Our Wicked Lies by Gledé Kabongo (story read aloud TXT) 📗

rang in Kat’s voice. “Eliot would be a shell of a man without you and the girls. That’s why he told the home-wrecker to cut it out.”

Emotions bubbled up through Alicia’s chest again. “I can’t go through what my mother did, Kat, I just can’t.”

“You’re not your mother, and the circumstances are different. Your father left you and your mother penniless, and you guys did what you needed to do to scrape by. It’s not the same situation here.”

“How is it any different?” Alicia asked. “He knows how I grew up, that my father leaving left a hole in my heart that never healed. How could he even consider doing that to Lily and Marston?”

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Kat said. “Nobody is going anywhere. Eliot needs a reality check, a painful one, but you two are meant for each other.”

“I used to think so. What I don’t understand is why. I mean, is there something wrong with me? Do you think he wanted the beautiful, glamorous career woman all along and got stuck with me instead? Is he acting out now?”

Kat expelled a loud sigh. “If you weren’t already hurting, I would slap you for making that idiotic comment.”

“Come on, Kat. I’m just a boring housewife, nothing exciting. Maybe this Faith chick is all the things I’m not. I bet she’s drop-dead gorgeous. Eliot likes beautiful women. You can’t deny that.”

“Forget what I said. If you don’t stop, I am going to slap you,” Kat threatened. “Men like Eliot don’t do anything they don’t want to do. He wouldn’t have married you if he didn’t want to. He wouldn’t have hung around for twenty years. Besides, some men cheat because they can. Stop making this your fault.”

Alicia couldn’t bring herself to smile, but in that moment, she was so grateful for her best friend’s no-nonsense ways. “Thanks for having my back,” Alicia said. “I can’t believe my life has become a walking cliché. While we were in Paris, we talked about our future as empty nesters. What do I have to look forward to with two grown daughters in college and a husband who could walk out at any moment?”

“Everything. You have everything to look forward to. If Eliot won’t end the affair, divorce him, take all his money, and live life on your terms. You can do anything you want, become anyone you want. No limits.”

“You make it sound easy.”

“It is. You gave him twenty years of your life and two beautiful daughters. I’m rooting for you guys, but you don’t deserve this treatment. Eliot has obviously lost his mind. If he can’t appreciate what he has, then he deserves to lose it all.”

Alicia had given little thought to what would happen if Eliot continued his affair. From his performance this morning, it looked like the likely outcome, unless she confronted him with the proof she had. But could she do that? Was she ready to drop that ax on her marriage?

“Show me the emails,” Kat said.

“I can’t read them again,” Alicia protested. “It gutted me the first time.”

“No problem. Just open the inbox, and I’ll take it from there. Tell me where to look.”

“Okay.” She led the way inside to the kitchen table where her brand new laptop sat. However, when she launched her Internet browser and typed in Eliot’s email password, she got an error message. She frowned in confusion. “That’s weird.”

“What?” Kat asked, leaning over her shoulder.

“The password doesn’t work.”

“Maybe you typed it in wrong.”

Alicia tried again, her fingers tapping the keys slowly, ensuring she didn’t make a mistake this time. But she got the same message again, either the email or password was incorrect. “I don’t understand why it’s not working.”

“He changed the password, didn’t he?”

“Oh, my goodness.” She leaned back in the chair. “I’m playing cat and mouse with my own husband. And I can’t mention that the password has changed because he’ll want to know why I tried to access his email.”

“But if you say nothing, he’ll assume he’s safe,” Kat said.

“Exactly.” She blew out a puff of air from her cheeks. “But someone else knows.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Someone’s been sending me anonymous notes, implying that Eliot is hiding a secret, that he’s been lying to me.”

Kat shook her head and muttered under her breath. “When did this happen?”

“The first one showed up last week. Then I got another one yesterday.”

“But how? You just found out he was cheating. Do you have them still?”

“I didn’t believe the notes at first. I just threw them out.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Wait him out. He can’t lie forever.”

“And then what?”

She didn’t know.

CHAPTER 20

Note number three arrived a few minutes after eleven the next morning.

You’re running out of time.

Don’t be taken by surprise.

Why would she be caught by surprise? She already knew Eliot was unfaithful. Yet the sender had taken the time to warn her, as if there was more to the story. You’re running out of time. Don’t be taken by surprise. Was she missing something?

After the note appeared, Alicia left the house, hoping that a change in scenery would give her some perspective about what to do next. She found an open booth at the Starbucks on Main Street in Waltham, five miles from home, and sat down with her laptop. As the email browser loaded, she diverted her gaze from the screen to take in her surroundings. A stalling tactic. Blenders whirred. Patrons placed their orders. The coffee grinder was on full blast. The smell of coffee collided with the other drinks the café served and produced a sweet, candy aroma that wafted throughout the space.

Once her attention returned to the screen, she loosened up her fingers and typed a message to Faith.

From: Alicia Gray

To: Empress Faith

Subject: Eliot Gray

Faith,

I imagine you know who I am. It must be a shock to hear from the woman whose husband you’re sleeping with, but I thought we should be adults about this. Eliot has a family. A