by Gibson, Jo
“Don’t be a fool, Michael.” Judy smiled her most engaging smile. “I know you want me. You’re just afraid to admit it. Well . . . you don’t have to admit it. I’ll do everything for you.”
“Jude . . .”
Michael began to protest, but Judy silenced him with another kiss. This was better. She could feel him beginning to respond. But just as she thought she’d driven away the last of his foolish inhibitions, Michael thrust her from him so roughly, she stumbled and fell to her knees in the bubbling water.
“Michael . . . wait!” He was trying to climb out of the water, and Judy clung desperately to his arm. “You can’t leave! Not now! Not ever!”
But Michael didn’t even look at her as he tried to shake off her embrace. Judy felt the beginnings of despair, but she couldn’t abandon all her plans now. Michael had to see that she loved him. He had to believe her! “Is it them, Michael? Do you love the other girls more than you love me?”
Michael turned to stare at her. “What other girls? What are you talking about?”
“They weren’t right for you, Michael. You know they weren’t. They all had a contest, and you were first prize. Ask Carla. She walked out. And I wasn’t part of it, either.”
Michael hesitated. He was clearly confused. But he was also intrigued. “What contest? What are you talking about?”
“They had to date you for two solid weeks. And the first one to do that won the contest. Deana started it. But she didn’t really want you. She was just using you to win the contest. Did you ever really love Deana?”
Michael didn’t answer, and Judy smiled. Suddenly she felt very happy. “I was right! I was sure you didn’t love her. But how about Becky? Did you love Becky?”
Michael was still silent, and Judy’s smile grew wider. “Just as I thought! You’re no fool, Michael. You knew that Becky was only using you. And Mary Beth was even worse. She let you think she was serious about you. And all the time, she was seeing her old boyfriend behind your back! Ingrid was different. There was nothing wrong with the way she treated you, but Ingrid wanted to marry you! And so did Nita. All Nita wanted was your money so she could get out of the barrio.”
Michael’s face was very white. It was probably just the effect of the moonlight. Judy ignored it as she wrapped her arms around him again, and snuggled her bare breasts against his chest. “Are they the reason you can’t let yourself love me? Do you still love any of them?”
“How could I love them? They’re dead!”
Judy felt the laughter bubble up out of her throat. “Of course they’re dead. I killed them!”
“You . . . killed... them?”
Michael looked as if he’d been hit by a baseball bat, and Judy laughed harder. He looked so shocked. “Of course I killed them! See what I’ve done for you, Michael? I killed them all because I love you! The arrows of love, don’t you see? Love kills. It was a message, a warning to stay away from you. But they were too stupid to catch on. And now you’re mine! All mine!”
“My God! You’re . . . you’re sick!” Michael shoved her away so hard, Judy stumbled and almost fell. “You’re drunk, or stoned, or something, Jude. If I didn’t know you better, I might even believe you. You’d better get in the house and sleep it off. You’re acting totally insane!”
Michael started to get out of the jacuzzi again, but Judy pulled him back. She clung to his arm and began to sob. “But I love you! Can’t you see? I love you, Michael! Why won’t you make love to me when I want you so much?”
Michael looked disgusted as he pried her fingers loose and stepped out of the water. But Judy was right behind him. There was no way she was going to let him get away now!
The platter of snacks was still on the lip of the jacuzzi, and Judy grabbed the sharp knife she’d used to cut the salami. “If I can’t have you, nobody can! I’ll kill you! Then you can rot in hell with all of them!”
Judy lunged, but Michael was too quick for her. He sidestepped neatly, sent the knife clattering from her fingers, and pushed her back into the steaming water. Judy thrashed around for precious moments, trying to regain her footing. When she climbed from the jacuzzi at last, sputtering angrily at the man who had betrayed her, Michael was gone.
She stared at hedge for a moment. The branches were still waving gently where Michael had passed through. Then she picked up the knife with a corner of a towel and carried it into the house. Michael was probably sitting in his room right now, grateful that he’d escaped with his life. But he hadn’t. Not yet.
