Solved Murders - True Crime Stories - She Offered Me a Future, but Turned My Life Into a Cage of Control and Confusion PART2 #13

Episode Date: July 11, 2025

#horrorstories #reddithorrorstories #ScaryStories #creepypasta #horrortales #manipulation #toxicrelationships #gaslighting #emotionalabuse #breakingfree  In PART2, the narrator faces escalating manipulation and emotional abuse that traps them further in confusion and pain. Yet, seeds of resistance grow, hinting at a battle for survival and self-liberation from a life of control.  horrorstories, reddithorrorstories, scarystories, horrorstory, creepypasta, horrortales, gaslighting, emotionalabuse, toxicrelationships, manipulation, mentalhealth, survival, personalstory, abuseawareness, heartbreak, psychologicalabuse, controlissues, trauma, breakingfree, resilience

There's so much rugby on Sports Extra from Sky. They've asked me to read the whole lad at the same speed I usually use for the legal bit at the end. Here goes. This winter Sports Extra is jam-packed with rugby. For the first time we've been every Champions Cup match exclusively live, plus action from the URC, the Challenge Cup, and much more. Thus the URC and all the best European rugby all in the same place.

Get more exclusively live tournaments than ever before on Sports Extra. Jampack with rugby. Phew, that is a lot of rugby. Get Sports Extra on Sky for 15 euro a month for 12 months. Search Sports Extra. New Sports Extra customers only. Standard Pressing applies after 12 months for the terms apply. Don't let foot pain or discomfort hold you back.

At foot Solutions, we specialize in high-quality supportive footwear. And use the latest scanning technology to custom-make orthotics, designed for your unique feet. If you want to free your feet in joints from pain, improve balance or correct alignment, book a free foot assessment at footsolutions.com. Or pop-in store today. Foot Solutions, the first step towards pain-free feet. Part 2. After that kiss in the back of the store, things got weird. Real weird. It was like she flipped a switch in her brain. One second I was the golden child, and the next I was enemy number one. That warmth she used to have. Gone. The compliments, the encouraging pep talks about growth and potential. Gone. All of it disappeared so fast it gave me whiplash. Suddenly, I wasn't being mentored anymore, I was being monitored. It was like every little thing I did annoyed her.

I was too slow when I stocked the shelves. Too sloppy answering phones. Too friendly with customers. Too quiet, too loud, too, everything. She picked apart every move I made, like she was just waiting for me to mess up. Breathing around her felt like a test I was bound to fail. And believe me, she made sure I knew it. Now, here's where it gets messy.

I didn't just work for her. I was also buying a car from her. Yeah. Bad move, I know. It was a deal we set up even before she hired me, and once I started working there, it felt like she had me on a leash. I didn't want to lose the car, so I kept showing up. But I stopped giving a damn.

I was just going through the motions, clocking in and zoning out. She noticed the shift, and it drove her nuts. But there's something I never mentioned before. Let's rewind a bit. From the first week I started working, she started talking about this mysterious former boss of hers. She said he was this big shot retail mogul from Austria. She hyped him up like he was the retail version of the Terminator, said he was going to fly in and help restructure the business. She told him, me I had to shape up fast because once he landed, if I didn't impress him, I was done. She made him sound terrifying. Cutthroat, serious, and impossible to fool, she said. The kind of guy who

would make me shiver when he speaks. But at the same time, she fed me a fantasy. She told me if I proved myself and showed I could take care of her, baby, meaning the business, she'd step back and hand it over. She said all she'd want in return was the cost of goods. I'd keep the rest. I mean, come on. Who wouldn't fall for that? I wanted to believe her. But deep down, something didn't sit right. Then the day came. The Austrian mogul finally arrived. I was in the middle of a call campaign for our wholesale clients, getting everything ready for this Easter promo she was obsessed with. She was already breathing down my neck, saying I sounded amateur, that I had no presence, and that I was embarrassing the brand. She kept saying,

wait till he gets here. You'll see how it's really done. Cue the dramatic entrance. The door swings open and in walks this dude, tall, maybe six feet two inches, beard all patchy, clothes wrinkled like he fell out of a suitcase. He looked like he just saw. He looked like he just slept in an airport lounge. And his voice. High-pitched, but he was clearly trying to force it deeper, like a teenager trying to sound like their dad. His English was stiff and awkward, like he was reading a bad Google Translate script. She introduced him with this fake-sounding Austrian name, then told me to call him Bob. Bob. The big scary exec from Austria. I wanted to laugh, but I held it in. She said he was going to show me how a real pro handled clients.

