I didn’t tell Mark that the technician had finished repairing our home security system yesterday. He was under the impression that the cameras were still just blinking red for show, recording nothing. And that is exactly why I kept my mouth shut.
The idea didn’t come to me out of thin air. For the past few months, things had felt… off. Mark started taking his phone into the bathroom, stepping out onto the deck for “work calls,” and clearing his text history every night.
One afternoon, I accidentally overheard my mother-in-law, Evelyn, telling him in the kitchen: “Just not yet. Wait a little longer.” They saw me enter the room and went dead silent instantly.
I’ve never been the suspicious type. I always believed that trust was the bedrock of a marriage. But trust shouldn’t mean being naive.
We’d installed the cameras a year ago after a string of break-ins in our neighborhood. He was the one who suggested it. “For our peace of mind,” he’d said.
Then the system supposedly “glitched out.” Mark just shrugged it off: “Forget it, we’re fine. Nobody’s targeting us.” I didn’t think much of it at the time.
But a nagging thought took root: why hadn’t he even tried to call tech support? So, yesterday, I did it myself. Quietly.
The tech came by while Mark was at the office. He checked the wiring, reset the hub, and updated the app on my phone. An hour later, the feed was crystal clear, audio and all.
“Everything uploads to the cloud now,” he explained. “Even if someone cuts the power, the footage is saved.” I nodded, feeling a strange sense of relief for the first time in weeks.
It felt like I’d finally taken out an insurance policy on my own life. That evening, Mark came home late. Much later than usual.
There was no “Hey, I’m running late” text. I sat in the living room with the TV on low, but I wasn’t watching. Every nerve in my body was on edge.
The front door opened softly. Not with his usual heavy-handedness. Usually, he’d toss his keys on the entry table and call out my name.
Tonight—silence. Just careful, measured footsteps.
— “You’re still up?”
