Hidden Desires - Family Secrets-Chapter 208 I couldn’t believe what I was seeing Part1

I slowly opened my eyes, the buzz from the wine keeping sleep at bay.

Staring into the pitch-black bedroom, I turned to glance at Betty, who lay quietly beside me, appearing so docile and serene.

I sighed.

Was I being overly suspicious, seeing shadows where there were none?

Yet, those nagging doubts clung to my mind, refusing to be dismissed: What was with the unusual scent of shower gel on Betty that day?

Where did the items we shopped for disappear to?

Perhaps there was a water outage, and Betty had to use a public bathhouse; maybe the items were sent overseas to Michael ahead of time...

These were the only explanations I could muster.

Through to the next morning, I barely slept.

My mind wrestled with these questions, and I dared not fall asleep, fearing I might miss something happening between Betty and Michael in the dead of night.

But as dawn broke, nothing had happened, and I endured a long, sleepless night.

My eyes felt dry and my face tight, almost as if I were suffering from withdrawal.

When it was time to get up, Betty was making breakfast while I freshened up in the bathroom.

Looking at my red, puffy eyes in the mirror, I considered this a punishment for my wild imaginings.

After breakfast, Betty and I drove Michael to the airport.

At the entrance, we watched as he slowly walked into the terminal.

My heart was heavy.

Whether my suspicions were true or not, with Michael’s departure, they seemed less important.

Perhaps those doubts would remain forever unsolved, as I couldn’t bring myself to confront Betty.

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I had taken the morning off work, and after seeing Michael off, I headed to the office alone.

Sitting in my office, my thoughts kept spinning.

Despite some relief at Michael’s departure, a part of me felt an inexplicable loss.

I was acutely aware of these complex emotions.

I had paid close attention to Betty’s demeanor; she seemed indifferent about Michael’s departure, greeting him with a smile that seemed genuine and effortless.

This reassured me greatly.

Betty’s lack of complex emotions towards Michael suggested that her feelings had normalized, diminishing compared to before.

With these thoughts, my gaze fell on a box on my desk, which I had taken out upon arriving at the office.

But after my reflections, it seemed unnecessary to look inside.

Michael was gone, and Betty’s feelings towards him had normalized.

Whatever was or wasn’t on that USB drive, it was all in the past now.

Discovering minor details would be harmless, but uncovering something significant between them would only add to my troubles.

I sighed, locked the box in my safe, and decided it was best not to take it home.

With Michael gone, life seemed to return to its peaceful routine.

At that moment, I thought of Luna, feeling a twinge of guilt for only considering her after everything else was settled.

Where was she now?

Why had she left without a word?

Thinking back to that night, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for her.

I hadn’t placed the letter in the safe.

After reading it carefully twice, I tore it up and threw it into the wastebasket.

The letter held only one detail that gripped my attention: Luna mentioned she’d bring me a gift upon her return.

What kind of gift could it be from someone who regarded money as mere dirt?

As days passed, life with Betty resumed its tranquil rhythm.

Each evening after work, Betty would have a lavish dinner waiting, and occasionally, Michael would call to check in, restoring a semblance of peace to our home.

Yet, for reasons unknown, that sense of peace eluded me.

A persistent unease gnawed at me, its origins unclear.

As a journalist, my instincts were sharp—there’s no smoke without fire.

Perhaps it was my overactive imagination putting me on edge.

Maybe it was time to see a therapist.

But life continued as usual, and gradually, I began to relax.

Time, after all, is the best healer for a mind fraught with tension.

My days were filled with the usual hustle of work, while Betty, managing a school lab, enjoyed a more leisurely schedule.

Every evening, she’d prepare dinner, waiting for me to come home.

Then one day... that day, my team and I were sent to a suburban area to capture the local flavor of the old housing districts for a feature article.

The area, reminiscent of old Beijing’s alleys, housed many heritage buildings.

It lacked the bustling skyscrapers of downtown but exuded a serene harmony that I cherished.

Betty and I had visited this spot before, indulging in the local street food.

We both loved the area’s charm and had even fantasized about retiring here if it remained by the time we grew old.

However, it was a good 40 minutes’ drive from the city center.

After a long drive, we set up our cameras and took numerous shots.

We launched a drone for aerial views and wrapped up in the afternoon.

Back at the office, we began sorting through the footage.

Before I knew it, it was time to clock out.

"Go ahead and leave; I’ll finish up here," I told my assistants, seeing their weary eyes.

I’ve always cared deeply for my team, which is why they’re so loyal and why we’re the best at what we do.

Once everyone had left, I called Betty to let her know I’d be late.

I’m meticulous about my work and always strive to be ahead of schedule.

After briefing Betty, I started organizing the day’s footage.

We had shots from several cameras—street-level, from atop buildings, and more.

Finally, I was left with the drone footage.

As I edited, cutting unnecessary parts and keeping only the essentials, one particular frame caught my eye.

I leaned closer to the screen, disbelief widening my eyes.

There, unmistakably, was a figure resembling Betty.

Because the drone was capturing footage from a high altitude, and the camera angle was top-down, clarity was somewhat compromised by the distance.

Despite the drone’s limited carrying capacity, which meant it couldn’t support a very sophisticated camera, the footage was still reasonably clear.

In the video, the woman resembling Betty stood in a small courtyard, seemingly hanging clothes on a clothesline.

As the drone flew overhead, she even looked up, shielding her eyes from the glaring sun with her hand.

The drone only captured this small courtyard scene for about three to four seconds, showing the woman moving from hanging clothes to looking up at the drone before it moved on.

At this moment, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.

I rewound the video several times, scrutinizing the woman in the footage.

She bore a striking resemblance to Betty, and after all, I knew my wife’s appearance all too well.