She couldn’t believe her eyes. She tried to brush all the evidence off for some weeks, chalking it up to her husband’s naturally sympathetic, friendly, and compassionate character.
But now, there was no doubt of what was really going on. How could he do this to her and the children? However, it only took her a few moments to grieve. After a while, there was only one thing on her mind: revenge.
As you probably know, Ukraine is currently going through a difficult and rough situation. Many Ukrainian people are leaving their homes and moving to other European countries as refugees, sometimes moving in with other families who volunteer to help them and make sure they got at least a roof over their heads.
Every family who does this is worthy of the utmost respect and praise. However, as this story proves, this type of situation does not always have the desired outcome for everyone involved.
Tony and Lorna Garnett are (or at least used to be) a couple from Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. When the incident took place, they had been together for 10 years and had two kids.
To everyone who knew them in Bradford, they were the very image of a committed, long-lasting, and unshakable romance. Most people around town still remember when they were just high school sweethearts. So when it happened, it took everyone by surprise.
After days of hearing and reading about what was going on in Ukraine, Tony and Lorna were really concerned about the fate of those poor people.
One recurring thought that often came to their minds was the following: the Ukrainians used to lead lives similar to their own until the war started. They often wondered what they would do if they had been in that situation. So one day, they took a decision.
They decided that they had to do something to help the Ukrainian people; aside from donating to a charity or organization, there was only another logical option: welcoming a refugee into their home.
They were wondering what would be the best way to go about it when, suddenly, Tony announced it to Lorna: he had found a solution.
Apparently, he had managed to enter a Facebook group where Ukrainian citizens in distress could get in contact with Europeans willing to welcome them into their homes as refugees.
According to Tony, he had talked to the first woman in need of a home he had found in the group. And at first, Lorna believed him; but later on, she started to suspect that Tony may have had some other motivations when he chose the person who would start living with them.
Tony broke down the news to her right then: he had talked to a Ukrainian woman who had lost everything in the war. He had set everything up, and she was already on her way to their home.
Lorna was a little bit surprised that he had arranged everything without telling her about it first. However, she trusted Tony’s good judgment and expected him to do the right thing. She didn’t know how wrong she was.
The Ukrainian refugee was a 22-year-old IT manager named Sofiia. From the day she saw her for the first time, Lorna had a bad feeling. There was just something about that woman telling her that she was up to no good.
At the start, she tried to ignore that feeling. She tried to tell herself that those were just her insecurities and her trust issues talking. Little did she know that she would regret not having listened to her gut later on.
Shortly after Sofiia moved in with them, it became obvious that she and Tony got along really well. Tony is of Slovakian heritage; and since the Slovakian and Ukrainian languages are mutually intelligible, he and Sofiia could have long conversations in their mother languages.
Lorna didn’t like this one bit: Tony was starting to spend more time hanging out and talking with Sofiia than with her. And that wasn’t even the worst part.
The kids seemed to be quite fond of Sofiia too! Lorna couldn’t help but feel supplanted in a weird, twisted way. The whole situation felt surreal to her. Every time she turned her head, Tony and Sofiia seemed to be talking and giggling, saying things she didn’t understand, and even getting physically closer under the pettiest pretenses.
They looked like two high schoolers too nervous to take the first step. Once again, Lorna tried to tell herself that it was only her imagination, mistrust, and insecurities. But one day, while washing the clothes, she spotted something that made her stomach drop.
She saw some suspicious stains on Tony’s and Sofiia’s clothes! Now there was no doubt: those stains could only mean one thing. But could it be possible? How could Tony do that to her?
So she decided to do something else to prove her suspicions. She told Tony that she was taking the kids with her to the mall to buy them some clothes; and before she left, she installed a series of cameras around the house. Now, all she had to do was wait.
She quietly collected the cameras and saw the footage when she got back. And she was horrified, but not really surprised by what she saw. In a way, she was relieved to confirm that her gut feeling was right and she wasn’t losing her mind.
So she confronted Tony that same evening, told him what she had seen, and immediately kicked him out of the house. Then, she started thinking about how she could get some payback.
She decided that the best revenge was to expose Tony publicly. She called the press and told everyone about her story. And shortly after, the media was calling her phone and asking her for more details.
“She set her sights on Anthony from the start, decided she wanted him, and she took him. She didn’t care about the devastation that was left behind. Everything I knew has been turned on its head in the space of two weeks,”
“I decided it was the right thing to do to put a roof over someone’s head and help them when they were in desperate need. And this is how Sofiia has repaid me for giving her a home,” Lorna told the press.
However, Tony, who’s currently living with Sofiia in his parents’ house, has his own version of the story. This is what he said:
“We’re sorry for the pain we’ve caused, but I’ve discovered a connection with Sofiia like I’ve never had before. We’re planning the rest of our life together.” He added: “I know people will think this has happened so fast, but Sofiia and I know this is right.”
“It began with a simple desire from me to do the right thing and put a roof over the head of someone in need, a man or woman. But it was Sofiia who came into my life, and that’s something I’ll always be thankful for.”
