Consequences (76 page)

Happiness
doesn’t
depend
on
any
external
conditions,
it
is
governed
by
our
mental
attitude.

—Dale Carnegie

 Chapter 51

Claire had been incarcerated for over three months and had come to terms with the knowledge that it would not end soon. The claustrophobic cell and virtual isolation were her new norm. Surprisingly, she was adapting. It was difficult at first, but with time, she developed strength and resolve.

On April 18, 2012, the courtroom sat empty except for the judge, defendant, and legal teams. Each word resonated throughout the cavernous room. Claire Nichols stood in front of the federal court judge and with the help of her legal team pleaded
no
contest
to the charge of
attempted
murder
. As the judge explained the consequences of Claire’s plea, she listened, felt the smooth finish of the chair she used for support, watched the judge’s lips, and wept silently.

This plea saved her the indignity of a jury trial. She didn’t admit guilt, but would not, could not challenge the charges. Therefore, she would take a lesser sentence but couldn’t later decide to appeal. She would avoid Mr. Evergreen and his questions. She would escape the dark penetrating eyes of Anthony Rawlings as she testified. She wouldn’t need to explain to the entire world how she was forced to do things and how things were so different from how they appeared. She could just go away quietly.

The court of public opinion had not gone well either. The people of Iowa City, of Iowa, and of the United States all found her guilty. They tried her as a gold digger. Of course, most of the information hadn’t come out. Even that shared with the members of both legal teams remained private. Anthony Rawlings made sure of it.

The federal judge sentenced her to seven years in prison, minus time served, to be served in a moderate security federal penitentiary. The severity of her crime required a moderate security facility. Apparently, even her ex-husband testified to the judge, asking for a minimum-security facility, more evidence of his forgiving, kind character.

Counsel on behalf of Anthony Rawlings filed the necessary paperwork to dissolve the marriage between him and Claire Nichols. Of course, there was no contest. With a few connections, the court papers were expedited. The divorce was finalized on March 20, 2012. Since there wasn’t a prenuptial agreement, Claire received no financial compensation for her fifteen-month marriage. After all, she was charged with his attempted murder. Why would she get any financial compensation?

According to the smut television shows that played in the common area of the prison, Mr. Rawlings was having no problem finding women to take her place. The world rallied around him and his unfortunate situation. Even Rawlings Industries stock soared.

The small window in the door of Claire’s cell allowed a minimal amount of florescent light to penetrate, making the walls drab and colorless. Turning on her desk lamp filled the room with a feeling of warmth. Her cell at the Iowa Correctional Institution for Women was small and would be her home for at least another four years. She was sentenced to seven, but eligible for parole in four. Claire was good at following rules.

She had a twin-sized bed, dresser, an open hanging area, a few shelves, and a desk with a chair. It wasn’t much but she felt content. She’d experienced more and that hadn’t worked well for her. Existing in a comforting sameness day to day helped Claire survive. There were no surprises, everything was predictable. Day after day, the same routine: wake, dress, and breakfast, then back to her cell, alone, until lunch. Lunch and then a one-hour block of free time, either in a large gymnasium, the prison library, or an outside court. Claire loved the outside. She went there whenever the weather permitted. Then back to her cell until dinner. After dinner there was optional common time, if you earned that privilege, for another hour. Claire earned it, but opted for her cell. Companionship required trust in the other person. Claire’s trust didn’t extend beyond herself any longer. She stayed in her cell until her buzzer rang. The buzzer indicated that it was time to shower; following the shower, back to her cell, lights out at 11:00. Simple and predicable, Claire had suffered enough unpredictability.

She spent her free time reading. Emily tried to send her books as often as possible. Having a sister and husband in jail was hard on Emily. She was asked to leave her teaching job in Troy. The private school system needed to maintain its reputation, and apparently some donors were concerned about her influence on young children. She went back to Indiana to familiar surroundings and taught for a public school system near Indianapolis. The money wasn’t good, but at least she could survive.

It was a two-hour drive from Iowa City to Mitchellville. Brent Simmons should have utilized a driver. It was four hours he could have worked, but he chose to drive. He wanted to be alone and come to terms with the assignment ahead of him. Claire Nichols needed to be informed of a possible pending civil lawsuit. Brent knew as the head legal counsel for Rawlings Industries he could have sent someone else. He wanted to send someone else. Mr. Rawlings made it clear that wasn’t an option.

The July sun shone bright on the pavement ahead of him. Momentarily, he was distracted by the illusion of shimmering liquid in the distance. He didn’t want to face Claire, to see her in the correctional institution. He knew she didn’t belong there, and he hadn’t helped her. She probably felt abandoned. She was. Brent’s mind went back to January, to that terrible phone call telling him and Courtney that someone tried to kill Tony. They were planning to return from Fiji in three days, of course they flew home immediately.

When they found Tony he was still hospitalized. He looked and sounded healthy but his disposition wasn’t pleasant as he informed them that all evidence pointed to Claire. Courtney was devastated, she argued with Tony. After she left the room Tony informed Brent that they were not
allowed
to visit or help Claire after what
she
did. That didn’t go well with Courtney. She went anyway. Somehow Tony found out and Brent had hell to pay.

