by Kira Chase
Gracelyn smiled. “I’ll fix us a nice pot of coffee while we wait for Francine.”
Johanna turned into the driveway and carefully made her way to a few feet in front of the gate. She grabbed the remote from the compartment separating the driver’s seat and passenger seat. She jumped when Gretchen suddenly appeared in front of the car, blocking the gate. Gracelyn screamed as Johanna quickly put the car in reverse. Gretchen raised her hand revealing a gun. She pointed it at the windshield.
Johanna’s heart caught in her throat. If she continued reversing, Gretchen would shoot and hit her, Gracelyn, or the both of them. The thought crossed her mind that she could step on the gas and smash Gretchen against the thick metal gate. But what if Gretchen got off a shot or moved out of the way in the nick of time. She watched as Gretchen edged closer. Her throat dried out and her palms sweated inside her fur-lined gloves.
“What are we going to do, Johanna?” Gracelyn asked in a wobbly voice. “She’s going to shoot us.”
Johanna kept her eyes focused on Gretchen watching to see if she made any sudden moves. “No, she won’t. We’re her only way out right now. Just stay calm. We can’t let her see our fear. Don’t let her have the control…that’s what she wants. We’ll be fine.” She racked her brain for a solution to their predicament. Instantly she was filled with hope. George was probably already on his way to the house since Gretchen obviously wasn’t at the motel when Arlan and Kate went to make the arrest. She reassuringly patted her mother’s hand. “We’ll be okay. I just wish I’d kept my gun with me like Frankie wanted me to.”
“Don’t blame yourself, dear.” She shuddered as Gretchen moved closer still aiming the gun at the windshield.
“But I do blame myself, Mom,” she replied. “I should have stayed with George like he and Frankie wanted us to.”
“Call Frankie.”
“Remember my battery’s dead.” She silently berated herself for not making sure she had her fully charged phone. She watched as Gretchen walked to the driver’s side of the car.
She tapped on the driver’s side window with the gun. “Open up!” she ordered.
Johanna slid the window partially down as the cold air rushed in. “What are you doing, Gretchen? I thought we were making arrangements so that we could start a life together. What’s with the gun?” She was proud of the way she kept her voice steady and the tone innocent while her insides were quaking.
“Unlock the back door. Keep your hands on the steering wheel where I can see them.” She looked at Gracelyn. “And you, put your hands on the dashboard.”
Johanna noticed the hand Gretchen was gripping the gun with was shaking. One false move and the gun could go off. She pressed the unlock button.
Gretchen kept the gun trained on them as she slowly opened the backseat car door and slid onto the seat. “You thought you could play me for a fool, didn’t you?”
“No, I didn’t. I don’t know what you’re talking about. Everything was fine between us when you left last night.” She looked at her through the mirror.
Gretchen scowled. “I knew something was off when you invited me over last night. You were all sweet talk. The abrupt change put up a warning signal. You almost had me fooled, too.”
“You’re wrong, Gretchen. I meant every word I said.”
“Liar! You haven’t been on the level since I got here.”
“That’s not true.”
“Then why the hell were you at the sheriff’s office this morning?”
“I had some official business to take care of.”
“Quit lying! I watched those keystone cops as they pounded on my motel door.” She laughed shrilly. “What a laugh I had when they broke down the door. I wondered what they thought when they found an empty room.” Her lips turned into a nasty snarl. “The joke was on them. I was across the street sitting in my car, which, by the way I purchased after I turned in the rental yesterday. I watched from the parking lot.”
Johanna slightly raised her shoulders in a shrug. “Maybe they wanted to talk to you about an incident that happened at the motel. It happens all the time.”
“Bullshit! Why would they break down the door? You set me up!”
“You’re never going to believe me when I say I had nothing to do with the police coming to your door.”
“No, I’m not.”
Johanna kept her hands firmly on the steering wheel. “What’s your plan, then?”
She quickly surveyed the area. “Drive to the garage and park the car. One false move and I’ll blow your fucking head off,” she warned.
