The Smart Speaker Exposed My Wife’s Affair

Alex was surprisingly fast. In half an hour, my phone vibrated.

I received a link and a comment from him.

[It’s a generous contribution from the best actor of the year. The evidence is so complete that I can’t bring myself to charge you with a full payment. Take your time and enjoy.]

I clicked on it and realized that it was Samuel’s social media account. It was set to public.

The newest post was a close-up photo of a wrist with the bracelet that I was most familiar with because of the engraved “L.” The caption went something like this:

[The Sun is coming to you, Miss C.]

My nickname “the Sun” and my bracelet had become another man’s prizes.

My face was devoid of expression as I scrolled down.

The background of one of the photos was the study in my house. Samuel held his face and smiled innocently, with the out-of-print architectural atlas I had collected from Lasnon behind him.

[I’m learning in Miss C’s study, and I’m getting better!]

Samuel held a pen and was drawing on a piece of paper in another photo. That pen had been my gift to Linda for her thirtieth birthday. It was a globally limited, co-branded pen.

[The pen Miss C gave me is so nice! She said my hand deserves the best pen.]

There was another photo from a private restaurant that we frequented. They ordered my favorites.

[This is my secret spot with Miss C. She said I’m her only harbor where she can fully relax!]

The photos and words were like sharp scalpels, slicing right into the most tender parts of my memory.

Then, I read the post from three days ago.

Samuel was holding a printed design draft in the photo and smiling in satisfaction.

The caption went: Miss C stayed up late to help me revise my draft. She told me I’m the most talented designer she’s ever met! I’m sure I can get the Sky Center project. I can do it!

We had spent all of our effort and prepared for half a year for the Sky Center project. It was the most important milestone of my career.

I abruptly got up from the sofa, grabbed the car key, and rushed out of my home.

The company was vacant at midnight. I used my fingerprint to unlock the door and went straight to Linda’s office.

The screensaver on her computer was still on. It was our wedding photo. She smiled happily in the photo, but it disgusted me.

I clicked on the keyboard, and the screen lit up. It prompted me to enter the password. I tried my birthday, which was the wrong password. Then, I tried our wedding anniversary date. That did not work either.

I sneered and keyed in Samuel’s birthday.

[Welcome.]

The desktop was neat and clean, but I immediately noticed an encrypted folder. I opened it and found the final proposal for the Sky Center project inside. Every detail reflected months of hard work by me and my team.

Surprisingly, there was another folder beside it, with the letter “S” as its name.

I opened it and found that the proposal in it was almost the same as mine. But there were some minor adjustments made to a few key load-bearing structures and design highlights. It also avoided the core patent, but it kept the essence of my proposal.

The proposal was signed with Samuel’s name.

Not only did Linda cheat on me, but she also stole my work and jeopardized the future of our company. She used it to paint a bright future for her young lover.

Nausea overcame me. I held onto the cold table firmly so that I would not collapse.

It seemed that jealousy and betrayal could make a woman seem like a different person entirely.