Abbie’s world turned upside down one crisp morning when her husband, Matthew, vanished without a trace. All that remained was a cryptic note on the kitchen table. It felt like a sick joke, but Abbie knew deep down it was anything but.
“Matthew? This isn’t funny, where are you?” I called out, my voice echoing through the house. The silence was deafening.
I waited for a response, but there was nothing. Not even the faintest sound from another room. My heart started racing as I scanned the kitchen. There, on the table, was a note.
I picked it up, trying to understand its meaning. It read: “Don’t search for me.”
I stared at the note for a long moment, trying to convince myself that this was just another one of Matthew’s pranks. But something felt off. My hands shook as I grabbed my phone, dialing his number.
It went straight to voicemail.
“Matthew, call me back,” I said, my voice trembling. “This isn’t funny.”
With rising panic, I called his mother.
“Hi, it’s Abbie. Have you heard from Matthew?”
“No, dear,” Claire’s voice crackled from the other end of the line. “Is everything alright?”
“Yes, yes, it is. Sorry, I guess he just went out for a walk,” I lied, trying to keep my voice steady.
I hung up and called James, Matthew’s best friend.
“No, Abbie, we haven’t heard from him,” James replied, his concern mirroring my own.
The days passed, but Matthew never came back. The kids kept asking, “Where’s Daddy?” and I had no answers.
I couldn’t keep pretending that everything was fine. I went to the police, clutching the note in my hand.
“Ma’am, with the note he left, we can’t start a search,” the officer explained, his tone firm but sympathetic.
“But he’s missing!” I protested, my voice cracking as a lump formed in my throat. “What if something happened to him?”
The officer shook his head. “I’m sorry, but adults have the right to disappear if they want to. There’s nothing we can do.”
I left the station feeling hopeless, like I was drowning in a sea of unanswered questions.
Back home, everything seemed strange. The house that had once felt warm and full of life now felt empty.
I gathered the kids in the living room, their eyes wide with confusion.
“Kids, I need to tell you something,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper. “Daddy is… he’s gone away for a while.”
“Why, Mommy?” my youngest asked, her little face filled with concern.
“I don’t know, sweetheart,” I replied, hugging her close. “But we have to be strong, okay?”
I tried to hold it together, but it was impossible. Every corner of the house was filled with reminders of Matthew: his favorite coffee mug on the counter, his shoes by the door, his jacket still hanging in the closet.
Then one day, out of the blue, I received a call from Claire.
“If you want to know the truth, promise me you won’t tell Matthew anything,” Claire said, her voice trembling as she spoke through the FaceTime call.
“Promise? What’s going on?” I asked, my stomach tightening with dread.
“Matthew is here at my house,” Claire began, her words heavy with emotion. “With his mistress and their newborn baby.”
I felt like the floor dropped out beneath me. “What?”
“Matthew told me to keep it a secret, Abbie,” Claire continued. “His mistress had nowhere else to go, so he brought her here. He plans to use money from your joint account to rent them an apartment. He’s going to divorce you and stay with her. She’s barely 19.”
The shock hit me like a punch to the gut. I struggled to breathe as my mind reeled.
“He… he’s what?” I stammered.
“I’m sorry I lied to you about his whereabouts,” Claire said, her voice breaking. “I didn’t know what to do. He’s my son, but you’re family, Abbie. I love you and the kids. That’s why I’m telling you the truth. You still have time to act. Get a lawyer. Protect yourself and the kids.”
I was shaking with a mix of fury and disbelief. “I can’t believe this,” I muttered, feeling the tears threatening to spill. “Thank you for telling me. I—I need to protect my children and myself.”
Ending the call, I sat there, stunned. The man I had loved, trusted, and built a life with was planning to walk away from us for another woman.
The kids sensed something was wrong. My youngest, still innocent, asked again, “Mommy, where’s Daddy?”
I pulled her into my arms, fighting back tears. “He’s not coming back, sweetheart,” I whispered. “But we have each other, and we’ll be okay.”
The weight of the situation pressed on me, but I couldn’t crumble. I had to keep going—for them.
I contacted a lawyer the next day.
