Up next in 10
She Cheated. I Turned Her Fantasy Into a Nightmare | Daily Telly Talks
Show More Show Less View Video Transcript
0:00
The world I knew ended on a Wednesday
0:02
evening. The air in our kitchen, usually
0:03
a comfort, was thick with an unsettling
0:05
tension. My wife Sarah, was waiting for
0:08
me at the table. A simple we need to
0:10
talk, can unravel a decade of shared
0:12
life, and the look on her face was a
0:14
harbinger of doom. My stomach tightened
0:16
into a nod as I sat down. "Mike," she
0:20
began, a nervous energy radiating from
0:23
her. "You know I love you, and I would
0:25
never do anything to hurt you." The
0:28
words were a bitter prelude to a
0:29
betrayal I could never have imagined.
0:32
I've met someone else, she finally
0:34
confessed, her voice barely a whisper.
0:37
"I don't want to leave you, but I need
0:39
more. Something different. I want to
0:42
take a lover." I stared at her, the
0:45
woman I had spent 10 years building a
0:47
life with, the woman who was now
0:48
proposing a casual arrangement for
0:50
infidelity. The absurdity of it all was
0:53
breathtaking. You love me, want to stay
0:56
with me, but also want to sleep with
0:58
someone else?" I asked, my voice
1:00
dangerously calm." She nodded as if this
1:03
were the most reasonable suggestion in
1:05
the world. "It would be just a casual
1:08
thing," she insisted. "I would never
1:11
hide anything. I still love you, Mike,
1:15
but I need this. If you love me, you'll
1:18
understand." My bitter laughter filled
1:20
the silent kitchen.
1:22
You really think this wouldn't mess up
1:24
our marriage? How would you feel if I
1:26
told you I wanted to sleep with another
1:28
woman?
1:30
She was caught off guard, stuttering a
1:32
weak defense about it being okay as long
1:35
as it didn't affect us.
1:37
You know damn well you wouldn't be fine
1:39
with it, Sarah. I snapped, the calm
1:41
facade crumbling.
1:44
If the roles were reversed, you'd be
1:46
losing your mind.
1:48
Her face fell. She hadn't expected me to
1:51
be so angry. "I thought you loved me
1:53
enough to let me do this," she said
1:55
quietly. The air grew cold between us,
1:59
the warmth of a decade extinguished in a
2:01
single moment. I stood up, the chair
2:04
scraping against the floor, and began
2:06
packing a bag. "I don't want to sleep in
2:09
the same bed with someone who's thinking
2:10
more about another guy than they are
2:12
about me," I said, the words cutting
2:14
through the air like a knife. I slammed
2:17
the guest room door behind me, sealing
2:19
myself in a silent prison of my own
2:20
making. That night, I barely slept. The
2:24
anger and betrayal churned within me, a
2:26
toxic brew of emotions. But beneath the
2:29
pain, a plan began to form. I wasn't
2:32
going to be a victim. I wasn't just
2:34
going to sit back and let her destroy
2:36
our life. If she was going to burn our
2:38
world down, I was going to make sure she
2:40
felt the heat. The next morning, I
2:41
called my job and took a few days off.
2:44
My first stop was an electronic store. I
2:47
bought three voice activated recorders,
2:49
one for the home phone, one for our
2:51
bedroom, and one for her car. I then
2:54
went to our cell phone provider and as
2:56
the account holder, accessed her call
2:58
logs. The records confirmed my fears, a
3:01
guy named Tom. The digging continued at
3:04
home where I cracked into her email
3:06
accounts. A hidden account, a secret
3:08
world of communication, revealed their
3:10
plans. They were meeting this very
3:13
weekend for a romantic getaway in Kansas
3:15
City. I set up the email to forward all
3:18
incoming messages to me, becoming a
3:20
ghost in their digital affair. Finally,
3:23
I bought two small GPS trackers and hid
3:26
them in her wallet and her car. I was no
3:28
longer a husband. I was a private
3:31
investigator collecting evidence for the
3:33
inevitable. With my surveillance in
3:34
place, I contacted a divorce lawyer. He
3:36
was impressed with my forethought and
3:38
the evidence I had already gathered.
3:40
We could file for divorce on the grounds
3:42
of adultery and more importantly sue her
3:45
lover Tom for alienation of affection.
3:47
It was a legal action I hadn't even
3:49
considered a way to make them both pay.
