Alice’s son had always been cheerful, but now he seemed to shrink whenever her new husband, Sam, entered the room. At first, Alice dismissed it as mere fussiness. But then her son told her something about Sam that made her tremble with fear.
I never planned to be a single mother.
I had dreamed of starting a family with Daniel, my first husband, and raising our child in a home filled with love.
But fate had other plans.
One morning, when Jeremy was only a few weeks old, I woke up to find Daniel gone.
At first, I thought he had gone for a walk or maybe to get coffee. But then I noticed his suitcase was gone, the closet was empty.
Even his toothbrush was missing.
I panicked and called him, but the call went straight to voicemail.
Desperate, I reached out to his best friend, Chris.
“Hi Chris, have you heard from Daniel? He’s not home.”
Silence. Then a heavy sigh.
“Alice, I… I think you should sit down before I tell you.”
That’s when I found out the truth.
Daniel hadn’t just left me. He had fled to another country with another woman.
He had been secretly seeing her for months.
For weeks after discovering this, I was numb. I couldn’t eat, sleep, or even function.
Worst of all, I blamed myself. Was I not enough? Had I done something wrong? Why did he abandon us?
But after gathering my strength and facing the truth, I realized it wasn’t about me.
He was selfish. He had betrayed our family.
I refused to let his betrayal define me.
I began working hard to give Jeremy the best life I could.
My mother helped by watching Jeremy while I worked.
Slowly, the pain eased. I started enjoying the little moments again — Jeremy’s laughter, him calling me “Mommy.”
Over time, I realized we were going to be okay.
Then I met Sam.
One busy afternoon at my favorite coffee shop, after a long morning at work and with Jeremy at daycare, I tried to pay for my coffee—but my card wouldn’t work.
I muttered in frustration, “Oh, come on.”
The clerk looked tired but polite.
Suddenly, a strong voice behind me said, “Let me get that for you.”
I turned to see a tall man with warm brown eyes. He tapped his card on the reader.
“You don’t have to—”
He smiled warmly. “Really, it’s fine. Just coffee.”
Reluctantly, I sighed. “Alright. But give me your number so I can pay you back.”
He chuckled. “Deal.”
That was how it started: a simple act of kindness, exchanging numbers, texting now and then.
Later, I learned Sam was an insurance broker. Though he was two years older than me, he didn’t mind that I had a small child.
I told him about Jeremy.
“Alice, that’s wonderful!” he said enthusiastically. “I love kids.”
For the first time in years, I had hope. Maybe love was possible.
Sam was everything I wanted during our year-long relationship before we married. Attentive, patient, never making me feel like I was “too much.”
The best part? Jeremy quickly liked him. He laughed at Sam’s silly jokes and held his hand on walks.
I let my guard down. For the first time in ages, I felt like we were a real family.
But then life took a dark turn — one I never saw coming.
It began when my mother pulled me aside, worry etched on her face.
“Alice,” she whispered, “don’t you see how Jeremy acts around Sam?”
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
“Watch him. Sam makes Jeremy act differently every time.”
At first, I thought my mother was just overprotective. She was always wary of men after what Daniel did to me.
But that night, I started to notice.
When we were alone, Jeremy was cheerful — playing, laughing, talking about daycare.
But when Sam was around, something changed.
His shoulders tensed, his voice softened, and sometimes he cried for no reason.
I knew I had to ask Sam about it.
Later that night, I asked him, “Can I ask you something?”
He looked up from his phone. “Sure.”
“Have you noticed Jeremy’s behavior around you?”
“What do you mean?”
I hesitated. “He gets quiet. Sometimes he cries.”
“Alice, I love that kid,” Sam said. “I treat him like my own. Why would he—?”
“I know,” I said carefully, not wanting to upset him. “I just don’t know.”
He took my hand. “Maybe he’s just adjusting. It’s a big change for him, a new father figure. It’s a lot for a five-year-old.”
I nodded, trusting him. He sounded sincere. But something still felt wrong.
A few days later, I picked Jeremy up from daycare. We stopped for ice cream on the way home. He sat beside me, licking his cone.
Gently, I asked, “Hey buddy, can I ask you something?”
He nodded, still eating.
“Why do you seem upset around Sam?”
He turned away, his smile fading.
“You can tell me anything, sweetheart,” I said softly, turning him to face me. “I won’t be mad.”
