“Be careful, John, that hurts. Please put some more gel on it.”

“Shit, I’m sorry, Marie. Hold on.”

John picks up the bottle and stares at the caramel-tinged gel inside. His hand begins to shake, so he closes his eyes and inhales deeply.

“It’s okay, John. It’s okay.”

John opens his eyes and exhales. He opens the top, applies the gel to the transducer, and slowly inserts it into Marie’s vagina.

“Is that better?”

“Yeah, I think so. Just go slow, okay?”

“Okay.”

John slowly pushes the transducer in further and stops.

“Do you think it works?”

“I don’t know. Even if it doesn’t, it’s not like Wish has a return policy.”

Suddenly, a sound fills the air.

Du-dum…du-dum…du-dum…du-dum

The sound of a faint heartbeat.

Du-dum…du-dum…du-dum…du-dum

“Now we wait.”

They listen intently to the heartbeat, hoping and praying it doesn’t become irregular.

Du-dum…du-dum…du-dum…du-dum

“Maybe we’re in the clear.”

“Let’s just be sure.”

Du-dum…du-dum.du-dum..du-dum

Marie closes her eyes tight, trying to hold back tears.

Du-dum..du-dum…du-dum.du-dum

“Please, just take it out.”

John removes the transducer, fighting back the tears of his own.

“I’m sorry, Marie. I wish there were something that I could do.”

“It’s not your fault. The only people to blame are the ones who were supposed to protect us.”

“We could try bitter water?”

“Do you know what will happen if they found out you bought the ingredients for that? They’ll lock us both up, and I’ll die anyway.”

“A coat hanger?”

“Mrs. Johnson tried that and was unsuccessful. It survived and continued to kill her from within.”

“There must be something we can do. Someone we can call.”

“John, please don’t make this any harder than it has to be. We knew the risks, and we know what we must do now.”

They walk to the backyard, hand in hand. Once there, John and Marie hug and kiss for the last time.

“I love you,” they say to each other.

Marie climbs into the burn pit and lays down. John douses her with gasoline and takes the safety off his pistol.

“I love you, John. I will always love you.”

“And I will always love you, Marie. May we meet in the next life.”

John shoots Marie between the eyes. Immediately, her stomach starts to stretch and contort as the abomination inside tries to claw its way out.

John strikes a match and tosses it into the pit, and the flames consume Marie and the monstrosity that would’ve sucked away at her lifeforce before being used as an instrument of war. Its wails are loud and ear-piercing, but it subsides as its body is reduced to ash.

John takes the pistol and puts it against his temple. “I will always love you, Marie. Until death do us part.”

As he slowly depresses the trigger, John is disarmed while a voice shouts at him from behind.

“You’re under arrest for the destruction of government property.”