Chapter 1

After three years on a rig in the North Sea, the first thing I wanted was a cold beer and my wife, Gabrielle. I got neither.

The suburban Houston house I' d worked my ass off to buy was a wreck. The lawn was overgrown, and the mailbox was dented. Inside, it smelled stale, like no one had opened a window in months. Dust coated every surface.

"Gabby?" I called out, my voice echoing in the empty hallway.

No answer.

Her car was gone. I checked our bedroom. Her closet was half-empty, a few dresses and shoes left behind like an afterthought. A knot formed in my stomach. I called her phone. Straight to voicemail. I called her mother, her brother. No one had seen her in a day.

Panic set in. I filed a missing person's report.

Two hours later, a cop called me back. He sounded bored.

"Mr. Lester, we found your wife."

"Where? Is she okay?"

"She's fine, sir. She's at Memorial Park. With a Mr. Wesley Clark and his two kids."

The name hit me like a punch to the gut. Wesley Clark. Her high school sweetheart. The one she swore was just an old friend she' d reconnected with on Facebook.

I drove to the park, my knuckles white on the steering wheel. I saw them by the duck pond. Gabrielle was laughing, pushing a little girl on a swing. Wesley stood beside her, his arm draped casually around her shoulders. They looked like a perfect family.

I got out of my truck and walked toward them.

"Gabrielle."

Her head snapped up. The smile vanished from her face, replaced by shock, then guilt. Wesley just smirked, a smug look on his face.

"Matthew? What are you doing here? You're not supposed to be back for another week."

"The contract ended early," I said, my voice flat. I looked at Wesley. "What is this?"

Wesley stepped forward, putting himself between me and Gabrielle. "Hey man, take it easy. We were just hanging out."

"I wasn't talking to you," I said, my eyes locked on Gabrielle. "Three years, Gabby. I spend three years in the middle of the ocean, breaking my back for us, for this family, and I come home to this?"

"It's not what it looks like," she stammered.

"Then what is it?" I demanded.

Before she could answer, Wesley put a hand on my chest. "You need to back off. You're scaring the kids."

I swatted his hand away. "Don't touch me."

That's when Gabrielle moved. She stepped right up to me, her eyes blazing.

"Leave him alone, Matthew!"

Then she slapped me. Hard. The sound cracked in the quiet afternoon air. The kids started crying.

"He was here for me when you weren't!" she screamed. "You abandoned me!"

The cops who had been watching from their cruiser decided things had gone far enough. They walked over, separating us, their voices calm but firm. The conflict was paused, but for me, the war had just started.