The Wife He Never Saw

I spent decades taking care of my kid and the elderly. I ignored my stomach pain until it turned into cancer. By the end, it had eaten me alive. Before I died, I went back to my old family home to sort through my stuff. That's when I found Danny's diary. My dead husband's diary. Hidden for fifteen years. I carefully flipped through it until I reached the last page. [Some loves are worth dying for. Alicia, I'm coming with you.] The diary never mentioned me. Not once. Page after page, it was all Alicia. That was when I learned Danny hadn't died in an accident. He and Alicia Doyle—the woman he never got over—had chosen to die together. I sank onto a chair and stared at his framed photo. "Danny Caldwell, if you loved her that much, did you regret marrying me?" Blood filled my throat. I threw his picture to the floor. "Because I regret marrying you." When I opened my eyes again, I was back in the past. This time, I refused to rot in a loveless marriage. I walked out and never looked back. He smirked and told his friends, "She'll crawl back. Bet she won't last three hours." But three hours passed. Then three days. Then three months. I never came back. Later, he asked when I'd return to him. My answer was simple. "Never." Chapter 1 Three days after I woke up in the past, Captain Russell from Homicide called. "Ms. Whitmore, your qualifications are solid. The only thing you lack is field experience. You'll start with Mr. Duncan out at the reservoir, helping recover bodies and sketch victims' faces. Pass your trial period, and the department will hire you full-time." "Understood. I'll be there." The call had barely ended when Danny walked in with our son, Owen. Tall, and dressed in a crisp shirt and tie, Danny looked every bit the archaeology professor he was. Owen was his mini-me—same handsome face, same cold expression. "Who was on the phone?" "I had a job interview." Danny acted like he was doing me a favor. "You've only got a bachelor's degree, and you've spent years at home raising a kid. What job do you think you're going to get? Just find a cashier job nearby. It'll make taking care of Owen easier." I put my phone away and kept my eyes on the last dish in the pan. I didn't answer. This was the last meal I'd ever cook for this family. Owen sat nearby, cartoons on, tablet game in hand. The second I glanced over, he hid the tablet. I didn't care. "About your parent-teacher conference tomorrow, I was going to—" "Don't come!" Owen snapped. "Ms. Doyle's going. Dad already said she could!" Danny added, "You haven't been out there in forever. Owen just started school, and he cares how things look. Stay home." "Okay." I hadn't planned to go anyway. I hadn't gone in my last life, either. Back then, Danny and I lived like strangers. He was always cold. I kept thinking I wasn't good enough for him. Like marrying him was already more than I deserved. So I pushed myself to learn everything I could, hoping he'd finally see me. Then he died. I didn't get time to grieve. I needed money, so I took on a job as a body retriever. For fifteen years, I raised Owen into adulthood. In the end, he said I smelled like death and banned me from his wedding. It broke me. But I didn't blame him. Then the cancer came. I thought I could finally let go. That after death, I'd face Danny and tell him I'd done everything I could. Instead, I found his hidden diary. Every page was filled with the name of the woman he'd loved all along. Chapter 2 The diary was like a mirror. It reflected the love he never stopped feeling for his first love—and the pathetic fantasy I'd spent my life clinging to. I set the last dish on the table. The table was loaded. It used to be filled with Danny and Owen's favorites. Tonight, every dish was mine. Danny frowned. "What's all this for? Why'd you make so much?" I untied my apron. "Yeah. It's a special day. Our last dinner." "Our last dinner?" His face darkened. "What's that supposed to mean?" I slid the divorce papers across the table. "After dinner, let's get divorced." "Divorce?" He looked at me like I'd lost my mind, then let out a mocking laugh. "So I wouldn't let you go to Owen's parent-teacher conference, and now you're throwing a fit? "If you had a better education and a respectable job, do you think Owen would've been embarrassed to have you there? "As for this..." He grabbed the papers and ripped them into pieces. "This kind of threat doesn't work on me." Without touching his food, he got up, walked into the study, and slammed the door. Owen acted like nothing had happened and kept eating. In my last life, whenever Danny got mad, he'd lock himself in the study and ice me out. Owen would watch without a word. Sometimes he'd even join his dad in mocking me. Every single time, I was the one who swallowed my pride and made peace. Not this time. Danny could refuse all he wanted. I'd get help filing for divorce. The outcome wouldn't change. *** Early the next morning, I zipped up my suitcase. Danny finally came out of the study, his face still dark. "Where are you going this early? Haven't you seen the news? There was a murder, and they still haven't caught the killer. "If you're going to your mom's, I'll drive you. Otherwise, once she finds out we're fighting, she'll show up at my university again, saying I still owe your father for saving my life. "I'm sick of dealing with it." After my dad died saving Danny, my mom made him her last hope. She used his guilt over Dad's death to push him into marrying me and promising to take care of me. She also refused to let me