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00:00A young woman is betrayed by the love of her life.
00:06Hell no!
00:07It almost destroyed her because her husband was her first love.
00:11She rebounds into the arms of an old friend.
00:15I just want to feel some sense of connection to something or somebody.
00:20Mama, why are you just now telling me this?
00:23Only to have the relationship torn apart by secrets.
00:27I'm here.
00:29She thinks she's finally found the one.
00:32This man is easy to die for.
00:35What's wrong with you?
00:36But when her dream man drinks, he turns into the devil.
00:40When he kicked me, I went ka-pa-ya!
00:44It's a fight to the finish.
00:46I've seen this look in the eyes, man. I ain't never seen before.
00:49Come here!
00:50Watch out!
00:52Not all fairy tales have happy endings.
00:59When love goes wrong, a woman can do the unthinkable.
01:0514-year-old Michelle Banks lives in Jackson, Mississippi.
01:18My grandparents lived out in the country.
01:21We'd go up there every weekend, ride horses, pick plums, go fishing.
01:27In high school, Michelle's got an outgoing personality and lots of friends.
01:39I liked high school. High school was fun.
01:42She's also got big dreams.
01:45I wanted to dance. I wanted to sing and entertain.
01:48I wanted to go to Juilliard.
01:50Hello.
01:53Hi.
01:54Michelle, right?
01:56Yeah, Michelle.
01:57During her junior year, she meets a handsome young jock named Robert.
02:01I've seen you around school.
02:03Have you?
02:04Yeah. Maybe you want to get a bite to eat sometime?
02:07Like a date?
02:08Yeah, exactly.
02:09Her heart skips a beat.
02:11Sure.
02:12He was very charming, good-looking.
02:15He had a nice physique.
02:17A romance quickly blossoms and the couple falls head over heels in love.
02:36Six months later, on Michelle's 17th birthday, Robert tells her he's got a surprise for her.
02:42You know I love you more than anything, right?
02:46Right.
02:47It's like, I really love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you.
02:52I want you to marry me.
02:53Yes!
02:54Yes?
02:55Michelle is giddy with excitement, even though she's only 17.
02:59To me, it doesn't matter about the age or anything. If two people love each other, they get married.
03:04But she does insist that they wait until after graduation.
03:09Michelle's parents think she's too young to get married.
03:10But despite their objections, she and Robert say, I do.
03:15The following summer.
03:16Just days after the wedding, Robert enlists in the army.
03:21and is sent to Virginia for basic training.
03:44enlists in the Army and is sent to Virginia for basic training. Michelle stays at home
03:49with her parents and takes classes at a community college.
03:52I thought, I'm married now. Juilliard is out. Hollywood is out. Maybe I should go to college
04:00and do something.
04:01But her heart's not in it.
04:05So when Robert gets his first duty assignment overseas, Michelle can't wait to go.
04:11We're going to Germany.
04:14I'm getting out of here.
04:20Even though it's a huge culture shock, Michelle fully embraces her new life overseas and couldn't
04:26be happier.
04:28I loved it over there. It's beautiful. I went to Prague. I went to Salzburg, Austria. Your
04:35face lights up. These are good memories.
04:38In August of 1986, Michelle and Robert welcome a healthy baby boy into the world. They name
04:46him Tyrell.
04:48He was the most beautiful thing. I was like, wow, from me? From Robert? From us? Wow.
04:57Maybe women might cave under the pressure of getting married so young and then moving overseas
05:01and having a baby. Michelle is thriving. Hopefully, the responsibilities that come with being
05:07a parent are going to strengthen that bond that she and Robert share rather than drive a
05:12wedge between them.
05:14Over the next five years, they give Tyrell two little sisters, Brianna and Karan.
05:20It was an exciting time. I learned a lot. I was learning to speak German.
05:27The couple has now been married and living in Germany for eight years. Life as a military
05:37wife and mother seems to fit Michelle like a glove.
05:40The American dream, the marriage, the kids, the car, the cute little house with the little
05:46dog.
05:53But Robert suddenly starts coming home late almost every night.
06:00Where you been?
06:01Get off my ass, Michelle.
06:03Robert, I asked you a question.
06:05It just started off like maybe an hour, hour and a half, two hours. Then it started to get
06:10to be four or five hours. You're not coming home till 10, 11 o'clock at night.
06:14Me and the kids waiting for you.
06:16I got a lot of nerve.
06:17You just never show up.
06:18I have a right to know where you are because if she was on the other foot, I think you
06:22wouldn't know where I am.
06:23I got to take a shower, man. Fix me a plate.
06:25Michelle's hurt by Robert's callous behavior.
