When my husband told me he needed to attend a work party, I didn’t suspect a thing. But then the phone rang, which made me freeze in place. What I heard on the other end of the line made me grab my car keys – I was ready to confront him and pack his things the next day.
After ten years of marriage, I thought I knew Brian like the back of my hand. But last week I learned that even a decade together can’t protect you from betrayal – or the pleasure of watching karma strike at the most opportune moment.
It started innocently enough.
On Thursday night, Brian walked through the door humming, with an unusual bounce in his step.
‘Great news!’ – he announced. ‘The company is throwing a team-building party tomorrow night. Employees only.’
He kissed my forehead and tossed my briefcase to the floor.
‘It’ll be boring, so don’t worry about coming. Just a bunch of work talk and spreadsheets.’
I raised an eyebrow.
Brian had never been much of a party person. His idea of fun was watching golf on TV. But I shrugged it off.
‘I don’t mind,’ I said, already thinking about the next day’s to-do list.
The next morning he was sweeter than usual. Too sweet.
As I was making breakfast, Brian came up behind me, wrapped his arms around my waist, and whispered:
‘You know you’re amazing, don’t you?’
I laughed. ‘What’s this all about? Trying to score points?’
‘Maybe,’ he said, holding out his favourite white shirt to me – the one with the annoying undone button.
‘Can you iron this for me? Oh, and while I’m gone, how about you make my favourite lasagne? With lots of cheese. You know how much I love it.’
‘Anything else, your highness?’ I teased.
‘Actually, yes.’ He smirked. ‘Could you clean up the bathroom too? You know I like everything to be spotless. And you never know when we might have guests…’
I rolled my eyes, but laughed.
Brian had his quirks, and despite his prima donna-like requests, I didn’t give it a second thought. If only I’d known…
That afternoon, I plunged headlong into housework.
The hoover was humming, the washing machine was spinning, and the house was filled with the aroma of lasagne. My cleaning playlist played in the background, and for a moment, life seemed…normal.
Then the phone rang.
An unknown number.
I almost ignored it, but something made me pick it up.
‘Hello?’
At first all I heard was loud music and muffled laughter. I frowned, thinking it was a prank.
But then I heard Brian’s voice.
‘My wife?’ – He said, laughing. ‘She’s probably cooking or scrubbing the toilet right now. She’s so predictable. Meanwhile, I’m here with you, my love.’
A woman giggled in the background.
My stomach churned.
I froze, holding the phone to my ear as my world tilted on its axis.
Then the line went dead.
A few seconds later, a message came through – just an address.
No explanation. Just the location.
I stared at the screen, my heart pounding.
Maybe this was a misunderstanding. A joke. But deep down I knew…it wasn’t.
I wasn’t crying. Not yet.
Instead, I grabbed my coat, snatched my keys, and drove straight to the address.
The lasagne could wait.
Brian was about to get the surprise of a lifetime.
The GPS led me to a luxurious Airbnb on the other side of town.
The house was huge, with sparkling windows and a perfectly manicured lawn. Outside, there was a collection of expensive cars parked in the driveway. Through the glass doors, I could see people laughing, drinking, enjoying life.
My stomach twisted at the sight of familiar faces.
Either Brian was shocked, or I was. I was going to have to find out.
As I approached the entrance, a security guard appeared in front of me.
‘Can I help you, ma’am?’
I put on a fake smile. ‘Yes, I just came to drop something off for my husband.’
The guard looked at me suspiciously, especially when he noticed the cleaning bucket in my hand. Inside was a toilet brush and a bottle of disinfectant.
‘It’s the tall guy in the white shirt,’ I said, keeping my voice calm.
The guard hesitated but, deciding I wasn’t a threat, stepped aside.
As soon as I walked in, all eyes turned to me.
And there was Brian.
He was standing in the middle of the room, his arm around a woman in a tight red dress.
He looked more alert than I’d seen him in years, laughing, sipping champagne like he didn’t care.
My heart clenched.
Every part of me wanted to lash out at him, but a voice in my head whispered: ‘Be smart. Make it count.’
Brian saw me.
The colour was gone from his face. He choked on his drink and backed up.
‘Emily?’ – Stuttering, he muttered, pulling away from the woman beside him. ‘What… what are you doing here?’
‘Hi, honey,’ I said loud enough for everyone to hear. ‘You forgot something at home.’
Brian blinked confusedly.
I reached for the cleaning bucket and showed him the toilet brush and disinfectant.
‘Since you like to talk about my cleaning skills, I thought you could use this to clean up the mess you made of our marriage.’
A collective sigh rippled through the crowd.
The woman in red backed away from Brian, clearly feeling uncomfortable.
But I wasn’t done yet.
‘You know,’ I turned to the guests, ’Brian likes to play the devoted husband of the house. But as you can see, he’s much more interested in playing house with someone who will stroke his ego.’
‘Emily, please,’ Brian muttered in desperation. ‘Can we talk outside?’
‘Oh, now you want some privacy?’ I replied. ‘Where was that concern when you were mocking me behind my back?’
I turned to the crowd.
‘Enjoy the party. And remember, once a cheater, always a cheater.’
With those words, I threw the bucket at his feet and walked out, heels clicking on the marble floor.
When I reached the car, my phone rang again.
The same unknown number.
The message read:
‘You deserve to know the truth. I’m sorry for the way things turned out.’
My hands trembled as I dialled the number.
A woman answered.
‘Hello?’
‘Who are you?’ I asked.
‘My name is Valerie,’ she said after a pause. ‘I used to work with Brian.’
‘Why are you doing this?’
‘Because someone had to do it,’ she sighed. ‘I watched him lie and cheat for months. It made me disgusted. You didn’t deserve that.’
I swallowed hard.
‘I had a friend call you so you could hear for yourself. You needed to know.’
I closed my eyes for a second.
I didn’t feel angry. I felt gratitude.
The next morning, Brian found his bags waiting by the door.
When he tried to enter, the locks had already been changed.
I don’t know, nor do I care, where he spent the night.
The only message on his phone was from me:
‘Enjoy.’
And for the first time in years, I smiled.
Not for revenge.
But because I finally had my life back in my hands.
