My best friend once told me ,” He leads a double life I tell ya!” I shooed her away and didn’t think twice about what she had said. Now, I really wish I would have listened to her.

The weeks that followed seemed to take forever. My husband, a district attorney, often worked late now that our son had turned sixteen. His routine consisted of early to work Monday thru Friday, and he was always late coming home. Things had gotten so busy that he was never home on the weekends even. He was always away on some business of some sort. One night things got a little heated between my husband and my son, and when I interfered, my husband stormed out of the house and drove off to God knows where. Frustrated and seriously hurt by my husbands words, I stormed to the bedroom slamming the door behind me. As the door hit the frame something fell from behind the pictureframe that hung on the wall. On the floor lay a small bag. I picked it up, curious as to what it was, and opened it. Inside I found a single key, mail, and a black wallet. I opened the wallet and immediately regretted it. The rage rushed up from my feet to the top of my head. I was indignant. The ID card had my husbands picture on it, but not his name. a social security number but not his. Next to the card was a family portrait with my husband next to another woman and a young boy around my sons age. Outraged I threw down the photo, grabbed the key and the mail, and rushed to the car. I put the car in drive and sped off in the direction of the house.

After driving around for about an hour I finally found the house, my husbands car parked out front. It was the perfect little brick house with a white picket fence and everything. Without thinking about what I was doing, I grabbed my handgun from under the passenger seat and wrenched open my door. I raced towards the front door glancing once through the bay window to see the family happily sitting down for dinner. I threw open the front door and pointed the gun at the smiling family.

“How could you!” I tried to control my shaking as the rage returned to my face.

“How could you do this to me? To your son?” My vision blurred as I stared at my husbands calm expression.

“Dad,” asked the boy,“who is that lady, and what is she talking about?” He glanced from me to my husband then to the gun in my hands.

“What is going on here David?” The woman stood up cautiously and moved to stand in front of her son.

“I haven’t the slightest clue as to who this mad woman is,” stated my husband. He then turned to me. “Ma’am, please calm yourself and put that thing away before you hurt yourself.”

As my husband tried to calm me I began to get madder and madder, the hatred swelled inside me threatening to burst.

“STOP! Don’t you dare take one more step or I swear I’ll do it!”

My husband, knowing I was to weak to pull the trigger, stepped forward and eased the gun out of my hands. He tossed the gun to his son and told him to take it up stairs. I stood there pulsing, angry at how dumb I had let myself become. Unexpectedly, my husband swooped me up tossing me over his shoulder and walked briskly to the swinging door that lead to the kitchen. Practically tossing me on the floor he stepped back and glared at me.

“You don’t know who you are messing with Kate. Do not tempt me. What makes you think you can storm into my house disrupting my dinner and making a fool of yourself in front of my family?”

The way he said the word ‘family’ disgusted me. Standing up I raised my arms slightly and stepped towards him.

“I hate you!” I had to grind my teeth together to keep from hitting him. In an instant he spun around and grabbed a butcher knife from the counter pointing it in my direction.

“Don’t push me woman!”

The woman then entered the kitchen and gasped as she caught a glance of the knife.

“Whoa, hunny, think rationally here. Put the knife away.” She took a step towards him and he spun around staring blankly into her terrified eyes. He dropped the knife on the floor and sat down next to the back wall. He dropped his head into his hands and began to mumble to himself.

“I cant take it anymore. I thought this was going to be so easy.”

I slowly unclenched my hands and let them fall limply at my sides. The anger I had felt just ten seconds ago had been diminished. Staring with disgust at the man that I once loved, the man who used to be my number one priority, next to my son, was nothing to me.

“I forgive you,” I mumbled as I relaxed my body. He looked up at me with a confused look on his now childish expression. “I forgive you.” I said a bit louder this time so he could understand. “I forgive you,” I stated once more”, but you are nothing to me and I want you gone.” I turned on my heels and walked through the swinging door and into the dinning room. I left the house feeling like a new woman. I was free of that monster now and forever. As I Approached my car door I heard yelling coming from behind me. Grinning, I got in and drove home not even glancing in my rearview mirror once.