The first call. No answer.
The second call. No answer.
The phone's battery drained bit by bit, and with it, my daughter's chance of survival.
On the third try, Kevin finally picked up, but his voice was thick with barely concealed irritation.
"Babe, can whatever it is wait? I'm kind of in the middle of something here."
"Daddy..." Lily's voice was raw and hoarse, so weak she could barely get the word out.
Kevin paused. He softened his tone as much as he could. "Hey, sweetpea. Daddy misses you too!"
"Just be a good girl and hang out with Mommy for a few days, okay? Daddy will come see you on Monday!"
"Daddy... Lily's tummy hurts. Lily's so thirsty. Mommy melted, Daddy. Please come home..."
Lily was only five years old. She didn't understand what death was.
All she knew was that the blood pooling beneath me looked like a melted strawberry smoothie.
Kevin didn't understand what she meant.
"Be a good girl, sweetpea. Daddy's really busy right now. If you're hungry, go find Mommy, okay?"
"And don't eat melted ice cream! Tell Mommy to buy you a new one. Be good, Lily! Daddy loves you!"
Kevin was in a rush to reach one last peak with Cassandra. He hung up.
My phone burned through its final sliver of battery and went dark.
Afterward, Kevin and Cassandra lay in bed, each lighting a cigarette.
Something seemed to nag at him. He grabbed his phone and called me back.
The number you have dialed is currently powered off...
Kevin's expression soured. He tried again.
Same message. Powered off.
He stubbed out his cigarette in a hurry and reached for his pants on the floor.
"I need to go home. My wife's phone is dead. And that call from my daughter just now... something felt off."
My despairing soul caught a flicker of light.
If Kevin came home now, Lily still had a chance. Even the slimmest chance was enough.
But Cassandra grabbed his arm. "It's one phone call. What could possibly be wrong?"
"She probably went somewhere and forgot to charge it."
"If you're that worried, just send her a WhatsApp. Problem solved."
"It's not every day we get a whole week without your wife and my husband around. Can't we just enjoy it?"
Kevin thought it over. Then he set the pants back down.
He picked up his phone and sent me a message on WhatsApp.
Babe, why is your phone off?
Lily just called me. Everything okay?
The message went through. The other end immediately showed typing...
A moment later, several photos of an airport popped up.
Everything's fine. Took Lily out for a little trip to clear our heads. That kid was messing around with my phone again.
Gotta go, plane's about to take off.
That day, Marlin had logged into my WhatsApp on his own phone before he left.
He typed those replies sitting in the dim kitchen of his house, sharpening a knife with his other hand.
He wanted to make it look like I was still alive for as long as possible.
That way, when Kevin finally saw my body, the pain would cut even deeper.
And somehow, those sloppy, paper-thin replies were enough to put Kevin at ease.
He settled back into the hotel's king-size bed, perfectly comfortable.
He reached over and pulled Cassandra against his shoulder.
"You were right. My wife took my daughter on a trip. Looks like it's just the two of us this week, all to ourselves."
In the days that followed.
Kevin and Cassandra completely let themselves go.
They spent nearly twelve hours a day in bed together.
Every day, Kevin sent a good morning and good night message to my WhatsApp. Marlin would thoughtfully reply with a few scenic photos. Some of them still had stock image watermarks on them, yet Kevin didn't show a shred of suspicion.
At first, I spent every day hoping Kevin would notice the flaws, that he'd come home and save our daughter.
But now, my soul hovered beside my dying child.
I was numb. I was past despair.
Kevin wasn't blind to those flaws. He was just addicted to the thrill Cassandra gave him.
So he chose to lie to himself.
On Friday, Marlin sent Kevin the family portrait Lily had drawn. The same one she'd brought home from kindergarten the day I died.
Kevin teared up, overwhelmed with emotion.
He decided on the spot to get the drawing tattooed on his chest.
Cassandra went with him to the tattoo parlor.
When the artist got to the part of the design that was supposed to be me, Cassandra snipped a strand of her own hair and had the tattoo artist mix it into the ink before pressing it into Kevin's skin.
Kevin called her a filthy word. But he didn't stop her.
The tattoo was finished on Monday.
Kevin sent a photo to my WhatsApp and said he couldn't wait to see the surprise I'd been preparing.
Marlin had already pressed a polished blade against Cassandra's throat. She'd arrived at the apartment first.
On WhatsApp, Marlin kept urging Kevin to hurry upstairs.
Kevin didn't suspect a thing. He carried his gifts to the front door and pushed it open.
The stench of decay nearly knocked him off his feet.
What greeted him was my body, already bloated and rotting beyond recognition, and our daughter curled up in my arms.
