<\/p>\n
Validation.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s what Niagara-on-the-Lake-born-and-raised singer-songwriter Catherine Leniarsky says she needed most while living through an abusive relationship \u2014 and what she hopes someone else finds when they hear her new song, \u201cHouse of Cards.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leniarsky, 37, waited more than two years to release the song she says she has never felt more compelled to share, holding it back until the trial involving her accused abuser was over.<\/p>\n
Now, with the trial behind her, she\u2019s releasing it on July 16, the third anniversary of the day she fled the relationship.<\/p>\n
The track, produced by a team that included two producers from NOTL, will be released at midnight as July 16 turns to July 17 and will be available on all streaming platforms.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing in an abusive relationship is very confusing,\u201d Leniarsky says, and finding the courage to report it was \u201cnearly impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt took a lot of coaxing from mental health professionals and people that cared.\u201d<\/p>\n
The case eventually went worked its way through the court system, with a three-day trial beginning Oct. 31, 2025.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s how slow our justice system is,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt took me two-and-a-half years to get to court.\u201d<\/p>\n
The man was found not guilty on four charges, leaving Leniarsky with a peace bond that bars him from having contact with her.<\/p>\n
She says the experience exposed what she sees as a serious gap in the justice system: a lack of understanding among some court professionals \u2014 mostly judges \u2014 about the specific dynamics of abusive relationships.<\/p>\n
Still, Leniarsky feels reporting it mattered.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m very thankful that I did.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI know that if I hadn\u2019t reported, the girl that my abuser eventually went on to date after me wouldn\u2019t have reported him,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd she got it a lot worse than I did.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leniarsky says\u00a0therapy, friendship and community helped her heal enough to share her experience.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt probably took me at least a year to feel comfortable talking about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s around the time when I started to write this song,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
Leniarsky worked with NOTL producers Adrian and Lucas Rezza, a Toronto videographer and his assistant, and her guitar player and partner.<\/p>\n
All are men.<\/p>\n
That mattered to her because it challenged the way she had come to see men in the music industry.<\/p>\n
The person she had been in a relationship with was a Toronto musician and the experience had left her with a terrible view of men in that world.<\/p>\n
This time, she says, she had kind, compassionate, encouraging and safe men behind her.<\/p>\n
Working with them helped change her view of men in the music industry and became an important part of her healing.<\/p>\n
The song\u2019s title, \u201cHouse of Cards,\u201d reflects how she now understands abusive relationships: built on lies and far more fragile than they may seem.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe idea that abusive relationships are typically built on lies and are about as strong as a house of cards,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
One line in the song captures the point where fear begins to turn into defiance: \u201cGo ahead and collect all the ammo you can, it won\u2019t scare me this time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leniarsky says the \u201cammo\u201d in the lyric refers to everything an abuser can weaponize to keep someone small, quiet and afraid to tell others what is happening.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo your worst. It\u2019s not going to scare me. I know it\u2019s all based on lies.\u201d<\/p>\n
She hopes the song gives other survivors the validation to remember their worth and know they are not alone.<\/p>\n
\u201cValidation when you\u2019re in an abusive relationship is huge.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou get to a point where you think everything is your fault,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
Though she has written music her whole life, Leniarsky says she has \u201cnever felt so compelled\u201d to release a song before.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is incredibly important to me to be loud about this topic,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis song, to me, is remembering what I\u2019m worth, remembering what I deserve \u2014 and it\u2019s when I started to feel empowered again and remember who I was.\u201d<\/p>\n