Husband Met Nanny in Attic, I Cut Power

I crept back to the bed, slid quietly under the covers, and lay still. Kept my breathing even. The footsteps came closer, closer, until they stopped right in front of me. I didn't dare open my eyes, but I could feel his heavy breath against the hollow of my throat. Those eyes, fixed on me, burning. Finally, just as I couldn't hold it any longer, Morton pulled his gaze away. It landed on the tabby cat in the corner. "It's the cat. Not her." Charlene rolled her eyes and lifted a foot to kick the little thing. It dodged, quick. "Stupid cat. Just as annoying as your owner." But Morton seemed to relax. He scooped the cat up and murmured to it, soft. Every one of those words he'd once said to me. Yet barely half a year, and he couldn't wait to bring another woman home. I'd felt sorry for Charlene, so young. Imported fruit, snacks, she always got a share. Just last week I'd even given her a bonus. The whole thing had been their setup from the start. "Morton, I don't want to live in that dingy old attic anymore. When are you going to get rid of her?" Charlene tugged at the hem of his shirt, pulling him down half-willing until he dropped onto the bed beside me. The two of them, not even half a meter away, with only me between them. "Are you insane?" Morton dropped his voice, and even as he said it he glanced back at me. "If she wakes up, the whole plan is finished." Charlene wasn't worried. "I doubled the dose today. There's no way she's waking up." The man beside me let out a long breath. "Relax. I've already got the psychiatric ward lined up. I'll send her over in the next few days." "Then why not now?" Charlene pointed at me, her voice rising. "She just had a miscarriage anyway, she's unstable. Just tell them she lost the baby and lost her mind." The mattress beside me sank slowly. I kept my eyes shut, but I could feel that dark shape lean over me. He was weighing what Charlene had said. Actually sending me to the psychiatric ward. My heart slammed while my mind raced for a way out. The phone was still recording. Worst case, I take this evidence, expose him, and file for divorce. Burn it all down. His palm, rough with thick calluses, settled behind my ear and pressed, just slightly. I'd had surgery there once. Even a normal touch drove pain straight through me. He was testing me. Right when I couldn't keep from crying out, he suddenly let go. "No. Her mind's still normal. Send her there and they'll have her back to us inside a day." "Then our whole plan is ruined." Morton stood, cold, his voice flat and without a ripple. "You're pregnant. You can't keep living in the attic. I'll up the dose these next couple of days and drive Miriam Dickerson out." Charlene threw her arms around him and kissed him, thrilled. "Then tonight I'll send her to the chopping block." She walked out of the room, Morton right behind her. The lock clicked softly shut. My fingers twitched. I squinted, ready to get up. Then the edge of my vision caught the carpet, and my whole body went rigid. His shadow was still in the room.

Morton hadn't left yet. He was still testing whether I'd really fallen asleep. I turned over, pretending to sleep, my heart pounding in my throat. I waited another twenty minutes. Only when he was truly gone did I dare open my eyes. The two of them were chatting and laughing in the kitchen, getting dinner ready. This trap of a dinner was one I couldn't avoid. I was standing there, lost in thought, when the bedroom door pushed open. My mother-in-law came in. She froze when she saw I was awake, then the smile piled onto her face. "Miriam, when did you wake up?" She looped her arm through mine with a beaming smile, and coughed twice on purpose as we left the room. Morton's hands went still, and he shot a quick look at Charlene. I pretended not to notice their little exchange, walked to the kitchen, and opened the fridge. The rose apples, the mangosteen, the premium green grapes, all gone. The sea cucumber and black-bone chicken in the freezer had vanished without a trace. "Where's the sea cucumber and black-bone chicken my mom bought?" I turned to Charlene, my gaze drifting down to the slight swell of her belly. Before, I'd stupidly thought she'd just put on weight. I never imagined she'd gotten pregnant right under my nose. Charlene's face went white in an instant. She stammered, unable to get a word out. "That stuff isn't good for a woman who's just miscarried, so I ate it all myself." My mother-in-law quickly flashed Charlene a look, telling her to leave. "Your mother, honestly. Buying food without a heads-up first. People who didn't know might think I was the bad mother-in-law here." But it had been half a month since I lost the baby, and today was the first time she'd come to see me. And only to bail Charlene out. I dug my nails into my palms, wanting to fire back, then swallowed the words. I sat down at the dining table. There were three of them, my body was still weak, I couldn't take them head-on. Tonight was when they'd meet their end. "That's right, honey. You're just too weak, that's why your mind's running wild. Charlene put so much work into these. Hurry up and get your strength back." Morton's eyes narrowed to slits as he kept a smile on his face and piled food into my bowl. But the four dishes in front of me, not one of them would touch. There had to be drugs in them. I picked up a pork rib and set it in my mother-in-law's bowl, and she dropped it back into mine like she'd seen a ghost. All three of them were watching me. "These are all so nourishing. The three of us are fine with just the greens." My mother-in-law watched me with that beaming smile, even lifting the food toward my mouth. Terrified I wouldn't eat it. My throat went dry. I had no choice but to pick up my chopsticks. Just as I was about to lift the rib to my mouth, the doorbell rang. My eyes lit up. It was the AC repairman. "The air conditioning's been acting up the last couple of days, so I called someone to fix it. Might as well swap out a new one in the attic where Charlene stays too." "It's so hot out. She's worked hard taking care of me." The repairman made a loop through the house. He ended up at the attic on the third floor of the villa. Where he was standing happened to be a blind spot. Even I never paid attention to that corner. The attic had a wardrobe and a mattress, everything you'd need, and a corner of one of Morton's shirts was poking out from where it was wrapped in the blanket. I deliberately acted like I hadn't noticed, watching Charlene quietly tuck it away. Hmph. Hide it. Tonight I was going to keep you shut up in that attic with no way out. Back on the phone, I'd already told the repairman to seal off the door's keyhole and plant a hidden camera in the AC unit. And to take the AC remote with him when he left. The repairman glanced back at me and dropped the remote into his toolbox. The smile at the corner of my mouth deepened. But Morton's brow suddenly furrowed. He climbed up into the attic, ran his fingers along the vent, and abruptly went rigid. When he turned his head again, there was a flicker of wariness in his eyes. He pointed at the camera inside the AC unit. "What's this?"

