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Cosmic.Coded
  • 3 hours ago
Handcuffs for the Perfect Husband - FULL | Reelshort
Transcript
00:15Hola, ¿estas Julián funcionando aquí?
00:21¿Qué quieres con mi hijo-in-la?
00:23La palabras me hit como un aplauso.
00:25Me dijo que era una coincidencia.
00:27Relax, Mr. Miller.
00:29Everyone around here knows Julián is totally whipped.
00:31Other guys might mess around, but your son-in-la wouldn't dare.
00:35She's probably here on business from corporate.
00:38I kept my composure and pulled up a photo of Julián on my phone.
00:41I am here on business.
00:43Is this the Julián you're talking about?
00:45The old man relaxed.
00:47Yeah, that's him.
00:48That's my son-in-la.
00:49The blood in my veins froze.
00:51Before I could process a single word,
00:54a woman appeared, well-dressed, smiling.
00:58You here to talk business with my man?
01:01Come wait at our place.
01:03Our son's got a fever.
01:05He took him to the hospital in town.
01:07I stared at her.
01:08Thunderstruck.
01:09Barely able to breathe.
01:11I'm Julián's wife.
01:13Just call me Mia.
01:15She was warm and talkative,
01:17smile never leaving her face.
01:18There's nothing but rough guys around here.
01:21And half of them don't know how to act.
01:23A woman shouldn't be standing around alone out here.
01:26Come on back to the house.
01:27He'll be a while.
01:29And I followed her.
01:30I watched her as we walked.
01:31Her foundation was uneven,
01:33powder caked at her eye corners.
01:35But she was clearly over ten years younger than Julián,
01:38who'd just turned thirty-seven.
01:41Lord, you women from New York really are something else.
01:46Look at that skin.
01:48Smooth as a baby's bottom.
01:51Her eyes were full of admiration.
01:53My man's got skin just like yours.
01:55All soft and clear.
01:56She laughed.
01:57You city girls really do have it all.
01:59I forced a smile.
02:00She wasn't wrong.
02:01Julián and I both had good skin.
02:03I was older than Mia by a fair margin,
02:06but I'd taken care of myself.
02:08I still looked like I was in my mid-twenties.
02:10No one would guess I'd been married for twelve years.
02:13But what did any of that matter?
02:14I had a career,
02:15raised our son,
02:17cared for his parents,
02:18and handled everything alone.
02:20But my husband still built an entirely different life here behind my back.
02:24Mia talked the whole way.
02:25She didn't seem to need a response.
02:27At some point,
02:28a couple on a motorcycle slowed as they passed him.
02:31The woman on the back held out a small paper bag.
02:33Your man thinks of everything,
02:35takes the kid to the doctor,
02:36and still remembers you wanted roasted peanuts.
02:38Asked me to drop these off.
02:40He worries too much.
02:41Your husband really does take care of you.
02:43That man does whatever she says,
02:45no questions asked.
02:47Doesn't matter how tough he acts out here.
02:48One look for Mia and he folds.
02:50One tear and he's completely hers.
02:52Oh, stop it.
02:53A bitter ache welled up inside me.
02:55My husband.
02:56The man who spent 12 years talking to me about equality, respect, and partnership.
03:01That man had come out here and willingly turned himself into another woman's lap dog.
03:07Mia's house stopped me in my track.
03:19And he's the first guy in town to move in with his wife's family.
03:23Takes care of my parents like they're his own.
03:28Moved in with her family.
03:30The moment I stepped into the living room,
03:32I saw it.
03:33We had a photo just like it.
03:35Only ours had just three people.
03:37No daughter.
03:38The year Julian first left for this project.
03:42Two years max.
03:44I'll get transferred back.
03:45And when I do,
03:47if you want,
03:48we'll try for a second baby.
03:50After that,
03:51we'll never be apart again.
03:55Two years turned into seven.
03:57He came home for a few days every Christmas.
03:59And that was it.
