My Husband Locked Me In Ice

Because I made his golden girl take a cold shower, Gary locked me in a industrial deep freezer and turned the bolt.

Sasha caught a cold because of you. Its only fair you feel a bit of her chills, he said, his voice as cold as the frost already forming on the stainless steel.

I clawed at the heavy lid, screaming until my throat was raw, but all I could see through the gap was Sashas face. She wasnt shivering. She was smiling. Her lips moved, though I could barely hear her over the hum of the compressor.

Gary worries about me so much, Elena. Id love to help you, but I just cant go against his wishes. Youll just have to tough this one out.

She reached down and dialed the temperature to its lowest setting. Then, she draped a heavy industrial dust cover over the unit, snuffing out the last sliver of light.

When Gary finally returned from their "honeymoon," he decided to be merciful. He came to the basement to let me out.

Ill let you go this once, he called out, his tone bored, as if he were scolding a pet. Lets see if youve learned your lesson about targeting Sasha.

I hadnt learned a thing. I couldn't. I was a solid block of ice, and the moment the air hit me, I didn't breatheI just shattered.

Twelve days after my heart stopped, Gary finally brought Sasha home.

They had gone to Antarctica on a whim to see the Aurora Australis. He called it the ultimate romantic gesture. Sasha was wrapped in layers of cashmere, still shivering as if the polar wind had settled in her bones.

Gary hovered over her, his face a mask of devotion. Youve always been fragile, Sasha. You shouldn't have pushed yourself to go to the South Pole. It kills me to see you like this.

Achoo! Sasha let out a dainty, rehearsed sneeze and burrowed into his chest. Im fine, Gary. Really. Im stronger than I look.

Gary pinched her nose playfully.

Stop lying. Have you forgotten the last time you took a cold shower? You ran a fever for days.

Half a month ago, I supposedly turned off the water heater while Sasha was bathing. She claimed she was forced to finish in ice-cold water, resulting in a 104-degree fever that nearly "killed" her.

At the memory, Garys eyes darkened. The tenderness he held for Sasha curdled into a sharp, jagged annoyance for me.

He turned to his assistant, who was busy hauling their designer luggage into the foyer. Sasha is staying here tonight. Go find that woman and tell her to keep her mouth shut. I dont want any of her pathetic drama tonight.

The assistant, who had been dragged along on the trip, paused. He looked confused, then pale. Mr. Sterling... I mean, sir... the mistress... I think shes still in the freezer where you left her.

Sasha jumped off the sofa, her hand flying to her mouth in a gasp that was far too theatrical. Its been that many days? Oh my god, Gary, shes not... dead, is she?

For a fleeting second, a flicker of uncertainty crossed Garys face. But then he saw Sashas "worried" expression and he let out a harsh, dry laugh.

Elena? Dead? Please. Shes too manipulative for that. She probably picked the lock and went to a hotel the second we left, just so she could play the victim when I got back.

Is that right, Gary?

I looked down at my translucent self, floating aimlessly in the foyer. I wanted to laugh, but ghosts don't have breath.

If he hadn't used heavy-duty chains to seal that freezer, maybe I would have found a way. I wanted to live. I really did.

But Gary had wanted to humiliate me. He had taken the entire household staff on the trip, leaving the mansion a silent tomb.

Elena, he had whispered through the steel that night, I want you to understand exactly where you rank. You are lower than the help. Stay in there and think about why you'll never be Sasha.

Its funny, really. Without a soul in the house to hear me, how was I supposed to get out?

They forgot about the "incident" almost immediately, melting into each other on the velvet sofa. It wasn't until the assistant ran back upstairs, his face ghost-white, that my name was mentioned again.

Sir... Elena... shes gone. Shes not in her room. All her things are still here, but shes nowhere to be found.

Gary waved a hand dismissively.

Shes waiting for me to go looking for her like a fool. Well, let her wait. If she doesn't want to come home, she can stay on the streets. Give her room to Sasha. Throw Elena's junk away.

Sasha pouted, tracing a circle on Garys chest. I don't want her old things, Gary. I want everything new.

Gary kissed her forehead. Anything for you, baby. Youre the only thing that matters.

Sasha didn't waste a beat. She sprinted into my bedroom and began smashing my perfume bottles against the wall. Ive hated this room for years! Trash it all! I want it stripped to the floorboards!

I followed them, though it was a struggle. My "body" felt heavy, as if the cold had seeped into my very essence. Every step felt like my joints were grinding into dust.

