Enid said, “We need you to drive us to Eve’s house.”
Chip stared at her, astonished. “I’ll drive you to where your meds are – how long has it been since you’ve been off them?”
Enid said, “I saw a man kidnap Jack right off the street! What if she kills him?”
“Jack gets into a car with a man and you assume that Eve has something to do with it?”
“If you don’t drive us there, I’m going to tell your dad that you took it out.”
“What out?” Chip said.
Enid gave his crotch a knowing look.
Chip gasped. “You’re psycho! You are a fucking sociopath evil – ”
Enid said, “Cut the melodramatics and drive me to Eve’s house.”
“You’re jealous. That’s what this is about.” Chip flipped open his cell and dialed.
“Who are you calling?” Enid said, frowning.
Chip said into the phone, “Hey Dad, Enid is trying to blackmail me into driving her to Eve’s house so she can play Nancy-Numbskull-Drew.”
“Traitor,” Enid said.
Chip listened to the phone and then froze, stunned.
Suspicious, Enid watched his face.
Chip said, “Yeah, sure.” He hung up.
“What?” Enid said.
Chip looked at her, wonderingly. “Eve’s sister – Laura – confessed to murder. She confessed to two murders – her stepfather and her sister.”
“It’s a trick,” Enid said.
Chip said, “She left a note – a confession. And a goodbye.”
Enid said, “She skipped town?”
“Suicide.”
“She killed herself?” Enid said with a gasp.
Chip shook his head, unsure. “Dad says Jack says – ”
“Jack?” Enid exclaimed. “He’s alive?”
Chip said, “He’s with Eve – they’re driving to Camelback Mountain to try to stop her.”
“Come on!” Enid said, pointing at the road. “What are we waiting for?”
Chip said, “We are not going anywhere. I’m taking you back to whever you came from. The world does not revolve around – ”
Enid grabbed his car keys from the ignition and threw them out the window.
“What the fuck!” Chip said. “If you weren’t a girl – !” Furious, Chip got out of the car and made his way to the area where Enid threw the keys.
Enid rolled up the windows and locked the doors, sliding over to the driver’s seat. She turned to Ernie and Sharon and held up Chip’s car keys that she had palmed when she pretended to throw them out of the car.
“Holy crap,” Ernie said, scared.
Sharon said, “We’ll get in trouble!”
Enid revved the engine and, as Chip ran back to the car, screaming curses, Enid flipped him the bird.
Enid pulled out with a screech of tires.
Sharon started crying. “Let me out!”
Enid said, “You can blame it all on me. Tell your mom I forced you into it, so stop blubbering.”
“We’re in so much trouble,” Sharon said, looking back as Chip disappeared from sight.
Enid gave one last glance in the rearview mirror but Chip was already out of sight. She frowned as she said, “Where’s Camelback Mountain?”
CHAPTER EIGHTY-TWO
I am the punishment of God…
If you had not committed great sins, God would not have sent a punishment like me upon you.
–Genghis Khan
As Jack paused at the entrance to the hidden path that led to the cliff, he had a free-fall feeling of tumbling down the rabbit hole. He stripped off his shirt and tied it to the brush, revealing the entrance that otherwise would be unnoticeable.
Jack had led the way up the trail but Eve had surprised him by pushing ahead and plunging into the brush of the hidden entrance without him.
In his undershirt, he edged his way forward. Thorns pricked his skin and drew blood. He was glad he’d sent the text message to Bud. He couldn’t shake the sensation of being in way over his head.
With a jolt, Jack realized that if Bud came after him, there was no way he’d make it up the trail. He’d forgotten about Bud’s heart.
It’ll kill him.
Jack checked his cell but there was no signal. Cursing, he pushed his way forward, hoping that Bud wouldn’t attempt the climb up the steep trail. He couldn’t turn back now – he had to help Eve.
Jack heard Eve’s voice as he pushed his way through the last of the brambles. He stumbled out of the trail and onto the packed earth of the cliff.