06:35The next day, she decides to drop by her good friend Chrissy's house for some advice.
06:43On the way there, she's startled to see Robert's car parked outside a stranger's house.
06:49So I'm looking around. I'm like, okay, my husband must be over here.
06:54Instinctively, she walks over and puts her hand on the car.
06:58The hood is warm. He just pulled up there. And I was like, okay, something going down.
07:04Everybody, okay, everybody got to be got.
07:07Michelle's got a feeling she's about to discover why Robert's been coming home late.
07:13Robert, you better open up this door before I call an MP.
07:17Michelle Evans is seeing red.
07:35She's just spotted her husband Robert's car parked in a stranger's driveway when he's supposed to be at work.
07:42Robert, you better open up this door before I call an MP.
07:46Michelle tries the handle. The door's unlocked.
07:51She lets herself in.
07:53All the doors are closed. Like on Let's Make a Deal.
08:05Michelle goes stealth.
08:07The sounds of soft music lead her to a room at the end of a hallway where she hears voices.
08:15And then I just go, boom. I just push the door open. And they just .
08:22She finds Robert half naked with a woman she's never seen before.
08:27Damn, no!
08:28I have rights to him spiritually, legally, mentally, emotionally, physically, every other illy you could think of.
08:37Michelle's in a blind rage.
08:40You have violated me and my family, so now I have to violate you.
08:43No!
08:44Yeah!
08:45Stop, Robert!
08:46I grabbed over her, I mean, and I just pulled my hands and I was just .
08:50I had to.
08:51How'd it feel?
08:52It felt good.
08:53Is that bad?
08:54I mean, bad felt good.
08:59Robert breaks up the fight.
09:01Get out of here!
09:02Get out of here!
09:03Lucy!
09:04Chill!
09:05What?
09:06Look at yourself!
09:07What are you doing?
09:08You're crazy!
09:09He finally comes clean and admits he's been having an affair.
09:12What do you mean?
09:13I want out of this marriage.
09:15Our marriage is over and I want a divorce.
09:17I was like, how could you do this to me?
09:19How could you just throw it all away?
09:21Then, Robert deals Michelle yet another devastating blow.
09:26I'm going to Kuwait.
09:29In two weeks, Robert is being shipped off to Kuwait as part of Operation Desert Storm.
09:34You serious right now?
09:36And he's not coming back for three years.
09:39This is hard for me too!
09:41I'm like, this can't be it.
09:43What if he goes over there and dies?
09:44I have no closure, no healing, no answers, no nothing.
09:48The sting of Robert's betrayal cuts her to the core.
09:51He is Michelle's first love.
09:53She dedicated her life to this marriage and to this family, and now it's being ripped apart.
09:59Only time will tell if she is strong enough to work through all this hurt and rejection.
10:06I just became very, very depressed and detached from everything.
10:10Robert ships off without so much as a goodbye.
10:15I think it devastated her deeply.
10:19It almost destroyed her because her husband was her first love.
10:23Pastor Ruthie, it's just really hard, you know, and I try to hold on.
10:32Left behind in Germany with her three young children, Michelle turns to scripture for spiritual guidance.
10:38I was getting counseling through a pastor.
10:41She was really awesome.
10:42You're gonna empower so many women by your strength.
10:45One prayer at a time, she climbs out of the abyss that is her misery.
10:50Yes, well, you know, I gotta do it for my babies.
10:56So I just have some paperwork for you to sign.
10:59Michelle finds a job on the military base and is quickly promoted to an esteemed position handling encrypted files for the Pentagon.
11:07I know it can be so hectic sometimes.
11:09She was strong and she believed I can do this and I can make it on my own.
11:13And I admire her for that.
11:16She buries herself in her work and raising her kids.
11:20But deep down, Michelle still hopes that she and Robert will patch things up one day.
11:26That was my husband.
11:28I loved him despite his flaws.
11:31I'm a romanticist, so I truly believe that true love can overcome anything if you want it to.
11:36That belief is put to the test when Robert shows up at her doorstep in Germany unannounced.
11:52It's been nearly two years with almost no communication.
11:57We just looked at each other.
11:59He started walking towards me.
12:00I walked towards him and then he just hugged me.
12:02He didn't kiss me or anything.
12:03He just kept holding me like this.
12:06How did it feel?
12:07It felt really good.
12:09Baby, what are you doing here?
12:12When I was overseas, I got some bad news.
12:16Robert's father has passed away from cancer.
12:19He's been granted emergency leave so he can attend the funeral back in Mississippi.
12:24Michelle is in a vulnerable position.
