by Dylan Allen
“I hate that fucker so much,” Phil says when we get back to our hotel.
“I’ve never wished death on anyone, but the world would be safer without him.”
I nod, my agreement. But, I think the ultimate punishment would be deprive him of the things he’s stolen from so many - his freedom.
“And what about this FBI person? Who could it be?”
“I have no idea, but my mind is blown.”
I flop down on the bed, and close my eyes, exhausted from the overload information and emotion.
“Hey, did Beth call you?” Phil asks, and the worry in his voice fills me with dread.
He’s staring at phone, his finger swiping up, and then stopping suddenly. He peers at the screen and then closes his eyes, and groans.
“What?” I ask, pull my phone out curse when I see all the missed calls.
But when I read her text, I really start to panic.
“Oh my fuck. She sent this almost six hours ago. She’s landed already.”
“What money? What does this mean?” Phil asks, I’m trying to call Beth back.
I throw my phone when it goes to voicemail. “Fuck,” I snarl, my heart racing.
“What’s going on? She can’t be here by herself. If they know she’s coming, she’s in danger.”
Dread makes me nauseous and the growing panic in his eyes makes my head spin.
“Fuck, why didn’t she wait for me? And what is this about Cameron? How could your grandmother have her?”
Phil looks like he’s as sick as I am.
“I don’t know… I don’t know. But if it’s true, it’s a very bad thing. We need to get to Duke’s before she does. I have his address, but we’re an hour out. We might be too late.”
The thought of that man with his hands on her makes me want to rip him from limb to limb.
“Let’s go. But when we get there, he’s mine. I don’t care if I break every bone in my hand trying to stop him. If he lays a hand on her, I’ll kill him. Whatever the consequences may be. Let the chips fall where they will. This ends now. All of it.”
Mastermind
CARTER
“Open the door, Tremaine,” I shout and pound on his door at the same time. He’s living in an apartment complex in a suburb of Dallas. It’s new, but basic and I wonder what he did with the money I gave him in exchange for those pictures and our records. I’ve been praying like a whore in church that Beth isn’t at his house. But she’s not answering her phone.
Phil is standing out of sight, in case Duke has a weapon or tries to get past us.
The door swings open just as my hand is coming back down on it and my eyes nearly fall out of my head.
“Giselle?” I ask, but my voice has gone to gravel and my brain feels like it’s going to short circuit from the shock of seeing her here. And it’s not just that she’s pointing a gun at me.
She looks different. She’s not strung out and bordering on emaciated. She’s dressed in a crisp white blouse and black pants, and her hair is honey blonde and shoulder length.
She lets out a relieved sigh and lowers her weapon.
“What are you doing here?” She asks angrily, her eyes darting around me before she grabs my arms and tries to yank me inside. But she’s tiny and I don’t budge.
“Phil,” I call over my shoulder and she groans.
He comes running from his position around the corner and stops dead when he sees her.
“Serene?” he says and I look back and forth between them.
“This is Giselle, the girl who stole all that shit from my apartment.” I correct him.
“I’m sorry about that, by the way. Phil knows me as Serene,” she says and leans against the door jamb.
“What the hell is going on? Where is Duke?” Phil asks.
“I’m trying to figure that out myself. You better come in.” She walks inside and Phil follows her, squeezing past me into the apartment.
“Come in Carter,” she urges impatiently.
I feel like I’m in the twilight zone when I sit down across from her in the small living room.
“So, you met with Susan. She told you about me?” she prompts.
My jaw drops. “You’re Serena?” I ask.
“Yeah, special task force with Dallas Police, we’ve been working on this case for five years. I’ve been undercover for almost three as Serene. But my name is Serena Davenport. We were planning a sting this weekend. Thanks to our informant, we finally got the goods on the Wolfes. But something is wrong. I think my CI’s cover was blown because she’s disappeared.”
“Who’s your CI?” Phil asks.
