The Price of Blind Trust and Cruel Coldness Chapter 02
The moment Thomas and Antony vanished through the backstage doorway, every trace of Willa’s distress melted away.
She walked slowly to the magic crate, leaning down to stare at my body trapped inside, her voice dripping with venom. “Jennifer, don’t blame me. You were always in my way.”
She trailed a finger along the dried blood on the crate edge, triumphant. “Even if Thomas asks questions later, this will just look like a terrible accident during a magic performance. It’s your own fault.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll take excellent care of your husband and your son for you.”
It hit me all at once. This was never an April Fools’ prank. She’d planned this murder for months.
I lunged at her, screaming and swinging my spirit’s fists, but every blow passed straight through her body.
Willa straightened up, then stepped heavily on my protruding head, forcing it back into the confined space. My skull slammed against the cold metal walls.
She grabbed a roll of black packing tape and knelt beside the crate, wrapping it tightly around the seams.
The high-pitched squeal of tape sticking to metal echoed through the empty backstage.
She sealed every opening tight, ensuring not a single drop of blood could seep out.
She waved over a passing stagehand and gave her order. “This crate holds broken props we don’t need anymore. Haul it to the landfill and toss it out.”
The workers nodded, lifting the heavy crate and carrying it outside.
I drifted after them, watching as they heaved the crate into a massive garbage truck. My corpse lay buried amid trash—moldy cardboard, rotting food scraps.
The truck’s hydraulic mechanism whirred as the load was dumped into the compactor chamber.. My body slid deeper into the pile of waste. The snakes remained trapped in the crate, twisting over my corpse in total darkness.
I knew what waited for me: the crushing weight of the compactor, and likely incineration afterward. Nothing would remain of my body.
I drifted aimlessly back to the theater stage. Bright lights still blazed, and applause filled the air.
Willa had touched up her makeup and returned to perform, smiling brightly as if none of it had ever happened.
Thomas and Antony sat in the audience, her most loyal fans. They clapped and cheered, gazing up at her in awe.
Suddenly Willa called out from the stage. “I need a male volunteer for my next trick! Tom, would you come up?”
Thomas stood immediately and walked onto the stage, slipping effortlessly into his role as her assistant. Their effortless playful banter drew loud cheers from the crowd.
It felt as though someone had ripped my heart clean open.
We’d been married seven years. He could never spare an evening to watch a single movie with me. Yet he’d cleared his entire day to help Willa host this magic show, even invited dozens of their friends to fill the seats.
Once the performance wrapped up, Antony grabbed Thomas’s hand, buzzing with excitement. “Dad, Willa’s amazing! She’s way cooler than Mom! I wish she could be my mom instead.”
Thomas ruffled Antony’s hair softly, his tone warm. “You really want Willa to be your new mom?”
Antony nodded without a second of hesitation. “Yeah!”
Thomas said nothing more, just smiled and stroked his head.
Those words shattered my heart completely.
I’d carried Antony for nine months. I nearly died from amniotic fluid embolism during labor, requiring a massive blood transfusion to survive.
After he was born, I struggled with permanent physical changes and incontinence, yet I never complained once.
When he was constantly sick as a toddler, I gave up the career I loved to become a full-time stay-at-home mother.
And this child I’d sacrificed everything for wished another woman could take my place.
I managed a bitter, hollow smile.
Antony. Your wish is about to come true.