3:51
All I needed now was concrete undeniable
3:53
proof. The days passed in a haze of cold
3:56
indifference. I ignored Sarah speaking
3:59
only in clipped necessary sentences. The
4:02
final talk came on Sunday. We sat in the
4:04
kitchen, the scene of her original
4:06
betrayal.
4:08
I still want to go through with it, she
4:10
said, her tone firm, defiant. My heart
4:13
sank. But I remained calm.
4:16
This will destroy our marriage, Sarah.
4:18
This ends us.
4:20
She tried to argue to make me see her
4:23
point of view. But her words were
4:25
hollow.
4:26
I'm the selfish one, I asked, a bitter
4:29
laugh escaping my lips. You want to
4:32
sleep with another man, and I'm selfish
4:34
for saying no? That's ridiculous. A
4:37
tense silence followed. Then she asked
4:40
the question that sealed our fate. What
4:42
happens if I do it anyway? I looked her
4:45
dead in the eye. Then there will be
4:47
consequences. Serious consequences. If
4:51
you break your promise to be faithful,
4:52
we're done. She simply said, "I guess
4:55
this conversation is over then." I
4:58
walked out of the house, my mind made
5:00
up. The game had begun. Had Thursday
5:03
arrived, the eve of their little
5:05
romantic getaway.
5:07
The final email confirmed their plans.
5:09
Tom had booked a room at a fancy hotel
5:11
in Kansas City. The way they spoke,
5:14
you'd think they were two starcrossed
5:16
lovers instead of a couple of deceitful
5:18
adulterers.
5:19
I reserved the same room, but for the
5:22
night before they were supposed to meet.
5:24
I drove to Kansas City, checked in, and
5:27
spent a few hours meticulously setting
5:29
up fiber optic cameras, small and
5:32
undetectable, to capture everything. I
5:35
tested them, ensuring every angle was
5:37
covered. This wasn't just about a
5:40
divorce anymore. It was about making
5:42
them both pay for what they were about
5:43
to do. I drove home with a grim sense of
5:47
satisfaction. A small bottle of pepper
5:49
spray in my bag. I had one last small
5:52
act of revenge to perform. That night,
5:55
Sarah acted as if everything were
5:56
normal. A chilling display of
5:58
nonchalants.
6:00
Friday morning, as she left for the
6:02
salon, I went to our joint bank. I
6:04
closed all the accounts and transferred
6:06
the money into a new one under my name.
6:08
I canceled all the credit cards. I had
6:10
already signed the divorce papers. Now
6:13
all I needed was the proof. Returning
6:16
home, I found her suitcase. Inside, new
6:19
lingerie, something she had never worn
6:21
for me. The sight was a sharp, stinging
6:24
reminder of her betrayal. I pulled out
6:26
the pepper spray and with a grim smile
6:29
coated the crotch of the panties and the
6:30
cups of the bra. It was a petty act born
6:33
of a decade of forgotten love. But it
6:35
was a small victory in a war I was
6:37
determined to win. I waited until she
6:39
was getting ready, her body a silhouette
6:41
of the woman I no longer knew, and
6:43
walked into our bedroom. She was wearing
6:45
the lingerie, her body a weapon of
6:47
betrayal. "You sure went all out for
6:50
him," I said, my voice dripping with
6:52
sarcasm.
6:53
She looked away, a flicker of shame in
6:56
her eyes. I took her hand, the one with
6:59
the wedding rings I had placed there so
7:01
many years ago. This meant something to
7:03
me, I said, my voice quiet. But not to
7:06
you. I slid both the wedding and
7:08
engagement rings off her finger and
7:10
slipped them into my pocket. The
7:12
engagement ring had been my mother's. It
7:15
was a family heirloom, not a trophy for
7:17
her infidelity.
7:19
Don't bring him into this house, I
7:21
warned her as I left. I'll be watching.
