“I knew they’d see what I knew all along!” Cassie shrieked.
Laura just laughed.
Pulled apart, Cassie exclaimed, “Let’s celebrate!”
Could she actually do that now? Looking at her lawyer, her eyes asked if it was okay.
“Go! You deserve it!” he replied, patting her on the shoulder.
Nothing sounded more heavenly. “Thank you, Mr. Miller, for everything.” This time she hugged him, now that she had completely come back to Earth.
“You’re welcome. Enjoy!”
Laura faced Cassie. “And thank you for believing in me this whole time. And for being here!”
Cassie blurted, “I wouldn’t miss this!”
They hugged once more.
“So, what do you want to do?” Cassie asked.
The list was long. Laura wanted to walk along the beach. Visit her favorite coffee shop. Sleep in her own bed. Which should she choose first? She shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know. Get a bite to eat maybe?”
“Whatever you want,” Cassie replied. “My treat.”
Laura took one more look around the courtroom. To think it was all over! She found the doors, and they never seemed more appealing to walk through.
Chapter 8
M
arissa’s leg was crossed, her foot bobbing up and down in the air. Since she had started her own practice, every patient she had seen was given her undivided attention. No questions asked. It was what made her different. Set apart. And it came easy for her to do so. She wasn’t easily distracted. She was given the gift of concentration, and her ability to listen was second to none. Being called a doctor was always important to her. Choosing the path of psychiatrist not only utilized her skills but made it possible for her to not have to deal with blood and gore. That stuff was never fun.
However, today was the first day she could not keep her mind from wandering. She didn’t even want to sit still, hence the repetitious ups and downs of her one foot. The hour was almost up. She was almost home free. She just had to get through these last few minutes. While jotting down a few notes to appear she was taking her client seriously, she snuck a quick peak to her watch. It was time.
The woman finished part of her story. Marissa put a hand up. “We’ll have to stop right there for today.” Her lips slightly pursed, slightly smiled.
Both women stood up. They shook each other’s hand and set up another appointment. The very moment Marissa noticed the woman walk out the door, she turned everything off, grabbed all her stuff, and made a beeline for her car.
She looked at the dashboard to figure out how to change the radio station. She wanted to be sure she could catch any updates of the Margaret trial. Today was supposed to be the day the jury decided her friend’s fate.
But this simple task was proving to be a hassle. She had her boyfriend’s car today because hers was still in the shop. Though it wasn’t the first time she’s driven his car, and it was one she could see herself getting used to, changing the radio station wasn’t something she had done before. What should have been a simple twist of a knob, ended up being a flurry of multiple knobs being turned and buttons being pushed. Marissa was obviously on edge. After one button turned the whole radio off, she just left it there. She’d find out soon enough what was going on.
The whole drive over to the courthouse, Marissa’s hands held so tightly to the steering wheel that her knuckles were white. She ended up being more aggressive than normal, too. One time she almost didn’t see a pedestrian crossing the street, and another time she about cut another vehicle off when she had to change lanes.
Her mind was on one place, and one place only. She just had to get there. And the sooner the better.
Pulling into the courthouse’s parking lot, she found an empty space and took it. The car jerked to a stop, she yanked the keys out, and practically ran inside the doors. She was hoping to get there before the jury announced their verdict, but as soon as she made her way to the room the case was being held in, others were already pouring out. Marissa stood on tippy toes, peeking side to side, to see if she could find Laura.
What is she doing here?
Up ahead toward the front stood her niece, Cassie, and her friend, Laura. It was completely unexpected. They were laughing while walking toward her. This could mean only one thing. Marissa’s heart sank.
“Marissa!” Laura shouted, having spotted her. She ran up to her for a hug.
Marissa lightly hugged her back. “Laura, you’ve been set free?” She hoped it sounded happy.
“I have!” There was a squeal at the end.
“Hey, Aunt Marissa!”
“Hi, Cassie. What are you doing here? Don’t you have class, or finals, or something?”
Cassie’s head leaned to the side. Her eyebrows furrowed. “No. I came to support Laura. Isn’t this great news?”
“It is,” she stated through gritted teeth, looking from one woman to the next.
After they all smiled at one another for a moment, Cassie blurted, “Hey, we were going to go celebrate. Want to come with us?”
As quickly as she could, Marissa thought of what she wanted to say. It had to be nicely put because she didn’t want to come off wrong. “No, that’s okay. Actually, Cassie, I was hoping to be with Laura alone for a bit. I hope you don’t mind, but I’ve got her from here. You can leave.” The proper tone was accomplished, but her eyes stared Cassie down, trying to give her the hint to get out of their way.
Her niece may not have picked up on it, but her friend sure did. Laura turned to Cassie, put a hand on her shoulder, and said, “We can celebrate later, okay?”
Cassie stood speechless for a moment. Her face scrunched together as she slowly muttered, “Okay.”
“Thanks for everything, though,” Laura stated with a half-smile.
“Yeah, anytime,” was her confused response. She slowly walked away.
* * *
Well, that was weird.
