I came back to my hometown after my wife and I separated 7 months ago. I loved her, I cherished her. I was so happy just being with her. But she said she was miserable.That we just weren’t compatible. After countless, bitter fights, she left me. I didn’t know where I went wrong. I begged her to give us another chance. But she never came back to me. I was sad, hurt. But soon all that turned into anger. I did so much for her, gave up so many things, but she never appreciated it, never cared for me. So I came back here in the hope that my happy childhood memories and old friends would distract me from everything else, maybe even heal me.
But then the killings started. In the town where my wife lived. Four murders in two weeks, all women, between 35 -40 years of age, with 14 cuts on each body, eyelashes plucked out, toenails pulled out and arranged over the head like some gruesome halo. But there was no sign of sexual violence. There seemed to be no connection among these women other than the fact that they were either divorced or separated.
My wife called me on the day the fourth body was found. It was one of her co-workers who was recently divorced. She was terrified. She begged me to go and stay with her. So she was safe from the serial killer. I hated my wife for leaving me like that. But she was still my wife. So I drove all the way to her town and stayed with her that night. She was so relieved to see me.And I felt a bit happy seeing her like that. We hugged and I told her I was there for her .Then I tried to kiss her. But she shoved me away saying she only wanted me here so everyone thought we were still together. And that I shouldn’t expect anything more. I realised she would never ever care for me. I would never get another chance with her. I couldn’t stay. I just couldn’t. I told her I couldn’t stay with her but made her double check that all doors and windows were locked. I made sure the alarm was working and there was nothing unusual going on.
When I left sometime later, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. Like I had forgotten to check something. But I couldn’t just go back, so I kept driving. I was exhausted but I called my mother in law and asked her if she could check in with my wife the next day. Though she wasn’t on good terms with either of us, she agreed to give her a call. I went to bed and fell asleep instantly.
I slept in the next morning. I didn’t wake up until I heard the doorbell ring. I checked my phone but it had died sometime in the night. So I got up and went to the door. It was the police. I knew immediately what they were going to say. I knew I shouldn’t have left in such a hurry last night. I knew something was wrong.
It was my wife. They found her body this morning. Her mother was worried when she didn’t answer her calls and called the cops. It was the same. 14 cuts, no eyelashes, toenail halo. I was heartbroken. I still loved her.
The police wanted to know the purpose of my last visit to her. They probably saw me enter and exit through her porch camera. I told them as much as I could. According to the medical reports she died around the time of my departure from her home. Maybe the killer was in the house when I left. So they asked me if I had seen something unusual. I told them something didn’t feel right but I still couldn’t place it. So they asked me to contact them if I remembered anything else. I wasn’t really a suspect as they had probably looked into my alibis for the time of the previous murders.
Anyway, 2 days and 1 more murder later, the police finally caught the killer. A psycho who didn’t take rejection too well. The case was closed. Everyone was happy and relieved.
I was watching a report on the murders that night when I realised what I had missed that day.
The two toenails in the middle of the halo should have been facing each other like in all the other cases. Either no one noticed it or they thought it was nothing unusual.
I really hope it’s the latter.