Michael’s fingers were shaking as he dialed the phone. What a night for his parents to be gone! He had to tell someone what had happened. Of course he didn’t believe Judy’s story for a moment, but there was no doubt in his mind that she had tried to kill him.
Michael breathed a sigh of relief as Andy answered the phone. “I’m really glad you’re home! Do you think you could drive over here? Judy’s acting really weird and I think she’s flipped out.”
“Sure.” Andy agreed instantly, but he sounded puzzled. “What did she do?”
“She says she’s the killer. Of course I know that’s ridiculous, but when I said I didn’t believe her, she picked up a knife and lunged at me. Maybe you can talk some sense into her, Andy. She likes you.”
“Okay. Hold on a second, will you?” Michael waited while Andy talked to someone in the background. When he came back on the line he sounded very serious. “Carla’s here and she wants to come, too. Is that all right?”
Michael nodded. “That’s great! Maybe another girl will help. Come over here first and we’ll all walk over to Judy’s house together.”
As Michael hung up, he glanced at his watch. It was almost one o’clock in the morning, and Carla was with Andy. He hoped a little romance was developing between Carla and Andy. Carla was a nice girl, and Andy had been a loner for too long. It would be a good match for both of them.
Five minutes passed while Michael paced the floor. Andy lived about twenty minutes away, so he had some time. He wondered if he should call Judy on the phone to try to calm her down, but that might upset her even more. He stared at the phone, debating the pros and cons, and finally he decided to leave well enough alone. Judy had looked very determined when she’d lunged at him with that knife.
Another five minutes passed, and Michael pulled back the curtains to look out the window. There was a light on in Judy’s bedroom. Perhaps she’d passed out. Then the phone rang, and he raced to answer it.
“Michael?”
“Yeah?” Michael gripped the receiver tightly as he recognized Judy’s voice.
“I feel terrible, Michael, and I’m sorry I was so weird. It’s just I was so nervous over Nita and all, I drank a whole bottle of wine all by myself. Did I do anything awful?”
Michael frowned. What should he say? He didn’t want to push her over the edge. “Uh . . . well . . . you were a little strange.”
There was a long silence and Michael wondered if he’d made things worse. But then Judy spoke again.
“I’m sorry, Michael. I was really upset when you left, but I’m much better now. I took some of Pamela’s sleeping pills and they’re making me feel nice and woozy. I think I’m going to go to sleep now.”
“No!” Michael felt his pulse race. “Don’t go to sleep, Jude. Talk to me. How many pills did you take?”
There was another long silence and then Judy yawned. “I think I took them all, the whole bottle. I kept thinking that if one made me feel good, two would be better and then three and I . . . I guess I lost count.”
“Jude. Hang on.” Michael made a lightning decision.
“Can you unlock the front door for me?”
“I would, but I’m sooo sleepy, I just can’t keep my eyes . . .”
There was another lengthy silence and Michael shouted into the receiver “Jude? Judy! Wake up!”
“No. I want to go to sleep forever. I don’t deserve to be your friend. But I love you, Michael . . . and . . . goodbye.”
Mich
ael frowned as he heard a dial tone. Judy had hung up. And she’d taken a whole bottle of sleeping pills. He had to go over and wake her up, keep her moving until he could call an ambulance. But the front door was locked.
What could he do?
The moment he thought of it, Michael went into action. He grabbed a hammer from the rack of tools in the garage and raced for Judy’s house. The Lamperts would have to replace a window, but that was a small price to pay for their daughter’s life.
Detective Davis put down the phone and grabbed his partner’s shirt sleeve. “Come on. Let’s roll. We’ve got an attempted homicide!”
Less than thirty seconds later, they were in the car, heading for the Lampert resident. Detective Davis sounded grim as he explained the call. “That was Judy Lampert. She was practically hysterical. She said her next-door neighbor is breaking into the house and she thinks he’s going to kill her.”
“Judy Lampert? Wasn’t she at the museum when Nita Cordoza was killed?”
“That’s right.” Detective Davis nodded. “And her next door neighbor is Michael Warden.”
