Page 30 of Lorna's Savior
“Nothing. Her first ex-husband hired me to check out some matters pertaining to his own divorce from her. Is it true you married her?”
“Yes. I divorced her lying ass too.”
“Are these your divorce papers?” Andy produced them, and before Raoul could question them, he stated, “Public information.”
Hernandez took the papers, skimmed them, then handed them back. “Yes, those are my divorce papers.”
“It says here you divorced for irreconcilable differences. In your own words, could you please tell me what they were, and if you don’t mind, could I tape your reply?”
“I guess.”
“Okay,” Andy said as he took out his voice-activated recorder, spoke into it, and asked Raoul to state his name, the date, time, and location of where he was right that minute. After that was done, he drew in a deep breath.
“Mr. Hernandez, in your own words, could you please tell me why you divorced Kristen Hepplewaite.”
“Because she’s a money-hungry, lying bitch. We lived at her house. As you can tell, my career is far from fucking Montana. When we dated, she promised me we would move to a loft in SoHo, but I soon realized she’d lied. She had me pay for everything. I’m talking the mortgage payment, not only the auto loans, but also the auto insurance, the groceries, and even for her kid’s tuition to the private school she went to. I don’t have to tell you that I wasn’t a rich bastard like she thought I was. We fought constantly about money.”
“You said you paid the mortgage, and her child’s tuition. Did you give the money directly to Kristen, or did you pay the bank, and school? How did you pay?”
“Cash directly to Kristen.”
“Did you get receipts?”
“No, but I kept a notebook with a running inventory of everything I dished out.”
“Is there any way I could get a copy of that.”
“Will it help nail her ass to the wall for whatever you’re investigating?”
“It might.”
“Then wait right here. I never leave home without that book. Being a starving artist, I need to account for all of my money.”
“Thank you,” Andy said as he turned off the recorder, and watched as Raoul hurried away. He had to wait almost an hour, but when he returned he not only had the notebook with him, but he also had made copies of his two years with Kristen.
“I have to ask. If you were a starving artist during your marriage, how were you able to pay for her mortgage and the tuition?”
“Unfortunately, my parents had been killed when the towers fell. It took that long for the insurance company to come through to pay their life insurance. They had some sort of indemnity that allowed for double payouts in case of terrorism. We had all laughed at that clause when they took the policies out years before, but it came in handy when the time came. I used that money when I was married to Kristen. Once it dried up, she kicked my ass out. Told me that if I couldn’t pay my share, then she had no use for me.”
“Thank you, Mr. Hernandez. This information should go a long way in helping my case. I’ll get out of your hair. I don’t foreseeing my needing anything else at this time, but here’s my card in case you need to get ahold of me.”
“And here’s mine. Let me know what comes of this conversation, if you could.”
“If anything good comes of it, I’ll contact you.”
“Thank you, Mr. Ball.” They shook hands and Andy quickly took his leave. The next week and a half developed into the same results as his meeting with Mr. Hernandez. Each man he interviewed told him, on tape, that Kristen Hepplewaite demanded that they pay for not only her mortgage, but also for Lorna’s tuition at her private school. Each and every time that was mentioned, Andy shook his head. Once he got home, he’d have to somehow ask Lorna where she went to school. It was his understanding that it was to the local public school. With a shake of his head, he climbed out of the cab in front of an office building that housed several doctors. From his research, he knew this was a private practice.
Inside at the receptionist, Andy stated he had an appointment with a Dr. Michael Lawrence. Before the receptionist could answer, a man stepped up, and held out his hand.
“I’m Dr. Alexander Landon. I’m taking all of Dr. Lawrence’s patients while he is on vacation.” Andy decided to go with the flow. After entering the office, and taking a seat, Andy got right to the point.
“I don’t know if you can help me or not, Dr. Landon. I’m here on a personal matter with Dr. Lawrence.”
“Maybe I can help.”
Andy frowned, then made a quick decision. “Maybe you can.” He opened his briefcase and pulled a file. “I’m a private investigator out of Montana. My client is having me investigate some things regarding his ex-wife and their daughter. I know all about doctor/patient confidentiality, but I do have some questions for you in regards to some medical procedures.”
“Okay.”
