Chapter 6

Natalie's POV

On the sixth day, Adrian ransacked the house.

Melissa sat on the couch doing her nails.

"Haven't found it yet? That bitch definitely left insurance. My dad said she dug up a lot of dirt. If it gets out, we're all finished."

"Still looking."

Adrian was drenched in sweat.

Finally, his gaze locked on the safe in the bedroom.

That was my private safe, where I usually kept important documents and my journalism earnings bank cards.

"Open it." Melissa ordered.

Adrian walked over and entered the password.

"Incorrect."

He'd entered our wedding anniversary.

I sneered from the side. "Changed it long ago."

Ever since I'd noticed something wrong with him, I'd changed the password.

"What? Can't open it?" Melissa walked over impatiently.

"She changed the password." Adrian frowned.

"Try my birthday." Melissa said casually.

I looked at her like she was an idiot.

My safe, using her birthday? Dream on.

Adrian hesitated, then pressed several numbers on the keypad.

Beep.

Green light.

The door popped open.

I was completely stunned.

How was that possible?

I clearly remembered changing it to... to my parents' death anniversary!

When had it become Melissa's birthday?

Unless...

I looked at Adrian.

Unless he'd secretly changed it when I wasn't paying attention.

Melissa burst out laughing and threw her arms around Adrian's neck. "Adrian, you fell for me that early? You even changed her safe password to my birthday?"

Adrian laughed dryly. "Wanted to surprise you."

Melissa couldn't wait to dump everything out of the safe.

Several bank cards, property deed, and some jewelry.

"That's it?" Melissa rummaged through them. "Where's that notebook? Or a USB drive?"

"Nothing." Adrian shrugged.

"Impossible! That bitch must have hidden it here!"

Melissa turned the safe inside out, even reaching in to feel the interior walls.

"There really isn't anything, Melissa. Maybe she didn't actually find any solid evidence. We were worrying for nothing." Adrian tried to persuade her.

Melissa reluctantly kicked the safe.

"Fine. Since there's nothing, let's go. There's a party tonight."

Melissa turned to change clothes.

But Adrian didn't move.

He crouched in front of the safe, his back to the doorway.

I saw his hand quickly reach into a tiny crevice deep inside the safe.

That was a maintenance access left by the manufacturer. Most people wouldn't know about it.

But he knew.

Because he'd gone with me to buy this safe. He'd read me the instruction manual.

From that crevice, he extracted a black SD card.

Only as big as a fingernail.

That was my backup. I knew paper notes weren't safe, so I'd deliberately stored the core evidence here.

He knew after all.

He got the SD card but didn't hide it in his pocket.

He was afraid of being searched.

The next second, I witnessed something that shook my soul.

He put the SD card in his mouth.

No water.

He just dry-swallowed it.

The pain of the hard plastic card scraping down his esophagus made his whole face turn red, veins bulging in his neck.

He clutched his throat, dry-heaving twice, then forcibly covered his mouth and swallowed it down.

Tears streamed from the corners of his eyes.

"Adrian? You done yet?" Melissa called from outside.

Adrian took a deep breath, wiped away the tears, and stood up.

"Coming."

When he turned around, he'd restored that carefree smile.

"See, even the password is your birthday. I fell for you long ago."

He walked out and put his arm around Melissa's waist.

I floated in place, staring at the empty safe.

So he'd changed the password.

All so he could open the safe right under Melissa's nose and take the evidence.

He'd swallowed it.

That was his only way to survive and also his only path to death.

If it didn't pass. If the card got stuck. If it perforated his stomach...

Adrian.

What exactly are you planning?