hello and welcome to real cheating story Dave is one of the bravest strongest characters I have ever met he is a man of few words so it falls to me to tell his remarkable story let me tell you from the outset I understand if you find it hard to believe but I swear on my grandmother's grave though she isn't dead yet that it's true I've pieced together this story from interviews with his wife friends and other towns folk I'm John a reporter with the Melbourne times you might have noticed I didn't list Dave himself as a source that's because I only got him to speak to me once and all he said was my dad once told me don't have anything to do do nothing don't have anything to say say nothing that's all I got from him with the material I've gathered which is bizarre enough on its own I've decided to write a book it will explore both small town Dynamics and the actions of a remarkable man an average intelligence man who faced with choices that the modern court system might offer chose to fight for fairness in his own way I should point out that this is my interpretation since Dave doesn't talk much my main source was his wife who was quite open mainly due to my promise of a couple of grand she needed to help with her legal bills let me set the scene at the beginning of this story Dave and his wife lived in a small isolated city of about 25,000 people with their three children Sarah f Mike 14 and Pete 12 Dave is a mechanic while his wife works for the town's biggest car dealership owned by an old-fashioned bully who is also the leading Contender to replace the retiring mayor next year the town's long- serving mayor is set to retire and our man is the top candidate because all the other candidates withdrew citing personal reasons the town's newspaper until very recently showed no interest in Dave and his wife's story the owner of the paper drives a car with a certain dealership sticker on the back window I work for a major newspaper based in the state capital having been bullied at school even if this wasn't a great story I would have tried to get involved in Dave's fight against Goliath now on to the story as she lay on the bed she buried her face in the pillow trying to muffle her reactions as Donnie who was above her finished she was grateful for the pillow as it saved her from having to fake her Expressions the weight of Donnie on her felt oppressive and she struggled to breathe beneath him she reflected on how things had changed since the beginning of their relationship initially the newness and excitement had brought genuine pleasure now the familiarity and lack of romance left her feeling unfulfilled Donnie was an adequate lover but the hurried Encounters in a motel room didn't provide the satisfaction she had hoped for when she started the affair 7 months ago she imagined Donnie's prowess would be impressive but in reality it was quite similar in size to her husband Dave's the novelty wore off quickly and without the Romantic buildup she craved the encounters felt mechanical she was determined to stay with Donnie hoping for the romantic dinners and intimate moments she desired although she didn't love Donnie she convinced herself that she would come to love him in time three things troubled her plans her own guilt her strict Christian parents disapproval and Donnie's refusal to divorce his wife until he was elected mayor this meant she had to settle for occasional quick Liaisons rather than the romantic night she yearned for as her passion waned her guilt intensified Donnie rolled off her and began getting dressed as usual she would take a shower and leave at least an hour after him ensuring they wouldn't be seen leaving or arriving back at work together Donnie finished dressing and kissed her goodbye before opening the door she reminded him to check outside to make sure there was no one they knew around Donnie opened the curtains and glanced out but then quickly Drw back letting the curtain fall hey Annie there's a guy sitting on the hood of your car he saw me open the curtain and looked right at me she jumped out of bed and peered through the curtain that's Dave your husband how did he find out I was here I'm not ready for that conversation yet this could ruin everything Donnie dismissed her concern with a laugh in this town I don't think so they're too smart to publish anything negative about me they know I'll be in charge for the next 10 years or I might even run for State politics don't worry about the town's reaction this could be good you always say we don't get enough time together now that he knows things might change she was still worried what's he going to do about it I mean look at him he's half a foot shorter than me and about half my weight he could tell your wife you're right I don't want him tipping her off before we're ready I'll go talk to him Bounty bent down to kiss her again and then marched out of the door she cracked the curtains slightly to watch she saw her husband sitting on the car and as their eyes met through the curtain she felt guilt gnawing at her she waited a few minutes then heard Donnie's raised voice she peered out again and saw Donnie leaning over Dave who was still sitting on the car their eyes met again through the curtain and she fled to the bathroom showering until the water ran cold trying to wash away her guilt after she dressed she braced herself to look out the window again when Donnie called how quickly did