Discovering a strange email on my husband’s iPad was the first shock. It was from an apartment complex about hot water repairs—odd, since we own our home and haven’t rented in over a decade. I couldn’t reach Adam right away since he was on a trip upstate with our son and his brother. When I finally did, he brushed it off as a mistake, but something didn’t feel right.

With help from my best friend Stacy, we tracked the apartment down. A young woman answered the door, visibly nervous, and two small kids peeked out from behind her. We also heard more voices inside—more women, more children. The woman slammed the door and threatened to call the police. We left in shock, unable to process what we had just seen.

I confronted Adam as soon as I could. At first, he hesitated, then confessed: he had been secretly supporting multiple women and children, living a hidden double life. He claimed they weren’t legal wives, just people he loved and cared for. He even admitted to using company funds to support them all—his entire other life built on lies.

I was devastated. Ten years of marriage, two kids, and this betrayal. I packed our things and left with our son, unwilling to stay with a man who shattered our family. I filed for divorce and full custody. The man I thought I knew no longer existed—and I had to protect myself and my children from the one who took his place.