Forever (33 page)

“Wh-what . . .” She forced herself to breath in and out slowly. “What . . . are you . . . talking about?”

“Do you really want to know? Say y-y-y-yes.” He sneered. “Never mind. I’m going to tell you, whether or not you want to know. Come. Sit down, and Uncle Eddie will tell you the story.”

To her horror, Annie felt her feet moving her across the room. She glanced at the woman sitting on the couch, but she seemed oblivious to everything. At a twitch of Eddie’s hand, Annie dropped to her knees before him.

“Well, let’s see . . . once upon a time, little Katie came home from school. Alas, you weren’t home. But
I
was. Oh, yes. I was home—and horny as hell.” Eddie licked his lips. “She was sweeter than honey.”

“You’re . . . Gary?”

“Bingo!” Eddie backhanded her across the mouth.

Too surprised to even cry out, Annie sprawled sideways and lay there dazed, as she tried to make sense of his words.
Eddie was Gary. Gary raped Kate
.

Eddie twisted a hand in her hair and yanked her upright. “Your darling husband was a failed experiment. You see, I possessed him, but I couldn’t overcome his inbred stupidity. It was a relief when I electrocuted the idiot.” He leaned forward and traced a forefinger along her jaw and down her neck. “My plan was delayed for a while, but the failure was worth it to have the thrill of playing with you again, my dear.” In a flash, he seized her by the throat and squeezed.

She’d sunk into a dark pool swimming with tiny, lighted tadpoles before he released her. Coughing out most of every breath she gasped in, a minute passed before she became aware he’d resumed his dreadful tale.

“. . . hadn’t found Jacob anyway. I couldn’t believe my luck when I found him so quickly after coming back this time. And how convenient of you to be working in that theater where I could so easily get the two of you together. You should have seen your face when—” He raised his foot and brought his leather-soled shoe down hard on her ankle. “Pay attention!”

She bit her lower lip in the effort to keep from screaming, but the metallic taste of blood only sharpened her senses. “Kate,” she moaned as the reality of her sister’s death hit her anew.

“Oh shut up. I put the little slut out of her misery. And believe me,” he said with glee, “by then, she was glad to go. Ahhh, just thinking about it’s got me hard again.” Unzipping his pants with his right hand, he twisted his left in Annie’s hair and forced her head forward.

* * *

Crying out, Tom tossed on the bed and rose halfway from the depths of sleep—enough to feel Max’s tongue lapping at his hand but not enough to respond. He heard the dog’s urgent whimpering before he sank again. When he resurfaced briefly a moment later, the dog was moaning and sobbing.

But dogs can’t
. . .

* * *

Although Julie had never been airsick before, she’d become queasy within minutes of take-off and spent the entire flight to St. Louis pale, clammy, and sipping ginger ale. She’d kept her eyes closed as much as possible, concentrating on the layover ahead, pushing back her dread of the second leg of the flight.

At dawn, she’d eaten a bagel in the L.A. airport. Now, at the same time she felt sick, she also felt hungry. The smells from the food court in this airport tempted her, but as she made her way to the restroom, she decided not to risk it.

Cool, wet paper towels held to her forehead and neck made her feel almost human again. With an hour and twenty minutes to kill before boarding the plane to Indianapolis, she decided to call Lindsay. She ordered a ginger ale at the bar and took her phone from her purse.

She’d noticed a voicemail alert yesterday but ignored it, assuming it was from Tom. Now, her curiosity urged her to check it. The second she heard her doctor’s voice she ended the call and laid the phone face down on the bar. If her doctor had called her personally, it wasn’t good news. Feeling faint, she regretted choosing to sit on a high bar stool. She pressed a hand to her lower abdomen, imagining the tumor there—huge and black and putrid.

Damn the nausea. Julie pushed away the glass of ginger ale and ordered a glass of syrah. With the wine in hand, she moved to a chair at one of the tables. She’d need something to lean on when she heard the diagnosis.

* * *

After Eddie came in Annie’s mouth, he aimed his loafer at the center of her chest and shoved her away hard. She slid backwards on the polished floor before falling back and hitting her head hard enough to make lightning flash behind her eyelids. Annie rolled to her side. As she struggled to breathe normally again, she stole a glance at the silent woman sitting on the couch.

