Chapter 4

For the next few days, Evelyn and I kept up the act.

During the day, she lay in bed, her eyes vacant, drooling, and wetting the sheets.

I played the part of the dutiful one, feeding her, wiping her down, and changing the sheets.

Every day after work, Zack would glance at Evelyn, then disappear into his room to mess around on his phone.

Not once did he bother to help out.

On the fifth night, after I'd fed Evelyn, Zack's phone started ringing.

He glanced at the caller ID, then stepped onto the balcony to take the call.

I kept cleaning up the dishes, straining to hear what was going on.

Zack spoke in a hushed tone. "Hello, Dad. The notary? That soon? No, Yvette's home. What now?"

But I still heard everything.

"Are you saying... Isn't that too risky?" Zack asked. "Alright, I'll go with your plan."

He hung up and came back into the living room.

I pretended I hadn't heard a thing and kept washing the dishes in the kitchen.

"Yvette," Zack suddenly called out.

"Yeah?" I turned around.

"Tomorrow's Saturday. Why don't you go out, walk around, and maybe pick up something you like?" Zack pulled a few bills from his wallet and handed them to me. "You've helped a lot these days."

I glanced at the cash, sneering to myself. "No need, I don't need your money."

"Take it." Zack forced the money into my hand. "Get out of the house tomorrow, alright? Don't sit around here."

"What about Evelyn?" I asked.

"I'll be here to watch her," Zack said. "I'm off tomorrow anyway."

I looked at him and nodded. "Alright then."

As soon as Zack went back to his room, I went straight to Evelyn's bedside and whispered, "Evelyn, they're going to make their move tomorrow."

She opened her eyes, suddenly alert. "What are they up to?"

"I overheard them. James told Zack to get me out of the house." I told her everything I'd heard. "They're definitely coming tomorrow. Maybe for the notary, or..."

I paused. "Or maybe something even riskier."

Evelyn squeezed my hand. "Yvette, tomorrow, act like you're heading out, but don't actually leave. Hang around outside and keep watch. Let's see what they're up to."

I nodded. "I'll have my phone and record the whole thing."

"Okay," Evelyn replied. "If anything goes down, call the cops. Don't worry about me. Look out for yourself first."

I looked at her. "Evelyn, relax. I won't let them touch you."

*****

Early the next morning, I played my part. I changed into some new clothes, grabbed my bag, and walked out like I was really leaving.

I went downstairs, pretending to head toward the front gate.

Halfway there, I ducked into the stairwell of our building.

From here, I had a clear view of our apartment window.

I took out my phone, hit record, and waited.

About half an hour later, James showed up.

He was followed by two strangers.

One of them was wearing a doctor's coat.

I tensed up. A doctor? What were they planning?

I raised my phone and started filming.

The three of them headed into the building.

After waiting a few minutes, I quietly slipped upstairs and stood right outside our apartment door.

The door was left slightly ajar, enough for a sliver of space.

I leaned in and peeked through the crack.

In the living room, James and Zack stood by Evelyn's bed.

The guy in the white coat crouched next to the bed, holding a syringe in his hand.

"James, are you really sure about this?" the man asked. "If anything goes south, I'm not taking the fall."

"Don't worry. Nothing will happen." James handed him an envelope. "Once she gets this shot, her heart will fail. It'll look like she died naturally."

My hands were shaking. They were really going to kill Evelyn.

"Dad, are you sure this won't cause any trouble?" Zack's voice was shaky.

"What are you afraid of?" James scoffed. "Look at her. She's already half gone. Sooner or later, she's going to die.

"We're speeding things up for her. Once we sell the house, all the cash is ours."

The man flicked the syringe, squeezing out a drop to check the dose. "Alright, here goes."

He brought the needle right up to Evelyn's arm.

My mind went completely blank.

I couldn't let them do this.

I threw the door open and burst in. "Stop."