12:28Although she's gotten over the pain of Robert leaving her, she has never stopped loving him.
12:32By letting him back into her life, she now runs the risk of getting betrayed by him again.
12:37And that might be too much for her to handle.
12:41The estranged couple heads back to Mississippi to attend the funeral together.
12:47Okay.
12:49After the service, Robert tells Michelle he wants his family back and a chance to make things right.
12:55And I miss you, baby.
12:56Really?
12:57You do?
12:58Really?
12:59But wait, the last thing you heard from him is he's divorcing you.
13:04This has to play havoc with your emotions.
13:06It does because I'm like, okay, you're sending me mixed signals.
13:11Michelle decides to forgive Robert in hopes of saving their marriage.
13:16I wanted my children to have their father.
13:18And I needed my husband.
13:19And I believed in miracles.
13:24Michelle's faith pays off.
13:27After he completes his tour in Kuwait, Robert is transferred to a military base in Mississippi.
13:33And the family moves into a new home.
13:36Things were going really good.
13:38I mean, it's almost like when we got back together, it was better than it was before.
13:43And with God's help, that's all we need.
13:46That's all we need.
13:47I introduced him to my new walk.
13:49We started going to Bible study.
13:50We started going to counseling.
13:52We started just a whole new life.
13:59Unfortunately, the move back to the States wasn't so good for Michelle's career.
14:04The best she can manage is a series of temp jobs.
14:09And trouble starts brewing at home.
14:12Okay.
14:13According to Michelle, ever since Robert's come back from Kuwait, he spends most of his free time knocking back cold ones.
14:21So you drunk, huh?
14:26Nobody drunk?
14:27Yeah.
14:28You drinking alcohol.
14:29I smelled it.
14:30You walking through the door.
14:31Every time I come home.
14:32She claims history starts to repeat itself.
14:35I smell perfume on you.
14:36You don't smell no perfume on me.
14:38Guess I do and it ain't mine.
14:39Of course it is.
14:40I remember stopping them.
14:41No, you're going to give me some answers.
14:43This is my house.
14:44Back off me.
14:45According to Michelle, the argument escalates.
14:48We're yelling, screaming and just fighting, tearing up the house.
14:51I remember him pushing me by the throat up against the dish drain.
14:57Don't you ever put your hands on me.
14:59My dad used to come home drunk all the time.
15:02He used to abuse her real bad when he drinks.
15:06And I remember grabbing this knife.
15:08Michelle Evans has devoted nearly half of her life to her husband Robert.
15:15Oh, hell no.
15:16I smell perfume on you.
15:17You don't smell no perfume.
15:18But when she suspects him of cheating again, she decides to teach him a lesson with a steak knife.
15:24Shut up.
15:25I will cut you.
15:26Everybody got a breaking point.
15:27She let it all loose at once.
15:28All the feelings, all the stuff that happened in the past to the present.
15:29She just cracked.
15:30Shut up.
15:31But before she does something she'll regret.
15:38Stop.
15:39Oh, crazy.
15:40Michelle comes to her senses.
15:41I just put the knife down.
15:45You know, it's just like a calm came up.
15:46Don't do it.
15:48Michelle realizes her marriage to Robert is beyond repair.
15:52Shut up!
15:54But before she does something she'll regret...
15:56Stop.
16:00Crazy!
16:01Michelle comes to her senses.
16:03I just put the knife down.
16:06You know, it's just like a calm came out, don't do it.
16:09Michelle realizes her marriage to Robert is beyond repair.
16:13I put my blood, sweat, and tears into that marriage, and you broke it.
16:18And I just didn't have anything else left to give.
16:20She files for divorce the very next day.
16:31For Michelle, the pain from the end of her marriage is about to magnify threefold.
16:36I'm awarding full custody of the children.
16:40In a shocking turn of events, the judge grants Robert full custody of their children.
16:45Sir, Your Honor, please. You can't do this.
16:48I told the judge, I said, please don't take my kids.
16:51If you take my children, I will die.
16:53That's what keeps me going.
16:54If you take them, I have nothing.
16:56I don't believe that you're in a position to support these children financially.
17:00I promise, I'm looking.
17:02He didn't want to hear anything I have to say.
17:03He was the devil.
17:04I made my decision.
17:06Up to now, Michelle has taken the blows that life has dealt her on the chin.
17:10Her kids are her world.
17:12And without them, she feels completely alone.
17:15She'll try to numb herself any way she can, but that could lead to more devastating consequences if she's not careful.
17:22Michelle's left with limited visitation with her kids.
17:30She feels like she's hit rock bottom.
17:32Then, out of the blue, a man from her past reaches out to her.
