Willthisbe the time she actually shoots me?
And if she does, will she shoot to kill?
Will this be the last sight I see—this crazed woman waving a gun around while she yells at me?
“You selfish bitch!” The gun jumps again. Sharon’s hair has fallen free of its bun, and white strands bounce haphazardly around her face. Her features are twisted with anger, and her lipstick is smeared. One side of her blouse has come untucked, and whenever she raises the gun, a patch of pale skin is revealed.
“Sharon, please.” I try to keep my tone pacifying. “Can we just talk about this? Without the gun?—”
“No!” She advances on me, nearly tripping over the poinsettia I dropped when she first drew her gun. I’d been about to set it on the coffee table when she whipped the gun out frombeneath her shirt, and I was so shocked, the plant slipped from my hands. Now it’s just a mess of scattered soil, broken pieces of ceramic, and crumpled leaves.
Poor poinsettia.It’s irrational, given the situation, but I can’t help feeling sorry for it. The poinsettia didn’t do anything. It was just sitting on a shelf, waiting for someone to bring it home for a touch of holiday cheer. And now it’s ruined.
Who cares about the plant?the logical side of my brain asks.Worry about yourself. And surviving—without any gunshot wounds, hopefully—until Ronan gets here.
Ronanwillcome. I’ve no doubt of that. It’s just a matter of how long it takes.
If he was still at GMG, it might be ten minutes or so. Less if he’s speeding, which I’m sure he would. If he was back at his house, it would be around the same. I’m not sure exactly when I triggered my necklace, but it wasn’t long ago. Maybe five minutes? Ten? Long enough for him to be pulling up outside my house already?
Unless the necklace didn’t work.
Unless he decided to head over to Stowe to get a few runs in.
Unless Justin is a part of this, too, and he was hiding at Ronan’s house, waiting to ambush him.
No. I refuse to consider any of those things.
Ronan said the necklace is just like the ones they give to their clients, and I’m sure his team wouldn’t use them if there was a chance of them not working.
He told me he was going to do a little shopping after his meeting—Christmas shopping, he explained with a mischievous smile—and after that, he planned on spending the afternoon at home, finishing up some modules online for his medical training.
AndifJustin’s a part of this, I can’t imagine him ever getting the jump on Ronan. There’s just no way.
Unless—
I slam the door shut on the rest of my doubting thoughts. Ronan is safe. Unhurt. He’s on his way. And before I know it, this whole crazy nightmare will be over.
“Justin told me everything!” Sharon snaps. Now that she’s closer, I can see just how tightly her finger is hooked around the trigger.
It’s too tight.
And it’s trembling.
Is that because she’s afraid to shoot me? Because she’s regretting what she started?
Or is this something she’s been planning for a long time, and now that the time is actually here, she’s trembling from eager anticipation?
I steal a quick glance at the front window, but with the curtain drawn, it’s impossible to see if Ronan’s car is outside. I guess it’s a blessing and a curse—on one hand, Sharon won’t be able to see him arrive, but on the other, no one walking by could look in to see me in trouble.
I didn’t close the curtain, for the record. Sharon did. That was one of the first things she did after pulling the gun on me. “I don’t want anyone interrupting our conversation,” she spat as she yanked the curtains shut. “This is a personal matter. Just between us.”
Then she flashed me a smile filled with malice. “Well. Technically, it involves my son and granddaughter, too. But for now, there’s no need for them to be involved.”
Just hearing her mention Haley made me feel like throwing up.
I don’t know what she wants with Haley. I don’t know what she’s willing to do to get it. But she has a gun. She threatened to shoot me if I tried to run. If I called for help. If I even made amoveshe didn’t like the look of. “There’s a silencer,” sheexplained smugly. “So your neighbors won’t even hear if I shoot you.”
From the bits and pieces Ronan’s told me about guns, I’m not sure that’s true. I’m pretty sure a silencer just muffles the sound a little, but it doesn’t actually silence it.
