WEBVTT - In The Dark | EP 1 | Saskia's Story 0:00:00.120 --> 0:00:03.840 Hi everyone, Andre here, I have some exciting news to share. 0:00:04.559 --> 0:00:09.040 ABC has turned Betrayal Weekly into an eight episode anthology, 0:00:09.520 --> 0:00:12.799 which means each episode features one of your favorite Betrayal 0:00:12.800 --> 0:00:16.480 Weekly stories. You'll get to see the people involved, hear 0:00:16.520 --> 0:00:19.840 from people who have never spoken before, and actually see 0:00:19.840 --> 0:00:23.479 where the story took place. We are so proud and 0:00:23.560 --> 0:00:27.080 excited to share it with you all. It's called Betrayal, 0:00:27.240 --> 0:00:30.800 Secrets and Lies, and you can watch it every Sunday 0:00:31.000 --> 0:00:35.440 at ten pm Eastern Standard time nine pm Central. Please 0:00:35.520 --> 0:00:43.840 check it out. On the morning of October twenty eighth, 0:00:43.880 --> 0:00:47.640 twenty eighteen, Saskia woke up in the same bed she 0:00:47.760 --> 0:00:50.720 always did. It was the bed she'd shared with her 0:00:50.800 --> 0:00:55.400 husband for years. She felt her regular cotton sheets around her, 0:00:55.880 --> 0:00:58.720 and she opened her eyes to the same white ceiling. 0:01:01.200 --> 0:01:06.680 But this morning was different because the night before, Saskia 0:01:06.760 --> 0:01:07.759 had seen something. 0:01:09.440 --> 0:01:12.160 I told myself, this is really important, and I need 0:01:12.200 --> 0:01:13.959 to remember anything that I can. 0:01:15.080 --> 0:01:17.640 In the middle of the night, she awoke in a 0:01:17.680 --> 0:01:22.000 haze to find her husband on his laptop. His face 0:01:22.160 --> 0:01:25.360 was a glow in the light of his screen. What 0:01:25.440 --> 0:01:30.040 was on that screen, she knew, would change her life forever. 0:01:30.920 --> 0:01:32.320 I was so out of it. It was like I 0:01:32.440 --> 0:01:36.360 was in a dream, but I also knew that this 0:01:36.640 --> 0:01:40.880 was really serious. I told myself, you have to remember this. 0:01:42.319 --> 0:01:47.600 I just knew and I passed back out. 0:01:47.960 --> 0:01:52.000 In the morning, she could still picture it. Flashes of 0:01:52.080 --> 0:01:55.600 one image ran through her mind. It was a window 0:01:55.760 --> 0:01:59.800 into a life her husband never planned for her to see. 0:02:00.000 --> 0:02:04.000 And so I woke up feeling so scared, like petrified. 0:02:05.080 --> 0:02:07.360 I didn't know what I was looking at, but I 0:02:07.440 --> 0:02:11.959 knew that he was doing something in secret. It felt 0:02:12.080 --> 0:02:15.680 like I was in danger, and I knew that I 0:02:15.760 --> 0:02:18.800 had to confront him and find out what was going on. 0:02:20.480 --> 0:02:23.920 That morning marked the end of a marriage, of a family, 0:02:24.680 --> 0:02:29.239 but with that ending came a new dawn. Saskia didn't 0:02:29.280 --> 0:02:31.800 know it at the time, but in climbing out of 0:02:31.840 --> 0:02:36.200 bed that morning, she was finally climbing out of the dark. 0:02:39.639 --> 0:02:42.519 I told him I needed to talk to him. I 0:02:42.560 --> 0:02:45.560 had his laptop and I told him what I had 0:02:45.720 --> 0:02:49.800 seen the night before. I said, I need you to 0:02:49.800 --> 0:02:54.480 tell me exactly what you're doing, and I'm not going 0:02:54.520 --> 0:03:00.399 to tell the police if you totally come clean. And 0:03:01.080 --> 0:03:16.000 immediately the mask came off. 0:03:19.320 --> 0:03:24.080 I'm Andrea Gunning and this is Betrayal, Season five, Episode 0:03:24.120 --> 0:03:33.000 one in the Dark. This season is about a crime 0:03:33.160 --> 0:03:36.400 our team had never heard of before, that is until 0:03:36.400 --> 