The second my finger left the screen, my panicked expression vanished. I wiped my tears, my eyes becoming sharp and focused. 15 minutes. That’s how long it would take him to get from his hiding spot to the house. And that was all the time I needed to set the stage for the final act. I turned to my father-in-law, who was watching me anxiously. I gave him a reassuring smile.
“He took the bait, Dad. Now let’s get ready to welcome our devoted son home.”
The countdown had begun. 15 minutes wasn’t long, but for a professional like me, it was enough time to turn the tables. The first thing I did was remove the clamped IV line. I replaced it with a bag of Ringer’s lactate solution, adding dextrose and vitamins, and open the valve to full flow. The life-giving fluid rushed into Arthur’s veins, replenishing his hydration and electrolytes, quickly reviving his flagging strength.
“Just hold on, Dad. This might feel a little cold, but you’ll feel better in a moment,” I murmured.
His complexion began to regain some color, his lips looking less chapped. Next, I pulled a large dusty case from under the bed. It contained an advanced CPR training mannequin I had borrowed from a medical training center to tutor students. The mannequin was the size and weight of a real person and contained electronics that could be connected to a monitor to simulate various cardiac rhythms. I quickly powered it on and hooked it up to the monitor beside the bed. I removed the EKG leads from Arthur, attached them to the mannequin’s chest, and then hid the mannequin under a thin blanket on the far side of the bed, away from the dim glow of the nightstand lamp. On the mannequin’s control panel, I selected the ventricular fibrillation setting. Instantly, the monitor’s screen once again displayed the chaotic, jagged waveform of a dying heart. The alarm shrieked, but this time it was reading the mannequin’s heart, not Arthur’s. My father-in-law lay quietly, receiving fluids and oxygen. His real vital signs were stabilizing, but Michael would never know. I covered Arthur with a blanket, leaving only his face and one hand exposed. I adjusted the lighting, turning off the main overhead light and leaving only the dim yellow lamp in the corner, creating an atmosphere of murky, deceptive shadows. In that dim light, the line between man and machine, life and death was blurred. I placed a cool, damp cloth on his forehead, pretending to reduce a fever, but actually obscuring his recovering complexion.
“When he comes in,” I whispered urgently, “keep your eyes shut tight and relax your whole body. Don’t move no matter what happens. Only open your eyes when I give the signal. Do you understand?”
Arthur blinked his confirmation, his old eyes glinting with steely resolve. He was no longer a victim awaiting his fate. He was my partner in this final battle. I sank to the floor, leaning against the bed, my arms wrapped around my knees, adopting the posture of a woman who had given up all hope.
The screech of tires outside broke the silence, followed by the clang of the gate being forced open and the heavy thud of footsteps on the stairs. Michael burst into the room like a storm, bringing the night’s chill and the stink of gasoline with him. His hair was a mess, his clothes disheveled, his forehead beaded with sweat, a perfect costume for the role of a frantic son rushing to his dying father’s side.
“Dad, dad,” he cried out, a heart-wrenching sound, and threw himself on his knees beside the bed.
He grabbed Arthur’s hand, which I had pre-chilled with an ice pack, and buried his face in it, sobbing uncontrollably.
“Dad, I’m too late. I’m a terrible son. Please don’t leave me.”
I watched him from my corner, peering through the gaps between my fingers. His cries were so full of anguish that any outsider would have been moved to tears. But I, who had lived with him for 16 years, saw the nauseating theatricality of his performance. While he wailed, his eyes darted up to the monitor. When he saw the chaotic waveform indicating cardiac arrest, I saw his lips twitch, a cold glint of triumph flashing in his eyes before being extinguished. He wasn’t grieving. He was confirming his success.
He turned to me, his eyes filled with a mixture of disgust and pity, but his voice was full of hollow comfort.
“Emily, get up. Don’t cry. It was his time. We did everything we could. Let me take care of him now for his final journey.”
He stood, wiped his fake tears, and his face became a mask of grim determination. He patted my shoulder.
“Go downstairs and boil some water. bring up some clean towels. I want to wash him so he can pass on peacefully.”
He was trying to get rid of me, to have the room to himself to deliver the final blow. I nodded, stumbling to my feet, my movements unsteady.
“Okay, I’ll go. Please save him. You have to save him.”