04:02Last year,
04:03while he was back for the holidays,
04:05I casually said,
04:06I still wished we'd had a daughter.
04:08Honestly,
04:09with the way things are,
04:10smart people aren't having more kids.
04:12One's enough.
04:15Why put yourself through it?
04:16I thought he'd simply changed his mind.
04:19Turns out he already had his daughter.
04:21He just hadn't had her with me.
04:24We've got Wi-Fi.
04:27Password's 990913.
04:31Something jolted in my chest.
04:33I thought Julian had told me
04:34there was no reliable internet signal out here.
04:37That was why I could never reach him directly.
04:40He always had to be the one to contact me first.
04:43I connected to the network.
04:45Full bars.
04:46One lie after another.
04:47Each one like a knife sinking in deep.
04:50You two seem really happy.
04:51Does it worry you that he might get transferred back to New York someday?
04:54Not really.
04:55Between us,
04:56they almost called him back earlier this year.
04:58My chest tightened.
04:59He used every favor he had just to stay.
05:01My heart dropped.
05:02It wasn't the company keeping him here.
05:04He'd asked to stay.
05:06He'd fought to stay.
05:08He'd done that knowing his mother had suffered a stroke and couldn't care for herself.
05:12He'd done that knowing his father had broken his leg in a fall and needed help.
05:17He'd done that knowing our son had cried over and over about missing his father.
05:22He'd done that knowing I'd been worn down by work and family until I'd ended up in the
05:27hospital more than once.
05:28And he'd stayed anyway dot comfortably dot a thousand miles away.
05:36A chill ran through me.
05:38My shoulders trembling slightly.
05:40Mia crossed the room and switched on the air conditioning, thinking I was cold.
05:44It'll warm up in a minute.
05:46My man got me a good one.
05:48A big brand name.
05:49Didn't even blink at the price.
05:54Nobody else in town has one.
05:57I didn't even want it.
05:58I told him it was too much.
06:00But he insisted.
06:02Said he was worried I'd be cold in the winter.
06:05I kept the smile on my face.
06:07He's quite a bit older than you.
06:09I said.
06:09Is this his second marriage?
06:11Ten years older.
06:12We're both getting married for the first time.
06:15Mia smiled.
06:16I'm the lucky one.
06:17A girl like me barely finished high school.
06:20Ending up with a man who has a master's degree.
06:25He's the project manager for the whole development.
06:29Basically second in command under the owner.
06:31I never imagined I'd end up married to someone like that.
06:33But he says meeting me was the best thing that ever happened to him.
06:38The age gap's a good thing, honestly.
06:40Older men know how to take care of you.
06:42He's responsible at work and at home.
06:46Every paycheck goes straight to me.
06:48I give him a little spending money and that's it.
06:50Bitterness welled up in my chest.
06:52For years Julian had been sending money back to our joint account every month.
06:56Only left $1,000 for himself.
06:59He told me his housing and meals were covered.
07:01That he barely spent anything out here.
07:03I had a college roommate who worked in his company's payroll department.
07:07Years ago, I'd quietly checked his monthly salary once $11,000 and let myself be believe him.
07:14I didn't believe him anymore.
07:16He takes good care of the whole family.
07:19God, yes!
07:20She gestured around the room.
07:22My mom has a bad back.
07:23He bought her that massage chair without blinking.
07:25My dad likes his whiskey, so Julian keeps cases of the good stuff stocked for him and he gives me
07:32a separate allowance every month for whatever I want.
07:37I heard it and I knew Julian had been taking bribe.
07:40The bitterness turned colder, not just for myself, but for his parents, who had no idea.
07:47Three months ago, his mother had nearly died.
07:50A severe stroke.
07:53Julian, please.
07:56She's in critical condition.
07:57She keeps asking for you.
07:58Please come home.
07:59I'm so sorry, Chloe.
08:01The project is at a critical stage right now.
08:03I really can't leave.
08:05She'll be okay.
