Page 110 of Darkwater Lane

She looks disappointed by my answer. I don’t care. My only goal is to keep her distracted until the police get here. Plus, the more I learn, the more ammo I have to use against her when all of this is over.

“I know you, Gina.” The continued sound of my old name on her lips makes my skin crawl.

“You know nothing about me.” I bite out.

She laughs. “You don’t understand. During your trial, I watched you in that courtroom. How well you played the victim, made everyone believe you knew nothing about Melvin’s crimes. That you weren’t involved.”

“That’s because Iwasn’tinvolved.”

She ignores my outburst. “You gave me a look one day. It was during a sidebar, when your attorney was up arguing with the judge at the bench. You glanced around the courtroom and your eyes found mine and it was just…“ She pauses as if overcome with emotion.

She blows out a trembling breath and smiles. “You don’t understand. All my life, I’ve felt different than everyone around me. I thought maybe it was because I was an orphan, but even in college, when no one knew my history, I had trouble making friends andconnecting with others. There was something always missing. There were times I’d get so angry and I would just—” She cuts herself off, opening and closing her hands into fists.

“That day. That moment—when you looked at me and held my eyes for so long. You saw me. I felt this…connection between us. I knew right then that you were like me. We were the same. That part of me that no one else understood? You got it.”

She sounds rapturous, like she’s describing a moment of spiritual conversion. “That’s when I knew the truth about you—that you’d been the mastermind behind all those murders. That Melvin was your patsy—the same way Sam’s your patsy now. I knew right then and there that I was going to follow in your footsteps. That one day I would prove myself worthy of you.”

I stare at her, dumbstruck. I try to remember the moment she’s talking about, but the entire trial is a blur. I remember nothing like she’s describing. More than likely, I was staring into space, and she happened to be in my line of sight, and I didn’t realize it.

Madison’s expression gleams with fervor as she leans toward me. “All of this, the men I killed, setting Sam up, it was to prove to you that I’m ready to be your partner. I’m ready to fulfill that promise we made to each other back then.”

I’m so stunned by everything she’s saying that I almost miss the confession. It’s like a gut punch: not just her admitting to all the murders and trying to pin them on Sam, but that they were all for me. That somehow, I was her inspiration.

I feel sick. I never wanted any of this.

I have no idea what to say—how to respond. I look at Madison. There’s such naked desperation in her eyes. She’s laid herself bare before me, hungry for my approval. I’m struck by the familiarity of it. How many times have I seen that expression on my kids’ faces? The desire to impress when what they really wanted was just to be seen and loved. Cherished.

For a moment, all I see is this lonely little girl who lost herparents and just wanted someone in her life to take care of her, to understand her. The mother in me aches for her and mourns what she’s become.

“I’m sorry, Madison,” I say softly. “That’s not who I am. That’s not who I’ll ever be.”

“You are,” she cries, petulant. Reminding me how incredibly young she still is. “You’re Gina Royal.”

“I’m not.” I say it gently, the way I would to a child when explaining that Santa isn’t real, knowing that you’re breaking some part of them in the process.

She stares at me, waiting for me to take it back. I don’t. Her eyes flood with tears.

In the distance, I hear the sound of a boat engine catching. The wail of a siren cuts through the stillness. It won’t be long before the police arrive.

Madison hears it too and knows what it means. She shifts, sending the boat rocking. I grab at the gunwale, terrified she might really tip us over. Instead, she reaches into the bottom of the boat and lifts up the cinderblock—the one that’s tied to her ankle. “We could have been partners. True partners.” She sets her shoulders and glances toward the water.

With a jolt, I realize what she’s about to do.

I lower my finger to the trigger, training the gun on her. “Don’t do anything stupid, Madison,” I warn her.

She smiles a little at that. “What are you going to do? Shoot me? Prove me right that you’re a killer?”

I clench my teeth. If I shoot her and she falls, she might capsize the boat, pitching Sam into the water as well.

“If I can’t be your partner, at least I know he won’t be either,” she says, nodding toward Sam. “He’ll go down for my murder. You can try to tell everyone what happened out here, but no one’s going to believe you. The first time you marry a serial killer, it’s a mistake. The second time…?” She shrugs.

I realize she’s right. “If you care about me at all, Madison, you won’t do this.” I’m desperate, willing to say anything to get her to stop. I look wildly around the boat, searching for anything I can use to stop her.

“It’sbecauseI care about you so much, Gina. You deserve better than him. He’s not worthy of you. I thought I might be, but…” She trails off and shrugs mournfully.

“Madison, please—” I shift into a crouch, moving toward the stern where the rope is coiled, hoping maybe I can grab it. Even if she goes overboard, I can stop her from being dragged into the lake. I can cut the rope and save her.

She gives me one last sad smile. “Goodbye, Gina Royal.” With the cinderblock clutched in her arms, she jumps.

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