"Tomorrow night, actually. I'm going to pick her up at her place and take her to dinner and a movie."
"Aww, how sweet," Kevin said.
"Shut up." Jake punched him playfully in the arm.
"Yeah, yeah . . . have fun with your hot cougar."
∞
Jake knocked on Rita's door at 8:00 PM.
When she opened it, Jake was taken aback for a moment. She was wearing a silky red dress with black stilettos.
"Wow, you look amazing."
She smiled. "As do you, handsome. Now, come on in and make yourself at home. I just need five more minutes. Pour yourself a drink."
He walked into the kitchen and poured a glass of whiskey, taking a big gulp. He was bending down to pick up a napkin when he heard Rita walk back into the room.
As he turned around, he said, "That was fast—" but stopped abruptly, his jaw falling slack towards the floor.
"What the hell are you doing here?" he asked the petite blonde standing across the room.
He couldn't believe it. Was she really that crazy, to follow him and break into his girlfriend's house? He made a mental note to look into getting a restraining order.
She looked confused. "I'm sorry, do I know you?"
He rolled his eyes. "Allie. Don't start with your games. What are you doing here? You'd better get out before she comes back. She'll call the police."
Alison narrowed her eyes. "Um . . . well, she's my mother, so I doubt she'll call the police. You must be her boyfriend."
Jake took a step towards Alison. “Allie, you told me your parents were dead. Why are you here? Are you stalking me?”
Just then, Rita walked in. "Oh!" she said, clapping her hands together. "I see you two have met. Where are my manners? Jake, this is my daughter Alison. Alison, my boyfriend Jake."
Jake stumbled back and sat in a dining room chair. "OK. I don't know what is going on, but you two need to give me some answers."
"Jake, honey, what are you talking about?" Rita walked over to the table where he sat.
He stared at Alison. "What the hell is going on? What are you up to?"
"Jake, don't be silly. Allie’s never met you before. What has gotten into you?"
"Oh, we've met. She told me her parents were dead. We were together for two years."
Alison looked frightened, which confused Jake even more. She’s either a good actress or . . . oh no, Jake thought. He sat up straighter in his chair and looked back and forth between Alison and Rita. It's not possible, he thought. Surely Rita wouldn't drug her own daughter with Amnesatryl. He stood from the table and walked to Alison. "How long are you going to keep this up? You're insane, Allie."
Rita walked quickly over and grabbed Jake by the arm. "Hey! What do you think you're doing, scaring my daughter like that?" He wrenched out of her grasp and walked back to the table to get his wallet.
"Allie, go get my watch from the bedroom, honey," Rita said to Alison.
When Alison left the room, Rita leaned in and whispered in his ear. "Payback is a bitch, Jake. She really doesn't remember you. And I think you can figure out why. The magic little pill can do so much, can't it? All she wanted was to have you back. But, then I decided I wanted you for myself. I always thought you were a hot young thing. You've really fulfilled a lot of my fantasies and for that, I thank you. But, you're not going to get away with hurting another woman, breaking another heart."
Jake backed away and put his hands up. "OK, I'm done. I'm out of here. You're both insane. It actually makes sense in a very bizarre way. You two are so much alike."
As he searched for his wallet (he knew he left it on the table but it was gone), he felt woozy, as if he had drank the whole bottle of whiskey. Then he felt a sharp stab in his side and lost his balance, falling onto the table. "What the hell?" He looked down and saw blood. "What are you d—"
Before he could finish, she stabbed him again. And again. And again. He had lost almost all motor control and found that he could barely speak.
"You hurt my daughter! You broke her heart! I had to make her forget. I helped her! She was in so much pain, I couldn't bear it. So, I had to get into your life so I could teach you a lesson! I'm not going to let you hurt anyone else again. You're nothing but a worthless player, a womanizer, thinking you're so hot and you can do whatever you want. Well, you're done!"
Alison walked back into the room and Jake saw her eyes widen at the scene before her. "Mom! What are you doing? Stop!" She lunged at her mother and tried to get the knife out of her hands, but Rita was too fast.
"Allie, stay out of this. This is a bad man. He hurts women. Now, if you don't want to watch, leave the room."
"But, Mom! You can't—"
"Honey," Rita said, turning to Alison. "Do you trust me?"
"Yes, but—"
"OK, honey. I'm doing what has to be done. I'll explain later. He's very dangerous and he has to be stopped."
Jake was losing consciousness fast. "Alison! Please, I'm so—I'm sorry . . . don't let her . . . do . . . this . . ."
Alison walked closer and peered down at Jake, now covered in blood. "I don't know you, Jake. But, if you've hurt my mother enough to make her want to do this, then you deserve what's coming to you. The Walker women stick together."
Jake screamed as Rita brought the knife down into his stomach once more. He craned his head to look at Alison and desperately tried to garble a few words. "She drugged you—"
But he didn't get to finish because Rita raised the knife up into the air one final time and SWOOSH, down it went into Jake's solar plexus. His head rolled to the left and he gasped his final breath.
Epilogue
OCTOBER 20, 2051
The television was on and Alison was only half listening. The president of some drug company was giving a speech.
". . . the entire concept of Amnesatryl is wrong for so many reasons. Traditional anti-depressants have been around for 100 years, and they are quite effective. Anyone who has a painful breakup and experiences the resulting emotional upset can be helped by anti-depressants. Amnesatryl was a mistake and we are pulling it from the shelves immediately. Here at Morris Pharmaceuticals, we are admitting our mistake and have taken quite a hit because of the various lawsuits involving this drug. We are asking anyone who currently has Amnesatryl at home, anyone who has filled the prescription and not taken the drug yet, please throw it out immediately. It's a dangerous drug that causes more pain and hardship than it promises to help . . ."
Alison rolled her eyes. “Who would take that stupid drug anyway? Only some weakling with no backbone,” she said. Although, she couldn't remember the last time she had a broken heart. It must have been a long time ago, she thought as she shrugged and got up to make dinner for her mother.
About the Author
Elaine Ewertz is the author of the Black Shadows series including The Devil You Know and the upcoming sequel, Shadow House. Her first passion is writing fiction, namely the fantasy thriller variety. Elaine has written stories and poetry ever since she can remember. She lives in Central Florida and when she’s not writing, she’s working in healthcare. Elaine loves hearing from readers so drop her a line at [email protected] and be sure to check out ElaineEwertz.com for news, updates and extras.
Be sure to sign up for her mailing list (http://eepurl.com/c6C38r) to receive exclusive freebies, bonus material and to be the first to know of new releases.
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