"Hi, Belinda," she whispered to her own image on the screen. "I’m recording this from the bathroom because Joel is asleep and I don’t want to wake him up. He doesn’t want me talking to you because he thinks you’re a psycho. He’s never liked you. You’re not friends."
She smiled and then scanned the bathroom with the camera’s lens. She held the Zoloft bottle in front of it, making sure it was in focus.
"See?" She faced the camera again. "Do you need more proof than that? You don’t know me, Belinda. You don’t know anything. Things are going to happen. Joel is ready to make our relationship public. And you’re going to feel so stupid." She growled the last words. Her hand clutched the phone so hard it nearly flew from her hand.
She tapped the red button to stop recording. How satisfying it would be when everything came to light. Sydney would be gone tomorrow and Lucy would be Joel’s savior. He would be eternally grateful. They would no longer have to love in secret.
She turned off the bathroom light. The door squealed when she pulled it open. Sydney stirred only a little but remained deep in sleep. Lucy crept cautiously to the dark hallway and through the attic door. She sat on a step where she could watch the hall through the hole she’d made.
While she waited for Joel to turn in, she emailed the video she’d made to Belinda. Hopefully she was sleeping and wouldn’t get the message until morning. Perfect timing.
After a while Joel finally came upstairs and settled into the newly remodeled guest bedroom to watch a movie. She knew this would be his destination because he and Sydney had had a blaring argument about it only two hours ago. Sydney needed her beauty sleep and didn't like Joel turning on the TV in the master bedroom while she was trying to sleep. He wanted to finish a movie he'd started that she'd made him turn off for some reason unknown to Lucy. So, he'd agreed to finish it in the guest room after he cleaned up the kitchen. That was hours ago.
Finally the flicker of the moving pictures was gone and she could see from the end of the hall that the TV had defaulted back to the Netflix menu. That meant Joel was asleep and she was free to rid him of the manipulative demon and take back their love forever.
Moving quietly, she headed for the master bedroom. In one hand she carried a length of rope. There'd been plenty of time after Joel had left the other night for her to sneak downstairs and find it in the pile of tools left by the workers. It was a lucky thing the rope had been there or she would have been forced to be more innovative.
Now she inched toward the bedroom with only the light of the candle in her other hand to guide her. She wrapped one end of the rope around the old glass-ended doorknob and tied it securely. She'd already practiced this part, so she was sure her knot would hold and the grooves of the knob would secure the rope. She let the other end of it fall to the hallway floor.
She entered the master bedroom quietly. She could hear Sydney's drawn-out breaths and knew she was fast asleep. When she reached the windows on the other side, she set the candle on the dresser beside them. The drapes Sydney had picked out were conveniently long and of high-end material. The lighter fluid soaked easily into the fabric. She tossed the half-empty bottle to the side and reached for the candle. She set it on the ground against one of the curtains and then backed away.
When the fabric caught fire, she was already at the door. A satisfied grin crossed her face. What a sight it would be to see the bitch burn. Unfortunately, she wouldn't get to. She had more work to do. She had to save Joel from his burning home. She needed to be his hero.
The flames rose quickly, and she saw them licking the ceiling as she closed the bedroom door. She stretched the rope across the hall and tied the other end to the banister. Smoked seeped out from under the door. From inside the bedroom. she heard a startled cry. Sydney ran for the door and was met with resistance.
The rope had a little more stretch to it than Lucy had anticipated. At first the door opened only half an inch and then snapped back. On her second attempt, Sydney pulled it hard and peered through the crack at the smiling arsonist. Her face was panicked which made Lucy's insides flutter with excitement. Finally she would be rid of this woman.
"Help me," Sydney cried.
Lucy was perturbed. It wasn't a desperate cry for help, but a command from someone who'd become accustomed to bossing people around and getting her way. She thought right then that even if she hadn't set the fire herself, there's no way she would help this entitled celebrity with that kind of tone in her voice. She needed to be humble. She needed to beg Lucy to save her. And even then, she would definitely rather watch the demon go up in flames.
Sydney's manicured hand reached through the gap and groped for the anything within reach. Lucy swatted at it, quickly losing her patience. She finally grabbed Sydney's ring and middle fingers and pulled them back sharply against the doorframe. Sydney let out an angry and terrified yelp. Lucy saw her eyes widen as she pulled the door shut and tied the slack of the rope to the length to tighten it more. Sydney tried to pull it open again but was unsuccessful. She pounded on the door with both fists as thicker smoke billowed out from underneath it.
Lucy wasted no more time. She rushed down the hall to the guest bedroom where Joel was still sleeping, un-fazed by the screaming and the smoke that was now creeping toward him. For a moment, she gazed on this sleeping man. In any other scenario she would kiss his cheek and lay down with him, but right now his life was in danger. His house was on fire. And she was here to save him.
"Joel," she shouted, shaking him gently at first, and then more aggressively. She was touching him. She was actually here in this room with him. Her dream was becoming reality.
Joel's eyes were crazy when he woke up. It took a few seconds for his face to register understanding of what was happening. He sat up quickly and stared at her. Then his face changed as he seemed to recognize her. Yes. Finally he knew her.
