My Husband Disappeared on Christmas Eve — The Next Morning, He Came Home with a Three-Year-Old Girl in His Arms

Christmas Eve started like any other holiday until my husband disappeared without explanation. The next morning, he came home holding a little girl, and with her, a secret that shattered our family.

What happened last Christmas Eve changed me for good. It was hard for a while, but worth it in the end. I was 32 years old at the time. My boys, Ryan and Liam, were 7 and 5 respectively. Our family life was far from perfect, but I always thought my husband, James, and I made it work.

We’ve been married for nine years, and I’d always believed we had a solid foundation. That was, until Christmas Eve last year when everything unraveled.

Most moms will relate when I say that my entire goal has always been to make the holidays magical for my boys, and last year was no different. I spent the entire day preparing so our family could have a fantastic Christmas Eve.

I cooked a great dinner and I made cookies for Santa. I had the best holiday movies listed and their new Christmas pajamas ready.

You see, we had a tradition where the boys got ready for bed after watching some movies, and James would read them a story. It was simple, but it was perfect. Except, something was different.

My husband wasn’t the most engrossed family man in the world, but it was worse last year. He spent most of the day glued to his phone and pacing the kitchen like he was waiting for bad news.

I asked him what was wrong a couple of times, but he just shrugged it off with, “Work stuff.” Annoying, but not completely unusual for James. I figured he’d come around once the kids were ready for their bedtime story.

Around 7 p.m., just as I was plating the ham, he threw on his coat and mumbled, “I forgot something. I’ll be back soon.”

“Back soon?” I asked, standing there with the plate of ham in my hands and an incredulous look on my face. “It’s Christmas Eve, James. The boys are expecting you to be...