Kiss Me, Kill Me

low along a path camouflaged by neatly trimmed hedges, which would put her on the far side of the garage.

It took Lucy less than a minute to get into position. When she looked back, she couldn’t see Sean anywhere. She wondered how he’d disappeared so quickly.

Near where Lucy hid there was a side door leading into the house. She checked the knob; locked. She moved to the other side so she could watch the road and the door at the same time.

How long ago had she called Suzanne? Lucy looked at her phone. Only four minutes?

An NYPD car drove slowly past the house. Lucy froze, unsure if the officer would be able to see her. The car turned around in the cul-de-sac, then went back up the road.

If Whitney was watching, would she suspect that the cops were coming for her? Were the Barnetts in greater danger?

A taxi pulled up in front of the house a minute later. Wade Barnett got out and strode up the path.

“Wade.” Lucy turned toward him as he walked past her hiding spot.

He jumped. “Who are you?”

“Lucy Kincaid. Agent Madeaux is on her way.”

“No! Tell her to back off.” Wade rubbed his palms repeatedly on his slacks. His temples were damp with sweat.

“Don’t give Whitney what she wants. She’s dangerous and suicidal. She’ll kill your family, then you, and then herself.”

He shook his head. “She’ll kill Dennis if I don’t go in.”

“Give the police time to get into position. They have hostage negotiators who know how to handle situations like this.”

“No one can negotiate with that nutcase!”

“Shh!” Lucy glanced around. “Please trust me.”

“He’s my brother. He depends on me.”

“Sean is trying to get inside.”

“Sean Rogan? You’re with him?”

She nodded. “He knows what he’s doing. Trust him.”

Wade was torn.

The door opened behind Lucy. She reached for her gun, but didn’t draw when she saw Dennis. His head was bleeding and he was shaking. “Y-y-you have to c-come inside now,” he said. “P-please.” His eyes darted to the left. Lucy saw a female hand on his shoulder.

Wade pushed past Lucy and reached for his brother. Whitney peered over Dennis’s shoulder. She held a gun at his neck.

“You brought one of your girlfriends?” Whitney said, with a furious glare at Lucy.

“No, I don’t know who she is-”

Whitney’s eyes teared and she pulled Dennis back into the house. Behind her was a long, wide hall, a laundry room beyond, and a staircase to the right.

“You’re cheating on me! Again!”

“No, I’m not,” Wade said. He put his palms up. “It’s been over between us for a long time.”

No! Lucy wanted to scream. When engaged in conversation with Whitney, Wade needed to play along with her as long as possible. It would buy time.

“It’s not over!” Whitney screamed, and Dennis let out a yelp as her fingernails dug into his shoulder.

“Pretend!” Lucy ordered Wade through clenched teeth, hoping he understood.

“Where’d you pick up this little slut? In prison? Or is she a cop? You fucked a cop once, you told me.”

“I’m not a cop,” Lucy said. If Whitney felt threatened, it would make her even more unpredictable. Whitney had the gun, she was in charge. Whitney had to continue believing she was in complete control in order to keep her as calm and reasonable as possible. As reasonable as she could be, Lucy thought, which wasn’t comforting considering her history.

If Wade cooperated, Lucy might be able to talk their way out of this, or at least get Dennis to safety. If she could get him out of the house, Sean would have to rescue only Mrs. Barnett.

Lucy considered everything she knew about Whitney. She’d read her journal. She’d studied her artwork. Lucy understood Whitney better than Whitney understood herself. But the killer didn’t know that, and if Lucy remained calm and focused, she could use her knowledge to defuse the situation and give Sean and the police more time to get into place.

A hint of a shadow moved to her left. As Wade pleaded with Whitney, Lucy glanced up. Sean was on the roof.

“Let Dennis walk away and I’ll come in,” Wade said. He stepped forward. “Please, Whitney.”

Lucy held her breath, silently pleading for Whitney to let the terrified young man go.

Lucy heard a car door slam up the street. Then another.

Whitney heard it, too.

“Inside! Now!”

“Let Dennis go-”

“Now!” Whitney screamed.

“Just let him-”

“Get in get in get in!” She shook Dennis as she screamed.

Wade stepped through the doorway as Whitney backed up. Lucy reached out. “Don’t, Wade, please-” If he went in, he was as good as dead.

“You, too, you little bitch.”

“She’s not part of this,” Wade said.

Whitney ignored Wade. She glared at Lucy and put the gun to Dennis’s ear. He started crying.

Whitney pushed the barrel of the gun so hard into Dennis’s ear that the sight at the end cut his lobe, which started bleeding. Her finger was on the trigger.

“You don’t care about the idiot any more than I do,” Whitney said to Lucy.

“You’re not letting Dennis go if I walk in there?”

“No, but he can die now or he can die with everyone else.”

Time. It was the only thing Lucy had to work with.

She followed Wade inside.

Sean watched the scene below him. He knew she had no choice, but he didn’t want Lucy in that house.

She knows what she’s doing.

But Whitney was an unpredictable psycho. Sean crawled back up the steep tile roof, wet from the recent storms. The sky was overcast, and the wind whipped around him. The roof wasn’t nearly as steep as mountains Sean had scaled, but he didn’t have a safety harness. He slipped once and slid two feet before he caught the edge of a tile, which dug sharply into his fingers.

“Slow down, boy,” he admonished. If he fell and broke his neck he would be of no help to Lucy.

From the top, where two dormer windows led to the attic, Sean could see four police cars and two unmarked sedans up the street surrounding his GT. He didn’t see Suzanne in the mix, but had her ETA pegged for at least another ten minutes. He sent her a message.

Cops not being discreet-get them to back off until SWAT arrives. Whitney has gun. Has Lucy, Wade, and Dennis hostages on main level. Barnett mother’s whereabouts unknown. I’m going inside. Tell them I’m one of the good guys.

The window was locked. Sean rolled out his tools and picked up his glass-cutter. Being trained under two veterans-his brother Duke and Duke’s partner, JT Caruso-had given Sean a wealth of skills most civilians didn’t have.

He gently pushed in the glass at the bottom so he could pull it out in one piece. He doubted anyone downstairs would hear the breaking glass, but he wasn’t taking chances. He reached in and unlocked the window. It was stiff from disuse, but eventually it opened with a screech. Sean grimaced at the noise, slipped through, and listened. He heard nothing in the house below-no shouting, no gunshots, no one running up the stairs to confront him.