Patricia stared at her daughter for one long beat before looking down at her chest. Blood gurgled from the small hole near her heart, spilled down her pink blouse. Patricia opened her mouth to speak but crumpled to the floor in a lifeless heap instead. Her eyes remained open as if even in death she wanted to see how this ended.
“Max, come here!” Elizabeth commanded.
Annette’s body shook with equal measures of fear and shock. She tried to rationalize what she’d just witnessed. Elizabeth Drake had killed her mother. Annette’s muscles quivered once more then turned to lead. She told herself to breathe. She had to make a move or stand here and let this bitch kill her, too.
“Noooo!” Max wailed. “Don’t make me!”
“Come here,” Elizabeth ordered, “orthey’llcome for you and I’ll let them.”
The old man struggled onto all fours and crawled unsteadily to where Elizabeth stood.
“Please,” he begged, “I don’t want them to come.”
“They brought you that dead animal as a warning,” Elizabeth told him. “Don’t make me call them back.”
Max began to moan and weep.
What the hell kind of power did Elizabeth have over that poor man? Who the hell werethey?
“No one’s coming, Max,” Annette promised, anger mounting inside her, overtaking the fear. By God, she wasn’t going down without a fight. “You don’t need to be afraid. Elizabeth is lying to you. Patricia brought the raccoon.”
Elizabeth’s gaze collided with Annette’s. “Shut up!”
“What’s the matter?” Annette smiled as if victory already belonged to her. “You afraid he’ll realize you have no power over him?”
“I said, shut up!” Elizabeth pointed the weapon at Max. “Shut up or I’ll shoot him.”
Max howled in agony, curled into a ball of pure terror.
Annette refused to let go of her courage. “You can’t shoot us both at the same time. Who’re you going for first? Him or me?” She eased one foot in front of the other as if bracing to make a move.
The gun’s barrel swung back in Annette’s direction. “Maybe I’ll just shoot you and blame it on Max. After all, you’re a stranger. No one would question it. You showed up and he shot you. Everyone knows he’s crazy.”
“Does Max own a weapon?” If Annette could keep her talking a little longer, she might just be able to come up with a plan.
Elizabeth smirked. “That can always be arranged after the fact, as you well know.”
Determination fired in Annette’s veins. No way was she letting this spoiled brat win. “You’re not that smart,Miss Deputy Mayor.”
“I was smart enough to figure out how to make you squirm.” She smiled sweetly. “Ms. Anderson.”
Murder roared in Annette’s chest. “It was you.”
“The whole plan was so easy,” Elizabeth taunted. “I was touring the center with a group of potential donors and I saw you there. Finding out about yoursister,Paula, was simple after that. The staff adores me. My family and I help keep them fully funded. They have to love me.”
Annette wanted to kill her for what she’d done to Paula. But not yet. Dane was dead. Patricia was dead. She needed Elizabeth alive.She needed the whole truth. “Did your plan include murdering Dr. Holderfield, too?”
Elizabeth shook her head. “I’m not telling you anything else.”
“Wainwright probably gave the order,” Annette goaded. “Did he make you do it?”
“Please.” Elizabeth rolled her eyes. “Wainwright doesn’t give the orders. My father was the one in charge. The others did what he told them.” Elizabeth straightened her jacket with her free hand and smoothed her hair. “No matter the mess, the cleanup is always quite civilized. Lynch makes sure every last detail is taken care of. Just like he’ll do here.”
Annette wasn’t surprised that Lieutenant Lynch was involved. He would know exactly how to ensure that the evidence, if any, pointed in the right direction. “I guess he screwed up on the gun that’s supposed to be registered to my alias.”
Elizabeth laughed drily. “Don’t you worry. That minor issue will be resolved, and you’ll be charged.” She sighed. “Posthumously, it seems. Now put your hands up, away from your body. Make any sudden moves and I will shoot you.”
Slowly, Annette raised her hands in a gesture of surrender. “So, you’re going to kill me and pin it on Max,” she wondered aloud. “But then there’s Dane’s admission to having killed Carson’s family. Who’s going to fix that? Carson’s not going to forgive you for keeping Dane’s secret.”
