My attitude toward women definitely played a part in what happened. For the sake of clarity, it would probably be a good idea if I explained how my attitude took a radical turn from a romantic who loved his wife to whatever it was I turned into. I do know this for a fact: Marcy was the turning point. Marcy and I had been married for three years, and I worshiped the ground she walked on. I had scored way above my level, an...

The days went by, and I got her settled at home. I took the back off the recliner so I could move the heavy ass thing and relocated it to her bedroom. I put it back together, and that’s where I slept for at least a month. I talked to the police and asked them for a heads-up when her husband was released. Penny had managed to get a restraining order, but it is my experience that crazy men don’t pay a lot of attention to th...

We moved at a snail’s pace. We were wary and careful friends, feeling our way through our own emotional minefields. I think any one of us left alone would have sunk into a well of depression and given up on life. The three of us together lifted each other up. It was like someone turned the sun on when we were together. Bella lived far away from Penny and me. It was a hurdle we all wanted to get across. After a lot of talk...

As the days passed, we became even closer. We talked through the individual hells that we had each survived and fell ever deeper in love. Bella had reconnected with Marcy when Marcy started her search for me, and they continued to talk frequently on the phone. I had no problem with that at all. I figured that if they could re-discover their friendship, it would make Bella happy, and I was all about her happiness. One even...