«Vicky, honestly, nothing terrible happened! Men do this sometimesthey get carried away and dont stop in time. Be wiser. Are you really going to let some girl take your husband? Shell think shes won! Fight for your family!» pleaded her mother-in-law.
On Saturday morning, Vicky took her son to her parents. Shed arranged for Daniel to stay with them for a while.
Back home, Victoria pulled cardboard boxes from the balcony and started packing. First, the nursery.
She folded clothes, packed toys and books, taped the boxes shut, and labelled them. Soon, only the furniture remainedthings she didnt plan to take with her.
Around noon, her phone rang. Vicky glanced at the screenher mother-in-law.
«Hello, Margaret.»
«Good afternoon, Vicky. Jeremy told me everything. I know youre upset, but maybe dont rush? Take time to cool off, think it over. Is breaking up the family really the answer?»
«Im not the one breaking itJeremy is,» Vicky replied.
«Vicky, Im not excusing him! But maybe forgive him this once?»
«Forgive him for what? Your sons been seeing his colleague for six months, lying to me. And you say forgive him? No.»
«Please, think again. Youre taking Daniel away from his father. Jeremy loves his son!»
«Margaret, Jeremy can still see Daniel. I wont stop him. But I wont stay married to him. Lets end thisIm packing and dont have time.»
Vicky sealed the last two boxes and moved to the bedroom, filling suitcases with her clothes.
Her mother-in-law arrived exactly an hour later. Margaret somehow thought a face-to-face talk would convince Vicky to stay.
The conversation went in circles:
«Vicky, nothing terrible happened! Men stray sometimesthey get carried away.»
«Be wiser. Dont let some girl steal your husband! Fight for your family!»
«Margaret, Jeremy isnt a trophy to fight over. Should I challenge this Jane to a duel? A boxing match? Whats she got to do with it? If it werent Jane, itd be Ellie or Christina.»
«Let me tell you somethingmy husband, Jeremys father, wasnt perfect either. But I was wiser than you. I stayed, and weve been married thirty-five years. Soon, well celebrate our coral anniversary.»
«And what was this wisdom?» Vicky smirked.
«I didnt make scenes. I was kinder, cooked his favourite meals, took interest in his work, improved myselfchanged my hair, lost weight, greeted him with a smile. Sometimes I knew hed just come from *her*, and I wanted to hit him with a frying pan. But I smiled instead. And I kept him. My son grew up with a father, and now my grandson has a grandfather.»
«Youre an extraordinary woman, Margaret. I couldnt do that. I have too much self-respect. What youre suggesting is like eating from a garbage bin.»
Her mother-in-law flared up, stood abruptly, and stormed out without a word.
Vicky kept packing. She knew this wasnt the endJeremy and Margaret would still make her life difficult. She was in a hurry to leave.
The next day, her father came. They loaded the boxes and suitcases into a van and left.
On the way, Vicky asked him to stop at her in-laws to return the keys.
«Can you believe it?» Vicky told her friend Emily the next day. «Yesterday, Margaret spent an hour begging me to forgive Jeremys little slip and not divorce him.»
«What did she say?» Emily asked.
«The usual: Youre taking Daniels father away, All men cheat, Women must be wiser. Then she shared how she won her husband back.»
«How?»
«I wont repeat it, but trust me, its madness. You wouldnt do it.»
«Have you filed already?»
«Yes, last Friday,» Victoria said.
«Finally free of that Casanova. It was painful watching that two-timing fool,» Emily said.
«Painful? You knew about him and Jane?»
«Not for sure, but I suspected,» Emily admitted guiltily.
«Why didnt you tell me? I thought we were friends.» Vicky stood to leave.
«Wait! Hear me out. First, I didnt *know*. I saw what you sawjust drew different conclusions. Remember the office party? Jane was all over Jeremy. And how many times did she arrange to travel with him?»
«You handle the paperworkdidnt you wonder why Jane always replaced whoever was supposed to go with him? I suspected, but I wasnt sure. If Id been wrong, youd have thought I was sabotaging your marriage. Remember Sarah White?»
«She told a friend she saw her husband with another womaneven showed a photo of them hugging. There was a fight, but they made up, and Sarah got blamed for trying to ruin their marriage out of jealousy. She quit that job. So dont be angry. If Id had proof, Id have told you. Where will you live now?»
«The flat isnt mineits in Margarets name. For now, Daniel and I are at my parents. But next week, well move into Grans old place. The tenants left last month. Its only two bedrooms, but its enough. Ill sort out nurserythe old ones too far, but Mums friend can help transfer him to the one nearby. Then divorce, child support.»
«Does Jeremy agree?»
«He says he doesnt want a divorce, that hes learned his lesson. But Im done. Once was enough. He begged me not to file for support, promised to pay himself.»
«And?»
«No. I dont want to see him again. Let it be official. He threatened to take Daniel: Ive got a better flat, a higher salary. I didnt answerjust counted how many work trips he took last year. Eight.»
«What did he say?»
«I kept that for court. If he tries to take Daniel, Ill ask wholl care for him while hes away. Ive got a job and a home. Hell lose.»
Jeremy did file for custody, claiming:
«My ex-wife cant provide our son with the necessary standard of living.»
Margaret accused Vicky of hiding the child:
«She left our flat, took Daniel from nursery. We thought theyd stay with her parents, but they vanished after a week. Where is she keeping him? He should be in nursery, not hidden away!»
Vicky had to explain: they lived in her two-bedroom flat, Daniel attended a nearby nursery. She pointed out Jeremys frequent trips would disrupt parenting.
In the end, neither Jeremy nor Margaret succeeded.
Vicky didnt want to see Jeremy again and found a new jobshe was skilled, so it wasnt hard.
Soon, Emily brought news:
«Jane quit and left.»
«Why?»
«The office women made life hard for her. She stuck around a month, realised there was nothing left for her here, and moved to London. So your ex is alone now.»
«That doesnt bother me anymore,» Vicky said.
And she meant it. Some wells are too poisoned to drink from.
What do you thinkdid Vicky do the right thing? Share your thoughts below.
