Every Memory Repeats

Chapter 23

Mickey stared at Marlena across his desk, and he said, "You're asking for primary custody?"

"I am," she replied slowly, and remembering the times Roman had grabbed her, the time he'd hit her, the other evening at the house when he been so angry. She thought about the incident with the syrup, when he cursed at Sami in a rage, and she said softly, "Roman's going through some things right now, and until he gets it under control, I think it's best that I have sole custody."

Mickey could see the fading bruises along her cheek, "What about visitation?"

"For right now," she said, "it should be supervised." She saw Mickey's eyes taking stock of the bruising along the side of her face. He knew what Roman had done to her, even if she didn't explicitly say it.

Mickey was quiet for a moment, and then asked her, "Are you sure you only want to cite irreconcilable differences as the cause for divorce?"

She said quietly, "Yes. I—I can't ruin his career, Mickey. I know, I sound like every cliche of a battered wife, but he only hit me once. It was a heated moment, and he knows that if he touches me again, I will be filing charges. I was very clear in that the last time I saw him."

Mickey nodded his head in acknowledgement, "I'll get the papers drawn up this afternoon, and delivered to Roman by the end of business on Monday. Is he staying at the fish market?"

"Yes," Marlena said softly, gathering her things. "I really appreciate you handling this for me, Mickey. I wanted it handled quickly, and discreetly. My first thought was you."

"Marlena, I consider you a friend. I know this last year has been difficult on you, and your family. It's been hard on John, too."

"It has," was her only response. Marlena wasn't sure what Mickey might know in relation to Roman's recent actions, or even Isabella's. Salem wasn't a large town, and word traveled quickly among its citizens. Chances were that Mickey already knew everything, and Marlena was grateful that he was too polite to ask. As she stood to leave, she smiled at him, and said, "Thank you for getting this done so quickly."

"You're welcome," he replied, walking her to the door with a sense of sadness. He knew from his mother what Roman had done to Marlena, as well as knowing about Roman's infidelity. His mother had told him last night, when he'd mentioned his upcoming meeting with Marlena, and because of the rumor mill that existed in Salem, he'd also heard about what had happened with Isabella's baby. Both John and Marlena had been through so much since Marlena's return nearly a year ago. Sitting back down at his desk, Mickey sighed deeply, and began to draft out Marlena and Roman's divorce papers.

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"I don't know where she went, Roman!" Bo said loudly. They were in their parents kitchen, almost at a stand-off as Roman demanded to know where Billie had gone. "She's been acting odd, ever since she found out she was pregnant. Last night, she was crying. She kept saying things that didn't make sense. Something about the world not being safe, and refusing to allow her child to grow up this way."

Roman stared at Bo, "Do you think she's getting an abortion?"

"No," Bo said definitively. "I don't think she's doing that, but I don't know where she is either. Honestly, I'm still angry with both of you. You sleeping with Billie...one of you should have told me that happened."

"I didn't realize she'd be pregnant, Bo. I thought it was a mistake, and you'd be better off not knowing. I thought Doc would be better off not knowing. Now, Marlena knows, and she's divorcing me..."

"Roman...when are you going to talk about it?"

"I am talking about it!"

"No, you know what I mean. You hit her. Ma told me and Pop. You hit her so hard her face was covered in bruises. Pop didn't raise us to lay our hands on women when we're angry, Roman."