Morgan | Betrayal Weekly

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I want to let you know that we will be talking explicitly about the realities of domestic violence. So please be mindful with this episode. I saw this figure standing in the doorway. He was an all black and had a Batman mask and covered

“head to toe in black clothing. I kept closing it opening my eyes like am I really seeing those? Or not?”

I'm Andrea Gunning and this is betrayal. A show about the people we trust the most and the receptions that change everything. This week's episode has also been adapted into an episode of our TV show. Betrayal secrets and lies. You can stream it on Disney Plus or Hulu. Morgan Betser grew up in Canton, Georgia, where big stretches of forest, hug-queat neighborhoods, and the chatter hoochy river carves its way through the town.

Growing up, I was the young guest. I had an older brother and an older sister. My brother was in baseball and my sister was in fast-fetch so I felt like a lot of my weekends were following him around. Morgan kept up with the older kids. I was very outspoken and strong-willed. School was challenging for Morgan. I struggled a little bit with testing me and I did not the best grade. But her parents taught her there are a lot of things in life that are more

“important than grades. My dad explained in the real world it's not the grade to the end. They are”

more focused on who you are as a person, your values, the intruthful, the honest. Morgan's school had a back patio where everyone hung out after class. One day when Morgan was in

This was when I saw him one day and we started talking a little bit. He had a high school and I was

“in middle school. His name was Rodney and soon she found out everyone on campus knew him.”

He was 16, two years older than her and Morgan thought that was exciting. The next time she saw him at school, they talked again. The more time Morgan spent with Rodney, the more she liked him. We were very close instantly, very connected. He was very easy going, a studying stream, not much could really rock his coat. He made friends easily and was kind to everyone he met. He was funny, he's what you would call the guy next door that everyone just likes.

They started hanging out after school. They never got tired of talking to each other and realized

that their connection was more than just friendship. Rodney asked Morgan to be his girlfriend. She said yes. When she told her parents about her new boyfriend, as you can imagine, my dad and my mom weren't very happy about an acreage or dating age junior. So, my dad made it perfectly clear that we would not be going on dates and so I was 16 and if you

“weren't seeing me, he would have come to the house right now. So that's what they did. After a”

school, Rodney would go over to Morgan's house. They respected her parents' dating roles and Rodney quickly gained her parents' trust. Everyone loved him, my family. He grew up with them. She grew up with his family, too. His parents could afford to go on extravagant vacations. They started inviting Morgan to come with them on their trips. His parents left to go to the Bahamas. They left to go on cruises, so we did all different kinds of trips.

Once Morgan was in high school, she and Rodney gained a little independence. He would pick me up. We would meet up with all our friends and we all go to this one waffle house and just hang out after school.

“Morgan and Rodney always sat next to each other at the waffle house. In fact, they almost never left”

each other's side. Everyone just knew it was the least us. We came together as one, like if you hang by one, then they knew I was coming or vice versa. They were inseparable and their friends understood why. They all thought we were the power couple. Everyone just loved us together. Morgan and Rodney started planning for their future after high school. All I wanted to do was become a mom and support my house and create a home.

And he said that he wanted to be the main fighter, so we found out how our plan. But she knew that plan would have to wait until Rodney made enough money to support them both. After graduating high school, she started pursuing her interest in hair and makeup. Morgan decided to go to Cosmetology School and become a hairdresser. Rodney wanted to become a car mechanic and began looking at trade schools. Rod decided he wanted to go to the school called

Wyatt Tech. Wyatt Tech is a trade school in Laramie, Wyoming, a small town that sits high in the planes nestled between two stretches of the Rocky Mountains. You get money to go buy himself and they had a cosmetology school there, so we backed up and lived to Wyoming. Morgan and Rodney had to get used to a new pace of life. "It was a big jump, I mean Georgia's not cold like that and you go to Laramie Wyoming and not thinking about the city, but Apple D's was the place to be.

It was definitely a change in culture for sure. Still, they were eager to start this new chapter.

"It was very exciting moving in to get my first time developing our routine,

our Apple." Rodney started trade school to become a car mechanic and Morgan started at Cosmetology School. "I went ride my bike to school every day." As she peddled through town, she could look out and see the stretches of mountains just beyond Laramie. She was excited about the life she and Rodney were building. Home was wherever Rodney was. "We're looking at our morning routines together, we've been in school all day and then we meet up, we have dinner, and then in the evenings,

I was like we're watching a movie." Rodney told her about everything he was learning at school.

At night, they would talk about their future. "We just created dreams scenario in our head

“that you know we would get married and eventually we would watch children."”

