Page 75 of Saltwater Memories
Amanda got to the estate quickly, and decided that pulling into the driveway would be foolish on the off chance that Lenny was already there.
She decided to park on the street and sneak onto the property instead. She had the advantage of knowing the layout, despite the progress that was made in the landscaping and in some of the outdoor repairs.
Amanda crept through the tall grasses as far as she could, surprised to see that there didn’t appear to be anyone working on the property. Sunset was in about half an hour – perhaps they’d called it quits?
Once past the grasses, Amanda resorted to army crawling through some lower shrubs, twigs scraping her skin and crackling under her weight, until she had a clear site of the house.
She saw Will’s car and felt a flutter in her chest. There didn’t seem to be anyone else. She was just about to raise herself up from the ground when she heard a car cruising up the driveway.
A black SUV pulled into her view and Lenny got out of the passenger seat.
Her chest tightened. A formidable looking man got out of the driver’s seat, his scowl visible even from a distance.
“Lenny, you really didn’t have to come all the way out here,” Will said, approaching from the house.
Lenny smiled, shaking Will’s hand. “I think I did, Will. I think I did.”
The second man stepped forward and threw a punch, cracking into Will from the side.
Amanda had to cover her mouth as she gasped.
Will stumbled to the ground, holding a hand up defensively. “Please – ”
“What did I tell you, Will? Huh? What did I tell you?”
“I’m sorry Lenny, I’m not sure what – ”
“Give me your phone. Did you do something stupid like call the police?”
Will shook his head. “No, I didn’t call anyone.”
Lenny grabbed the phone, smirking. “I guess you’re notthatbright.”
The second man pulled Lenny aside. “Don’t let him talk his way out of this. You need to show him who’s in charge.”
Lenny seemed to consider this for a moment. “Yeah. You’re right. I’m not the kind of guy who lets people walk all over him.”
In that pause, Will leapt from the ground and ran toward the house, slamming the door shut behind him.
“Great,” Lenny said, turning to his companion. “Now I’m going to have to play hide and seek.”
“I’ll do it,” the man said, taking a step toward the house.
“No.” Lenny put up a hand. “I’ll take care of it.”
He started walking to the house, and the second guy turned around, arms crossed, facing the other direction.
Shoot. He might be able to see her if she didn’t stay down. Amanda pulled out her phone – there were messages from Jade – she couldn’t read those now. She sent her location and a message to Jade, Mike, and her dad. “911 – Lenny at the estate. Another guy here. Send help NOW.”
Just as she hit send, a series of gunshots rang out. She looked up, terrified to see Lenny shooting at the front door of the house.
The glass shattered, and the doorknob fell to the ground with a clank. Lenny reached a hand in and pulled the door free.
“Will, I just want to talk. C’mon buddy, where’d you go?”
There was no time to waste. Amanda saw that the guard was looking away. She made a mad dash for the back of the house, diving into a muddy marsh as she rounded the corner. She crawled through the mud until she reached the back door to the kitchen.
She was going in.
