Chapter 33

Chapter Thirty-Three

I knew I was in danger of getting shot, but he'd already beaten his daughter to death and possibly killed Jeremiah, so I wasn't going to take my chances meeting him face to face.

I glanced toward the front door and saw that he'd shot out the glass and was now climbing inside.

Getting out the back door wasn't as smooth as I'd hoped. The dead bolt was stiff, and I had to put my weight into it to get it unlocked, wasting precious time. It felt like it took half a minute, but it was likely only a few seconds.

Still, it was long enough for Clive to reach me.

He grabbed my arm and gave me a vicious tug backward, throwing me into the closed bathroom door. My head hit the wood, and I saw stars, but I managed to keep the pepper spray gripped in my left hand.

"Where is it?" he asked from several feet away. Terror washed through me when I stared into his cold eyes. It was clear I was dealing with a hardcore killer.

While I suspected he was here for the floppy disks, I wasn't going to just hand them over. Maybe it was because I'd sworn to myself that I'd never grovel again, or maybe it was plain stupidity, but I found myself asking, "Where is what?"

He held up the gun and pointed it at my chest. "I want that goddamned box."

It would feel wrong to reward his murderous path of destruction by giving him what he wanted, not to mention, I was sure he'd kill me once he had them. I motioned to the door leading to the stairwell. "It's in there. In the Walmart bag."

Still training the gun on me, he backed up toward the stairwell door. "Who did you call?"

"My husband, the sheriff," I said with my back still pressed to the bathroom door. "He's across the street. He'll be here any second, so take the bag, and go before he shows up."

He reached behind him, still keeping his gaze on me. "I don't think so. Otherwise he'd be here already. Not to mention you made several other calls."

"That's right," I said. "I called 911, so the Henryetta police will be here any second."

He barked out a laugh. "So why aren't they here yet? The police department's only a block or two away."

"You know the Henryetta police," I said, trying to sound breezy to hide my panic. "You just never know when they're gonna show up."

His hand finally connected with the doorknob. He pulled the door open and snuck a glance down at the base of the stairs. Squatting, he reached down to grab the bag while still keeping an eye on me. Once he had the bag, he held it out toward me.

"What the hell is this?"

"The box," I said. "It fell and broke into pieces."

His mouth dropped open.

"Okay," I said. "You've got the box. Feel free to go." I motioned toward the back door. "I've already got it unlocked for you."

He reached for the bottom of the bag with the hand that held the gun, then dipped it over, dumping the wood pieces onto the floor. After a quick scan of the contents, his rage-filled eyes lifted to mine. "Where is it?"

"Your daughter's engagement ring? In my underwear drawer at home. I was holding onto it until I found her. At least until I realized she was closer than I realized, buried in the Henryetta Cemetery." That last part was a guess, but I figured I couldn't be far off.

"What engagement ring?" he demanded.

"You didn't know Jason proposed to her?" I asked. "That's what she buried in the box. That, a heart locket, and a few notes from her fiancé."

He looked momentarily shocked.

"You didn't know?" I asked. "She and Jason knew you and his mother would never approve, and for some reason, she refused to leave with him when he went to Montana."

"Who the hell is Jason?" he shouted.

I stared at him in shock, then started to laugh, my nervous energy needing to be expelled. "You didn't know?"

"I don't give a shit about some engagement ring and notes. I want the disks."

"What disks?" I asked, but even as I said it, I asked myself what I was doing. He'd killed two people when they hadn't given him what he wanted. There was every likelihood he'd kill me too.

But if I could stall him long enough, surely someone would show up and save me.

He lifted his arm, pointing the barrel of the gun at my face. "Don't play stupid with me. Either give me what I want, or I'll kill you where you stand."

"Like you killed Sarah?" I countered. "And Jeremiah when he wouldn't tell you where the box was?"

"I didn't kill Jeremiah," he grunted. "That stupid fool Emmett killed him. I told the boy he was no good to us dead, and then he goes and gets trigger happy."

"Maybe you didn't kill him, but you still tried to bury him."

His eyes widened in surprise. "You been talkin' to that boy who was there?" Then he looked even more surprised. "Holy shit. You're her."

I kept silent because I was pretty sure it wasn't such a good thing that he knew I was the Lady in Black.

"You are her," he said, taking a step closer. An evil grin spread across his face, and he licked his upper lip. "You don't look so badass."

I didn't like the predatory look in his eyes, and waiting for someone to save me was no longer an option.

"I'm plenty badass," I said with a leer. "Why don't you come closer and find out for yourself."

He was still holding his gun on me, which made things dicey, but I was going to have to take the chance. It had been a long time since I'd practiced any self-defense moves, but I could press a button easily enough.

He began closing the distance between us, and when he was about three feet away, I lifted my left hand and sprayed his face.

Multiple gunshots echoed in the room, but I didn't wait to see if I'd been shot. Instead, I ran for the front door. While it was farther away, he stood between me and the back door. Not to mention, I'd rather run for my life on the public sidewalk than the back alley.

"You stupid bitch!" he shouted, then more gunshots rang out.

I didn't bother ducking. He was shooting blind, and I'd waste more time trying to crouch down than if I got outside quickly. Unfortunately for me, he'd realized I was trying to escape. He started stumbling after me, shooting wildly until his empty chamber clicked.

He was out of bullets.

There was a chance he had another gun, but I wasn't waiting to find out.

Sirens sounded in the distance, and I breathed a sigh of relief. I just needed to get out the front door, and I'd be safe.

But just as I bent down to duck through the broken glass, he threw himself into my legs, knocking me to the floor.

"Where is it?" he shouted. His eyes were barely cracked open, tears streaming down his red face. "Where are the disks?!" His meaty hands wrapped around my throat and started to squeeze.

I gasped for breath, realizing he was an utter idiot. Even if I planned to tell him, I wouldn't have been able to with my air supply cut off.

I knew I had seconds to break his hold before I passed out. I could try to pry his hands away, but I doubted that would work. Then out of the corner of my eye, I saw a three-inch-long pink crystal Neely Kate had bought about a year ago. She'd claimed it had healing properties and cleaned out negative energy. I stretched out my hand and clasped my fingers around it.

I was about to clean out some negative energy all right.

Using all the strength I could muster, I swung my hand up and smashed the crystal into the side of his head.

His hands loosened momentarily on my throat, and his mouth parted in surprise. His hands went slack, and he fell on top of me.

Well, crappy doodles.

It took a bit of shoving to get him off me, and just as I got him moved to the side, I saw Joe standing over me, panic on his face.

Relief washed through me, but I said with a hint of sass, "It's about darn time you showed up. I found Jeremiah's murderer for you."