08:06So many nights like that, his phone unanswered.
08:08Or always some excuse he couldn't come.
08:11He never came back.
08:12He ignored his own family, his parents, his son.
08:16And the whole time, he was here being a good husband, a good father, a good son-in-law.
08:22The irony was sickening.
08:24Mia's phone rang.
08:25She didn't step away or lower her voice.
08:27She just answered it right there.
08:30Hey, baby.
08:31Close enough that I heard every word.
08:33Julian's voice.
08:34The same warm tone he used to use with me.
08:37Our son still hasn't broken his fever.
08:39The doctor wants to keep him overnight.
08:41I'm a little short on cash.
08:43Can you transfer me some?
08:44$300 should cover it.
08:46Of course.
08:46I'll send it now.
08:48I laughed inwardly.
08:50The devoted family husband.
08:52Then Julian's voice softened.
08:54I can't hold you tonight, baby.
08:56Stay warm, okay?
08:57Don't kick off the blankets.
08:59It's one day away from you and I already feel off.
09:02Those words stabbed at my chest like sharp blades.
09:0512 years of marriage.
09:06And the last time he'd said anything like that to me felt like a lifetime ago.
09:10These days, he didn't even show that warmth toward our own son.
09:14Time had turned us an old married couple in name only.
09:25I just realized I never asked your name.
09:28Chloe.
09:30What a pretty name.
09:31She was as cheerful as ever.
09:33Even now, I was still giving her the benefit of the doubt.
09:36There was a good chance she had no idea.
09:39That she was just as deceived as I was.
09:43Since Julian won't be back tonight, why don't you just stay?
09:48You can talk to him about the work stuff tomorrow.
09:52That evening, Mia cooked a full dinner.
09:55A proper, generous spread.
09:56I met their daughter for the first time.
09:58She had Julian's eyes.
10:00Mr. and Mrs. Miller were polite to me, but barely.
10:04There was a wariness in their gaze that I noticed, but didn't mention.
10:08At the table, the conversation kept circling back to Julian.
10:11The way they talked about him, he wasn't a son-in-law.
10:14He was their son.
10:15Mia was an only child, in a town like this, that had always meant something for her parents.
10:21They'd spent their whole lives looked down on for not having a son.
10:25Then Julian arrived, moved in, supported the whole family, treated them like his own.
10:30And for the first time, they held their heads up.
10:34Julian is the rock of this family.
10:37We can't do without him.
10:39Something stuck in my throat, like a thorn I couldn't pull out.
10:43The rock of our family, gone for seven years, had been holding up someone else's family all along.
10:51Mia put me in the guest room for the night.
10:53After the lights went out, I lay awake, unable to sleep.
10:58Through the wall, I could hear Mr. and Mrs. Miller talking quietly for a long time.
11:04I made two decisions.
11:06I filed a report, with documentation, with proof, to Julian's corporate headquarters.
11:11Then, I texted my brother.
11:13He was a police officer.
11:15I'm going to need you to make an arrest.
11:17Neither decision felt satisfying.
11:19But both were right.
11:20Justice for my life.
11:21A consequence he'd earned.
11:23The next morning...
11:26It's cold, and you're not dressed for it.
11:28Um, my man just bought this for me.
11:30Only been washed once, never worn.
11:32A designer label I'd spent an entire winter eyeing.
11:35Adding to my cart.
11:37Removing it.
11:38Telling myself there were more important things to spend money on.
11:41Parents to care for.
11:42A son to raise.
11:43I used to say things like that to Julian.
11:46Other husbands buy their wives things.
11:48In all these years, you've never once picked something out for me.
11:50In all these years, he always had the same answer.
11:53Calm and easy.
11:54The money's yours.
11:56Buy whatever you want.
11:58I wouldn't know what to choose anyway.
12:00I'm no good with that kind of thing.
12:03He wasn't no good.
12:05He just didn't care enough to try.
12:07Not for me.
12:08Thank you so much.
