Page 86 of Falling Madly
Peony shook her head, looking away. There were tears in her eyes. “Not quite, she fought him off and ran away. I wasn’t strong enough.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Teresa
Fear was a strange thing, like a switch in my head I couldn’t un-flick. I’d been picking up clues all the way to the cabin, thinking nothing of it, but then suddenly, opening a bathroom cabinet sent me over the edge and I found myself in a grip of terror.
In my relief to escape the judgment of Cozy Creek town royals, I’d accepted that Kyle’s cabin was twenty minutes outside of town. I’d shrugged at the fact that there was no cell phone coverage. I’d even smiled at the joke he’d made about it being so secluded that nothing worked—no phone, no internet. When he’d told me his closest neighbor had been found months after his death, partially mummified, I’d stared at him in shock, rather entertained, but I’d felt no fear.
Once we’d arrived, he’d given me a tour of the beautiful property, skipping over a basement door with a heavy padlock, joking, “this is where I bury the bodies”. I’d laughed. We’d even discussed the missing tourist, exchanging theories on whatmight have happened, from alien abduction to a lying scumbag boyfriend.
After we’d settled into his living room, I’d accepted his offer to mix me a Cuba Libre and excused myself to use the bathroom. And now, I’d opened the bottom cabinet, not even sure why. Why was I poking around in a stranger’s bathroom? And, more importantly, why did this man have a four-gallon container of bleach? What would anyone need that much bleach for, unless they were in the business of breaking down human remains?
I couldn’t answer my own question and was beginning to work up a real panic. This was crazy, I told myself. I had to calm down. This guy was a client. I knew him. Charlie and Trevor knew him even better.
What could I do? If Kyle was up to anything at all, I couldn’t let him know I suspected him. That would probably get me killed faster. I took a deep breath, trying to expel the terror running through my veins. These thoughts were absolutely unhinged, yet I couldn’t seem to be able to stop them.
Why hadn’t I notified anyone the moment I sat in his car? By the time I’d pulled out my phone, we’d been well on our way and out of range. Kyle had sounded genuinely apologetic about it, putting me at ease. After all, it wasn’t a dark and stormy night. The world was bathed in soft, white daylight with a dusting of snowfall making everything around us look new and fresh. A perfect winter’s day. Covering car tracks and footsteps… I shivered.
I closed the cabinet as quietly as possible and checked my face in the mirror, adjusting my expression to a relaxed half smile that hopefully raised no suspicions.
Kyle waited for me by the drink cabinet—Yes, he had an actual, old-timey drink cabinet—and handed me the cocktail. I thanked him and smiled, raising my glass to toast him.
But when I brought the rim to my lips, my brain screamed “Danger!” What if he’d spiked it? Drinking this thing could be the last thing I ever did. He was watching me, holding up his own, seemingly identical drink. I tilted the glass until my lips touched the liquid, inhaling the smell of coke and something stronger. There was no way to tell. I couldn’t pretend to drink it, not with him watching me.
“Wait!” I said, lowering the glass. “You promised I’d get to see Cozy Creek from a distance!”
Kyle laughed. “Of course. This way.”
He led me to the doors opening to a wide, snow-covered balcony.
“The view is nicer from out there, but it’s pretty cold and snow boots are recommended.”
There also seemed to be a huge drop down to the ground below, so I nodded in understanding. “Happy to stay inside. I can still see the town, I think. It’s over there, right?”
I pointed down the mountain range at an area where the blanket of snow-covered trees gave way to some dwellings. It was too far to make out any detail, but if wishful thinking could have activated teleportation, I would have been there. I would have been in Trevor’s cabin on the couch I’d already claimed. Safe.
Kyle raised his glass again, and I mirrored his movement, forcing myself to take a sip. It didn’t taste odd, but as I swallowed, my mouth felt numb, and my fingertips tingled. I felt lightheaded.
“Are you okay?” he asked, guiding me to an armchair.
I collapsed into it, trying to control my breathing. I had to stop gulping air. “I… I think I’m still a bit out of sorts after that…”
He sat next to me, his eyes full of concern. “What happened out there?”
He sounded so genuine, but it must have been an act. This was how he lured the girls and gained their trust.
“Just… old things. Ghosts from my past.” The word ghost made me shiver, even though I’d said it myself. I was pathetic.
I set the drink on the table, too lightheaded and upset to finish it. I could only hope that the amount I’d ingested wasn’t enough to knock me out or kill me. Did he kill his victims with a poisoned drink, or merely drugged them so he could then chop them up with a chainsaw? That was what he needed bleach for, right? Chopping up was messy.
My vision was starting to blacken around the edges. The numbness and tingling intensified. Was this how it all ended?
I woke up to Trevor’s face, and an overwhelming sense of relief.
“Teresa? Teresa?” He tapped my cheek, hovering over me.
“Trevor?”
