All these queries had me feeling like I was stuck in a maze, my head pounding with confusion.
But my rational side nagged at me, and I knew there was no time to dwell on uncertainties.
With an impatient air, I plopped down at the desk, turning on Jaylan's computer. Typing in the password Catherine had sent me, the screen flickered and I was into his main account.
A wave of exhilaration washed over me, my hands trembling as I opened his documents. Perhaps due to my decade-long attachment to Jaylan, the first thing I wanted to see was the house's security footage.
What I saw completely shattered my perception of reality.
Not only did I witness myself, laying pristinely still in bed as if dead, but I also saw Zora, standing at the foot of my bed with our three children, pointing at my comatose form and whispering something unknown to them. Initially, the kids listened attentively, but soon their faces twisted in horror and they scattered in different directions.
A vile grin stretched across Zora's face at their reaction.
No wonder I hadn't seen my Monique and Probert for so long. They must have been avoiding this house, avoiding me. Even when they did visit, they clung to Zora, circling around her like she was their mother.
Such a venomous witch she was. She wanted to erase me completely.
Whenever Jaylan returned home, he never once stopped by to see me. Instead, he would head straight to Zora's room, emerging only when the sun had risen. Even more disturbing were the intimate moments between them in the living room. Jaylan, stripped bare, sprawled on the sofa, while Zora knelt between his legs...
A wave of nausea surged through me. I grabbed the wastebasket, emptying my stomach into it.
In the mess, I spotted a used condom, which only intensified my revulsion. I retched until I collapsed on the floor in a fit of exhaustion.
With tears streaming down my face, I forced a laugh, echoing through the empty room.
My parents were right. This was the real Jaylan! The sordid, indulgent, greedy expressions on his face, his shameless postures.
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