ALL SKINFOLK AIN’T KINFOLK

CAUGHT BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE

They had failed to complete successfully the mandatory counseling or stay away from me.

Every time I reported their violations, my father and my soon- to – be ex-husband got them out of the jam.

They even wanted me to go to court and rescind the order of protection, but I refused to do so.

However, every time they did something bad to me, my husband demanded I forgive them and let it go. So, to keep the peace in my home, I regretfully didn’t make a fuss. He would make them apologize to me, and somehow it became my fault. Since I won’t rescind the charges against them. I was in love and foolishly trusted him. I stopped putting myself first, too afraid to have a failed marriage under my belt.

My husband had recently ended an 18-month undercover sting where him and his team had taken down a vicious Mexican cartel operating in the U.S. called La Familia. He was able to rescue over two hundred women and children from shipping containers that were being s*x-trafficked. He had promised me when the case was over, he would take me on a second honeymoon. So we could reconnect with each other. I had missed him so much in his absence.

I had kept myself busy with my online business and my job at the nursing home that I loved. I am now assistant director of Human Resources. I have been offered three separate promotional opportunities if I was willing to relocate for work. However, due to my husband’s unwillingness to relocate. I didn’t take any of the offers.

Unfortunately, in my husband’s absence, my grandmother died. I handled all her funeral arrangements. She left me her home and hefty stock portfolio that left me a very wealthy woman.

Due to my husband’s undercover work, he couldn’t attend the funeral, but his dad did.

He witnessed firsthand the real evil side of my siblings and their mother along with my purposefully blind father's behavior. He was determined after that to get my husband to wake up and give up any hope of reconciliation with those wicked people. I regret so much of the stuff I let slide that occurred.

Plus, not standing on what I had told him was a dealbreaker for me. That was anyone I was in a relationship with had to respect the fact that I didn’t want a relationship with those evil people.

I had told him and his father about everything that had transpired with my family, and they had wholeheartedly supported me in the beginning.

So, three months later, he had closed his case and earned a promotion to the youngest captain in DEA history. I was whisked away on what I thought would be a romantic holiday for me and my husband deep in the mountains of Colorado at a beautiful ski resort. He was so attentive and sweet to me.

I had let him handle all the arrangements for our getaway. We would be there for Christmas and New Year just the two of us. His father had taken another undercover case a month prior so he wouldn’t be available for the foreseeable future.

We had even started talking about it being time to maybe start our family. I had high hopes for that trip all the way till my husband pulled into the driveway of our beautiful log cabin to find my father, his wife and my two siblings unloading their rental SUV.

I was livid. I couldn’t believe he had invited them on our romantic getaway and didn’t bother to inform me. He immediately informed me we could have another couple’s trip later, but now was the time to heal my family bonds.

He wanted me to willingly agree to spend time with them, which would violate my court order. I refused and grabbed my luggage as well as my phone. I started walking down the mountain as I ordered a taxi on my phone. My husband followed behind me demanding that I get back into his rental car and stop overreacting that everything would be fine.

I informed him, “We are done! I am filing for a divorce! I will no longer subject myself to you and this insanity along with the complete disregard for my feelings or safety!”

He looked shocked and frightened at first due to my words. However, he quickly recovered and replied,” Whatever! You love me and will never leave me! Stop being stubborn and cruel for no reason! I am going back to the house! Come back to the house once you calm down and apologize to me along with everyone else for all this unnecessary drama!”

I just responded back before getting into the taxi,” I will be out of the house by the time you return! You can keep all the furniture and the house! I won’t request alimony or anything! I don’t want anything from you! I just want to be left alone! I don’t even want your last name anymore because it holds no honor for me in it. Please just sign the divorce papers when they come and don’t draw it out!”

By that time, I had walked for a good forty minutes with him still following me and yelling at me. When my taxi showed up and I got in. I had the taxi drive me back to the airport. I took the next flight back to Texas. I went back to our home and slept.

The next two days, I blocked his numbers repeatedly and took the time to move out. I moved back into my grandmother’s home. Our marital home was a purchase he had made before he had met me. I didn’t want any parts of him or anything that reminded me of him.

I spent Christmas at the nursing home and with my uncle Ricky’s family. They have always made me feel like family. I was able to inform my boss at the holiday party that I would take the job offer to be the new Director of Human Resources in their Newark, New Jersey location. My boss excitedly gave me until February the 1st to wrap up my life here and relocate to Newark.

The first business day after Christmas, I made a couple of important appointments in an attempt to move on with my life. First with a real estate agent for the first of the year to sell my grandmother’s home. Secondly, with a good divorce attorney on the grounds of irreconcilable differences.

Lastly, with the state and federal prosecutors to give all the evidence I had gathered of all the wrongdoing by my family and my soon- to- be ex-husband's willingness to disregard my feelings and my personal safety at all costs.

My marriage died on that mountain that day along the side of the road. He made his choice, and it clearly wasn’t me. He spent his entire holiday with them, not me. I could never be with him again.

My sister and her mother kept sending me pictures and text messages the whole time, gloating about finally ending my marriage. They even texted me a picture of them in bed together cuddling. He was silently sleeping with her in his arms.

I didn’t even bother to respond. I refused to give them the satisfaction of knowing they hurt me. I just kept blocking them for them to only just use another number to continue the harassment.

I spent New Year's Eve in Manhattan, New York with my girls. I visited with old friends. I had an incredible time. I even signed a lease for a gorgeous three-bedroom loft apartment in the heart of downtown Newark overlooking the waterfront.

Little did I know what would be waiting for me when I returned to my grandmother’s house.

As soon as I walked into the house, something felt off. Someone hit me on the back of my head, and everything went dark. I woke up tied to a chair with my crazy evil sister throwing gasoline all over me.

She started shouting,” He won’t see me as anything other than your little sister as long as you live! However, if I kill you and make it look like that cartel came back and killed you in an act of revenge. He will have no choice but to grieve your loss in the comfort of my loving arms! He can’t possibly continue to deny our bond and mutual attraction for each other after you are gone! Plus, I think he is worried about what people would say if he got with me with you still alive. He would be villainized due to our history. He doesn’t want to ruin his squeaky-clean image with a sordid scandal! So, you must die dear sister!”

After she said that, I heard her say something about getting knives. So, she could cut me into tiny pieces before setting the house ablaze.

I was quickly able to untie my hands quietly. I hurriedly texted the emergency police hotline, my neighbor/ friend Mr. Slater and my uncle Ricky, along with Dylan’s father to come help me that I was being held hostage by my crazy sister who was threatening to kill me and set the house on fire to cover up her crime.