All Chapters of The Kindest Cruelty: Chapter 1 - Chapter 7

A hundred needles jabbed into me, each one a fiery sting, blurring the line between life and agony. I was already hurt, but that…that was torture.Heat washed over me, snapping me back to reality.In the last second before the sauna door shut, I reached for my wife, Susie Rogers, clutching at her pant leg, desperate to stir the love we once shared."Susie, I swear I didn't do anything to Chester; you've got to believe me..."Susie used to be my partner in everything: coming home to cook and clean with me, laughing as she recounted her day at the office.I could not wrap my head around it. How could she do that to me?The pain was getting worse, a crushing weight on my chest making it hard to breathe.However, Susie might as well have been miles away, her voice distant as ice as she said, "You did this to Chester! He's frail and can't handle spice. Yet, you went and spiked his meal with mustard, setting off his appendicitis. He was just getting over his wife's death; you had no r

I experienced what happened when the mighty fell, and everyone started kicking while I was down.Susie had tossed me aside like a worn-out sneaker, and even her nanny felt bold enough to give me a kick.I knew they were all scared of Susie, but they were terrified of the head of the Rogers family."Mrs. Rogers thinks the world of me. If anything happens to me, you won't get off easy for just standing there!"The nanny went pale as a ghost when I said that. She knew the Rogers family head put me on a pedestal, and if things went south, they could not handle the fallout.However, she did not dare let me out on her own. She bolted upstairs to report the situation. "Ms. Rogers, Mr. Lynch says his body is heating up in the sauna, which is currently at 180 degrees. Should I rush him to the hospital for surgery right away?"Susie was hanging out with Chester in her room, and the mention of my name made her twitch with annoyance. "That sauna doesn't even go past 104 degrees."Maybe worr

Chester, who had been gloating by her side, grabbed her arm quickly and said,"Susie, don't fall for it! I set the sauna temp myself, 104 degrees max. Plus, there's this huge icebox in there. If it got too hot, he'd just chill in there."Susie paused, thinking Chester had a point.The sauna could not have been that hot, could it? It had to be Edward messing with the controls! He was probably just trying to play the sympathy card and get a free ride to the hospital.Feeling played, she snapped, saying, "Edward, when will you cut the act? Silent treatment? I almost thought you'd kicked the bucket! No more games; I'm running out of patience!"I was floating up in the air and could not help but snicker. If she had just pushed the door open, she would have seen me, crispy as a piece of beef jerky.However, she did not. She would rather take Chester's word for it than see the truth with her own eyes.She was not the type to run out of patience, only when it came to me.However, with

"He loved you too much to ever trick you," her assistant said.I was hovering unseen behind Susie. My heart might have stopped, but the words still cut deep.She still thought it was all a trick.Susie's gaze fell.I had loved her deeply.I would always leave a light on for her, no matter how late she returned home.I would cry whenever she suffered from stomach pains.She must have wanted a happy life with me, too, if only I had not constantly been at odds with her brother-in-law, Chester.The more Susie dwelled on it, the more her head throbbed, and she started to question whether I had ever really given Chester a hard time. She had never witnessed it herself, after all.However, she refused to accept that I was gone and ordered her assistant, "Fetch the doctor. I want to see what game he's playing!"Before long, a team of doctors arrived, and after a thorough check, they confirmed it."Ms. Rogers, Mr. Lynch was already dead before he arrived at the hospital!""What are y