your husband leave after adward with him I don't know I haven't looked since you left well he's still there she reported when she checked again Donnie was puzzled my usual tactics work what did you say to him I just told him the facts of life and pointed out the health hazards of standing in our way and the futility of trying to stop us don't worry Annie it'll be dark in an hour stay where you are and I'll send a couple of my associates to talk to him true to his word an hour later there was a heavy knock on her door she opened it to find Frank and Rick two of Donnie's employees holding Dave between them they were so large that Dave's feet barely touched the ground she let them in and Dave with a neutral expression stared at her she quickly averted her eyes and tried to leave but she heard a sicking thud and a rush of breath reflexively she looked back and saw Rick holding Dave while Frank had his fist poised as Dave stood up and looked her straight in the eye she felt sick and fled she picked up some takeout for her family and faced questions from her children about their dad's absence and UNR returned phone calls she slept poorly and when she left for work the next day there was still no sign of her husband Donnie wasn't in either and she couldn't bring herself to talk to Frank or Rick returning home late she found the house empty she called Sarah and Mike but both phones went to voicemail worried she waited until after dinner when she heard a car in the driveway looking out she saw her kids getting out of her parents' car with both her mom and dad they enter the house and her mother began the conversation Annie why didn't you tell us Dave was in the hospital I I didn't know and stammered silence fell over the room and everyone stared her her father broke the silence maybe you didn't know but the fact that you're not rushing over there or even curious about why he's there tells me it's no surprise to you faced with this logic in the accusing stairs and slumped into a chair unable to meet their eyes she might as well have screamed her guilt after a minute she fled to her room she heard her parents preparing dinner for the children and her mother trying to coax her out eventually when everything was quiet downstairs she ventured out the hum of her children's conversation abruptly stopped when she entered the room have you all eaten dinner she asked her children stared at her silently finally Sarah broke the silence mom you know how Daddy got hurt don't you I had no idea he was in the hospital and replied her voice trembling silence settled over the room as everyone except perhaps Little Pete understood that the lack of a denial was as good as an admission Pete sobbed and hurried over to wrap his arms around an what's wrong sweetie it hurts me to see Daddy hurt so much Pete said describing Dave's injuries broken ribs a broken nose and two black eyes and recoiled in horror at the realization of what she had not prevented Mike broke the ensuing silence why did you hurt Daddy Mom what did he do to you Ann's response was instinctive he didn't do anything to me slowly she realized her failure to deny involvement in dade's suffering in her mind she blamed herself she sent the children to bed and drank heavily seeking to escape the guilt the next day at work Donnie avoided discussing Dave but suggested they talk about it at their usual Motel frustrated and agreed when she arrived Donnie attempted to be intimate but she snapped at him which made him stop he Shrugged when she asked about his instructions to his associates Donnie showed no interest or empathy regarding gab's injuries and and stoned out she arrived back at the office just before Donnie and the tension between them was palpable that night she wasn't overly concerned when her children returned home late her parents dropped them off and as soon as dinner began cooking they left without a word the children answered her questions with monosyllabic responses and conversations ceased when she entered the room the next day things remained tense at work and her empty home was uncomfortable that night she sat at the kitchen table trying to figure out how to mend her relationship with her children she was so absorbed in her thoughts that she barely noticed when her children returned and prepare a meal around her she only realized when Sarah placed a plate in front of her and ate alone in the kitchen while the children ate in front of the TV unable to handle their accusing stairs she dreaded what Dave might be telling them after another cold day at work she returned to find a bustling house her mother greeted her at the door are you going to feed your children today of course mother in replied her mother interrupted then left and saw Pete carrying a plate of cheese and biscuits upstairs no food upstairs she called after him realizing that Dave was home she busied herself making dinner glancing occasionally at the stairs which seemed like a psychological barrier one or two of the children were upstairs at any given time Sarah took Dave's food up while they sat at the dining table Pete innocently asked if Daddy didn't do anything to you why did you hurt him why won't you talk talked to him and had no answer as Sarah began explaining guilt to Pete and fled leaving a half-eaten dinner and walking for several hours when she returned the children were in bed needing things from the master bedroom and bathroom she