Consequences

itself a victory.
—Norman Vincent Peale
     Chapter 34
    The new year began, and the routines of the past year continued. Tony left in the morning for work. Claire stayed home swimming in the indoor pool, working out in the gym, reading books, watching movies, and waiting for his return. She still relied on Catherine to inform her each evening of Tony’s plans. One change was that if he were in town he always came to her suite. She may even be asleep, but he slept with her. Another change was that he personally informed her of any events, gatherings, or activities that they would attend as a couple. Claire felt that was an improvement from Catherine’s last-minute information.
    Together they attended two formal events in January. The University of Iowa held a banquet, preceded by cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, to recognize platinum donors. Mr. Anthony Rawlings, of course, was one of them. They also attended a political fund-raiser for the Iowa City District Attorney’s Office, where a speaker spoke about the role of private industry in the country’s financial recovery. Claire played her part well. She remembered all the rules of her first outing at the symphony. Now as Anthony Rawlings’s wife she didn’t need to be the perfect companion—she needed to be the perfect wife. She projected the persona well: beautiful, polite, contented, and appreciative.
    Claire had been a newlywed over a month. And most of that time had been spent wandering around her home. The continual snow and cold even restricted her from getting outside into the woods. She wondered about Courtney or Sue. Perhaps they didn’t want to see her. She hadn’t seen or talked to anyone since Emily. That had been on January 1. The walls of her beautiful home were closing in upon her.
    When Tony worked from home Claire joined him in his office. It wasn’t a requirement; she thought of it as a getaway from her normal routine. He mostly worked from Iowa City, but he also went out of town a few times. He said he wanted her with him on these business trips, but things were too busy. There would be no time for social activities, and she would be bored. He decided it was better for her to stay home.
    She felt increasingly claustrophobic, and Tony seemed completely unaware of her plight. Claire decided that perhaps this qualified as one of those “I am a busy man. If you want something, you need to ask me” situations. One night after Tony returned from a short stay in Chicago and the two lay in his dark suite, Claire decided to ask, “I would like to go with you on your next business trip.”
    “I told you, things are busy. You would be bored.”
    “I’m bored now. I’ve barely been out of this house since our honeymoon. I’m going crazy.” She expected some realization, an apology for being so involved in business that he’d neglected his wife, perhaps some sweeping request for forgiveness.
    That wasn’t what she received. Abruptly he turned. Sensing his face above hers, she could feel his breath on her face. “Really? You are bored?”
    Resilient, “I am.”
    “And you didn’t catch the end of the conversation?”
    “I’m sorry, I didn’t. I will stay out of your way and we don’t need to go out on the town. I just want to get out of this house.”
    “You have received many invitations for outings.” He remained inches from her face.
    “What? What kind of invitations? And why didn’t I know about them?”
    Tony explained, “You don’t know about them because I chose not to pass them on to you.” Claire waited while he continued, “During our wedding preparations you were extremely busy, sometimes you weren’t home when I returned. I didn’t like that.” His cadence slowed. “Besides, on New Year’s Eve you seemed to have memory issues. I decided that going out as Mrs. Rawlings alone was something that you were not ready to do.”
    Claire could feel anger building within her chest and feared that if she spoke her words would ignite her husband’s fury, not subdue it. Therefore, she concentrated on keeping her lips pressed together as he continued, “And I like knowing that you are home, safe and out of trouble. I have too many things on my plate. I don’t need to worry about you having an accident .”
    “From whom?” Claire asked assertively. She’d remained silent as long as she could.
    “Excuse me?” Tony understood her tone. He wanted clarification on her meaning.
    “The invitations that I have received,