“It’s a mess,” Holly said. “The killer dryer, the parents. The contract. No one was going to know Karl’s part in it all. No one would have known if you hadn’t butted in.”
She reached into her purse and Casey leapt forward. Holly spun away, behind Eric, and pressed a tiny pearl- handled gun hard against his temple.
Casey froze, her hands up. “Holly, don’t.”
“Don’t? Don’t?” She laughed, a high, frightening screech. “Karl came home tonight. Said he found you in his office. Said you’d discovered the dead boy, and were going to reveal his part in it.”
“We don’t know his part.”
“Bullshit. You know it very well. He said you’d figured it out.”
Eric’s mouth had fallen open, and he breathed heavily through it. Casey met his eyes. Hang in there.
There was no way Casey could get to Holly in time to keep her from shooting. Eric didn’t have a chance if she pulled the trigger. His head would be gone.
“Holly,” Casey said. “We’re not going to tell anyone.”
Holly snorted.
“Look at me, Holly. Do I look like someone who can go to the police? What do you think they’d say to me if I tried telling them that story? They wouldn’t care. All they care about right now is nailing me for the dead guy. And all I care about is getting out of here. I don’t want to stick around this town. I don’t want any more to do with it.”
Holly clenched her jaw. “But what about him?” She shoved the gun against Eric’s head, forcing him to the right.
“Karl’s his dad. Why would he do something to hurt him?”
“Oh, come on. We all know what Eric thinks of his dad. He left town to get away from him.”
“Sure. But he also came back. He has an office at HomeMaker. Right next to his father’s.”
Holly’s mouth twitched.
“He’s not going to tell, Holly.”
Eric’s eyes stayed on Casey as she inched forward. Casey willed him to remain calm. To watch for a cue, should she have an opening to go after Holly.
“Don’t move.”
Casey froze as another figure filled the doorway.
Holly gasped. “Thomas?”
He took in the sight of her with Eric, and lifted his own gun, pointing it at Casey. “You killed Bone.”
Casey took a slow breath through her mouth. “I didn’t mean to.”
“Doesn’t matter.” He stared at her coldly. “You realize what this means?”
He didn’t mean that she was wanted for murder. “They’ll be coming after you, Thomas.”
“I’ve cost them too much now. Even if I pay them back it won’t matter. I might as well have you kill me, too.”
Two guns. Two crazy people. Casey didn’t like the odds.
“I was never in this town for you, Thomas,” she said. “It was never about that.”
“It doesn’t matter anymore. Karl doesn’t have the money to give me, anyway. There’s no way I can get them what they want.”
Holly’s eyes narrowed. “What are you talking about?”
Thomas gave a short laugh. “He didn’t tell you, did he, sweetheart? Karl’s broke. He’s got nothing. Not even spare change to get the mob off my back. Some trouble at the factory, and he was using personal money to bail himself out.”
Holly’s mouth closed, her lips almost disappearing as she clenched her jaw. Karl apparently hadn’t told her that part of the mess.
Thomas kept the gun on Casey. “Holly? What are you doing here?”
She shook her head. “It’s over. It’s really over. I did what I could. I thought…”
Casey swallowed. “You thought with Ellen gone your secret—Karl’s secret—would be safe. You’d go back to your old life and everything would be fine. Karl would move on to another job somewhere else, and you could play the role you’re best at.”
“A rich man’s wife,” Holly said. “It’s all I ever wanted to be.”
Eric’s eyes sparked, then went flat. His hands clenched into fists by his sides.
“How did she know?” Casey asked. “How did Ellen ever find out?”
Holly’s lips quivered, and her voice dropped to a whisper. “I thought we were friends…”
“So you told her Karl’s secret. That he’d known there was a problem with the dryer latches, but he didn’t change them.”
“I was scared. Worried. I thought Ellen cared about me.”
Casey nodded. “But she cared more about the boy.”
“And the other people at HomeMaker. Thought they should have their jobs back.” Tears streamed down Holly’s cheeks now, and snot shone on the end of her nose. She began to shake, and her grip on the gun tightened. “She couldn’t see that the factory was finished. Karl didn’t need to be exposed. No matter what he’d done, it was over. If HomeMaker hadn’t agreed to shut down the boy’s family would’ve brought a lawsuit against the company, against Karl, and nothing would be able to repair the damage. At least this way the workers get a severance package. And they keep their reputations…” She rubbed her nose on Eric’s shoulder, keeping the gun in place.
Casey glanced at Thomas. He was staring at Holly, his face filled with disbelief. “You killed Ellen?”
She raised swollen eyes to him. “I had to, Thomas. I had to.”
With a primal cry Eric thrust his arms upward, knocking Holly’s hand away from his head. The gun went off, and plaster showered the room. Casey snapped her foot at Thomas’ hand, knocking his gun to the floor, where it skidded against the wall. He reached for it, and she leapt on him, kicking the gun out of range at the same time she wrenched his arm behind his back, pinning him face-down.
Eric had Holly against the wall, but hadn’t been able to dislodge the gun from her fingers. She was turning her wrist, pointing the gun at his head. Casey rolled off Thomas and snatched up his gun, training it on Holly.
“Holly, freeze!”
Holly’s knuckles were white as she gripped the gun, and she didn’t stop the slow arc toward Eric’s head. Casey jumped across the room and threw an uppercut at Holly’s arm, sending both guns and Eric flying. Eric regained his balance and dove back toward Holly, knocking her to the ground, squeezing his hands around her throat. She gasped for breath, her eyes popping.
“Eric, stop!” Casey wrapped her arms around his chest, locking her hands together, and pulled back. His grip loosened, and they fell backward, Eric landing on top of her. Holly turned onto her stomach, retching, and Eric ripped himself from Casey’s grasp, lurching toward Holly again. Casey grabbed the waistband of his jeans, holding him back.
“Everybody freeze.” Thomas was on his feet, breathing hard, Holly’s gun in his hand. “Don’t. Move.” With his free hand he pulled a phone out of his pocket.
Casey eased upward, onto her knees, and Thomas placed his gun a foot from Eric’s head, his eyes not leaving Casey’s face.
“Yes, hello,” he said into his phone. “The people you’re looking for? They’re at the theater. I have to go.” He closed the phone and shoved it back into his pocket. “Now let’s all just play nice until they get here.”
Holly reared upward, the back of her head connecting with Eric’s face, blood splattering across her shirt and Eric’s chin. Holly twisted around to face him, her teeth bared, and Eric launched himself out of Casey’s grasp, grabbing Holly’s hair and pounding her head against the floor.
“Stop!” Thomas screamed. He raised the gun toward Eric.
Casey leaned on her left hand and swung her right foot, sweeping Thomas off his feet. His arm slammed against the floor and the gun discharged, the sound echoing in the room. Blood flew everywhere and Eric jerked to a stop, falling back hard onto the floor. Casey leapt to her feet and grabbed the gun from Thomas, throwing it out into the hallway.
She dropped beside Eric, her hands exploring his body, searching for the wound. “Eric. Eric, oh, God, I’m sorry. Where is it?”
He grasped her hands. “It’s not me.”
