Unmasked

I stared at the last image onscreen. The boy called Kenneth was bending down, kissing Rainey’s protruding stomach with a tender reverence. His love for her and the baby was plain to see. ‘He gave his everything for you. You wanted a comfortable life. He took two part-time jobs, signed up for underground cage fights, worked six days a week, risked getting deported for breaching his student visa requirements.’ Kieran’s voice hitched. I gripped the edge of my seat, my body tensing vicariously. ‘He dragged himself to school with broken bones and concussions, bought you gifts with money stained with his blood. You knew, but you pretended you didn’t.’ My heart ached at the pain in Kieran’s voice. Kenneth must be a close friend of his. ‘The baby got in the way of your studies. The day after you were accepted into a graduate school, you got rid of the baby. You killed him without Kenneth’s knowledge. Or consent.’ Grief punched me in the gut as I thought of the baby I lost. ‘But it wasn’t enoug