My Husband's Deadly Double Life

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und in Eliot' s guest room. I fumbled for it, my mind still thick with sleep and the lingering shadows of nightmares. It was the caregiver fro

ean, gone? Where could she go?" M

as a distraction, a fire alarm in the we

My mind screamed her name. This was n

us?" I demanded,

The live broadcast just started. T

o doubt, would be at his side, basking in the glow of his reflected glor

My hair was a mess, my eyes probably wild. I ordered an Uber, my voice hoarse, demanding the fastest route to the gala venue.

and champagne, the clinking of glasses, the murmur of polite conversation. Everyone was in designer gowns and tailored tuxedos, their faces carefully composed

. Baylee, stunning in a shimmering emerald gown, was clinging to his arm, laughing up at him, her face radiant with

most hear his thoughts: What is she doing here? Ruining my night? He probably thought I was the

et. She had my mother. I started walking, a phantom limb dragging me forward, through the tables, past th

ing through the sophisticated din like a knife.

us and Baylee, now swiveled to capture my unhinged intrusion. Baylee' s radiant s

forward, his voice a low, furious hiss. "Get out of here! You're maki

re shattered into a thousand pieces. "Baylee kidnapped her! She took her!" I was a madwoman, I knew it

wood with a dull thud. Pain exploded behind my eyes. "She's ill, Augustus!" he hissed, turning to the stun

ugustus, his face a mixture of anger and carefully managed embarrassment. There was a fleeting flicker of conce

her voice dropped to a chilling whisper. "Your mother? Oh, she's safe. For now." Her eyes, usually full of feigned innocence, now gleamed with a malevolent triumph. "She's in the car. The one outside

n't just kidnapping. This was murder. Baylee was a monster. I lunged at her, my hands flying, my fingers wrapping around her slender throat. "You evi

cross the face. The impact sent my head snapping back, a blinding flash of pain. My cheek stung, my ear rang,

filled with disgust. "Look at you! No dignity! No s

other!" I choked out, ignoring his accusations, t

. "Oops. Did I say 'firework display'? I meant... a little bang." She pressed a button on the remote

g I' d be disheveled and need to leave quickly, avoiding Augustus's drivers. Baylee must ha

of the crowd. I had to get to her. I had to save her. I tried to run towards the stage e

s against their unyielding chests. "My mo

oice low, menacing. "Then crawl. On your knees. Apologize to Baylee. Beg for her mercy. And maybe... maybe she'll call

engeance... they evaporated in the face of my mother' s imminent death. The thought of her, frail and confused, trapped in

my forehead touching the cold, hard wood of the stage. A public humiliation, witnessed by hundreds, broadcast to thousands. "I'm sorry," I whispered, the words

hint of discomfort at the depths of my despair. But then he snapped out of it.

d animal escaping a trap, down the aisle, through the lobby, past the bewildered secu

to mock me. I could hear Baylee's delighted chuckle drifting from the ballroom doors

the furthest one in the corner, obscured by the shadows. I sprinted towa

dawning horror. He turned, slowly, to look at Baylee, who stood at the ballroom entrance, a triumphant, demonic smile on her face. And then, the world exploded. A massive fireball erupted from the corner of the