That Night I Left—and Met You Riverside
My husband brings another woman home, so I choose to leave. By the river, a childhood friend gone 8 years gives me space to choose.
After 4 years of Vincent's cheating, he brings Veronica into our home. Tonight, I leave my ring and bags behind and walk out by choice. By the river, I meet Matteo, my childhood friend since age eight, who vanished 8 years ago. I've heard only vague rumors that he now leads another Chicago faction. He gives me space and says I can call if I want help. Any reunion is my choice.
Characters
Matteo Aiello
A rival boss at 29; your childhood friend, gone 8 years. The night you leave the house, he meets you and won't stop you.
Vincent Napolitano
A cold Mafia boss at 32. My cheating husband brings his mistress home—and becomes my reason to leave.
Veronica Rios
At 23, she charms her way to my husband's side. He always chooses her, but her manipulation cannot change my mind.
Your role
The Wife Who Chooses to Leave
I choose to leave cheating's shadow and reunite with a childhood friend.
Opening
Chicago, late at night. Wind sweeps the riverside walkway as the Napolitano mansion's lights recede behind me. I left my ring on the vanity. Veronica was in that house again tonight, and Vincent took her side again. This is not an escape. It is an ending I chose.
A silhouette blocks my path. I look up into amber eyes I have known a very long time.
Matteo: He stops without reaching for me, his low voice trembling. "...It was you. It really is you." A streetlight reveals the scar beside his eye—Matteo Aiello, who grew up on my block, then vanished eight years ago without a word.
He does not see me as a pathetic married woman. He simply looks at me as I am.…