Chapter 13 #2
Sam’s face hardened in anger. He looked on the verge of blowing his lid and getting them both caught.
Grace grabbed his arm and shook her head.
They peered over the railing to find Steve had Sarah by the throat and pinned to the wall.
He kissed her hard. “If he finds out you cheated on him with me, and that I knocked you up, he’s not going to marry you.
And you know what that means, no wedding, no honeymoon.
No honeymoon, no life insurance with you as the beneficiary.
There will be no payout on his death on your one-year anniversary.
We’ll be back to square one with a new kid and no money.
We need his fucking money, baby. You need to make him believe that he got you pregnant, and that the baby just came earlier than expected.
Everyone else will think you’re a helpless widow with a baby.
They won’t think twice that you fell for your ranch manager. The cops won’t suspect a thing.”
“I’ll fix this. You know I can always seduce Sam and make him responsible. He’s still got it bad for me, and he’s worth a lot more money than his brother. I should have just stayed with him; we could have finished this years ago and be together by now.”
“He’d be harder to kill in Florida. No, we need it to be Richard, and out on the ranch, where there are less prying eyes.”
“I know, you’re right. I need to get back to the hotel before Sam gets back to find I’m not there since the rest of the girls are already back. I just had to see you one more time.”
Sam stumbled back and knocked some hay from the rafters as the couple turned to leave.
Sarah gasped as Steve called out, “Who’s up there?”
Grace covered her mouth with her hand, and her body with her clothes she’d yet to fully dress in.
“I heard everything, and you better believe I’m not going to let my brother marry a two-bit whore,” Sam said as he walked toward the railing. He held a finger up to his lips to keep Grace quiet.
“Oh my God,” Sarah screamed. “You…you….”
“What are you doing out here, Sam?” Steve asked as Grace heard the unmistakable cock of a gun trigger. Sam climbed down the ladder and out of view.
“I had a fight with Grace. She left town, and I came out here for some peace.”
“You’ll have plenty of that where you’re going,” Steve said before a shot rang out.
Grace’s entire body shook, and her breath caught as fear froze her in place.
“Why’d you go and do that?” Sarah asked. “Now how am I going to explain that his brother went missing from the wedding?”
Sam’s moan was the first clue that he wasn’t dead. “You’ll never get away with it.”
“Sure we will. You said it yourself. You came here for peace, to think, and have a few beers. An unexpected robbery and burnt body should do the trick. They’ll think the robber shot you and left you inside before setting the barn on fire to cover his tracks.
We’ll take some things from the house and make it look like you were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
They’ll never be able to tell the difference with the fire damage. ”
“Get his wallet and phone, Sarah, and everything that might be worth money, then get out of here. Get back to the hotel so you have an alibi. Make sure plenty of people see you.”
“What do you want me to do with his stuff?”
“Put it with his aunt’s necklace and the other stuff in the metal tin, by the creek, on your way back to the hotel. They’ll never find where it’s buried.”
“The rock wall. You’re a genius.” Her words vibrated with enthusiasm.
Enthusiasm that Grace was going to yank from this woman’s heart and give to her brother-in-law, Collin’s, dog as a chew toy.
No way could Grace let this woman marry and kill Sam’s brother.
It wasn’t happening. She just needed to figure out a plan to get Sam and herself out alive before creating voodoo dolls and turning these two into pincushions.
Grace shimmied her dress over her head and slid on her boots.
“Why did you steal the necklace?”
“I wanted it.” Sarah smirked.
She peered over the ledge and watched as Sarah took Sam’s wallet and phone while Steve held the gun on him. “Sarah, you take care of his things while I head to my place to get the kerosene. I’ll take care of this asshole once and for all.”
Sarah and Steve backed away toward the door and out of the barn. The sound of them shoving something against the door to trap Sam and Grace inside filled the silence. Sam met Grace’s gaze as she hurried down from the loft and to his side.
Blood oozed from his chest wound, soaking the fabric of his shirt.
“Tell me what to do,” she begged, glancing around the barn for anything they could use.
“There used to be a first aid kit on the wall. You need to try and patch me up so we can get out of here. I’m sure we don’t have much time before he torches the place.” Sam laid back and held his hand over the wound.
Grace ran to where Sam gestured, grabbed the box, and slid back down beside him. She hurried and used all of the gauze and everything in the box to help stop the bleeding. A doctor she wasn’t, but damn, if her momma hadn’t taught her how to stuff a turkey.
“He locked us in, Grace. We’re going to need to find another way out.”
Grace quickly glanced around the area. There were no windows, no doors other than the one they’d entered, and not even any rotten wood that she could try and pull away. Her gaze landed on the little bit of moonlight that was illuminating the dirt floor. She followed the beam to the rafters.
“I know what to do.”
She hurried up the stairs to the rafters and to the window in time to see Steve pulling a knife out of Sam’s tire and climbing into a dusty truck to drive away.
“He stabbed your tires,” she yelled below.
“Crap,” she heard him exclaim.
Grace walked to the opening and glanced down to the ground. A pile of hay was stacked below. “Hang on, Sam. I can get us out.” She lowered her voice and mumbled, “If I don’t break my neck. This is going to hurt.”
“What are you doing?” Sam hollered.
“Jumping.”
“Have you lost your mind?” he asked.
“I’m so not dressed for this,” she whispered and didn’t offer him an explanation as she sat down at the window with her legs dangling out. Using the traction of her boots, she eased herself out of the opening and slowly lowered herself out the window using her feet as if she were a rock climber.
“Just like Spidey,” she whispered to herself.
“Although hand suction would be useful.” The muscles in her arms burned as she tried to hold her weight, thankful for her years as a gymnast. She glanced down at the drop below.
She could nail this landing. She’d done it from high beams while flipping in the air, and this was a straight drop.
She took a deep breath and let go, relaxing her muscles to roll when her feet touched the ground.
She lay still on the mound, looking up at the stars in the night sky.
She’d survived, even if the hay scratched and poked in places that hadn’t seen daylight in years. It was still a win, and she’d take it.
She rolled off the hay until she was standing and hurried around the building. She struggled to move the big board holding the doors closed. Eventually she managed to pull it free and open the door. She hurried inside to help Sam to stand.
“You jumped from the window?” he asked as he pulled a few pieces of hay from her hair.
“Piece of cake. I was a gymnast, remember?”
“Thank God for that,” he said as she moved his good arm over her shoulder to give him some leverage to help him walk.
“How are we going to get help?”
“The neighbor is a doctor. His place is just past the creek. We just need to get to him,” Sam said, gesturing toward the woods.
“Remind me to wear jeans and tennis shoes next time we go out.”
“It could be worse. You could be wearing heels.”
Grace rolled her eyes. “Says the man bleeding to death.”