7:24
I parked down the street, my car a
7:26
silent hidden sentinel. A few hours
7:28
later, Tom's car pulled up. I watched
7:31
through the windshield as they kissed on
7:32
the front porch, a long, deep kiss that
7:34
felt like a final blow to my heart. She
7:37
looked in my direction, a smug,
7:39
triumphant smile on her face. In my car,
7:41
I gave her the finger. Her smile
7:43
vanished. I drove to Kansas City. The
7:45
aftermath, I set up my laptop in my
7:47
hotel room. The cameras in their room
7:49
streaming to my screen. They wasted no
7:51
time. I watched a detached observer as
7:54
the pathetic spectacle of their
7:55
infidelity unfolded. Tom, I quickly
7:58
realized, was a disappointment in every
8:00
sense of the word. He was a 60-second
8:02
man, and the look on Sarah's face after
8:04
their brief encounter was one of pure,
8:06
unadulterated frustration. She had
8:08
thrown away a 10-year marriage for this.
8:11
The sight filled me with a strange sense
8:13
of satisfaction. She hadn't just
8:15
betrayed me, she had humiliated herself.
8:17
The next day, I began my campaign of
8:20
psychological torment. I called a local
8:22
florist and ordered a bouquet, the same
8:24
one I had always sent her for our
8:25
anniversary. I had it delivered to their
8:27
hotel room. Through the camera, I
8:30
watched as her face shifted from
8:31
surprise to discomfort.
8:33
The flowers, a reminder of the life she
8:36
had thrown away, were a poison in her
8:38
romantic fantasy.
8:40
She called me, her voice tense and
8:42
accusing.
8:44
"Did you send me these flowers?" she
8:46
demanded. I feigned ignorance, my voice
8:50
as cold as the betrayal in her heart.
8:52
Why would I send you flowers, Sarah?
8:55
Enjoy your weekend with Tom. I hung up.
8:58
She threw the flowers in the trash. The
9:00
mind games had begun. Next, a pizza,
9:03
Sarah's favorite. Then a sandwich, also
9:05
her favorite. Each delivery, a knock on
9:08
their door, an interruption in their
9:10
pathetic attempts at romance, chipped
9:12
away at their illusion. Tom, irritated
9:15
and confused, paid for each delivery.
9:17
But Sarah, a slow, dawning horror in her
9:20
eyes, started to realize. "He knows
9:23
where we are," she said to Tom, her face
9:25
pale. "He's messing with us." I smiled
9:29
as I watched her realization, her
9:31
carefully constructed world of lies and
9:33
deceit finally beginning to crumble. The
9:36
final act of my revenge, was the most
9:38
satisfying.
9:40
As they returned from a dinner and
9:41
prepared for a romantic night in Sarah
9:44
put on the lingerie I had doused with
9:45
pepper spray. I waited, a sense of grim
9:49
anticipation building within me. It
9:51
didn't take long. She ran into the
9:54
bathroom, tearing off her clothes, her
9:56
skin burning red.
9:59
The pepper spray had done its job. Their
10:01
romantic weekend was over. Sunday
10:03
morning, I drove home. I had the
10:06
evidence I needed. The locks were
10:08
changed. Her belongings were in garbage
10:10
bags by the front door. When she
10:12
arrived, she was a wreck. "I'm back,"
10:16
she announced, a desperate hope in her
10:18
voice. "I love you," she said, tears
10:21
streaming down her face. But it was too
10:24
late. "I did love you," I said, the past
10:27
tense a dagger to her heart. "But you
10:30
didn't love me. You threw us away." I
10:33
handed her the wedding ring, now
10:34
flattened and worthless.
10:36
It's worthless now, I said. Just like
10:39
our marriage. I kissed her on the
10:41
forehead one last time and walked back
10:42
into the empty house. The sound of her
10:44
sobs a distant hollow echo. I wasn't
10:47
done. I called Tom's wife, Jenny. I laid
10:50
out all the evidence, the emails, the
10:52
texts, the video footage. She was a
10:54
beautiful, stunning woman, and the sight
10:56
of her made Tom's betrayal even more
10:57
baffling. We hired my lawyer, and
11:00
together we filed for divorce and sued
11:02
Tom for alienation of affection.
11:05
Sarah's call came later, a panicked
11:07
scream of a woman whose world had just
11:08
imploded. "What the hell is going on?"
11:11
she shrieked. Tom got papers, too. I was
11:14
cold and unapologetic. It's exactly what
11:17
I told you would happen, Sarah.
11:18
Consequences. She had made her choices,
11:21
and now she would have to live with
11:23
them. I was free. Free to move on. Free
11:25
to find a new life, a new beginning.
11:28
Maybe with Jenny. Only time would tell.
#Marriage
#Troubled Relationships
#Family Law