The Low Road

Two roads diverged for me on Mother’s Day some twenty years ago. Having a pleasant day with my mother-in-law when her son, my husband took me for a ride. He was angry, for unknown reasons. Things had been tense between us for months, I thought we were working things out.

Suddenly he pulled the car over and practically screamed in my face “I’m been having an affair with Michelle for the last year.” It took only moments for the words to register, Michelle a girl from his work I had befriended. A woman who came to our house often and spent some holidays with us.

I exploded, using words I never used. Calling him names I didn’t think were in me. My dilemma do I tell him the truth or just let him find out on his own about the literal whore he was sleeping with. She had confided in me, she just left my husband’s name off her list.

I decided to take the low road, and defied the confidence Michelle had given me. I laid into him “Michelle, really, that whore.” He tried to stop me, to defend his mistress. “So now I have to worry about STDs on top of everything else.”

“What are you talking about, Michelle is clean.”

“Clean…” I laughed, “I know for a fact that she is sleeping with at least 13 other people. Most of whom you know.” Listing off the people he worked with, men he personally knew that his love was sleeping with. I ended with “And let’s not forget your brother.”

That threw him into a rage. “I told them to stop seeing each other. I told Chuck he was to stay away from her.” He ranted on and on about his threats to his older brother.

I was crying and laughing “Well it seems they didn’t listen, he goes to visit her about every two weeks.”

My husband’s rage continued. He called Michelle “Is it true, are you sleep with Chuck?” he demanded.

“Who told you that?” she questioned.

“Kay did. She said you are also sleeping with others. Is that true? You told me I was the only one.”

“How dare her tell you that I told her that in confidence. And why on earth would you tell her about us?” avoiding the question.

“I had to come clean. I needed to tell her the truth about us. Now answer my question.” Michelle hung up on him, angry herself.

“Take me back to the house” I demanded through my screams and tears. Slamming the car into gear, he drove like a bat out of hell back to his mother’s house. Jumping out as soon as we pulled in, I did the next most despicable thing I could, running into his mother’s house with his brothers and very close friends inside I tore through the door. Immediately everyone knew something was wrong.

His sweet mother stopped me, “What’s wrong, Kay? Where is David?” David was right behind me.

I looked straight into his mother’s eyes and very bluntly told her. “David has been having an affair for over a year.” His mother didn’t seem shocked. That hurt to see the truth in her face, she knew. Adding “Same girl Chuck has been seeing.” There was the shock. She turned towards her oldest son.

Chuck jumped up, “What are you talking about? She’s just seeing me.”

Turning to face Chuck I cried “Maybe you should talk to Michelle yourself. She’s sleeping with at least 12 other people I can name, not counting your brother.” He stormed out of the room.

I went to my room, packed my things and left. Not saying another word. As I left I could hear their mother screaming at both of them, as well as brothers tearing in to each other.

His mother warned me before the marriage, told me he’d me just like his own father who had cheated on her more than once. I didn’t want to believe her. David wasn’t his father. I had defended him, but my mother-in-law was right.

On my drive home I cried till there were no more tears. The two-hour drive home didn’t seem to calm me down at all. Our beautiful five-year-old daughter kept asking what was wrong.

When I arrived back home, I began gathering up all of David’s things stacking them in the garage. It would be the first thing he saw if he came home. Right on top of the pile I place a large note “I want a divorce.” Closed and locked the doors where he couldn’t get in.

I had taken the low road, and possibly slit a family apart. At that moment I no longer cared.