“The suspect?”
“Right again. Her house is just up the block. Kill the lights and let’s go in nice and quiet. And pray we’re in time to save her!”
“Jude! No!” Michael really wanted to call for help, but Judy had gone positively ballistic, and he knew he didn’t dare leave her for a second. He’d found her in her bedroom pacing the floor with a knife clutched in her hand. She’d already stabbed herself once. He’d seen the cut on her arm, but she hadn’t let him bandage it. Naturally, he’d grabbed the knife and tossed it to the floor and now he was struggling with her, trying to keep her from grabbing it again. He’d been so busy, trying to keep Judy from hurting herself, he hadn’t even heard the footsteps on the stairs.
“Hold it right there!”
Michael whirled to see Detective Davis and his partner, guns drawn, standing in the doorway. And two more policemen were right behind them. Help was here! But before Michael could explain what had happened, Detective Davis had slapped handcuffs on him!
“Hey! I’m just trying to help her!” Michael’s voice was shaking. “She took some pills and she’s trying to kill herself!”
Detective Davis nodded to one of the other policemen. “Take him down to the station and book him. We’ll take Miss Lampert to the hospital, and get her statement.”
Michael was still trying to explain as he was unceremoniously escorted down the stairs and out to the squad car. As they were about to pull out from the curb, Andy and Carla ran up to the car.
“What’s going on?” Andy sounded frantic. “Is Judy all right?”
“She’s fine. Just a cut on the arm.” The officer’s voice was grim. “We caught him just in time.”
“Caught who? What happened?” Andy looked shocked as he caught a glimpse of Michael in the back seat. “What’s Michael doing in there?”
“He attacked Miss Lampert, and we caught him redhanded. They’re taking her to the hospital right now.”
“But Michael wouldn’t hurt Judy!” Carla spoke up. “He called us and told us to come right over. He said Judy’d been drinking and she was acting very weird. She even tried to stab him with a knife. Really, officer . . . this is all some kind of misunderstanding.”
The officer didn’t look convinced. “We’ll see about that. Follow us down to the station. We’ll need statements from you, too.”
Just then Judy came out of the house. A towel was wrapped around her arm and blood was already seeping through it. Detective Davis walked on one side of her, his partner on the other.
“Judy!” Carla rushed up to her. “Are you all right?”
Judy looked very pale as she nodded. “I’m okay. Thanks for coming, Carla. Did the police call you?”
“No. Michael did. He said you’d been drinking and you were . . . uh . . . very upset.”
Judy nodded. “It’s true. I was upset. But I only had a sip of wine. My glass is still out at the jacuzzi. Michael drank all the rest.”
“What happened?” Andy rushed up to join them.
“Hi, Andy.” Judy gave him a wan smile. “Michael and I were in the jacuzzi. It was nice at first. We had some snacks, and then he got serious. He was mad at me because I wouldn’t sleep with him, and he started shouting things about Nita and Ingrid and what happened to all the other girls who’d turned him down.”
“Are you sure?” Carla didn’t look convinced.
“Oh, yes. I was so shocked I remember every word. When Michael reached for the knife on the cheese tray, I dashed into the house and locked the door. I know he didn’t mean it, but he really looked like he was going to kill me!”
Andy frowned. “But he called us and said you tried to stab him with the knife.”
“What?!” Judy looked shocked. “But that’s not what happened at all!”
Carla gave a deep sigh. “Think carefully, Judy. When Michael broke into your house, are you sure he wasn’t just trying to help you?”
“With a knife in his hand?” Judy’s voice faltered, and she started to cry. “I don’t know what to believe! Michael told me he killed all those girls. And I got so scared when I saw him breaking into the house with that knife, that I . . . I called Detective Davis and asked for help.”
Detective Davis put his hand on Carla’s arm. “You can talk to Miss Lampert later. You two go down to the station and give your statements. I want to know everything the suspect said to you on the phone.”
“The suspect?” Andy looked very concerned. “You don’t believe her, do you? Michael didn’t kill those girls!”
