I kept my focus steady on Samantha. Her pupils were wide. She had such a sad, forlorn look on her face.
“Put the gun down, Samantha,” I said with an emphasis on “gun” so Kari would get what was happening. I didn’t want to talk to Kari directly; I knew that would only set Sam off further. I needed to focus, figure a way out of this.
“Can’t,” she said, taking one step towards me and then stopping, leaving a little too much space for me to cover to get the gun away.
“You can,” I said softly, trying to encourage her to do the right thing. “This isn’t like you. What are you doing?”
She sniffled, bringing one arm to her nose and wiping it with her sleeve. “I can’t make you listen to me, Max. I need you to listen to me.”
“I’m listening, Sammy. I’m all ears.”
She smiled faintly at the nickname I had given her as a child.
“It’s hard to listen to anything with a gun in your face. Put that down and we’ll go in the break room, make some coffee, and talk about whatever you want.”
“You don’t like coffee,” she said without emotion. “I know everything about you. You’d rather have tea or a Corona.”
I tried to laugh and make it sound genuine, but it was hard. I wanted to blast forward, grab the gun, and grab her around the neck. My heart was racing, my mind going just as fast.
I have to stay calm.
I took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. “That’s right, but I doubt there’s Corona in the break room.”
She watched me blankly. I started to take a step towards her and she shook her head and adjusted her hands on the gun.
“Kari, come here and let’s talk,” Sam said, her voice even, the barrel of the gun bobbing up and down a little bit with her words.
“You know I’m not going to let her come out here,” I said, standing still.
Sam’s eyes snapped to life, the void filling with a volatile mix of energy. “Why? Because you love her?”
“Yes,” I said smoothly. “And I love you, too, and don’t want you to do anything stupid.” I tried to take a step forward again but she took two backwards. “How did you get in here?”
“You gave me your keys. I made copies,” she smiled hauntingly. “You remember that.”
I’m a godforsaken fool.
The building squeaked again with the wind, the sound of the metal banging on the roof and echoing through the office. Samantha jumped at the sound.
“Stay calm,” I said putting both hands out in front of me. “It’s just the wind.”
A shaky smile ghosted her lips and she began to sing the words to a song about the wind beneath your wings. Her voice was hollow.
“Sam,” Kari said, stepping to my side. “Let’s talk about this.”
“Get the hell back in there!” I growled, looking at Kari out of the corner of my eye. “Now, Kari.”
“No!” Sam shouted, one finger coming forward on the trigger. “Get out here, Miss Perfect.”
I stepped in front of Kari, keeping my focus on Sam. “She’s not coming out here.”
“Why do you protect her? Why do you never protect me?” she all but screamed.
I moved forward, my hands extending for the gun. White noise filled my ears, my heartbeat in my throat, as I inched towards her.
“I came to talk to you, but she’s here. Maybe that’s a sign...”
The gun suddenly changed direction and pointed to my side. I half-turned on my heel to see Kari coming out of the door.
