I told her I had left work early because I felt feverish.
When I got home, I made sure my eyes looked tired enough to support the story.
Melissa touched my forehead.
For one awful second, the tenderness felt real.
I almost broke.
Instead, I told her I would sleep in the spare room so she wouldn’t catch whatever I had.
That night, I heard her laughing quietly in the bedroom.
Messaging somebody.
I barely slept.
Then something occurred to me.
Maybe I had been searching for Cole under the wrong name.
Chapter 8: The Dumbbell
The following morning, Melissa showered.
I opened her phone.
We had always known each other’s passcodes.
That was part of why I had doubted my own suspicions.
A cheater would change the password, right?
Not Melissa.
She was smarter.
I linked her messaging account to my laptop.
Then I found the contact.
A female name.
Profile picture: a dumbbell.
The conversation looked ordinary at first.
Work language.
Meetings.
Papers.
Boss.
Office.
Then I read carefully.
Boss is still in the office.
Can you bring the documents to my desk?
Meeting moved to 5:30.
Melissa did not have an office.
Her boss was a woman.
And suddenly “boss” meant me.
“Documents” meant something else.
“Meeting” meant Cole.
Most older messages had been deleted.
The remaining ones were enough to show a system.
Not enough to prove an affair legally.
My attorney confirmed that.
“You know what it means.”
“Yes.”
“A court may not.”
He needed better evidence.
Photographs of them kissing would help.
But the cleanest evidence would come from my own home.
I thought about installing cameras.
Then I realized there might be an easier way.
I told Melissa my flu test had come back positive.
“I’ll stay at my parents’ house for a few days.”
She tried to sound disappointed.
“That’s probably safer.”
Within minutes, a message appeared.
Boss is leaving the office tonight.
I stared at the screen.
She had taken the bait.
Chapter 9: The Suitcase
When I arrived home after work, my suitcase was already packed.
Melissa had folded everything neatly.
Shirts.
Underwear.
Toiletries.
Even my phone charger.
She was that eager to help me leave.
That hurt more than I expected.
I told her I would miss her.
She checked her watch twice.
Then she walked me all the way to my car.
That bothered me.
Why make sure I actually drove away?
My father and older brother were parked a block from the condo, watching for Cole’s arrival.
Half an hour passed.
Nothing.
Then the answer came to me.
“He’s already inside.”
My father frowned.
“How?”
“Garage.”
Or stairwell.
Or maybe Melissa had brought him in while I was still at work.
I drove back.
My father and brother followed.
Luis saw me enter but asked no questions.
I moved quietly down the hallway.
Music came from our bedroom.
Then I heard them.
I took out my phone.
Started recording.
Clothes were lying across the small couch outside the bedroom.
His.
Hers.
I opened the door.
And there they were.