Lindsay,” I gasp.
My best friend of over fifteen years raises her blue eyes to look at me. She’s got a small pistol in her hand, and she’s aiming it at Noah’s head. The momentary relief I feel at the realization that she is still alive is overwhelmed by disbelief at what I’m seeing.
“Hello, Claire.” She flashes me the smile that made every guy she met fall in love with her. “Welcome back.”
My head is filled with too many questions. I don’t know which one to ask first. I open my mouth and finally blurt out, “But you’re dead!”
Lindsay waves her hand. “Those rumors are highly exaggerated.” “But you ate the deadly nightshade!” I cry.
She clucks her tongue. “I told you those were blueberries, Claire. I know the difference—my mother used to grow them. You should have tried one. They were quite tasty.”
“But… but Warner said…” I look over at Warner, still gripping the rifle. I finally get it. “He just told us you were dead. You were fine all along.”
“Bingo!” Her smile widens. “It was quite a performance, wasn’t it? I think I missed my calling as an actress.”
“We watched YouTube videos of people having seizures as research,” Warner adds. “And I thought my chest compressions looked very realistic. I didn’t hurt you too badly, did I, babe?”
Lindsay shakes her head. “Not at all.”
Noah lifts his head just enough that I can see his hazel eyes. He shakes his head ever so slightly.
“You… you killed Jack?” I whisper.
“No.” She nods at Warner. “He killed Jack. And the big gentleman who used to own the cabin. But I killed Michelle. And I’m going to kill you.”
It feels like somebody knocked all the wind out of me. Noah’s face has gone completely white. This can’t be happening. Lindsay is my best friend. How could she do this to me? And why?
“Why are you doing this?” I whimper.
Lindsay beams at me. She still looks so pretty, even when she’s pointing a gun at my husband. “That’s the best part. I’m going to let Noah tell you.”
I frown. “Noah?”
Noah drops his face into his hands. “I’m so sorry, Claire. I told you there was a woman that I…”
My mouth falls open. I finally get it. Lindsay, my best friend, was the woman he kissed. I was screwing around with his best friend, so this was the ultimate revenge. But he never went through with it.
“He used me.” The smile drops off Lindsay’s face as she hits him in the back of the head with her gun. He flinches but doesn’t make a sound. “He tried to use me to get back at you for the disgusting thing you did with Jack.” She grimaces. “Both of you are horrible people.”
“Lindsay,” Noah murmurs, “that’s not what happened…”
“Shut the fuck up, Noah,” she snaps. She turns back to look at me. “You had it all. You had a great life with a perfect husband. If I knew you were going to screw it up, I never would’ve bothered to get rid of Ted.”
“Ted…” It takes me a moment to realize what she’s talking about. Ted
—my boyfriend during my sophomore year. The one who drowned over the summer. “Oh my God, Lindsay, you didn’t…”
Her eyes widen. “He deserved it. He was an awful person, Claire. He would have betrayed you again and again. I had to do it to save you.”
I cover my mouth, unable to believe what I’m hearing. Lindsay killed Ted all those years ago. Because of me.
I had no idea what she was capable of.
But now I know. She’s got a gun in her hand and it’s clear she intends to use it. She’s going to kill us. I’m never going to make it home. I’m never going to see Emma and Aiden again. They’re going to grow up without us.
My eyes meet Noah’s for a split second. This might be one of the last times I see him. Last night with him… It was wonderful. I made a terrible mistake when I slept with Jack. I should never have done it. I should have tried to work things out with Noah first.
And now I’m paying the ultimate price.
“Lindsay,” Noah says quietly. “You’re making a big mistake. You don’t want to do this. You’ll go to jail for the rest of your life.”
“No, I don’t think she will,” Warner speaks up. I had nearly forgotten he was standing behind me until I hear his baritone. “We’ve got the perfect alibi. I’d really love for you to hear it.”
I feel sick. I don’t want to hear anything this man has to say, but maybe if he keeps talking, we can figure out a way to get out of this.
“So here’s what we’ll tell the police…” He nods at Noah. “Noah here discovered his wife was cheating on him with his best friend. He flew into a horrible, jealous rage. Then… he killed everyone in the room, including himself. Fortunately, Lindsay and I were out for a walk when it happened, and we came back just in time to see the carnage.”
Noah’s face blanches. “You’re not really…”
Lindsay cocks her head to the side. “Sad, isn’t it? Your children will grow up without parents and also thinking their father was a crazy murderer.” She shrugs. “But what’s the difference? It’s not like either of you cared about the fact that you were ripping apart your family. Emma begged you to stay home, but you came here anyway.”
I flinch at the memory of Emma’s small face looking up at me, pleading with me not to go on this trip. If only I had listened to her. I could be with my children right now…
Noah’s right hand balls into a fist. He looks like he wants to hit one or both of them. At this point, maybe he should. They’re going to kill us anyway. We may as well go out swinging.
“There’s only one little detail,” Lindsay says.
She raises the gun and points it directly at Noah’s skull. I squeeze my eyes shut just as I hear a gunshot. No. No. This isn’t happening.
I’m terrified to open my eyes and discover my husband lying on the sofa, a bullet hole in his head. I crack them open, and Noah is still sitting up. It doesn’t appear he’s been shot in the head. He looks fine.