17:38Hey, stranger.
17:39Guess who?
17:40Oh, hey, Kenan.
17:43Kenan was my best friend.
17:46He was also her favorite cousin.
17:49They used to hang out as children.
17:51We were always off away, playing, doing things away from everybody else.
17:57We were very, very close.
17:58Like soul mates or something.
18:00What is it?
18:02They're so close that one day he told her something that will haunt her forever.
18:07I got a secret that you don't know.
18:11You don't know any secrets that I don't know.
18:13He was like, I know some secrets.
18:15You know what little kids do?
18:17And I said, okay, tell me.
18:18You know you can tell me any secret.
18:21And he was like, I'm not your cousin.
18:26And I was like, sure.
18:27If your mom and my mom are sisters, you have to be my cousin.
18:31And he was like, but I'm not.
18:33And I said, well, what are you?
18:34He said, you better go talk to your mom.
18:36I wasn't supposed to say anything anyway.
18:38Kenan had no idea he was hitting a nerve.
18:49Michelle.
18:50Michelle always suspected that she was adopted.
18:53And I used to question them about it.
18:56What's wrong?
18:58She would say, you're ours.
19:01We love you.
19:02You're mine.
19:03Okay.
19:04When Michelle asked about Kenan, she got another vague response.
19:08Kenan said that we weren't cousins.
19:11Why would he say something like that?
19:13I don't know.
19:15She's left wondering.
19:16So don't listen to what Kenan says, all right?
19:20It's really good to hear your voice.
19:23Wow.
19:23Michelle hasn't seen Kenan in ages.
19:27Well, you know, hey, I'm around.
19:28You know, if you're in town, yeah, let's hook up.
19:31They make plans to get together and catch up.
19:34Okay, bye-bye.
19:43Hey, stranger.
19:45Kenan, hey.
19:46Oh, my God.
19:47How are you?
19:49I'm good.
19:50I'm good in the house.
19:51It's so good to see you.
19:52It's good to see you.
19:53Oh, my God.
19:54Look at you.
19:54You look great.
19:55It's like we didn't miss a beat.
19:57It's been rough.
19:58You know, I'm divorced now.
20:00Michelle's eager to unload her emotional baggage,
20:03and Kenan's happy to help shoulder the weight.
20:06Whatever you need, I'm here.
20:08I appreciate that.
20:09Hey.
20:10I was having these breakdowns, these crying spells.
20:12I remember him just consoling me, talking to me.
20:16Beautiful as ever.
20:18Aw, thank you.
20:20Michelle claims talking turns to touching.
20:24But she hesitates.
20:25No, we're cousins.
20:27We were raised as cousins.
20:28What happened with all this with you was my cousin.
20:31We're not really cousins.
20:32Kenan reassures her.
20:34And how can you be so sure?
20:35I'm positive.
20:36Just started telling me, you know,
20:38I always thought you were very pretty.
20:39I thought you were beautiful.
20:40You're smart.
20:41You're gorgeous.
20:41We always had this thing for each other.
20:44I need you.
20:45You need me.
20:46Really?
20:47Yes.
20:48Kenan is very persuasive, and Michelle can't resist.
20:53At this point, I don't even care.
20:55I done lost everything.
20:56I just want to feel some sense of connection to something or somebody.
21:02What's new?
21:11Well, I'm kind of seeing somebody now.
21:15You are?
21:16Don't tell me about him.
21:18Me and Kenan started dating a few weeks ago.
21:23No.
21:24No.
21:25Absolutely not.
21:27She was like, you've got to be kidding me.
21:29And I'm thinking, okay, here we go.
21:31You're just trying to control who I see it.
21:33He's your relative.
21:35She was like, you know y'all are related.
21:37I said, okay, we're back to that again.
21:38I've never seen no proof.
21:40You've never told me.
21:40I've asked you a thousand times.
21:42And I've asked everybody in the family.
21:44Everybody's so hush-hush.
21:46You guys are playing with my life.
21:47I'm grown.
21:48I can do what I want to do.
21:49I can see who I want to see.
21:51Finally, her mother confirms what Michelle suspected all along.
21:55She has this document, and she tosses it in.
21:59I'm like, what the hell is this?
22:01Those are your adoption papers.
22:03Her mother is actually her aunt.
22:07But then she learns a far more shocking truth.
22:10What do you mean me and Kenan, Mama?
22:13You and Kenan are brother and sister.
22:15What?
22:16Yes.
22:16Kenan is her biological brother.
22:19I thought I would die.
22:21They were both adopted by family members when their birth mother couldn't take care of them.
22:26Yes.
22:27Mama, why are you just now telling me this?