12:09It was beautiful.
12:11It was warm.
12:12Mia blinked.
12:13A flash of surprise crossing her face.
12:15She'd clearly expected me to refuse politely.
12:18At breakfast, she was back to her usual self.
12:21Cheerful.
12:22Talkative.
12:23Dropping Julian's name into every other sentence.
12:26She asked me questions too.
12:27What was New York like?
12:29What did I do for work?
12:30At one point, she looked at me and asked,
12:32Are you happy?
12:34It's fine.
12:35My husband just isn't as attentive as yours.
12:38She smiled widely at that.
12:40Then just before noon, the front door swung open.
12:43Honey, I'm home.
12:45Julian's voice filled the house.
12:47He walked in, carrying their five-year-old son.
12:50The moment his eyes landed on me, he went rigid.
12:53I looked at him steadily.
12:54Which honey are you talking to exactly?
12:59Julian's face locked up.
13:00He stood there holding the boy and said absolutely nothing.
13:03I held his gaze.
13:05My eyes said everything I didn't speak aloud.
13:07Why?
13:08How could you?
13:09Do you have any idea what you've done to your son?
13:12To your parents?
13:13He was an only child.
13:15His whole life, they had sacrificed everything for him.
13:18And he had walked away from all of it and quietly become the son of someone else's family.
13:24I would never understand it.
13:25I would never forgive it.
13:27Mia broke first.
13:32What does that mean?
13:34She grabbed my arm, then turned to Julian.
13:37Julian?
13:38Julian, look at me.
13:39What is going on?
13:41I don't understand.
13:43Why would she call you that?
13:45Why is she calling you that?
13:47The paralysis broke from Julian's face.
13:49He quickly set the boy down.
13:51He took a few steps forward, then stopped, caught exactly halfway between us, unable to choose a direction.
13:58I'll explain everything.
13:59Explain what?
14:01That our 12-year marriage is nothing but an empty shell?
14:04That you have no parents?
14:06No son?
14:07Or that you, a married man, have been living out here as another woman's husband, and you're ready to file
14:11for divorce so she can finally have your last name?
14:13Every word landed.
14:15He had no answer.
14:16He looked like a man caught with nowhere to run.
14:19I know I don't deserve forgiveness.
14:21He finally said.
14:22I'm sorry.
14:23Mia fell apart.
14:24Sorry?
14:25What does that mean for me?
14:27She was crying now, fully.
14:28You said I was everything to you.
14:30You said I was your life.
14:32Say something.
14:33Tell me what's happening right now.
14:34And then Julian turned away from me and moved to pull her into his arms.
14:38My heart was bleeding.
14:39Fury rose through me.
14:41Then what are you saying?
14:43I demanded.
14:43He let go of her.
14:45He didn't dare hold her again.
14:46He stood there, looking cornered.
14:48Miserable.
14:49Caught between two directions with no good move left.
14:52In the silence, my phone rang.
14:55Julian's father.
14:56A video call.
14:57I answered without hesitating and switched to the rear camera.
15:00Have you found Julian yet?
15:02The old man's voice was full of hope.
15:03He hadn't seen his son in almost two years.
15:06I walked the phone slowly across the living room until the camera landed on the family portrait on the wall.
15:11All six of them, all smiling.
15:13Found him.
15:15Along with his new wife.
15:17His new son.
15:18His new daughter.
15:20His new family.
15:23This is other home.
15:25He moved in with her family.
15:27He's been taking care of them for years.
15:29I heard my father-in-law's sharp intake of breath.
15:32For a moment, he was too furious to speak.
15:34I turned the camera to Julian and Mia.
15:36Dad, meet the new family.
15:41Julian!
15:42Is this what you've been doing?
15:44This.
15:44You have no regard for your mother and me.
15:47No regard for your wife and son.
15:49Are you trying to put me in the grave?
15:52Turn it off.
15:53Stop filming.
15:55Just stop.
