find one on his own. Their wedding night was a shock; he explained that if she wanted to back out that now was a good time. He wore a strapped-on prosthesis, telling her they had to consummate the marriage to be legal. Blushing the whole time, he related to her, the account of an angry husband and his erring wife. He had to use a bag, and he had very little genitalia.

Joseph worked and she was on her own during the day, cooking and cleaning. For the first time, she felt like a wife. She would drive him to work on days when she went shopping. They became good friends and were like any other married couple except for in the bedroom. She was happy for a change. It lasted for almost eight months, and then Joseph had a heart attack at work. He passed away after triple by-pass surgery. She was truly heartbroken this time.

Again, the lawyer gave the check to her father and she had nothing but her misery. They left her alone for a while, at least until the cash began dwindling. Her parents had gotten used to living high on the hog. They blew most of the money on vacations, furniture, and gambling. Mallory would break down in tears every time they mentioned finding her another husband. Finally, her father had enough of her crying and gave her a real reason to cry. After a day in the basement and a visit to the doctor for a broken nose, they let her black eyes heal and took her back to the courthouse.