Page 59 of Seeking Justice

Was someone else here in the house?

She thought she had heard the creak of a floorboard earlier, and she’d tried to cover it up by wiggling her chair around. If it was Sam, she didn’t want Hazel to investigate.

It seemed to have worked as Hazel remained focused on her. But no one had come barging in. If that noise had been Sam and Lucy, Jo was sure they’d be in here right now. Probably just the wind.

But then she saw it, a shadow in the hall!

Someonewashere. But who?

Hopefully not Ricky, come to do his grandmother’s evil bidding.

Jo forced herself to keep Hazel engaged. The key was to keep her talking, to delay whatever end Hazel had planned.

“How many others, Hazel?” Jo asked, her voice steady despite the pounding of her heart.

Hazel let out a chilling laugh, a sound devoid of humanity. “Oh, many, dearie. So many.” There was a twisted pride in her voice.

There it was, another shadow in the hall. As she tried to focus her blurry gaze past Hazel, she saw Kevin poke his head out. Their eyes met, a silent conversation passing between them in mere seconds. Jo gave a subtle nod, signaling her readiness. But was it only Kevin here? He didn’t have his police gun. Would he be able to outmaneuver Hazel without a weapon?

She had to create a diversion.

Jo swallowed hard, pushing down the horror that threatened to overwhelm her. She subtly pulled the tablecloth, and the cup and saucer on it, toward her. “Did you have help with… all of this?”

Hazel’s face contorted into a sneer, “Help? You think I needed help? No, I managed perfectly on my own. Much more efficient than that Joseph Menda.” Her lips curled in disdain. “He’s a pompous ass, if you ask me.”

Menda was a known serial killer whom Jo had interviewed once in prison. She agreed with Hazel that the guy was a pompous ass. “Did you work with him?”

Hazel’s laugh echoed again in the cramped room. “Work with him? Please. I’m far more capable than he ever was.”

Using her shoulder, Jo nudged the teacup. It shattered on the floor.

Hazel snapped her attention back to Jo, who looked down at the shards of the teacup.

“That was my grandmother’s!” Hazel bent down to inspect the pieces.

Behind Hazel, Kevin quietly stepped into the room.

Jo, seizing the moment, threw her weight to one side, toppling her chair with a thud. She swung out her legs, aiming to kick Hazel to throw her off balance.

But Hazel reacted with alarming speed, the gun in her hand swiveling toward Kevin. Jo’s heart skipped a beat as she saw Hazel’s finger on the trigger.

Suddenly, in a blur of motion, a cast-iron frying pan soared through the air, striking Hazel in the chest with a resounding clang. The gun discharged, its deafening blast echoing through the room.

Jo, now sprawled on the floor, struggled to see the aftermath. Her view was blocked, her heart racing with fear and uncertainty.

Had Kevin been hit? Where had that frying pan come from?

The tension was palpable, a heavy silence falling over the room as the dust began to settle.

CHAPTERFORTY-TWO

Sam and Lucy were halfway to the door of the farmhouse when he heard the gunshot. They took off at a run, bursting through the door, Sam with his gun at the ready.

The sound of the gunshot still echoed in his ears, setting his nerves on edge. Lucy’s keen senses told her right where to go, and she didn’t hesitate to run down the hallway into a room on the left. Sam followed.

He didn’t know what he expected to see but certainly not this. The room was a bizarre tableau of giant stuffed animals seated at a table, their inanimate faces staring blankly. Stuffing floated through the air like snowflakes in a grotesque winter scene.

On the floor, Jo was sprawled, with Lucy hovering over her, frantically licking her face. Jo seemed shaken and dazed but unharmed. Bridget was cutting the zip ties that secured Jo to her chair.

---