I didn’t touch it.
“What?”
“Read it.”
I opened it.
Inside was a hotel receipt.
Same hotel.
Same town.
Different date.
But the room was booked under Callan’s name.
And the second guest was listed as:
Bryony Wick.
I stared at it.
“I’ve never been here.”
“I know.”
Bram nodded.
“They used your name.”
“Why?”
“Because they thought nobody would question a room booked under your name.”
I felt sick.
“Did they actually stay there?”
“I don’t know.”
“Then why keep the receipt?”
“Because Callan paid with a card linked to your account.”
I looked up.
“What?”
Bram’s face was grim.
“Check your bank records.”
I grabbed my phone.
I searched the account.
There it was.
A payment.
A hotel.
A date I had been home with the children.
My hands started shaking.
“They used my name.”
“Yes.”
“But why?”
Bram hesitated.
“I think they were preparing for something.”
“What?”
“I don’t know.”
I looked at the receipt again.
Then I remembered the messages.
The house.
The money.
The phrase:
I’ll handle it.
Suddenly, this wasn’t only about an affair.
They had been planning something.
PART 6 — THE HOUSE
The next morning, I confronted Callan.
I placed the hotel receipt on the kitchen table.
He looked at it.
His face changed.
“Where did you get that?”
“Bram.”
He sat down.
“You need to listen to me.”
“No.”
“Bryony.”
“You used my name.”
“I can explain.”
“Then explain.”
He rubbed his forehead.
“It was for a meeting.”
“A meeting?”
“Yes.”
“With my sister?”
He didn’t answer.
“With my sister?”
“Yes.”
“Why was my name on the room?”
He stared at the table.
“Because Sasha booked it.”
“Why?”
“She thought it would be easier.”
“Easier for what?”
Silence.
I leaned forward.
“What were you planning?”
“Nothing.”
“Don’t lie to me again.”
He looked at me.
“We were talking about the future.”
“My future?”
“Our future.”
I laughed.
“You don’t get to say our future.”
He closed his eyes.
“I was going to leave.”
“When?”
“I don’t know.”
