【You'd better not forget—half the money to hire those thugs came off your card! If she reports it, you don't walk away clean either!】

Dennis: 【I've been by her side for days now. She trusts me. She won't go to the police.】

Hailey: 【Then when are you coming over to me?】

Dennis: 【The second she's asleep.】

My breathing turned shallow, and my fingers wouldn't stop shaking.

He'd left me standing there in my wedding dress and gone to Hailey's bed.

He was the one who'd paid to have me destroyed.

I put the backup phone back in the drawer.

The hospital room door opened.

"Sweetheart, why aren't you asleep yet?"

He came to the bed and tucked the blanket in around me.

"I was about to. The company's swamped, you don't have to stay with me."

"Out of the question. I've already taken the time off. Once you're feeling better, I'll take you somewhere to relax."

Dennis smoothed my hair.

"All right. Let's do the discharge tomorrow, then."

All I wanted now was to leave this place. To leave him.

The day I was discharged, we went home.

The red double-happiness cutouts in the living room had all been stripped away, replaced with beige curtains and a beige rug.

Dennis poured a glass of warm water and set it on the coffee table, then took out his phone and tapped a few times.

My phone buzzed.

A bank text. Twenty thousand dollars deposited.

"Sweetheart, take this twenty thousand. Buy yourself some clothes, some jewelry, whatever you like. From now on I'll hand over my whole paycheck to you every month."

Dennis sat down beside me.

"Keep it. I don't need money."

I was about to send it back when he stopped me.

"Take it. I want to make it up to you."

Just then came a knock at the door.

Dennis frowned, stood, and went to answer it.

Hailey stood outside in a bright red slip dress.

"Well, well. Heard Angela got discharged, so I came to pay my respects."

She craned her neck to peer into the apartment.

Dennis blocked the doorway. "What are you doing here? Get lost!"

"Dennis, why are you standing in my way?"

Hailey let out a laugh. "Afraid she'll fall apart if she sees me?"

Dennis seized her wrist, yanked her out into the hall, and slammed the door shut with a bang.

The two of them were in this together, and here they were putting on a show like they couldn't stand each other.

I wanted to know exactly how they carried on behind my back.

I got up, went to the door, and pressed my eye to the peephole.

The hallway's motion light was on.

Hailey shook off his grip and jabbed a finger into his chest.

"Dennis, what's with the attitude?"

She lowered her voice. "What, you feel sorry for her, seeing her like that?"

Dennis grabbed her finger. "I told you to leave her alone!"

Hailey gave a cold laugh. "Don't forget—the getaway money for those thugs came from you!"

"If you can't handle her and she goes to the cops, we all go down together!"

"Fine. I'll go in right now and tell her exactly where you were on our wedding night—"

Hailey stepped forward as if to grab the door handle.

"Shut your mouth!"

Dennis hauled her back and pinned her hard against the white hallway wall.

He lowered his head and covered her mouth with his.

Hailey braced both hands against his chest, gave a token push or two, then wound her arms around his neck.

Right there outside the door, the two of them tangled together in plain sight.

His hand even slid up under the hem of her dress.

I let go of the door handle and stepped back.

I couldn't watch that disgusting scene a second longer.

I curled my hands into fists and forced myself to breathe steady.

I don't know how much time passed before Dennis came back.

He locked the door behind him and threw the keys down hard on the shoe cabinet.

He crouched in front of the couch and wrapped his arms around my waist.

"I'm sorry, Angela. I never thought she'd have the nerve to show up in front of you. I cursed her out and sent her away."

Dennis lifted his head. "Don't worry. As long as I'm here, she won't take one more step toward hurting you."

I looked at his lips, faintly red, and the mark on his collar.

Suddenly it all felt so pointless. Tangling with garbage—you win and you've still lost.

"Okay. I believe you."

I pretended to go along with it. I already knew what I was going to do.

"What do you want for lunch? I'll make it."

Dennis stood up.

"I want barbecue ribs," I said.

Dennis went into the kitchen. Water started running as he washed the vegetables.

I took out my phone and called Grandma Abbott.

"Grandma, are you home?"

"I'm home. What's the occasion, Angela, calling like this?"

Grandma's voice came through.

"I want to come back."

"Is Dennis coming back with you?"

"No. I'm coming by myself. I'm planning to quit the job here. I'll be staying for good."

"All right. I'll make up your bed for you."

After I hung up, I opened the ticket app and bought a bus ticket to the small town.

For the last three days, I didn't bring up Hailey again, and I didn't bring up going to the police.

Every morning I got up early to make Dennis noodles, and every night I ironed his clothes and hung them in the closet.

Dennis watched me and smiled while he ate.

"Baby, you finally came around. Let's just live our lives from now on and forget about the past."

Dennis said.

I nodded. "Eat up. The noodles are getting cold."

The last night before I left.

I was sitting on the couch.

My phone screen lit up.

A video message.

The sender was an unknown number.

I opened the video.

The picture showed a hotel bed.

Dennis had his eyes closed.

"Dennis, between me and Angela, who makes you feel better?"

Hailey asked in the video.

Dennis didn't open his eyes. He rolled over and pulled her into his arms.

"Why bring her up right now? She's a block of wood. In bed she's like a corpse. She could never let go the way you do."

Dennis's voice came through clearly. "Stop talking. Again."

Hailey gave the camera a little smile and laid the phone face-down on the table.

Then, from the dark screen, came sounds no one should have to hear.

Right after, that number sent a text.

【Angela, did you see it? Your man is already disgusted with you now that another man has had you.】

【He's in my bed every day now. He's coming to me again tonight. Do you want to come watch?】

I gripped the phone, my nails digging into my palm.

The running water in the kitchen stopped.

Dennis dried his hands and came out.

He glanced at his phone.

He went into the bedroom to get his jacket.

"Angela, there's a huge bug on the company server. My manager wants me to go in right now. Go to sleep early. Don't wait up for me."

"You have to go in this late?"

I asked from the couch.

"Nothing I can do. That's just how this line of work is."

Dennis walked to the door and put on his shoes.

He came back to me, bent down, and kissed my forehead.

"Baby, be good and wait at home for me to come back."

The lock clicked shut.

The footsteps in the hallway faded away.

I didn't hesitate any longer.

I packed my suitcase fast and headed for the bus station.

Eleven-thirty at night.

Dennis walked in carrying a bag of barbecue.

The apartment was pitch dark.

"Angela, I'm back. Look, I got you grilled vegetables—"

Dennis flipped the switch on the wall.

The living room lit up. There was no one there.

Dennis froze for a second, then strode into the bedroom.

"Angela?"

No one on the bed, the blanket folded neatly.

He turned and slid open the closet door.

The left half was empty.

He rushed into the bathroom.

Half the things on the counter were gone.

He ran back to the living room and saw the diamond ring and the bank card on the coffee table right away.

He pulled out his phone, fingers shaking, and dialed my number.

A cold woman's voice came through the speaker:

"We're sorry. The number you have dialed is not in service. Please check the number and try again."

Dennis hung up and dialed again.

"We're sorry. The number you have dialed is not in service—"