Page 71 of Fierce Hope
Jade turned the lock and pulled the door open. Sarah stumbled inside, snow clinging to her hair, eyes red-rimmed and wild with fear. “Chad’s out—he’s out of jail. I … I swear he’s following me. I saw him outside my place and—” Her voice hitched.
Jade locked the door behind them and moved to steady her, pressing a comforting hand to her shoulder. “It’s okay, calm down. We can help. DJ, call 911?—”
Sarah jerked away, half-lurching behind Jade. Before Jade could react, Sarah’s hand dipped into her coat pocket and emerged gripping a handgun. Time slowed. Horror pulsed in her veins.
“Phone down, DJ. Now,” Sarah ordered, her voice no longer trembling. She kept the gun’s muzzle leveled roughly in DJ’s direction, though her gaze darted between them. “I’m sorry. I just—just do it.”
DJ froze, phone half-raised. Jade lifted a placating hand, stepping between Sarah and DJ without fully blocking his lineof sight. The fear in Sarah’s eyes looked borderline manic, as though she’d reached some desperate conclusion.
Jade’s mind raced.Sarah, with a gun? Chad out of jail? None of this makes sense.She drew a shaky breath. “Sarah, put that down. We can call for help. You said Chad’s following you?—”
But Sarah shook her head wildly. “No. No police,” she choked out.
Jade swallowed, adrenaline spiking, panic clawing at her chest. If only Deke weren’t gone. If only?—
“I can’t—I need you both to come with me, okay?” Sarah begged, voice cracking. “Just ... trust me, Jade.”
Jade’s mouth went dry, her heart pounding.
Sarah lifted the gun a notch higher.
Though the woman still radiated brittle energy, her expression shifted from fear to determination in a heartbeat.
Expression flat, she stared Jade down. “Here’s how this is going to go?—”
38
“You’re goingto do what I say, and this will all be okay. Great, even.” Sarah’s voice came through unsteady but determined. She remained near the couch, pistol angled toward Jade and DJ, her knuckles bloodless against the dark handle. “I’ll make this super easy. No cops. No heroics. And we all get rich.”
Jade kept herself very still, forcing her heartbeat to slow. Everything in her screamed that she had made a deadly mistake letting Sarah inside. Now DJ’s life depended on her wits. She sank her rising panic and summoned the old composure that got her through all those childhood cons.
She nodded, forcefully and made solid eye contact with Sarah. “I’m listening.”
Sarah’s eyes flicked to the phone still in DJ’s hand. “Drop it,” she insisted. “Right now.”
Jade turned toward him. DJ hesitated. His face carried that teenage mix of fear and defiance. She caught his eye, giving the barest hint of a nod. He let go of the device. The phone landed on the carpet, face up, screen still lit for a moment before it dimmed. When it went black, Sarah exhaled shakily, her grip tightening on the weapon.
Jade turned back toward Sarah. “See? It’s okay. No one’s calling the police.”
Sarah’s short laugh rang brittle. “‘Course not. You’re not stupid. Neither am I.” She jerked the barrel of her pistol toward Jade. “Stand together. Where I can see you both.”
They moved side by side. Jade’s stomach twisted as she felt DJ’s shoulder brush hers—his posture remained taut. She remembered the easy grin he’d worn only an hour ago while they swapped jokes over leftover pizza.
Sarah steadied the gun with both hands. “I know this looks bad, but I’m done letting other people ruin my life. Kent … he was going to break his promises. So I took care of him. Now I just have to clean things up.”
A swirl of shock and revulsion coiled in Jade’s chest. She kept her expression neutral, though. “You killed him.” It wasn’t a question, more an anchor to confirm that Sarah had truly committed murder.
Sarah rolled her eyes. “Not me personally. That’s gross.” Her eyes gleamed with bitterness. “He swore he’d leave his wife for me—said we’d keep funneling the money. Then he tried to cut me out.” She let out a humorless snort. “Guess he figured a church volunteer was too naive to notice. He got that wrong.”
Jade maintained a steady gaze. “If you were involved in the laundering from the start, you must have a plan to run.” She didn’t let her voice quaver, hoping to coax more details out.
“Duh,” Sarah replied coldly, flicking her attention to DJ as if remembering his presence. “It’s pretty great. It starts with making someone else look guilty. You, Jade.” She gestured with the muzzle. “Couldn’t have asked for an easier target—the quiet accountant with rumors swirling about her and Kent. People already suspect you. Now I just need to make you disappear.”
DJ stiffened. Jade pressed the side of her hand against his arm, a wordless signal to stay calm. She felt him shift infinitesimally, as though bracing himself.
Sarah must have sensed his tension. “I’m not gonna kill you guys. I’m not about that. I mean, except for Kent. Kind of unavoidable, right?”
Jade forced herself to agree. “I can see that.”
