Chapter 6 - Mark was not the villain I had been sold
I disliked Mark.
That complicated what came next.
He was not charming.
Not emotionally expressive.
He had cheated once during the final year of the marriage.
Rachel found messages.
They separated.
He admitted it.
Ugly.
The divorce followed.
So when Mom said Mark abandoned Rachel financially, I believed her.
He had already failed morally.
Why not financially too?
After the confrontation with Diane, I called Mark.
Ben suggested using lawyers first.
I said:
“I’m asking about child support, not planning a raid.”
Still, I recorded notes.
Not the call secretly.
Notes afterward.
Mark answered cautiously.
“Elena?”
“Hi.”
“Everything okay with the baby?”
I almost cried.
My sister’s ex-husband had asked before my mother did.
“She’s okay.”
“Good.”
Then:
“I need to ask something uncomfortable.”
“Okay.”
“How much child support are you paying Rachel?”
Silence.
“Why?”
“Because I’ve been told you barely pay.”
Longer silence.
Then:
“I’m current.”
“How current?”
“I haven’t missed since the first six months after the divorce.”
There had been a job change.
Court modification.
Temporary arrears.
Then regular payments.
He emailed me documentation only after I explained why I was asking and after checking with his attorney.
Monthly:
$1,400.
Plus half agreed child expenses.
He had also covered portions of:
Soccer.
Orthodontic deposit.
School fees.
Health insurance.
Not a saint.
Not absent.
I asked:
“Did Rachel tell you I was helping?”
“No.”
“Did you know Mom was asking me for school expenses?”
“No.”
Then Mark said:
“Elena, Rachel is not broke.”
My stomach tightened.
“What do you mean?”
“She makes more now.”
Rachel had gone full-time at the dental group two years earlier.
Then became office coordinator.
Her salary increased.
I knew she had been promoted.
Mom still described her as:
Barely hanging on.
I asked:
“Why would Mom say she needs three thousand tonight?”
Mark sighed.
“I have no idea.”
May you like
Then:
“But if it’s for rent, she paid it.”