22:29Everyone in Michelle's family knew the truth all along.
22:33Does he know this?
22:34Yes.
22:35Oh!
22:36Everyone except Michelle.
22:38Kenan knew you were his sister.
22:41He did.
22:41The betrayal from your mom is one thing, and it's big and it's deep.
22:46Mm-hmm.
22:47But from Kenan...
22:49Mama, this is messed up.
22:51I'm leaving.
22:51If Michelle's aunt told her the truth when she was a child, she could have processed the news and accepted it.
22:57But now, it's going to be nearly impossible for Michelle to let her guard down and trust anyone ever again.
23:04The revelation nearly destroys her.
23:08Michelle retreats and cuts off all contact with the outside world.
23:11But Michelle claims Kenan wears her down, and a week later, she decides to meet him so she can confront him.
23:26Hey, glad you made it.
23:28What's wrong?
23:29Well, let's just say I found out.
23:32You found out what?
23:33That you're really my brother, Kenan.
23:36I asked him, I said, but yet you knew, but you still pursued me.
23:39Why did you do that?
23:40Because it's sick.
23:41His answer to me was, because I didn't know you as a sister.
23:46To me, you're just a woman.
23:48There was an attraction as a beautiful woman.
23:50That's all I saw.
23:51No, but you knew all this time.
23:53According to Michelle, her rejection sends Kenan into a red-hot rage.
23:59I don't do stuff like this, Kenan.
24:00This is wrong.
24:01It's not wrong.
24:03You're wrong.
24:04What is he telling me?
24:04We love each other.
24:05No.
24:06He starts yelling and screaming at me, embarrassing me in the place.
24:09I'm like, okay, I'm leaving.
24:10I'm not listening.
24:11I'm leaving.
24:12You're not going anywhere.
24:14I'm talking to you.
24:15Don't walk away from me.
24:16Don't you walk away from me.
24:17As he pushes me, I fall back.
24:20Don't you tell me what to do.
24:22So you have an actual physical slugfest fight.
24:25Mm-hmm.
24:26Face it over me.
24:27All right.
24:27Let's make it.
24:28Let's make it.
24:28Let's make it.
24:29Let's make it.
24:29I'm coming back.
24:35Over the next few days, Kenan calls incessantly, trying to apologize.
24:42But Michelle wants nothing to do with him.
24:45Open the door.
24:46She claims he shows up at her apartment in the dead of night.
24:52Michelle, open the door.
24:54I'm going to kick this bitch down.
24:56Michelle's terrified.
24:58She no longer knows what Kenan's capable of.
25:01I got to get out of the state.
25:03My life is in danger.
25:05If I stay here, I'm going to die.
25:07Open the damn door.
25:08Michelle Evans finds solace with her old friend Kenan after losing her kids in an ugly divorce.
25:23Don't.
25:24But when she learns a horrifying truth...
25:27You and Kenan are brother and sister.
25:30...she tries to end the relationship, but Kenan won't let her go.
25:35Open the damn door!
25:36As hard as it is for Michelle to leave her children behind, she grabs a map of the United States and decides her fate.
25:45Then I zoomed in and where my finger was, I opened my eyes, I said, that's where I'm going.
25:50Michigan, clean start, fresh slate, I don't know anyone.
25:53Leaving her future in the hands of the universe could be a good thing for Michelle.
25:58In the past, she has let other people control her destiny.
26:02But by throwing caution to the wind, she is taking a brave step forward in hopes of starting over.
26:07With nothing but a backpack and a Bible, Michelle heads to the bus station the next morning.
26:18She escapes on a bus headed to Ann Arbor, Michigan.
26:21She lands a job as a bank teller, rents a small apartment, and settles into her new life.
26:28For the next 15 years, Michelle focuses on getting her life back on track.
26:39Then one day, she randomly runs in to an old friend.
26:43I see this lady, and she said, don't I know you? I see you look familiar too.
26:47I said, Michelle, do you remember me or Maggie? She said, oh my God.
26:56Yes, of course.
26:57Maggie and Michelle are from the same town in Mississippi and went to the same high school.
27:03She said, so where are you staying? And I told her, she said, you're directly across the aisle from me.
27:07I said, no way, way. She was like, we got to catch up.
27:09Yeah, you should be here any minute.
27:11Wow, this is such a trip. Small world.
27:13Maggie was on her way to meet her younger brother, Charles.
27:16Here she is.
27:19Wow.
27:19How are you?
27:20Hi.
27:21He secretly carried a torch for Michelle when they were in high school.
27:26I used to see her all the time. I'd say, man, I like that girl. I like that girl.
