by Kari Shuey
Abby attempted to open the gate with the remote but couldn’t tell from her vantage point if it worked. She hobbled over to the front door and pushed the gate button again. Lori’s car pulled in and stopped behind Abby’s destroyed vehicle. She got out of her car, bewildered. Running up to the front door as Abby pulled it open for her, Lori practically yelled at her friend.
“Abby Russell! What on earth happened to your car?! And what happened to you?! Did Mr. Saxe do this? I’m calling the cops!” She pulled out her phone.
Abby grabbed it out of her hand. “No! And no, he didn’t. There’s a lot going on right now, but I can’t tell you until it’s over. Just know it isn’t what it looks like. I’m fine. I just got caught in the crosshairs.”
Lori scowled at her and looked over her shoulder into the house. “Where is he? I’ve half a mind to… Abby you should never be caught up in anyone’s crosshairs. You need to get out of here.”
Abby smiled and tried to comfort her friend. “Lori, really, I’m fine. This story goes so much deeper than you realize.”
“If you say so….” Lori looked at her friend with an eyebrow raised.
It was Abby’s turn to be irritated. “Speaking of bad decisions, how on earth did you get this address? I know Mr. Perkins wouldn’t give it to you. You really shouldn’t be here uninvited.”
Lori gave her a chagrined expression. “I kinda got it out of your receptionist… Susan, I think? It wasn’t too difficult either. Maybe you should talk to Mr. Perkins about that one…”
Abby should have known better. Susan’s interest in her current position and lack of information shared was bound to lead to something bad. Susan likely went snooping to find out who the client was and where he lived. Abby made a mental note to have a talk with her and Mr. Perkins about confidentiality.
They chatted for a while, Lori respectfully avoiding the obvious problems that Abby was willing to overlook for some strange reason. Abby appreciated her friend’s willingness to support her – it was one of the biggest reasons she loved her so much. One of the reasons they continued to stay best friends no matter what road their lives took.
Abby lost track of time, and when her phone started ringing, she held up a finger to her friend. Apologizing, she answered the phone.
“Hello? This is Abby.”
“Miss Russell? This is Miles Bishop, the private investigator you hired.”
“Oh! Yes. I meant to call you. Sorry-”
He interrupted her. “I found the women you were looking for.”
Surprised, Abby looked over at her friend. Maybe he was better than the contacts Lori had claimed to have. “You did? That’s great.”
“Yes. The first, a Miss Janice Hall? She has changed her name and is currently residing in Texas. Her new name is…” The sound of shuffling paper was heard on the other end of the line. “Jennifer Halliday. The second woman, Miss Mallory Tye? She actually resides locally. It will be fun for you two to catch up I suppose. But she is also going by a different name. Strange.” He mumbled the last bit to himself. “Ah, here it is. She is going by Lori Tyson…”
Abby’s mouth felt like sandpaper. Dry, and gritty. Lori’s last name was Tyson. Could it be a mistake? How many Lori Tysons lived in the Boise area? She tuned out Mr. Bishop as he filled her in on the address information and confirmed he would email her. He thanked her for her business and said he would send over an invoice as well. Instead she tried to connect the dots. Mallory worked for Mr. Saxe back in California about three and a half years ago. Abby couldn’t remember if Lori was in California specifically as she loved chasing stories all over the place. She did remember Lori talking about a guy she might like, but then nothing had come of it. However, that was similar to most of Lori’s relationships. Would her friend be capable of stalking or obsessing over a guy to the point of getting fired? She wasn’t a housekeeper though! Abby’s head started to hurt.
As she attempted to make sense of the new information, she felt like she was struggling to put together a puzzle with a blindfold on. All the pieces felt the same and nothing was in color.
Abby muttered a goodbye and hung up the phone. She looked over at Lori and realized her friend’s curious expression had turned absolutely chilling.
“Well, shoot Abby. Why do you always have to ruin everything?”
***
Gavin followed Mr. Smith out to the guest house, curious what Windsor needed him for. He opened the door but didn’t see Windsor at his usual spot. Figuring he was in the other room or that he had to use the restroom, Gavin sat in his friend’s literal command chair. He swiveled around and faced the door as Mr. Smith entered.
