Maureen Skinner Smith is a woman who learned to recognize a predator by living with one. She was not a psychologist, but a small-town hairdresser who built a life on faith and classic cars. After cancer stole her first love, a charming man with a con artist’s smile saw a perfect target. He saw a widow with a paid-off home, a successful business, and a heart ready to love again.

For ten years, he was a lesson in deception. Maureen, however, was a relentless student. She did not just endure his schemes; she studied them. She dissected his lies, tracked his financial theft, and ultimately diagnosed him using a clinical checklist of psychopathic traits. She moved from a victim in the fog to a strategist in the light, systematically reclaiming every piece of her life he tried to steal.

Now, she writes with the sharp clarity of someone who has stared into the eyes of a wolf and not only survived, but learned its every tactic. Maureen does not trade in platitudes. She deals in the raw, unvarnished truth. Her voice is a powerful blend of a survivor’s fire and a teacher’s precision, offering not just hope, but a concrete blueprint for anyone ready to take their own power back.