New Suspicions Arise

Upon finding the right key to my own home, I hurriedly unlocked the door and rushed into the bedroom. Seeing Angel still soundly asleep, unmoved, I breathed a sigh of relief and crouched by the bed, silently giving thanks.

I couldn't help but look again at the heavy set of keys in my hand. The two new keys inexplicably made me anxious. Among the keys were those to my home, my mother-in-law's place, and the office, but it was these two unfamiliar ones that I couldn't place.

Holding the keys and glancing once more at the still-sleeping Angel, I quickly went out again. There were several key-cutting shops at the east end of the market. I chose the smallest one and had duplicates made of the two new keys, then hurried back home.

Today, Angel really was well-behaved, continuing to sleep peacefully.

But not long after I got home, George returned, and something in me tensed unexpectedly.

"Why are you back so early?" I asked directly.

"I was worried. I was afraid the baby would wake up and cry, so I came to check," George said as he walked past me into the bedroom, looking at Angel, "She hasn't woken up, has she?"

Perhaps hearing George's voice, the previously sleeping Angel suddenly opened her big eyes, wriggled her little body, turned over, and with a milky voice called out, "Daddy!"

George immediately approached with a beaming smile, bending down to Angel, "Baby, you're awake?"

"Daddy! I want ice cream!" She licked her lips with her tiny pink tongue, blinking her big eyes full of hope.

"Okay, we'll play for a while, and then Daddy will take you and Mommy out for dinner, and we'll have ice cream, alright?" George pinched Angel's little nose. She got up and climbed into his embrace, wrapping her arms around his neck, "Daddy is the best!"

I brought over some water and gave her a drink—she was thirsty from sleeping.

George carried her to the living room. I noticed his eyes briefly scan the cabinet by the door, spotting the set of keys, and he seemed to relax.

I silently went into the kitchen, took out a dragon fruit, and after cutting it, I spooned out the flesh to prepare a snack for Angel. As I was serving it, my eyes inadvertently swept over the cabinet again—the set of keys was no longer there.

My heart skipped a beat, and my hand trembled, causing two pieces of dragon fruit to fall from the plate onto the coffee table. George looked at me with surprise.

"What's wrong?" George looked up at me with concern. "Are you too tired? Why don't you take a nap? I'm not going anywhere; I'll play with Angel."

I managed to control my emotions and nodded, "Yeah, I am tired! You keep her entertained for a while; I'll have a quick rest."

After setting the fruit plate on the coffee table, I told him, "Feed her some of this, and there's more in the kitchen."

"Alright, go sleep! When you wake up, we'll go out to eat," George said, picking up the fruit fork to feed Angel.

I returned to the bedroom and lay on the bed, struggling to breathe, as tears started to overflow.

It seemed evident that there was something amiss with those two keys. His rushing back home wasn't out of concern for whether Angel was awake.

Once a man strays, it's as if his conscience is devoured. Those keys might very well belong to that woman's house.

My mind involuntarily drifted to Monica. She'd been doing well over the past two years, living alone in a large apartment, no longer sharing with anyone. Yet, she'd never mentioned where it was or invited me over. It seemed a convenient arrangement for bringing men home.

The more I thought about it, the angrier I became. It's true what they say: you can know someone's face, but not their heart. Feeling played was as nauseating as swallowing a fly. No wonder she told me I'd help George count the money even after being sold out.

It was a blatant provocation from her.

Even if she wasn't the fake 'Mrs. Smith,' she was definitely up to no good. If she had nothing to hide, why lie?