And when they each graduated, they moved back to Georgia and got to work making their dream life

a reality. "We bought our first house, I was working at a hair salon in Rod's Wall and we

developed some really good friends that we knew since we were younger, our friends knew each other, and our friends knew our family." They had a tight knit community with deep roots. Before Morgan knew it, six years flew by with Rodney, and they went from being high school sweethearts to mature adult partners. They knew each other's favorite jokes, deepest fears, and biggest dreams. And then on Christmas Day, Rodney proposed to Morgan, with her grandmother's wedding ring.

"I was so excited, I couldn't stop crying." She was so happy. A little over a year later,

“they got married. "I got married, I give the bow at dust, and because the bow was covered in”

high ranges of piano, knees, and lelies, and roses, spinkle lights all over the place. So pretty much like a magical, some derelict type of feel." That magical feeling continued well after their wedding. "We were very much a team. As model was happy wife happy life, so he just wanted to provide anything he possibly could. He was the main provider, financially.

He always took care of things around the house. Make sure to roof over our head,

feed on our plate. During our train, very emotionally there for me." But not too long after their wedding, Rodney's family suffered a horrible loss. His brother Kevin had battled leukemia for years. One night, he passed away and his sleep. "He was an amazing person. I loved him. A lot. It really changed the dynamic and his family." "It's just so much pain." It was hard for Rodney's parents to make time for him as they struggled with Kevin's death.

It felt like when Kevin died, so did their happy, tight-knit family. Rod started feeling abandoned, and that's when I started seeing Rod change just a tiny bit because he just felt

“not as important as he used to. Rodney's brother Kevin had always wanted to be an uncle.”

"We got pregnant shortly after his brother passed away." They had a son and named him Kevin to honor Rodney's brother. But shortly after he was born, Morgan and Rodney were given devastating news. Their son had a congenital heart defect. At this point in her life, Morgan can tell the story without much emotion, but it's still incredibly painful. "When he was born, he was immediately

shipped to Eggleston Atlanta's cardiac unit. For 18 days, he was there. He had his first heart surgery,

but he couldn't recover from it. He couldn't get off the ventilator and he didn't make it." Their first-born son died before he was a month-old. Morgan and Rodney were facing a grief. No parent should have to endure. Rodney tried to find the words to comfort Morgan. "He was like, even if you don't want to go back to work after this, you don't have to. You thought you were a mom and you were going to get to stay home and you don't want to

make you go back to work." So he was very supportive. But there were times when Rodney couldn't handle the grief. To him, seeing Morgan sad was a reminder of how much they had lost. "He would tell me not to cry because he didn't like to see me cry. And so I didn't, so I didn't feel like I can really grieve all that much." They decided to try for kids again. "We got our twins." My mom says that was the happiest pregnant person she's ever seen.

I enjoyed every second of it. The good, the bad, the ugly. I loved it. When the twins were born, Morgan and Rodney were overjoyed. "I was just illiterate to have healthy babies. We were in heaven. We were just so happy. I brought some light into our world after a really hard few years." Rodney and Morgan made a good team. "We weren't a dynamic duo. We would tackle every news task. We delegated,

we could support each other emotionally. We would just conquer it together." Rodney was working as a car mechanic. And Morgan stayed home with the twins. Dougling parenting and work meant that two of them had less quality time together.

with the twins." Rodney started acting spacey at home and at the mechanics where he worked.

“And one day, Rod got fired because he let a car fall off the lift. It was a dangerous mistake.”

Someone could have died. Rodney insisted that it wasn't his fault. And it's like, "Okay, well, it was your fault." You put the car on the left, you know. So that kind of brought a strain. Rodney needed to find a new way to support their family. So he started doing day trading in a stock market. At first, he was successful. "You need great money. We owned our house. Pretty much at right. I could stay home. The twins

were starting to increase school at this time." They had dealt with a lot of grief.

But they were still able to grow together. And finally, they had what they always wanted.

“Rodney worked full time to support their family,”

freeing up Morgan to raise their twins. One day, Rodney came to Morgan in a panic and told her, "Someone had stolen money from their shared savings account. Morgan didn't really understand what he meant. The details of their finances had always been Rodney's domain. But when she logged in to their shared bank account, she saw that he was right. The account was drained." I just knew that the money was gone, and I was like, "What is going on? This can't possibly

be true." I was just blind-fat-ed. "If your service lasts on, trust the checks with the train."

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"Yes, it's my mom." "Oh, she's amazing, she's amazing, she's amazing."

"Or wherever you get your podcasts." "In the moment, it felt like it was going on forever. I didn't think I was going to live. I was terrified. There was no anything inside those eyes. They turned black. It scared the hell out of me." "That was your first murder case." "Yes, sure." "Fair to say this was the biggest case here, career." "Yes, sir." "Repeat murder of Sean's 12-year-old child." "Bows it, guys."

