Claire sat at the kitchen table long after Greg’s car disappeared. The letter explained that he still loved her but couldn’t tell her everything yet. He asked her not to make any permanent decisions until they could speak again. She read it repeatedly, growing increasingly confused. If he still loved her, why was he leaving? If there was no other woman, what could possibly have destroyed their marriage? She wanted to call him, but something in his words suggested he was carrying a secret far heavier than an ordinary marital disagreement.

The following morning, their daughter Emily called. Claire tried to sound normal, but Emily immediately sensed something was wrong. When Claire mentioned the divorce papers, her daughter went silent. Then Emily admitted that her father had been behaving strangely for months. He had been attending appointments without telling anyone and often seemed frightened. Claire’s heart began racing. She suddenly wondered whether the divorce papers were hiding something much more serious than a failing marriage.