MadameDaphne.com is the most popular website for anyone looking to have an affair. After all, it's only a sin, if you get caught. However, six users have been found dead with their hearts carved out and placed in white gift boxes. The only clue left...
Aaron had revealed himself to me. He was a homicide detective with the Tulsa Police Department and was investigating my murder.
I so desperately wanted to laugh as he stood on my doorstep. He seemed to believe my worried act, as did Alec. In fact, my artificial worry had transferred to him. He had spent the latter part of the morning on the phone with Mrs. Delgado, assuring her that he would look into her daughter's case with the lens of the FBI.
Meanwhile, I sat at the table with the kids, making sure they ate their breakfast and didn't knock anything onto the floor. Alec finished his phone call and sighed as he set his cell phone on the counter. I stood, taking the role of a dutiful wife and met him at the counter.
He wrapped his arms around my shoulder, squeezing me tightly. What would we do? How would we tell the children? It surprised me really just how well I could lie to his face.
I knew what we would do, we'd get a better babysitter, and we'd introduce the kids to the concept of death. They'd had a rabbit before, that was hit by a car when it escaped the backyard. Death was not altogether foreign to them, but they hadn't experienced the death of a loved one before.
Poor things, it wasn't my intention to hurt them.
Alec kissed my cheek and asked me to break it to the kids slowly. He would be going off to the field office to see what he could go for the Delgados.
As soon as he was gone, I led the kids upstairs for their baths and dressed them warmly for the weather outside. We were going on a little trip.
They skipped down the porch steps and dashed to the car. About an inch of snow had fallen overnight. Trucks had been by early this morning to salt the roads. I strapped the kids in tightly, turned on the TV screens on the back of the headrests, and climbed into the driver's seat.
With the TV on and Curious George emanating from the screen, the kids were as good as oblivious. The Tulsa Police Department wasn't too far away from our home, in fact its close proximity made our neighborhood the safest in the city.
Heat bloomed through the car, adding a pink hue to my cheeks. When the station came into view, I parallel parked on the opposite side, facing the front entrance. A steady stream of people entered and exited. Some were plain-clothed cops, others with uniforms and some that looked like civilians.
None of their faces looked familiar and the stream continued on for a few more minutes. I waited patiently in my seat, letting the heat warm my hands while the kids were spellbound by Curious George.
They'd seen that one episode so many times, I knew it by heart. But at least it was a break from Peppa Pig. The kids were starting to develop a British accent.
The clock was nearing 10:30 a.m., when finally, Detective Aaron Davenport waltzed through the entrance of the station. There was a pep in his step as he headed to his car. I waited until he had edged off the curb before turning on my car and following in his direction.
We passed through my neighborhood into the one next door. Interesting he lived so close by. His unmarked vehicle stopped in front of a tan colored two-story home. Hydrangeas decorated the outside edges, with potted palm trees flanking the entrance of the porch. Although with this weather, the flowers and trees were long wilted and stripped of their leaves.
It definitely had a woman's touch and a very nice one. I cut off the engine, reclining the seat just a bit, as to not disturb Annalise's little watch party.
Aaron walked up the path and unlocked the front door. In his hands were a bouquet of red roses and a box of chocolates. When the hell, did he pick those up?
They were most likely for the Mrs., in response to being seen with me at the restaurant. Sorry Mrs. Davenport, but perhaps leaving him now can spare you the trouble of burying a husband. I continued to wait as he spent time inside the house. I wanted to confirm his family life so I could use it against him later. Perhaps I could sneak a peek through the window, but the kids would certainly notice if I got off the car and would snitch to Alec.
Snitches get stitches, but I couldn't exactly give my own kids stitches. But maybe I could take away their TV privileges.
Whatever Aaron was doing in his home took 40 minutes, and all of this waiting around was starting to give me a headache. Eventually, there was movement by the front window before the front door opened. On the other side was Aaron and the Mrs., although instead of carrying roses in his hand, he was carrying a fluffy yellow cat and a kennel. In the Mrs.' hands was a bundled-up baby.
A figure moving near the side of the house caught my eye. I diverted my attention making out what looked like a red head of hair, poking out of a side window on the second story. After the head came a torso, then a full body was scaling the side of their home.
I sure hoped that rain gutter held, or this was going to make for an interesting scene.
Aaron opened the tailgate of his SUV to allow for the Mrs. to help with the kennel, then in went the cat. As he shut the tailgate, the redheaded figure was just a few feet to the ground. I watched Aaron and the Mrs. get into the SUV after securing the baby, just as the figure made it onto her feet.
How oblivious could he be? I mean, was it possible that his Mrs. was also having an affair?
Oh, this was quite a turn of events!
I chuckled to myself, letting the remainder of the scene play out. Aaron, the Mrs., the baby and pretty cat drove off. As they rounded the corner, a black SUV pulled up and the redhead came running from the side of the house like a deer, or with that red hair, more like a fox. I stared at the vehicle suspiciously. With dark tinted windows, it was difficult to see who was driving, but I'd seen vehicles like that before. They were unmarked FBI vehicles. That, or she'd ordered an Uber Black that knew just when to arrive.
The fox climbed into the backseat of the SUV and rode off in the opposite direction. I turned over my ignition to follow where Aaron had gone. The fox was interesting, but the focus for today was Aaron. I was sure this wouldn't be the last I'd see of her.
Not too far up ahead, I spotted the back of Aaron's SUV. I kept at a reasonable distance until we stopped at a veterinary hospital. They both stepped off their car, grabbed the pretty cat and baby, and headed towards the entrance. Aaron went inside first with the cat, but the Mrs. gave pause with the baby in her arms.
She turned over her shoulder in my direction and met my eyes. A silence settled over us, and for those few seconds, I could see nothing but her.
The jealousy I had witnessed at the restaurant was gone. Her expression was neither piercing nor threatening. Hello Mrs. Davenport.
She tilted her head at me, as if she had understood I'd sent her a greeting. She thought I was her husband's mistress. This had never happened to me before, I had never come face-to-face with the wife of the man I was going to murder. There was no fear in her eyes, she had no emotion actually. I knew the look. That was the face of a woman who had resigned to the situation. Maybe this wasn't his first affair, or maybe she was giving up. And if she was, it must be a strong reason, and that was never good.
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Hello! How was this chapter?
Sorry this is late, I've been working for 8 straight days and haven't had a chance to write.
How was everyone's weekend? Mine? Busy and stressful at with school and work.
Guys, I leave for a trip tomorrow, and I still haven't finished packing OOPS
