he visitor' s room felt like

er side of the thick plexiglass,

r regret, but of pure, undiluted contempt. The orange jumps

e was wrong. I was th

ss suit. It was a memory, a phantom

mind, replayed for the thousandth time. "You were just jealous of Alex and wanted him dead! I truly

me I saw her. Before

was so vivid, the betrayal so fresh, it

, disastrous timeline. It all started w

on. I, a dedicated FBI agent, saw it for what it was: a threat.

me a fool. I reported it to the Bureau but cushioned the blow, sacrificing my own promotion

nt" while the FBI was closing in, and Sarah, my grieving, lov

e of evidence directly at me. The husband. The jealous, jilted husban

eeping cut through the darkn

in my own bed, in my own home. Sunlight streamed throug

00 AM. My heart hammered against m

her breathing soft and even. And there, on her nightstand, gl

y. The day

sh over me, followed by a surge of something els

ation, the cold slap of betrayal in that visito

ssions a mixture of confusion and pity. I had sacrificed everything for her, for

This time, there would be no warnings. No misguided

oid where nothing could grow. In the quiet of the morning, with the wom

ty, but of self-prese