Eve stood twelve feet in front of him, her back toward him as she faced Laura, who stood on the edge of the cliff.
Laura’s desperate eyes were locked on Eve, who was walking toward her with outstretched hands.
Laura made a movement toward the cliff.
Jack lunged forward, “No!”
Laura froze, looking at Jack with bewildered eyes.
Jack reached Eve’s side as he said, “This isn’t the answer, Laura. We’ll help you – ”
The wind caught Laura’s hair, whipped it around her face.
Laura said to Eve, “Did you tell him?”
Jack gestured for Eve to stay where she was as he slowly walked to Laura. “We can talk this through. I promise we’ll do everything in our power to help you through this.”
Scowling, Laura made a movement away from him.
Jack stopped. “Laura – no.”
Laura looked past Jack at Eve, and gasped in shock.
Feeling his opportunity, Jack bounded forward and yanked Laura from the edge. As he reeled them backwards, his heel caught on a root and they hit the dirt. Never letting her from his grasp, Jack rolled over and pinned Laura to the ground.
Relief washed over Jack. He looked up, his eyes seeking Eve.
Eve stood over them, pointing a Magnum revolver at his head.
“Get up,” Eve said.
Jack released Laura and got to his feet, his eyes never leaving Eve’s face.
Laura scrambled to her feet, “Eve – ”
“Shut up,” Eve said.
“What are you doing?” Laura said in a quavering voice.
Eve gestured to the cliff’s edge with her gun, “Jack tried to save you. You struggled. You both died.”
Jack said, “With bullet holes? I don’t think so.”
Laura gazed at Eve, “I thought you loved me.”
“I do love you,” Eve said.
Laura smiled, relief springing to her eyes.
Eve said, “Not enough.”
Laura stared at her in horror.
Eve pointed the gun at Laura. “You can go over the edge yourself – or I’ll make you wish you did.”
Jack stepped in front of Laura, shielding her.
“It was you,” Laura said to Eve, “You killed Jeni.”
Eve smiled contemptuously.
Jack said, “and Daniel.”
Laura clung to Jack’s arm, tears running down her face.
Jack laughed.
They looked at him, startled.
Jack said to Eve, “It was you.”
Eve jerked her chin toward the cliff and said, “You’re going over that edge, Jack.”
Jack said, “It was you all along – Daniel was fucking you.”
Eve paled, gripping the gun so that her knuckles looked like bones.
Jack’s voice was softly taunting. “Little Miss Perfect is not so perfect. Dirty girl – getting it on with daddy.”
Eve stepped forward, spitting with fury. “Liar!”
Jack grinned. “Dirty girl.”
Eve’s face was a twisted mask of rage. She was on the verge of lunging forward when she stopped. Her face went cold and she backed away.
Jack’s heart sank. He needed her to come closer – only a little closer – so he could make his move and get the gun from her.
Eve was retreating, a mean, unforgiving glint in her eyes.
She raised the gun and he saw he
r finger press down and he saw his mother, father, grandmother – like a chain – moving down until all he saw was Enid.
The truth hit him like a tsunami.
I must survive – for Enid.
He had to live. It was impossible that he would lose his chance to give to her what he had never gotten from his father.
I have to live.
He looked into Eve’s eyes. Her eyes shone like dead stones.
This is how it ends.
Jack felt tears running down his face. In his mind’s eye, he saw the last expression he had seen on Enid’s face when he left her at the airport.
Disappointment.
Jack hurtled forward – to kill Eve.
The explosion of the gun was the last thing he heard.
CHAPTER EIGHTY-THREE
Dying is a wild night and a new road.
–Emily Dickinson
Bud parked his car at the trail entrance to Camelback Mountain. There were two trailheads to the mountain, and he hoped he had the right one. He glanced back at Larry, who sat in stony silence.
Bud said, “Wait here.”