crept upstairs and peaked into the open door seeing Dave asleep on his side facing the doorway with his swollen face and the white strips on his nose struck her deeply his raged Brea brething added to her anguish she quietly gathered her necessities and placed them in the spare room across the hall returning to the master bedroom she intended to whisper an apology but upon seeing Dave's open eyes staring at her she fled again that night she struggled to sleep feeling Dave's gaze through the walls when her relationship with Donnie first became serious she anticipated conflict with Dave what she had imagined as an academic exercise now felt painfully real she pressured Donnie the next morning to expedite his plans to divorce his wife but he insisted there would be no divorce or acknowledgement of the affair until after the election if she wanted to divorce her husband now it was up to her he would assist with time off and money but left the rest to her this realization led her to suspect she might be nothing more than a fling for Donnie though uncertain the urgency of her situation forced her to continue on her chosen PA path and took time off to consult the lawyer and arranged to have Dave served as soon as the papers were ready she left the divorce proceedings in the lawyer hands seeking a fair settlement primary custody of the children reasonable visitation rights for Dave child support and alimony she also wanted residency of the house until she was ready to move out which should be just after the election next year the next part of the story won't make sense unless you know the layout of the dealership ship that Donnie owns and works at at the front of the building is a huge showroom along the back wall are four glass walled offices with solid walls between them on the far right is Donnie's office Then an's followed by the offices of the admin manager and the service manager as the offices are long and thin there's only one place to put a desk at the opposite end from the door against the end wall because Donnie's and an's doors are at opposite ends of their offices their desks are effectively adjacent separated only by a solid wall the service center is around the back and was busy tapping away at her keyboard and didn't see Dave walk into the dealership he walked straight up to the reception desk leaned on it and stared into 's office one of the receptionists recognized him he had coached her softball team in high school she knew he was Anne's husband although he had never been there before she tried to engage him in conversation but he remained silent his gaze fixed on the offices the receptionist couldn't tell if Dave was targeting in or Donnie while she continued to talk the other receptionist went to 's office and told her Dave was there and from her Vantage Point saw where Dave's eyes were fixed they were locked on hers even from a distance quickly she broke eye contact but still felt his Gaze on her without looking directly she reached for the venetian blind control and adjusted it so he couldn't see her a minute later she peed through a small gap between the blinds the two receptionists were whispering to each other and Dave's neutral expression was still visible through the blinds despite his bruises and bandages and picked up the phone and called Donnie asking him to check his window Donnie answered what's he doing here she replied I don't know but get rid of him d hung up the phone and stroe out to the reception desk MrBrown this is a private business I'm going to have to ask you to leave Dave did not respond and continued staring at 's window Donnie growing impatient warned don't make me call the police without looking away from the window Dave handed his phone to Donnie in a hushed tone meant only for Dave Donnie said so I messed around with your wife get over it it unfortunately Donnie didn't realize how clearly his words were heard by both receptionists and peeking through the Venetian blinds again saw their heads turned towards her a few minutes later and heard a commotion at the reception she looked out and saw Frank and Rick carrying Dave towards the outer doors Dave traveling backwards kept his eyes on and until he was out of sight and thought to herself that he deserved it but then remembered that all her inter actions with Dave had been internal dialogues until he had caught her with Donnie he hadn't known their marriage was in trouble she felt a Pang of empathy and rushed to her door and saw Donnie with a sadistic grin and pleaded no Donnie not again let me handle it Donnie gestured for an to return to her office she opened the blinds again fuming Donnie canceled his afternoon appointments and stayed in his office while employees constantly visited the reception area at 1:00 p. m. two police officers arrived and spoke to the receptionists Donnie must have seen them and invited them to his office the blinds were closed and the officers left 15 minutes later and dreading going home asked if she could move into the company rented Motel unit the same one she and Donnie had used she snuck home packed a suitcase and texted Dave and Sarah to say she wouldn't be home that night Donnie helped her unpack at the unit and in her desperation for distraction she allowed him to be intimate with her at 6:30 p.
