WEBVTT - Introducing: Betrayal Weekly

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<v Speaker 1>Hi, it's Andrea Gunning. Thanks for tuning into our first

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<v Speaker 1>three seasons of Betrayal. These stories have inspired so many

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<v Speaker 1>of you to share your own experiences with us. We

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<v Speaker 1>knew we had to find a way to bring more

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<v Speaker 1>of your stories to the podcast speed and now we are.

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<v Speaker 1>Every Thursday, we'll be releasing new extraordinary episodes. These are

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<v Speaker 1>first hand accounts of shocking deception, broken trust, and the

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<v Speaker 1>trayal of destruction left behind. And these are stories you've

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<v Speaker 1>never heard before.

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<v Speaker 2>What, No, this isn't real.

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<v Speaker 1>What's going on?

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<v Speaker 2>Who are you really? I said, I can't believe what

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<v Speaker 2>I'm listening to.

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<v Speaker 3>I was like, where is the baby? What's happening?

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<v Speaker 4>From unbelievable romantic betrayals?

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<v Speaker 3>The love that was so real for me was always

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<v Speaker 3>just a game for him.

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<v Speaker 4>To betrayals in your own family.

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<v Speaker 3>When I think about my dad, Oh well, he is

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<v Speaker 3>a sociopath.

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<v Speaker 4>He is a criminal financial betrayals. So this is like

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<v Speaker 4>the beginning of it. This is not even the part

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<v Speaker 4>where he steals millions of dollars, right, even life or

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<v Speaker 4>death deceptions.

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<v Speaker 2>She's practicing how she's going to cry when the police

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<v Speaker 2>calls her after they kill me.

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<v Speaker 4>The people we trust the most.

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<v Speaker 2>He was caring and loving and genuine with his wife

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<v Speaker 2>and his child and his patients.

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<v Speaker 4>The people we least expect.

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<v Speaker 3>And he was a psychopath.

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<v Speaker 1>These are cautionary tales, stories of romance, family and business

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<v Speaker 1>gone horribly wrong. But they're also survival stories, stories of

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<v Speaker 1>resilience after losing the thing we all depend on.

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<v Speaker 4>Trust.

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<v Speaker 3>My story was true, even if his wasn't. Mine was.

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<v Speaker 1>Now here's a sneak peak of our first episode. This

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<v Speaker 1>Stefy's story. Her marriage came crashing down in an instant

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<v Speaker 1>when she discovered the sinister truth about her husband, a

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<v Speaker 1>dark secret he had hidden for twenty two years.

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<v Speaker 2>We got married in nineteen ninety eight. It was a

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<v Speaker 2>second marriage for both of us. I came with four boys.

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<v Speaker 2>He had a boy and a girl. Our kids were

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<v Speaker 2>already friends and were thrilled about us being together.

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<v Speaker 1>Stephanie and her husband I'm gonna call him Greg, lived

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<v Speaker 1>together in a tiny Midwestern town. It's the kind of

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<v Speaker 1>town where everybody knows everybody.

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<v Speaker 2>It's like a small town that you would see on

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<v Speaker 2>a movie or a sitcom. I didn't want my husband

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<v Speaker 2>to go to the grocery store with me. It just

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<v Speaker 2>would take so long if he went with because we

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<v Speaker 2>knew every person at the store and everyone would have

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<v Speaker 2>to stop and visit with him.

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<v Speaker 1>Their big, blended family was well known in town. Picture

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<v Speaker 1>a modern day Brady Bunch. At least that's the feeling

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<v Speaker 1>I got from a photo she shared with me. It's Stephanie,

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<v Speaker 1>her sons, and Greg's kids, all six of them standing

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<v Speaker 1>side by side on the beach, smiling. Their family takes

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<v Speaker 1>up the whole three by five photo across their arm

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<v Speaker 1>and arm having the best beach vacation.

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<v Speaker 4>It's really sweet.

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<v Speaker 3>He was the absolute ideal husband. He was my best friend.

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<v Speaker 2>He did housework, he cooked, he played with the kids,

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<v Speaker 2>and when the kids who were little, we would go

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<v Speaker 2>in and volunteer at their elementary school and help with

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<v Speaker 2>their reading groups, which was super fun and like what

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<v Speaker 2>their dad does that? I mean, back in those days,

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<v Speaker 2>he was the only dad who volunteered, and the kids

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<v Speaker 2>all loved him.