"I would think so." "People wake up. I'm the one that saw the murder. Take place by crevents and the pimples."

"I said I'm not guilty, I'll take it to the grave."

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podcasts." "And to hear the devil's quarry add free with exclusive content, subscribe to Love of For Good Plus on Apple Podcasts." Morgan and her high-school sweetheart Ronny got married and settled down near their hometown in Georgia. They were living the life they dreamed of since they were teenagers. Rodney worked full-time and Morgan stayed home with their twins. But one day, Rodney came home

in a panic. He told Morgan, "Someone had stolen from their savings account. It was a life-changing amount of money. They wouldn't be able to afford to stay in their house, and so they moved into a rental." "So anyhow, while we're out of the access of money. And so, at that time, he pretty much told me he's like, "Wow, it's your turn,

“provide for those." "Not only was the money gone, but Rodney expected her to fix it.”

Morgan was shocked. This was never their plan. Rodney had always

prided himself on being a provider, and now he was panicking and asking her to fill that role. She had to figure something out to take care of their kids." "And I couldn't go become a hairdresser and support this lavish life, so that we had." "Then she had an idea." "All my friends have always said that I was really good into your design, and so I decided to start my own career to design this, this."

Morgan named her business, ship lap and sugar. It was an immediate success in town. She began working with local clients, and before long, she was working full-time, and was the primary provider for their family. Within a year, ship lap and sugar was voted Canton's number one interior design business. Rodney was in a new role, too. He was staying home with the twins and working for Morgan's interior design company part-time

as a handyman. He helped with the construction side of things, building bunk beds and mounting to core. But soon, he started to overstep. "Sometimes he would try to overtalk me with customers, and chime in about how he thought the main should be done, and it just didn't make us look like we're on the same page. I didn't really like that, and I was like, "This is not your position. I am in charge of running the consultations and speaking to my customers. It was frustrating

to see Rodney try to take control and ownership of the business she had built." "I'm sorry, like you put me in charge of running the household, and providing for the household. I did this myself. I built this from the bottom up." She told Rodney, "To stay in his lane at work,

“and let her manage the business." "That's when I think you should probably look ahead,”

because I was providing for the household, and you know, he had to stay home with the kids."

She and Rodney had always been a team. They met when they were kids, and they'd been together

for more than 15 years. For that entire time, Rodney had been the calm, grounded one. But that began to change. "Here's our impatience. You got very angry, very fast. It just turned ugly and nasty, and that's when it all just started spiraling." Rodney became argumentative and combative with her. "Some nights would be up fighting all night long, and I wouldn't get a minute of sleep, and I had to go work 12 hours. And there was no break

from him, because I worked with him too." Morgan suggested they go to couples therapy, but it didn't go well. "Yeah, kick out one session, because he was so aggressive, and she diagnosed him with PTSD, and he didn't believe it, and he just didn't want help." Rodney started lashing out at Morgan. "He'd started fight, and he would scream, and yell at me,

and follow me around, and drive me insane, until I finally broke an average scream,

and then he turned it around on me, and make me look like the crazy person." "I would be the insane one." He became verbally abusive. "I wouldn't have a hiding in the closet, because I was like, "Please, just shut up. I'm exhausted of hearing you constantly at my throat. It was horrible." Even little things would set him off. The environment in their home shifted.

She felt like she was walking on egg shells. "I didn't want to irritate him. I didn't want to set him off.

The Rodney she had fallen in love with was steady, loving, kind. This new version of him was angry,

impulsive, and cruel. "This soul just turned black. It was very scary, but it was done little by little. And when things are done little by little, you don't really notice changes." Morgan was working hard at building her business. And after a year, they moved out of their rental and bought a new home. But the home she had worked so hard to afford was unsafe for her and their twins.

The kids were just getting older. Rod was more aggressive, and just it became unhealthy and very toxic. That summer, a friend of Morgan Rodney's rented a houseboat for their group of friends for the night. It was a big party. Everyone was having a great time drinking. I almost done. At the end of the evening, Morgan and Rodney went to their room, and we were going to go sleep, but then he attacked me. It was dark as a pitch black because there was no windows in there.

“All I remember is just getting humbled by him. Morgan managed to get away from him and came”

out of their bedroom into the main area of the boat. A few of their friends were still awake, and startled at the sight of her. She was bleeding. Rodney was close on her heels, but when he saw their friends, he quickly came up with a story. He was like, "I cannot believe you attacked me. My gosh, you are so drunk." Morgan and her friends stared at him, dumbfounded. My friends were like, "No, she attacked you. You'd be able to hold her down.