Johanna pushed the remote and the gate swung open. She stepped slowly on the gas and the car moved through the gate and up the long driveway. The silence in the car was deafening. She glanced at her mother from the corner of her eye. Gracelyn looked white as a ghost. Johanna feared she’d have a heart attack. She swallowed the lump in her throat. Where was George? He should have been here by now. At the garage she pushed the remote again, drove the car inside, and cut the ignition.
Gretchen scrambled out of the car. “Come on, you two, get out!” She menacingly waved the gun as she shepherded them, Johanna first, toward the back door of the house and up the four steps, which led into the mudroom off the kitchen.
“Unlock the door!”
Johanna put the key in the lock and silently opened the door. Her mother was close at her heels. If she and her mother were in opposite positions she’d have a chance to disarm Gretchen, but she couldn’t risk her mother getting injured. She pushed open the door and switched on the light in the mudroom. She turned her head slightly just as Gracelyn bent her arm and swiftly elbowed Gretchen in her midsection. Gretchen stumbled back a few steps as the gun flew out of her hand and was rapidly swallowed by a huge snowdrift.
Gretchen grabbed the railing to steady herself while she wrapped her free arm around Gracelyn’s neck. “I should break your scrawny neck, bitch,” she hissed. “I hope you enjoyed your visit here because this is where your life is going to come to an abrupt end.”
Johanna shuddered. “Please don’t hurt her, Gretchen. She hasn’t done anything to you.”
“Get in the house!” She roughly nudged Gracelyn.
Johanna’s eyes watered when she saw the pain in her mother’s eyes. Gretchen was tossing her around like she was a rag doll. Where the hell is George?
Once she’d shepherded them through the mudroom and into the kitchen, Gretchen, with an arm still wrapped around Gracelyn’s neck, quickly glanced around and grabbed a long sharp knife from the rack on a counter.
Johanna knew she had to keep her cool. One false move and she didn’t want to think of the consequences she and her mother would endure. It was obvious that Gretchen had gone off the deep end and Johanna knew from her work on the police force that there was no reasoning with someone when they’d reached that state. Caution was all she could use or Gretchen would slash her mother’s throat with one swift move. She fought for control over her wavering emotions. Her insides were beginning to freeze with fear, but she had to will herself to stay strong.
“Gretchen, let’s sit down and discuss this calmly. We can work something out. I’ll give you every dime I can get my hands on. You can leave the country and get a fresh start. I won’t tell the police anything. You have my word.”
Gretchen grunted. “And I should believe you because? I was a cop, too…remember?”
“I said I give you my word.”
“Your word is crap. You set me up. You did not intend to leave that bitch. Did you two have a good laugh at my expense? I hope so because it’s the last laugh you two will ever again share together.”
“No, Gretchen. It wasn’t like that. I was forced into it by Frankie,” she lied. “She’ll turn me in if I don’t give her three-quarters of our assets. I’ll get you out of jail. Without my testimony and your agreement to pay back the investors what will they hold you on? After all, none of the other investors have come forward. Only Savannah Granger. So what crime have yo
u committed? I’ll say that I really was the one who talked you into starting the company and then remained a silent partner.”
“That’s true, Gretchen,” Gracelyn added in a raspy voice. “I heard it all. Johanna’s telling you the truth. Francine’s blackmailing her. We couldn’t say anything last night because she’d threatened us. She never believed that Johanna hadn’t been in on your business venture from the very beginning.”
Johanna kept her movements calm and steady. She was grateful for her mother’s quick thinking by jumping in to add to the lies. Gretchen’s arm was still tightly wound around Gracelyn’s throat and Johanna needed to find a way to distract her so she’d loosen her grip. She was afraid her mother would pass out from the pressure to her throat, or worse.
“Let’s sit at the table and talk this through. You need a plan, Gretchen.” She turned and started toward the table.
Gretchen’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t take another step! I need to think.”
“Let me help.”