15:57I no longer have a son.
16:01Do you hear me?
16:02I have no son.
16:04In the middle of it all, Mr. and Mrs. Miller walked through the front door.
16:08The moment Mr. and Mrs. Miller understood who I was.
16:11If Julian chose to marry my daughter and have children with her that tells you everything
16:18about where he stands, end it clean and move on, we're not giving him up.
16:25I've treated Julian like my own son from the day he walked into this house.
16:29He and Mia love each other.
16:31That's not going to change.
16:33And what do you say?
16:35He had been staring at the floor.
16:36When my eyes finally forced his head up, he hesitated, then asked me slowly,
16:41Do you still want me back?
16:43Before I could answer, Mia flew across the room.
16:46She dropped to the floor in front of him and grabbed his collar.
16:50What kind of question is that?
16:51If she still wants you, does that mean you'll throw me away?
16:54Julian!
16:55If you dare leave this family, I'll take the kids and end it all.
16:58I mean it.
17:00She gave you one child.
17:02I gave you two.
17:03I have given you more.
17:05You can't just-
17:06Julian pulled her up and tried to calm her.
17:08I just need to know what she-
17:11I laughed hollowly to myself.
17:13Then deliberately I said-
17:14I want you to come home.
17:16Cut everything here off.
17:17For good.
17:18I knew exactly what he was doing.
17:20He was waiting for me to make the choice for him.
17:22Sure that someone like me, with my standards, would never accept a man who had done this.
17:27He expected me to say-
17:28I want a divorce!
17:29...and hand him his exit.
17:30When I didn't, surprise flickered across his face.
17:33Even a trace of disappointment.
17:34I stared at him.
17:35Now it's your turn to choose.
17:37His lips moved.
17:38Nothing came out.
17:39Mia shook him by the arm, crying.
17:40Say something!
17:41You said I'm the love of your life!
17:43You said you'd grow old with me!
17:44Say it to her face!
17:45Julian had no choice.
17:47He looked at me with pleading eyes.
17:49Could we...
17:50just keep things the way they are?
17:53The way they are?
17:54I stared at him, cold.
17:55He wanted to keep both of us.
17:57My look made him too ashamed to repeat himself.
17:59You stay out here and keep playing husband?
18:01I go back to New York?
18:02Take care of your parents?
18:04Raise our son alone?
18:05Run your whole life from the background?
18:07Enjoy this one?
18:08He had nothing to say.
18:09But I could see it in his face.
18:10That was exactly what he'd hoped for.
18:12Mia grabbed his arm again, sobbing.
18:14If you don't choose this family, I'll take these kids and die in front of you.
18:19You promised me we'd grow old together.
18:22You can't abandon us.
18:24She pulled both children over to her, crying.
18:27I'm understanding it.
18:30Ask your daddy, she said to them.
18:33Ask him if he's going to keep you.
18:35The two children didn't understand what was happening.
18:38But seeing Mia cry, they cried too, crowding into Julian's arms.
18:42Daddy, please don't leave us.
18:44Daddy, mommy's crying.
18:46You always said you can't stand to see mommy cry, please.
18:49Julian finally broke.
18:50He pulled all three of them into his arms.
18:52His eyes went red.
18:54Then he looked at me.
18:55He had made his decision.
18:57Chloe.
18:59I'm sorry.
19:00I know you can manage on your own.
19:02I know you'll be okay.
19:05She can't.
19:06She has nothing without me.
19:08He glanced at Mia and the children, then back at me.
19:12Take everything in the house.
19:13I won't fight you for custody.
19:16But this is the choice I have to make.
19:21I'm asking you to let us go.
19:22I laughed.
19:24Not from humor.
19:25From the absurdity of what I was hearing.
19:27She's the one to be pitied?
19:29What about your mother?
19:31Who had a stroke and can't care for herself?
19:33Who wants nothing more than to see her own son?
19:36What about your father?
19:37Who broke his leg and needed you home and never once said a word about the fact that you didn't
19:41come?