Brent wasn’t directly involved in the criminal suit. Actually, the State Of Iowa accused Claire Rawlings of attempted murder, not Tony. But Brent was involved in an expedited divorce. Marcus Evergreen, chief prosecutor for Johnson County, had information Brent needed for his petition. It was mid-February when Marcus’ secretary utilized a courier to deliver a flash drive to Brent. It contained the documents he needed. He planned to leave it at the office, but at the last minute decided to take it home to
take
a
look
at
it
.

Courtney was out to dinner with friends when Brent pulled up the drive on his home computer. There was only one folder: “Rawlings, Claire.” He opened it. It contained multiple files. The one he needed was “Rawlings vs. Rawlings.” It should have been the only one on the drive. It wasn’t. The one titled “State of Iowa vs. Rawlings: Preliminary Brief-Task” sat right in front of him. It was unethical and probably illegal, but he opened it. Young attorneys get wordy. Paul Task’s preliminary brief was 147 pages! Brent grimaced and shook his head at the inexperience of Claire’s attorney. He started to close the file when he focused on the words, suddenly transfixed.

Two hours and three Blue Label’s straight up later, the entire brief was read. The descriptions and details of Claire’s life while with Tony were nauseating. It was stated more than once that this was only a sample of the treatment she endured, there was more. How could this be going on and they not know? He panicked, thinking he shouldn’t have read it and should delete it.

However, instead of deleting he made an electronic copy on a personal flash drive and printed a copy. Then he deleted it from the original drive. If questioned, he would deny that it’d ever been present. He wanted to punch Tony, but Brent knew he could never let Tony know he read the brief.

Planning to keep it to himself, he decided to hide the paper copy in his safe and put the pin drive in a special box in the drawer of his desk. Before he had the chance to follow through on those plans, Courtney came home. She knew immediately that something was amiss and assumed Tony was responsible. Maybe it was the whiskey combined with helplessness for Claire, but Brent handed Courtney the paper copy. In hindsight, it was a mistake that almost cost him his twenty-eight-year marriage. When she finished reading he asked two simple questions, “Do you believe it? Do you think she is telling the truth?”

Courtney erupted! She believed every word and wanted Tony’s head on a platter. She also wanted Brent to quit his job, move far away from Iowa City, and most importantly help Claire. Downtrodden, Brent explained none of that was possible. “We can’t.”

“Why not? She told me at the jail she didn’t do it! I knew something was wrong. I kept asking. Why didn’t I push more? God, it said he hurt her in California. We were with them! Brent, think about Claire, her age. What if those things you read happened to our daughter?”

“I would kill the bastard! But they didn’t. And not only is he my boss, he is now Caleb’s boss. Don’t you think in light of this new information it is coincidental that he recently offered Caleb such a great job? Now not only does he own us, but also our son and future daughter-in-law.”

“This is America, just quit!”

“Courtney, I can’t. You don’t walk away from Tony. Ask John Vandersol.” Brent hadn’t meant to divulge that information, it just slipped out. Courtney sat dazed. She poured herself another glass of cabernet and reread the brief. The next day, while Brent was at work, Courtney left. He came home to a note: “If
anyone
asks, I am taking care of my sick mother. Do not attempt to call or communicate, I will
not
be available.” Brent tried numerous times. Over a week later she returned. Brent remembered worrying what she would say. He fully expected, “You are weak and I am done, I want a divorce.”

Instead, Courtney apologized. “I wasn’t there for Claire and apparently can’t be there for her now. I can be here for you. You shouldn’t have to face that bastard every day without support. I love you and will support you. But know this: I want out of here and away from him. From this point forward we slowly, inconspicuously move our assets away from Rawlings stock and work to liberate our family. That will start with Caleb, before he gets in too deep. Do you agree?”

Brent did. He wanted out too. The first time Courtney needed to see Tony face to face, Brent worried. She did fine. If he could muster a false smile and Claire could do it, she could too. They were already laying the ground work for Caleb’s move to another place of employment.

As Brent got out of the car and walked into the institution he worried about Claire, what would she look like? Has she been able to survive? How? He hated Tony and damned him with each echoing step down the long, tiled halls.

A guard took him to a small dingy room, illuminated with a florescent glow, which contained a steel table and four chairs. Brent set his briefcase on the table and waited. Looking around, he noticed the conspicuous camera in the corner. It reminded him of the videotaping mentioned in the preliminary brief and of his conversation with Tony.

“You want me to go tell Ms. Nichols (Tony didn’t like to hear her first name) you are considering a civil lawsuit against her, for what?”

“Slander and deformation of character.”

“Why, what did she say?”

“It doesn’t matter. You don’t need to know. You just need to do your job.” Tony’s voice was flat and authoritative.

In actuality Brent was fishing, would Tony share the information Brent already knew? He also wondered if Tony knew he knew, apparently not. “Tony, there are many members of the legal team that haven’t been as involved with Ms. Nichols as I. Perhaps one of them could inform her of the impending suit?”

“No. It will be you.” His tone was firm and his eyes intense. “Have you ever noticed the nice cameras in those visitor rooms? Those tapes are available for a price. I will assume you will not relay information to her that is not related to the suit. As a reminder, this will
not
be a friendly visit.” Brent said he understood.

Claire was reading in her cell on that July afternoon when her buzzer sounded. The sound meant she needed to go to her door. She would be receiving something, usually a package. This time a guard informed her that she had a visitor and her presence was immediately required in the visitor area.