Podcast Summary: Betrayal Weekly | Brooke

Podcast: Betrayal: Seasons 1, 2, 3 & 4
Host: Andrea Gunning (iHeartPodcasts and Glass Podcasts)
Episode: Betrayal Weekly | Brooke
Date: September 19, 2025

Overview

In this deeply personal episode of Betrayal Weekly, ICU nurse Brooke Fisk shares her harrowing story of trust, love, and a nearly fatal betrayal by someone she once considered her partner and confidant. After a divorce and journey toward independence, Brooke fell in love with Sikander "Sick" Imran, a medical resident. Their relationship unexpectedly led to pregnancy—and then to a shocking act of violence when Sick, unable to reconcile his cultural expectations with Brooke's pregnancy, secretly attempted to induce an abortion with misoprostol, putting both Brooke and her child's lives at risk. Through candid storytelling, Brooke recounts the emotional aftermath, the criminal proceedings, and her hard-earned path to healing.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Brooke’s Journey to Independence and Love

• Divorce and Self-Discovery:

  • Brooke reflects on the end of her 11-year marriage and her conscious effort to regain her independence.
  • “It was very shocking to me what little independence I had so, so easily fallen into. And I didn’t want to be like that.” (04:22, Brooke Fisk)

• A New Relationship:

  • Hesitant to date seriously, Brooke eventually falls for Sick, a medical resident, after months of friendship and clear boundaries.
  • Brooke’s anecdotal moment: “He shot Brooke a smile, which, you know, was funny and flirtatious and maybe a little inappropriate at the time, but, yeah, that was the first time I remember meeting him.” (07:14, Brooke Fisk)

2. Managing Boundaries Amid Cultural Differences

• Brooke’s Reluctance:

  • She was initially firm on not dating doctors due to the nurse-doctor stereotype.
  • Integration into each other’s families was gradual, complicated by Sick’s cultural background and expectations of marrying within his culture.

• Future at an Impasse:

  • As Sick completes his residency and faces pressure to settle down, the couple agrees that Brooke won’t move for him and that marriage is off the table.

3. Breaking Point: The Decision to End the Relationship

• Sick’s Arranged Marriage:
  • After a final romantic trip, Sick discloses to Brooke that he’s agreed to an arranged marriage.
  • “He seemed resigned to it. He seemed sad about it. He talked about it like he was going to get a girl who wanted to marry a doctor.” (25:31, Brooke Fisk)
  • Brooke ends communication, recognizing the inevitability of their separation.

4. Unexpected Pregnancy and Sick’s Descent

• Discovering Pregnancy:

  • Brooke learns she is pregnant shortly after their breakup and debates whether to tell Sick.
  • Ultimately decides: “Is it fair of me to not give him that choice and that opportunity to take part in his child’s life?... I decided to tell him because I thought that it was the right thing to do.” (28:11, Brooke Fisk)

• Sick’s Reaction:

  • He immediately urges her to have an abortion and, when Brooke refuses, repeatedly pressures her through calls and texts.
  • “That started months of phone calls and text messages begging and pleading with me to have an abortion... telling me I was ruining his life.” (29:38, Brooke Fisk)

5. The Poisoning Attempt

• A Suspicious Visit:
  • After initial hostility, Sick later invites Brooke to D.C. to set up a parenting plan.
  • During the visit, Brooke senses abnormal behavior, culminating in a sweet, gritty tea that she suspects contains ground pills.
  • “I spit it back in the cup, and I put the cup down, and I said that I had to go to the bathroom... I wasn’t sure what to do.” (36:36, Brooke Fisk)
  • Brooke collects evidence, plans to escape, but before she can leave, goes into labor from heavy bleeding.

6. Medical Emergency and Revelation

• Hospitalization and Confrontation:
  • Despite Brooke begging Sick to call 911, he refuses, insisting he can handle it as a doctor.
  • Finally, when Brooke reveals, “Your son is dying,” he calls for help (46:23).
  • At the hospital, Brooke discreetly tells staff her suspicion and provides the cup fragments for testing (48:32).
  • After her son, Kai, is stillborn, Brooke confronts Sick. He confesses to administering misoprostol with the justification:
    • “He said it like he thought that he was doing something benevolent for me, but he wasn’t. He was taking from me somebody that I loved, somebody that I wanted in my life.” (54:59, Brooke Fisk)
  • Police arrive and arrest Sick, who confesses again under questioning.

7. Aftermath: Healing, Accountability, and Resilience

• Family and Emotional Fallout:

  • Brooke struggles with guilt and heartbreak, especially when she tells her children their new sibling was killed.
  • “I went down to D.C. thinking that I was making a parenting plan. And I came back missing my baby...” (59:31, Brooke Fisk)

• Legal Process:

  • Sick pleads guilty after Brooke goes public with her story.
  • Facing up to life in prison, Brooke requests leniency in sentencing out of a sense of mercy.
    • “I really think that rather than wasting the rest of his life sitting in prison, Sick owes it to Kai to do something with his life.” (63:32, Brooke Fisk)
    • Ultimately, Sick serves four years and is deported.

• Moving Forward:

  • Brooke channels her pain into personal growth—completing a master’s degree, teaching, and practicing jiu-jitsu.
  • She and her kids memorialize Kai with a gravestone reading “superheroes never sleep.” (65:46, Brooke Fisk)

8. Powerful Reflections on Survival and Strength

• Brooke’s Closing Words:
  • “No matter what happens, no matter what you go through, you get stronger and you learn to carry it... If I could make it through that, people can make it through anything. They really can.” (66:20, Brooke Fisk)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Brooke’s realization post-divorce:

  • “It was very shocking to me what little independence I had so, so easily fallen into. And I didn’t want to be like that.” (04:22)

• On the beginning of her relationship with Sick:

  • “We really developed kind of a friendship, first kind of relationship. So we would spend a lot of time watching movies, going to movies. I taught him how to cook rice American style.” (08:51)

• After learning of the arranged marriage:

  • “Even though part of me felt like he was still mine, he really wasn’t mine anymore.” (25:47)

• Sick’s attempt at rationalization:

  • “He said the reason... he knew that if I made the decision to have an abortion, I would be unhappy... so he was making the decision for me so I wouldn’t have to live with it.” (54:59)

• Brooke’s reflection on betrayal:

  • “Because either I loved a monster and never knew he was a monster, or I loved a man and then he became a monster. One of those is true.” (61:51)

• On survival and resilience:

  • “I look back and I think, wow, I made it through that. If I could make it through that, people can make it through anything. They really can.” (66:20)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Brooke’s journey to independence after divorce – 04:22–05:20
• Meeting and resisting Sick’s advances – 06:26–07:36
• Getting serious, traveling, integrating families – 12:19–16:27
• The crossroads: residency, distance, and break-up – 17:06–18:50
• Discovering pregnancy, Sick’s escalating pressure – 27:18–31:37
• Brooke’s D.C. visit and poisoning attempt – 32:09–40:00
• Medical crisis and hospital intervention – 41:53–50:07
• Confrontation, Sick’s confession, and arrest – 54:46
• Legal outcome and reflections – 62:57–66:20

Conclusion

Brooke Fisk’s story is a testament to how trust can be shattered in the most unimaginable ways, even by those closest to us. Her courage in sharing the details—the emotions, the aftermath, and the slow process of recovery—offers not just a riveting true-crime account but a message of strength, resilience, and hope for others surviving their own betrayals.