My Husband’s Favorite Parrot Loved Him More Than Me Chapter 08

My Husband’s Favorite Parrot Loved Him More Than Me Chapter 08

The situation at Derek’s company kept getting worse.

After the blogger exposed Marcus Webb as a fraud, the police got involved. And as they followed his statements, things unraveled—he’d done all kinds of illegal “soul transfer” jobs for people. Derek Vance’s name was right there on the list.

When word got to the company, the board was furious. Derek got suspended pending investigation.

That night, when he came home, he looked completely hollow. He sat on the couch and stared at the bird cage on the coffee table. Stared for a long time.

“Tessa.”

“Yeah?”

“That parrot… are you still going to send him away?”

I looked at him. He’d never suggested getting rid of Crystal before. That bird was Holly at the center of his heart.

“You said we didn’t need correction, remember?”

“I’m starting to think…” He paused, voice low. “Maybe you were right. He needs to be trained right.”

He knew.

He didn’t know how much I knew. But he knew—things were slipping out of his control. Webb had been arrested. Holly wasn’t coming back. That parrot was just a parrot now, and the soul inside had been

brainwashed into a blank slate by the mirror cage.

He wanted to get rid of the only thing that could prove what he’d done.

“Okay,” I said. “I’ll take him tomorrow.”

He went to bed early that night. Or pretended to. I lay next to him, listening to his deliberately slow breaths, knowing his eyes were wide open.

I rolled over, turning my back to him.

The glow of my phone screen was tucked under my pillow. I texted Randy: [Phase two. Teach him ‘I’m sorry.’ Add five hundred extra reps a day.]

“Got it.”

The next morning, I carried the cage out the door.

Derek stood at the entrance, watching the parrot inside. He started to say something, then stopped.

“Tessa.”

“Yeah?”

“After he’s trained… are you bringing him back?”

I turned to look at him. Morning light fell across his face, showing the fine lines at the corners of his eyes and the stubble on his jaw. He looked old. Not in his body. In his spirit.

“Of course I’ll bring him back,” I smiled. “You like him, don’t you?”

He didn’t answer.

I carried the cage into the elevator. The moment the doors closed, the parrot inside spoke. “Derek Vance.”

I ignored him.

“Derek Vance,” he said again, his voice hoarse, like he was calling out for a lifeline.

I looked down at him. “He’s not coming.”

The parrot tucked in his neck and went quiet.

At the academy, Randy took the cage and examined the parrot inside. “His condition is much better than last time. The mirror cage stress response has already weakened. Phase two should take about a week.”

“I’ll pick him up in a week, then,” I said. “Hey Randy, can you do me a favor?”

“Name it.”

“Someone might come around asking about this parrot later. If they do, just tell them—I picked him up, and you don’t know where he went.”

Randy looked at me for a second. Didn’t ask why. “Got it.”

I left the academy, but I didn’t go home.

I drove to Crestwood Estate.

In my past life, after Holly got out of the parrot’s body, she lived in a

house there. Derek bought it for her with money from my dowry. In this life, that house still existed. But I didn’t know if Holly’s body was still inside.

I didn’t go in.

I just stood outside for a while and took a few photos.

Then I went to the County Family Law Center.

Not to file for divorce. To consult.

I’d put everything into a single folder—Derek’s ID, Webb’s confession, the academy’s training records.

The consultant looked it over and told me: these materials were enough to prove that Derek had engaged in “coercive control using supernatural manipulation.” Strong evidence for a divorce case.

“Do you want me to help you file?” the consultant asked.

“Not yet.” I put the folder away. “I’ll let him make his own choice first.”