“So, where is he? Bathroom break?” Gavin asked.
Mr. Smith shrugged. “Probably.”
“Do you know what he wanted me to come help him with? I was certain he knew the game plan forward and backward.” Gavin turned back to the computer. It looked like progress was being made as planned.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t want to do this. She threatened to tell my wife I was having an affair.”
Confused, Gavin turned to look at Mr. Smith. He held a crowbar over his head and swung it hard at Gavin’s head. He ducked and dove for Mr. Smith’s legs. Taking him down, they scuffled on the ground. Gavin got in a few good punches, but his bullet wound weakened him. Mr. Smith soon got the upper hand, and Gavin was knocked unconscious. His last thought being Abby and that he might never see her again.
Chapter 38
Lori approached Abby and plucked the phone out of her hand. “You just had to call a different investigator, didn’t you? So now you know everything.”
“No I don’t. I don’t know why you did any of this. I don’t know your side of the story.” Abby’s voice was pleading, begging Lori not to go through with whatever she was planning to do. She wondered where Gavin was, and if she’d be able to run to the guest house before Lori did her any harm. She glanced out the window to the house, willing Gavin to return back.
Lori noticed. “Don’t be ridiculous. Don’t you think I would have thought about that? I have eyes everywhere Abby. I have been planning this bit of revenge for three years.”
“Three years? What happened Lori? This doesn’t seem like you.” Abby thought back all the way to the time Lori and she were in college together. Lori was generous, outgoing, and she never held onto grudges like this.
“He broke my heart, Abby. While working during my internship, I chose to do a story on him. The real Gavin Saxe. Because he was so closed off, I knew it would be a good story. I figured out how to get into his life when I heard he was looking for a new housekeeper and I used my contacts in the area to get me references. It was as easy as that.” Lori started walking around the room, still holding onto Abby’s phone.
She continued, “I started to fall for him, Abby. He was sweet and good to everyone… I hadn’t met anyone like him. I mean, you couldn’t resist him either. So instead of going after the story, I tried going after him. The problem was, he didn’t love me back. He didn’t see me like he sees you.” Lori punched out the last word with venom.
“Lori-” Abby started.
“No. Don’t. I don’t need your pity,” Lori retorted. She came up to Abby, too close for comfort and put her face right in front of her friend’s. “You don’t get to pity me.” Standing up straight again, Lori started wandering through the room and absentmindedly looked at the décor.
“Gavin wouldn’t give me the time of day no matter how much charm I threw at him. He didn’t want to give me a chance. I guess he got tired of having me underfoot because he kicked me to the curb. Breaking my heart wasn’t enough, he had to fire me, and I didn’t even get enough for a story. So I started planning. I wanted him to hurt like I did. I wanted to take everything away from him just as he had me.”
“You can’t help who you fall for Lori. It wasn’t your fault.”
“You’re right. It wasn’t my fault. It was his. He was the one who ignored me and used me. He deserves to be t
he one in pain. So, when I had my plan in place, I put it into motion. And that’s why we’ve ended up here.”
Abby couldn’t believe her friend was capable of murder. She didn’t want to believe that Lori would go so far as to take a life because she was broken up over a guy. But here stood the proof that Abby was wrong. Lori had changed. She searched her thoughts for all the details about Lori’s sordid love affair with a wealthy man in California. She had alluded to this man not only hurting her emotionally but physically. The Gavin Saxe she knew wouldn’t lay a hand on her let alone any woman. Lori must have twisted the truth to fit her agenda.
Abby attempted to get Lori distracted, hoping she’d be able to get to her phone, or a weapon or something to defend herself with. “I don’t get it, how did you kill someone and have absolutely no one suspect you?”
“Abby, don’t be naive. The women in this area are far too trusting. Tell someone you want to do a story on them or who they work for, and doors open. That dumb woman was excited she or her profession was interesting enough to be written about. I mean, look at you! You took a job with someone suspected of murder without a second thought. I knew you weren’t bright… but geez, Abby. Open your eyes before you jump. There just might be jagged rocks below.”