27:29But I never had the courage to come up to her and say anything.
27:33I always had a crush on her.
27:35I didn't even know you were interested in me. He said, oh baby, I was interested.
27:38Oh, bless you.
27:40Charles is determined not to make the same mistake again.
27:44Can I get your phone number?
27:45Because I don't want you to get away.
27:47I said, God brought us together after all this time. It's a sign.
27:50Let me just say this. I'm really not looking for a relationship, Charles.
27:54Michelle is flattered. But given the traumas of her past, she's sworn off men.
27:59Let me just put that out there. But I can use male friend.
28:03Hey, dear. See you later. Bye-bye.
28:06What are you going to do with that number?
28:07Oh, yeah.
28:13Charles wastes no time. He calls her the next day.
28:17Would you like to go to lunch?
28:18Uh, you know what? No, it's okay. Not today.
28:22So he was like, I'm already outside.
28:24You are?
28:24And I said, oh, so you just knew I was going. He said, I didn't know, but I was hoping.
28:32All right. Well, let me get my purse and I'll be down in a few minutes.
28:36Bye-bye.
28:38I thought it was adorable. He was like, your chariot awaits.
28:41When she steps outside, Charles is waiting like a lovestruck chauffeur.
28:45He's a gentleman, and he opens the door for me, and I get in the car, and we ride off.
28:59The impromptu date is the first of many over the next few weeks.
29:04That was a lot of good times. Lots of good times.
29:07I mean, we used to spend laughing, talk about anything, everything.
29:11Charles feels so close to her, he shares a painful truth.
29:15That he lost his right leg ten years earlier to a blood clot.
29:22Despite his prosthetic leg, Charles is a pretty good dancer.
29:27We love music. He used to DJ. I used to dance. Oh, my God.
29:33Dancer and a DJ. We just click.
29:38Things are going great, but Michelle still has her guard up.
29:42Okay, and I'm just really, I'm not for no mess, Charles.
29:46I told him I got to take it slow.
29:48Don't lie to me. Don't cheat on me.
29:50Don't put jeans on me.
29:51Baby, you'll get hurt, because the stuff I done been through,
29:54I'm liable to snap go up one side of you and down the other.
29:56You don't want to mess with me.
29:58Charles heeds her warning, and he's rewarded with a kiss.
30:02Man, that was beautiful, man. That was beautiful.
30:05I seen stars and flashing lights and everything that night.
30:13It's not long before Charles asks Michelle to move in with him.
30:17She accepts.
30:19He cooked for me, wouldn't let me buy groceries, not pay a bill.
30:23He just took care of me.
30:26I want you to take your pills, okay?
30:29You have to stay on top of this, baby.
30:31We cannot have you having blood clots again, all right?
30:34Michelle cares for him by making sure he takes his blood thinner medication
30:38to prevent future clots, like the one that cost him his leg.
30:44She helped me through a lot, man.
30:46She helped me, I helped her, you know.
30:47The couple is happy, and Michelle feels as though she's treated like a queen.
30:55You're my king.
31:02But Charles has never recovered from the psychological trauma of losing his leg.
31:08I was devastated just to think about it right now.
31:10I mean, it hurt me to think about it.
31:11My body part is gone. It's gone forever.
31:14Michelle claims he's been self-medicating with alcohol for years.
31:20At first, he manages to hide his drinking from Michelle.
31:27Hey, baby.
31:28Hey.
31:29Hey, how are you?
31:31Hey, I'm okay. I'm all right.
31:33Good. How was your day?
31:34I was hurting real bad, you know.
31:36Could nobody feel my pain?
31:37Nobody knew what I was going through.
31:39Have you been drinking?
31:40Drinking?
31:41But as they spend more time together, his mask of sobriety starts to slip.
31:46For just a little bit. Just had one beer, you know.
31:48Okay.
31:49I'll talk to you.
31:50Okay.
31:58Charles!
32:02Much to Michelle's horror, a familiar pattern starts to emerge.
32:06Baby, get up. Come on, wake up.
32:08He starts hanging out, partying all the time. You're staying out later and later.
32:13Oh, let me go.
32:15Sleep your drunk ass in the charity.
32:18Michelle claims he's so drunk, he calls an ex-girlfriend right in front of her.
32:23Baby, I've been thinking about you.
32:26Baby?
32:27Oh, hell no. Excuse me?
32:29Who are you on the floor? Who is this?
32:31That's my sister.
32:32This ain't your sister. You call your sister, baby?
32:34You don't even realize you're so drunk that I'm beside you. I'm like, are you kidding me?
32:39You done lost your damn mind.
32:41Who is wrong with you?
