Sitting at the police station Susan Ryan ran her hands through her auburn hair and dabbed tears still streaming from her light emerald eyes. She was still trying to comprehend what had happened and why would Kevin, her husband of five years do this to her. The last 24 hours have been a total unbelievable nightmare. She knew they have had problems and had decided to separate, but to go to this extent? Yesterday at this time she wouldn't have believed it would ever go this far.
Sergeant Johnson had offered her a cup of coffee and asked her to try and remember everything she could. She graciously accepted then he left to get the coffee and she recounted the days before going to the hotel.

Susan knew it wouldn't work out even before she arrived at the hotel with her estranged husband, Kevin. Their relationship had been deteriorating for several months now and I guess this was a last ditch attempt to possibly resolve their differences. She reluctantly agreed to go. It was the least she could do, she supposed.
She had actually given up hope for a reconciliation when she discovered that Kevin was involved with someone else. He had been staying longer at work, texting more often than usual. He went to the store one night to pick up some food for dinner. He was gone an extremely long time. When he returned home, he didn't have the groceries but smelled strongly of alcohol. They argued and he had called her a suspicious liar when she mentioned the lack of groceries. She was tired of this routine arguing. Her lack of a family growing up had made her want to hang in there but this was not what she wanted. She wanted to be happy again. She thought to herself, where did this start going wrong?
Kevin had gone to bed with a slam of the bedroom door. She just felt empty inside. His drinking was getting worse, she could see that now. Then she heard a buzzing sound on the kitchen table. Kevin had left his cell phone there. Someone had just left him a message. Susan believed in respecting others privacy but it was late and it could have been an emergency but possibly something else and her curiosity got the best of her. She picked up the phone and there it was, "That last kiss wasn't long enough, maybe next time we'll have more time"....Susan had suspected but put it out of her mind, possibly living in denial but now it slapped her hard and cold across the face.
The next day she confronted the now sober Kevin about the message. She expected the rage from checking up on him and of course his denying everything at first. Then he told her everything about the sneaking around, etc., but he wouldn't say who she was, promising never to see or speak with her again. Susan just couldn't bring herself to believe him though. She packed a bag and went to her best friends house.
Their 5 year marriage was over as far as she was concerned. But Kevin called her and somehow persuaded her into going away to their once favorite place. Maybe a change would do them both good, talk things through. Maybe the change of scenery would be a good idea, even if it was just to say good-bye.

The beach was relaxing, the sand warm and the deep blue water cool as they walked along the oceans edge, bending to pick up a pretty shell or stone to throw back into the sea. They talked of many things, work, money, the kids that they had wanted but never had. Maybe life had a way of snatching the good from two people living together, struggling with the realities of everyday. They used to do everything together, now they fought constantly over everything. But going back now was much too late, the affair was more than she could deal with. She watched her mother go through it and she swore she wouldn't allow that in her marriage. She had to tell him that this was it for her. There was no trust anymore and hasn't been any respect for quite sometime.
They decided to head back to the hotel to change and shower before dinner. But in spite of everything it had felt like a good day to her, like a weight lifted off her shoulders because now she knew what she needed to do. She even felt sorry for her husband, sometimes he seemed like a lost child. But people have to grow up and she had done that already.
As they walked to the desk to check their messages they heard a loud argument in the bar near the pool. Two men were in a heated discussion and ready to draw fists. Stopped in their tracks the hotel manager had escorted one of the gentlemen out and told him that he would call the police if he came back.
The dark haired man yelled at the other man in the blue suit to watch his back! Both had apparently been drinking. Kevin went unnoticeably pale.
Deciding to skip the desk and go straight to their room with the two queen sized beds facing an ocean view, they showered separately. Susan feeling refreshed, the bar argument forgotten they headed downstairs for dinner.
The stuffed flounder and baked potato looked and smelled great but Susan only picked at her salad. There were very few words spoken at dinner. The true realization of their marriage lay before them like an open sore. She didn't love this person anymore and maybe he realized it too. They were like strangers. She didn't know him anymore, she only wanted to be happy again. She wanted that for him also. She suddenly felt sad, sad for both of them, because it wasn't always this way.

After dinner they were slowly walking back to their room when Kevin's phone rang. He excused himself and asked Susan to go on ahead. She didn't question the call for he received many calls from colleagues all the time. Kevin was a lawyer for one of the biggest law firms in the area. Sometimes business calls could take awhile. But back in her mind she still thought it might be that mystery woman he had been seeing, but what did it matter, it was over. She knew it. When they get back to town she would file for divorce but decided not to mention the affair, just to save face, hers and his.
Kevin was taking longer than anticipated so she decided to put on her nightgown and go to sleep. Sleep would take her away from her troubles, she had hoped.
As soon as she laid her head upon the pillow she heard a commotion out in the hall, just outside the door. Sounded like arguing and shuffling of feet. Maybe a physical fight, then what sounded like someone running away. It scared her and she reached for the phone to call the front desk. As she picked up the receiver there was suddenly a banging and pounding on the door.
She froze for a moment then she heard a stranger call her name to open the door. She fumbled for her robe. Standing at the door with shaking hands and nervous voice she asked, "Who is it"? The voice on the other side said, "It's the house detective, Mrs. Ryan", please open the door! Susan opened the door only to see her husband laying on the floor in a puddle of blood, she pushed passed the detective to Kevin's crumbled body. Sirens barely heard in the distance, everything whirling in her head she called his name over and over....but to her dismay he did not answer...he never would again.


The Sergeant walked back and handed her the coffee, she sipped the strong bitter tasting liquid and tried to pull herself together. Sergeant Johnson handed Susan a piece of paper and asked her to read it. She was shocked of what she was reading. This couldn't be she thought to herself. When she was through she handed it back to the Sergeant, tears filling her eyes again. The hotel house detective was suddenly there as well and explained to her the theory of events.
Her husband had planned to have Susan murdered by the stranger at the bar, the one that was escorted from the building. Kevin had paid the man $50,000 to kill his wife. Little did Kevin know that the other man in the blue suit at the bar drunkenly mentioned it to someone how the other guy was bragging that he was paid to kill someone at the hotel. The house detective was called in to investigate and keep an eye out for any suspicious behavior.
"What we now believe", said the detective, is that the man came back to the hotel. That was the call that your husband received as you walked back from dinner to say that you would be alone in your room. We also believe that your husband had a last minute change of heart and he confronted the killer outside your door and they fought. The other man stabbed your husband and ran off. He is now in our custody and has admitted to everything. He will be charged with intent to kill you and the murder of your husband.
Susan walked slowly from the police station to an awaiting police car to take her home...We are so sorry they said, but nothing they said made this any easier in her heart or mind. There will still be many unanswered questions as to why. Her only consolation was that Kevin had tried to stop what he had put in motion. She recalled the words she read in the undelivered note that the Sergeant handed her written in Kevin's pen, "I've changed my mind, she doesn't deserve this, it's all my fault. Just keep the money and go away, I love my wife. I want to make things right with her!
"I love you too Kevin", she realized to herself as the car drove off...