Murder, Rewind

"I'm asking–no, insisting–that you investigate my wife properly!"

My parents, who heard the commotion upstairs, rushed down just in time to catch what I said. My mother stamped her foot anxiously.

"Son, what are you saying? Hannah's kind and devoted–how could she possibly do something like this?"

Hannah froze, stunned. After a long moment, tears welled up in her eyes as she spoke, each word slow and deliberate.

"Arthur, do you even hear yourself?

"I gave up my job for this family. I became a housewife, taking care of your parents and our child.

"And now that you're under suspicion and can't get out of it, the first thing you do is drag me down with you?"

Looking at the genuine hurt on her face, doubt crept into my mind.

"But, other than the two of us, no one else could've driven that car."

Hannah choked back a sob, her eyes filled with sorrow.

"I was afraid of getting into an accident–I'm not familiar with the roads, and my driving isn't good. So I asked the guesthouse owner to hire a local driver to take me."

"And here I was, racking my brain trying to buy medicine for you. What a joke!"

She pulled out several boxes of medicine from her pocket and threw them in front of me.

Instantly, the crowd erupted in a wave of curses.

Even the witnesses who were waiting inside the police car to give a statement jumped out, furious.

"I was planning to confront you at the station, you sick murderer–but I can't hold back anymore! And you still have the nerve to frame your own wife?"

"Who was it that dumped that bloody suitcase and then rushed back into the car to fool around with another woman?"

He raised his hand as if swearing an oath.

"I swear on my dignity–that woman was definitely not this kind and gentle-looking mother standing here!"

"Exactly!" someone else chimed in. "While they were going at it in the car, they even rolled down the window and flipped us off!"

"He shouted that if we had the guts, we should call the police–said he's a famous rocket engineer, and if anyone dared touch him, the country's aerospace program would suffer!"

"Look–my phone caught everything! I recorded it so we could catch this scumbag as soon as possible!"

On their screens was a half-dressed man.

He looked exactly like me.

The woman beside him, with her flirtatious eyes, I never saw her before in my life.

Hannah's hands trembled as she replayed the video again and again. Finally, she could not hold back–she rushed forward and slapped me hard across the face.

"All this time, you kept saying you wanted to buy me my favorite snacks. So, that was just your excuse to sneak off and meet that woman?"

"She even followed you all the way here just for a moment of pleasure. You two have no shame–but what about me? What about your parents? Your child?"

"The video is this clear–how are you going to smear me now?"

Cold sweat broke out across my back.

"Where is that woman? I can confront her!"

The police officer let out a cold laugh.

"The surveillance system shows that after the incident, you fled with her–drove into the mountains, to a place with no cameras. That's likely where she got out."

"When the car appeared again, you were alone."

"Such a key witness–either you sent her away, or you got rid of her. We'd like to know where she is, too."

I was completely speechless.

The officer twisted my arm behind my back with disdain and snapped cold handcuffs onto my wrists.

"At this point, for the sake of your family, you'd better confess and cooperate. You might get a lighter sentence."

However, the crowd was not satisfied.

Enraged, they hurled stones and dirty water at me.

"Officer, execute him as soon as possible! We won't feel safe otherwise!"

"Damn it–this kind of monster kills, dumps the body, cheats on his wife, and still tries to frame her? He deserves to die!"

"He must be a psychopath–who else would murder someone and dump the body in broad daylight?"

Suddenly, a thought struck me.

I struggled again and shouted, "Officer–after all this, who exactly are you saying I killed?"