“I said shut up!” She backed toward a counter and leaned her back against it.
Johanna stood facing her, but kept silent. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the knife rack. If she could only get to it then maybe she could cause a distraction allowing her mother to escape Gretchen’s death grip. She slowly inched forward. All she had to do was make a quick run for it. She prayed that when she did, Gretchen would use all her strength to tackle her. She slightly turned her body, but Gretchen didn’t seem to notice. Her wild eyes were looking upward as though she were seeking answers from the heavens above. Johanna held her breath and dashed for the counter. Her hand gripped the handle of the matching knife which Gretchen held.
“I wouldn’t do it if I were you,” Gretchen said coldly. “Take it out of the rack and I slit your mother’s throat!”
Johanna hesitated briefly before loosening her grip. She turned and faced Gretchen. Gretchen’s features looked as hard as steel.
“Now you’ve pissed me off! Where’s your cell phone? You’re going to make a little call.”
“It’s in the car. The battery needs recharging.”
“There’s no time for that. What about yours?” She nudged Gracelyn’s throat with the knife.
“It’s in the guestroom.”
“Well, it’s a good thing that I prepared myself for any possible emergency.” She positioned the blade of the knife so that if Gracelyn moved, the blade would puncture her throat. She reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a cell phone. “You’re going to call Frankie and tell her to come home right away. Tell her everything is over.”
“She might not answer if she doesn’t recognize the number.”
“Leave her a message then. Don’t be so damned stupid! And one more thing. If you even think of warning her that I’m here, your mother’s blood will be gushing all over your floor before you finish the call. And then I’ll finish you off. Do I make myself clear?”
“Crystal.” She took the phone from Gretchen’s outstretched hand. She punched in Frankie’s number hoping she’d pick up. When Frankie’s voice came on asking the caller to leave a message, Johanna asked her to come home that everything was over. She briefly explained the reason for the strange number she was calling from. When she finished, she snapped the phone shut.
“Set it on the floor and kick it toward me.”
Johanna squatted down and placed the phone on the floor, then rose to her full height and with the side of her boot-clad foot, kicked the phone toward her. When it clattered against the bottom edge of the counter, she realized she’d kicked it a little too hard. She looked toward the window wondering what was taking George so long. Maybe he’d called and left messages. Of course he wouldn’t be able to reach her and the home phone was turned down when they weren’t home so if he’d called since they’d been in the house she’d never know. Something was off, though. George would never allow Gracelyn and her to be unprotected with Gretchen on the loose. And why hadn’t he called Frankie to warn her?
A sharp gust of wind bent a tree branch causing it to brush against the window. She glanced at the darkening sky. A storm was definitely on the way. Cold icy pellets began battering the window. Her calm slowly dissolved. If Frankie received her message and was at this very moment making her way home, Johanna had no way of alerting her to the trap Gretchen had set. There was no doubt in her mind that Gretchen would kill Frankie. Time was running out.
Chapter 15
Frankie awoke with a start. She looked around herself and then out the window of the large bay window. The sky was too dark for this time of day. She stretched, rose and walked to the window and peered outside. A cold icy rain was beginning to fall. Soon it turned into little pellets of ice.
“Shit,” she mumbled as she hurried into the guest bedroom to retrieve her phone. She flipped open the lid and saw that she had several missed calls, mostly from George and a couple of numbers she didn’t recognize. She assumed they were from telemarketers. She punched in her voicemail password and waited for the messages.
George’s was first. She almost dropped the phone when she listened to his message. “Dammit!” she shouted. Why hadn’t Johanna stayed with George where she and Gracelyn would be safe? Suddenly she remembered that there were more messages. Maybe Gretchen had been caught after George had sent her this message. His next three messages were almost verbatim of the first. The following two were from telemarketers. When her final message was announced her heart leapt with joy when she heard Johanna’s voice telling her they were in the clear and to come home as soon as she could.