0:03:39.360 we heard about it from a listener. She was a 0:03:39.400 --> 0:03:43.360 woman in the Midwest, a mom. Over the course of 0:03:43.400 --> 0:03:46.320 a few months and many phone calls, she told us 0:03:46.360 --> 0:03:49.240 the story of what happened to her and the crime 0:03:49.320 --> 0:03:54.320 she described horrified us. We couldn't imagine how anyone could 0:03:54.320 --> 0:03:57.920 do something so cruel to someone they loved. But then 0:03:58.360 --> 0:04:02.840 we heard from another listener, and another and another that 0:04:03.000 --> 0:04:07.960 mom in the Midwest wasn't alone. Dozens of women were 0:04:07.960 --> 0:04:11.400 discovering the same thing. The husbands they knew in the 0:04:11.480 --> 0:04:14.760 light of day were different people when the lights went out. 0:04:15.960 --> 0:04:18.400 One of these women was Saskia in Wood. 0:04:21.640 --> 0:04:22.720 That's a quick ride. 0:04:22.880 --> 0:04:26.400 After getting to know Saskia over the last year, we 0:04:26.480 --> 0:04:29.880 drove down to visit her in Maryland. She welcomed us 0:04:29.920 --> 0:04:37.520 into her home. Today, Saskia has a full, beautiful life. 0:04:37.600 --> 0:04:40.920 She's got a great job, two thriving kids, a house 0:04:40.920 --> 0:04:44.880 full of pets, friends who'd do anything for her. But 0:04:44.960 --> 0:04:47.960 it was a long road to get here. For a while, 0:04:48.320 --> 0:04:50.720 it was difficult to even leave her house. 0:04:51.160 --> 0:04:54.839 Being around people that just had normal lives or happy relationships, 0:04:54.920 --> 0:04:57.560 or we're talking about I don't know what they bought 0:04:57.560 --> 0:05:00.800 at the store. It just wasn't where I was at, 0:05:00.839 --> 0:05:04.520 so it was easier for me to isolate, and everything 0:05:04.520 --> 0:05:05.359 went dark for me. 0:05:07.279 --> 0:05:12.719 Since that morning, seven years ago, Saska has overcome something unimaginable, 0:05:13.480 --> 0:05:15.919 a betrayal that threatened everything. 0:05:16.440 --> 0:05:20.120 It was clear to me that missus Elwood was comatose, 0:05:21.320 --> 0:05:25.520 not asleep, but comatose unconscious. 0:05:27.920 --> 0:05:30.800 It was a betrayal that altered her sense of reality. 0:05:31.360 --> 0:05:33.920 It shattered her ability to feel safe in her own 0:05:33.960 --> 0:05:36.960 home and even in her own body. 0:05:37.400 --> 0:05:39.520 You pretended to support me through my ups and down 0:05:39.960 --> 0:05:41.880 number one, putting on that you were using. 0:05:41.720 --> 0:05:47.640 Me by signing her marriage certificate. Saskia had no idea 0:05:47.960 --> 0:05:51.120 all that she was signing away and that the man 0:05:51.240 --> 0:05:53.960 she was marrying would try to break her. 0:05:55.240 --> 0:05:58.240 You're a dangerous person who prays on vulnerable and trusting people. 0:05:58.800 --> 0:05:59.920 You're predator, Michaelvin. 0:06:08.520 --> 0:06:10.880 On our trip down to Maryland, we spent a lot 0:06:10.920 --> 0:06:14.119 of time with Saskia's friends. She's had this same group 0:06:14.160 --> 0:06:17.680 since elementary school. For the most part, they haven't ventured 0:06:17.720 --> 0:06:21.040 far from home, which is Montgomery County, Maryland. About an 0:06:21.040 --> 0:06:25.520 hour outside of DC. This group around Saskia, they are 0:06:25.560 --> 0:06:30.240 her people. They've been there since day one. When we 0:06:30.360 --> 0:06:33.440 asked her friends what they love most about Saskia, so 0:06:33.560 --> 0:06:37.640 many of them pointed to one thing. Saskia laugh. 0:06:38.360 --> 0:06:41.239 That is the most genuine, heartfelt laugh. 0:06:41.960 --> 0:06:46.040 Her laugh alone cracks me up. That's Melissa. And here's 0:06:46.080 --> 0:06:47.280 another friend, Carrie. 