ial meals, made sure I was resting, and talked endlessly about our future, about the new baby who would heal our broken hearts.

fog was lifting, replaced by the quiet an

ly, a small act of normalcy I was trying to reclaim. While filing away some old investment papers, a fol

ye. It was a hospital form, an official-looking paper with the logo

I picked it up. It wa

rized the donation of a healthy kidney. The recipient' s

ian' s signature, was Mark' s familiar, confident script.

orgery. There had to be an explanation. My mind raced, trying

his desk, unlocked. I had never invaded his privacy before. Our entire marriage was bu

was looking for. I just had to know. I scrolled back, my heart poundin

ersation threa

ath hi

t done? Did y

we predicted. She' s too sen

w, Mark? My son is

t. Lily will be fine, and Ethan will get his kidney.

dent? What are y

already signed the consent form. The doctors are on standby. Once Lily i

scrolling, my body numb with a horror so profound it felt

y god, Mark, the news... they

ney was successfully transplanted. Ethan is stable.

? She' s your wife! S

ut the next step. Sarah is broken. She' ll do anyth

clattered onto the desk, but I didn' t hear

line needs security. If Ethan has another health crisis down the line, or if anyone else ne

e pa

serv

ance

shell of my sanity. The man who held me while I wept, the man who promised me ju

. He had murdered her. He had harvested her organs for his n

o, the future I had started to hope for-it was al

hest. I placed a hand on my belly, on the new life stirring within me. A life conceived in lies,

new feeling, this betrayal, was something else ent

ront door ope

Honey, I'

. He was still playing the part. The loving husband. He came up the stairs,

I was just thin

didn't just fade, it vanished, replaced by a flicker of something I' d never seen before,

s it? What' s w

Even now. The perfo