Flobelle 'Belle' Fairbanks Burden, a prominent New York society heiress and lawyer, has provided a harrowing account of the day her two-decade marriage collapsed, after her husband confessed to an affair with a younger woman and abandoned their family.
The Lockdown Betrayal That Ended a Marriage
In March 2020, as the world retreated into lockdown, Burden, then 56, her financier husband Henry Davis, 60, and their children sought refuge at their $4.7 million holiday home on Martha's Vineyard. What began as a period of 'delightful' stability shattered just six days later. On March 21, 2020, Burden received a voicemail from an unknown man stating, 'your husband is having an affair with my wife.'
When confronted, Davis admitted to the month-long relationship with a 35-year-old woman he met through work. The very next morning, he announced he wanted a divorce, packed a bag, and left for New York City without saying goodbye to their daughters. He allegedly told Burden he wanted to check on his mistress, who had reportedly attempted suicide after the affair was exposed.
The Ice-Cold Financial and Emotional Aftermath
In the acrimonious months that followed, Davis's actions, according to Burden, confirmed her fears that he sought complete detachment from their former life. Shortly after the split, the multi-millionaire financier bought a sleek, two-bedroom apartment in Manhattan. Burden, a descendant of railroad tycoon Cornelius Vanderbilt, noted the apartment's size made it impossible to host his three children.
'I still thought he would want to make a home for his children,' Burden told the New York Times. Her hopes were彻底 dashed when Davis converted the second bedroom into a home office, leaving zero space for visitors. This move was, for her, the final confirmation he did not want custody or overnight stays.
A Memoir of Anguish and Unanswered Questions
Burden has detailed these events in her upcoming memoir, Strangers: A Memoir of Marriage. She describes being treated with a 'consistent lack of empathy' by Davis, who hired a prominent divorce lawyer and, after a few weeks, ceased contact altogether. Davis's siblings, once close to Burden, also cut ties to support him.
While Davis occasionally sees their children for dinners or tennis, Burden remains the sole guardian, handling all parenting duties without formal handovers or shared holidays since the day he left. She reflects on being left at age 50, the same age Davis 'reached a pinnacle of professional success,' and admits she may never understand his reasons. 'I don't know why he left. I don't think I ever will,' she writes.
The couple, who married in June 1999 after meeting at a corporate law firm, were once featured in a New York Times wedding announcement. Burden recalls being drawn to his 'steadiness,' a trait reminiscent of her father, former New York City Councilman Carter Burden. Now, her memoir lays bare the devastating unravelling of that life during a global pandemic.
