My Perfect Life

14 Digging around

It took me more than a week of living in this house to sneak into Patrick's office.

Why so long?

It looked like Patrick was around me every second. He was behind every corner, in every room, everywhere. He took few days off from work - an unprecedented act - to "help me settle", so he said. In two days, I was suffocating and on the verge of leaving, even if it meant I would sleep at the park bench.

He went back to work after almost a weeklong home staying and finally left me be. So I thought. But he came to visit unpredictable, few times a day and check on me.

I began to feel desperate to find out what was going on. I couldn't keep this act of my obliviousness for too long. My patience was already getting thin. My mind was storming me with unanswered questions constantly, wondering, and imagining all the reasons why. I wanted to confront Patrick, to demand answers, to erase that stupid, honey-sweet smile from his face.

Finally, the opportunity appeared when Patrick had to leave for a business meeting. He tried to convince me to go with him but I was unwavering. When I heard the car drove off, I stay in my room for some time worrying he could come back.

Not wasting any more time I opened the door with a shaking hand and freeze. I stood in the doorframe of Patrick's office rather uncertain and lost. I was finally here but I had no fucking idea where do I start and what do I exactly looking for. I felt like I should have been preparing for this detective job harder.

However, Patrick's table was a good starting point. I examined every drawer, and carefully placed all the shit back at its place. I looked through every shelf, every corner, but there was nothing worthy.

I crushed exhausted in his chair and looked around. There was no place I didn't search at.

Except...

My eyes landed on a big painting on the wall. It was heavy, in a carved wooden frame.

How could I forget? I wanted to smack myself. Hard.

I came closer.

No way in hell I could take it off the wall by myself. I remembered Patrick told me there was a mechanism that would lift the painting so you could get to the safe behind it. I examined the frame, all the lines, and spirals until my eyes landed on the carved grapevine. You would never saw it if you didn't know it was there. I pressed on one grape and the frame went up. It was like in the movie and I felt myself like Lara Croft. Except, I was not tomb raiding, but my husband's safe.

Great, how can I open the safe now?

I didn't bother to listen to what was the password when Patrick had told me. I thought I had no business looking inside. Now I know ignorance is not bliss.

"What do we have here?... Eight number code. What that could be?"

I could now vaguely remember Patrick told me it was a date. But what date? I tried Patrick's birthday.

No.

Maybe my birthday?

Pff, no.

I tried his parents' birthdays as well. The safe still did not open.

The date of our wedding?

Something click and door opened showing me what was inside.

"Seriously our wedding? What a joke!"

The safe was big. The upper shelf was full of neatly placed stacks of money.

There were many documents on the lower shelf. I took a big folder and look through it.