After my twin daughters, Ella and Sophie, were born, I hoped my husband, Derek, would put us first over his overbearing mother, Lorraine. But when he failed to pick us up from the hospital, claiming she had chest pains, I was left to manage on my own.

Returning home, I was crushed to find my belongings dumped on the lawn alongside a cruel note from Derek saying, “Get out with your little moochers!” Devastated, I called my mom and stayed with her, struggling to understand Derek’s betrayal.