Charlotte saw herself as the ideal wife, 32 and still turning heads with her long auburn hair, toned body from yoga and Pilates, and a smile that put people at ease. Her green eyes reflected her kind nature. Married to Mark for eight years, their suburban life was solid: a comfortable house with a picket fence, a backyard garden, barbecues with neighbors, and sex that was steady if not explosive. Mark, 35, a marketing exe...

I remember that Halloween night like frost creeping across a windowpane, the kind that etches patterns you can’t quite forget, no matter how the sun tries to melt them away. That was the night everything changed. The world had been humming along in its usual chaotic rhythm—headlines full of storms and shifts that nobody could pin down, people arguing over causes while the seasons played tricks. But me? I was just trying t...

Looking back, that trip to visit Mia at college still sticks with me, even after all this time. It was mid-October a couple of years ago, fog hanging low over the campus like it was trying to hide secrets. I'd driven up alone—Karen had some work thing keeping her home—and pulled into their cramped off-campus house just as the sun was dipping. Mia met me at the door with that hug that always makes me feel like she's still...