19:42What about your son?
19:43Who gets mocked at school for not having a father around?
19:46Who has cried more times than I can count?
19:48As I spoke, tears fell from my eyes.
19:50Not for him.
19:52Never again for him.
19:53Only because a man like this was never worth everything our family had given him.
19:58Julian stood there in silence.
20:00Shame was written across his entire face.
20:02Mia filled the gap.
20:04Don't worry.
20:04I'll bring his parents here.
20:06I'll take care of them myself.
20:08You don't need to concern yourself with any of it.
20:10Then her eyes hardened.
20:12And you?
20:13You knew who I was from the very beginning, didn't you?
20:16You sat there and let me talk and talk and you were just collecting evidence.
20:20I smiled at her.
20:21Contemptions.
20:22Then I called Julian's parents back right there and told her in front of everyone what Julian had just.
20:28His mother's voice shook my hearing.
20:30If you divorce Chloe, you're not my son.
20:33Do you understand me?
20:35While you were gone, she gave everything to this family.
20:38To us.
20:38And you want to throw her away?
20:39I will never accept that woman.
20:41And those children, I don't know them and I never will.
20:44Julian's father said the same.
20:46Mia broke down crying.
20:48Julian was at his breaking point.
20:50I ended the call.
20:51He wiped his eyes, couldn't look at me, and finally said,
20:55Chloe, I have no right to ask anything of you.
20:59But name your terms.
21:01Whatever I can give you, I will.
21:03Mia knelt down in front of me.
21:22She pulled both children over.
21:32Kneel down.
21:35Ask her to let your daddy stay.
21:37Two small faces turned up toward me.
21:39Please, madam, don't take our daddy.
21:42Our family needs a daddy.
21:44Otherwise, it won't be whole.
21:46She was using the children to work on my conscience.
21:49Anger surged through me.
21:50Your children need a father.
21:52And mine doesn't?
21:54Your child is older.
21:55Mine are still small.
21:57I laughed and stood up from the couch.
22:04The truth is, none of these children, yours or mine, will have a father from here on out.
22:11Both Julian and Mia looked up sharply, not understanding.
22:14Not until my brother walked through the door with local police officers behind him
22:18and Julian's boss and two company directors right after.
22:22Only then did Julian understand.
22:23I had never intended to give him a choice.
22:26And I was certainly not going to let them walk away clean.
22:28The sight of so many strangers sent both children into tears.
22:32An officer quietly asked Mrs. Miller to take them to another room.
22:36Julian stood still, calm, as if he had always known this day would come.
22:41Mia was anything but.
22:43What is this?
22:45Hides!
22:45You have no right to come in here and take my husband!
22:49When no one responded to her satisfaction, she turned all of it on me.
22:53Her pointing finger trembled.
22:55You call yourself a decent person?
22:57He already told you.
22:59You can have everything.
23:02What more do you want from him?
23:03He's your son's father.
23:06How can you be this heartless?
23:09Julian touched her arm.
23:10Stop.
23:11She didn't stop.
23:12I looked at her and said plainly,
23:14Everything you've been wearing, living in, eating, that money didn't just come out of my pocket.
23:19It was dirty.
23:20It came from fraud and corruption.
23:22You told me, yourself, what he was giving you every month.
23:27That figure is exactly what I used as evidence.
23:30You handed it to me yourself.
23:32Julian turned to stone.
23:33His boss stepped forward.
23:35His disappointment total.
23:36I trusted you with this entire project.
23:39Bribery.
23:40Kickbacks.
23:42Substandard materials.
23:44Embezzlement of public funds.
23:46I gave you everything.
23:49And this is what you did with it.
23:51Julian kept his eyes on the floor and said nothing.
23:53Mia spun toward the officers and grabbed one by the arm.
23:57We'll pay it all back.
23:58Every cent.
24:00Just please.
24:01He's a father.
24:02We have children.
24:04Please.