So she gave him the phone. And I watched in disbelief as this man completely butchered every single call. He mispronounced names. Forgot product details. Could barely string sentences together. I looked at her, expecting her to jump in. But nope, she just stood there, arms crossed, acting like he was Moses handing out commandments. Then came the shift. I caught it. She started talking to him the same way she talked to me.

Cold. Short. Mean. The mask was slipping. Fast. Eventually, she snatched the phone, made a few calls herself, smooth and flawless, I'll give her that, and then just shut the whole campaign down. No explanation. Just, lock up. We're living. And out the door she went, Bob trailing behind. Next day, Bob's back. But now he's carrying her toddler daughter. That's right. Mr. Big Shot Austrian consultant was now the store babysitter.

No more business advice. No more restructuring plans. He just, existed. Quiet. In the corner. Forgotten. There's so much rope me on sports. from Sky, they've asked me to read the whole lad at the same speed I usually use for the legal bit at the end.

Here goes. This winter sports extra is jam-packed with rugby. For the first time we've got every Champions Cup match exclusively live, bus action from the URC, the Challenge Cup and much more. That's the URC and all the best European rugby all in the same place. Get more exclusively live tournaments than ever before on Sports Extra. Jam-packed with rugby. Phew, that is a lot of rugby. Get Sports Extra on Sky for 15 euro a month for 12 months.

Search Sports Extra. New Sports Extra customers only. Stand-up pressing applies after 12 months for the terms apply. Don't let foot pain or discomfort hold you back. At foot Solutions, we specialize in high quality supportive footwear. And use the latest scanning technology to custom-make orthotics, designed for your unique feet. If you want to free your feet in joints from pain, improve balance or correct alignment, book a free foot assessment at footsolutions.com. Or pop-in store today.

Foot Solutions, the first step towards pain-free feet. And then she started talking about him behind his back. To me. Said he was slow. Said he embarrassed her. Said bringing him here was a huge mistake. And then she started comparing us. Told me he had confessed feelings for her, but she wasn't into him.

Said he gave her the creeps. Then she looked at me, dead serious, and said, you, though, you're the kind of man I want. I didn't know what to say. I just nodded and tried to change the subject. From then on, she did everything possible to keep me and Bob from talking. Wouldn't leave us alone for more than a minute. But eventually, she slipped up. We had a moment.

And that's when it all came together. Bob spilled the truth. He met her on a dating app. Thought he was flying out to start a relationship. She painted this whole fairy tale. and he bought into it. He told me that the moment he landed, she changed. Cold, distant, no affection, barely let him touch her. He said he was stuck, confused, isolated. And now he was just some unpaid nanny for a woman who clearly didn't give a damn. Then he looked me in the eye and said,

I thought I was coming to find love. She turned me into a worker. She did the same to you. That hit hard. I knew he was right. After that, I shut down completely. Didn't bother trying anymore. Just moved through the store like a zombie. Blank face. Robotic responses.

She hated it. She'd snap, why are you moving so dumb? I just stare at her like I didn't speak English. I was over it. Then came the final straw. She sent me to deliver some replacement boots to a client. I did the delivery, but I forgot to collect the old pair. Honest mistake.

I came back and told her. She exploded. Full-blown meltdown. Screaming. Insults. Said I was a liability. Said I was useless. And then she fired me.

I didn't flinch. Just nodded. Honestly, I was relieved. I was free. Or so I thought. As I turned to leave, she said, take Bob with you. Like he was a broken lamp she was dumping off. So I did.

We walked out together. Two of her discarded toys. And that's when things really spiraled. We got in my car, the one I was still technically paying her for, and just drove. No idea where to go. Bob was quiet for a while. Then he started talking about going back home, said he missed his family. Said he felt stupid for ever trusting her.

I told him he wasn't alone. I fell for it too. Different bait, same trap. We ended up crashing at a cheap motel that night. Just sat there in silence, trying to figure out what the hell just happened to our lives. two guys from different worlds who got caught in the same web. I never saw her again. She never called about the car.

Never asked for a final payment. It was like she erased both of us from her life the moment we walked out that door. Sometimes I wonder how many other people she's done this to. How many times she's spun this web and pulled someone in? She was a master manipulator, no doubt about it. She made you feel special, then used you up and tossed you aside. Bob flew back to Austria a week later. We said our goodbyes like war buddies who survived something no one else would ever understand.

I still think about him sometimes. Hope he's doing okay. As for me, I got a new job. Got my life back on track. But I keep a part of that story with me. Not out of bitterness, but as a reminder. Some people will sell you a dream just to use you. And when they do, the best thing you can do is wake up, walk away, and never look back.

To be continued.