Page 75 of Our Lips Are Sealed
Once the girls and Miranda were gone, and it was just the two of them left, Ben sought the railing, using it as leverage to stand. “She’s my daughter, Simone.”
Studying him, Simone regained her focus. She and Ben would always be connected, whether she wanted it or not. Destiny had knotted them together long ago, never to be free of one another.
“A daughter you’ve hardly seen over the last month.”
Destiny may have tied them together, but for today, it didn’t matter. Today what he had done was unforgivable.
“When you take from me, Benjamin, I will take from you. Jamison will live here at Haven House for as long as she wants. Even if that means forever,” she promised. “Now, get off my damn porch.”
Chapter 21
“Toby.”
Hearing her say his real name had the obscene smile on Toby’s face spreading. “Surprise,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “Aren’t you happy to finally know my secret?”
Evie nodded at Jamison squirming silently on the floor. “Let her up.”
“I’m afraid I can’t do that.” Toby gave her sister’s hair a sharp tug, forcing Jamison to look up at him. “She bites.”
Swallowing down the vomit threatening to erupt, Evie allowed anger to override the fear. “What did you expect her to do? You’re holding a gun to her head.”
“Lower your voice,” Toby warned. “I only brought enough sedatives for one, and had to put the FBI agent to sleep the good ole’ fashioned way with a knock to the head. Annabeth will be the first to die if he comes to because of your screeching.”
The grin on his lips deepened with excitement. “I’m sure by now you’ve figured out that I only need two of you for this.”
“Go fuck yourself.”
Toby quirked an eyebrow, pointing the gun at Annabeth’s head. “Come on, Evie. Think about how mad Simone will be if we splatter brains all over the kitchen.”
Annabeth covered her mouth, gripping the counter for support. Her muffled cries became the only sound for a handful of seconds, long enough for Evie to think of what to do.
Stepping in front of her friend, she placed herself between Annabeth and the gun. “What do you want?”
The perverse joy on his face made Evie’s flesh crawl. “I want to go play in the woods.”
“This isn’t a game.”
“Sure, it is.” He lugged Jamison upward to shove the gun’s barrel under her chin. “You just didn’t know you were playing.”
Realizing Officer Callahan was just outside and could help, Evie curved her arm around Annabeth’s shaking shoulders. “You can do this,” she whispered gently. “One step at a time.”
“That’s so sweet.” Toby brought a struggling Jamison closer. “Evie can be a wonderful friend.”
“Shut up and tell us what you want us to do.”
Toby nudged her and Annabeth through the screen door with his foot. “We’re going to have a little family reunion.”
On the patio, the security camera remained in one position, the usual whirl of motion suspended. The light was on, but the lens no longer tracked their movements.
“Not the best system, really. It was easy to disarm,” Toby remarked, coming over with Jamison. He winked at the camera. “I expected better from Ben. It’s recording, but not transmitting, so at least he can watch later for fun.”
With Toby inching up next to them, Annabeth’s shaking increased, and Evie backed away with her friend tucked tight at her side. She moved slowly, so as not to upset Toby, but in her retreat, something knocked against her foot when they reached the edge of the pavers next to the house. Evie stumbled, almost falling, and taking Annabeth with her.
Behind them on the ground, a pair of legs stuck out from the gardenia bushes planted by Abe just this past summer. Evie slammed a hand over Annabeth’s mouth, capturing her scream as they stared at the black duty boots.
Callahan lay on his back, eyes bulging and mouth hanging open with a line strung tight around his neck. Streaks of red covered the area of flesh around the wire, as if he’d clawed at it in his final moments.
“It’s called garroting.” Toby snuck up next to them, shifting his hold on Jamison by bending her arm to secure her to him. “I like to use something similar to piano wire. The problem is, you have to wear a particular type of glove so you don’t cut yourself.”