Cassie ambled out of the courthouse with confusing thoughts. A sharp wind cut against the delicate skin of her neck, causing her to hunch her shoulders and neck forward, and zip her jacket up the last couple of inches it could.
She really was excited. Today, one of the few people she cared about was set free from a charge she should have never been given. It felt good that others saw Laura’s innocence.
But what happened after was very odd. Her Aunt Marissa had never acted possessive like that before. She had never shooed her away when they were all together. It was strange. Disturbing even. Cassie didn’t know what to make of it. She just tried to look past it.
Another disturbing thought hit her then. The real killer was still out there! Too bad she couldn’t have gone one step further in helping Laura by finding who was responsible for all the deaths. Cassie shivered, partly because of her thoughts and partly due to the brisk temperature.
Her car was up ahead. So was another car. From the corner of Cassie’s eye, she saw a shade of blue that stopped her in her tracks. Upon further evaluation, she was surprised to see that it was the car! The sky-blue mustang with tinted windows and fire on the hood! The one that she felt held the key to The Margaret Killer case.
Looking around to be sure no one was watching, she jogged over to the car’s rear end. It had the same bumper stickers she remembered from earlier. This was definitely the car in question. Cassie quickly reached into her purse for a pen. She bit the cap off and jotted down the license number and issuing state on the back of her hand. She checked around her again before jogging back to her car and getting inside.
The first thing she did was transfer the information on her hand to something more permanent so that tomorrow she could research it. The best thing she could find was the back of a receipt from McDonalds, but that would work. Then she waited. Seeing as she wasn’t going out with Laura anymore and didn’t have any other plans, she could sit and wait all day, if needed, just to see who would enter that car. Cassie fully believed that the owner of that
car had something to do with the murders. Or at least they had information. Why else would they have been near Laura’s duplex that one day? Or why would they have gone to the police station the day Laura was arrested? Or be here the day of the verdict?
Trying to stay out of sight, Cassie remained low in her seat. Every time she heard someone coming near, be it voices or their footsteps, she’d peek to see if they were going toward the blue mustang. It only took about ten minutes, but finally she got her answer. And it was one she wasn’t expecting.
There were two women that got into the mustang. They were none other than Laura and Marissa.
While her mouth dropped, her breathing started to pick up. How could this be? As far as she knew, neither of them owned a car like that. But that didn’t mean it wasn’t possible. Her mind raced in a billion different places.
Was it really Laura’s and she was guilty after all? Cassie’s gut felt like it had been sucker-punched. It scared her for a minute that she had been wrong all along. But her senses finally showed up. There was no way it was Laura’s. Laura wasn’t the one driving. She didn’t drive the day Cassie had dropped her off at home. Nor did she drive it when she was locked up in prison.
But Marissa? She couldn’t be behind everything, could she? She was her aunt! The one she was closest to! Cassie just didn’t know what to think. But she did know there had to be an explanation behind all of this. And she was going to get to the bottom of it, one way or another.
* * *
After Laura had used the restroom and retrieved her belongings, she was set to go home. As she and Marissa walked out together, something wasn’t quite right. It felt like there was this huge wall between them. Her friend wasn’t acting as happy or excited as Laura imagined she would be. But perhaps there was a reason. Or maybe she was looking too much into everything.
“Did you get a new car?” Laura asked as soon as they walked up to the one Marissa aimed toward. “It’s nice!”
“No, I’m just borrowing this one while mine gets some work done.”
“Really? What’s wrong with your car?” She looked at her friend while buckling herself into the passenger seat. This was far better than being handcuffed and forced into the back.
Marissa hesitated a little bit. “Just the brakes. No big deal,” she finally replied.
The two of them exited the parking lot, quiet. Laura felt weird about it. Something was wrong.
Out of nowhere, Marissa asked, “Why was Cassie there today?”
Laura thought that was an interesting question. There shouldn’t have been a problem with her at the trial. “To support me, I guess. Why?”
“I don’t know.” She shrugged. “I guess I wish she would stay out of this mess.”
Laura could understand where her friend was coming from. After all, she at one point had asked Cassie to stay away. But she wasn’t going to lie. Having a familiar face in the crowd during the trial was comforting. “I know. But it was nice to see her. I’m glad she cares.”
Marissa sighed. “Me, too. Sorry for making it a bigger deal than it is.”
“It’s okay.” Looking at her friend, she added, “I’m really glad you showed up. And I’m glad you’re bringing me home. That sounds so good right now.”
Marissa looked at her with a quick smile.
When they got there, Laura walked in as if she were expecting a surprise to jump out at her. It had been a long time and she didn’t know what she’d find. Thankfully, it was basically the same as the day she was forced to leave.
Her friend stood there in the doorway.
“You can come in,” Laura offered.
Marissa waved a hand in the air, dismissing it. “No, it’s okay. I just remembered I have somewhere to be.”
“Oh.”
“I’m sorry.” Chirping up a bit, she added, “But I’m glad I got to bring you home and see you for a little bit at least. Do you think you’ll be okay?”
