Galigani tsked. “That would have been easy for you to plant. What with her being your neighbor and all.”
“The handyman in 101 must like you a lot, huh, KelliAnn?” I winked. “He let you into Jennifer’s place, didn’t he?”
KelliAnn snarled. “Jennifer is an ungrateful bitch. She was unemployed and pitiful when she moved here. I asked Michelle to hire her, as a favor to me, thinking Jennifer would be a good little spy. I knew Michelle and Brad had a racket going on, but I didn’t know what.”
Galigani scratched his head. “Your plan backfired. Brad fell for Jennifer.”
KelliAnn swung her hair, trying to appear nonchalant. “Please, I didn’t care about that.”
“You cared about him enough to lure his child into a lake.”
KelliAnn took a step back from me, paling. Her expression told me I had hit the nail on the head.
“You didn’t think anybody knew about that, did you?” I asked. “Svetlana confided in Jennifer that she thought someone had lured her little girl, Penny, into the lake. The way I figure it is, you ran into Svetlana and Penny, or maybe you were following them like you did George, and when you saw an opportunity, you lured Penny-”
“Or just plain grabbed her and drowned her,” Galigani said from the couch.
KelliAnn gasped, then abruptly covered her mouth.
“You must be really sick, lady,” Galigani continued. “You couldn’t stand the thought of Brad being with anyone else, much less having a child with her. You get rid of the kid, hoping Brad would blame Svetlana for negligence- that’s one way to ruin a marriage. But instead of rushing into your arms, Brad finds comfort in your sister.”
“You have no proof,” KelliAnn said, her eyes flaring.
“George went to Svetlana for help,” I said. “He knew you were following him. You didn’t find the bracelet in my cars, so maybe you figured I had given it to George. One day at the pier, you cut me off in Michelle’s Mercedes. George saw you and ran. When he told Svetlana, she confronted you, is that right? She had it all pieced together. You killed Svetlana, her little girl, her ex-husband, and your own sister.”
Galigani stood. “Then you pointed the police toward Jennifer. What better motive? She kills her ex-lover and his wife, then kills her boss. Everyone has a motive to kill their boss.”
“The other day you were at Michelle’s with Rich.”
KelliAnn’s eyes grew wide. “How do you know-”
“This what you were looking for?” I pulled out the bracelet from my pocket.
She impulsively reached out to grab it. I closed my fist around it and tucked it safely away into my pocket. Now it was my turn to smile. KelliAnn stared at me, her mouth pressing into a thin line.
“I thought Rich might have been looking for the business ledgers I found. But now I get it. He’s the one who helped you get rid of Brad’s body.”
KelliAnn’s eyes darted back and forth, landing on the side table next to Galigani. On the table was a heavy lamp and a small jade phone.
“I overheard Rich say something about a fight,” I continued. “You fought with Brad. He didn’t want you romantically. You got upset, found George’s gun, and killed him. You needed help with the cleanup, right? Rich was willing to help. Why not? With Brad out of the way, he could buffalo Michelle, Svetlana, and Mrs. Avery about the business profits and pocket more money. And you, of course, would keep quiet about all of it. If he turned you in, you’d tell the police about the drug operation. Ruin his game.”
Galigani said, “Rich probably hadn’t factored in that you’d totally lose control and kill Michelle and Svetlana, too. Who would have been next? Rich? George? Only now they’re safe behind bars.”
“What I don’t understand is how you could kill your own sister,” I said.
KelliAnn’s face turned as red as her hair. “My sister? Yeah, right. She didn’t care about me. My dad’s the only one who really loved me,” she said. “My mother passed away when I was fourteen. I was sent to live with Dad and that awful woman and Michelle. Michelle always wanted a sister, and I guess, at that age, she didn’t realize the implications. She didn’t. .” KelliAnn moved toward the mantel and reflected on a ceramic vase. “I was her father’s child and we were only a few years apart. Michelle didn’t realize that that meant her father had been living with my mother while he told Michelle and her mother that he was away on business trips. He was really living a double life.”
“Rough,” Galigani said, sidestepping the coffee table and squaring himself off with KelliAnn.
KelliAnn closed her eyes, lost in the past. “He was a commercial airline pilot. I guess my mom and I were the ‘other port’ for him. It’s okay. I forgave him. I loved him. The bracelet was from him. He engraved it for me, with BERRY, because of my ‘berry berry red hair,’ like he used to say. I never took it off.” Tears streamed down her face. “He did his best to take care of me, even though it ruined his other marriage and, eventually, his relationship with Michelle.”
Galigani surprised me by saying, “The
“Michelle and her mom never really accepted me. I see that now,” KelliAnn said. “At the time I didn’t. Something like that is difficult to explain to a fourteen-year-old whose mother has just passed away. Yes, I was the redheaded stepchild, quite literally. They tried to send me to the same school as Michelle. Your school,” she spat, eyeing me contemptuously. “It was obvious that I didn’t fit in there. And wouldn’t. You know how that school was with ‘problem’ children.’ ”
“I remember you were there only a short time.”
“Yes,” KelliAnn said, gripping the ceramic vase. “I was sent to a ‘special needs’ school.” She let out a blood- curdling scream and hurled the vase at Galigani’s head.
He ducked and it smashed against the back wall. I dove behind the sofa. KelliAnn continued to scream as she grabbed the lamp next, knocking the phone off the table. I’m sure she would have loved to peg me with it but decided Galigani in the open room was a better bet. She swung the lamp from its cord in a wide circle. Galigani dodged her.
I surfaced from behind the couch long enough to grab the phone.
No dial tone.
The cord had fallen out the back. I jammed the cord in place as KelliAnn closed in on Galigani. “I’m
I watched in horror as KelliAnn swung the lamp again and this time hit Galigani square in the chin. He stumbled back and hit the wall dazed. She changed her grip from the cord to the base of the lamp. I dropped the phone and seized the moment to charge her. She raised the lamp above her head ready to smash Galigani just as I tackled her from behind.
She crumpled beneath me, taking the lamp down with her. It broke in several pieces, leaving KelliAnn with an ugly jagged piece in her hand. She rolled me off her quickly and waved the piece near my face.
Galigani regained himself and grabbed KelliAnn’s hair. This pulled her off me long enough for me to retreat to the phone. I dialed 9-1-1.
Even though Galigani had her by the hair, KelliAnn was still swinging and, because she was on the ground, found his weak spot. She was going for his groin but missed and hit his right leg, which was still fresh from surgery. Galigani went down like a rag doll.
The 9-1-1 operator came on the line, although it was difficult to hear because KelliAnn was laughing hysterically. To my terror, she was staring at Galigani’s exposed ankle holster.
Adrenaline shot through my body with a force I’ve never felt before, and with what seemed like supernatural strength, I dove right for KelliAnn.
If she got to Galigani’s gun, I was a dead woman.
Laurie’s face flashed in my mind and I hardly realized I was screaming and crying as I descended onto KelliAnn, smashing her nose with my elbow.
She recoiled, momentarily dazed, her hands covering her bleeding nose. I fumbled for Galigani’s gun but perhaps he mistook me for her, or maybe instinct took over, because he scissored my hand between his ankles.
I drew back, which gave KelliAnn the opportunity to kick me in the ribs. Winded and in excruciating pain, I doubled over.
She took advantage of this and grabbed my head, wrapping her fingers into my hair. This really pissed me off because recently it seemed my hair was falling out left and right.
