Stay Longer

by Maria Jackson

  “I don’t have that kind of money. He should take this up with the firm.”

  “Don’t worry,” Barbara said. “If you don’t have money, we can settle this another way.”

  My mind wasn’t working properly. Vaguely, I was aware that the occasional car was still flying by. Some of them had to notice our cars out here. They probably wouldn’t see the gun, and they might think we were fixing a flat or giving a boost, but if I could keep stalling Barbara, maybe somebody would have the wisdom to call the cops.

  I glanced at my car. The door was still open — I hadn’t had the presence of mind to close it. My phone was where it’d fallen, within arm’s reach, but there was no way for me to grab it without Barbara stopping me. Help was tantalizingly close, but impossible to get.

  She jabbed me with the gun. “Come with me.”

  Not like I had a choice whether to go or not. I had to ask anyway.

  “What are you going to do?”

  TWENTY-FOUR — BJ

  My neck was getting cramped. I moved my head off my backpack so I could stretch out a little. That didn’t help much. Pushing the bag under the row of seats, I lay flat on my back and threw an arm over my eyes. Still not comfortable.

  Since all my fidgeting was getting me nowhere, I was happy enough to sit up when my phone buzzed. Maybe Mom was calling again.

  No, the caller ID said Leanne. I leaned against the hard seat, spinning the phone over my palm. Should I even pick up? She already knew where I was, and she’d told me when to expect her here. There was nothing else she could need.

  I laughed to myself, a harsh sound with no mirth. Unless she was calling to say she wasn’t coming.

  Fuck, I didn’t want to talk to her right now. I tossed the phone from one hand to the other, letting each ring vibrate my fingers. If she hung up, I’d know it wasn’t important. Hell, maybe I’d let it go to voice mail.

  Yeah, that seemed like the best idea. She could leave a message with whatever she had to say. I’d check it once I was ready to hear her voice again. That way, I could take my time deciding how to respond.

  Lying down again, I let the phone sit on my stomach. I closed my eyes, but there was no way I’d get any rest at all with it vibrating like that. That had to be six rings by now. I couldn’t remember how many it took before the machine would pick up.

  A lot, probably. I didn’t get many voice mails. Only from the very persistent.

  At the moment, that appeared to include Leanne.

  Pulling myself upright again, I braced myself for whatever she was going to say. I had to stay calm, no matter what she was calling for. Had to hold myself together.

  Except, as I pressed “answer,” I couldn’t hear anything at all.

  TWENTY-FIVE — LEANNE

  Another jab, harder than the first. The cold metal made me shiver through the fabric of my suit. “We’re going to Paradise,” Barbara Tripton jeered as she guided me into the passenger seat of her car. “The Paradise Motel, that is.”

  I went along with her, numb to everything that was happening. As much as I wanted to, I couldn’t analyze what Barbara intended — whether or not she was lying about killing me, and what she meant about settling this another way.

  All I could think about right now was BJ. Her eyes, her smile, her eccentricities and her philosophizing. I’d been so close to getting her back. I was almost sure she would’ve come back to me if I could’ve made it to Harrisburg.

  If I managed to make it out of this alive, I’d beg her to be with me. I’d give her anything she wanted — whether that was as much travel as she wanted, or me working less and spending more time with her.

  Things were coming into focus now. Living my whole life with the goal of making partner was somewhat okay when it was only me I had to worry about. Now that I had someone else in my life, I had to start coming home earlier, leaving the work at work. I’d made my job number one for so long, and it still wasn’t good enough.

  Doing that had only led to a disturbed woman pointing a gun at me. If I made it out of here alive, it was time for a major shift in my priorities.

  I did up my seat belt, which brought another cruel laugh out of Barbara. Perhaps it was silly to buckle up when I might be getting driven to my death. I ignored her mirth and kept my eyes on the road, memorizing the route in case I needed to retrace it.