"How did you get in here?" he demanded. She thought it was a stupid question. His house was on fire. She was saving his life. What did it matter?
"You have to get out. The house is on fire."
"What?" He looked around in a panic. Why wasn’t he wasn't doing anything. The room was filling quickly with smoke.
Fully awake, Joel reacted to Sydney's screams for the first time. He shouted her name, put his hands on Lucy’s arm, and pushed her to the side. He ran past her in a panic toward his bedroom.
Lucy was furious. He'd again chosen Sydney over her.
"Joel, come back here," she screamed. She ran after him and grabbed him with both arms around his waist. He was trying to get to the bedroom door to release that witch, but she wasn't going to let him.
"It's too late for her." She wavered between sobbing and screaming in anger. How dare he miss his chance to be free of Sydney? She was doing this for him. "We have to get out of here, Joel."
Wrestling her arms from his midsection, Joel turned and pushed her to the ground.
"Are you crazy?" he shouted.
Crazy? Crazy for wanting to save the love of her life from a tragic house fire? Crazy for wanting him to adore her over everything else? No. He would not get away with calling her crazy.
"Come back here," she screamed again from the hallway floor. All self-control had left her body. There was only anger and desperation. She was so close to having him. They were together in this frantic moment. They could be together forever, sharing whatever life threw at them.
"We can't be apart, Joel. We can't be. I love you. Why can't you see it? Forget Sydney." She pounded on the wood floor. Her throat was becoming raw from the smoke. She screamed through the pain, "What about us, Joel? What about us?"
Joel was now coughing forcefully. He tried to untie the knot that Lucy had done. The darkness and the smoke hindered his efforts. He ducked under the rope and then heaved his whole body against the bedroom door. It was solid and wouldn't budge.
On the third attempt he looked exhausted and ready to give up. Good. He was coming around. But when his body hit the door agai
n, the antique banister gave way and crashed to the floor, allowing him to push open the door enough to rescue his girlfriend from the flame-engulfed room.
He helped Sydney get to the top of the stairs. She was already weak from the smoke and heat and looked like she might not make it. Lucy watched his heroic act with deepening respect for him. He was such a kind and generous person, willing to risk his life to save even the vilest person. Still, her anger was not gone. She wouldn't let them have their happy ending. She pulled herself onto all fours. Then she lunged forward and with a maniacal scream threw herself against Joel's legs. He and Sydney went tumbling down the old staircase to the entryway below.
CHAPTER SIXTY FOUR
I woke up in the hospital to learn that our beloved yellow farmhouse had burned to the ground. Somehow I'd made it down the stairs and to the front lawn, but had passed out from the smoke before the volunteer firefighters were able to get to us. They must not have had much fight against the big, wooden structure. Tears rolled down my cheeks as I thought about the house that Joel had loved; burned to nothing now.
When he was well enough, Joel came to visit me in my room. He carried a bouquet of roses. His other arm sported a cast. We'd both been through so much. He laid back on the bed with me and put his arms around my shoulders. I wiped the tears from face, not wanting him to know I'd been crying. I wanted to be strong for him.
"I thought I'd lost you, Lucy." There were tears in his eyes and one slipped onto his cheek. "I couldn't go on if that had happened."
"Neither could I. Please tell me we won't ever be apart."
"You go where I go," he whispered. Then he kissed me gently on the end of my nose. "After all, you saved my life. I need you around as my bodyguard."
I chuckled through my tears. There was sadness for what we'd been through and what we'd lost. But I was happy and grateful for this man I had and whom I would never let go. Nothing could destroy that.
◆◆◆
SPRING FORK, CO—Joel Ruskin's rustic castle came tumbling down this week. A fire caused complete loss of the Colorado farmhouse. Ruskin and his girlfriend Sydney Panting were flown by helicopter to a Denver hospital where they are both in stable condition. A woman, identified as 27 year old Lucy Bonneville of Omaha, Nebraska, was found on the lawn of the home suffering from smoke inhalation. According to police, Ruskin claims Bonneville broke into his home and started the blaze. She is also in stable condition at an undisclosed medical center and is in police custody.
A uniformed officer was posted outside Lucy's room. She assumed he was there to keep the press away. He was really there to guard the prisoner. She didn't see it that way. Somehow the daydreaming side of her brain had taken over while she was unconscious. She couldn't remember sneaking into the yellow house or even her own crappy apartment back home. The memories that kept her company in the lonely hospital room were of her beautiful life with Joel. She remembered the dates. She remembered the parties. She remembered their beautiful private wedding and every emotion she'd experienced that day.
Two nurses entered the room. One wordlessly removed the food tray from the cart beside the bed. The other greeted her and handed her a cup of pills.
"How's Joel today?" Lucy asked her. The nurses looked at each other strangely but didn't exchange words.
"Joel Ruskin? I haven't heard. He's not on my rounds." She took the empty pill cup from her and tossed it in the trash.
"He must not be doing well," she fretted. "He hasn't been able to come see me yet."
"I'm sure he's fine." She straightened the blanket on the bed.
