I thought my marriage was rock solid until I saw a strange pattern on my wife’s bank account. It broke my heart. There were bills to pay for doctors, baby supplies, and kindergarten fees that didn’t belong in our lives since we didn’t have any kids. I chose to follow my wife because I was confused and suspicious. What I found was beyond what I had imagined.
At 33, I was an experienced lawyer who specialized in cheating cases and getting justice for spouses who had been cheated on their partners. In a strange way, my knowledge in this area would soon turn my life upside down.
It was a normal evening, and I was driving home through the city thinking about how important faith was in a marriage. I knew how important it was because I had just married Natalie, the love of my life. But something didn’t feel right that night.
Natalie’s car wasn’t there when I pulled into the driveway. Every day, she was home by now. Being on time was one of many good things about her. She had been coming home later than usual lately, though, and tonight was no different. I felt even more stressed out by the strange silence in the house. As part of my job, I was trained to spot the signs, and a scary thought crossed my mind: Could Natalie be cheating on me?
When she finally came in and looked tired, my fears were briefly calmed down. I finally broke down and said it. “Where have you been?” You’re staying home late. Do you have something to hide from me?” Finally, I asked, and the words hung heavy in the air.
She looked shocked and then hurt. “I love you, Hank. I’d never be unfaithful to you. She said she had been busy at school marking papers, which made sense since she was a dedicated teacher. I didn’t want to, but I nodded and let it go for now.
A message asked, “Honey, will you be there tomorrow?” It came up on her phone just as things were getting calmer. It broke my heart. I had only caught a glimpse, but the tone was way too close for comfort.
I couldn’t keep quiet when she quickly removed the message. “What was that?” I demanded, and it was clear that I was suspicious.
Natalie seemed lost, or at least she pretended to be. It was a wrong number, but she showed me the phone and told me so. But I had doubts.
That night, late at night, when I couldn’t sleep in bed, my mind was racing. Even though Natalie slept quietly next to me, I had a bad feeling that something wasn’t right. Because I had to know what was going on, I did something I never thought I’d do: I used her fingerprint to unlock her phone.
What I discovered made me feel cold. It was a contact called “Rabbit,” and they had messages about getting together on days when she had been late home. I needed more proof, so I looked at her bank records, which is something I had done many times before. To my horror, there were transactions for hospital bills and toys for kids. Does she have a child that I don’t know about? Also, who was this strange “Rabbit”?
I decided to follow her in the morning. As she went to a run-down house in a quiet area, I was right behind her. As I hid, I couldn’t believe it when she kissed a guy on the cheek. It broke my heart even more when I saw her push a little girl in a wheelchair out of the house. They smiled at each other like a mom and daughter who love each other. What kind of child was this? Why didn’t I know that before?
One of the dogs barked, letting everyone know where I was hidden. During the chaos, Natalie yelled for help and said she would call the cops. I ran away quickly, hoping she hadn’t seen me.
I was angry, hurt, and confused when I got home and waited for her to come back. When I talked to her that night, I requested the truth. “Natalie, I know you’ve been unfaithful,” I told you.
She said nothing, and she looked hurt and shocked. She was shocked and asked, “Hank, you looked through my phone?”
“Yes!” I learned about your other life!” My voice cracked with pain as I yelled.
After that, something I did not expect took place. Natalie finally told the truth, but it wasn’t what I thought it would be. I didn’t see a secret lover and child with that man; it was her brother and sister. Natalie had been taking care of the sick girl with her time and money.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I demanded, still shocked. But she wouldn’t say anything else, so she stormed out of the house.
I was shocked when I found something even stranger: a hidden stash of passports, cash, a gun, and an old newspaper story about a bank heist. I felt like I was stuck in a crime story and couldn’t get out of it.
Natalie told me everything when I followed her to a motel. She robbed a bank many years ago to get money for her niece’s surgery. It had been too hard for her to handle her secret life, and now it was all coming apart.
I desperately wanted to keep her safe, so I offered to help her turn herself in and suggested that she talk to a friend of mine about getting a lawyer. But as we talked about our choices, I felt sleepy all of a sudden. Natalie putting me to bed was the last thing I remembered.
I didn’t know where I was when I woke up the next morning. A knife next to me and blood on the bed told a scary story. Natasha may have tried to make me look like she killed herself.
I ran away because I was scared, but the cops were already after me. I followed Natalie to her brother’s house using an app I had put on her phone to track her. There, I walked up to her with a gun and demanded answers. We were both arrested when the cops showed up in the middle of all the chaos.
It finally dawned on me: my life would never be the same from now on. It turned out that the woman I thought I knew was living two lives at the same time. Now both of our lives were in trouble.
In the end, I saw that I had also done something wrong. It’s time for me to get help. Instead, I let fear and suspicion make me do things I will never regret.