  Paradise Motel was only a few minutes away, a darkened set of trailer homes that looked like something out of a horror movie. Barbara took me into the reception area, making sure I could see the outline of the gun through her purse as we entered. She kept her finger on the trigger as she spoke to the clerk.

  “Hello, we spoke on the phone a few minutes ago.” She was all pleasantness now, the epitome of an average middle-aged woman. “I reserved a room for two. I won’t be needing it for long.”

  “All right.” The bored, sleepy clerk barely glanced at either of us, ruining whatever hopes I’d had of communicating with my eyes. “Here’s your key. Have a nice stay.”

  I focused my gaze on the clerk, willing him to look at me. If he’d just take a good look at my face, he’d understand I was being held hostage. His gaze was on his phone screen, though, and Barbara nudged me — hard — as she turned toward the door.

  Fear thrilled through me once again as I glanced around the empty parking lot. It seemed that we were the only guests tonight, and the trailer Barbara had chosen was the furthest from the reception building.

  There had to be a reason she’d chosen to bring me here rather than staying on the side of the highway. There would be no one to hear a gunshot out here in the countryside. No one to hear me scream.

  What would happen to Teensy if I didn’t make it out of here? Would someone in my life adopt her, or would she have to go to some shelter? She wouldn’t even have a clue what’d happened to me. All she’d know was that I’d abandoned her.

  I swallowed, my head turning slightly as I searched for a possible escape route. The parking lot was big, but if I could get to the trees beyond…

  “I grew up in the country,” Barbara said, as conversationally as if she was chatting with me at a cocktail party. “Shot targets on the weekend from the time I was six, hunted live game as soon as my daddy would let me… so don’t even think about it.”

  “I wasn’t,” I mumbled.

  Another mocking laugh. I dared a sideways glance at her, wondering how she could be so sadistic when she looked like such a normal person. I would’ve taken her for a PTA mom, not… this.

  She turned the key in the door of the farthest trailer and nodded at me to go inside. I looked around as subtly as I could. There was a window by the door, but how could I get to either of them? Barbara already had the gun out, and I suspected what she’d said about not killing me only applied as long as I cooperated.

  “You know you won’t get away with this,” I said, my voice trembling. “I already know who you are and what your motive is. I’m a lawyer — I know the law, and you’ve already committed multiple crimes tonight. The cops will have you arrested as soon as I tell them what happened.”

  “God, you’re annoying,” she groaned. “I was going to take my time with you, but now I just feel like getting this over with.”

  “Getting what over with, exactly?”

  “Settling this debt,” she said. “Giving this refund to my husband. Making up for what you’ve done.”

  “How, though?”

  Now she brightened, a wide smile actually breaking across her face.

  “That’s up to you. Would you rather lose a finger or a toe?”

  TWENTY-SIX — BJ

  “Can’t you go any faster?” I demanded.

  The man in the driver’s seat waved his right hand, keeping his left on the steering wheel. “I’m going as fast as I can, lady. I’m not getting a ticket for you.”

  “I told you, this is urgent! My friend’s in danger!”

  In the rearview mirror, he rolled his eyes. “Yeah, all right, sure. I let you get in
the car with no destination, didn’t I? ‘Drive toward New York,’ you said. Only gave me the actual address halfway through the trip. I’ve already been pretty damn patient.”

  “Don’t you care that someone’s life might be at risk?”

  “Sure, whatever. Let me tell you a secret, lady. Someone’s life’s always at risk when one of my passengers wants to get somewhere quickly. I’m not getting a speeding ticket for you.”

  Fuck this guy! I leaned forward on my seat, clenching my hands into fists. “If you get one, I’ll pay it. I swear, I don’t care how much it costs. Just get me to Paradise Motel.”

  That did it. Finally he put the pedal to the floor. I tried to relax, but I couldn’t. It might already be too late.

  I looked again at the pocket of my backpack where I’d stuck my phone. I thanked the stars for the millionth time that I’d picked up that last call. I’d almost hung up when I figured out it was a pocket dial. But something struck me as off about the voices I’d heard. They didn’t sound like any radio show I’d ever listened to.