0:06:47.440 --> 0:06:51.240 She has this it's like not a cackle because it's beautiful. 0:06:51.680 --> 0:06:55.279 She'll be like, I can't even do it, but I 0:06:55.279 --> 0:06:56.120 think I was close. 0:06:56.200 --> 0:06:56.400 Though. 0:06:57.160 --> 0:06:59.599 Saskia's got a great sense of humor, and when it 0:06:59.640 --> 0:07:02.560 comes to dating, she's always looked for the same in 0:07:02.600 --> 0:07:04.520 other people. Here's Saskia. 0:07:05.160 --> 0:07:11.080 I always liked someone, you know, just making jokes, someone fun, silly, goofy, 0:07:11.160 --> 0:07:13.400 don't like to talk about work when I'm not at work, 0:07:13.560 --> 0:07:14.400 that kind of stuff. 0:07:14.960 --> 0:07:19.040 In her twenties, she liked guys with big laps, big personalities, 0:07:19.400 --> 0:07:22.000 Guys who didn't take themselves too seriously. 0:07:22.640 --> 0:07:24.840 But yeah, usually that came with not being the most 0:07:24.840 --> 0:07:27.720 responsible people in life. 0:07:27.800 --> 0:07:31.200 Some of the men she dated were unemployed. Others had 0:07:31.200 --> 0:07:32.840 a habit of getting into trouble. 0:07:33.240 --> 0:07:36.000 I remember I had one boyfriend who was shoplifting when 0:07:36.040 --> 0:07:38.120 I was with him and we both got in trouble. 0:07:38.520 --> 0:07:41.240 Even though I wasn't shoplifting. He felt terrible. Was like, 0:07:41.320 --> 0:07:42.920 let her go home, and they were like no. 0:07:45.720 --> 0:07:48.040 When she was twenty eight, she met the man who'd 0:07:48.040 --> 0:07:51.280 become the father of her kids. We'll call him Chris. 0:07:52.000 --> 0:07:56.520 We met at a jaw Works concert. It's a reggae band. 0:07:57.480 --> 0:08:00.600 Chris seemed a little more responsible. He'd serve in the army, 0:08:01.000 --> 0:08:03.640 but he was also the life of the party, just 0:08:03.680 --> 0:08:05.840 like the other guys from Saskia's past. 0:08:06.120 --> 0:08:09.960 I thought he was really good looking and funny and silly. 0:08:10.480 --> 0:08:14.400 So we started dating and things went pretty fast after that. 0:08:15.360 --> 0:08:18.160 Within a year they decided to move in together. 0:08:18.480 --> 0:08:22.280 And then literally two weeks after that, I found out 0:08:22.320 --> 0:08:23.360 that I was pregnant. 0:08:26.400 --> 0:08:29.920 Saskia was thrilled. At the time, she was a social 0:08:29.960 --> 0:08:33.120 worker in child welfare and she always knew that she 0:08:33.240 --> 0:08:37.080 wanted children of her own. They had a girl, Alyssa. 0:08:37.720 --> 0:08:41.880 Alyssa was the cutest baby in the world. I'll have 0:08:41.920 --> 0:08:44.040 to show you, guys pictures. You'll die. She was so 0:08:44.200 --> 0:08:45.400 just chunky and so cute. 0:08:46.280 --> 0:08:49.640 She and Chris wanted to make their little family official, and. 0:08:49.559 --> 0:08:51.600 We took her a little stroller to the justice of 0:08:51.600 --> 0:08:53.680 the peace and we got married. 0:08:54.280 --> 0:08:57.040 After that, they had another baby, a boy. 0:08:57.720 --> 0:09:02.480 We were ecstatic fived in the sonogram room because it 0:09:02.600 --> 0:09:04.679 was the first boy on his side of the family. 0:09:05.280 --> 0:09:08.520 And Alyssa loved her little brother. She was always holding 0:09:08.520 --> 0:09:13.560 his hand and pulling in places. 0:09:14.400 --> 0:09:18.439 Being a mom was a dream. But Saskia felt alone 0:09:18.520 --> 0:09:22.960 in her marriage after five years. Chris just didn't feel 0:09:22.960 --> 0:09:23.640 like her person. 