Page 125 of The House Beyond the Dunes

LANE

Monday, January 1, 2024

3:30 p.m.

Reece might’ve seen himself as a savior, but we both witness the facade crumble to dust.

Knowing what I’m now facing, I don’t linger but hobble into the house, praying he won’t shoot me. I’m in the kitchen in seconds and begin opening drawers, searching for a knife or scissors.

“Stop, Lane,” Reece says as he follows.

“Reece.” It’s a struggle to keep my voice calm. His eyes are wide, filled with anger tinged with sadness and worry. I don’t see the driven fury that blazed from Devon’s gaze.

If I can get him to work with me to help her, he might lower his guard, and I can escape. If I can get outside, I can find a place to hide. I’ll worry about my bare feet when I have the time. “We need to help Devon,” I say.

“You shot her. Hurt her.” His jaw is clenched, and tension has tightened all the muscles in his body.

I see a slow change overtake him. He’s not hearing me anymore. He’s loyal to those he grew up with.

How can logic combat alliances that were formed decades ago? “I didn’t want to hurt Devon. Hurting people is not what I do.”

“You pulled the trigger.”

“She pulled the trigger.” Genuine tears well in my eyes. “We were both desperate and afraid.”

There’s a deep sadness in his eyes. He’s now faced with a choice that he’ll hate to make. “She’s hurt. You’re not. Kyle’s dead. You’re not.”

“You’re not Kyle. Or Devon. You are a kind man, Reece.”

He shakes his head. “I’m not who you think I am.”

I back away until I bump into a counter and feel the heat from the coffee maker behind me. “Who are you?”

“I’m a ghost. I died a long time ago.”

His soul did die when he became an accessory to Kyle’s violence. But pointing that out now could get me killed. “You made mistakes, but you’ve rebuilt your life.” Reece is still talking to me and that’s what matters.

“I’m nothing without Kyle. He sent all the best jobs my way, even after our fights. He was loyal to me. All I wanted to do was protect him from himself. Without him and Devon, I’m a dead man walking.”

Is Reece even hearing his lunacy? “Is that what Kyle told you?”

“He said we all were still alive and living well because of him. He’s right. We’re nothing without Kyle.”

“That’s not true. You knew he was going to hurt me like Nikki and Stevie, and you didn’t want that to happen.”

“I thought if I were nearby, he’d find a better way to deal with whatever it was inside him.” He draws in a deep breath and releases it slowly, as if the secrets haven’t allowed him to draw in a deep breath for years.

There’s a bizarre current running between us now. In this moment we are united by blood and death. “I know you loved Kyle and worried about what he was doing. You and Devon fought about it. I saw her coming out of your house. I saw the broken mirror in your bathroom.”

He looks at me, his face tight with grief. “How do you know about the mirror?”

“I was in your house. I saw it.”

“You were in the house?” He shakes his head. “Devon is right. You’re trouble.” He doesn’t sound reasonable now. He’s angry. “Did you push Kyle down the stairs?”

“No.”

“Devon says you did.” His gaze spears me. “Did you kill him?”

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