I found it late at night the same way I'd found everything in this fight.
PestLab Ultrasonic Pest Repeller. $29.99.
Arrived in 2 days.
I plugged it into my bedroom outlet.
Blue light on. No sound. No smell. No chemical residue on the pillow I'd already replaced twice.
Then, out of habit, I did one last inspection.
Found 2 bed bugs near the mattress seam.
And I watched them move away from the device.
Not toward their hiding spot.
Away. Toward the door.
I plugged in a second device near the door.
They had nowhere to go.
That night: zero new bites.
Day 7: still zero.
Day 21: completely bug-free.
But here's the part that mattered most to me:
Day 30: I got into bed without checking the mattress first.
For the first time in eight months.
I just… lay down. Closed my eyes. Fell asleep.
I cried about it the next morning. That probably sounds dramatic. But if you've lived this, you understand exactly what that moment means.