join the PD. She was terrified I'd die the way my dad did, so she insisted I become a housewife. I knew Danny never wanted to marry me. In my last life, I couldn't stand up to my mom either. So while he was alive, I studied like crazy, desperate for one more look from him. After he died, I took care of our family and his. I owed him nothing. But our marriage had been wrong from the start. Now that I had another shot, I didn't want revenge. No more ties. No more scorekeeping. No more contact. That was my choice. "I'll handle my mom. She won't bother you again. Let go. I need to leave." Danny kept frowning. His grip on my arm didn't loosen. I frowned and started to pull away. Then a woman's voice came from the doorway. "Danny, I had a question about your paper..." Alicia walked in after punching in the passcode, wearing a blue dress. She froze when she saw us facing off. "What's going on? Are you two fighting?" Like she owned the place, she patted Danny's shoulder. "What did I tell you? A husband should spoil his wife. How can you argue with her? She's already packed her bags to run home to her mom. Hurry up and make up." Danny pressed his lips into a thin line and let go of my arm. "Let her go if she wants. The less capable people are, the bigger their temper. That's what ignorance does." Chapter 3 I stared at the contempt on Danny's face. Nothing. In my last life and this one, one word from Alicia could sway him. But me? He always found something to criticize. Back then, I felt small. Hurt. Desperate to prove I mattered. I didn't make his kind of money. But I took care of everyone. I kept the house running. In seven years of marriage, he never had to worry about a thing at home. I could've gotten a job too. If he'd let me. Not anymore. I wouldn't feel small. I wouldn't keep proving my worth. And I wouldn't cry myself to sleep because he and Owen both chose Alicia. His cold words couldn't touch me now. We were done. I pulled my suitcase behind me and walked out. Just as I reached the neighborhood entrance, Danny caught up to me. His voice was impatient. "Wrenn, take a week off and stay with your mom. Clear your head. I'll be doing fieldwork nearby in a few days, so I'll come pick you up. And when you come back, quit throwing tantrums." I listened without a word. "Anything else?" "That shirt you bought me last time was nice. Winter's coming, so if you go shopping, grab me a few more. Get yourself something too. I'll send you the money." He turned and headed home. I declined the $1,000 transfer. What I didn't know was that a few steps later, Danny saw the notification that I'd rejected it. He stopped. His eyes stayed on the screen as his frown deepened. By the time he looked back, I was already in the cab. I never saw the look on his face. *** Instead of going home, I went to the place Captain Russell had arranged for me to stay with Mr. Duncan. Mr. Duncan was the area's most experienced body recovery diver. He looked at me through tired, clouded eyes and took a long drag from his cigarette. "So you're the sketch artist Captain Russell recommended? Being a police sketch artist isn't just about drawing. You'll be pulling bodies out of the water, hauling them ashore, and working with the dead. You sure you're not scared?" "I'm not." He took another drag and sized me up. "I'll give you that. There's still a serial killer out there, and you came out to the middle of nowhere anyway. You've got guts." He let me stay. Every day, I recovered bodies, studied their remains, and reconstructed their faces. That night, Danny called. "Your mom said you never showed up. Where are you?" I frowned. In my last life, Danny barely cared where I was. Or if I was even alive. So why now? I didn't answer. "Do you need something?" His voice softened. "Nothing. Owen says he misses you. And that fish you made yesterday was really good." In the background, Alicia praised my cooking. Of course. He wasn't worried about me. He wanted me home to cook fish for Alicia. I hung up. I looked up at the thin crescent moon and thought of my dad. The bitterness I'd been choking down rushed up. My eyes stung. "Dad, I'm not staying a housewife this time. Are you disappointed? I'll become a great cop, though. Just like you." A few days later, Borevia University's archaeology team arrived at the reservoir to survey a newly discovered tomb. Alicia walked beside Danny, her hand looped through his arm. The grad students around them started teasing. "Prof. Caldwell and Professor Doyle really are the perfect couple." Chapter 4 Danny looked uncomfortable but didn't pull away. The second he noticed me, he quickly slipped Alicia's hand off his arm. "Wrenn? What are you doing here?" "I got a job." I calmly cleaned my tools. Alicia's expression cooled. "Wrenn, why do you smell..." She frowned. "Don't you know Danny can't stand bad smells?" I answered evenly. "It's the smell of dead bodies. I recover bodies from the water. It'll probably never wash out." Danny stared at me. "You're recovering bodies?" He frowned. "Couldn't you find a normal job? If not, just stay home and be a housewife. Why are you out here all day? Do you really think I can't support you?" "This job suits me just fine." He shot me one last icy look, then turned and walked off. Alicia looked me over. "Then keep the job. It's the only thing you're good for. The gap between you and Danny keeps getting wider, so why are you still hanging on? Don't you have any self-respect?" She walked away after that. I didn't bother responding. A little while later, my phone started blowing