But instead I found something that changed everything. There was an email confirmation open on the screen. It was for a luxury apartment rental in Oak Brook, a suburb about forty minutes from our house.
The apartment was fully furnished and the contract duration was exactly two years.
Two registered residents were listed on the agreement. Matthew Ellison. And another name. Stephanie Dalton.
There was also a short note from the property manager written at the bottom of the message.
“Please include a crib in the master bedroom as requested.”
A crib.
For several seconds I simply stared at the screen without breathing. Then I began reading every single line carefully, making sure my eyes were not deceiving me.
The lease start date was the exact same day as his supposed flight to Seattle. He was not moving across the country. He was moving less than an hour away from our home.
And there was something else even worse. Stephanie Dalton was pregnant. I leaned back slowly in the chair and felt the air leave my lungs. My mind immediately jumped to the joint account we shared at a private bank branch on Michigan Avenue.