“Don’t look to that old bag for help.” Eddie picked up a book from the chair-side table and sailed it toward the woman’s head. It slammed against her right ear, her head rebounded from the blow, but her only response was a blink. “Thanks to Patricia there taking it upon herself to come out of the closet too soon, Julie is flying back into the arms of our lover boy Tommy—literally.” He howled at his own wit.

Patricia
. Annie fought against the pain, trying to clear her mind to remember. Eddie had told her Julie and Patricia were lovers already. Eddie had lied. Tom told her not to believe anything he said. Maybe Eddie lied about everything. Maybe Kate—

“Give it up, already.” He was standing over her now. Looming over her. “She’s dead. D-E-A-D. But don’t worry, you’ll be joining her before long.” For emphasis, he kicked her in the stomach.

Annie couldn’t help screaming this time, and then she retched. She hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast, and the vomit was mostly bile—that and what Eddie had forced her to swallow. She relished the small victory in ridding herself of that. He made a sound of disgust. He grabbed her by the hair and pulled her over to sit before his chair again.

“You know,” he said, sitting down, “I had hoped to have a lot more fun with my little puppet show, but you people just don’t cooperate. Oh. I correct myself. You went along with the plan fairly well, but then
you
,
Annie, are stupid.” He reached down and jabbed a finger into her temple. “You don’t
think
, do you? I underestimated your sister, though. The
only
reason you aren’t at Tom’s cabin right this minute is because Kate wised up. So, of course, I had to make her pay for her interference.”

Eddie balled his right hand into a fist. Punctuating every syllable with a blow to Annie’s nose, he said, “You. Under. Stand. That. Don’t. You. Dear?” With a mew of distaste, he looked at her blood on his hand and then wiped it on the chair arm.

Oh, God, please. No more. Please.
Annie had been knocked flat again by Eddie’s last punch, but she pushed herself upright, fearing she’d choke on the blood pouring from her nose.
That would be like drowning
.

“And you wouldn’t want to do that
again
, would you?” Eddie asked. “You infuriated me, jumping in after that squalling brat of yours. I wasn’t ready to let you go yet.” He sat back, and examined his manicure for a moment.

Annie’s wooziness made it hard for her to follow all he was telling her, but in one brief moment of lucidity, it hit her. “You’re Elihu!”

“Bingo,” Eddie shouted, but Annie knew the routine and dodged the blow this time. When his hand caught only air, his mouth dropped open in surprise. Then he bared his teeth in a cadaverous smile. “Ooooo yes, do prolong your agony. I’ll enjoy it all the more.”

The blood dripped from her nose, and ran into her mouth, but she made no attempt to staunch it. She could not win this battle. There was no escape, no river in which to drown herself this time. Gradually, she became aware that Eddie was taunting her again.

“. . . that I watched you and that half-breed woodsy rutting on the ground like animals. I quickly grew bored with that. But oh, how I wanted the joy of watching Tom fuck you again. That’s one thing you’re both good at, I’ll give you that. And . . .
my dear
. . . you have learned a thing or two since you were—”

Through a fog of pain, Annie grasped one ray of hope. “I could go to Tom’s cabin, now.”

“
Tsk tsk tsk
.” Eddie shook his head. “Oh, sweet cheeks, as much as I was looking forward to Julie catching you and Tom in the act, it’s far too late for that now. Tom will never see you
or
his adoring little wifey again.”

Eddie turned to Patricia and roared, “Wake up, you whore.”

Patricia’s eyes closed briefly then opened. Hers were no longer the eyes of the dead, yet their spark of life had dimmed. She looked only at Eddie, giving no sign she was aware of Annie’s presence. Without looking, she fumbled in the purse at her side and pulled something from it.

Annie heart leapt at the sight of the handgun.
Yes, yes, shoot him
.

“Go to Julie’s house and wait for her,” Eddie told Patricia. “Kill her as soon as she arrives. And bring that brat of hers to me.” He waved his hand in dismissal. Patricia stood and stumbled out of the house.

Annie’s sobs followed her. Although the woman had been reduced to a zombie, having another human being in the house had been a measure of comfort, a reason to hope. Now, she was left alone with Eddie—or with whatever Eddie really was.

June 26, part two

A
phone was ringing somewhere, but Tom couldn’t think what to do about it. The ringing grew louder and louder and—he jerked upright, instantly wide-awake, and grabbed the phone. “Hello.”

“Dad, what took you so long to answer?”

“I was . . . outside . . . with Max.” He scanned the room, trying to remember when he’d last seen his dog? As Lindsay talked, he left the bedroom to search for him.