up with calls from my mom. The second I answered, she exploded. "You asked Danny for a divorce? And now you're working as a body recovery diver? Wrenn Whitmore! Have you lost your mind? Get home. Right now!" *** I brought the facial reconstructions I'd finished over the past few days to Homicide first. "Captain Russell, these are the reconstructions for the unidentified drowning victims from the reservoir." He looked surprised. "This many? And you finished them that fast? You're good. I'll check them against our records and call you." After leaving the precinct, I went home with a heavy heart. Mom looked so much more worn down than I remembered. The second I walked in, she slapped me. "Wrenn, your kid is already this old, and now you want a divorce? Didn't you love Danny? Before your father died, he trusted Danny to take care of you! And now you're throwing it all away to recover bodies? Are you trying to kill me?" After Dad died, I'd never dared talk back to her. But this time, I met her eyes. "Mom, marriage needs love. Danny has never loved me. I feel like an intruder, like I stole someone else's place and happiness. "I know you'll say Dad gave his life to save Danny, so Danny owes us. But I don't think Dad saved him so he'd be forced to marry me. I think he just wanted Danny to live. "I want to choose my own path. I want to be happy too." She just stared at me, stunned. I wasn't the bright, carefree daughter she remembered anymore. Her eyes filled with pain. "How... How did you end up this unhappy, sweetheart..." She never tried to stop me again. That night, Homicide called and told me to report to the precinct to help with the new murder case. My job was to rebuild victims' faces from skulls and sketch suspects from witness descriptions. I dove straight in. The victim's skull was badly damaged. Whole sections were missing and had to be pieced together through analysis. After three full days of study and deduction, I finally finished reconstructing the victim's face. From my reconstruction, the police identified the victim, found the killer, and arrested him. They later found two more victims trapped in his house. Because the case was solved in time, both were rescued alive. Captain Russell said I'd passed my trial period. Once the paperwork cleared, I'd officially join the PD. I'd even inherit Dad's badge number and had been nominated for a criminal profiling program in Warrington City, Amiraka. Chapter 5 Hope swelled in my chest. "I'll take the training. And... I know this isn't really PD business, but could someone help me? My marriage is over. My husband has someone else, and I don't want either of us wasting any more time." Captain Russell nodded. "You're a valuable specialist, Ms. Whitmore. From what you've told me, he's the one who checked out first. I'll have someone handle it." I couldn't thank him enough. On the way home, I called Mom and told her about the chance to train abroad. I left out the PD and just said it was a training program. "Have you booked your flight to Amiraka yet?" she asked. "They're handling it. I leave in a few days." The words had barely left my mouth when a familiar voice came from behind me. "Booked what? Where are you going?" I hung up and turned to the unexpected visitor, my face calm. "Tickets. I'm going to a concert. What are you doing here?" Danny pressed his lips into a thin line. "You've been gone almost a month. You still haven't bought me those clothes, and Owen really misses you. "If you don't like me spending time with Alicia, I'll keep my distance. "You're almost thirty. You don't have a top-tier diploma or work experience. Are you seriously going to recover bodies forever? "And you've barely answered my messages lately. I'm not happy about that. Don't do it again." I couldn't understand him. Wasn't this what he'd always wanted? "Professor Caldwell, haven't I made myself clear? I'm never going back to that house. Who you spend time with is none of my business. I don't answer your messages because I don't want to. We're over. I want a divorce." "I'm not divorcing you." Danny finally snapped. He locked eyes with me, his stare hard. "You've lived off me all these years. You ate my food, spent my money, and I even supported your mother. "I haven't done anything wrong. What gives you the right to divorce me? "You don't have much of an education, no steady career, and you can't even support yourself. Who do you think you are?" Like he realized he'd crossed a line, his voice softened. "Wrenn, quit playing games. We've been married for seven years. Are you really still doing this hard-to-get routine? It's pathetic." Before he could say another word, his phone buzzed with a message from Alicia. He glanced at the screen, then looked back at me. "I've got something to deal with. This is your last warning. You have three days to come home, or I'm really going to be mad." He turned and stormed off. Seeing Danny, always so calm and polished, get this worked up made me frown. But I didn't care. Yeah, I'd been a housewife. That didn't mean I owed him. He only counted the money he spent on me. Never everything I'd saved him. Even now, he still thought I was bluffing about the divorce. Like this was some desperate stunt for his attention. It was almost funny. A few days later, Captain Russell handed me my plane ticket, my application forms... ...and my finalized divorce decree. "Your background check cleared," he said. "And my contact pushed everything through as fast as possible. From now on, focus on your future, Ms. Whitmore. Keep moving forward."