Lori was calling her an idiot for getting into this position. Abby wanted to agree with her. Had she not taken the job… this wouldn’t be happening to her. But Gavin would still be in trouble.
“And you just covered everything up like it was nothing!?” Abby threw back at her. “I would rather be dumb than a murderer.”
Lori laughed. “Of course, I did. Revenge can’t be complete if I get caught.”
“How did you do it?” Honestly curious, Abby couldn’t figure out how Lori had avoided detection for so long.
“Everyone has secrets, Abby. I’m just good at exploiting them.” Lori’s voice had become increasingly more menacing. Her temper had flared up.
Abby looked back at the guest house through the windows. She wondered what Lori meant earlier – when she said she’d thought of everything. Was there really no point in putting up a fight?
“Will you stop looking out there! No one’s coming. You know your precious Mr. Smith? Turns out he has secrets too. Secrets he doesn’t want his wife to know. Secrets that will keep him under my thumb until I no longer have a use for him.”
“So what are you going to do?” Abby glared at who she had thought was her best friend. “Now that I’ve ruined everything… what’s the plan? You going to kill me now?”
Lori stopped her wandering and walked back over to Abby. “Originally, no. I just wanted Gavin to take the fall for that housekeeper’s death. His life would be ruined, his business would suffer. He’d know what I felt when he humiliated me. But then, I watched him. I watched you. I could tell something was going on. And it sweetened the pot that you were part of this whole equation.”
Abby listened to Lori telling her story and tried to come up with a plan of her own.
Lori continued, “And then when you broke up with him, well… I could see he was hurt.”
“How, how did you see?”
“I told you, Abby. I have eyes everywhere. It’s amazing that the little tech underlings at Securitech are so easily manipulated. Hacking the system of the CEO proved a bigger struggle than I thought but we figured it out. As I was saying… Oh yeah. He fell for you Abby. Hard and fast. And when you wouldn’t give him the time of day, it messed with him. Enough, I almost decided that it was all the revenge I needed.” Lori grew frustrated again. She picked up a picture from a nearby table and threw it on the floor. “But like a cockroach, Gavin just kept getting back up. He remained hopeful. You did something to him and the only days he really struggled were the days he thought he would lose you. I tested my theory, you know. Each time I threatened you, he flew off the handle.
“Eventually I realized you were the missing piece. I have no choice now. I kill you, he’s got no alibi, his buddy Windsor is an accomplice, and I get to watch him suffer. It’s perfect.” Lori approached her again.
This time Abby stood up preparing for a fight. Lori was a dangerous level of crazy. And she was likely the one who’d been shooting at them last night… unless she threatened someone to do that too.
Her leg burning with pain, Abby hobbled away from Lori and put the couch between them. Whatever Lori planned to do, she wasn’t going to go down without a fight. “You’re acting crazy Lori. You can still walk away from this.”
“Am I? Crazy? You’re the crazy one if you think there is any coming back from this after today.”
Abby continued to put distance between the two of them. She remembered the knives had been removed from the kitchen. She didn’t own a gun, nor have any other means of protection readily available. She couldn’t see any form of weapon on Lori and didn’t know what she would have to defend herself against.
Lori continued to follow her around the room, calculating her every move, stalking her like the wounded gazelle she was. “Don’t make this harder than it has to be, Abby. Give in, and I won’t make you suffer.”
That’s when Abby turned around and took off for Gavin’s office. She seemed to remember there being a firearm in one of the drawers. If he hadn’t removed it today, then she might have a chance at surviving this. Abby made it inside and she quickly closed the door and locked it. She limped to the phone on the desk and picked it up, but there was no dial tone. Pulling open all the drawers and practically throwing all the contents of each one on the floor, it took only a moment to find the weapon.
She was surprised when Lori didn’t follow her. There was no banging on the door. Abby stood near it and listened. Would Lori have given up so easily? She didn’t hear anything.
