“The closet?” She could hardly make sense of what Sully’s brother was telling her. Ice froze over her spine at the thought of Bentley in their house, able to watch them as they slept.
“Yes, bitch!” He was suddenly screaming and spittle misted over her face. His eyes were bloodshot, and he looked like hehadn’t showered in days. “Didn’t you hear me? I’ve been in the closet waiting for my brother to leave!”
Part of her wanted to ask why he hadn’t just killed them while they slept, but his judgment was clearly impaired and the last thing she needed was for him to feel like she was trying to humiliate him.
Bentley waved the gun in a sweeping gesture. “Where do you keep the medication?”
“What medication?” For a second, she thought he might be referring to the stolen pills he’d stashed in her purse, which had obviously been confiscated by the police.
“How could my brother fall for someone so stupid,” he shouted, voice shaking. “Sullivan’s meds. The hard shit they sent him home with. You’re going to crush up a lethal dose and mix it in his drink when he gets back. It has to look like an accident, or I won’t get the money from his policy. And don’t even think of screwing me over, or you’re dead!” He took a step toward her and grabbed her neck with one hand. If she took a step to the side, he wouldn’t have been able to hold her in place, but with the gun waving around, she stayed where she was.
Bentley hadn’t thought this through, and she’d already poked several holes in his plan, but she kept her mouth shut. She didn’t need to tell him that hospitals rarely sent patients home with large amounts of opioids or that Sully had only been taking Tylenol and ibuprofen for the pain for over a week now.
The only medication he was on currently was another round of antibiotics. While a large dose of those could lead to organ failure and ultimately death, it could never be consumed undetected as it would taste horrific. Did he think she carried around a steady supply of arsenic? With toxicity tests, it would be quite difficult to poison someone nowadays and get away with it. And what about his exit plan? How was he going to ensure she gave it to him—stay in the house while she administeredthis toxic drink, then pop out of a corner and shoot her if it didn’t immediately work? A laugh bubbled up in her throat, but she pushed it down. Once Sully and his friends realized Bentley wasn’t at the ranch, they’d come back. She had no doubt that Sully could take Bentley down before he blinked, but for now, she’d make this mystery cocktail he requested.
She raised her hands, palms facing up. “Just don’t hurt me.” She made her voice shake and immediately wondered if she’d laid it on a bit too thick. An actress she was not. If Bentley knew how ridiculous she thought this plan was, things could turn more dangerous.
“So much for love,” he sneered. Bentley dropped his hand and gestured down the hall with the gun.
She walked into the kitchen where Sully was keeping the antibiotics. “I’m going to open the cabinet to get the medicine.”
“Yeah, that’s what I fucking told you to do, so do it.” Bentley leaned against the kitchen island alternating between watching her and glancing out the window across the room.
She took down the bottle of pills and a bowl, which she filled with a little water. “I’m going to let them soak to soften them up. I don’t have my mortar and pestle, but I can probably make do with a spoon.”
“Whatever.” He kept running one hand through his hair until tufts of it stood straight up.
Sirens sounded in the distance and Bentley instantly started pacing. An engorged vein at his temple looked like it was about to burst. “Hurry up. I need to get out of here.”
“There’s a fire station down the street.” She wanted to keep him calm. If those police sirens continued to wail, Bentley might get nervous and accidentally pull the trigger. “It’s not uncommon for us to hear a lot of noise.”
“Stop talking and make the drink! If I found out you called the cops, I’m going to kill you.”
Using a spoon, she crushed up the pills into an orange froth, then poured the entire mixture into a glass. “Okay. It’s done.”
For a moment, she thought he was going to call out the color. Tell her no one in their right mind would drink such a thing, but he didn’t. Outside the window, flashing lights were visible as a police car pulled into the driveway. If only they’d turned off the lights, they could’ve taken Bentley by surprise. Now, he was frantic and even more on edge.
“Shit! What do I do?” He pulled his hair by the roots, the gun perilously close to his own head. An animalistic yell broke from somewhere deep in his throat. There was a pop, and it took her a moment to register that’s he’d fired the weapon. Dust and debris scattered all around them, and Bentley screamed and dropped to the floor, releasing the weapon as he curled into a ball. She quickly retrieved it and turned on the safety, just as the door slammed open. Sully ran to her, scooping her up and taking her from the house while Red, Jude, and the police officer circled around Bentley.
Sully was shaking as he framed her face. “Are you hurt?”
“No. Neither is Bentley. I think he accidentally fired a shot and panicked when part of the plaster fell from the ceiling.” He pulled her against him, with one hand around her waist and the other on her head, tucking her against his heart.
“When we discovered Bentley wasn’t at the ranch, I tried to call you. I was so fucking scared when you didn’t pick up. I’m so sorry, Jane. I never should’ve left you here.”
“I’m okay. Really. We need to find out who was helping Bentley, though, because while your brother isn’t much of a criminal mastermind, someone was able to take the alarm system offline last night. Your brother used your dad’s key to get inside and was holed up in the closet while we slept.”
“Thank God he didn’t think to shoot us while we were sleeping.”
“That was my thought, too, but then he told me it needed to look like an accident to get your insurance money.”
Sully shuddered and held her closer, kissing the top of her head.
“I’m fine,” she reassured him again, but he leaned back and shook his head.
“I don’t care that Bentley isn’t well versed in murder. He still had a gun. Anything could’ve happened, so get used to me hovering for the next fifty years or so, woman.” He led her to the side as two officers exited the house with Bentley in handcuffs. He was sobbing and snot was bubbling beneath his nose. She turned away as he was put into the police cruiser and Jude and Red came out of the house. They both gave her a hug and asked if she was all right.
“I should warn you guys not to drink the orange concoction in the kitchen, even though I don’t know why you would.”