She doesn't even have marks on her, like this and bleeding for you to stop her. She called her parents to come pick her up. I went to their house and I slept for the entire day, and then Rod showed up. He convinced my parents it was me, and then I was the crazy one, and then I attacked him, and that it was all my fault. The more Rodney told the story of Morgan attacking him, the more Morgan began to question her own experience. I was embarrassed. I was like,

"Well, maybe it was me." Because like I said, we had all been drinking and hanging out.

“So it's not like I was completely sober. You question yourself, you know?”

Like, was I wrong? Am I crazy? Did I lose it? Like, what happened? Morgan's memory felt fuzzy. But Rodney seemed to remember everything in perfect detail. He sat on her parents' couch and calmly explained how she attacked him. He was just sit there and lay it all out. So of course, naturally, then I was like, "Oh my gosh, well, maybe it was me. I'm so sorry."

Rodney was physically and emotionally abusing Morgan. He always found a way to make her

take the blame for his actions. He was like, "Okay, well, I'm going to give you a chance, and you're going to get better. You're not going to do this again, so then I feel like I was being given a chance." Like, I need to become a better person. So I feel like I was the one on trial. They went back to their routines. But now, whenever they had an argument, Rodney made Morgan believe she started it. He'd like, "Well, it was your fault." You said this, you did this,

“and I was like, "I don't remember that, but okay, I'm sorry. My mind would play games in me.”

It's like, no, you're at fault. No, no, he's at fault. It was just a cluster of just so many things running through my head." Morgan was losing trust in herself. Rodney was gaslighting her, and his plan was working. She was starting to doubt her own reality. There was a time that we were arguing, and we were walking up the stairs, and he pretended I pushed him down the stairs, and he did it in front of the children, and it was like, "Look,

mom pushed me down the stairs." This time, Morgan did not doubt herself.

I know I did not do this. Like, that was a situation in this scenario where he can never

convince me that I did that. He was trying to get their kids to stop trusting her. "I just decided to grab the kids and go to my boss house." She knew something had to change. She tried to encourage Rodney to seek professional help for his behavior. I didn't want to give up on him. I was trying to get him help, but like, I wanted him to get help. He wouldn't go see a therapist, he wouldn't do anything.

His abuse only escalated. As I know it till listeners, the next scene involves a threat of suicide. "One time we were fighting, and I grabbed the kids, and I went to my parents house, but as I would believe in the driveway, he came out, stood in the driveway, he had a gun, and he pointed it to his head.

"I drove away." Morgan was focused on surviving his abuse and keeping her kids safe.

"I was just trying to get by minute per minute." It was devastating. She still had so much love for this person, but he was not the man she married. Eventually, Morgan told her parents that she needed to leave her marriage. I went to them and was like, "I can't do this anymore." They were on my side. My dad was like, "Okay, call the attorney. We're going to get the divorce. We're done. I get it. I understand."

Hearing her parents affirm her decision to leave, shifted something within Morgan. "I don't know what it was, but a light just came on, and I was like, "I'm torn. I don't have to do this. I could get out." After 11 years of marriage, and nearly 20 years together, Morgan filed for divorce. My divorce was like a month long. The proceedings were extremely fast.

“"He gave me the house, he gave me everything. He didn't fight it, and I think it's because he”

thought he could win me back. Behind the scenes, he was like, "Give me another chance." And it was just constantly begging me and begging me." But Morgan was done giving Rodney chances to change. Their divorce was finalized in December of 2020, and she knew she had made the right decision. "I was feeling free. I just felt cool. Right. I didn't have the urge to want to go back.

I just felt like the weight of the world was off my shoulders. It was a positive change for her kids too. On my kids were like, "Mom, it's so much happier around here. I was like, "Yes. I know I did the right thing." I was just so elated that the house was calm and quiet. Rodney was the only one not adjusting well. Rodney still asking me to get back together with him. Let me give him another chance. Morgan tried her best to ignore him, but he was trying everything to

make her feel bad. It was a few days before his birthday. He said, "Well, no one's going to take me out from my birthday. Can you please go out and make my birthday?" So that was okay. I'll go to dinner for your birthday. The dinner wasn't comfortable. The entire time Rodney was begging her to take him back. She tried to set boundaries between them again. Then a few days before Christmas, Morgan was at her friend's house when she got an email from Rodney. He was writing to let her

know that he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He attached a doctor's note to his email. The cancer had already progressed to stage four by the time they found it. It was a terminal diagnosis. Morgan was stunned. She rushed over to Rodney's house right away.

