Michael Feels Betrayed
On the way back to Los Angeles, June Schwartz had time to think about the way matters had evolved with her son and Michael Jackson. When she got home, she called Evan. She’d had a change of heart, she said. Perhaps when she saw Michael lose it the way he had, she realized that
someone
needed to put things into perspective. Though Jordie didn’t want to go, she now felt it important that he visit with his father for the week.
In young Jordie’s world these days, no one ever seemed to do anything he didn’t want to do. Therefore, he was sullen and disagreeable when he finally got to Evan’s house. He said he missed Michael.
Evan had heard enough about Michael Jackson in recent months. As soon as he had his son in his custody, he instructed his attorney to draw up papers that stipulated that June would not be permitted to take Jordie out of Los Angeles county, meaning she would not be able to see Michael at Neverland (in Santa Barbara county), and most certainly not on tour.
Surprisingly, when she got the news the next day, June wasn’t angry. She didn’t even fight the stipulation, mostly because she no longer knew what to think about Michael. She needed time to figure it all out, especially after she and her attorney had a meeting with two LAPD officers who claimed that they’d recently discovered a youngster who’d been molested by Michael (even though they refused to identify him). Recalled June’s lawyer, Michael Freeman, ‘With serious expressions on their faces, they said, “We’re convinced Michael Jackson molested this boy because he fits the classic profile of a paedophile, perfectly.” June started getting scared. She was scared for her son.’
June decided to telephone Michael. Perhaps they could meet and discuss the matter; after all, they had been friends. When she saw him face to face, she would be able to look into his eyes, she believed, and then know the truth. She finally got Michael on the phone.
‘I’m sorry, June,’ he said, ‘but things are so out of hand now that my lawyer has told me that I can’t speak to you, or even see you.’
‘But, Michael…’
‘Evan is the one who started this mess, not me,’ Michael said, his tone surprisingly cold and deliberate. ‘Evan ruined our beautiful friendship, not me. I’ll have Bert call you and answer any further questions. Goodbye, June. I’m sorry.’
June couldn’t believe the way Michael had talked to her. Now, she didn’t know what to think of him. Because she still leaned towards his innocence, perhaps he would have been better advised to have been less dismissive, if only to keep her as an ally. However, he was so cold to her, he left her with no choice. She decided she had to agree with her ex-husband that Jordie not be permitted to visit Michael, at least for the time being, and not accompany him on his tour, either. She even agreed to allow Evan to keep custody of Jordie ‘for a while’.
Michael learned of June’s about-face from one of his staff members during a meeting in his bedroom at Neverland. Having just finished with a costume-fitting, he hadn’t changed out of what he called his ‘uniform’: a glittery, red military outfit trimmed across the shoulders with jet-bead embroidery. He was seated on his bed.
‘There had been a sadness about Michael in recent days, but after he learned of June’s decision, it was more acute than usual,’ recalled the employee. ‘After all, she was handing Jordie over to Evan, which would not bode well for Michael’s friendship with him.’
After discussing the matter with his adviser for a few minutes, Michael fell back onto the bed heavily and began to cry. ‘Why do people hurt the ones they say they love?’ he asked.
‘It’s going to be okay,’ said the staff member, now seated on the bed next to him. ‘Don’t cry, Mike.’
Then, typical of his mood swings, especially lately, Michael went from zero to ten in anger within seconds. ‘She betrayed me,’ he said, bolting upright, his eyes ablaze. ‘I can’t believe June buckled like that, after all I did for her and her kids. Now I’ll never get to see Jordie. I didn’t even do anything wrong,’ he insisted. Then, ashenfaced and his dark eyes raging, Michael repeated: ‘I didn’t do anything wrong.
I didn’t
.’
The next day, Anthony Pellicano received a telephone call from Evan Chandler. He wanted to meet with Michael, ‘man to man’, he said.
Anthony passed the message on to Michael. ‘No way,’ Michael said, according to Anthony’s memory. ‘I’m not meeting with the guy and giving him more ammunition to use against me. His heart is filled with hatred, Anthony, and you know it’s the truth. Tell him I said no way.’
‘But it might be a good idea,’ Anthony suggested. ‘Maybe we can work this thing out.’
Michael was adamant that he would not meet with Evan. He said that he had been thinking it over, and the truth had hit him as if an epiphany. ‘Evan’s pissed off at me becauseI have the kind of relationship he
wishes
he had with Jordie,’ Michael said. ‘That’s what’s really going on here. He’s completely jealous of me.’
Anthony couldn’t disagree; to him, Michael’s analysis of the situation sounded plausible.