Chapter 3 Burned Memories

I opened the door, but what greeted me wasn't the aroma of dinner or my husband's warm embrace. Instead, the air was filled with something burnt and charred.

Something squeezed my heart, and I darted into the house without changing out of my shoes. "Quincy! Is there a fire? Are you alright?"

There was no fire, but a stainless steel brazier sat in the center of the living room. Quincy had his back turned to me, crouched in front of the brazier. In his hand was a stack of photos, and he was throwing them into the flames.

The flames flickered and shone on his profile, casting shadows on his face from time to time.

The sound of my voice made him stiffen for a moment, but he didn't turn to look at me.

I approached him to see what he was burning, but the sight that greeted me made my mind recoil in horror. He was burning our wedding album. Those were photos we'd taken from college to marriage. Every single one of them spoke of a cherished memory we shared.

"What are you doing?" I shrieked as I lunged to save the photos.

Quincy moved faster than I could and tossed the remaining pictures into the open flame. The fire rose high into the air and burned away the smiles in the photos.

I tried to salvage them from the licking flames, but the scorching heat made me yank my hand back faster than lightning. All I could do was watch as our precious memories were burned to ashes.

"Are you out of your mind?" I stared at Quincy in disbelief, my body shaking with rage. "Do you have any idea how long it took me to edit that set? And that was the only film!"

Quincy slowly stood up and turned around, looking at me as if I were beneath him. That look in his eyes scared me. It was nothing like the warm, soft-spoken husband I knew. There was no love or affection in his eyes. Instead, all I could see was only icy indifference and disgust.

"Yeah, I burned them. So what? Stop overreacting," Quincy answered coldly. "It's nothing but proof of something fake. It was taking up space that could be used for better stuff."

I froze, my mind going blank. I could understand the language he was speaking, but I also couldn't understand a word he was saying.

'Proof of something fake? Taking up space?' I thought blankly.

Just then, my phone buzzed in my pocket. It was a different kind of notification, and I fished my phone out without thinking.

The anonymous guy private-messaged me again, "I burned them all, but it breaks my heart to see her cry. It's like having someone stab me straight through the chest, but I held it in. I didn't hug her. I did a good job, right?"