Page 160 of After Anna

“No, she won’t.” Connie swiveled toward Elma, aimed the gun, and pulled the trigger. Fire blazed from the barrel. The gunshot filled the room, deafening. A crimson hole burst onto Elma’s chest. She emitted a groan, then her head dropped forward.

Maggie tried not to scream, tears of fright springing to her eyes. She prayed Caleb stayed hidden. Kathy’s hand flew to her mouth.

“No, no!” Roy rushed to Elma’s side. “She’s dead! You killed her!”

“Roy, come on.” Connie shook his head. “She was a loose end.”

“No, no, no!” Roy wailed, cradling Elma’s lifeless body. “She wasn’t! She didn’t know anything!”

“She knows these bitches. You think she’d shut up aboutthem?” Connie motioned to Maggie and Kathy with the gun. Smoke came from the barrel, filtering the cold air.

“I coulda explained it to her! She woulda listened to me!” Roy rose slowly, beginning to sob. He stared at Elma’s blood on his hands. “Why’d you kill her, Connie? First PG, now her? She’s all the family I got left, dude.”

Maggie listened, horrified. So Connie had killed PG. Noah had been telling the truth. Tears rolled down Kathy’s cheeks. Maggie had to do something. She racked her brain. She could hear the teakettle begin to whistle. She prayed it wouldn’t tip Connie off that Caleb was there.

“Roy, man up!” Connie said, through gritted teeth.

“She was my grandma!” Roy shouted, sobbing. Suddenly he ran at Connie, reaching for his throat, his bloodied fingers grasping the air.

Connie raised the gun and fired. The bullet struck Roy in the neck, which exploded in blood and tissue. The gunshot reverberated, earsplitting. Its force spun Roy around. He dropped to the floor.

Maggie fought terror to think. Connie was about to fire again. Itgave her an opening. She wouldn’t get another chance. The teakettle was whistling loudly. Her frantic gaze fell on the full ashtray. She picked it up and whipped it at Connie’s face.

Connie’s hands flew up reflexively. The gun fired into the air.

Kathy ran full-tilt into Connie’s legs, knocking him off-balance. Connie flew sideways against the hard floor. The gun flew out of his hand and skidded into the kitchen.

Maggie dove for it and grabbed it, just as the back door flew open.

Caleb stood in the threshold, holding his phone high. “I called 911! I said it was an emergency!”

“You little bastard!” Connie raged, scrambling to his feet. “I’ll kill you!”

“No!” Maggie fired the gun just as Connie lunged for Caleb.

“Bitch!” Connie fell, grabbing his leg in pain. Blood drenched his right thigh.

“Go, go, go!” Maggie grabbed Caleb by the shoulder and ran with him into the living room. Kathy yanked on the doorknob. The door fell to the side.

Maggie, Caleb, and Kathy bolted onto the porch, raced down the snowy stairs, and ran away from the house.

Suddenly the sound of sirens pierced the frigid air. Police cruisers zoomed toward them, red lights flashing.

“Help! Police!” Maggie dropped the gun as she ran. The three of them ran toward the cruisers.

“He’s inside!” Maggie shouted, as the police cruisers swerved to a stop, spraying snow from their tires. Their doors flew open, and uniformed cops ran out, heading toward the house.

Connie ran limping to his truck.

Another police cruiser veered around the other corner, its sirens blaring and lights flashing. It halted, its big high beams cutting through the darkness, spotlighting Connie amid the snow flurries. Uniformed police jumped out with their guns drawn, blocking him in.

“Freeze!” the police shouted, coming up behind him. “Hands up!”

Connie stopped, trapped. Then he dropped to his knees in the swirling snow, raising his hands.

Chapter Eighty-one

Noah, After