“Dina,” I say flatly as it all comes together.
“Yup. We recruited her after the wedding when we found out she was trying to get the goods on them, too. She’s proven to be a very valuable asset. But, now, it’s all gone to shit.”
“Did they put you up to taking those pictures of me? And was fucking me part of your job?” I feel sick.
Her expression is pained. “I’m sorry Carter. So sorry that I lied to you. If it makes you feel any better, I liked you… I felt bad about misleading you. And the pictures…that’s my thing.” She has the good grace to blush when I narrow my eyes at her. “ I would never have let them be released,” she adds.
I scoff.“But you gave them to him.”
“We needed something besides that case file. I knew you’d pay a ransom. We’ll get you that money back, I swear. But I couldn’t jeopardize the case.”
“So, why didn’t you tell me who you were?” Phil asks.
“I knew you loved your sister. I just didn’t trust your motives.”
“My motives? What could they have been?” Phil snaps.
“I don’t know. You’re like a phantom. There is very little background on you. You showed up out of nowhere. We weren’t taking chances that you’d talk to Wolfe.”
“Damn.” Phil shakes his head.
She looks askance at us.
“Why are you two here? At Duke’s, I mean? ”
“We thought Beth would be here.” Phil tells her glumly.
Her face pinches in confusion. “Why would Beth be here? ”
We tell her about the texts and all the color drains from her face.
“Oh no.” She stands up.
“What?”
“Fiona isn’t a victim. She’s working with Duke. They’re planning on getting rid of Drew Wolfe and his mother and taking everything for themselves once they get the money from Beth. It was her damn idea. She planned it all. From Duke seducing Elisabeth Wolfe in the hopes that she’d get pregnant. When that didn’t work, they decided to get rid of James. He was standing between them and you. All of that was her.”
“Why didn’t you say that first?” I stand, headed for the door, not sure where I’m going. Phil is hot on my heels.
“I didn’t know she was here. We were waiting on this final piece of evidence, and Dina found it today. She called me this morning and said she was afraid they knew about her. She told me to meet her here, but I got here and no one is here. But if Beth is with Fiona, she’s in trouble,” Serena says.
“We need to get to my grandmother’s house. If Cameron is there, and she’s the lure, then that’s where Beth would be, too.”
We head for Phil’s car.
“We’ll take my car and I’ll radio for backup. I hope we’re…” she trails off when she sees the expression on my face, but I already know what she was going to say.
We’re all hoping the same thing - that we’re not too late.
That’s Your Plan?
BETH
My head is pounding, and my mouth tastes like someone shoved rancid cotton into it. I blink a few times, gripped by panic when my vision doesn’t clear. Then, I register weight of the fabric resting on my shoulders.
Horror curls around my insides, squeezing them to the point of pain. My pulse kicks into over drive and I close my eyes and force my mind to still so that I can think.
; But I can’t, and sucking in air, only draws the fabric into my mouth.
I try to remember…the last thing I saw before this.
Memories flicker like a malfunctioning tv set, but then start to coalesce and clear. I’d been in my hotel room. Fiona was there, I was rummaging in my suitcase for something. We were talking, and then, I felt a sting in my neck. I remember slapping my hand over the spot and turning around to face her and seeing six of her instead of one.
That’s the last thing I remember before waking up here.
That fucking cunt.
But…why?
I reach to touch my sore neck and find that my hands are bound behind me. I’m sitting on something soft. A bed, or mattress and the room smells like fabric softener and cigarette smoke.
I know this smell. It’s ingrained in my memory after a year of breathing nothing, for almost a year. I’m in my grandmother’s house.
Bile rises in my throat and I despair clogs my lungs.
I walked straight into a trap.
My heart gives a hard knock when I realize I have no idea how long I’ve been here. Is it even the same day?
“Hello?” I call out, and the small effort hurts. My throat is dry and my lips are sore. I swipe of my tongue over them makes me wince when I touch several cuts and taste blood.
