Page 106 of The Lost Bones
“The thing is, I don’t want to die. Especially not on your terms.” Mackenzie tightened her grip on the pipe, holding it in front of her. “Andrew, get out of here.”
“But you…”
She kept her eyes on Kai. “For fuck’s sake, Andrew, get out of here and get help.”
He faltered, then started for the stairs. But before Mackenzie could react, Kai grabbed him, spun him around and pressed a knife that she had slipped out of her pocket against his neck.
Shit.
“Drop the pipe, Mackenzie. Please.” For someone intent on killing everyone, her tone was serene and polite.
But Andrew was a tall man and Kai was a tiny woman. He tried to break free and shove his elbow into her gut. She twisted his arm at an unnatural angle until there was a crack. Then she kicked him in the back of the knee and he fell to the floor, wincing and groaning in pain, incapacitated.
A sick smile curled up her lips. “Drop the pipe.”
Mackenzie growled in frustration and released it. But complete psychosis had clouded Kai’s face. With one quick movement, she sank the blade into the side of Andrew’s neck.
Blood spurted out in arcs, splattering Mackenzie, who was frozen in shock. His face lost color. His body began to sag. The blood wouldn’t stop pouring. And then just like that, he went still.
Lifeless.
A throttled sound came out of the back of Mackenzie’s throat as Andrew’s blood slowly trickled and pooled around her feet, soaking them in stickiness.
Then another spike of adrenaline injected into her body, jolting her into action. She ran up the stairs with Kai right behind her. Reaching the top, she banged the door shut in Kai’s face. There was no latch. It could only be locked by a key, and she couldn’t see one.
No time.
Her heart thundering and brain frazzled, she ran like a madwoman through the house she had grown up in. The last time she was here was over twenty years ago, but she knew the way. The basement led to the back of the house. To get to the main door or the backyard, she had to go through the kitchen.
As she reached it, she registered the smell of gas. Then she heard something coming at her from behind. She ducked out of the way and Kai’s momentum caused her to collide with the dining table. She held the pipe in her hands now.
“You’re ruining everything, Mackenzie!” she howled, like a child throwing a tantrum.
She whipped the pipe in arcs. Mackenzie stooped and ducked to evade it, backing away as Kai kept coming at her. They were circling around the kitchen. That same darn kitchen. But this time things would be different.
This time she wasn’t scared. She had let go of fear.
She grabbed a chair, hoisted it up and threw it at Kai. Kai yelped, tripping back and letting the pipe slip from her grip. Mackenzie channelled all her rage. She threw a punch across Kai’s jaw and then another into her stomach.
But Kai knew some tricks too. She kicked Mackenzie in the soft portion above the knee, making her fall. As Mackenzie grabbed the edge of the kitchen counter to pull herself up, Kai twisted her around and looped her arm around her neck, trying to cut off the circulation.
Blood pooled in Mackenzie’s face, making it bloat and puff. She writhed in Kai’s grip, flapping her arms helplessly. Then, summoning all her strength, she lifted Kai over her back, hurling her onto the dining table.
Kai’s neck landed on the edge of the table. There was a loud crack, and the table buckled. Her still body slid down it and landed on the floor, lying face down.
Exactly where Mackenzie had found a body on that fateful night over twenty years ago.
FIFTY-THREE
The adrenaline began to recede. The sudden stillness was grating to the soul. Mackenzie looked around the kitchen and then at Kai’s body. With her own body tender and aching, she managed to limp to the basement.
Seeing Andrew lying motionless made her throat close. She was exhausted. She kneeled next to him and pressed her fingers into his neck, with the tiny hope of finding a thready pulse. But he was gone.
A boy had a lost a father. She had lost a friend. The price of resolution was too high and unfair. It was mind-boggling. She should have gotten used to it now. Used to the soul-shredding losses. Used to lives changing shape for the worse. Used to the scrapes and bruises that were inflicted every day.
The world told her to be strong. Being strong would make everything more bearable. But when she stared at her friend’s paling face and hollow eyes, she realized she didn’t fully understand the meaning of that word.
She closed his eyes and took out their letters from the box. She didn’t open Andrew’s. There was only one person who had a right to his last words.