Bud got out and walked to the trailhead, trying to convince himself that if he took it slow, he could make it up the trail. Thirty feet up, he broke out in a sweat and felt his chest tighten. He stopped, feeling for his fanny pack full of medication, which reassured him.
I am not going to die on this mountain.
Bud climbed slowly upward, his dress shoes slipping on the loose pebbles. Knifelike chest pain brought him to his knees with a groan. With shaking hands, he dug in his pack and got a nitro pill, which he slipped under his tongue.
Bud sat for what seemed like forever. The pressure eased but he felt like shit. He looked down the trail, wondering what was holding up Jenson. He’d called for back-up on the drive over, but hadn’t heard back from him.
He forced himself to his feet. He had to get up the trail.
Within forty feet, Bud felt a crushing weight on his rib cage. With a cry, he sunk to the ground. He pulled out his pill bottle, which he opened with difficulty. A gust of wind blew dirt in his face and he felt the bottle slip from his fingers. The pill bottle skittered down the trail.
Bud tried to get up but fell backwards with a grunt of pain. Sweat streamed down his face, dripped off his nose so that he could taste the salt.
He strained his eyes down the trail and thought he saw Jenson.
Or was it Bunnie?
Bud shook his head, trying to shake away the fuzz. The cacti around him were moving and buzzing like bees.
He inched forward, trying to get closer to the pill bottle. If he could get just one of them – maybe the pain would stop.
A searing fire in his chest left him breathless and weak. He stared up at the terrible blue of the sky.
I don’t love Bunnie.
The truth broke on him like a stress fracture cracking through his soul.
I want to live.
All his days were behind him. Not one day in front of him.
The pain was crushing.
Like a pebble thrown into the Pacific – he felt himself disappear without a ripple.
CHAPTER EIGHTY-FOUR
I will not let you go into the unknown alone.
–Bram Stoker
Enid sped the car up the road leading to Camelback Mountain, ignoring Sharon’s demands to let her out as well as Ernie’s periodic outbursts for her to slow down. According to Ernie, who had hiked the trail with his dad, they were almost there.
Enid jerked the wheel on a sharp curve and a car materialized out of nowhere. She froze, unable to so much as flinch.
The inevitableness of the crash hung in the air for what seemed like an eternity. The sound of crunching metal and plastic was followed by a sickening impact that knocked the air out of Enid’s body.
An acrid smell burned her nose. She opened her eyes.
A man was prying the door open. His voice broke through her fog. “Are you all right?”
Enid looked up, feeling faint and sick. Something smelled like the inside of her mother’s purse. She felt tangled up in something and realized that it was the airbag.
Enid looked in the rearview mirror at Sharon’s angry face. Sharon’s mouth was moving but Enid couldn’t grasp what she was saying. Ernie sat with dazed eyes.
Enid climbed out of the car.
The man was opening the back door, unbuckling Ernie and helped him and Sharon out.
Enid remembered why they had come. Jack was on the mountain – with a killer.
Enid stumbled toward the trail. She glanced back, unsure, and saw Ernie and Sharon sitting on the ground. The man was phoning for help.
Ernie met her eyes and gave her a weak smile, waved her forward.
She gave him a grateful smile and started climbing.
For what seemed like a long time, Enid struggled upward. Her breath ragged, Enid looked up the trail and stopped, startled.
A man lay in the dirt, his face down and one hand outstretched as if reaching for something.
Thinking it was Jack, she lunged forward, cold with terror at the thought that she was too late.
She rolled him over and gasped with shock.
Detective Orlean’s face was ashen, his mouth lax and drooling.
Enid put her ear to his chest and heard the faint, slow beat of his heart. She shook him violently, calling his name but there was no response.
Her eyes followed his outstretched arm and she saw a pill bottle. She scrambled after it and found it empty. She scanned the ground and saw a pill. She grabbed it and crawled to his side and shoved it into his mouth.
It rolled off his tongue. She picked it up, worried that if she shoved it down his throat he would choke. She put the pill in her mouth and chewed it down to a soft spitball. Her mouth tingled and she felt her heartbeat quicken. Using her finger, she put the glob in his mouth and mashed it onto his tongue.
