“I knew it!” Buck took a threatening step toward her. “I knew the old man didn’t just mix too many sleeping pills with his liquor.”
“Like I said, it wasn’t that hard.” She kept her hands behind her back, wishing she wasn’t sitting on the floor. It would be easier to rush Buck if she was already on her feet. She kept talking. “Your father spent every single night doing the same routine. All I had to do was slip a couple of crushed sleeping pills into his nightly glass of bourbon. He liked his expensive booze, didn’t he?”
“Yeah, he did.” Buck held her gaze. “You’ve given me yet another reason to kill you. Now that I know what you’ve done, I’m not going to kill you quickly. I plan to make you suffer for what you put me and my mother through.”
She angled her chin. “Oh, I fully expected you’d seek revenge. But aren’t you forgetting something?”
Confusion flashed in his eyes. “Like what?”
“What were you and Lupo arguing about before your dog caught our scent?” She arched a brow when he still looked confused. “Something about a shipment that’s supposed to have been here already?”
Buck turned toward Lupo. “Where is Yank anyway? He was supposed to be here with the last delivery hours ago.”
The assailant she’d fought had the nickname Yank. She’d been hoping to learn his real name.
“I dunno,” Lupo said in a whiny voice. “I told you, I’ve been calling, but he hasn’t answered.”
Buck swore under his breath. Di was hoping to distract him, and so far, the plan was working. The only problem was the dog. Would the peanut butter protein bar help? Maybe. She eased her hand over to touch Jarek’s arm to let him know she had her hands free.
He shot her a quick look of admiration. She’d expected to see horror reflected in his gaze at learning what she’d done. Maybe he thought she was lying about how she’d killed Eddie Ross. If so, he’d be sorely disappointed to know that she really had put four crushed sleeping pills into her stepfather’s drink. Pills that had belonged to her mother.
And given the same set of circumstances, she’d do it again. And that, she silently admitted, was why she would never find the forgiveness Jarek had mentioned. Jesus might have died for their sins, but she imagined God expected them to repent their misdeeds. To apologize for what they’d done.
She swallowed hard. This wasn’t the time to worry about whether she’d be forgiven. She needed to stay focused on getting her and Jarek out of this.
Rocco shifted beside Buck, then turned his head toward the overhanging garage door. She glanced toward it, too, wondering what had caught the dog’s attention. She wished she still had her gun, but Buck had forced her to drop it.
She and Jarek were both unarmed. Not to mention Jarek’s wrists were still handcuffed. The only way they could get away was for her to find a way to wrestle Buck’s gun from his grasp.
No easy task.
“Shipping drugs in boxes marked coffee is hardly original,” Jarek said, speaking up for the first time. “I think there’s a really good chance the officials down at the port authority have confiscated your product.”
“What do you know, pig?” Buck sneered.
“Hey, I’m just saying, that you may want to head out to check the loading dock.” Jarek shrugged. “No skin off my back if your product is gone. You’re the one who will have to face your buyers. Somehow, I don’t think they’ll be happy to know how much of your stuff has gone missing.”
Buck glared at him, then turned toward Lupo. “Try Yank again. He knows how to grease the wheels to get product moved.”
That comment told Di the port authority agent on duty was likely dirty. Were there others too? She still wasn’t convinced Ray Bond and Jeff Schnor weren’t culpable. Not that either of the narcotics officers were there at the warehouse.
“Okay.” Lupo didn’t go far enough for her peace of mind. He pulled his phone from his pocket and made a call. After listening for a long moment, he glanced at Buck. “Still no answer.”
Buck swore again, glaring at her and Jarek as if this was all their fault. Then he gestured to Lupo. “Go. Get down to the pier and get my stuff.”
“Me?” Lupo glanced nervously at them. “What if they’ve done something to Yank? The place might be crawling with cops.”
“Don’t be a fool. Go!” Buck reached out to give Lupo a little shove. “And be quick about it. I need that product before I can deal with disposing these two. We don’t have all night. The buyers are waiting.”
Di almost smiled at the accuracy of Lupo’s voiced concern. Although there was no guarantee the cops were still at the scene of the crime. She mentally prepared herself to attack Buck. It wouldn’t be easy, especially since she knew Buck wouldn’t hesitate to sic the dog on them, but once Lupo was gone, they had to take the risk. One less gun to worry about was a point in their favor.
Besides, she didn’t have a choice. Jarek had gotten caught in this web of danger because of her. She silently promised to do whatever was necessary, even sacrificing her own life to save Jarek’s.
And despite her lack of knowledge about God and faith, she found herself praying that God would spare Jarek’s life.
Let Thy will be done. Amen.
Hearing Di admit to killing her stepfather had shocked him, but Jarek knew full well there was a good reason for her actions. He could only imagine what awful things the guy had done to warrant her seeking to end his life.