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<v Speaker 1>There's another photo of Stephanie and her husband in front

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<v Speaker 1>of a waterfall in a forest with his arms wrapped

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<v Speaker 1>around her.

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<v Speaker 4>The sun lights her face and she looks relaxed and blissful.

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<v Speaker 2>He was very kind, very generous, very interested in hearing

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<v Speaker 2>what I had to say. He very much lifted me up.

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<v Speaker 2>He made me feel seen, and he made me feel

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<v Speaker 2>like I was smart and competent.

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<v Speaker 4>They had great chemistry.

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<v Speaker 1>They made great partners, not just in marriage, but in business.

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<v Speaker 2>I just ended up working at my husband's optometry practice,

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<v Speaker 2>because you know, it's a small practice, just him. He

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<v Speaker 2>always had three employees and one quit and I was

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<v Speaker 2>kind of in between jobs, so it's like, oh, could

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<v Speaker 2>you just fill in.

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<v Speaker 1>Stephanie did a lot more than just fill in. She

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<v Speaker 1>started managing her husband's optometry practice, pushing insurance claims through

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<v Speaker 1>and making the business more profitable than ever. They had

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<v Speaker 1>a clear vision for their future.

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<v Speaker 2>We certainly were not rich, but we were very comfortable.

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<v Speaker 2>We had our own resort in our backyard. We had

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<v Speaker 2>a large and ground.

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<v Speaker 3>Pool, hot tub, basketball court.

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<v Speaker 2>Have this great photo of Greg on his giant pool

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<v Speaker 2>lounger watching the Master's golf tournament on our outdoor big

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<v Speaker 2>screen TV. We had just begun a plan of getting

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<v Speaker 2>the house absolutely perfect and maintenance free for when we retired.

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<v Speaker 1>Of course, there were hard moments bumps along the way

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<v Speaker 1>in a twenty two year marriage.

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<v Speaker 4>That's par for the course.

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<v Speaker 2>At one point, he admitted that he hadn't been paying

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<v Speaker 2>the taxes at his business, and there was a possibility

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<v Speaker 2>we could lose the business, our house, he could go

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<v Speaker 2>to jail. That's a pretty big bump. It's like I've

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<v Speaker 2>invested everything. I've put my life and my kids' lives

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<v Speaker 2>in this man's hands.

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<v Speaker 3>So that was tough, but we worked through it.

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<v Speaker 1>They agreed to a payment plan with the irs and

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<v Speaker 1>move forward as a team, back on track for a

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<v Speaker 1>happy retirement. As the kids got older, Stephanie and her

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<v Speaker 1>husband adjusted well to the empty nest.

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<v Speaker 2>When the kids were grown, things were almost even better.

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<v Speaker 2>We would leave the office and walk hand in hand

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<v Speaker 2>down the street to the local cafe and go to

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<v Speaker 2>lunch together and sit and talk and laugh through the

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<v Speaker 2>whole lunch, not and scroll on our phones like other couples.

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<v Speaker 3>And then we would go back and work for the afternoon.

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<v Speaker 2>And then we would go home together and make dinner,

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<v Speaker 2>watch our favorite game shows, and play a board game.

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<v Speaker 1>Even during the twenty twenty pandemic, Stephanie and her husband

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<v Speaker 1>got along.

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<v Speaker 3>So you know, during COVID, I'd hop on a.

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<v Speaker 2>Zoom call with like six or seven girlfriends and we're

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<v Speaker 2>pretty much all empty nesters, so we're all just stuck

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<v Speaker 2>in the house alone with our husbands.

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<v Speaker 3>And my friends have good marriages, and still there was

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<v Speaker 3>a lot of like, I don't know how much longer

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<v Speaker 3>I can take this. I'm really bored, and I'm.

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<v Speaker 2>Going, oh gosh, you guys, I feel bad because, you

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<v Speaker 2>know what, We're having a blast over here.

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<v Speaker 3>We're trying new recipes, We've.

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<v Speaker 2>Got this whole game thing going on. We're doing all

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<v Speaker 2>these puzzles. We're having so much fun.