I go stock still when I heard the door open.
“She’s awake,” a familiar voice, one I hoped to never hear again in person, says. I have to swallow my whimper as his heavy footsteps get closer. The smell of his bergamot and sandalwood cologne confirms that this isn’t a nightmare.
My hood is ripped off, and the artificial light stings my eyes and blinds me momentarily. I blink a few times to clear my vision and then, find myself looking up at my father.
Behind him, lurking in the shadows just outside the bedroom door, stand, Duke, Fiona and my grandmother.
I’m in danger. I’m terrified because my hands are bound and I have no idea how I’m going to get out of here. My heart is beating out of chest. But as they come into focus, I find a laugh bubbling in my throat.
They look ridiculous - flanking my father like league of geriatric, obese, clinically stupid, supervillains
My laughter escapes. “Do you think this is a joke?” My father’s face darkens.
“You look like a syndicate of wannabe villains straight out of a B horror movie,” I chortle, and tears stream down my eyes.
“She’s hysterical,” my grandmother declares as she strides toward me. Her hand comes down hard across my cheek, so hard that it knocks me over. My shoulder wrenches painfully when I fall and the metallic tang of blood fills my mouth.
It turns out a slap is actually a cure for hysteria because my panic is gone and it’s replaced by outrage.
I struggle back to sitting and glare at them, until I realize who’s missing.
“Where’s Cameron?” I demand.
“She’s upstairs, asleep,” Fiona holds up a small monitor and I see a Cameron in her little toddler bed, fast asleep.
Seeing her safe settles the flare of panic.
“Clearly you all have a plan. So why don’t you go ahead and tell me why I’m here so we can all get on with our lives?” I ask trying to sound bored. I’m not, but I’m not scared either. Carter knows where I am and unless one of them plans to put a bullet into my heart, I know I’m going to walk out of here today with everything I love still intact. I don’t know how, but I know.
“You haven’t said anything about your friend over there. Or are you mad because she stabbed you in the back? Gotta admit, her offer of help was unexpected, and very helpful,” Duke says and I’m confused again for a second until I follow his gaze and turn around.
Her head is bowed and I can’t see her face, but I know that the woman slumped over and bound to a chair, is Dina.
“What are you doing? Why is she here?” I demand, unable to hide my terror. I can’t even tell if she’s breathing.
“She tried to double cross us. So, she’s going to be our fall guy,” Duke responds.
“Are you crazy? Do you think you’re going to get away with this? Phil and Carter know where I am,” I warn them.
“Too bad tomorrow morning will be too late for them to help you.” Fiona sneers and I wish I could stick habanero peppers in her eyes and rub them in.
“What do you want with me?” I ask.
“Like we said. You’re going to marry Duke, sign a handy little document that says you’re giving your fortune to him. And then, if you want to live, and you want Cameron to live, you’ll leave and never speak a word about it.”
I recoil at Fiona’s casual recitation of demands and the way she talks about her own child’s life as if it’s already forfeit.
“What are you talking about? Cameron is your daughter,” I shout at her.
“Just do what we ask, and you’ll be fine,” my father says.
“What? Marry Duke? I’d rather die,” I spit my disgust and Duke laughs.
“Don’t worry Beth, all I want is the money. That’s all we’ve ever wanted.”
I look at my father and grandmother, both of them now sitting on the loveseat under the window, watching like the morally bankrupt emperor and empress watching their enemies destroy each other.
“You’re fine with your wife having an affair?” I ask him.
He glances at her with complete disinterest and then shrugs.
“She’s proved more useful as a collaborator than a wife. He’s welcome to her and their share of the money that will become his when he marries you. I just want to make sure the Wolfe fortune doesn’t fall into your incompetent hands.” His smile is cold, cruel as he watches me expectantly. Maybe he’s hoping, I’ll scream or cry or beg.
