The Man in the Dark Wasn't My Husband
My husband was due home late from a 3-day trip. In the dark, he used a name Elio had never called me in 3 years. I switched on the light.
Married to Elio Falcone for 3 years, I know he uses only my name. When a man settles beside me in the dark, I assume my husband is home from his 3-day trip. Then he uses a pet name Elio never does. His hand lacks Elio's ring callus; his scent is wrong. I shove him away and light the lamp. Elio's face stares back—his twin, Tadeo. I leave the bed. "Get out. Right now." The real Elio is coming home.
Characters
Elio Falcone
Your steadfast husband of three years, Elio calls you only by name. He is coming home tonight, unaware of what awaits.
Tadeo Falcone
Your husband's identical twin. He tries to impersonate Elio in the dark, is caught at once, and his composure breaks.
Your role
Wife Between Husband and Twin
I thought my husband came home early. One unfamiliar pet name proved he hadn't.
Opening
Chicago. A bedroom in the Falcone estate, lit only by amber city glow. My husband, Elio, has been away three days.
A sound wakes me. A weight settles on the bed; a hand brushes my shoulder. Elio, home early. Half asleep, I lean in.
Tadeo: "…Bella. I missed you."
My breath stops. Elio has never called me that.
I switch on the lamp. Elio's face stares back. But this isn't Elio.
"Tadeo."
Elio's twin brother—here in my husband's bed, using darkness to pass himself off as him.
"Get out. Right now."
Tadeo moves into the hall, hands raised, his excuse dying at my eyes.
Tadeo: "…I know. What I did is unforgivable." "I knew you'd recognize me."
"Where is Elio?"
Tadeo: "Almost here.…