0:09:24.559 --> 0:09:27.600 I felt like he didn't care about any of my 0:09:27.760 --> 0:09:33.960 needs or my wants. I've always wanted love, and that 0:09:34.080 --> 0:09:34.480 wasn't it. 0:09:35.360 --> 0:09:38.160 So she asked Chris for a divorce and. 0:09:39.000 --> 0:09:41.240 He basically told me, you can leave. 0:09:42.400 --> 0:09:45.920 He didn't fight for her, even though she had asked 0:09:45.920 --> 0:09:49.720 for the separation. It wasn't easy. They had a year's 0:09:49.800 --> 0:09:50.880 long custody battle. 0:09:51.440 --> 0:09:58.000 It was a very, very painful, difficult divorce. I felt 0:09:58.120 --> 0:10:01.439 very unsteady scared during that period. 0:10:02.320 --> 0:10:05.480 During this time, she leaned on her older sister Marisa. 0:10:06.120 --> 0:10:09.520 Of all the women surrounding Saskia, all the people you'll 0:10:09.520 --> 0:10:14.520 hear from this season, Marisa is Saska's rock. She drove 0:10:14.600 --> 0:10:17.800 Saskia to every one of our interviews, and she sat 0:10:17.880 --> 0:10:21.079 in the next room while we talked just so Saskia 0:10:21.120 --> 0:10:22.280 could feel her support. 0:10:23.200 --> 0:10:26.680 Saskia is my best friend over my lifetime. She's been 0:10:26.920 --> 0:10:30.320 the one person that I can be myself around and 0:10:30.720 --> 0:10:34.000 say anything too, and I feel like that's mutual. 0:10:34.920 --> 0:10:39.080 When Saskia first moved out, she stayed with Marisa. Marisa 0:10:39.120 --> 0:10:41.040 saw her sister cope with the separation. 0:10:42.040 --> 0:10:45.800 She was fragile, you know, definitely wanted it to work 0:10:45.880 --> 0:10:49.280 and did not want to be moving on and becoming 0:10:49.320 --> 0:10:54.199 a single parent to two little kids. I remember her 0:10:54.200 --> 0:10:55.360 crying a lot. 0:10:56.520 --> 0:11:00.440 But at the same time, she was strong herself. 0:11:00.440 --> 0:11:05.840 An apartment, she networked with her friends, she found her resilience. 0:11:06.840 --> 0:11:07.760 I was really. 0:11:07.520 --> 0:11:08.079 Proud of her. 0:11:10.640 --> 0:11:11.720 Here's Sasky again. 0:11:12.800 --> 0:11:15.920 I didn't wait very long after splitting up, getting my 0:11:15.960 --> 0:11:20.320 own apartment before I started looking for somebody. I definitely 0:11:20.800 --> 0:11:24.240 wish that I would have healed from my first marriage, 0:11:24.480 --> 0:11:26.400 but I think that there was just so much work 0:11:26.440 --> 0:11:28.560 to do that I had no idea I had to 0:11:28.559 --> 0:11:31.120 do that. I felt like I would find the answers 0:11:31.160 --> 0:11:32.360 in another person. 0:11:33.679 --> 0:11:36.400 Marisa could see how important it was to her sister 0:11:36.520 --> 0:11:37.480 to find a partner. 0:11:38.280 --> 0:11:43.040 Companionship is part of what gives us solace through hard times, 0:11:43.120 --> 0:11:46.000 you know what I mean, not social interaction and being 0:11:46.080 --> 0:11:48.960 loved by somebody. It's like suvin. So I feel like 0:11:49.040 --> 0:11:51.720 she's always wanted that in her life. 0:11:52.559 --> 0:11:56.080 But Saskia knew if she wanted a real partner, she 0:11:56.160 --> 0:11:59.240 might have to go for something different, to look beyond 0:11:59.320 --> 0:12:00.600 her usual boys. 0:12:01.520 --> 0:12:06.760 So my sister helped me make a profile a match. 0:12:08.320 --> 0:12:11.880 Marisa pushed her to look for someone driven, established in 0:12:11.920 --> 0:12:12.480 their career. 0:12:13.520 --> 0:12:17.400 I was encouraging her to be choosy. She's always had 0:12:17.520 --> 0:12:19.920 professional careers and she's always been really great at her 0:12:20.000 --> 0:12:22.480 job because of her empathy and her compassion and her 0:12:22.679 --> 0:12:24.640 you know, all of those strengths that she has. 0:12:25.520 --> 0:12:28.319 Saska gave match her best shot. She went on a 0:12:28.360 --> 0:12:30.600 few dates, but no one impressed her. 0:12:31.520 --> 0:12:35.160 I was about to throw in the towel and just say, 0:12:36.280 --> 0:12:37.640 I don't feel like doing this anymore. 