She went down the trail and got three more pills and did the same thing.
She bit into a fourth pill and felt her heartbeat pound harder.
His eyes opened and he blinked.
Relief washed over her. “It’s me – Enid. Are you all right?”
He pressed his hand to his chest and muttered, “Mount Vesuvius.”
“Where’s Jack?” she said.
“Jenson – he’s coming.” His jacket fell to one side, revealing his shoulder holster and gun.
At the sight of the gun, Enid’s breath caught. Enid grabbed at Bud, forcing him into a sitting position as she struggled to remove his jacket. “We have to get your jacket off – so you can breathe.” She clumsily removed his jacket. She threw it aside and tried to unbuckle his shoulder holster.
Bud’s hand snapped up. “No!”
“I need to listen to your heart,” she said, hoping she sounded convincing. “We learned how in health class.”
Bud hesitated but let her remove the shoulder holster. She set it behind him and threw his jacket over it.
Footsteps pounded up the trail.
A man in yellow dress shirt and mint-colored pants bounded up the trail. His eyes looked sharply from Detective Orlean to her and back again. He pushed Enid out of the way and stooped over Bud, loosening his collar and leaning him back on the ground.
Jenson said, “Help’s on the way. Hang in there, Bud.”
Enid sat back and, when Jenson turned his back, she got Bud’s gun from the holster and tucked it into the back of her jeans.
Jenson said, “We have to get him down the trail.” He slung Detective Orlean’s arm over his shoulder and hoisted him up. “Take his other side.”
Enid stood up. “My dad’s up there. I have to help him.”
Jenson said, “Unless we get him down the trail, Bud is going to die.”
Enid wavered, unsure.
“We’re wasting time,” Jenson said, struggling under Bud’s weight.
Enid stepped backwards, shaking her head.
Jenson said. “I can’t do
this alone. He’ll die.”
Enid turned and ran up the trail. The man called after her but she forced herself to move faster. She ran until she stumbled and landed on her knees with a painful jolt.
She climbed to her feet and listened. She heard the distant hum of the city and a woman’s voice.
Enid walked forward until she came face to face with a man’s shirt tied to a bush. She pulled at the shirt and was surprised to see what looked like a hole with a rock ledge to one side and thorny brush to the other.
She heard Jack’s laugh.
Enid jumped forward and pushed her way through the bramble. Edging along the rock wall, she winced as thorns dragged along her bare arms.
She stopped, heart pounding. It was Jack’s voice saying –
Dirty girl?
Enid got the gun from the back of her jeans and made sure the safety was off. She pushed through the last of brambles, stepping into the sunlight.
Jack and Laura were standing with their backs to the cliff. Eve was pointing a gun at them.
Enid raised her gun and shot at Eve.
The explosion of her gun sent her reeling backwards so that she landed in a group of thorny brambles. Enid screamed in agony as the thorns tore into her from all sides.
Ears ringing, Enid tried to move but even the tiniest movement was agonizing. She lay still, gritting her teeth.
Another explosion.
Pain ripped through her right side. Enid lay still, staring up at the canopy of thorns. The previous pain was now blunted under the new sensation of burning that started at her right side and spread out over her body like fire.
She looked up and saw a bird – was it a bird?
It was in the thorns, staring down at her with eyes that had an impartiality that took her breath away. She gazed into the dark eyes, mesmerized.
Did the bird taste it too?
Blood.
CHAPTER EIGHTY-FIVE
The fallen angel becomes a malignant devil.
–Mary Shelley
Jack heard the explosion and sank to his knees. What he didn’t expect to hear was Enid screaming. Jack’s eyes flew open and he saw what looked like Enid’s battered Converse sneakers flailing in the brush. He watched in horror as Eve bore down on her with the gun.
Gunning For Angels (Fallen Angels Book 1) Page 33