m. her mother called before answering and thought it typical of Dave to use her family against her her mother asked where she was and why she wasn't home and replied I'm not coming home tonight Dave can look after the kids her mother responded Dave is in the hospital again he'll be there for at least a week this time and hurried I'll be home as soon as I can as she hung up she asked Donnie what did you do to him this time the stubborn prick has to learn that he can't mess with me and quickly dressed and sprinted home picking up takeout along the way when she threw open her front door she saw all three children sobbing in the lounge comforted by her parents her mother intercepted her and led her into the kitchen what on Earth is going on you abandon our children while your husband is in the ICU and you come home with takeout for their main meal of the day what is happening her mother's nostrils flared it's none of your business mother Dave and I are just going through a rough patch that's all and replied the two women stare each other down for half a minute before her mother broke the silence I noticed you showed no surprise when you found out your husband is in the hospital that tells me what the children say is true you did have something to do with Dave ending up in the ICU no Mom I had no idea Dave was in the hospital again and said silence settled over them again only to be broken by an's mother well aren't you curious about what your boyfriend did to your husband this time what boyfriend and asked but her silence and the way she looked at the floor gave her away her mother continued you wreak of someone else this time the doctors are fairly certain he has a fractured cheekbone and possibly a fractured skull they believe one of the ribs that was broken last time was pushed into his chest and punctured it the ambulance driver told me they picked him up from an alley near your work so tell me and what did the poor guy do to deserve this treatment and couldn't answer and was too busy sobbing her mother sat in silence until and ran upstairs to her bedroom she noticed blood on the sheets of the bed she hadn't slept in for 4 days and cried into her pillow she lost track of time until there was a soft knock at the door it was her mother I have to take Dad home her mother said all this stress is causing his blood pressure problems to come back he almost fainted when he stood up just now okay Mom I'll see you out by the time and got downstairs her father was walking out the front door he gave her a withering look but didn't say anything as she said goodbye the children slipped off the bed and sat trying to think of a way out of this mess the only way she could see was forward breakfast the next day was silent whenn and got to work and discovered Donnie would be gone for the day she texted him begging him to meet her at the motel that evening she also texted her mother asking her to meet the kids after school and look after their dinner the reply was a simple yes good idea Donnie met her after work and reassured her that their plan was on track the police couldn't connect either of them to Dave's two beatings and hadn't mentioned her husband's second assault although Donnie had arranged it she could have stopped it by running after them as her husband was carried out instead she allowed Donnie to be intimate with her until after 900 p. m.
then and showered and went home it was almost 10 when she arrived all three children were awake and looking at her expectantly why aren you guys in bed she asked her mother replied on their behalf I let them stay up until you got home they're eager to know how their father is I don't know and said didn't you go see him tonight her mother asked and remained silent her mother continued what did you do tell me you didn't get me to call cover for you while you went to see your lover while Dave is in the hospital I never told you I was going to the hospital and said her mother swung around grabbed her coat and headed for the door over her shoulder she said you disgust me I'm ashamed to call you my daughter don't ask me to look after your children again unless it's so you can go to your husband and beg his forgiveness and thought she was managing with the little sleep she was getting she reflected that if she had abandoned her plans it would have made everything pointless her mother's call the next day at work was not an apology how could you be so heartless her mother asked your husband finally gets out of the ICU and what does he get a visit from an ugly process server in divorce papers who are you and what have you done with my daughter in her pain and had forgotten that her divorce process was on autopilot the lawyer had followed her instructions and served Dave as soon as the papers were ready as a reflex and tried to resolve the immediate issue mom can you look after the kids tonight so I can go see Dave no I can't an your father is in the same hospital as your husband he had a heart attack today and they're going to put in stance tomorrow goodbye Ann's mother hung up and rushed home early to be there when the children got off the school bus when when the bus arrived she was met with the sight of her children and her parents calls to two of their phones went straight to voicemail 2 hours later she received a text instructing her to pick up the children at the hospital they had walked there after school on the way home she scolded them for making her worry they remained silent and stare out the car windows it was around this time that I became aware of the