0:12:39.000 --> 0:12:40.960 And that's when she found Mike. 0:12:43.120 --> 0:12:46.440 His pictures seemed really sweet. There was one of them 0:12:46.480 --> 0:12:49.800 with a dog, which of course tugs at my heart, 0:12:49.840 --> 0:12:52.200 and then he had picture of him with his two daughters. 0:12:55.520 --> 0:12:58.000 He was in the midst of a divorce too. He 0:12:58.120 --> 0:13:01.719 was a single parent, a girl dad, and he had 0:13:01.720 --> 0:13:02.319 a good job. 0:13:03.080 --> 0:13:06.200 He worked for Bank of America. He was a vice 0:13:06.200 --> 0:13:07.160 president of marketing. 0:13:08.080 --> 0:13:12.360 Mike was the quintessential good guy, the safe choice, and 0:13:12.520 --> 0:13:15.920 safe was exactly what Saskia was looking for. 0:13:17.080 --> 0:13:20.480 My wish in life was to have true love and 0:13:20.559 --> 0:13:22.640 to have someone to be a good step dad to 0:13:22.679 --> 0:13:52.680 my kids, and Mike seemed like the perfect guy. 0:13:56.120 --> 0:13:58.640 Saskia was ready to give up on dating when one 0:13:58.720 --> 0:14:02.800 profile caught her eye. Mike looked Jennal. He was a 0:14:02.840 --> 0:14:05.520 girl dad with a kind smile and kind eyes. 0:14:06.400 --> 0:14:09.800 So I think I waved, winked whatever you do, and 0:14:10.480 --> 0:14:14.800 he responded back, and then we started communicating and he 0:14:14.840 --> 0:14:16.200 asked for a date pretty quickly. 0:14:17.080 --> 0:14:20.560 The first date was casual. They met at a brewery. 0:14:20.800 --> 0:14:23.360 And we were gonna have a couple drinks at the bar. 0:14:23.920 --> 0:14:27.680 But that night the bar was packed, so they sat. 0:14:27.520 --> 0:14:33.800 Us at the most uncomfortable, awkward twosome spot in the restaurant. 0:14:34.200 --> 0:14:36.120 Immediately, one thing was clear. 0:14:36.600 --> 0:14:38.680 He was not the type of person that I usually 0:14:38.880 --> 0:14:41.640 go for at all. He was a little bit nerdy. 0:14:42.080 --> 0:14:44.320 He had a glass of wine and he was like 0:14:44.920 --> 0:14:48.320 staring his wine, which I thought was weird. He talked 0:14:48.360 --> 0:14:51.240 a lot about his job and things like that. Just 0:14:51.320 --> 0:14:53.320 wasn't as joki as I'm used to. 0:14:53.800 --> 0:14:55.880 Saskia was used to guys who would crush a few 0:14:55.880 --> 0:14:58.680 beers in the first hour, guys who would have one 0:14:58.680 --> 0:15:01.480 eye on the game the whole date. Mike in his 0:15:01.520 --> 0:15:05.600 button down shirt and skinny jeans swirling his wine was anything. 0:15:05.640 --> 0:15:09.320 But I just kind of wanted to get through the date. 0:15:09.800 --> 0:15:13.160 And I remember afterwards telling my sister like he was nice, 0:15:13.400 --> 0:15:17.120 he's successful. Everything on paper sounds good, but I'm not 0:15:17.120 --> 0:15:21.080 sure if it was there. And I remember my sister saying, 0:15:21.600 --> 0:15:23.400 if he's not your usual type, that could be a 0:15:23.440 --> 0:15:23.920 good thing. 0:15:25.120 --> 0:15:27.200 I actually encouraged her to go on a second date 0:15:27.280 --> 0:15:30.120 with him. I said, some guys are more second date material. 