  I’d had to crank the volume up to make out a single word Leanne was saying. When I listened hard enough, I knew I had to get to her.

  I’d gotten in the cab with no money and no destination in mind. When the woman who was with her had finally given the address, I’d almost dared to hope things could be okay… as long as I could get there before she did whatever she was planning.

  I knew Leanne wouldn’t have called again — the phone had gone silent after that last part, only the sound of traffic to be heard. I assumed she’d left it behind somewhere. I pulled it out of my backpack anyway, checking the time she’d placed the call even though I already knew the answer.

  10:31. It was closing in on eleven now. My GPS said we were only minutes from Paradise Motel, but how far had Leanne and the woman been when they began to drive?

  At last, at last, at last I spotted a neon sign with the motel’s name. I twitched on my seat, wanting to jump out and run before the car even stopped. I kept my fingers on the handle as we pulled into a deserted parking lot. The second we paused, I was out the door.

  “Hey! What the hell, lady?” the cabbie yelled after me. “You owe me money!”

  Already racing up the porch of the first trailer home, I didn’t bother to fling back a response. With a lift of my leg, I kicked at the door. The poorly-constructed wood barely resisted the impact, and it burst open.

  No one was there.

  I went for the second trailer. The third. Working my way from left to right, I moved away from what seemed to be the reception building.

  Every door I smashed open made me more anxious. I half-expected to see a naked couple behind each, but nothing and no one appeared. Including Leanne.

  The cabbie was at my back now, hollering at me that I was crazy. A uniform-clad man from the reception building ran out too, pressing a phone to his ear and saying something about the cops.

  “Please do call them,” I yelled back without turning. “Tell them they need to get here as soon as fucking possible.”

  “Oh, you got balls, homegirl,” the cabbie muttered.

  I was too intent on my quest to pay attention. I kicked in another door, not caring if I had to pay for all these damages myself. Even if I had to get a full-time job for a year, I’d keep going. I’d do anything to make sure Leanne was safe.

  No one was in that trailer, either, and I panted as I raced toward the last one. This was it. If she wasn’t here, I’d completely fucked myself — and her — over.

  The door smashed open, and Leanne broke into a faint grin. “Finally you made it. I’ve been watching you through the window for about five damn minutes.”

  “Who the hell are you?” the blonde woman asked, directing the gun’s barrel in my direction. She held Leanne’s fingers with her other hand.

  “I’m her girlfriend,” I said, wishing I could throw Leanne over my shoulder and take her where no one could ever threaten her again. “And I could ask you the same question.”

  A noise behind me made me turn. The cabbie and the motel clerk cowered on the front porch, both looking rather dazed. Apparently this new circumstance had made them see the seriousness of the situation.

  “I’m here to collect what she owes to my husband,” she said with a glare. “We’ve been meaning to deal with her ever since Randy realized she wasn’t giving him her full attention. Now she refuses to pay back the money we’ve wasted on her incompetent services.” She sneered. “I’m going to make her pay for the way she’s treated Randy. No lawyer should half-ass her work and claim to be doing her job.”

  “But…”

  She brandished the pistol at each of us before gesturing us inside. “I wasn’t planning on a group situation, but so be it. All of you need to get in here.”

  There was a clattering noise as the cabbie and the clerk stepped into the trailer. The phone was gone from the clerk’s hands.

  “Fuck this shit,” the cabbie muttered, staring at the floor. “I don’t want to die today.” The clerk looked like he was thinking along the same lines.

  I had no more of a death wish than they did, but I had to stay calm. Physical force would only get somebody hurt when the opponent had a gun and all of us were unarmed. I had to reason with this woman.

  “Mrs. Tripton,” I said. “Please be rational here. Leanne did do her best to help your husband. She recommended him a plea bargain. Leanne wasn’t being lazy and trying to get out of going to court. She wanted Randy to get a lighter sentence than he’d get if he went to trial.”

