“I don’t know what you want from me.” I wondered if Rem had any experience with a gun at all. Would he set it off by accident? He was swinging it so erratically.
Rem looked around the kitchen.
“I’m staying here until I can get the police on the phone.”
“Fine.” I snapped. Steeling my nerves. I went back to my original plan, and went to the cupboard, pulling out two teacups. “Do what you want, I’m having tea.”
“You and your damned tea.” Rem shook his head. “Four cups.”
“What?”
“I said four cups. We’re all drinking.”
Swallowing, I took two more cups from my cupboard. I worked slowly, allowing the tea to steep. Putting my finger over a hole, I poured Rem’s. Then, as I switched to the next cup, I put my finger over the other hole and poured the other three.
Rem put the gun in his pocket and took his cup. He waited for me to hand both Constantine and Kansas theirs as well.
"All right, now we all drink at the same time, and then you and I will go to the living room. We can discuss what's going on and figure out a plan."
“You’re not leaving the room with her,” Constantine snarled and tugged on his restraint.
Rem laughed. “I don’t think you have a say in what I do. I could take this gun and shoot her right now and all you can do is watch. Drink your tea.”
Both Kansas and Constantine tugged on their handcuffs to no avail and finally relented. They gulped down their drinks. I took them quickly from them, and drank my own.
The air was thick as we all waited for one of us to keel over, but no one did. Relief washed over Rem's face, and he then drank his.
“Come on, I’m going to see if there’s something we can file online to get the police here.” He pulled out the gun again and waved me forward.
“Are you holding her hostage?” Kansas asked.
“Yeah,” Rem nodded. “If you manage to get out of those cuffs and try to attack me, I’ll shoot.”
I stood frozen, and Rem finally grabbed me and shoved me out of the room. The gun pressed against my back the entire trek to the living room, where he pushed me onto the couch.
“Stay there. I’m still not entirely sure it wasn’t you who did all this. A crazy person off their meds? It makes more sense than two strangers.”
“Stop using that word.”
“What? Does the murderer not like that?” he mocked. “Tell me, did you crawl out of the Sinister Minister’s church like that, or did you go nuts after?”
“Stop it!” I stood and screamed.
A loud rattling came from the kitchen and then a huge ting!
Rem and I both turned as both men ran into the living room.
“No!” I screamed in horror, expecting to hear a gunshot, but… I didn’t.
I turned my head back to Rem and saw him frozen in place, choking. His eyes bulged as his throat closed. The hemlock I’d put in his tea was finally making its way through his system. He dropped the gun and then fell forward, dead.
The three of us stared silently at the last member of my friend group. It wasn’t until I heard a beeping coming from his body that I broke out of my trance and bent down, fishing into his pockets.
I found his cell phone, and to my horror, he had it on some program to continue to dial the police every two minutes. He'd been calling them this entire time.
"We've got to go," I said and flew up the stairs. They followed quickly, and I explained what Rem had done. I threw on some clothes and my only pair of tennis shoes. "This is it."
I hurried to my safe, grabbing everything inside. I pulled the bag I'd packed the night before out from under my bed and stuffed everything inside. Constantine handed me a folded piece of paper, and I realized it was our wedding license. I kissed him and then turned to Kansas. "Let's go."
