Writer Eilene Zimmerman and her ex-husband Peter had been separated for several years when Peter, a wealthy, high-powered attorney, began acting erratically. Days would go by and Zimmerman would hear nothing from him. Peter forgot to prepare meals for the kids and missed cross-country meets and school pickups. Then, when the kids were 16 and 18, Zimmerman drove to check in on her former spouse, who had been exhibiting alarming flu-like symptoms. She was shocked to find him dead on the floor. “I tried to listen for a heartbeat and I couldn’t hear one. … I ran out of the house because I was afraid,” Zimmerman says. When the police and EMTs arrived, they identified drugs and drug paraphernalia among Peter’s possessions. In the days and weeks that followed, Zimmerman learned that Peter had been addicted to cocaine and opioids, and that his death had been caused by infective endocarditis , an infection that is sometimes linked to intravenous drug use. “The worst part was telling my kids
The Y'allywood Reporter
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