Amy Maxwell & the 7 Deadly Sins (The Amy Maxwell Series Book 2)

by Heather Balog

  ~Fourteen~

  “Could you hurry this up?” Claudia says impatiently. “I have a massage appointment in less than an hour.”

  “Well, what would you like me to do?” Kevin snips back. “Shoot her in the trunk?”

  “Well that would certainly expedite things,” Claudia replies snottily.

  “And then it would leave blood and brains and guts in the trunk of our car, Claudia. You want to talk about having it traced back to us? If we kill her in the trunk of the car, we might as well take out a billboard on the Turnpike that says so!”

  I can’t open my eyes or my mouth to speak, but I do have some thoughts on the matter. Obviously Kevin has not read enough detective novels or watched enough CSI. Because unless they’re planning on having the trunk completely stripped, there’s enough DNA back here to send Kevin and Claudia away for life, between hair fibers and my bloody mouth. Coupled with my urgent message to River? That’ll be enough to send them up the River. Ha! That’s funny. At least they won’t get away with this!

  Suddenly, I hear the whirl of helicopter blades and feel the ground shaking underneath the car. A loud booming voice sounds from a PA system. “This is the police! Drop your weapons and surrender! Keep your hands where we can see them!”

  “Oh, thank God!” Beth exclaims. I have nearly forgotten about her.

  I hear Kevin and Claudia being thrown on the ground, Claudia protesting violently. Just then, a gentle hand reaches out for me, pulling me out of the darkness. I blink and when I open my eyes, I see…Jason???

  “Come on! Wake up…what’s her name again?” I hear Claudia’s annoyed voice.

  “Amy. Her name is Amy,” my sister says. She sounds like she is outside the trunk. She must be standing by Kevin and Claudia. Her voice quivering gives me the impression that she is worried. I’m not sure if she’s worried about me or she’s just realizing that this situation is hopeless. That has to be it, because for the life of me, I can’t recall a single time in my life when she was actually concerned about me.

  “Well, get up Amy! You’re wasting my valuable time,” Claudia snaps and I feel a rough shake. Still, I don’t open my eyes. It’s like I’m there, but listening to their conversation over a radio or something. I cannot open my eyes; my lids feel unnaturally heavy and my limbs feel dull and unfeeling. Except…it feels like my one arm is pinned underneath my body.

  “Amy, please wake up.” My sister’s voice sounds desperate now and I can tell she’s crying again.

  “Looks like she’s lost a lot of blood,” Kevin observes. “That’s probably why she passed out. She might just die from that.”

  “What?” Beth squeals. “No! She just hit her head! The head bleeds a lot! And her tooth came out, remember? She’s not-”

  “Great. Fabulous. Fantastic.” Claudia interrupts Beth. Her voice seems to be coming in spurts past my ears as if she is pacing back and forth. “Now we have blood in the trunk. We’re going to have to dump the car now, too in addition to the bodies.”

  I jerk involuntarily at the insinuation that Beth and I will just be bodies soon. Although I feel like I can open my eyes now, but I don’t want to. If I do, it’ll take us one step closer to being bodies.

  Fortunately, Claudia doesn’t seem to notice anything as she continues her ranting. “We’re going to have to find a new place to dump the bodies now because this won’t do at all.”

  “Well, this is where you said-” Kevin stammers, but Claudia cuts him off.

  “That was before there was blood in the car, you idiot! All it’s going to take is for someone to remember the minivan was parked in front of our house and then what do you know? There’ll be a search warrant! And what are they gonna find in the back of the Chevy, Kevin? The one thing we won’t be able to get out?”

  “Blood,” Kevin mutters and I imagine him staring down at his feet, kicking up dirt with his shoes like a child who’s being reprimanded by his mother.

  “Great job, Kevin. You f’d this one up as usual,” Claudia retorts.

  “Me?” Kevin’s voice comes out in a squeak. “What the hell did I do? How is this my fault?”

  “Well, for starters, we wouldn’t be here if you could keep it in your pants,” Claudia explodes.

  “But you told me to! You wanted me to-” Kevin is practically sputtering.

  “You didn’t have go and be all lovey with her, Kevin,” Claudia snaps.

