Page 78 of The Drowned Woman
Forty-Eight
The footsteps above Leah faded away without anyone coming near to the door. She returned to Risa, pulled the hood off her head, and crouched down beside her. “Risa. It’s Jack. It has to be.”
“No.” Her face creased in confusion. “No, it can’t be. He loves me, he’s helped me—”
“Think. He’s a chemist, easy access to toxins, knows exactly how much to give you to make you sick and dependent on him. He’s gotten you to move away from your friends in New York—”
“No. That was my idea.”
“He planted it, I’m certain. He’s isolated you from everyone, kept you from traveling and doing the work you love, and who else would have easy access to your computer files and all your new assignments?” Risa’s eyes were tearing up but with her hands still restrained, Leah had to wipe her tears for her. “I’m sorry. But it’s him.”
“Jack killed Trudy?” Her voice trembled.
“He has a key to the Falconer, right? And Trudy knew him, wouldn’t think twice about seeing him up on your floor or letting him get close. He knew about the childproof locks and how to entice Walt out, frame him for Trudy’s murder.”
“But—why kill Cliff?”
“I think he was angry about Cliff spying on you. Plus, it helped him to frame Dom. Jack knew he had to get rid of Dom and he had to establish an alibi for himself, but he also knew that nicotine has a short half-life and quick onset. So he knocked you out with the GHB, went to Dom’s hotel, grabbed him and Cliff, and set up the camera in the car.”
“It couldn’t be Jack. No, I don’t believe it.”
“He’s a chemist, Risa. He would know about nicotine poisoning, have access to all sorts of other toxins, even know how to make GHB.”
“No!” Risa’s voice rose as she grasped for one final lifeline. “No. It’s not Jack. You were there with both of us when the video came in.”
“Cliff was killed hours before we saw the video. I think maybe Jack had the message with the video scheduled to send at a certain time. Then he made sure I was there to witness its arrival. It wasn’t just you, he had us all fooled.”
Risa sniffed, and fell against Leah’s arms as if finally surrendering to the truth. “I thought I loved him.”
“You loved the man he pretended to be, the man he wanted you to see. It’s not your fault.”
“Yes, it is.” She pulled back. “How many people did he kill because of me? How many innocent lives am I responsible for?”
“Zero.” Leah kept her tone firm. “This is not your fault.”
“What do we do?” Risa asked.
“We play to his weakness, just like we planned. But I need you to be strong, Risa. Can you do that? And face him?” Risa nodded, sniffed, rubbed her cheek against her collar. The sound of a door slamming and footsteps sounded from upstairs. This time Leah heard only one man’s steps.
“I can do it. Put the hood back on,” Risa said.
“We’re going to get out of here, Risa. Tell him the truth. Tell him that you know. Don’t try to pretend. Be honest with him, shout his name as soon as he opens the door. Maybe he’ll drop his guard, rush right into our trap.”
The footsteps grew closer. Leah crossed back to her position beside the stairs, fumbling to find the loose end of the paracord. The door above opened.
“Jack! Jack, let me out right now! I know it’s you!” Risa’s shouts echoed from the cement walls.
Light spilled in through the open door and Leah spied the paracord. The man at the top hesitated for a moment.
“Jack! I know what you’ve done!”
The man sprinted down the steps and Leah jerked the cord taut just as his front foot landed and his back foot was raised. The force of his body striking it almost tore it from her hands. Then he was flying, twisted, tumbling, arms flailing to grab hold of the railing. He landed on the floor with a thud.
“Run, Leah,” Risa called. “Hurry!”
Leah didn’t need to wait to be told. She cautiously skirted Jack’s body—he wasn’t dead, was moaning and struggling to push himself up. She reached the first step and was pushing off for the next one when a jolt of electricity hit her, surging through every muscle.
The pain stole her breath. Inside her head she was screaming even though she couldn’t make a sound. She felt Jack’s hand grip her ankle. Then the pain stopped, and her body went limp, falling against the concrete floor. She lay there gasping. Jack stood over her, holding the stun gun in one hand, wrapping his other arm around his ribs.
