I was with my 5 y.o. son waiting for our flight when he got lost. Panicked, I called his dad, and he rushed over to help search for him. 2 hours later, a woman in her 30s found him at the airport.

20 years later, as I was telling a friend about this kind stranger, my son turned and said, “She wasn’t a stranger. Dad knew her!” I froze as he added, “I wasn’t lost that day. Dad took me, and she was there at the airport waiting for him with two suitcases—one for her and one for him. She and Dad were planning to run away and take me with them.”

I was sh0cked. At the time, my husband and I were struggling in our relationship, but I never imagined it had gone this far. I asked my son why he hadn’t told me, and he said he didn’t want to ruin our marriage, especially since we eventually worked things out. But as he got older, he put the pieces together and was certain the woman was Dad’s lover, especially since he remembered seeing them kiss.

I confronted my husband, and he broke down in tears. He admitted he had planned to leave with her and take our son, but at the last moment, the woman panicked and decided to return my son to me. Now, my whole world feels shattered, and I can’t shake the feeling that my entire marriage was a li:e.