tragic story of in Dave and Donnie I was sitting in my office struggling to find my next story amid an unusually quiet news period when my phone rang it was Matt nigram an old classmate from journalism School Matt who had always shunned larger organizations in favor of small town issues had been working in the regional center where the story was unfolding the doctors and nurses at Dave's Hospital were so appalled bayan's behavior that they contacted Matt using his usual skill Matt quickly uncovered the Fair between in and Donnie as well as the two beatings Dave had suffered although no one directly said it the fact that Dave had been seen being carried out of the dealership by known associates of Donnie suggested a connection Matt tried to speak with Dave but Dave refused to talk he contacted the police only to find out there was no active investigation Matt submitted his story to his editor only to have it rejected and torn up disheartened Matt resigned and sent the story to me I offered him a position at my paper and the following week I cleared my desk and left for an assignment in Hicksville the next week was very uncomfortable for an her children treated her coldly and her social life was hampered by her mother's unavailability to help with the kids she picked them up from the hospital every night Donnie was away on business during the day and the only time she saw him was one night when he managed to sneak into her house after the children were in bed that was the first time they spent the entire night together on Friday and received a call from the school requesting a semi-urgent meeting during the meeting she learned that they were very concerned about Sarah's rapid weight loss and couldn't believe and hadn't noticed they also expressed worries about Michael's sudden propensity for violence and Little Pete being bullied because he was always crying overwhelmed and decided to expedite the divorce and hoped it would resolve soon initially and declined an invitation to go out with four of her girlfriends that Friday night with Dave still in the hospital and Donnie unavailable she tried unsuccessfully to get her children to open up frustrated she left the children at home and went out with her friends she left her whereabouts with Sarah in case of an emergency about an hour into her evening while Fielding questions from her friends who had heard rumors about the violence inflicted on her husband and spotted Dave sitting at an adjacent table he had a black eye a bandaged face and was hunched over in pain and panicked and turned back to her friends trying to downplay the situation her friends saw her reaction and noticed Dave's condition they could only wonder about the effort it took for him to make such a silent protest one friend made an excuse to visit the bar while the two who knew Dave best went over to speak with him the rest of the group puzzled left and hesitated outside the bar wondering if she should offer Dave a ride her conscience told her she should but she couldn't bring herself to do it she had told Donnie she loved him just two weeks ago to divert suspicion and now it was clear that had been a lie feeling self-centered she drove home to find her mother looking after the kids they hadn't seen each other in a week and then suddenly realized she had never inquired about her father's Health they both got the kids to bed then turned to discuss her father the topic shifted awkwardly when her mother brought up Dave but she tried to steer the conversation elsewhere her mother was persistent asking if Dave had done anything to Warrant a divorce and mentioned a couple of minor issues seeing her mother's skepticism she explained that she had simply fallen out of love with her husband and in love with someone else she found it easy to lie to her mother not mentioning that she used Donnie's attention as a way to to upgrade her situation her mother was blunt in her criticism of her decision to leave her marriage and children and she sat through it uncomfortably she denied any involvement in Dave's two incidents of violence at the end of their conversation she didn't inquire if her mother had discussed forgiveness with Dave in her mind her plan was still in place she did ask if Dave was coming home that night and was coldly informed that he was due to be released in two days he had called earlier asking where she was realizing Dave must have left the hospital to go to a bar she did a lot of thinking over the next two days she decided the decent thing to do was apologize to Dave for her infidelity but also point out that his actions were the result of his own behavior she would demand that he speak to the children and explain that she had nothing to do with his pain she thought there was a reasonable chance he would agree and a small chance he might beg her to stay she was certain though that any aggression on his part would lead to threats of reducing his share of the marital assets on the night of Dave's release Donnie left work early and went to the unit they both walked out of the room together just after 6:00 p. m. greeted by Dave Sarah Mike and Peter watching from across the parking lot Donnie approached them and Dave said something inaudible then position himself protectively in front of the children Donnie looked at the three Witnesses turned away and drove off Dave took the kids out for meal and returned home with them just before 8:00 p.
m.