  She looked surprised, either by what I was saying or that I knew so much about the case. “That’s not the way Randy made it sound.”

  I had her intrigued now. She was listening. “I suspect someone like Randy may have a way of spinning things to fit his purposes. Doesn’t he?”

  “Well… sometimes.” She lowered the pistol partway, still training it somewhere on my torso. “I know his last lawyer stopped making him a priority, though. He got him out of everything for so long, and then one day Randy couldn’t even reach him. That’s why I had to deal with him. Randy only hinted about it to me, but I knew what he meant. I did it because he’s my husband and I love him.”

  I was about to get a confession out of her. Not that it mattered when she could kill every witness here the moment she felt like it. “What did you do, exactly?”

  “I don’t know why I’m telling you.” Mrs. Tripton almost laughed. “It was exactly like this. Took him out somewhere secluded, gave him the choice between his fingers and toes. He wanted me to take a pinky, so I shot off a couple toes instead. From what I understand, he was too embarrassed to ever go to the hospital.”

  I let out a breath, wishing I knew if the cops were on their way. If they were, we were fine as long as I could keep her chatting. If they weren’t, she’d soon turn her attention to Leanne again.

  As if reading my mind, she took her hand back. “Leanne here chose her toes.”

  I watched in horror as Leanne’s face tightened. Mrs. Tripton pointed the gun at her foot, actually smiling as she lined up the angle. “Say bye-bye to that little piggy.”

  “Wait!” I burst out.

  The woman paused long enough to give me a bored glance. “What?”

  “I… I’m so shocked that you would do this.”

  “And why is that? You don’t know anything about me.”

  She was offended now, and if by some chance I’d read this wrong, she might do even worse to Leanne than she’d already planned. I had to try, though.

  “I’m just so shocked that a woman would go to these lengths for a man who’s unfaithful to her.”

  A mocking laugh. “Nice try. Randy adores me.”

  “Maybe he does,” I said. “Never met the man — can’t speak for his character. But he also cheats on you constantly. He’s bragged to Leanne about it more than once.”

  Leanne gave me a small smile as if to say “thank you” — or maybe to ask why she didn’t th
ink of that first.

  Mrs. Tripton narrowed her eyes at me. “What proof do you have?”

  I searched my mind, unable to recall more than the general idea. You have to remember. Everything depends on you remembering.

  There was nothing there. That was all I had. Yet before I could admit defeat, Leanne spoke. Her voice was hoarse and she only managed to look Mrs. Tripton in the eye for a second before dropping her gaze. “I have no proof, but I know who it was. He always said his secretary Hannah had the best ass in Newbank.”

  Leanne’s hand dropped, and she blinked several times. “But… that’s what he always told me.”

  Somehow I actually felt kind of bad for her. “I’m sorry,” I said quietly.

  Must’ve been the wrong thing to say, because she snapped. “I don’t need your pity!” She yanked her arm back to her side.

  And her hand must’ve seized with the movement, because a shot went off.

  TWENTY-SEVEN — LEANNE

  To say chaos erupted in that motel trailer would’ve been an understatement. Instinct made me run to the wall, duck down, and cover my head.

  People don’t talk about how loud bullets are, not really. Or maybe it’s just hard to describe. The sound of the bullet was deafening, like nothing I’d heard before. My ears still rang with it as I began to make sense of the other noises around me.

  Everyone in the place was screaming, cursing, crying. The cabbie was begging for Jesus to save him. Barbara Tripton was yelling at her husband as if he was there.

  BJ, though – BJ raced over to me and leapt ahead of me, shielding me from potential harm.

  And me… all I could do was sob wordlessly because BJ’s body had crumpled in front of me and I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she’d been struck.

  BJ was injured. Or worse.

  I could practically see the red stain seeping through her clothes. Bringing myself to my knees took all of my courage. If she’d been shot, though, I needed to at least sack up enough to see where she’d been hit and whether I could do anything for her.