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<v Speaker 1>When COVID restrictions lifted, the couple took the opportunity to

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<v Speaker 1>spend even more time together and enjoy a warmer climate.

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<v Speaker 2>Kind of on a whim, we were like, hey, things

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<v Speaker 2>are opening up. We didn't get to go on our

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<v Speaker 2>winter vacation to our time sharing cancuon let's go down there.

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<v Speaker 2>So we had gone down the first week of April

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<v Speaker 2>and had a fabulous time as we always do.

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<v Speaker 4>But on this.

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<v Speaker 1>Little COVID getaway, she could tell that something was off

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<v Speaker 1>with Greg.

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<v Speaker 4>She first noticed it when they were lounging by the pool.

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<v Speaker 2>One of the things that really struck me as weird

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<v Speaker 2>on that trip was that we had kind of sat

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<v Speaker 2>in this same spot a couple days and there was

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<v Speaker 2>someone else sitting a couple chairs down from us, another

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<v Speaker 2>husband and wife.

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<v Speaker 3>And the guy made me really uncomfortable.

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<v Speaker 2>You know how some guys just look at you weird,

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<v Speaker 2>you know, when you're hanging out in your bathing suit whatever.

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<v Speaker 3>And I the guy just kind of made me uncomfortable.

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<v Speaker 3>And I told Greg that. I said, you know, that

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<v Speaker 3>guy is just kind of creeping me out. Can we

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<v Speaker 3>sit somewhere else? And he said no. That was totally

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<v Speaker 3>out of character for him.

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<v Speaker 2>He was always so accommodating to me and never wanted

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<v Speaker 2>me to feel uncomfortable. I mean, does it matter if

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<v Speaker 2>we sit over on the other side of the gorgeous

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<v Speaker 2>infinity pool looking out at the ocean?

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<v Speaker 3>So yeah, it just struck me as a little weird.

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<v Speaker 1>It was weird, but Stephanie didn't think much of it.

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<v Speaker 1>That night, the couple indulged in a long, romantic dinner.

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<v Speaker 1>This was always part of their vacation, a few dinners

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<v Speaker 1>where they could really treat.

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<v Speaker 2>Themselves, many many courses and lots of different drinks and

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<v Speaker 2>wine and all of that.

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<v Speaker 4>The next morning, Stephanie was in a fog.

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<v Speaker 3>I was very out of it like it was really

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<v Speaker 3>hard to wake up. I had this feeling.

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<v Speaker 2>It was almost like I was at the bottom of

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<v Speaker 2>the lake and I could just see light way up ahead,

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<v Speaker 2>but it was so hard to try to get there,

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<v Speaker 2>and then I would just feel so awful, like very

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<v Speaker 2>cotton mull, very dehydrated, headache, miserable waking up.

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<v Speaker 3>Shouldn't feel like that.

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<v Speaker 4>But Greg was there to help take care of her.

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<v Speaker 2>Last night. You had a lot to drink, and we

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<v Speaker 2>were out in the sun a lot. I'm sure you're dehydrated.

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<v Speaker 2>Let's get you some water, Let's get you some coffee.

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<v Speaker 2>Let's try to stay out of the sun a little

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<v Speaker 2>bit today. You know, very comforting, very kind.

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<v Speaker 4>But Greg wasn't the man who was pretending to be.

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<v Speaker 2>I had that feeling. I was like, I got to

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<v Speaker 2>check all his stuff while he's gone. I saw his

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<v Speaker 2>laptop was sitting there by his recliner. I picked it

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<v Speaker 2>up and I took it over to the kitchen counter

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<v Speaker 2>and that was where I was sitting, and I literally

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<v Speaker 2>just lifted it up up and it was there. The

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<v Speaker 2>pages were open. He readily confessed to all of it.

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<v Speaker 2>No tears, no remorse, no regret, no care whatsoever. He

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<v Speaker 2>talked to me like he was telling me I went

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<v Speaker 2>to the store and got a gallon of milk. He said,

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<v Speaker 2>I have those pictures of those other women because I

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<v Speaker 2>trade like kids trade Pokemon cards. I would trade your image.

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<v Speaker 1>Be sure to listen in on July twenty fifth to

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<v Speaker 1>hear all of Stephanie's story, and subscribe to the Betrayal Feed,

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<v Speaker 1>where you'll hear news stories every Thursday.