0:15:30.440 --> 0:15:33.720 Maybe him being timid on the first date means he's 0:15:33.880 --> 0:15:36.520 a regular guy, you know, Not everybody has to be 0:15:36.680 --> 0:15:38.280 a huge personality off the gate. 0:15:39.200 --> 0:15:42.800 Saska gave him another shot, and in round two, Mike 0:15:42.840 --> 0:15:43.880 started to grow on her. 0:15:45.640 --> 0:15:48.880 We were going to meet for a second date, and 0:15:48.920 --> 0:15:51.200 I think I had something come up with the kids, 0:15:51.280 --> 0:15:54.360 so he suggested that we have a phone date and 0:15:54.920 --> 0:15:58.000 grab a glass of wine and we can talk. I'm 0:15:58.040 --> 0:16:00.880 not a phone person and it wasn't something that I 0:16:00.880 --> 0:16:04.480 thought that I would enjoy, but I thought it was 0:16:04.640 --> 0:16:06.960 really cute and endearing. 0:16:08.160 --> 0:16:10.600 By their third date, they both were a little more 0:16:10.640 --> 0:16:13.760 at ease. They got sushi, and the date went well 0:16:13.880 --> 0:16:17.480 enough that Saskia brought him out with her coworkers. 0:16:17.840 --> 0:16:21.480 My friend was having a little birthday get together, and 0:16:21.560 --> 0:16:25.320 we drove over to the bar and everyone's just having 0:16:25.400 --> 0:16:27.280 fun drinking and taking shots. 0:16:28.160 --> 0:16:32.080 And after the party, Saskia took my comb. He slept over. 0:16:32.400 --> 0:16:35.640 In the morning. We ended up being intimate and I 0:16:35.760 --> 0:16:37.680 was like, I can get with this. I could do this. 0:16:39.600 --> 0:16:42.560 He was in really good shape. It felt like we 0:16:42.600 --> 0:16:47.400 had really good chemistry. It wasn't wild, it wasn't crazy. 0:16:47.880 --> 0:16:48.720 It just felt good. 0:16:49.520 --> 0:16:52.000 She started to see Mike in a new light. He 0:16:52.040 --> 0:16:53.640 made her feel safe and. 0:16:53.680 --> 0:16:57.000 Comfortable, and then it just kind of picked up after that. 0:16:59.080 --> 0:17:01.840 After a month of dating, it was time for Mike 0:17:01.920 --> 0:17:05.720 to meet Saskia's friend group. This wasn't an easy crowd 0:17:05.800 --> 0:17:08.800 to jump into, after all, they've known each other forever. 0:17:09.520 --> 0:17:12.400 Here's another one of Saskia's friends, Bridget. 0:17:12.800 --> 0:17:13.880 We just keep it real. 0:17:13.960 --> 0:17:16.000 We've known each other so long that we're not going 0:17:16.080 --> 0:17:19.040 to sugarcoat anything. If we see a red flag. 0:17:19.080 --> 0:17:20.440 We're going to be like, what are you doing? 0:17:20.560 --> 0:17:22.320 You're an idiot, Like, let. 0:17:22.119 --> 0:17:25.600 Me tell you what I see. Bridget's a tough critic, 0:17:25.840 --> 0:17:28.879 and knowing all that Saskia had been through, she wasn't 0:17:28.880 --> 0:17:31.280 sure if she was going to like Mike when she 0:17:31.440 --> 0:17:33.240 just got out of this one marriage. I was very 0:17:33.240 --> 0:17:36.120 protective and I thought the world of him. I thought 0:17:36.119 --> 0:17:38.399 he was great, and I was like, finally, she deserves this, 0:17:38.600 --> 0:17:42.160 she deserves to be happy. Here's another friend, Heather. 0:17:42.720 --> 0:17:46.080 I liked him right away. I thought he was really nice. 0:17:46.160 --> 0:17:50.199 He seemed kind, he seemed gentle. I just thought he 0:17:50.320 --> 0:17:51.080 was put together. 0:17:52.160 --> 0:17:55.080 Marisa, Saskia's sister, liked him too. 0:17:56.000 --> 0:17:56.320 Normal. 0:17:56.320 --> 0:17:59.800 Guy seems even keeled. He's not overly showy trying to 0:18:00.640 --> 0:18:05.880 He's being polite, he's being respectful. Okay, you know, maybe this. 0:18:05.880 --> 0:18:06.760 Guy will work. 0:18:09.640 --> 0:18:13.600 With her friends and sister's approval, any doubt Saskia had 0:18:13.600 --> 0:18:14.800 about Mike went away. 0:18:15.680 --> 0:18:18.800 Everybody from the get go thought that he was just 0:18:19.760 --> 0:18:20.280 a catch. 