"Will you make sure he visits me? Don't turn him away."
"Okay, Lucy." As she turned to go she whispered something to the other nurse who looked back at Lucy with an angry glare. She must have been jealous. Lots of women were jealous of her relationship with Joel. After all, she'd stolen him away from them for good. She'd have to get used to those reactions.
CHAPTER SIXTY FIVE
Elijah - Denver – Present
Elijah checked in at the prison and proceeded to the visitation room. He told himself it would be the last time. Unless he could get her to tell him the truth of what happened, her account was useless to him.
It didn’t make any sense that she would lie to him. Did she get a kick out of making him look like a fool? If she didn’t want him to write the book, she could have said so in the beginning and saved him all the time and money.
But he was writing it anyway. He didn’t need her permission. The things he had learned were enough, even if he had to fill in the gaps with speculation. A lonely woman had fallen so hard in lust with a celebrity that she’d made up stories, moved to a new town, and had even lived in his attic for months undetected. Then when she had burned his house to the ground. But why? It was the only part of the puzzle he still needed from her.
He looked at the clock on the wall as the room filled with women in prison garb. Lucy was one of the last inmates to arrive. She sat down across from him and smiled as if she was happy to see him.
"Hello, Elijah."
He tried to ignore her cheerful demeanor. This was business, and he couldn’t allow himself to feel sorry for her. He needed to try to get the truth and then get out of there. The book would come together somehow. It wasn’t likely to be a best seller without her point of view, but he wasn’t going to give up.
"I can't use this." He dropped the notebook on the table top, making a sharp noise that echoed off of the gray walls. Heads turned. The guards all put their hands on their belts and glared at him with wide eyes. Elijah put his hands up in apology and then rested them on the table in front of him.
"Why not?" Her pleasantness went away.
"It's not real. This is a made-up story. You were going to write about what actually happened with Joel Ruskin. Instead you're giving me this fan-fiction."
"This is real." She jabbed her finger onto the notebook. "This is how I met Joel. This is my life with Joel. That's what you wanted."
"What life with Joel? The public wants to hear your story about why you stalked Joel, how you broke into his house, why you burned his house down. They don't want to read fiction about how you wanted it to be. They want the truth."
Her eyes closed. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He could tell she was trying to tamp down her frustration. The prison guards scanned the room absentmindedly. If she shouted or even stood up from her chair one of them would escort her back to her pod.
She opened her eyes and stared at him for a few seconds before responding.
"I didn't burn the house down," she said calmly through clenched teeth. "It burned down. It was an old house."
"Too bad you couldn't convince the judge of that."
Her eyes squinted, giving him a chill. Yes, they were safely locked in this prison, but he knew what she was capable of. He had to tread lightly. What if when she got out she came after him?
"It's the truth. Joel is my husband. We're very happy together."
Elijah sat back and folded his arms. "Fine. You’re Mrs. Joel Ruskin. You lived in an old house in Colorado and it mysteriously burned down. So, how did you end up in prison?"
"Misunderstanding. I go to court next month and we're going to straighten this all out. Joel will be there. He'll tell everybody what happened."
He sat up straight again. His scalp tingled like he could actually feel his hair graying from frustration. It took all his self-control to keep his voice down.
"You've been to court already, Lucy. You were sentenced. You're here for a long time for attempted murder, arson, breaking and entering, and whatever else."
She closed her eyes and shook her head again. Elijah looked at the inmate for a silent minute. She wasn't backing down. Her face showed no sign this was all a ridiculous joke designed to make him look stupid or to waste his time. He could see now that Lucy Bonneville truly believed the story she'd written on paper. There would be no sensational memoir straight from the stalker's pen. She had officia
lly gone off the deep end.
CHAPTER SIXTY SIX
Lucy- Denver- Present
Visiting hours were over. Elijah took the notebook Lucy had filled for him. She was proud of what she had written. People would read it and they would know the truth. They would see her side of it.
She was escorted to the hall to line up with the other inmates. A female guard stared silently at the group. Her face was expressionless. Lucy didn’t like her judging eyes. The guard could think what she wanted about the other women. They were criminals and crazies. Lucy was a victim of circumstance. She didn’t belong here.
Elijah’s book would set her free. She smiled as she considered the impact it would have. Maybe Oprah would lead a women’s march on the prison and demand her release. She could finally go back to New York. She and Joel could forget the whole thing.
"Yo." A thin, hard-looking inmate nodded her way. "What you smiling about, Crazy Laura?"
"Shut it," said the guard.
Lucy mumbled under her breath, "My name’s not Laura."
"What, Laura?" The woman stepped out of line. Other inmates laughed and began to taunt her as well. Lucy looked to the guard to stop the harassment, but she only smirked and watched it happen.
"Crazy Laura," Another woman raised her hands in mock surrender. "Don’t burn my house down" Everyone laughed, even the inmates choosing not to take part. Lucy hung her head. It was like high school again. And elementary school. Basically every place where she was forced to be with people who didn’t understand her.
Her eyes burned. She began to shake. Where was Joel? When would he take her out of this place?
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