Chapter 7: The Conversation Before Goodbye
I listened to the recording three times.
Not because I wanted to.
Because my brain couldn’t accept it.
Sarah’s voice.
Emily’s voice.
A conversation that happened while I was sitting in the next room pretending everything would be okay.
The recording started again.
Emily sounded exhausted.
“Why are you here, Sarah?””
Sarah answered calmly.
“Because I think we need to be honest.””
A pause.
Then Emily said:
“About what?””
“About Marcus.””
My hands tightened.
Even hearing his name made me angry.
Emily coughed.
“What about him?””
“You know he won’t be able to handle this alone.””
A strange silence followed.
Then Emily said:
“I’m not talking about that.””
Sarah laughed softly.
“No. You’re talking about Michael.””
Michael looked at me.
His face had gone completely still.
The recording continued.
Emily’s voice became sharper.
“Leave my son out of this.””
Sarah replied:
“I’m trying to help him.””
“No.””
“You know he needs stability.””
“He needs his father.””
“And what if Marcus falls apart?””
Silence.
Then Emily whispered:
“That’s what you want, isn’t it?””
I stopped breathing.
Sarah didn’t answer.
Emily continued.
“You’ve been waiting.””
“Waiting for what?””
“For me to disappear.””
The recording became quiet.
Then Sarah said something that made my blood turn cold.
“Maybe you should have chosen better friends.””
Michael looked away.
I reached for his shoulder.
But he moved back.
Not from me.
From the memory.
The recording continued.
Emily’s voice trembled.
“You’re sick.””
“No.””
“You want my life.””
“I want a family.””
“You want mine.””
A long pause.
Then Sarah said:
“Once you’re gone, Marcus will need someone.””
The recording stopped.
Nobody spoke.
The silence afterward was worse than the recording.
Because now there was no doubt.
Sarah hadn’t entered our lives by accident.
She had been waiting for a door to open.
And Emily’s death had opened it.
Michael finally whispered:
“She knew.””
I looked at him.
“What?””
“She knew Mom was afraid.””
“Yes.””
“She still stayed.””
I didn’t know what to say.
Because there was nothing I could say that would fix what my son had lost.
The next morning, I met Sarah outside the house.
She was standing beside her car.
She looked tired.
Older.
But I felt nothing.
Not anymore.
“You listened.””
It wasn’t a question.
I held up my phone.
“Why?””
Sarah looked away.
“Because I loved you.””
I almost laughed.
“You loved me?””
“Yes.””
“You wanted my wife gone.””
Her eyes flashed.
“That’s not what happened.””
“You heard yourself.””
“I was angry.””
“You threatened her.””
“I was scared.””
“Of what?””
She looked at me.
Then said:
“Of losing everything.””
The honesty surprised me.
But not enough.
“You mean losing a man who was grieving.””
Her face hardened.
“You don’t know what it’s like to spend years watching someone else have everything you want.””
I stared.
“You’re jealous of Emily?””
“No.””
“Yes.””
Her silence confirmed it.
She stepped closer.
“I loved you before she died.””
“You barely knew me.””
“I knew enough.””
“That’s not love.””
Her expression broke.
“You think I’m a monster.””
“I think you hurt my son.””
That was the only answer that mattered.
Sarah looked toward the house.
“Michael was never supposed to hate me.””
“You made him.””
“I tried.””
I froze.
“What?””
She immediately looked away.
But it was too late.
“You just admitted it.””
“No.””
“You said you tried.””
Her face changed.
She realized she had revealed too much.
I stepped back.
“Why?””
She whispered:
“Because he was the last thing she left behind.””
My stomach twisted.
“You hated a child because he reminded you of Emily.””
Sarah said nothing.
That silence was enough.
I turned to leave.
“Marcus.””
I stopped.
“You should know something.””
I looked back.
She was crying now.
Real tears.
“I wasn’t the only person who lied.””
I frowned.
“What does that mean?””
She reached into her purse.
Pulled out an envelope.
And handed it to me.
“Ask Emily’s sister why she never gave you this.””
I didn’t take it.
“What is it?””
Sarah smiled sadly.
“The truth about the night Emily died.””
I stared at the envelope.
Then at Sarah.
“You’re still trying to manipulate me.””
“Maybe.””
She wiped her tears.
“But open it.””
I finally took it.
The envelope had Emily’s handwriting.
My name.
And one date.
The day she died.
I opened the first page.
May you like
The first sentence made my heart stop.
*Marcus, if you are reading this, it means everyone I trusted failed me.*