The workman stayed calm. He turned back to look at me. "It's an infrared temperature sensor." Morton pressed his lips together and said nothing more. He stepped past me and moved to Charlene's side. "I've already finished checking. You can go rest now." Her eyes went soft, a quick smile flickering at the corner of her mouth, and as she brushed past him she hooked her little finger around his. He was still savoring the look on his face, mind adrift. "Ahem." The mother-in-law cleared her throat quietly. Morton came back to himself fast. Only then did it hit me that my mother-in-law had known all along. From the very start, the two of them had been after my money. "Miriam, you're weak right now." She handed me the milk with such care, pressing it into my hands. "This is goat milk Mom brought all the way from the countryside. It's good for a woman recovering from a miscarriage. Drink it all up now." The gamey smell hit me full in the face. I pinched my nose, forced a corner of my mouth up, and swallowed the whole thing down in one go. Back on the second floor, I went to the bathroom and threw all of it up. It took two full bottles of water before I could barely keep my head clear. I looked out through the gap in the door. My mother-in-law had already gone back to the guest room downstairs. Morton made a point of announcing loudly in the living room that he had to work late, then turned and crept softly up to the attic. The corner of my mouth curved up slowly. Work late? More like working late in Charlene's room. I opened the surveillance feed on my phone and watched Morton change his clothes just like always and lie down beside Charlene. He gave a cold snort. "I tricked Miriam into signing the contract ages ago. She gave up her assets voluntarily. Give it a couple more days, she'll sleep and never wake up, and I'll transfer everything over right away." As he spoke, his hand went into his pocket and pulled out a velvet box. Inside was a diamond ring. Charlene clapped a hand over her mouth, all show. "You've had it rough this whole time, waiting on her." "A while back I told her mom the recovery money wasn't enough, and her mom wired me twenty grand. Perfect timing for the ring." "Once Miriam's dead, the whole Dickerson family fortune is mine!" My whole body was shaking, my teeth clenched until the roots ached, a cold light in my eyes. He wasn't just after my money. He wouldn't even let my parents' money go. Charlene's laughter came through the speaker like a needle driven into my ear. The sky grew darker and darker. The house went quiet. Only the hum of the AC was left. I sat softly in the living room and looked up at the attic through the reflection in the window. What Morton didn't know was that while the workman installed the AC, I'd had him block the vent from the outside with a cutting board, under the pretext of clearing out dust. The moment the power went out, the attic would be sealed airtight, turned into one giant steamer. I threw the breaker and cut off all the power to the house. Then I ate my fruit slowly and settled in to watch the show. I opened the feed. Not even fifteen minutes passed before Morton woke up in the heat, groping around for the remote, sweat from his forehead pattering down by his feet. "Where's the remote? I saw it right here, I know I did!" Charlene couldn't stand the heat either, and swiped hard at the sweat on her face. "Morton, the power must be out. Let's get out of here, we'll get heatstroke if we stay any longer!" Morton nodded hard, his face tight, one hand steadying her while the other landed on the door handle. He pressed down hard. Every trace of color drained from his face.