“I was calling to let you know I’m leaving for work early. One of the other girls is sick and has to leave. My boss asked me to fill in for her. I kind of felt obligated to say yes.”

“That’s nice,” Tom said absently as he walked through the rooms of the cabin. Where the heck was that dog?

“But
Dad
, now I won’t be there when Mom gets home. Do you think she’ll be upset?”

“No, I’ll tell her where you are, and she’ll understand. I bet she’ll call you at work.” Tom stared at the ruined lower half of the screen door, which Max had evidently burst through to get out. Tom stepped out onto the porch.

“Dad . . . something weird just happened.”

“Weird?” He turned all his attention to Lindsay.

“Yeah. I’m at the Estates gate, and Patricia just drove in, but she looked really weird. She was like
staring
straight-ahead with both hands pinned to the wheel. And you know how she’s always so perfect looking? Well, today she looked all messed up. Her hair was sticking up on one side and her makeup was . . . smeared or something. I don’t know . . . she looked freaky. How could she get back home before Mom? And after she freaked Mom out like that, how could she even
dare
come here? Should I go back to the house and tell her to stay away?”

“No!” Tom wasn’t sure why, but his pounding heart told him he had to get Lindsay away from the house. He forced a laugh. “You need to get to work. And besides, the woman you described sure doesn’t sound like Patricia. I think you must have had Mom on your mind and made a mistake, baby girl.”

“Yeah? Maybe you’re right. I’m really worried about Mom. Well, tell her I love her and I’m sorry I wasn’t there when she got home.”

“I will.”

Tom hung up the phone. Evidently, Patricia had flown home with Eddie. They’d both left Julie in California. But why?

He searched until he heard Max’s low, chesty growl from beneath the deck. Tom squatted to peer under it. “Hey boy, I guess you desperately needed out, huh? I’m sorry about that. It’s okay, I can fix the screen.” He extended a hand toward the dog. “Come, boy.”

The dog’s growl increased as he slunk back further under the cabin.

“What’s wrong, buddy? Come.” The dog didn’t budge. Tom got on his stomach and started to low-crawl toward him.

Eyes wild, Max bared his fangs.

Tom froze. “What the hell—”

With a final snarl, the dog tore out from his hiding place.

Tom backed out from under the deck. Max was already just a black speck running along the bank of the lake. “Okay, you crazy dog. Stay out here, then.”

Squinting against the sun’s glare, Tom headed back inside. He had a hell of a headache and a slew of problems he couldn’t concentrate on long enough to solve. Maybe a nap would help clear his mind.

* * *

Annie jerked back into consciousness to find Eddie staring at her. She was naked now, and the throbbing burn between her legs told her he’d raped her again.

“What a sight you are.” His tone was one of pity, but his smirk spoiled the effect. “How are you feeling, Annie? Does it hurt much to have your nose smeared all over your face like that?”

She didn’t react to his words. She was mentally checking her progress toward slipping this flesh cocoon.

“You know what would be fun?” He clapped his hands in delight. “Let’s call Tom. He’d be thrilled to know what we’re up to here. Don’t you think?”

Annie watched Eddie through her lashes, but for a second she couldn’t remember what the object in his hand was. Her eyes opened wide with hope when it came to her. He was calling someone to help her. Dial 911.
Oh, please. Dial 911.

* * *

Tom had stumbled back into the cabin, nearly blinded by the migraine. He made it as far as the sofa before he collapsed. When the phone rang again, he tried to ignore it, tried to burrow deeper into the warm, blackness of sleep, but without any thought of doing so he suddenly found himself standing in the kitchen with the receiver pressed to his ear.

“Hell-
O
, Tommy Boy!”

No response came to Tom’s mind, and even if it had, he didn’t think he could have spoken it. He felt paralyzed.

“Oh, yes, Tommy. You’re numb and dumb and in a moment you’ll wish you were deaf too. How’s the day going so far? Awfully sleepy, are you?”

Eddie’s laughter sliced at his ear like tiny razors.

“You’re wasting the day away in bed, when you should be doing so many things. Important things, like . . . oh, I don’t know, figuring out how to save the lives of your wife and daughter maybe? But that’s okay. Don’t bother. You can’t do anything to help them now. You
dropped the ball
, Tommy. You think you were in the wrong place at the wrong time, but you were exactly where I wanted you. And then, boyo . . . you gave into temptation.”