"And I was like, "I am so sorry. I'm here for you. Your father and my children are always going to

love you." She spent the day at his apartment trying to support him as he wrapped his mind around the diagnosis. When the day came to an end, Rodney told her he was scared to be alone that night. She told him he could come to her house and sleep on the sofa if he needed to.

“"And the following morning, I said, "Okay, you know, I think it's time we call your parents." He's”

like, "I don't want my parents to know." And I was like, "Rodney got in credit cancer." Morgan wanted to support him, but she was frustrated that Rodney only wanted support from her and nobody else. Even though she still cared for Rodney, they were divorced now. I was feeling like, "You know, this isn't really on me." Like, this isn't my responsibility anymore. It was a tough decision, but she knew she couldn't be Rodney's only support system

for her sake and for his. So she called his parents, told them about his diagnosis, and then told him it was time for him to go back home. I was like, "That's it. You're not putting all of this on me." I didn't feel responsible for him anymore. Morgan tried to take a step back and he was so messagingy. He's like, "Let me take you out for New Year's Eve. Let me, let's do the New Year's Eve together." And I was like, "No, I'm not doing it.

I don't want to do it." So she made up an excuse. She told him she was spending the night at her parent's house, so he wouldn't try to come over. Her kids were out of town, so Morgan decided to go

“to a friend's New Year's Eve party. I was there for a little bit, and I was like, "You know what?”

I don't really want to be here. I'm tired. This is my first New Year by myself. I don't

feel like drinking. I just wanted it to be relaxing and I didn't have my kids. I was like, I just want to go home." Her kids were at her sister's house in Florida for the week, and Morgan had the house to herself. She went home, changed into her pajamas, and put on a movie. I fell asleep on the sofa

I heard the neighborhood and it woke me up. And so I was like, "Oh gosh, okay, it was just for a second, and then I've been found. I guess my dog." And I was like, "I have a New Year." She pulled herself off the couch, went to her room, and went back to bed. As a note for listeners, Morgan is about to describe an instance of graphic violence. It was like 30 minutes later or something like that. I woke up again.

There's always been a creek by my door when you walk by it. She heard the floorboard creek

at her eyes snapped open. There's just loud, and I saw this big ear standing in the doorway. He was an all black and had a Batman mask and just covered head to toe and black clothing. The light in the living room was on behind the intruder. He was still a wetted in the doorway. She didn't have a clear view of him. I kept closing and opening my eyes like, "Am I really seeing

“those or not?" The moment that I think he realized my eyes were opened as when he pounced at me.”

I remember letting out this blood curling screen. A screen that he'd never thought would possibly be able to come out of your body. The intruder used zip ties to restrainer. The whole time he

had a gun in her face and he used it to hit her. The attack felt like it lasted forever.

When you're strangled, it is a worse young and entire world. I mean, it's so personal. You're looking up at this person and you can't breathe. I got to a point where I really felt like my body was shut me down and I was done. As thinking of my life, I was going to take my kids. You put a pillowcase over her head and he's sexually assaulted her. Then the intruder began to speak. It sounded like he was using a voice

“changer. The altered voice was deep and gravely. It sounded just like Batman.”

That was definitely a scary thing. But Batman voice sounds. That is what still haunts my dreams. Hey, it would just make all these comments that like you'd mess with the wrong person. You're going to pay for this. The intruder demanded that she share her phone password, scared for her life. She told him. Morgan's mind was racing, trying to figure out who was behind the mask. I'm thinking I had like I do not have anything like this. What is going on?

Then he makes the comment, you're really going to miss your husband. She had to make a split

second decision of how to respond. Something in her new, what the intruder wanted to hear.

And I was like, oh no, please don't hurt my husband. I love him very much.

“And I think that's what saves me because the mood of the entire room changed.”

It wasn't as heavy. It wasn't as dark. It wasn't as deep. His whole persona changed. Just seconds ago, the intruders' violence had been life-threatening. But now, his focus shifted from Morgan to her valuables and what he could steal. Like he was a burglar, more so than there to murder me. He's like, where's your jewelry? And he's very ripping out stuff from my drawers and things like that.

Then the intruder lifted Morgan off of the bed. He kept that pillowcase over my head and then took me outside the back patio, laid me on my outside sofa and he was like, don't move until you hear three carhongs. She complied and listened as the intruders footsteps faded away. I heard the car leave, but I didn't hear any three carhongs. There was still a pillowcase over her head. She didn't know for sure if the intruder had left.

Or if anyone else was watching her. I don't know if it's more the one person. I couldn't see anything and I was trying to keep myself awake because I can feel the blood running down my face. Morgan was severely injured. She focused all of her energy on coaching her self through the pain. She needed to survive this, not only for herself before her children. And I was like, you can have a concussion. Try to stay awake. Try to stay awake at the same time.