24:05Give him one more chance.
24:08Ma'am.
24:09The officer's voice was firm.
24:10This is a criminal investigation.
24:13Repayment is not the issue.
24:14And while that's being sorted out,
24:16Mia, you should probably find yourself a lawyer.
24:19What you and Julian have constitutes bigamy.
24:21That's a separate charge.
24:23She went white.
24:24Julian finally looked up.
24:25His control snapped.
24:26Everything I did, I'll take responsibility for all of it.
24:29But she had nothing to do with any of it.
24:30She didn't know.
24:32Why are you going after her?
24:33I smiled, cold and contemptuous.
24:35Inside, the hatred was overwhelming enough
24:37that I wanted to strike him across the face.
24:40And then, right at the peak of it,
24:41I felt it all drain away into something vast and empty.
24:45None of this is worth anything.
24:47She didn't know?
24:48I said.
24:50She knew I was your wife.
24:52She brought me home deliberately to force the confrontation.
24:56To pressure you into a divorce.
24:59And if she hadn't bragged about the 50,000 a month,
25:05I wouldn't have had the evidence I needed.
25:08Julian stared at Mia, stunned, demanding the truth.
25:12Mia shook her head frantically.
25:14I didn't know she was going to report you.
25:17I never thought she would.
25:18I played a recording.
25:20Julian's face drained of color at the first two sentences.
25:24Julian's going to have to go back and deal with his wife eventually.
25:27Even if he drags his feet, Mia will raise hell until he files.
25:31She's not the type to share.
25:33Look at that woman.
25:34She sat here and took it all without a word.
25:37Either she has no backbone, or she's playing a very long game.
25:41Oh, she's playing a game.
25:43But it won't matter.
25:45Julian has no feelings for her anymore.
25:48Mia just has to cry and he'll sign the papers.
25:51You know why Mia brought her home, right?
25:53To light the fuse herself.
25:55Julian's expression moved from shock to disbelief,
25:58to a deep, exhausted disappointment.
26:00He looked at Mia.
26:02So you knew all along that I was married.
26:05You brought her here on purpose.
26:07To force my hand.
26:09Mia couldn't argue her way out of it.
26:11She broke down and admitted it through tears.
26:14I just wanted you to belong to me completely.
26:16What's wrong with that?
26:18I never thought she'd go this far.
26:20I never thought she'd actually...
26:24Mr. Miller, who had said nothing and immediately began deflecting blame.
26:28If you weren't so spinless and indecisive,
26:30none of this would have happened.
26:32Now you've brought this on yourself.
26:35What happens to the children?
26:38What happens to Mia?
26:40What are we supposed to do?
26:43How do we ever show our faces around here again?
26:46As he laughed, tears slipped from the corners of his eyes.
26:49His face was full of helpless, exhausted disbelief at how stupid Mia had been.
26:54For a moment, he genuinely didn't know who to blame.
26:58He kept his head down the entire walk to the police car.
27:01Outside, people had gathered.
27:04Then more from neighboring streets.
27:06But I'm there to see the most famously devoted husband in town taken away.
27:10And his wife back in New York is beautiful, educated, a professor, I heard.
27:16And he threw all of that away for this.
27:17Men are never satisfied.
27:19Doesn't matter how good things are at home.
27:21Something Mia said.
27:23Never questioned her once.
27:25And he was rotten the whole time.
27:28Not knew he was married.
27:29Brought his wife here himself to force a divorce.
27:34Backfired, didn't it?
27:35Tried to steal another woman's husband.
27:39Burned her own life down.
27:40The police car door, Julian stopped.
27:42He turned and found me in the crowd.
27:44Take care of yourself.
27:46I'm sorry, Chloe.
27:49Find someone who deserves you.
27:50I looked at him.
27:51I said nothing.
27:52He got in.
27:53Mia ran after the car.
27:55Stumbling, falling, picking herself up and running again.
27:59Pounding on the windows.