I don’t even blink. I’m ahead of him, again. He doesn’t know that we found out the truth about the will. He is misleading Fiona and Duke because they still think marrying me is the way to the fortune.
“So, that’s your plan?” I say with as much disdain and ridicule I can muster
Fiona sneers. “I forget you’re slow. We told you. You’re going to marry Duke, sign over that money to us. And then you can go. Or you can fight us, and your friend over there is going to find her limp fingers on the trigger of the gun in my purse. I’ll help her pull the trigger, set the house on fire before she shoots herself. Then, you’ll be dead. Either way, Duke we’ll have our money.”
I glance at Dina, and hate the way my heart trips at the thought of the scenario she just talked about playing out.
I need to stall for time. I test the bindings at my wrist and almost laugh when my fingers brush up against the smooth cotton of a bedsheet. It’s tied, but it’s not the gripping knot of rope that I’d have no hope of working loose.
“So when I leave here, you think I’ll just never look back?”
“We’ll ruin your boyfriend. He paid us for those pictures, tell him thanks for that, by the way. But we’ve got copies.”
At the reminder of their extortion my anger spikes.
These people are such fucking cowards. For all their privilege, they still have never found anything more important than money they didn’t earn. They’re lazy and full of shit and even if I die today, I won’t ever be afraid of them.
“Get on with it, Fiona. We just need an unimpeachable signature and we’ll be done,” Agnes drones, sounding about as bothered as someone running late for lunch.
It’s time to see what happens when they realize they’re being double crossed.
“So, have you told them the truth about the will?” I look at my father.
He looks startled and then his expression smooths.
“You have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Oh, so you haven’t, I see. I guess I don’t blame you.”
I turn go look at them. “ You didn’t bother to even read the terms of the will you’re prepared to kill for. You don’t deserve a single penny anyway. Good plan, Dad.” I give him an approving smile.
&nbs
p; I don’t expect Fiona to believe me, at least not right away. But Duke, takes the bait, immediately.
“What does that mean?” he asks, looking pointedly at my father.
“Ignore her. She’s lying,” he snaps.
“Oh, I’m not lying. And it’s easy to prove it if I am. Show them the will.”
“What does it say, Drew?” Fiona says, her voice growing dark with menace.
“I can tell you. It says that once I get married, any money I may have inherited goes to him,” I say cheerily.
“Is that true?” Fiona bellows, her face growing florid with anger.
“Of course not,” my father growls, but his agitation is obvious.
So, I press my advantage.
“You’re a fool Fiona. He’s played you both. And he’s probably planning on killing you as soon as I sign whatever it is,” I say, making it up as I go along.
Doubt flickers on Fiona’s face and then she glares at my father, hands on her hips. “I want to see it. Now.”
“Oh, and even if the will didn’t say all that, female heir, marrying me wouldn’t help you anyway. Because I have DNA proof that Drew Wolfe isn’t my father. And so, any claim you might have , would be null and void.”
“What?” Duke says acidly.
I look to my father, his face has gone pale.
He didn’t know. I don’t know why that surprises me, but I don’t spare him another thought. I needle Fiona some more.
“You went to all this trouble to get me here and I’m no one,” I say and hold my breath, and pray I was convincing.
It only takes a second to know that I hit the nail on the head.
Fiona, shut up,” my grandmother says.
“You shut up,” she shouts.
“You are an evil fucking liar, Drew. You will pay for this.” Fiona screeches.
My grandmother stands Her diminutive frame, rigid with anger as she stalks toward Fiona with her finger stabbing the air in front of her.
“You’re lucky we let you step foot in the house, and you’ll be grateful for whatever we decide is yours to keep,” she snarls.
And then, so quickly that it’s like a blur, Fiona pulls a small black pistol out of her purse aims it at my father and says, “Enjoy hell, you limp dick Viagra popping asshole,” before she pulls the trigger and shoots him in the middle of his chest.