Chapter Fifty-One
Kaylee
Kaylee walked into her house, emotionally and physically drained, and dropped her jacket on the back of the couch. The adrenaline had left her body a long time ago, and now she just wanted to sit under a stream of hot water and let it wash away the terror from the last two years.
Pumpkin started making his annoyed, chattering sound, and Kaylee frowned, approaching his cage. “It’s just me, buddy. What’s wrong with you?” She opened his enclosure and set up his stairs, watching him stomp his feet at the top.
“Dang, someone woke up on the wrong side of the hammock today. Are you hungry?” She walked away from the angry guinea pig, laughing. “Of course you are. When are you not hungry?”
Kaylee took a step into the kitchen and noticed the man sitting at her dining room table, eating an apple without a care in the world.
The room tilted on its axis when she recognized Ansel, not in zip ties or glaring at her from the ground like a defeated animal, but like a cat who finally caught his canary.
The side of his jaw had a big gash in it, and his eyes gleamed with murderous rage despite his calm demeanor. He took over the room like a thundercloud, dark and menacing, and Kaylee found it hard to breathe with him there, so close that in a few strides he’d be on top of her.
“Hello, Kaylee.” He climbed to his feet slowly, leaving his apple core on the table.
“Ansel,” she whispered.
He smiled wickedly. “Once upon a time, you saying my name would have had me falling at your feet.” His smile melted into a heavy scowl. “But I’m too disappointed in your behavior to be charmed by you today.”
Kaylee heard the scurry of little feet, and she wanted to shoo Pumpkin back into his enclosure, where he’d be safe. Instead, his steps grew fainter, and she sighed in relief, thankful he’d taken off for her bedroom. Maybe he sensed the danger and had tried to warn her.
“How did you get in here?”
“You forgot to lock the back door,” he said, shaking a finger at her like she was a naughty child he needed to chide.
He took a step around the table, and she moved with him, keeping distance between them, and he seemed amused by it, his eyes crinkling at the corners.
“This didn’t need to be so difficult. All I wanted to do was talk to you, to tell you that there were no hard feelings as long as you didn’t testify. ”
Kaylee sidestepped until the table was between them before she said, “Sorry if I have a difficult time taking your word for it.”
“See, there’s that smart mouth that I love so much.
” He advanced on her, and she backed away, crossing to the left again.
“In another time, the two of us could’ve been so special to each other.
Unfortunately, there’s no way I can let you walk away from this, just on principle, after everything you did to my boys. ” He tsked. “Bad, Kaylee.”
Kaylee took a step back and saw something passing by the kitchen window. The shadow paused long enough to spot her, his expression dark with fury. Rick.
Most of her fear subsided knowing Rick was right outside, and she stood straight, scoffing. “What you call bad, I call self-preservation. You murdered my best friend. You killed a cop. You stalked me for months. In this scenario, I don’t think I’m the bad one.”
He had the nerve to chuckle.
“Technically, I didn’t murder anyone, and as for the so-called stalking, I was just trying to make sure you were safe.”
“Funny, because the only one I needed to be safe from was you.”
“How very true that is,” he said, lunging for her, but she threw one of her kitchen chairs at him and took off down the hall.
She heard a clatter behind him, but didn’t turn around to see if it had connected.
His feet pounded against the floorboards, getting louder, and she knew he was right behind her.
Kaylee screamed, “Rick!” as she raced for the back, twisting the deadbolt and scrambling to get purchase with the knob. Just as she started to pull it open, Ansel’s hand slammed down on the wood above her head.
“Lover boy’s gonna be tied up for a while.
Not as long as I’d like,” he said, grabbing her arm and dragging her kicking and fighting back down the hallway.
“You and I are gonna take a ride, nice and quietly, or I’m gonna walk next door to that cute little friend of yours.
Can you imagine the things I could do to her in just fifteen minutes?
” His menacing tone sent a shiver down Kaylee’s back, but she stayed silent, waiting for Rick to pop out from somewhere and make his move.
“And once I’m done with her, I’m going to work my way through the town until I get to Rick. How would that make you feel to be responsible for the death of everyone you love?”
“Why did you kill Elasia?” she asked, wanting him to bring her back to the front of the house. If Rick was waiting outside for them, he would get him. She wasn’t worried. It was obvious he wanted to take her out of town.
Ansel actually appeared remorseful as he said, “Killing Elasia was unfortunate. I really wish she hadn’t shown up with that tool. She was a sweet girl, but unfortunately, when you hang out with dogs, sometimes you catch fleas.”
“How can you be so cavalier about taking someone’s life?” she whispered.
Ansel shrugged. “People die every day, Kaylee. It’s the way the world works.”
The sound of the back door opening drew both their attention, but Ansel recovered quicker, grabbing Kaylee by the throat and holding her in front of him.
Rick appeared around the corner, one foot in front of the other as he came down the hallway and stepped into the living room light.
When he spotted them, he pointed his gun at Ansel, but his gaze locked on her.
Kaylee’s heart sank at the fear in his expression as Ansel squeezed her throat a little tighter.
“Let her go, Ansel. There is no way out of this, and you don’t want another body on your hands.”
Ansel buried his face against Kaylee’s. “I can’t believe your boyfriend is a fed. Didn’t you learn anything from Elasia?”
Suddenly, Ansel screamed, and his hand slackened on her throat.
She looked down to see him shaking his leg.
Pumpkin was latched on to his ankle. When his motions sent her beloved guinea pig flying, Kaylee twisted her body, throwing an elbow back into his stomach.
Free of his hold, Kaylee dived for the floor, getting a look at the gun Ansel had pulled from somewhere.
He lifted his arm as Rick fired a shot, the entire series of motions happening as if time were frozen.
Ansel’s body jerked, and his gun exploded, a single shot barreling toward Rick.
Kaylee screamed as the bullet hit Rick in the shoulder, and he fell back.
She rushed to his side, screaming for help.
The door burst open, and Josie and a man wearing an FBI vest came through, Josie jumping over Ansel’s prone figure to get to her.
“Oh my God,” Josie cried.
“Call 9-1-1,” Kaylee pleaded, searching Rick for the wound. While Josie made the call, Kaylee ran her hands over Rick’s body. “Don’t die. I love you. Stay with me.”
Rick opened his eyes and groaned. “This is the least romantic way to tell someone that you love them. You only say it when you think they are dying? Such a cop-out.”
Kaylee gasped, pulling back from him. “What? I thought you were shot?”
Rick gingerly opened his shirt, revealing the bulletproof vest beneath. “Paulette gave it to me. Told me in case things went south, she had to do everything she could to keep me safe for you because she could tell you loved me. I didn’t believe it, but now, I guess I have to.”
“Oh, thank God,” she said, throwing herself against him.
“Hey now, still bruised.”
“Pumpkin!” she cried out, wrenching away from him and crawling across the floor. The guinea pig was already up and moving a little unsteadily when she picked him up, snuggling him to her chest.
“You’re my hero.”
“Whoa, what about me?” Rick asked.
Kaylee laughed as she scooted back to him, and his arms went around her and her pet, bringing her closer to him as she broke into sobs, her face buried in his neck.
Pumpkin let out a few chirps, wiggling out of her grasp and pushing between them, making happy little purrs.
“Kaylee, I think he’s going to be okay. Why are you still crying?”
“Because I love you. I thought you were dead, and I couldn’t bear it.” She squeezed him tighter. “Don’t you ever do that to me again.”
“I’ll do my best, but Kaylee?”
“Yeah?”
“I love you, too.”