At first, I panicked, trying to "pick up" the metaphorical pieces of myself I felt I was leaving behind. But then it hit me: I was already dead. I was just a lingering thought. What use did a ghost have for bones?

Gary, Sasha called out from my bed, if I ever ran away, would you come find me?

In a heartbeat. But you aren't Elena. Shes a liar, Sasha. You don't have a deceptive bone in your body.

I leaned against the doorframe, watching them. Sasha reached into her pocket and pulled out a plastic stick with a triumphant flourish.

Since you love me so much... I have a surprise. Im pregnant.

I straightened up, drifting closer.

That pregnancy test looked hauntingly familiar. It was mine. The one I had taken the morning Gary locked me away. There was even a tiny, dried speck of blood on the edge of the plastic where Id snagged my finger on the packaging. Sasha hadn't even bothered to wipe it off.

But Gary didn't see the blood. He only saw a miracle. He let out a primal shout of joy and swept her into his arms.

A baby? Youre carrying my child? Sasha, you are the greatest thing that ever happened to me!

He laid her down on my bed as if she were made of fine porcelain. He tucked the duvet around her, his voice thick with emotion. I shouldn't have taken you to Antarctica. I could have hurt the baby. Im so sorry.

Its okay, Gary. This baby is a fighter. Just like his father.

I couldn't watch anymore. I turned away, drifting back toward the basement.

I was just a pawn in a corporate marriage. He never loved me. I knew that. I had loved him for a decade, but his eyes were always wanderingfrom a revolving door of secretaries to his high school sweetheart, Sasha, who had finally come back to claim her throne. I was used to being invisible.

But I had stayed. My grandmother was in the hospital, and Garys money was the only thing keeping her alive.

At the thought of her, my non-existent heart ached. Does she know Im gone? Shes so sick now; she forgets my name sometimes. Maybe its better if she doesn't realize Im never coming back.

I drifted down into the darkness of the cellar. To the place where I had spent my final hours.

The freezer was still there. The industrial plastic cover was stuck to the floor, fused by a dark, frozen liquid that had leaked out of the drainage valve.

Gary had called in eight security guards to lift me like a piece of livestock and dump me into that box. He had shut the lid himself. My hands and feet had been zip-tied, a rag stuffed in my mouth.

Elena, you targeted Sasha out of pure spite. Are you ready to admit you were wrong?

I had shaken my head violently, my eyes red and pleading, slamming my elbows against the sides.

Garys face had twisted in disgust. Then stay here. Call me when youre ready to apologize.

Sasha had stood behind him, her voice trembling with fake fear. Gary, Im scared shell try to hurt me again tonight. I don't think I can sleep here.

Gary had looked at her with such tenderness it made me want to retch. He ordered the guards to bring in heavy chains. They wrapped them around the freezer four times, padlocking it as if they were containing a monster.

She won't get out of there if she tries for a hundred years. Youre safe now, Sasha. Ill let her out tomorrow after you leave for the airport.

That night, they threw a party upstairs. A "bon voyage" celebration. I could hear the muffled thumping of the bass, the laughter of people who didn't know a woman was suffocating and freezing ten feet beneath their floor.

In a final, desperate burst of adrenaline, I managed to throw my weight against the side, tipping the freezer over. It hit the concrete floor with a deafening thud.

The music stopped. A minute later, Garys voice boomed over the basement intercom.

Elena, enough! Youre pathetic. Do you really think throwing a tantrum is going to make me pity you?

You knew Sasha couldn't handle the cold. Did you think of her when you shut off that heater?

She has a fever of 104! Do you even have a soul? If anything happens to her, youre a murderer!

Reflect on that. You stay in there until her fever breaks.

He never came down. He never saw that the freezer had been accidentally (or intentionally) set to "Flash Freeze." He didn't see the scratches on the inside of the lid where my fingernails had snapped off.

My hands and feet had gone numb hours ago. The blood from my torn nails had frozen instantly. I tried to make a sound, any sound.

Im sorry. Ill do anything. Please. I dont want to die.

But Gary wasn't listening. He had turned off the intercom and gone to bed to cuddle his "golden girl."

The next morning, Sashas fever "miraculously" broke. She insisted they leave for their trip early to celebrate.

By then, I couldn't move. I spent my last moments thinking of my grandmother, forcing my eyelids to stay open just one more second, one more second...

No one noticed I was gone. They packed their bags and flew to the edge of the world.

Before he left, Garys voice came over the intercom one last time.

Were leaving for Antarctica. Enjoy the silence, Elena. Youve earned it.

Do you see now? Youre nothing to me. Don't ever try to compete with Sasha again.

