My credit card was stolen.
I called the police.
I was sitting in the police station, halfway through giving my statement.
I saw my wife, who was supposed to be away on a business trip, and her first love, blushing, following closely behind her.
“Daniel Wright, are you wasting police resources over this?”
My wife slammed the letter of apology onto the table. “Sign it now! I don’t have time to argue with you.”
I glanced at the figure written on the apology—equal to three years of her salary—and smiled.
“You want me to sign it?”
“Fine,” I said, staring at the determined faces of my wife and her first love, raising the letter of apology. “Kneel down and admit your mistake.”
“Bow to me.”
——
“One more step.”
My voice turned colder. “No room for negotiation.”
The lawyer I brought with me immediately stepped in. “According to the Criminal Code, using another person’s credit card to steal over five thousand dollars constitutes a crime—”
“Enough!”
Rachel Summers rudely cut him off, turning to glare at me with fury. “Daniel Wright! We’re husband and wife, don’t make this humiliating. If you push too far, you’ll regret it more than I will!”
Her first love snapped loudly.
“Daniel, I know you resent Rachel and me for being together three years, and I know my presence bothers you, but be reasonable. Rachel and I were together first, we knew each other first. You can’t demand she cut me off just because she married you.”
Michael Carter’s tone grew pitiful. “My son just started first grade, and I don’t have an apartment in the school district, so I asked Rachel for help! Do you think I enjoy using your credit card?”
“You think I want to spend your money without permission? It tears me up when I do!” Michael’s eyes reddened as he looked at me. “I followed Rachel to the police station! Do you realize where that leaves me?”
“I’ll have to re-enroll my son! Now the whole school knows I stole credit cards! Are you happy?”
Michael barked out the last words, then turned stubbornly to Rachel. Rachel hooked her pinky finger around his.
“It’s okay.”
“I’m here.”
“I won’t let anyone stand in your way while I’m here,” Rachel said softly to comfort him, but her warning was directed at me. “Daniel, do you see how kindhearted Michael is, and how you’ve pushed him to this point?”
“You’d better sign quickly and tell Michael this was all a misunderstanding! Otherwise, how are he and his son supposed to live?”
I looked at Rachel’s confident expression. I remembered when I first discovered my credit card had been stolen, I wondered if something had happened to her.
After all, she hadn’t been home for weeks, always claiming to be traveling for work. Even on our anniversary, she’d only tossed out a cold, “Happy anniversary, husband.”
No gift.
No warmth.
She disappeared the entire day.
Now, watching her stand there protecting someone else, I realized my concern had been pointless. So why should I care about saving Rachel’s dignity?
I stepped forward, grabbed Michael by the collar, and slapped him across the face.
As Michael screamed, I raised my hand again, struck Rachel hard, and said, “Now I have more to deal with than just credit card fraud.”
I turned to the lawyer. “File charges. My wife might be committing bigamy—keeping another family outside our home, maybe even an illegitimate child.”
“As for the credit card fraud,” I sneered. “Since they refuse to admit it, we’ll handle it strictly by law and procedure.”
