I plugged it in.
The video started. Evelyn sitting in her favorite armchair, looking frail but peaceful, speaking directly to the camera.
“Hello, James. My sweet, lost husband.”
She smiled gently, the same smile she gave me every morning.
“I know you married me for the house and the money. I’ve known for a long time. But I also know that somewhere along the way, you changed. You started coming home early to have dinner with me. You held my hand when I was scared about my heart condition. You laughed at my terrible jokes. Those moments were real, even if you don’t want to admit it yet.”
She paused, eyes glistening.
“I could have confronted you. I could have divorced you and left you with nothing. But I didn’t. Because for the first time in many years, this big empty house felt warm again. You gave me companionship, even if it started as a lie.”
Tears began falling down my face.
“I’m not leaving you the house or the money, James. Because that’s not what you really need. You need to learn that love isn’t something you take. It’s something you give. So I’m giving you the only thing that might save you — the truth.”
The video ended.
I sat there for a long time, staring at the screen.
The lawyer cleared his throat. “There’s one more thing. Mrs. Evelyn set up a small trust for you — twenty thousand dollars. Not enough to live on forever, but enough to start over if you choose to become a better man.”
I left the lawyer’s office in a daze.
That night, I sat alone in the cheap motel room I could barely afford, the shoebox open beside me. For the first time in my life, I cried like a child.
I had spent three years waiting for Evelyn to die.
And now that she was gone, I realized I missed her more than I ever thought possible.