32:42I used to have blackouts because I'd be so drunk, man.
32:46He don't remember nothing he's done or said when he's drinking.
32:52The shouting match quickly escalates.
32:55Go ahead.
32:56He'd take this candle holder and sling it at me. I was like, did you just throw that at me?
33:02Okay, so I left. I didn't even have to think about it. I mean, I just left.
33:07I don't live like that.
33:08Michelle takes off and calls Maggie to vent.
33:12Maggie says Michelle isn't the first of her brother's girlfriends to witness his dark side.
33:17His other girlfriend, he beat her up. She come over to my house, had black eyes, crying.
33:26Yeah, he got a prostate lead, but he could fight.
33:31When he is sober, he is every woman's dream.
33:35I mean, this man is to die for. I mean, seriously.
33:40But when you put a drop of liquor in him, it's like you are looking face to face with the devil.
33:48She decides to give him another chance.
33:56Then, a week later, when it seems things are back on track, the devil shows his face.
34:02Who was drinking that?
34:03Me and a couple friends of mine.
34:05We had drunk a lot, too, that day.
34:07It was just one?
34:08Yeah.
34:08It smelled like you were storing them back.
34:10Come on, baby.
34:11Then, Charles has a sudden craving for nicotine.
34:15Please.
34:15You know what? It's really late right now, and I just don't feel like it.
34:19According to Michelle, since he's drunk, she reluctantly agrees to go to the store.
34:23Okay.
34:25Oh, oh, oh.
34:32When she gets back from the cigarette run, she realizes she didn't take her keys.
34:38She knocks.
34:39No answer.
34:42I rang the doorbell one time.
34:44Ding dong.
34:47She finally tries calling Charles.
34:52And still, no answer.
34:54Is he dead on the sofa?
34:56Did something terrible happen?
34:57Why can't you reach him?
34:58Because he's on the phone.
35:00How do you know this?
35:03I'll see you on the phone.
35:06I can't wait either.
35:08Oh.
35:10I gotta go.
35:11Phone goes on the table.
35:13I'm sitting here watching you.
35:14I'm watching you.
35:17Who are you talking to?
35:20When Charles finally answers the door, Michelle's a lit fuse ready to blow.
35:25You ain't answering.
35:26Who you on the phone with?
35:28He will say, bitch, you want to fight, don't you?
35:30What's wrong with you?
35:31Are you crazy?
35:33Michelle claims Charles won't let up.
35:36She tries to walk away.
35:37As I'm walking away, he kicks me in the back.
35:42He kicked me so hard.
35:44I went down to the floor.
35:45And I lost it.
35:47I went from zero to 100.
35:50I got up.
35:50I said, did you just kick me?
35:52Do I look like a dog?
35:54I hauled off with everything in me.
35:57I went, come, pie y'all.
35:59All my might.
36:00I said, Lord Jesus in heaven, if you really have to give me the strength of 10 bulls to beat
36:05the dog mess out of this man.
36:08And he got up and, come, pie y'all, he hit me.
36:11And we started fighting and fighting and fighting.
36:15We was tearing that house up.
36:19During the struggle, Michelle's dinner tray goes flying.
36:23I saw the knife glide across the floor and I went towards it.
36:31And he was pulling my foot and I kicked him and I got the knife and I said,
36:35I said, stop.
36:37I will cut you.
36:38I will cut you!
36:5648-year-old Michelle Evans has finally been pushed over the edge.
37:01What's wrong with you?
37:03Her boyfriend, Charles, has attacked her during a heated argument.
37:07And she's about to give him a taste of his own medicine.
37:13And I close my eyes and I'm swinging the knife.
37:16And he knocks the knife out of my hand.
37:20It goes across the floor.
37:23She says Charles starts slamming her head.
37:26I said, shut up!
37:28I felt myself going out and I'm like, oh, Lord Jesus, please don't let me go.
37:31I was like, Michelle, stay with me.
37:33Stay with me.
37:33Because if you go out, he's going to kill you.
37:36Michelle manages to push Charles off of her.
37:39Babe!
37:39Babe!
37:40Babe!
37:40The fall knocks his prosthetic leg loose.
37:43Stop!
37:44Stop!
37:45I said, stop.
37:46She pulls the leg out through his pants.
37:49The leg came off like that.
37:50And I was like, now, bitch.
37:53Uh-huh.
37:54He was like, okay, baby, stop.
37:55Oh, it's baby now.
37:57Come on, baby.
37:57Come on, baby.
37:58Baby, come back!
38:00I was the bitch, right?
38:03Oh, I was this and I was that, right?
38:05Why you was on the phone with your little girlfriend, right?
