He Didn’t Look for Me Until I Was Dead (by Durrin) novel Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Calvin had told Georgia he would divorce me?

My mind went blank, my spirit feeling ripped apart by the raging wind outside.

His promise seemed to calm Georgia. She finally settled down.

He let her go and said gently, “Let’s go. With all the crime lately, I’ll drive you and check the security at your place.”

He was so attentive. Watching him, I couldn’t help but smile bitterly.

“Calvin, do you know the lock at our place has been broken for weeks?”

Since marrying him, I’d hardly ever troubled him with things at home.

Before the wedding, he’d said, “Whitney, being a police officer’s wife is tough. Think it through— are you sure you want to marry me?”

Back then, I was just happy to be with him.

I’d answered without hesitation, “Yes, of course. I want to be part of a police family.

“I only ask one thing–that when you’re out on a mission, you remember I’m waiting for you at home.”

It wasn’t far from the hotel to my family’s home, but the trip felt endless.

I was exhausted in every way.

After dropping Georgia off, Calvin finally headed to our place.

It took him a long time to manage the broken lock.

Inside, it was pitch dark. He frowned and flipped the switch.

The light was glaring. I turned away, only to see the handwritten wedding vow framed on the wall.

Memories rushed back.

It was a tradition from my hometown, one Calvin had honored by writing those promises himself

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Chapter 3

for our wedding.

The handwriting was a little uneven, clearly out of place in our minimalist home.

But I could never bring myself to take it down.

Calvin noticed the frame, too. He stared at it, his expression filled with displeasure

Then he lifted it off the wall and dropped it into the trash.

At that moment, the last shred of hope inside me shattered.

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Calvin walked to the bedroom. As he entered, his eyes landed on our wedding photo on the wall.

He paused briefly, then pulled out his phone and opened our chat.

“Whitney, are you on a business trip? Why didn’t you tell me?”

His emotionless questions stung.

Standing beside him, I said quietly, “Calvin, I told you last month I wasn’t traveling for work anymore.”

I remembered–he’d nodded at the time. Clearly, nothing I said ever stayed with him.

Calvin washed up and lay down. Just then, his phone chimed again.

The caller’s voice was jarring in the quiet night.

“Captain McMullen, the preliminary autopsy report is in.

“The victim was twenty–six years old, with thirty–two knife wounds, six of them fatal

“Her abdomen was stabbed repeatedly with a sharp object–possible rage or overkill. Also.

“Dr. Trevino found a formed fetus inside the victim’s body.”

Even as a spirit, I felt a pain so deep it threatened to suffocate me.

I looked at Calvin, whose expression darkened instantly.

I forced sound from my throat. “Calvin… That was… our baby….

I was dead, yet somehow my mouth filled with the taste of metal.

A flicker of pity passed through Calvin’s eyes, quickly replaced by controlled rage.

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Chapter 3

He grabbed his coat. “I’ll be right there.”

I followed him to the station’s autopsy room in a trance.

288 Vouchers

I covered my mouth when I saw the embryo on the table.

It was my baby… He had developed a head and tiny limbs. He should have been safe and up happy.

grown

He shouldn’t have ended up like this–on a cold table, bruised and lifeless, beside my headless body.

In that moment, I finally felt regret.

Why did I go out when I knew I wasn’t the one Calvin wanted to celebrate?

Why did I stubbornly insist on going to a birthday party that was never meant for me, even though I knew I wasn’t the one Calvin loved?

I drifted to the table, staring at my baby, my eyes burning.

“I’m sorry, baby… This is all my fault…”

Everyone in the autopsy room stared at the two bodies–one large, one small–in complete silence.

After what felt like forever, Calvin’s phone chimed, breaking the stillness. He pinched the bridge of his nose and walked out as he answered.

“Stefanie, I told you–if there’s something, call Whitney, not me.”

I was stunned.

Stefanie Pruitt was my only close friend since childhood.

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Her panicked voice came through. “Calvin, I can’t reach Whitty. Something’s happened to her.”

Calvin’s voice turned cold. “What makes you say that?”

She raised her voice. “Because the last text she sent me only had two words.

“Help me.“”

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