As we discussed my options, my phone rang again. It was an unknown number. Hesitant, I answered.
“Hello?”
“Hi, Abbie? It’s Lisa. I need to talk to you,” came the voice on the other end.
A chill ran down my spine. “How dare you!” I snapped, my anger flaring. “How dare you call me?”
“Please, just meet me. There’s something important you need to know about your family,” Lisa pleaded.
I gritted my teeth. “Alright. Where do you want to meet?”
“Do you know that old café on street 8? 6 p.m. Does that work?”
I agreed, my heart racing with dread.
At 6 p.m., I walked into the café, my eyes scanning the room for her. When I first saw her photo, I could hardly believe Matthew could’ve been with someone so young. But there she was, sitting at a corner booth, looking nervous.
“Thank you for coming,” Lisa said softly as I sat down.
“Why did you want to meet?” I asked, my voice hard.
“I didn’t know he was going to abandon you like this,” she began, her voice cracking. “Matthew told me he was leaving you, but I didn’t know it would be like this. I didn’t agree to any of it.”
“Why should I believe you?” I asked, my arms folded defensively across my chest.
Lisa reached into her bag and pulled out a stack of papers.
“These are emails and messages from Matthew. He’s been saying horrible things about you. He’s been manipulating both of us,” she said, handing them to me.
My hands shook as I read the damning words. I could hardly believe what I was seeing.
“I can’t believe this,” I whispered, my voice trembling with rage.
Lisa looked at me, her eyes filled with sincerity. “I don’t want any part in this anymore. I want to help you.”
“Why?” I asked, confused.
“Because I didn’t know what kind of man he really was until it was too late,” she said, her voice filled with remorse. “I want to make things right, in whatever small way I can.”
Her words hit me harder than I expected. Maybe she was telling the truth.
“Alright,” I said slowly. “If you’re serious about helping, we need to gather as much evidence as we can. I need to protect my children and secure our future.”
For the next hour, we formed an unlikely alliance. Lisa shared more about Matthew’s deceit, and I began to see a way forward.
The next morning, I sat in my lawyer’s office, my mind focused.
“We need to confront him together,” I told Kate, my lawyer. “But first, I need to freeze the joint accounts to protect our assets.”
Kate nodded. “With the information Lisa gave us, we can do that.”
The days passed quickly, filled with meetings, paperwork, and the quiet tension of waiting for everything to fall into place.
One evening, my mother-in-law came over to help with the kids. She sat with me, offering a cup of tea.
“You’re doing the right thing, Abbie,” she said gently, her hand squeezing mine. “I’m so sorry for what Matthew is putting you through.”
I took a sip of the tea, trying to steady myself. “Only Matthew can be blamed for this,” I said softly. “Nobody saw this coming, not even Lisa.”
“You’re stronger than you think,” Claire reassured me. “I’m always here for you, okay?”
The day of reckoning finally arrived. With Lisa by my side, I walked into Matthew’s house, the authorities trailing behind us.
Matthew looked up, shock written all over his face when he saw us.
“Abbie, what are you doing here?” he demanded, his eyes darting between me and Lisa.
“It’s over, Matthew,” I said firmly, holding up the divorce papers. “We know everything. Your lies, your betrayal, and your plans. You won’t get away with it.”
His face turned red with anger. “You can’t do this to me!” he shouted.
Lisa stepped forward, her voice calm but resolute. “We already have. You’re not going to hurt anyone else.”
The officers moved in, presenting the legal documents.
“Mr. Johnson, you need to come with us. You’re being served with a restraining order and an order to vacate the premises,” one officer said.
Matthew’s bravado crumbled. “This isn’t fair,” he muttered, his voice wavering.
“Oh, it’s perfectly fair, ex-husband,” I replied coldly. “You made your choices, and now you face the consequences.”
As the officers escorted him out, I breathed a sigh of relief.
“Thank you,” I said to Lisa and Claire, my voice thick with emotion. “I couldn’t have done this without you two.”
Tears of gratitude filled my eyes. It was time to rebuild, to move forward, and to protect my children from the man who had betrayed us all.