I don't remember the exact moment I died. I just know I held on for a very, very long time.

The blood on the plastic cover had attracted flies. The sound of their wings was the only thing I could hear. When the cleaning crew finally returned today, the smell in the basement made them gag.

It wasn't that bad, really. I was frozen solid. Only the blood had a scent.

One of the cleaners tried to lift the plastic cover, but it was glued down by the dark sludge at the base.

This unit is definitely shot. Whatever meat was in here has gone rancid.

Don't bother with it. Mr. Sterling said he was replacing the whole basement setup anyway. Just haul the whole thing to the junkyard.

The cleaner called Gary to confirm. The intercom crackled to life again.

If its broken, trash it! Why are you calling me about a freezer? If the meat spoiled, its because you people are incompetent. Youre all fired. Don't show up tomorrow.

Garys voice was jagged with irritation, followed by Sashas soft, cooing voice in the background.

Gary... do you really not remember? Are you that far gone?

As if answering me, Gary spoke again.

It was probably just Elena being spiteful again, leaving a mess for me to find. Just get it out of the house. Then make some bone broth for Sasha. She needs to keep her strength up for the baby.

He paused. And tell the security team to look for Elena. Shes probably hiding out somewhere, waiting to cause more trouble. Im sick of her games.

I stared at the intercom. For a second, I wanted to shatter it.

Gary, if youre not going to use your brain, you should donate it to science.

How could you think I escaped? Or is it just that in your heart, my lifeand my deathdon't even warrant a second thought?

I continued to drift through the house, waiting for the moment they realized.

Gary said I had to suffer like Sasha. Well, Im dead, and shes being treated like a queen. That doesn't seem fair, does it?

Ill wait. Ill wait until Sasha joins me.

Poor, stupid Gary. He really thinks that child is his. Hes playing nursemaid, doting on a ghost of a pregnancy.

Go ahead, Gary. Love her. The more it hurts now, the deeper the hole will be when you fall.

I wonder... when you find out that pregnancy test was mine... will you still be this happy?

Or will you just be relieved that Im gone?

A few hours later, I was sitting on the edge of their bed, watching them. Garys phone buzzed.

It was my grandmother.

She didn't quite understand how to use the phone anymore. Hello? Hello? she chirped into the line.

Gary groaned. You old bat. If youre looking for your granddaughter, find her yourself. Stop calling me.

Luckily, she didn't seem to hear him. Gary? Is that you? Wheres my Elena? She hasn't visited in so long. Is she working?

My chest tightened.

Nana... why do you have to remember me now? When I was alive, you barely knew who I was.

Garys voice was like a whip. Listen to me. Tell Elena that if she wants to be part of this family, she needs to come home and apologize to Sasha. Tell her to stop using you to play these pathetic games. Im not a fool.

Nanas voice sharpened with sudden, lucid panic. Give her back! Give me my Elena! What have you done to her?!

Gary hung up and immediately blocked her number.

I screamed, though no sound came out. How could he block her?

Since the fire that destroyed our family, Nana had been lost in the fog of dementia. Gary and I were the only two numbers she knew by heart. Now, she couldn't reach me, and she was blocked by him. She was all alone.

And to think, when we were kids, Nana treated Gary like her own grandson.

The phone rang again. A different number.

Gary picked up, ready to scream. I told you to stop

Is this Mr. Gary Sterling? a mans voice interrupted. He sounded official. Deep. Were calling regarding an industrial freezer unit disposed of earlier today. We found human remains inside. We need you to come down for questioning immediately.

Gary froze.

What?

There is a body, sir. A female. Its... its a horrific scene. Do you have any knowledge of this?

The victim has been identified as Elena Sterling. Your wife.

Is it finally happening, Gary?

I felt a surge of cold anticipation.

Gary let out a sharp, jagged laugh. His eyes flashed with a familiar rage.

Elena, youre really going all out, aren't you? Faking a police call? This is a new low, even for a bankrupt socialite. This is your last warningget home and apologize to Sasha, or Im filing for divorce tomorrow!

He slammed the phone onto the floor and ground his heel into the screen until it was a web of shattered glass.

Sasha let out a whimper. Gary... oh, Gary... my stomach... it hurts...

I crossed my arms and sneered.

She was using my test. I was the one who was pregnant. Shes just a liar with a good script. She knows Im dead, and shes just buying time to keep him from the truth.

Call Dr. Miller, she gasped. The baby... save the baby...

Dr. Miller?

Oh, right. Sashas "old friend" shed been seeing since she got back to town.