Pull yourself together, Ted. You can’t break down and cry, not when your son is looking at you. Ted tried to swallow his emotions and look busy, but as he watched the men lower his beloved wife into the grave, it hit him for the millionth time that day. Mary had died in a car accident and Ted fell to the ground. He burst into tears of sorrow as he tried to hold his gaze on her sweet face and listen to the words before leaving him alone at their funeral. The pain was too fresh and Ted hoped he would suddenly snap out of his most horrible dream. But everything that happened that day was real: the people gathered, the dirt poured on the casket, and the endless stream of tears welling up in the tired eyes of Rick, Ted and Mary’s 15-year-old son.
The kind men went to the residence of the father and son, desperately trying to express their sympathy and understanding before bidding them farewell. “You look so tired, Rick; after being taken home by your driver, make sure you try to get some rest. » Ted left his child on the road and kissed him. “I’ll see you at home in a while.” » “The man continued to listen to the well-meaning words and ideas of those who were leaving when he saw an unknown person far away in space,” the boy said. Ted had a strange and absurd impulse when he saw that it was a woman in a black dress, although it looked like a silhouette. “Is this my Mary?” »
Ted was aware that he was probably hallucinating since, as he had heard a few minutes earlier, sadness can do crazy things to the mind. However, a hunch prompted Ted to take a closer look. Ted apologized to the companion in front of him and moved slowly through the crowd, his gaze fixed on the unidentified stranger dressed in black. Ted rubbed his eyes, expecting the woman in the distance to disappear, but she stayed. The closer he got, the more certain he was that it was his wife and the less he thought it was a dream. Mary turned to face him in the middle of the crowd. Ted now swept through the crowd, becoming more focused while maintaining eye contact with the woman. This time, however, the woman began to leave quickly.
Ted tried to run away, but the woman had already approached his vehicle. Jumping into the driver’s seat of the black automobile, she took a quick glance back to see how far Ted had traveled before taking off and disappearing into the distance. Ted’s attempt to pursue the vehicle also failed. Ted couldn’t see the numbers on the car’s license plate as the car drove away in a cloud of dust. “Who was it?” Could this have happened? No, it’s not feasible. » Turning around, Ted realized that he had made a bit of noise and that people were looking at him with varying degrees of concern. “I really need to rest. »
As Ted made the decision to walk away, he saw a piece of paper gently floating in the air, gradually descending onto the road in front of him. He must have fallen out of the car. Ted opened it to find a receipt from a gas station 80 miles out of town. Less than two hours later, Ted found himself on a desolate, dust-covered road, glancing at the name of the gas station written on a piece of paper, then at the same name displayed on a large sign. He had made his entrance. Ted took a picture of Mary out of his wallet and showed it to one of the maids. “Have you seen this woman around lately?” » he asked. The woman at the gas station didn’t have to think much about the photo. Yes, Carla is that person. About a week ago she moved into the neighborhood. What is the purpose of this? The woman surreptitiously looked Ted up and down and gave him a suspicious look.
He lied to the woman, saying, “Oh, I’m just an old friend who didn’t get to meet her before she moved.” » “I was planning to surprise him by introducing myself. Do you know where she might be staying at the moment? The woman said proudly, “Of course it is, it’s a small town,” and added, “She’s staying at Audrey’s Motel at the end of this road.” » “Well, I guess I’m pretty close.” I appreciate your help, Ms. Lily. For the first time during the conversation, the woman smiled. “Have a nice day.” As instructed, Ted walked towards the end of the road and noticed the rustic looking motel. He persuaded Miss Audrey, the owner, to give him the room number he was looking for by using her charm.
Ted knocked on the door with his fingers and waited, even though all he wanted in life was for Ted to knock, for the woman to answer, and for the riddle to finally be revealed. The other side peephole light briefly went out, suggesting someone had sneaked a glimpse of him, but there was no response. Ted knocked again, stopping between each blow and making a louder noise. The door opened within seconds and a woman rushed straight into Ted’s arms. The woman sobbed, “Honey, I’m so sorry. » Ted immediately recognized Mary by the smell of her perfume, the softness of her voice and the feel of her skin. For him, Mary was still alive!
It took a few minutes for the pure joy and relief in Ted’s heart to disappear and reality to hit him hard. “Why, Mary? Why did you fake your own death? Do you know what you put me through? Forget me, do you know what you did to your son? What was so terrible in your life? » Mary grabbed her husband’s hands and shook him to silence him. Mary recounted a series of events and secrets she had never shared with anyone, while Ted quietly listened to her words.
“The woman you buried today, in the presence of your family and friends, was my twin sister, Paris. » Ted thought it was another lie, but the more he listened, the more he realized how complicated the truth was. “Paris was my blood, but it became the reason for some of my deepest traumas in life. She was always a troubled child and I was an easy target. Since childhood, I’ve been the one cleaning up her mess, facing her fury, and continuing to run to her whenever she’s in trouble. After a while I stopped getting drawn into her world and she went to prison for fraud after fraud. There were days when I wanted to find her, but then I remembered that I had a family and that I still had a lot of healing to do. But last month, Paris got out of prison and showed up at my office. She came with an unreasonable request for money. For once in my life, I stood up to her and asked her to leave, but she threatened me with something that made me feel helpless. »
Ted listened and wanted to ask her what the threat was, but seeing how Mary was already having trouble speaking through her tears, Ted parked the question in his mind.“She knew I would continue to obey her every request, and that was the only thing she could use against me. So I gave him once or twice the amount of money requested, but it was never enough. She persisted in coming back and using the threat, and I kept giving in. Until one day she was driving my car and I was sitting next to her, discussing some stupid event from her childhood. Paris lost his composure and lost control of the car at the same time. I still remember the crash of metal and shards of glass covering my face. I thought I was going to die. For a moment, I thought about you and Rick, but you were in Shanghai on that business trip. But when my head cleared, I remembered Paris. I found her on the other side of the rubble. By the time I was able to hold her hand, she had already stopped breathing. » As she said this, Mary burst into tears again.
The truth was that, in the heat of that fateful moment, Mary felt suffocated by the fear of being blamed, of being caught for previous payments she had made, and of finding herself once again dragged into trouble. from Paris. And that’s why she decided to run away. Mary called 911, got up and didn’t stop walking until she reached the bus station. “That’s how I got here.” That’s why I faked my own death. » Ted held his wife in his arms as she couldn’t stop shaking, remembering the worst day of her life. Ted breathed a sigh of relief, not realizing that his wife’s final, devastating revelation would come as a shock to him.
“I have to tell you what Paris threatened me with. » “Go ahead, darling, I’m listening. » “Paris was the only one who knew the truth about Rick. That year, when you and I had one of our biggest fights, when you left home and never came back for six months, I reconnected with an old boyfriend. Paris knew it, and she was the one who calculated that Rick’s biological father was this guy and not you. She knew she could threaten to reveal this truth, and it would work every time. I’m sorry I cheated on you, Ted. This all seems like punishment for that night. I’m sorry for everything. »
That afternoon was just the beginning of Mary’s attempts to repair her relationship. When she went to the cops, when she appeared in court, and even when she spoke to her son Rick, Mary only told the truth. Forgiving Mary was not impossible for Ted since he knew what it was like to have strayed from the bond of marriage, and he himself was guilty of it. After a year of revealing the truth and living apart from each other, Mary was free from all the legal battles and Ted had given enough thought to the future of his marriage. As they let go of their guilt and resentments, amid the headstone in Paris on his first death anniversary, Mary and Ted held hands for the first time in months, ready to give a another chance for their love.
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