Page 55 of One Last Whisper

But how to make use of that time? My body aches all over from the tension between the shackles around my wrists and my ankles. Not to mention the fact that I have no food and water. As it stands, I probably have only three days left of life and only a few hours left with enough strength to fight.

So I have to outsmart her. The problem is that I see precious little chance to do that shackled as I am. I have no illusions aboutmy ability to break through my bonds. My only chance will be if I can somehow free myself.

I can’t see anything. I can’t tell if there are any weaknesses in the shackles to exploit. With my hands chained as they are, I can’t reach into my pocket for my bobby pin. Perhaps the manacles are loose enough that with the right movements, I might be able to slip free.

I try pulling on them, but that gets me nowhere. Frustration and panic bubble up in me again, and I take deep breaths to calm myself. I don’t succeed.

“It’s too much. It’s too much, Annie. There’s too much against me and not enough for me. I don’t know what to do. I don’t know what to do.”

Tears fall again. I allow myself to weep until the panic subsides. That leaves me with an odd sense of wonder and a sense of something for Theresa that might be respect.

She has beaten me. She has well and truly beaten me. I don’t realize before now how highly I rate my detective skills or how sure I am of success and survival. There’s no good reason for it. Perhaps I have some skill as a detective, but it doesn’t help me here. I don’t realize Theresa is the killer until she’s already drugged me.

As for survival? Well, as Sean is fond of telling me, I am only alive because thus far I have been extraordinarily lucky. No more.

Sean.

Fresh tears come to my eyes. “I love you, Sean,” I whisper. “I love you. I’m so sorry. I love you.”

He’ll never hear me say that. The one man in my fifty-two years of life who I’ve felt anything for, and he’ll never hear me say it because I’ve finally gotten myself into trouble he can’t rescue me from. I’m such a fool.

Then I hear voices. Not one voice. Voices. Theresa is talking to someone. A man.

My heart leaps to my throat. “Help!” I scream. “Help me, please!”

I keep screaming, shouting until my throat is raw, begging God that my cries will carry as Sarah’s did, and that whoever is upstairs talking with Theresa will hear me screaming.

I scream for well over a minute before I hear footsteps rushing downwards. “Yes!” I cry out. “I’m over here! Help me!”

I see the beam of a flashlight rapidly approaching. “In here!” I cry. “Theresa’s captured me! She’s going to kill me!”

The flashlight beam crosses into the room. Then it lifts up. It falls on a face for a brief moment, and I see the snarling visage of Theresa Pemberton.

Then the flashlight comes down on my head. A star bursts in my vision, and everything goes haywire for a moment. My eyes flutter, my legs shake, my lips buzz, and my head swims, reeling from the force of the impact. The experience reminds me of a seizure. I've never had one, but my body acts the way seizures appear to act.

“Shut up!” Theresa hisses. “You fucking bitch!” If he’d heard you, I would have to kill him too, you fool!” She sighs. “Pipe down!”

I take a deep breath and regain control of myself. My vision still swims, and my head pounds, but I’m not shaking uncontrollably anymore. “You don’t have to kill anyone,” I tell her. “I’ll leave. I’ll go back to America, and I won’t tell anyone.”

She chuckles. “Just out of curiosity, did you actually expect me to believe that?” She sighs and looks out at the water. “You’re too risky. Damn it. I would have loved to play with you, but I can’t take that chance. I’ll have to get rid of you now.”

I prepare myself for the most important struggle of my life. “Are you going to throw me over the edge?”

“Aye. But I’m going to beat you to death first while you’re still chained up here.” She grins, and the look in her eyes is wild and sickening. “Can’t risk that you’ll somehow get the better of me.”

She lifts the flashlight, and a familiar, lovely, beautiful voice calls, “If that flashlight moves, I blow your sodding head off!”

“Sean!”

I burst into tears, but this time the tears are happy. The miracle has occurred. Sean has found me.

I hear more footsteps. Then Inspector Hargreaves calls, “Damn it! On your knees!”

Theresa’s eyes widen. “Help, Inspector! He’s threatening to kill me! Shoot him!”

“Don’t!” I cry out. “He’s my friend! Theresa’s trapped me here, and she’s trying to killme!She killed Sarah. And Lady Evelyn and Lady Alivia.”

“Please listen to her, mate,” Sean pleads. “I’ve got me gun on Theresa because she’s about to bash Mary’s head in. I won’t let that happen, but please believe that Mary’s telling you the truth.”

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