0:18:21.960 --> 0:18:26.200 Mike was a great boyfriend. He took Saskia on nice dates, 0:18:26.640 --> 0:18:29.600 basketball games, fancy dinners, massages. 0:18:30.400 --> 0:18:33.560 He had plenty of money for us to do nice things. 0:18:33.680 --> 0:18:37.040 And I made me feel really special and important, that 0:18:37.119 --> 0:18:39.920 he wanted to do these fun things with me and 0:18:39.960 --> 0:18:41.840 that I was worth that to him. 0:18:42.280 --> 0:18:46.160 But right as Mike started to get serious, Saskia pulled away. 0:18:46.960 --> 0:18:49.199 She was still in the middle of her custody battle. 0:18:49.480 --> 0:18:52.080 She didn't have room for one more thing on her plate. 0:18:53.040 --> 0:18:56.560 There was one time where I was having like a 0:18:56.560 --> 0:18:59.960 breakdown about stuff with the kid's dad, and I just said, 0:19:00.800 --> 0:19:02.840 I can't deal with you right now, like I'm going 0:19:02.880 --> 0:19:05.440 through too much, and he was like, no, I'm coming over. 0:19:05.520 --> 0:19:06.560 Let me help you through this. 0:19:07.800 --> 0:19:10.880 That night he went over. He wanted to be there. 0:19:11.400 --> 0:19:15.040 He said, I will never hurt you. I will always 0:19:15.080 --> 0:19:18.399 be here for you. Don't run away, let me help you. 0:19:19.119 --> 0:19:22.280 He showed up for her. She'd never had that before. 0:19:22.960 --> 0:19:26.120 From then on out, Mike was teams Askia. 0:19:26.440 --> 0:19:30.040 A teammate, a partner, someone that was on her side. 0:19:30.640 --> 0:19:35.240 He helped me to feel like my life was going 0:19:35.600 --> 0:19:37.360 to go on and that I could have a positive 0:19:37.359 --> 0:19:39.320 future despite what happened with my ex. 0:19:40.880 --> 0:19:43.720 As friends and family got to know Mike, they saw 0:19:43.960 --> 0:19:47.359 just how much he had to offer. Here's her friend Megan. 0:19:48.080 --> 0:19:50.920 He was like a knight and shining armor. I mean, 0:19:50.960 --> 0:19:53.000 she dated guys without a job. 0:19:53.920 --> 0:19:56.400 And then you get Mike and he's like vice president 0:19:56.440 --> 0:19:59.440 at the bank and he was just like this stand 0:19:59.520 --> 0:20:02.520 up guy with a great job and two kids. 0:20:02.920 --> 0:20:04.840 I mean, it looked great. 0:20:05.240 --> 0:20:07.720 At the time. Megan was actually married to one of 0:20:07.760 --> 0:20:12.320 Saskia's older brothers, and her brothers didn't really get Mike. 0:20:13.400 --> 0:20:14.960 They thought he was like a dork. 0:20:15.560 --> 0:20:15.800 You know. 0:20:16.080 --> 0:20:21.240 They watched football, play cards, drink beer, and Mike was 0:20:21.280 --> 0:20:24.520 like this, you know, yoga guy who ate granola. 0:20:25.119 --> 0:20:28.199 The nerdy corporate type stuck out in this crowd. 0:20:28.760 --> 0:20:34.320 I mean, he was just different, and that's what every 0:20:34.359 --> 0:20:36.200 one of us thought was a good thing. 0:20:38.320 --> 0:20:43.280 Saskia needed different. Slowly, Mike was integrating into her world 0:20:43.800 --> 0:20:44.639 and she liked that. 0:20:45.880 --> 0:20:48.679 He was everything that I thought would be good for me, 0:20:49.320 --> 0:20:52.120 good for my kids. And I did fall in love 0:20:52.160 --> 0:20:55.760 with him. It wasn't like the boom you get hit 0:20:55.840 --> 0:20:59.679 with this love from the beginning, right. It grew when 0:20:59.680 --> 0:21:02.160 I paid that I felt like was a healthy pace. 0:21:03.600 --> 0:21:07.040 As their love grew, so did sask his comfort level. 