Laura looked around. Sighing, she responded, “Yeah, I’ll be fine.” She gave her friend a smile. “Thanks for everything.”
“I’ll see you later, okay?”
When Marissa closed the door, Laura didn’t know what to do. She decided to make a quick pass through her duplex to see if anything needed to be cleaned up.
Coming across a picture of Connor, who she hadn’t seen or heard from in a long time, she thought she should call him to let him know the news. Dialing his number, it went to voicemail. A few minutes later she tried a second time. She got the same result. Laura left a quick, sweet message, asking for him to call her back. She hung up, hoping for the best, but dreading the worst.
To keep her mind occupied and nerves at bay, Laura did whatever she could to stay busy.
* * *
“I need your help.”
“Okay. What is it?”
“It’s time to pay some people a visit.”
“You mean, execute what we planned?”
“Yes. Tonight.”
“Didn’t I say you were going to do it, though?”
“Yeah, well, I’ll do one. You can do the other.”
Silence was followed by a sigh. “Fine. I get out in twenty minutes. Who am I taking care of?”
“The judge.”
“You’ve got the lawyer then?”
“Yep.” A laugh followed. “Boy, did they make a big mistake.”
Chapter 9
S
he was on a mission, her blood boiling as it pumped through her veins. To get there faster, she swerved in and out of lanes, giving no thought to others on the road. She checked her bag. It was all there. Everything she needed to make her move ready.
The tires screeched as they pulled into the parking lot. She turned the corner for a spot on the side of the building. The vehicle off, she sat and waited. Watching. Planning.
In a weird way this was good. She wanted the opportunity to kill again, and now she was free to do so! But this also meant their plan didn’t work. Anger began to build until she exploded by attacking the steering wheel. Taking a deep breath, she shoved a loose strand of her brown hair to the back of her ear. Focus. That’s what she needed to do. Focus.
Up ahead she could see a woman exiting the building. That’s what she was waiting for. With her gone, that meant only one person was left inside. The person she wanted to visit to enact a bit of revenge on. With the receptionist out of the way, it was her turn to move in for the kill.
Putting her gloves on, she opened the jar and filled the syringe. It was time!
Her shoes clicked with each heavy step on the pavement. Opening the door, an annoying bell jingled. His door was just up ahead. Closed. But not for long.
She had every intention of walking in, stabbing the lawyer in the neck, and nonchalantly making her way out. However, fate had other plans. As she burst through the door, she quickly realized Mr. Miller wasn’t alone. There was another man sitting across from him in a leather chair. Not what she expected. But these were the cards she was dealt, and she had to act fast.
Both men looked at her, startled someone had abruptly entered the room.
“May I help you?” Mr. Miller asked, confusion evident in his brows.
Her chest rose and fell with heavy breaths. Her free fist clenched tightly. Her eyes glaring. “You ruined everything!”
The lawyer shook his head, not understanding. “What?”
There was no time for explanations. This job was supposed to have been done by now. Stomping forward, she raised the hand with the needle, poised to strike.
But then the other man made a move. He grabbed her arm and got ready to pin her to his chest.
Mr. Miller frantically started to dial 911. That couldn’t happen.
In one quick, fluid motion, she twisted her body to face the other man. She kneed him in the groin. He let go and stooped to the ground. Worked every time. With a few more steps, she was at home base. The lawyer tried blocking the shot but missed the target. She plunged the needle into his neck, right where a v
ein pulsed rapidly. Instinctively, a hand went to the puncture site. He dropped the phone before a connection could even be made.
Stumbling into his chair, he looked at her. Questioning. Begging.
She would have none of it. Her stance stayed strong and sturdy. She kept her fuming eyes on his, achieving power.
Eventually all the signs showed up. He was full of pain. Couldn’t breathe. Next stop? His heart.
For a moment, she had forgotten the other man. Big mistake. He had lunged himself toward her, knocking her over. He landed on top. The two of them twisted and turned, trying to defeat the other, all while Mr. Miller cried out in agony. It was about the last breath he took when she finally got the upper hand on the other man. Straddled on top of him, she picked up one of the large books that were on the knee-high file cabinet by the window. With all her might, she banged it against the side of his head. Not once. Not even twice. She kept at it until there was blood, and he was passed out. By the end, her arms were weak from swinging such an enormous book. But she prevailed.
Again, she had to be quick. Not knowing how long he would be out, she had to hurry to her car for another dose of the poison. This man wasn’t in the plan to kill, but now that he saw who she was and what she had done, there was no other choice. She would do what she needed to do.
Getting up and brushing herself off, she ran out of the building and to the car. She searched her bag for the jar of liquid. Opening the lid, she stuck the needle in and pulled the plunger up, letting all that poison fill the inside. A smirk crossed her lips.
She closed the jar and stuck it back into her bag. She then hid her bag so that it wasn’t out in plain sight. For the second time that evening, she made her way back toward the lawyer’s office.
Before she could get inside, however, the man had slowly pushed the door open and exited, one hand holding his head. Blood was smeared all over the side of his face. His good looks were not evident at this point.
A Kiss Revealed Page 6