Maybe she should just wait her out. But no one had called for help. No one would be coming. Abby opened the door a crack and smelled the distinct stench of gasoline. Lori had graduated to arson!
Holding the gun in her hand, she slipped out of the room and drew her arms to eye level. The only thing she knew she needed was to check the safety on the firearm. Red means dead she chanted in her head.
Abby arrived in the living space to find Lori with a gasoline canister on the floor and a lighter in her hand, the wild look in her eyes, feral and unkempt. Abby aimed the gun at her old friend, who was now someone she no longer recognized. “Lori, you need to leave. Now.”
Lori laughed. “I don’t need to do anything. I have nothing left to live for. I could go down in flames with you and die happy knowing Gavin would take the fall for all of it. But I’d like to sit back and watch the show. I’ve always been a fan of fireworks.”
“Lori, I’m warning you. I don’t want to shoot you, but I will.” Abby readjusted her aim.
Snorting, Lori stood up and started approaching her. “You don’t have the guts. It takes a special kind of person to pull the trigger.”
Abby’s anxiety levels shot through the roof, she slowly squeezed the trigger. The empty sound of a shot not fired, and echo of a single click filled the air.
Lori’s expression sobered for a moment. “I underestimated you, Abby. Too bad you didn’t check to make sure there were rounds in the chamber.” Reaching Abby, Lori made a move to grab the gun from her hands. Abby wouldn’t relinquish the firearm and they each struggled to keep hold of the cold, heavy, steel.
In the confusion, Lori dropped the lighter and focused her entire sights on getting the gun away from Abby. “I can’t believe you found the one thing I can use to guarantee Gavin gets framed for this. Gavin kills his second housekeeper in under six months and sets the house on fire to bury the evidence. But evidence like that can’t just be burned away.” At some point the women lost their grips and the gun slipped from their fingers and slid across the floor and under the couch. They watched its course, but Lori refocused quicker and made a right hook at Abby.
Falling back, Abby landed on her butt hard enough to know she would be bruised there as well. She reached behind her,
and her grip tightened on the leg of the end table. Using all the strength she could muster, she threw the piece of furniture at her attacker.
Lori was hit but didn’t fall down. Abby carefully rose back up and looked around the room, desperate for some kind of weapon. That was when she remembered the scissors that Gavin used to cut her pants. Where had they gone? She noticed them on the floor next to the couch where Gavin had dressed her wounds.
Abby and Lori circled each other, Abby doing it for a purpose, Lori realizing her opponent was not going to give up easily. With a deftness she didn’t know she possessed, Abby swiped the scissors up from the floor and charged at Lori. Plunging the sharp edges into Lori’s chest, she cringed at the amount of blood that started pouring from the injury. Stepping back she watched as her friend worked through the pain and pulled the scissors out with effort.
Using a handful of expletives, Lori called Abby a few choice names. “You idiot! I’m going to make you suffer for that.”
Abby’s eyes darted around the room, praying she’d overlooked some means to escape this nightmare. Her gaze landed on the fallen lighter and she grabbed it. Holding it out like she would a knife, she made herself as intimidating as she could. “Lori, you don’t have to go through with this. We can both walk away, right now.”
“That’s where you’re dead wrong, Abby. There will never be any going back from this,” Lori’s expression was one of pure unadulterated anguish. She was in so much pain and so angry that she didn’t see any other means of escape.
Abby clicked the lighter and the flame flickered and danced between them. “Please, Lori. I don’t want to do this.”
For once Lori didn’t have anything to say to her. She shrugged and lunged at her. Abby bent to the floor and allowed the gasoline that saturated the rug to erupt in flames. The blaze surrounded them and raced closer to Lori – as she stood at the center of her spill. She screamed and attempted to escape the building fire, no longer intent on attacking Abby. Smoke filled the room in record time and Abby started coughing uncontrollably. Seeing an area with lower flames, she leaped over the fire, collapsing under her bad knee. Abby scrambled away from the heat. The back door was closest to her and she frantically fiddled with the handle to open it. Someone had sabotaged it and she couldn’t get it to open. Flames blocked her path to other exits.