  “Exactly how was I supposed to seduce her if I didn’t play the part, huh, Claudia? Did you think she was just gonna fall in love with fat, old hideous Kevin?”

  Beth whimpers. Claudia scoffs. Kevin continues his rant.

  “Well isn’t that what you call me, Claudia? Behind my back? To your oh so classy friends?” Claudia makes a noise to protest, but Kevin cuts her off. “Don’t play innocent with me. I know that’s what you say. I’ve heard you. What I can’t for the life of me figure out is why you stay with me then. I mean you’re the one with the money, you’re the one with the job. Why stay with me, then?”

  “It’s because she can push you around. She wouldn’t be able to push someone else around,” Beth inserts just then and I immediately hear the sound of a slap.

  “You whore,” Claudia growls.

  “Well, are you the pot or the kettle?” Beth growls right back, completely nonplussed at being slapped by her nemesis or called such a nasty name. “You know it’s true. You cheat on him to your heart’s content…oh don’t you dare act like it’s not true…everyone at Upton knows you do it.”

  “How dare you-”

  Beth doesn’t let her finish. “And then you can use him to do all your dirty work, like look for women to scam. Just because your show is tanking and your daddy cut you off.”

  I open my eyes a crack. It doesn’t seem as if they are paying any attention at all to me anymore anyway. Kevin and Claudia are standing on opposite ends of the back of the car, Beth standing in between them, her hands still duct taped, her hair fabulously tussled as if she did it that way on purpose. Her one cheek is a pleasant rosy red, I assume where she has been slapped.

  “I ought to slap you again,” Claudia screeches as she lunges at Beth. I snap my eyes shut again, one, because I don’t want to get caught, and two, because I really don’t want to see my sister get mauled by this beast of a woman. Yes, Beth is in shape, she works out religiously; but Claudia looks lean, toned, and like she can seriously kick the ass of my dainty little sister. Not that she’s my little sister, but…well, you know what I mean. Plus, Beth’s hands are taped behind her back and I’m pretty sure her legs are, too. She’s going to topple over. I cringe, waiting for the sound of Beth thudding to the ground like a tree.

  Instead I hear Claudia shouting, “What are you doing? Get your hands off-’ A pause and then, “Are you insane?”

  “You know what, Claudia, maybe I am.”

  I am very tempted to open my eyes and see what’s happening, but it sounds like they are moving closer to the trunk. “I must be to stay with you for so damn long. Shit! I think you broke my finger!”

  I wonder what Kevin did to deserve Claudia’s wrath. Maybe, just maybe, he tried to help Beth get away or something? One can always hope.

  “Ha! Don’t act like you’re a martyr! You love playing with Daddy’s money more than I do, with your cars and your motorcycles,” Claudia scoffs.

  “Well, that doesn’t seem to make much of a difference now does it,” Kevin retorts. “With him going bankrupt and your show being cancelled and all that. That life is over.”

  “I told you I would take care of that, Kevin!” Claudia fires back with indignation.

  “No, you had me take care of it! You had me do all the dirty work!”

  I have to prevent my head from swiveling back and forth like I’m at a tennis game (or match or whatever they call it in tennis).

  “Ha! You did nothing but get laid! I kidnapped Jillian. You couldn’t even do that!” Claudia shouts as I feel a drop of water hit my face. Oh great. Let’s add rain t
o this already bizarre evening! Was it even supposed to rain tonight?

  “Only because you beat me to it!” Her husband is just as fired up as she is. Cracking my eye open, I can see that he has his arm hooked around my sister’s chest, his face is beat red, and he has sweat pouring down his forehead and it is flying in my general direction. Fabulous…at least I thought that was rain.

  This is one of those times I really, really wish I had a tape recorder. This screaming match would put both of these clowns away for a very long time. Even if Beth and I were dead. Especially if Beth and I were dead. I hate the two of them so much, I almost want to be dead just to see them fry. Except we don’t have the death penalty in this state and I wouldn’t really see anything if I am dead. Ok, never mind. Don’t want to be dead.

