Chapter 3
After work, instead of going straight home, I went to Silverbrook Residences.
The security guard at the entrance stopped me. "Ma'am, who are you here to see?"
"Visiting a friend," I replied. "Winona Reed in Building 3."
"Wait a moment, I'll get you registered," he said.
I gave him a fake name and a fake number.
Once I was inside, I found Building 3. It was a luxury building, with only two apartments per floor.
'Which floor does Winona live on?' I wondered.
I had no idea. But I did know one thing. My husband had dropped 130,000 dollars on a parking spot here.
I stood outside the building, looking up at the windows glowing with light. One, two, three. 'Which one is hers?' I wondered.
My phone rang. It was David.
"Hello?" I answered.
"Where are you? It's late, why aren't you home yet?" David asked.
"Working overtime," I said. "The company's slammed at the end of the year. You wouldn't get it."
He was quiet for a few seconds on the other end. "Get home early."
"Yeah." I hung up, took one last look at Building 3, and turned to leave.
On my way home, I picked up some fried chicken. Alex loved it.
When I opened the door, Alex came running over and hugged my leg. "Mommy!"
"Hey, sweetie, I brought you some fried chicken," I said.
"Yay!" he cheered.
I picked him up and kissed his cheek.
Alex was three years old, chubby and soft, with two dimples when he smiled. He had no idea that his dad might not be around for him anymore.
"Mommy, where's Daddy?" Alex asked.
"Daddy's in the study," I said.
"Daddy never plays with me," Alex pouted.
"Daddy's busy," I replied. "But Mommy's here for you."
Alex wrapped his arms around my neck and whispered, "Mommy, you're the best."
My nose got all tingly, and I nearly burst into tears.
After tucking Alex in for the night, I sat down in the living room and turned on the computer. David always used the family computer, and his account was still logged in.
I clicked on the chat history. Winona's profile was online. But the whole chat was barely a single okay.
It was obvious he'd wiped the rest. But the app backed everything up to the cloud. He probably didn't realize.
I hit Restore Backup and waited. Loading.
I stared at the screen, my heart racing.
Ding, restore complete.
I opened up Winona's chat history. The screen was flooded with messages. Over a hundred pages.
I took a deep breath and started scrolling from the very beginning. The first message was from three years ago.
David: [Winona, welcome to the team. Looking forward to working with you.]
Winona: [Thanks, Mr. Carter.]
Three years ago, Alex had barely been born. I was stuck at home, recovering from childbirth, up all night breastfeeding, dead tired.
Meanwhile, David was at the office, playing the good guy with the new hire.
I kept scrolling.
David: [Want to grab dinner tonight?]
Winona: [Sure.]
David : [I know this awesome spot.]
Winona: [Can't wait.]
David: [I miss you.]
Winona: [Me too.]
My hands were trembling.
David : [Happy birthday, babe.]
Winona: [Thanks, honey.]
David: [Did you get the necklace?]
Winona: [I did. It's gorgeous. I love it so much!]
David: [If you love it, then twenty grand was totally worth it.]
I paused. Twenty thousand dollars. This year, for my birthday, David gave me a silk scarf for a hundred dollars.
"Money's a bit tight right now. I'll make it up to you next time," he said.
A hundred bucks for me, twenty grand for her.
I kept flipping through the pages.
David: [Come over to Silverbrook Residences this weekend. I'll cook for you.]
Winona: [Okay.]
David: [The parking spot's all set. Parking will be a breeze for you now.]
Winona: [You're the best, honey.]
David: [Anything for you, it's all worth it.]
My eyes burned, not because I was sad, but because I was furious. Three years, he lied to me, every single day.
I took screenshots of every single message, one hundred and fifty-six in total. I saved them all in an encrypted folder. Then I shut down the computer and walked into the home office.
David was glued to his video game. "What do you want?" he said, without taking his eyes off the screen.
"Nothing," I said. "Heading to bed."
"Got it," he replied.
I turned and quietly closed the door behind me.
Three years. 156 screenshots. 47 transfers. 60,000 dollars. A necklace worth twenty thousand dollars. A parking spot that cost 130,000 dollars.
I thought, 'David, everything you owe me. I'll make sure to settle it, one by one.'