38:07I mean, I had just lost it.
38:09She tosses the leg out the front door.
38:19Oh, you know what?
38:20According to Michelle, when she comes back inside and resumes the fight,
38:25Charles gets the upper hand and she drops the knife.
38:28He does the wrestling thing on me across with the leg.
38:35He's choking.
38:35I said, if I stay here, I'm going to die.
38:38So I reached with my foot and got the knife.
38:48And he pulled it from me out of my hand and I cut my finger right there.
38:52And then I pulled it from him and cut his finger.
38:56Trying to grab the knife.
38:57And it's like, I seen his look in her eyes, man.
39:00I ain't never seen before.
39:01It was a lot of rage.
39:03A lot of rage in her eyes.
39:05I stuck him in the leg.
39:07When he got cut, the blood sprouted out.
39:09He said, stop, I'm bleeding.
39:12Charles' blood thinner medication makes even the slightest cut potentially lethal.
39:17He could bleed to death in minutes.
39:22It's like she was trying to literally kill me.
39:26That's what I was thinking in my mind.
39:28Blood everywhere.
39:29I told you don't mess with me.
39:31And I said, I told you to stop.
39:32I told you to stop.
39:33You won't listen.
39:35And all of this over a bitch.
39:37It's over a bitch.
39:39Is she really worth it?
39:41You just wouldn't stop.
39:45Charles says he doesn't recall what started the argument, but claims he's just an innocent victim.
39:51It wasn't like I had on the floor trying to choke or nothing like that.
39:55I couldn't even get my hands on it.
39:57My leg was gone.
39:58I just laid on the floor trying to protect myself.
40:01Why would she pick up a weapon on her appetite?
40:03When Michelle sees all the blood pouring out of Charles, she calls 911 in a panic.
40:18She's crazy.
40:20She's in here.
40:22Police arrive minutes later.
40:27When he got there, he was like, she stabbed me.
40:30He said, I don't even know what she did with my legs.
40:32She just went crazy.
40:33So I'm some crazy, deranged, jealous girlfriend that just up snaps all out the blue and you're a victim.
40:39Michelle, did they snap you in handcuffs that night?
40:42They did.
40:42They didn't ask me anything.
40:45It was like, um, you're under arrest.
40:49Ma'am, step away right now.
40:51My mom, she's not crazy.
40:53It's just when she loves, she loves hard.
40:55He's not innocent.
40:57I was shocked.
40:58When I got the phone calls and they was talking about my mom stabbing him, and I'm like, what?
41:04Michelle wouldn't have heard it, Charles, unless she had to.
41:09That's how much she loved him.
41:10Although Charles lost a lot of blood, his wounds aren't serious.
41:17He gets three stitches in his hand and three more in his leg.
41:21He's released from the hospital the next day.
41:27Michelle isn't so lucky.
41:29She spends two days in a holding cell.
41:32She's charged with aggravated domestic violence.
41:35Her sentence, if convicted, ten years to life.
41:43But when Charles takes responsibility for his part in the altercation...
41:49He said, Your Honor, it was a misunderstanding.
41:51I want to go to counseling.
41:53I love this woman, and I drink too much.
41:55The charges are immediately dropped.
41:59I was ecstatic.
42:01I was so happy, I was just elated.
42:03Michelle could be in prison right now.
42:07If she had struck his tumoral artery and he had died, this could have a very different outcome.
42:13But because Charles believes in Michelle, it's very likely this couple can work through their past...
42:19...and have a really good future together.
42:24Michelle and Charles get counseling to help repair the emotional damage.
42:28We forgave each other.
42:31Everything, everything's good now.
42:33No more of that crazy stuff.
42:34But I don't drink heavy like that no more.
42:36I can't remember the last time I done fell down.
42:38It's something I've been thinking about for a long time now.
42:42A year after the stabbing, Charles asks Michelle to be his wife...
42:46...on her 49th birthday.
42:48Will you make me the luckiest man in the world?
42:52He pulls his leg back, gets on one knee.
42:55He said, I love you.
42:56I've never been married.
42:58I want to spend the rest of my life with you.
43:00We have been through thick and thin.
43:03I believe with the Lord's help, we'll be all right.
43:05Will you marry me?
43:06And I said, yes.
43:07It's beautiful.
43:08In my heart, I was real happy.
43:10It's a woman I've been waiting on all my life, and I finally got her.
43:15Does he treat you with respect now?
43:17He's a little mouthy still, but we working on it.
43:20I'm sure you'll get that under control.
43:22And you're happy today?
43:23I am.
43:24Sometimes it takes a tragedy to get you to triumph.
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