I'm Not Dead

Chapter Twenty-Six

I took my wedding ring off one night, playing with it between my fingers. The silver was already turning dull. I wondered what Laura was doing right now, and was tempted to text her and ask. No, she's still mad at me.

I put the ring back on and went to bed.

I woke in the middle of the night, my phone ringing on my end table. I answered, "Hello?" I looked at my alarm clock. A little past midnight.

"Elliot, sorry to wake you." It was Rebekka, and she sounded worried. Was something wrong with August? "Laura isn't over there, is she?"

Laura? "Uh, no, she isn't. Why?"

"Well, it's getting really late, and she's not home yet."

I sat up, alarmed. "Where'd she go?"

"We don't know. We've been calling everyone we know, hoping that she just fell asleep at someone's house." Rebekka sighed. "Sorry to wake you,"

"No, you're fine. I uh, text me or call me or something if you find her. Or if you need help with Augustus."

"We will, thanks, Elliot."

Two days later, Laura is declared a missing person. Police suspect that she ran away, and that she'll eventually come back. They question me together with Rebekka and Brad, then question me alone.

Four days later, a body turns up.

Mutilated.

Bloody.

Hardly a body at all.

"It's her," Rebekka confirms for the coroner, holding back vomit.

It may be her body, but it sure as hell isn't Laura.

I sit with Rebekka and Brad as we go through all the goddamn paperwork. Not only is there papers for Laura's death, there's papers to deal with August, and who his legal guardians will become. When it was Laura and I, it was joint custody, just with the two of us and no lawyers to deal with. Now we have a lawyer to sort through everything.

The deal becomes that August will live mainly with Rebekka and Brad, with weekends with me, up until he's three—unless we agree that I'm ready to care for him sooner, or that three is too soon.

Then we move on to funeral details.

But first her murder:

She was murdered by a cult, at least that's what the police suspect. Her body was mutilated, and just thinking about it makes me sick. The cult's leader is currently being searched for, and why Laura was murdered is still unknown. Why did it have to be her?

So we quickly agree to have a closed casket funeral. I refuse to allow them to cremate her. Although I doubt she'd do as I did and bring herself back, she might, and I want her to have a body to come back to.

We will have a private service for family and close friends, and a memorial for classmates at the school. Then the burial.

Although I haven't told anyone, I'm nervous to be taking care of Augustus on my own, even if it won't be for another three years. The thought terrifies me.

I stand in front of the mirror, straightening my tie. There's dark bags under my eyes, and my face looks sunken.

I look like I'm grieving.

"Elliot?" Mom peeked her head into my bedroom. "Almost ready?"

I nodded and we left.

At the funeral home, I sat with Augustus. Theo and Gen sat with me and we talked a while. Gen loved August, adored him. "He's such a babe magnet."