Where Love Sank

The screen on the monitor flickered slightly. I saw Craig walking toward the massive shark where I was trapped.

There was no one else around, which meant I had a chance to call out to him and beg for help. I opened my mouth, but my throat was so parched from days without water that all I could manage was a low, guttural rasp—something more beast than human.

Craig turned toward me with a cold smirk.

“Jane, I know you can hear me. Just admit online that you’re nothing but a cheap, promiscuous woman. Get down on your knees and apologize to Izzy. Do that, and I’ll forgive you.”

He paused for a beat, then added in a low voice, “You can’t blame me. Izzy was gang-raped by a bunch of thugs back then because she was trying to save me. She kept it quiet all these years to protect my reputation. I owe her my life.

“Jane, if you just apologize sincerely and promise not to mess around with other men anymore, I’ll let you come back. We’ll live a normal life again. Once Izzy graduates, I’ll send her abroad. She’ll be taken care of for life. That’s all I ask. You love me, don’t you? Can’t you do that much?”

His voice was soft, but to me, it struck like a dagger to the heart.

I froze. Then, I started laughing and crying like a madwoman.

So that was what this was all about. That was why Craig stopped loving me and suddenly fell for Izzy instead. It was all because of that one lie.

Craig, what an absolute fool he was. The one who saved him that night was me!

I opened my mouth, screaming as loud as I could, but not a sound came out.

My thoughts were a mess. I wanted to explain so badly what really happened that night—how those thugs he’d pissed off came looking for him with blades in hand, and how I, to protect him, refused to give up his location. In the end, I was the one they dragged away instead.

That night still burned in my memory like a brand, and Izzy? She just happened to walk past, took one look, and ran; she didn’t suffer a damn thing.

Alas, I didn’t have the strength to explain anymore. I would’ve knelt, begged, and taken all the blame if it meant I could protect my baby and keep it alive. I would even carve the word ‘whore’ into my skin if that was what it took. However, now that my baby was gone, nothing else mattered.

I remembered the early days of our marriage when Craig used to look at me lovingly.

“Jane, I really want to have a child with you. And I want them to grow up safe and sound.”

All those words faded into a silent, invisible sigh.

“Jane, what is this? Are you playing mute now? Speak up!” Craig snapped when I didn’t respond, marching forward to check on me.

Just then, his phone rang. The sickly sweet ringtone he’d set just for Izzy cut through the still night like a knife.

“Craig, my stomach hurts. Please, come save me...”

His face twisted in panic. He started whispering sweet nothings into the phone as he turned and ran off to her.

In that exact moment, as his back disappeared into the dark, the numbers on the vitals monitor all dropped to zero.