She grabbed her duffle bag and stuffed her clothes inside not bothering to fold them. She threw her toiletries on top and zipped the bag. She grabbed her car keys and hurried out the front door, then locked the door. She slipped on the icy walk, but quickly steadied herself as she picked her way to her car. She unlocked the car, grabbed the scraper from the backseat, and scraped the windows. After she was seated in the driver’s seat, she finally took the time to catch her breath.
After the car warmed up, she cautiously backed out of the parking spot and headed toward home with a wide smile on her lips.
* * * *
After her harrowing trip home, passing many accidents and facing God only knew how many hours stuck in traffic, she’d finally decided to take a half hour detour around the outskirts of Charlestown and to come in through a narrow barely used steep and curvy country road which intersected with the end of her road. She and Johanna had only used the road twice since they’d moved here and vowed neither would again unless in an absolute emergency. Even though this wasn’t exactly an emergency, she couldn’t bear being stuck in traffic when Johanna was at home awaiting her return. She’d almost lost control on the slick road a couple of times and thought for sure that she would fly over the edge of the road and down into a deep ravine.
By the time she stopped her car in front of the garage she was shaking badly and had to take several gulps of fresh air to calm her shattered nerves. Now that she was safely at home she couldn’t care less if they were trapped in their home for days. They were safe! All she wanted to do was get inside the house. She picked up the remote and pressed the garage opener. She pulled the car inside, grabbed her bag from the backseat and walked out of the garage.
She bent her head low against the stiff wind and icy pellets that pummeled her face. The ominous sky looked like dusk, but it was only late morning. The storm had come out of nowhere and she felt sorry for those trapped in their vehicles, or worse, involved in some of the accidents. The path was slick and she was careful to walk on the edge of the walkway where the ice-crusted snow gave her some leverage.
She stepped onto the porch noting that no lights were on. She assumed that Johanna and Gracelyn were comfortably seated at the kitchen nook with hot steaming mugs of coffee. She opened the door and walked inside. The house was quiet…too quiet. An icy chill ran up her spine. “I’m home, Johanna. Gracelyn?”
Her heart froze when th
ere was no response. She removed her gun from her inside shoulder holster and was cautiously moving through the living room turning on lights as she made her way toward the kitchen when she head Johanna scream. “Run, Frankie! It’s a trap. Gretchen’s here!”
The next sound she heard as she sprinted toward the kitchen was a sickening thud. Her heart pounded as she raced into the kitchen. Johanna was lying sprawled on the floor in front of the refrigerator. “Are you okay?”
“Yes,” Johanna whispered. “Be careful. She’s armed with a butcher knife she took from the rack.”
“Where did she go?”
“Out the back door. Mom called George.”
Frankie looked around the kitchen. “Where is Gracelyn?”
“I’m here,” Gracelyn quietly replied from the other side of the island.
Relief flooded through Frankie. At least Johanna and her mother were safe. “Stay where you are, Gracelyn.”
“I will,” she said in a trembling voice.
“How did Gretchen get in here?”
Johanna shook her head. “It’s my fault. I figured that as long as Arlan and Kate were on the way to the motel to arrest her, Mom and I could safely come home. I forgot to recharge my battery and Mom forgot to bring her phone so when Gretchen appeared in front of the gate with a gun trained on us, we had to do what she ordered.”
Frankie frowned. “It doesn’t matter now. All I care about is that you and your mother are safe. You can give me the details later. I’m assuming that Gretchen made you call me to come home.”
Johanna nodded. “I’m sorry. She said if I didn’t she’d slit my mother’s throat.”
“How’d she get here?”
“I don’t know.”
Frankie patted her shoulder. “Don’t worry about any of this now. You did the right thing. Stay here with Gracelyn. I’m going to look for Gretchen. If she’s on foot, she won’t get far in this weather. We’re having a major ice storm. That’s what took me so long to get home.”
“No, Frankie! She’s insane. All she’s been ranting about is how she can’t wait to get you. Wait for George. He should be here any minute. Lock the door so she can’t get back in.”