I'm thinking in my head, okay, where are your keys at? You're going to run into the car like I was planning things out in my head. She laid on the back patio for 40 minutes, waiting, but then she heard something. We had river rocks in our backyard and I heard someone stepping on them. And then I heard footsteps going at the back deck stairs. And I was like, somebody else

Valveline, instant oil change presents wisdom from the road. Summer means wide open spaces in a whole lot of extra miles. Last place you want your engine to give out is halfway to nowhere.

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change at Valveline, instant oil change includes an 18-point maintenance check. These texture training help spot issues early and give you a run easy. Valveline, instant oil change changed wisely. Hey, I'm Hota Kottby, host of the podcast, joy 101 with Hota Kottby.

Okay, if you know me, you know this. I'm always searching for inspiration, for support,

and useful tools to help maximize joy. So this podcast let's us uncover all of that together. We're going to have these meaningful conversations with the world's most fascinating people.

“Like when actress Olivia Munn shared how she overcame fierce health challenges that she never”

saw coming. I've gone through breast cancer and it helped my mother through breast cancer. And that was more difficult. There's a lot of people who understand post-partner pressure. I was not prepared for post-partner anxiety. Olympic champ Sean Johnson revealed why she had no choice, but to be a gymnast. There was something about gymnastics that was intoxicating to me. It's given me a belief that we all have one of those treasures inside of us. We just have to find it.

Listen to joy 101 with Hota Kottby on the iHeart Radio app, apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

My first guest is Harry Sultan, Shakira, Luke, and Yerin.

“Samira E. Gracie. I'm so excited. I'm so excited.”

On the bounce, you bet. You have surprises, many surprises. Welcome to Sweetpeal 5 with a good chat comes to life. I'm so excited. I'm so excited. I'm so excited. I'm so excited. I'm so excited. I'm so excited. In the moment, it felt like it was going on forever. I didn't think I was going to live. I was terrified. There was no anything inside those eyes. They turned black. It scared the hell out of me.

That was your first murder case. It's fair to say this was the biggest case of your career. Yes, right. The murder of a child is probably more challenging. Balsie gets. I would think so. People wake up and the woman saw the murder, take place by crevents and the people. Anthony DePippo showed no signs of remorse appearing unfazed after being sentenced to the maximum. I said I'm not guilty. I'll take it to the grave.

Listen to the devil's quarry on the iHeart radio app. Apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcast. And to hear the devil's quarry add free with exclusive content. Subscribe to Love of For Good Plus on Apple Podcasts. Morgan was asleep at her house on New Year's Eve, one an intruder broke into her home. He was wearing a Batman mask, black clothing, and disguising his voice with a voice changer. He violently attacked her before leaving her on the back porch. Her head covered with a pillowcase.

He told her not to move until she heard three hongs of a car's horn, but the sounds never came.

So she stayed there for 40 minutes until she heard footsteps approaching. Now's like somebody else is here. She wasn't sure if this was help or the start of a second attack. And then I heard footsteps going at the back deck stairs. The pillowcase was lifted off her head and Morgan looked up to see who had arrived. It was Rodney. He looked very surprised. Morgan was also surprised.

How did Rodney know she needed help? He said, "Well, why is someone

Then Rodney began to tend to Morgan. I'm still naked and I hands her tied and I was crying and it

“took me inside. He took me by the fireplace. He was consoling but also like trying to act like he was”

staying in the day. He said, "I'm going to check the house out. Make sure everything's good. Make sure everyone's gone." He walked around the house, opening closet doors. "I pretty still have under my handcuffs. I got me. My clothes I needed." Then Rodney called the police. Morgan listened, still handcuffed, as he told the nine-month-one dispatcher. "He's gone now and it's no big deal. We don't need to styroons of the lights or the

big old ordeal or anything like that." "I don't think they're like what?" The police made their way to the house at a leisurely pace. Based on Rodney's account, they didn't think it was that serious of a situation. "The police then walked from the front door and he stopped and it's cracked and backed right back outside and called her back up." Rodney sounded calm on the phone, but one look at Morgan told a different story. She had been physically assaulted.

She was bleeding from a head wound. Her face was swelling and starting to turn purple. "I can't even see out of like one eye. My cop was kind of like, "Will you mean this is not this big of a deal?" The police took Rodney aside for questioning. In the meantime, they searched the house. Occasionally someone came over to talk to Morgan, but all of their words faded into one loud hum. "I just felt like I was medicated or something. I was all a blur.

