Chapter 2

Just like in my previous life, I finished breakfast without showing any emotion.

As I headed for the front door, Evelyn stepped up to adjust my tie.

She leaned delicately against my chest, blushing prettily.

"Babe, I bought some sexy red lingerie. Come home early tonight, okay?"

Looking at her seductive act, my heart remained dead cold.

Because in my past life, when the police raided that five-star hotel tonight, she was wearing that exact red lingerie.

And while she was selling herself, I was slaving away at the office, working overtime just to afford her lavish lifestyle.

To avoid raising her suspicions, I suppressed the disgust rising in my throat, planting a quick kiss on her cheek.

Then, casually, I asked, "Do you have plans to hang out with friends today?"

Over our three years of marriage, Evelyn had quit her job early on. Her days consisted of shopping, dining at upscale bistros, and lounging around.

She never cooked, nor did she ever touch a single chore. Everything waited for me to clean when I got off work.

If she stayed home all day today, I wouldn't be able to execute my plan.

Evelyn hesitated for a second, then nodded sweetly. "Nope, I'll be waiting right here for you."

A flicker of frustration passed through me, but I didn't push it. I put on my coat and walked out.

Finding a quiet café down the street, I called in sick to work.

Then, I dialed an exclusive high-end medical spa and prepaid $10,000 onto a VIP package.

Once the confirmation came through, I forwarded the appointment details to Evelyn.

Babe, I set up a luxury spa day for you. Go treat yourself to some pampering!

She replied almost instantly with an excited “OMG yes!” followed by “Thank you so much, babe!”

I took a sip of my coffee and opened the home security app on my phone. Through the live feed, I watched Evelyn glam herself up and leave the house.

Twenty minutes later, the spa’s front desk sent a confirmation: Evelyn had arrived and checked in for a three-hour full-body treatment.

Only then did I let out a breath, get into my car, and drive back home.

I went straight to the living room camera, popped out the SD memory card, and plugged it into my laptop.

I remembered vividly: the timestamp on the video where "I" brutally assaulted Evelyn was October 7th.

Yet in my memory, I had spent that entire evening dead to the world, asleep in bed.

Could I have been sleepwalking?

Impossible. In thirty years of living, I had never sleepwalked once.

I scrolled through the timeline back to October 7th. Suddenly, an error window flashed across the screen with a sharp beep:

[File Corrupted or Missing. Please check SD card integrity.]

What was going on? The footage from October 7th was completely gone!

Refusing to give up, I checked October 6th and October 8th. Both days were completely intact, with crystal-clear audio and video.

Only October 7th had vanished into thin air.

A chill crept up my spine as I slumped in my chair.

Had Evelyn already planned everything by then? Had she systematically erased the evidence just to ruin me with a fabricated video?

No. I refused to be a sitting duck this time.

Even though I couldn't find that specific clip, I selected several candid everyday recordings and copied them onto my phone.

The clips clearly showed me cleaning the house, cooking dinner, and folding laundry, while Evelyn sat cold and detached on the sofa, scrolling through Instagram.

At the very least, these videos proved I was a devoted husband, not a violent pimp.

Still, the burning question remained: what actually happened in that deleted clip?