28:00Screaming his name.
28:02Until it turned the corner and disappeared.
28:05She came back and collapsed at my feet.
28:09She was on her knees, in front of everyone.
28:11Past caring who saw.
28:13Please.
28:14Please help him.
28:16You're educated.
28:17You understand how this works better than I do.
28:19I don't care about anything else anymore.
28:21I just need him not to go to prison.
28:23She held onto the hem of my coat.
28:25Believe me or don't.
28:26But I did love him.
28:28That part was real.
28:30I looked at her calmly.
28:31The hatred I had carried into this situation was gone.
28:35She kept going.
28:36Her voice breaking.
28:38I genuinely didn't know he was married when we first got together.
28:41I found out when our son was almost a year old.
28:44I found a photo of you on his phone.
28:46By then I was already in too deep.
28:48The children, this house, my parents.
28:51We were all depending on him.
28:52I didn't know what to do.
28:57I know nothing I say matters now.
29:00I'm only asking if there's anything you can do.
29:04She didn't get up.
29:06She just stayed there on the ground, in front of everyone, her hand clutching my coat, not caring about the
29:13stairs.
29:14I reached down and removed her hand.
29:17I looked at her.
29:18You know what your tears mean to me?
29:22I said quietly.
29:25Crocodile tears.
29:26She blinked up at me.
29:27Then she folded over and wept into the ground.
29:30And I walked away.
29:32I did not soften.
29:33I pressed forward with every charge, including bigamy.
29:37Julian's parents never blamed me.
29:39They supported every decision I made.
29:41My son did not take it well.
29:43He spent months in therapy, struggling to accept that his father had another family out there, other children, living a
29:50parallel life.
29:51It took a long time.
29:53Six months later, Mia was sentenced to one year for bigamy.
29:57Julian's sentencing came three months after that.
29:59The court found that he had embezzled nearly $97 million, taken over $10 million in bribes, paid out $60 million
30:06in kickbacks, misused $20 million in public funds, violated construction regulations, and committed bigamy.
30:13Multiple charges.
30:15Concurrent sentencing.
30:1611 years.
30:17He asked to see me the day he was taken in.
30:20I didn't go.
30:21I sent my lawyer to handle the divorce.
30:23Julian's parents were good to me and my son until the end.
30:26Before they passed, they transferred both of their properties into my son's name and left everything they had to us.
30:32I kept my promise to them regardless.
30:35I cared for them, and I was there when they left.
30:38In the seventh year of Julian's sentence, they both passed.
30:41His mother went first.
30:42Another stroke.
30:43Too severe to...
30:44His father followed the next day.
30:46They had been devoted to each other their entire lives.
30:49He simply could not face a mourning without her.
30:52I arranged a proper funeral for both of them.
30:54I had my lawyer notify Julian.
30:56He sent back one message through the attorney.
30:59Thank you.
31:00Can I see you?
31:01I didn't respond.
31:02My son was accepted to an Ivy League school the following year.
31:06That, more than anything, let me breathe.
31:08I heard Mia remarried about three years after her release.
31:12A divorced man with two children of his own.
31:15She moved on.
31:16I moved on too.
31:17My son played matchmaker.
31:19He introduced me to the single father of one of his college friends.
31:23By then, I wasn't looking for anything grand.
31:25What I found instead was someone steady.
31:28Someone present.
31:29Someone who picked up when I called.
31:31We agreed from the start.
31:33No children together.
31:34We weren't starting over from scratch.
31:36We were two people who chose to share the rest of the road.
31:40Three years into that marriage, Julian was released.
31:43He came to find me.
31:45Eleven years had not been kind to him.
31:47He looked far older than a man his age should.
31:49Worn down, diminished.
31:52Nothing left of the confidence he used to carry.
31:54He stood at my door and asked, quietly,
31:57Chloe, is there any way I could come home?
32:00I looked at him.
32:02I took your advice.
32:05I found someone good.
32:07I married him.
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