Detective Davis was grim as he turned to face Andy. “He doesn’t have an alibi. He told us that earlier tonight.”
“But . . .” Andy swallowed hard. “That doesn’t mean Michael did it!”
“Of course not.” Detective Davis patted Andy on the shoulder. “If there’s no proof, he’ll be released. But there’s still the attempted murder charge. Miss Lampert and Mr. Warden were struggling over the knife when we arrived at the scene. If Miss Lampert wants to press charges, he’ll go to trial.”
Judy looked frightened. “Oh, no! I don’t want to press charges, Detective Davis. Michael just . . . he just flipped out, that’s all. I don’t want him to go to jail! I just want him to get some help.”
“That could be arranged. The court will order a period of observation in a mental facility if you request it.”
Judy looked hopeful. “If I did that, would Michael get some counseling for his problems?”
“Of course. Make up your mind in the morning. There’s no rush. He can cool off in a cell tonight.”
“Well . . . all right.” Judy gave Detective Davis a shaky smile, and then she turned to Andy and Carla. “If you see Michael, tell him that I’ll wait for him, and I’ll be right there when he gets out. That should make him feel much, much better!”
Twenty
Judy parked her Volvo in one of the tree-shaded spaces marked for visitors, and walked up the flagstone path to the lovely white house that was set on the crest of the hill. It was almost September, and here in the countryside, the trees were beginning to change color. A grove of maples created a riotous spot of bright red and orange against the rolling green hills, and the ash trees provided a lovely golden shade. There were spruce trees, too, their dark green branches reaching skyward, weaving gently in the autumn breeze. Even the sky was a perfect crystal blue, dotted by puffy white clouds.
The day was lovely, the scene pastoral. Judy felt her spirits lift as she approached the entrance. The heavy mesh screens on the windows were almost invisible in the bright noon sun, and it all looked quite ordinary and quite beautiful. Of course, not all things were as they appeared. Judy knew that. She’d been here many times before.
A discreet wooden plaque near the door identified the home as Brookhaven, and it could have been the setting for a romantic film. The peaceful grounds were deserted, and Judy felt as if she had stepped i
nto a painted landscape. No one was out walking, although it was a lovely fall day. Perhaps they were waiting until after lunch to enjoy the warm fall air.
There was a small brass buzzer by the side of the door, and Judy pressed it. Then she waited, tapping her foot on the floorboards of the old-fashioned porch.
“Yes?” A tinny voice came out of the speaker box near the buzzer.
“It’s Judy Lampert. I’m here to visit.”
“Come in, dear.”
The voice sounded friendlier now, and the door gave an audible click. Judy pushed it open, and waited in the vestibule in front of another door, until the outside door had clicked shut behind her. Then an older woman wearing a white nurse’s uniform hurried toward her to unlock the second door.
“Hi, Miss Danver.” Judy smiled as the nurse let her in. “How is he today?”
“Much better. The shock treatments seem to be helping. His parents were here yesterday, and they were sure he recognized them. He even made an effort to speak.”
“That’s good news.” Judy nodded. “Do you think I could see him?”
“I’m afraid not, dear. He had quite a setback the last time you were here, and the doctor thinks it would be wise to wait for another few weeks.”
“Oh. Of course.”
Miss Danver felt her heart go out to the pretty blonde girl who came to visit every week. Judy was a dear, and it was a pity her presence made the patient react so violently. Still, there was no use denying reality. Michael Warden suffered a setback every time she visited.
“I brought him these.” Judy handed the nurse a pretty box, wrapped in gold paper. “They’re chocolate chip cookies, and they used to be his favorites. I made them myself.”
Miss Danver smiled as she took the box. “That’s very sweet, dear. I’ll make sure that he gets them.”
“Do you think he might be able to see me next week?”
“Perhaps.” Miss Danver smiled as she told what she referred to as a little white lie. The doctor had left strict orders, and this poor, sweet girl was no longer on the visitor’s list. “Just give me a call before you drive all the way out here. It’s a long trip.”