“You didn’t know where we kept the coffee mugs,” I said.
Her eyes flashed.
“I would have learned.”
“You didn’t know our life.”
“I knew the important parts.”
“No. You knew only what we shared with the world.”
She lunged toward me.
The officers pulled her back.
“I could have made you happier than she did!”
That was the moment I stopped seeing her as a confused woman.
She knew exactly what she had done.
She had not mistaken herself for Alma.
She wanted to erase her.
A police radio crackled.
Detective Brooks listened.
Then she looked at me.
“They found your wife.”
Don’t miss
My knees nearly gave out.
“Is she okay?”
“As good as she can be.”
I covered my face.
The next several hours came in pieces.
Ava in handcuffs, a detective collecting the laptop, and an officer driving me to the hospital.
Alma had been in the basement for five days.
Ava left water, crackers, and canned food. She had installed the camera so she could check that Alma was still there.
She told officers that she planned to return every weekend to check on her.
She believed she could disappear for a day, visit the basement, and come home before I became suspicious.