Then I hear a gurgling sound coming from the ground. I look down— Warner on the ground, gripping his neck, which is gushing blood. I stare down at him, my heart pounding. What just happened?
“I am so sorry, sweetie.” Lindsay is standing over him, her brows knitted together. “But your story was just too complicated. And the police
have your fingerprints on file. I just couldn’t take the risk of being associated with you.”
Warner coughs up blood. He looks like he’s trying to say something, but he can’t.
“Two people can’t keep a secret,” she says. “Not unless one of them is dead. It’s just a fact. I always work alone.”
I watch in horror as Warner’s eyes roll up in their sockets. He’s dead.
She just killed him.
“So,” Lindsay says briskly. She seems utterly unconcerned that she just killed a man, and that chills me. Who is this woman? I thought I knew her better than anyone else. “Here’s the deal. I met Warner on a dating site, and my bad, he turned out to be a psychopath. He killed all of us, but I managed to survive by playing dead.” She smiles benevolently. “That’s your gift if you behave yourselves and don’t try anything funny.”
Try anything funny? What am I supposed to do? She’s got the gun. Of course, Warner dropped his rifle on the ground, but Lindsay knows better than anyone that I would have no idea what to do with that thing. I doubt Noah does either. Except…
Where’s that Swiss Army knife?
I see Noah’s right hand is in his pocket now. Lindsay hasn’t seemed to notice. Does he have the knife in there? If he has it, we’ve got a chance. If he doesn’t… well…
“So,” Lindsay says, “which one of you would like to go first?” Oh God. Please let Noah have that knife…
I take a breath, stalling for time. “Lindsay, you’ve got to understand, what I did with Jack… It just happened. I didn’t mean for it to happen.”
“Right.” She snorts. “That’s the same thing my father said.”
“Your father was an asshole,” I say. She jerks her head back, but I push on. “I remember when he died, we stayed up all night talking about him. Do you remember that?”
Lindsay sneers. “It was a long time ago,”
“Well, I remember.” I look her in the eyes. “You told me about how badly he treated your mother. How he was never there for your family. That you always felt like you weren’t good enough for him.”
Lindsay lowers her gun a millimeter. “Yeah, well…”
“You and I…” I swallow hard. “We were always there for each other. Every time I needed you, you were there for me, Lindsay. I mean, you were my maid of honor. You’re my kids’ godmother. When I thought you were dead…”
She looks at me for a moment, her eyebrows knitting together. “When you thought I died and you wanted to stay behind, I almost couldn’t go through with it. I… I honestly didn’t think you would care enough.”
“What are you talking about? Of course I care!”
As the words are coming out of my mouth, I realize how much I mean them. When I thought Lindsay was dead, it was like my whole world was falling apart. Clearly, she has much deeper issues than I ever thought possible. I mean, I always knew she was a little crazy. But I never suspected she could be capable of this.
Part of me still doesn’t believe it.
“Lindsay,” I choke out. “We can figure this out. I’ll do whatever it takes to get you out of this.”
Of course, there isn’t really a way out of it. Three people are dead. But Lindsay’s face softens and she lowers her gun. I let out a breath. “I don’t want to kill you, Claire.” She shakes her head. “I really don’t. But you have to understand…” She lifts her eyes. “You know too much. I can’t trust you to keep my secrets.”
And then she starts to raise the gun again. Oh my God. This is really happening. In a second, I’m going to be joining Warner on the floor.
My eyes flutter shut, bracing myself. But a split second later, I hear Lindsay scream, and my eyes fly open. Noah is behind her, and his Swiss Army knife is sticking out of her right shoulder. The sleeve of her pink T- shirt quickly darkens with blood as the gun tumbles to the floor.
“Claire!” Noah snaps at me. “Get the gun! Now!”
I know what he’s telling me to do. I’ve got to pick up the gun. But I feel like I’m in a trance. I can’t move. “But…”
“Claire! Get! The! Gun!”
His shouts snap me out of my trance. I scramble for the gun on the floor, although I’ve never held a gun before and I’m not entirely sure how to. I’m only vaguely sure the barrel isn’t pointed in my direction.
Lindsay sinks to the ground as the crimson stain on her T-shirt continues to grow. I try to hold the gun steady, but my hands won’t stop
shaking.
“Claire,” she croaks. “Put the gun down. I know you’re not going to shoot me.”
Noah glares at her. He’s got the Swiss Army knife in his right hand and it’s slick with her blood. “Claire might not.” He firmly pulls the gun from my hands, and I let him. “But I sure would.”
I look over at him. He’s got Lindsay’s gun and he’s pointing it at her. His hands are surprisingly steady, considering I’ve never seen him aim a gun before. I believe he would shoot her. He would do what he has to do to defend us both. After all, he promised me he would get us home.
“Are you okay with handling that?” I ask quietly.
Noah nods briskly. “I can handle it. Just get away from her.”
I feel sick as I look down at my former best friend, lying on the ground of the cabin. Her face is the color of a sheet. I don’t know if she’s going to make it through this. I’m not sure if I hope she does or doesn’t. She wipes her forehead and smears blood all over her hair
“I’m sorry, Claire,” she whispers.
Noah puts his hand on my shoulder. He gently turns me away from Lindsay so I don’t have to see the life drain out of her.