  “Well it worked out even better, didn’t it? Now we have two more people to collect ransom on.” She pauses for a moment and then remarks off-handedly, “Not that I think we will get very much for that one judging on the way she’s dressed. I mean my God how old is that sweatshirt she’s wearing?”

  I squeeze my eyes shut even tighter and fight the urge to pop out of the trunk and deck her in her nose job.

  “I’m sure Derek will pay whatever you’re asking for all of us. Just let us go,” Beth says desperately. Wow, I can’t believe my sister is actually jumping to my defense. “Don’t let my sister’s lack of fashion sense be an issue here.” Ok, I almost liked her.

  “You’ve got to be kidding!” Claudia sputters. “You really think I am going to let you go now? How stupid do you think I am, Beth? You’ll be at the police station quicker than I can get to the airport. Oh no, there’s no letting you go.”

  Beth whimpers and I silently start saying my prayers. Until I realize, I can’t remember any prayers. Uh, now I lay me down to sleep? No, no! That’s definitely not good. Our father who hails Mary? No, I’m pretty sure that’s not correct. Oh my goodness, I can’t even think straight! What’s my name again? Maybe I lost a lot more blood than I thought.

  “Well if you don’t let us go, Derek isn’t paying any ransom! You either let us go or you’re not getting any money at all!” Beth shouts indignantly.

  “Ha! That’s how much you know you pretty little moron!” Claudia snapped at my sister. I am envisioning her circling around Beth, trailing her gun across Beth’s face or something, just like the villains in movies. “Derek has already paid. That was the bank on the phone just now. I thought doctors were supposed to be smart, but you husband isn’t apparently one of the smarter ones. He didn’t even ask for confirmation that you were alive! He didn’t ask where you were or anything. Didn’t even pull a fast one to try to figure out your location or who were. All he cared about was Jillian.”

  “Where is Jillian?” Beth asks and I can tell by the sound of her voice that her lip is quivering. Poor Beth. Not only has she found out that her lover was just using her; now she thinks her husband doesn’t even care if she’s alive or dead. I figure I have nothing left to lose since they’re planning on killing us anyway. I open my eyes.

  It’s very dark out and I can faintly make out the silhouettes of my sister and Claudia illuminated by the reddish hue of the taillights. I can’t see Kevin clearly, but I think he is standing next to Beth, away from the glow of the lights. I see a faint shadow next to her, against a backdrop of pine trees. The wind is whistling now and from my vantage point, the scene appears downright eerie. I wrap my arms around my body, giving myself a little hug as I shiver from a chill. That kind of chill you get when someone walks over your grave.

  No one is walking over your grave yet, Amy. But unless River gets your message and calls the police soon, this is probably the place you will meet your untimely demise.

  This is when my life starts flashing before my eyes again. Riding a bike at age four, fighting with Beth over a doll, high school graduation, the birth of my children…all those precious moments I never savored while they were actually happening. I was always looking for more; more to my life, more excitement, never wanting to just live in the moments I considered dull and dreary.

  And then I realize the last deadly sin is mine. I am a GLUTTON for punishment. Ok, ok, that may be stretching the whole seven deadly sins allusion just a bit, but it’s completely true. If I had just stood up to Beth and insisted on calling the cops, or explained to Roger where we were really going, we wouldn’t be here right now. I know this would be turning out completely different and most likely, better.

  But no…I have to admit, I was curious and the thrill of an adventure lured me. Despite my nerve wracking escapade just a little over 365 some odd days ago, my adrenaline was rushing at the prospect of a new “case”. Damn, I probably would have made a good detective. But I guess I’ll never really know now, will I?

  I could try to escape, but I afraid that will most likely result in me being shot in the back. I may not be hog tied, but my hands are certainly tied in the figurative sense. Claudia has a gun. I don’t know how many bullets she has. I don’t know where we are. We could be parked at the edge of a cliff and I may fall tragically to my death. Or it may be a highway and I’ll run into oncoming traffic like a scared deer during hunting season. (Although, that’s probably unlikely because duh, who parks on the side of the highway to shoot and kill two people). And I’m thinking that Claudia is smarter than that.

