UNDATED (WTAQ) - For the first time, we're hearing from Steven Avery's fiancé about their relationship.
54-year-old Lynn Hartman, a Las Vegas-based legal secretary, sat down for a two-part Dr. Phil special which first aired Monday.
"I kind of felt an instant connection after watching the entire documentary," recalls Hartman about how she first learned about Avery. The Netflix series "Making a Murderer" chronicles Avery and his family during his 2007 conviction for the murder of Teresa Halbach.
Hartman explains to Dr. Phil that she was going through a divorce, with a man who was a 30-year veteran of law enforcement, and that letters from Avery helped mend her heart.
"He was sort of a support person for me while I was going through this hard time with my divorce," Hartman says.
The letters became phone calls, multiple times per week at 30 minutes per call, which began to end with Avery saying he loved her.
"After a couple of months of writing, he started referring to me as his wife," says Hartman. "And he would sign his letters 'love your husband Steven Avery'."
Hartman claims she's been bullied online because of this relationship, and that her love for Avery has driven a wedge in her family. Part two of that interview airs Tuesday.
Meantime, multiple reports suggest that the Dr. Phil interview has caused the couple to split up. A source tells PEOPLE that something, "happened at Dr. Phil." Avery's family is also reportedly suspicious of Hartman's intentions even before the couple met in person.
Avery is currently appealing his conviction.