0:21:07.880 --> 0:21:09.080 She could let her guard down. 0:21:11.400 --> 0:21:16.719 There was one time where we played strip bowling or something, 0:21:16.840 --> 0:21:20.000 I mean something like that. It sounded fun at the time. 0:21:20.040 --> 0:21:22.880 And it was kind of fun, especially because I never 0:21:22.960 --> 0:21:25.639 had that with my first husband. I didn't think he 0:21:25.720 --> 0:21:28.639 desired me at all. So here this was and it 0:21:28.640 --> 0:21:31.080 felt like, wow, like this person that I'm gonna be with, 0:21:31.160 --> 0:21:35.520 Like we do like desire each other and we can 0:21:35.640 --> 0:21:38.880 have fun and it is sexual, and like that's good 0:21:38.920 --> 0:21:40.880 because it shouldn't be just a roommate situation. 0:21:41.880 --> 0:21:44.679 When he tried to spice things up, he was respectful 0:21:44.760 --> 0:21:45.600 of her boundaries. 0:21:46.640 --> 0:21:48.439 I remember one time he took a picture of me 0:21:48.600 --> 0:21:51.920 and showed me how good my butt looked or something 0:21:52.359 --> 0:21:56.439 like that, and I explicitly asked him, what are you 0:21:56.440 --> 0:21:59.640 doing with that picture? And he's like, well, of course, 0:21:59.640 --> 0:22:01.360 I'm going to so erase it. I would never show 0:22:01.359 --> 0:22:02.080 it to anybody. 0:22:03.440 --> 0:22:07.000 She had every reason to trust him. They loved each other. 0:22:08.280 --> 0:22:10.200 When he would go to work in the morning, he 0:22:10.200 --> 0:22:12.000 would always leave me like a note on my pillow. 0:22:13.000 --> 0:22:15.840 Saski has shared some of those notes with us. Here's 0:22:15.840 --> 0:22:17.720 a voice actor reading one. 0:22:17.880 --> 0:22:19.760 Half of me wishes that we would have met ten 0:22:19.760 --> 0:22:22.399 plus years ago, just because I think of all the 0:22:22.400 --> 0:22:25.040 time we would have had. But then I realized it 0:22:25.119 --> 0:22:25.760 just wasn't. 0:22:25.560 --> 0:22:26.119 Meant to happen. 0:22:26.160 --> 0:22:28.720 Back then I am finally at a place in my 0:22:28.760 --> 0:22:31.600 life where I can embrace who I am, and I 0:22:31.680 --> 0:22:33.840 just feel like you are the other half, the one 0:22:33.840 --> 0:22:36.840 who makes me complete. It is not easy to open 0:22:36.960 --> 0:22:39.400 up so much because you open yourself up to being hurt. 0:22:40.040 --> 0:22:40.760 But I don't care. 0:22:41.240 --> 0:22:43.600 I will do anything for you to know how I feel. 0:22:45.760 --> 0:22:49.439 After years of feeling alone in her first marriage, Mike's 0:22:49.440 --> 0:22:52.440 words meant a lot. He made it clear how much 0:22:52.440 --> 0:22:56.120 he loved her. Whenever he traveled for work, we. 0:22:56.080 --> 0:22:59.159 Always had a nice, sweet kiss before he left and 0:22:59.200 --> 0:23:02.320 a big hug, and we would talk every night, and 0:23:02.359 --> 0:23:05.080 he would always bring me something from his trips, like 0:23:05.119 --> 0:23:06.920 a bracelet or a little trinket. 0:23:08.960 --> 0:23:12.000 But there was one final test the relationship had to pass, 0:23:12.760 --> 0:23:17.920 introducing their kids. At the time, Mike's daughters were eleven 0:23:18.000 --> 0:23:22.240 and seven, Saska's daughter was five and her son was three. 0:23:22.359 --> 0:23:24.840 They set aside a whole Saturday for the kids to 0:23:24.920 --> 0:23:25.640 finally meet. 0:23:26.840 --> 0:23:31.679 We met at Dave and Busters in the mall. I 0:23:31.720 --> 0:23:35.720 brought my kids, he brought his kids, and his daughter 0:23:35.760 --> 0:23:38.800 grabbed my daughter's hand and they were walking around together 0:23:39.000 --> 0:23:42.840 and just so excited to show each other their favorite games. 0:23:42.920 --> 0:23:45.240 And we had them pick out prizes at the end, 0:23:45.320 --> 0:23:48.800 and that was their first meeting and they basically were 0:23:48.800 --> 0:23:49.720