He hesitated, then said, “I heard Daddy on the phone…”
He looked at me with wide, tearful eyes. “He said I’m a problem.”
I couldn’t understand.
“Are you sure, sweetheart?”
Jeremy shook his head. “Yes. He said, ‘Little Jeremy is a problem.’ Then I ran to my room and missed the rest.”
“Mommy, will he leave like my first daddy?” he asked quietly.
His tears broke my heart.
I held him close and brushed his hair. “No, sweetheart. Nobody will ever leave you, okay?”
That night, after Jeremy was asleep, I confronted Sam.
“Did you call Jeremy a problem?”
Sam looked up from the couch. “What?”
“Jeremy overheard you on the phone. He said you called him a problem.”
His face twitched, a shadow flickering across his expression.
But then he quickly recovered.
He laughed, shaking his head. “Come on, Alice. You must have misunderstood. I was talking about a coworker named Jeremy. We have a lot of paperwork. I was probably frustrated.”
I searched his face. “You weren’t talking about my son?”
“Of course not. I’d never say that about him. I love that kid.”
I nodded slowly, still unsure. Maybe I was overreacting. Maybe Jeremy had misheard.
“I’ll talk to him tomorrow,” Sam promised. “I’ll clear it up.”
And he did.
The next morning, he sat Jeremy down and explained it was a misunderstanding. Jeremy smiled.
But when I told my mother, she frowned.
“Have you visited his office? Do you know anyone he works with?”
“I know where he works,” I said. “I have the address.”
“That’s not what I asked,” she said sharply. “Have you met any of his coworkers?”
I opened my mouth but had no answer. I’d never been to his office. I’d never met anyone he worked with.
“Alice, something isn’t right,” my mother said. “You have to check.”
Sighing, I said, “Mom, you’re being paranoid.”
“Am I?” she replied. “Or are you ignoring the signs?”
The next morning, while packing Jeremy’s lunch, I got a call from my mother. Her voice was urgent.
“Alice, I checked. That address he gave you? There’s no record of him working there. Nobody’s heard of him.”
A cold shiver ran down my spine.
“How do you know?” I asked, trembling.
“Remember Mrs. Parker? She works there,” my mother said. “She confirmed they don’t employ Sam.”
I realized Sam had been lying.
I had to find out more.
I told Sam I needed to visit my sick mother and promised to stay with Jeremy for a few days.
As expected, he didn’t mind. He let us stay as long as my mother needed.
At my mother’s house, I locked the door and sank onto the couch. I needed the truth.
I never thought I’d hire a private investigator, but I had no choice.
I needed proof. I needed to know who Sam really was.
Three days later, I got the report.
“It’s worse than you think,” the investigator said, handing me a folder.
My hands shook as I opened it.
Inside were call logs, bank statements, and Sam’s history.
His whole life was a lie.
That office address was fake. There was no insurer or coworkers.
The investigator accessed Sam’s phone and saw everything.
He was talking to his mother that night, not a coworker.
“They’re scammers,” the investigator said. “This is their game.”
“He’s been planning to frame you at work,” the investigator warned. “Access to money accounts is key. If something goes wrong, you take the fall. He gets your savings and your home if you’re arrested.”
I gripped the folder tightly.
I realized Jeremy was a problem to Sam and his mother.
If I went to jail, Sam would have to care for Jeremy—or worse, he’d be put in state custody.
He hadn’t just scammed me. He was trying to erase me.
I took a deep breath, trying to stay calm.
“What should I do?”
“Go to the police,” the investigator ordered. “As soon as possible.”
I acted immediately.
With the evidence, I contacted the authorities.
The proof was overwhelming.
Sam and his mother had a long history of defrauding women.
They moved from state to state using different names.
He married me because I had something valuable.
After I told the police everything, they promised Sam would not get away.
A few days later, they arrested him.
Though I wasn’t present, I heard he didn’t go quietly.
He screamed, denied everything, and claimed it was a setup.
But the proof was undeniable.
I will never forget his face as police led him away.
It looked like he promised to come back.
But I smiled, standing tall, unafraid.
Jeremy saved me from losing everything.
After the trial, I took him for ice cream.
If he hadn’t told me about that phone call with his mother, I wouldn’t be writing this story.
I will always be grateful to fate for giving me Jeremy, my brave and bright son.