I Died The Day My Husband’s Girlfriend Did A Magic Trick. Chapter 03
After the show, Caius took Leo backstage to find Josephine.
When they got to the spot where the magic box had been, Caius noticed a dark red stain, already dry, on the floor.
He was about to ask about it when Josephine spoke first.
“That’s just stage blood. Meredith is probably angry and went home on her own.”
Caius believed her instantly.
“This isn’t your fault. She was being ridiculous.”
“A grown woman throwing a tantrum like a child.”
“When we get home, I’ll make sure she apologizes to you.”
Leo nodded emphatically.
“Yes. Make Mom apologize properly. Otherwise Dad and I won’t talk to her.”
I floated beside them, watching how close they stood, a chill seeping through me.
To celebrate Josephine’s successful performance, Caius took them to a famous steakhouse downtown.
Josephine cut Leo’s steak for him and poured his juice.
Caius sat beside them and watched her, his eyes soft.
They chatted the entire time, looking for all the world like a family of three.
Floating by the table, I thought back over the seven years of our marriage. Caius had never once seriously celebrated my birthday.
The day I was discharged from the hospital after giving birth to Leo, he brought me a sandwich from the hospital cafeteria.
It was evening by the time they returned home.
The moment the door opened, Caius shouted, “Meredith, come out here.”
“Apologize to Josephine right now. You owe her an explanation for today.”
Leo stood in the doorway and shouted, too.
“Mom, come out and apologize!”
“If you don’t apologize, I won’t call you Mom anymore.”
They waited in the living room for a while, but no one answered.
Caius’s face grew darker by the second.
He went upstairs and searched room by room.
The bedroom, the study, Leo’s room, the storage room.
He checked them all but didn’t find me.
Only then did it dawn on him that I hadn’t come home.
Leo grabbed the hem of his shirt.
“Dad, Mom isn’t back.”
Josephine said softly, “Meredith must still be angry with me. She probably went to her mother’s place.”
“Forget it. I don’t mind. Don’t you two fight because of me.”
Caius’s expression grew even colder.
“She’s the one who’s in the wrong. And now she’s hiding at her mother’s?”
“I’m going to make sure she understands there are consequences.”
He walked to the door and changed the digital lock code.
Then he stormed into the bedroom, pulled all my clothes out of the closet, and stuffed them into several large trash bags.
After that, he threw my toothbrush, my cup, the throw pillows from the couch, and the potted plants I’d kept for years out the front door.
Before long, almost every trace of me had vanished from the home.
Josephine stood in the bedroom and said softly, “Don’t be so angry. Meredith will feel even worse when she comes back and sees this.”
Caius didn’t care.
“She can come back or not. If she had the nerve to leave, she can forget about ever getting back through this door.”
Late that night, Josephine made a show of getting ready to leave.
But Leo hugged her leg and refused to let go.
“Josephine, don’t go.”
“I’m scared. Mom isn’t home, and I want you to stay with me.”
He looked up at Caius.
“Dad, can Josephine stay here tonight?”
Caius considered it for only a moment before nodding.
“Fine. It’s late. It isn’t safe for you to go home alone.”
Josephine lowered her head, not refusing again.
That night, Leo lay sleeping in the middle of the bed Caius and I once shared.
Caius and Josephine slept on either side of him.
I stood beside the bed, watching the scene, unable to say a word.
Early the next morning, the doorbell rang.
Caius shot upright in bed, a smug look on his face.
“That must be Meredith, back to admit she was wrong.”
“Josephine, don’t worry. I’ll make her apologize properly.”
He ran downstairs as he spoke. While opening the door, he called out, “Meredith, so you finally realized you were wrong? Too late. You can start by apologizing to Josephine.”
When the door opened, the smile on his face vanished.