Phone Call From a Monster: Lying to Save Your Life

Title: A Good Marriage Author: Stephen King ISBN: 9781439192597

The phone was ringing. Darcy ran back into the house, her hands wet and shaking. She had to answer. If she didn’t, Bob would wonder why.

She picked up the phone and tried to sound bright. “If that’s you, handsome, come right over. My husband’s out of town.”

Bob laughed. “Hey, honey, how are you?”

The intuition

Bob was a serial killer, but he was also a husband who knew his wife perfectly. He noticed something was off immediately.

“You sound funny,” he said. “All thick in the voice. Is everything okay, sweetie?”

Darcy was terrified. Marjorie Duvall’s name was blinking in her head like a neon sign. She was staring at her kitchen, a place she had known for decades, and it looked different. It looked like a set in a movie.

The lie

She had to think fast. She told him she was thinking about her sister, Brandolyn.

Brandolyn had been killed by a drunk snowmobiler years ago. It was a real tragedy in Darcy’s life, and Bob knew all about it. It was a safe lie because it explained why she sounded upset.

“Donnie called and asked after his sister,” she said. “It got me thinking about mine.”

Bob was so sympathetic. He even offered to skip his meeting in Vermont and come home early. Darcy had to talk him out of it without sounding desperate. She told him she would be fine and that he should stay and finish his business.

The double life

Bob’s sympathy was real. Or it felt real. That is the most insane part. He genuinely cared about her feelings, even while he was hiding the IDs of the women he had murdered.

Darcy realized that her marriage wasn’t just a house. It was a mansion with hidden rooms. And she had just walked into the darkest room of all.

“Love you, honey,” Bob said before hanging up.

“Love you, too,” Darcy replied.

Then she put her forehead against the wall and started crying. She realized that from now on, her entire life would be a lie. She was sharing her bed with a stranger, and she had no idea what she was going to do next.

But here is the thing: if he can keep a secret, so can she.

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