  But still…I’ve got to try something, right? I can’t just lie here like I’m half dead already and wait for Claudia to finish the job. If I can get the duct tape off of my ankles, maybe I can creep out of the car and surprise her from behind while she’s busy arguing with Beth. Hey, if I can barely see them, they probably can’t see me too well either, right? That’s Furball, our cat’s motto anyway. She closes her eyes when she doesn’t want the kids to pick her up, like that’s going to stop Evan from catching her in a death grip simply because he loves to hear her meow. Evan is such a character. That thought makes my heart crumble.

  Evan…my poor little baby boy is going to grow up motherless if I don’t get out of here. I can’t let that happen, can I?

  Full of determination (and some bravery that I have no idea where it came from), I pick at the duct tape around my legs frantically. I only need to get one leg out…just one leg.

  Unfortunately, I thought about it just a shade too long, because just as I free my left ankle, I hear Claudia’s voice shrilly call out, “Kevin, I think she’s awake!”

  Crap. I quickly debate about eyes open versus eyes shut. Eyes shut might lead them to believe I am still unconscious, but eyes open will be to my advantage because I will be able to see what’s going on. I keep my eyes open.

  “Amy?” Beth’s face comes into view. Upon closer inspection I see that she actually looks like hell. The perky rumpled look she had only a few moments ago is now completely disheveled. Maybe she looked this bad before and I really, really need to get my contact prescription adjusted. Her hair is matted and sticking up all over the place, like she just rolled in from the bar. She looks much older than her 38 years. Hell, she even looks older than our mother who is in her 60s. Her waterproof mascara has completely run down her face, her cheeks are bright red; probably from a combination of the slap and the biting cold wind that brushing past us.

  The temperature has appeared to drop by fifteen degrees or more since we left my house all those hours ago. My hoodie is no longer sufficient. Beth is shivering.

  Is it from the cold or from fear? As far as I know, the closest my sister has come to a near death experience is a sale at Nordstrom. I’m pretty sure she has never been held at gunpoint before.

  “Beth,” I reply in a sort of groggy, just woke up voice. I have no idea why I sound like that. How long was I unconscious for anyway? “How the hell are you?”

  “It’s you I’m worried about!” Beth wails with authority. Geez, how does she sound bossy all the time?

  “I’m okay,” I manage to assure her, pushing my hand down on the floor of the trunk to help my body up.

 
“Don’t get up!” Now she really sounds bossy. “You lost a lot of blood! Do you want to pass out again?” she asks in the same tone of voice I usually ask the kids if they’d like to spend the rest of the night in their room.

  “Well as charming as this family reunion has been, I’m afraid we need to get on with the show.” Claudia is sauntering up behind Beth, waving that damn gun around in the air like a cowboy at a rodeo. Actually, I don’t think cowboys wave guns around at rodeos but…

  “Are you un-taped?” Claudia suddenly shrieks as she steps up to the back of the trunk and peers down at me. She squints and then spins on her heel to face Kevin who is also coming up to the back of the trunk. He looks almost as horrible as Beth does, which isn’t saying too much because he didn’t look so great to begin with. But his face is drawn and there are bags under his eyes that didn’t exist before.

  “Kevin! She’s out of her duct tape!” Claudia’s voice is actually causing me to cringe and I have a lot of experience with high pitched voices. I live with Lexie, remember?

  Kevin runs his hand through his thinning hair. “Give it a rest Claudia. She was unconscious for a good five minutes. I’m sure she’s not about to run for the woods. The bears would find her in no time with all that blood leaking out of her.”

  “That’s sharks, you idiot,” Claudia retorts. “Sharks smell blood! Not bears!”

  “Whatever.” Kevin doesn’t appear to be in the mood to argue about this petty trivia. In fact, he looks like all he wants is a shower and a bed.

  “No, not whatever. Don’t roll your eyes at me, Kevin. It’s your fault she’s out of the restraints.” Claudia steps closer to Kevin and pokes him in the chest with a manicured finger. His face droops, and for a second, he’s the epitome of an abused husband. I almost feel sorry for the guy. That is, if he had not been an absolute asshole to me earlier in the evening by smashing my face into the side of the trunk. I slip my tongue into the now gaping hole in my gum and I shudder. I think that was my favorite tooth.