My brain was just going, you know, a thousand miles a minute and I couldn't even keep up with the fact that they were saying." But then, wanted that detective said something that cut through the noise. He told her, "They were arresting Rodney. Morgan's head was spinning.

She remembered the look on Rodney's face when he first saw her injuries.

He had looked surprised. But they had been together since they were teenagers,

“and Morgan knew Rodney's expressions intimately. "It was a genuine shock that I think it was a”

genuine shock of like, holy crap. What did I do now?" Her thoughts were racing. Could Rodney really have done this? Maybe it was then maybe it wasn't. I don't know. I didn't know if he'd hired anybody else. Morgan was taken to the hospital. Luckily, her kids were still out of town staying with her sister. Rodney was the prime suspect. But authorities needed solid proof if they were going to charge him

with the crime. So they got a warrant to search Rodney's apartment. That's when the picture began to come together. Detectives found a book in Rodney's apartment, seven ways to be her hero, a self-help book for men, and Rodney's search history told a disturbing story. They took a computer and they found searches of how to strangle somebody and writing a suicide letter. He also searched for how to change the sound of your voice,

how to get sympathy from your ex, and how long to choke someone unconscious. Then they found physical evidence, zip ties, that looked just like the ones used to restrain Morgan. And they took the zip ties to forensics to see if it was a match. Forensics came back quickly. It was a match. The evidence was overwhelming. Rodney was the intruder. I just dropped the ground and just started crying. Finally, someone saw that it wasn't my fault.

For years, Rodney had been gaslighting Morgan telling her she was to blame for his violence. Now it was finally over. I was just the wrong back. Like, oh my gosh,

“I can't believe he was honestly the statement to look it all up behind.”

In the weeks before the attack, Rodney told Morgan he had terminal cancer. But in their investigation, police discovered a forged doctor's note, proof that Rodney's story was a lie.

It was just so mind boggling. I guess I never really really thought he would go that far.

Rodney had been desperate to regain control of Morgan's life and to get her back. He started by trying to gain her sympathy. When he first told Morgan about his cancer, she was distraught. But even though she was worried for him,

decision. Okay, he's going to go through with what his end game was.

“Morgan had let Rodney sleep on her couch. He said he was scared about his terminal diagnosis.”

But in reality, he had ulterior motives. During that time, I was sleeping. He went downstairs in the basement and said a window sensor off the window. Though he was a planning, his next death. But the window sensor removed, Rodney had an easy way to enter Morgan's house without activating the alarm system. On the night of the attack, he'd asked for Morgan's phone password and gone through her phone. Police discovered, he'd been deleting security footage.

Rodney met Sir was charged with 14 counts related to the attack, including kidnapping, home invasion, armed robbery, aggravated assault, and sexual battery. But one question remained,

“why would Rodney do this to her? Why take it this far? Morgan thinks it's because he wanted to”

create a villain so that he could be the hero? I guess he wanted to gain back that guy next door type of vibe. I want to like it. This is the enemy of the perfect person. But the assistant district attorney who prosecuted the case believes Rodney's motivations were even more sinister. And a press release about Morgan's case, she gave this quote, which we've had read by a voice actor. This man is a master manipulator.

In the days leading up to the attack, he faked a cancer diagnosis in an attempt to gain sympathy from his ex-wife. When that didn't work, he created a convoluted plan that the investigators

“in this case and our office truly believed involved a plot to kill her and then himself.”

When he couldn't go through with that plan, he instead devised a new plan to rescue her. In the weeks following the attack, Morgan's sister agreed to take care of her kids while she focused on recovering. She checked herself into an inpatient rehab for PTSD recovery. But even with professional help, she found herself struggling to return to the life she had before. I didn't want to be left alone in the house, but I didn't want to leave my house because I

worked very hard to pay for that house. At that time, I was too afraid to work because I didn't want to go to random people's houses. I was scared. Nights for the hardest. She didn't feel safe flooding her guard down in her own home. There was a month that I would sleep with my son's ram and just sit in the corner of the ram and stare at the door. I just wouldn't sleep. I couldn't find one part in it, but I refused to let him beat me. Meanwhile, the state built their case against Rodney,

and prepared for trial. I was just talking to the DA constantly. Just constant questions. They came to get a server at my house. They went through a phone. It was just

reliving that moment on for a second for like eight months.

Rodney pled guilty to 14 counts related to the attack. An August 4th, 2021, Rodney was sentenced to 25 years in prison and 45 years of probation. Morgan wanted to go to his sentencing hearing. She prepared a victim impact statement, which she read in the courtroom. In my last statement to him, I said, "You know, Rod, the pain you've given me has turned into so much power." I walked off that stand feeling like weight was lifted off my shoulders. I just felt like I could

breathe a little bit more. I felt like some things about Rodney. In that same press release about

the case, the prosecutor wrote a line that stood out to our team. Here's what she wrote.

