Dear Debbie
by Freida McFadden
Contents
Chapter 47
Overview
A Dear Debbie draft features a woman describing classic signs that her husband may be cheating. Debbie’s response moves from ordinary investigative advice to a casually violent suggestion, revealing how distorted and dangerous Debbie’s thinking has become.
The chapter matters less for external action than for its insight into Debbie’s mindset: suspicion, betrayal, and revenge have fused into advice that treats extreme retaliation as an option.
Summary
The chapter shifts to a draft in Debbie’s advice column files. A woman signing herself Worried Wife writes that she suspects her husband is cheating because he has stopped wanting sex, is sometimes unreachable, lied about going out with friends, and came home smelling of unfamiliar perfume.
Worried Wife explains that whenever the wife confronts her husband, the husband becomes defensive and says the accusation hurts him. The wife asks whether these signs point to an affair or whether the wife is merely being jealous.
Debbie’s drafted response validates the wife’s suspicions and says defensiveness is common in cheating men. Debbie advises the wife to search for a second phone or alternate email, then consider hiring a private investigator and a lawyer if evidence appears.
Debbie ends the answer by adding “or a hit man” to the list of options, then presents the escalation as practical advice. The draft exposes Debbie’s increasingly extreme, punitive thinking about suspected infidelity.
Who Appears
- DebbieAdvice columnist whose draft reveals escalating suspicion and a disturbingly violent sense of retaliation.
- Worried WifeLetter writer who suspects her husband is cheating and asks Debbie for guidance.
- Worried Wife’s husbandSubject of the letter; accused of suspicious behavior, defensiveness, and possible infidelity.