exhaustion. The final image burned into my mind was Matthew, my husband, laughing at a lavish birthday p

I wo

all bedroom. My calendar, a freebie from the local hardware sto

but this time with adrenaline, not fail

w Scott. I sacrificed my own future, my career, my health,

this

a plan. A simpl

otect my assets.

nd his parasitic lover, Stella, as humanly pos

oorboard beneath my bed was a small metal box. Inside was my entire life savings: $10

investment opportunity that went bad. He claimed he'd lost all our money. I, the t

own. That house was the foundation of her future wealth. While she got rich, I was stuck caring for Matthew's disabled mother, working

lifted the floorboard. The b

acks of twenties and fifties, st

y face. The game had just begun, b