This is a classic example of how the most dangerous time for a domestic violence victim is when she decides to leave an abusive relationship. Morgan had to find a way to explain to her kids why they couldn't see their father anymore. She did everything she could to process her trauma and heal for herself and for her kids. It took months, but slowly, I felt like I was more of my self, letting the kids do a little more. Okay, we're going back into routine. Rodney was a defining

felt new. I was trapped by him for so long that I was needing to know my real self too. I had to

re-introduce myself. I felt like I had to relearn how to walk and walk and do faith. Eventually, I started learning to get up every day and learn who the new me was going to be. In her victim impact statement, she told Rodney she would turn the pain he inflicted into power and she did. "Let power it's gotten me through figuring out how to provide for my children. How to figure out how to do daily life."

Today, Morgan's interior design business is thriving. She reclaimed the house where she was attacked and turned it into a loving home and as for her twins, she's proud of the people they're becoming.

“We end every weekly episode with the same question. Why do you want to share your story?”

I'm very lucky. Unfortunately, a lot of women in my situation don't get out a lot. And I just want women to know that it's important to speak to each other and to be open

and to talk about things. I never said meeting out loud. I never really went to a lot of my friends

because I wanted to paint this beautiful picture of my family and nothing's wrong. And as women are each other's biggest supporters and if we say what's going on, maybe we'd have been able to get help out of here. On the next episode of The Trail Weekly. Suddenly, the knock is on my door. I open the door. These two men in street clothes are claiming to be U.S. marshals.

“My whole body is hot. I feel like my stomach is dropped and they show me a picture.”

Yeah, that is my fiance.

If you'd like to share your story on betrayal, please email [email protected].

That is [email protected]. Please note that we are not a mental health organization. If you are in crisis or currently experiencing domestic violence, we encourage you to seek local help or dial 911. Please contact organizations that offer immediate support. In our show notes, we've included a list of U.S.-based resources.

You can follow us on Instagram @patrialpod or find me @itsandrayagunning. To access our newsletter and additional content and to connect with the betrayal community, join our [email protected]. We're grateful for your support. One way to show support is by subscribing to our show on Apple Podcasts. And don't forget to rate and review betrayal. The hive star reviews go a long way. Big thank you to all of our listeners.

Betrayal is a production of glass podcasts, a division of glass entertainment group and partnership with iHeartPodcasts. The show is executive produced by Nancy Glass and Jennifer Fason. Policed and produced by me, Andrea Gunning. Written and produced by Olivia Hewitt. Our story editor is Monique LeBord. Also produced by Ben Fetterman. Our associate producer is Leah Jablow, production management by Kristen Melchiri, booking support by Curry Richmond.

Voice acting by Teresa Christine Brabson. Our iHeart team is Allie Perry, Interestica Crime Check. Audio editing by Tanner Robbins with additional editing and mixing by Matto Bechio. Betrayal's theme composed by Oliver Baines, music library provided by my music. And for more podcasts from iHeart visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

“Joy is essential and it's also elusive but now. There's a new and exciting way to start your”

journey toward a more joyful existence. Joy 101. It's a new podcast hosted by me, how to copy. If you're craving inspiration to maximize your joy, tune into these candid, uplifting and moving on-air chats. Open your free iHeart Radio app search, Joy 101, and listen now. Joy 101 with Hoda Coffee is presented by CVS. I'm Jake Brennan and on my podcast disgraceland, I tell the stories behind music's biggest

names. Like how the story of the food fighters isn't just about music, it's about grief, shock,

as Dave Grohl was in 1994 in Nirvana. In the phone rings, and you learn that you're

“singer and your friend, the reluctant voice of a generation, Kurt Colby, is dead.”

Listen to disgraceland on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

My first guest is Karen Toten, Shakita, Luke, and Yettin.

“I have surprises. Many surprises. Welcome to the sweet 305 podcasts where the group check comes”

to life. What a f***! You're the only person I know that loves the iHala Stiver.

This is sweet 305. Here, oversharing, is encouraged. Listen to sweet 305 with lelepons

“on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts.”

There was no anything inside those eyes. They turned black. It's scared the hell out of me. Evil wake up! I'm the one that saw the murder! Take place by cream at Indepipo. Anthony DiPipo showed no signs of remorse, appearing unfazed after being sentenced to the maximum. I said I'm not guilty, I'll take it to the grave. Listen to the devil's quarre in the bone valley feed on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you get your podcasts.