Page 48 of The Liar I Married

FORTY-FOUR

I’m alone, helpless. If this doesn’t work, I’ll be dead and Michael has won.

“You’ve been a bad girl, haven’t you?” Dolly rolls me onto my back. “Your brother will be here soon and we’ll decide what to do with you. I know you tried to have him arrested. He’s no fool. He knows his phone is being monitored, so he purchased a burner.” She chuckles.

A tremble goes through me as I control the terror creeping up on me.

Michael is coming here? I hope Alex overheard what she is saying.

I breathe in and out slowly and try to relax.

She pokes me, and not flinching is difficult.

I’m afraid and so angry at her at the same time.

She betrayed me and I fell for it hook, line, and sinker.

I so wish I had my strength back but I’m weak; if she comes at me with a shot, I’m helpless to do anything.

“Everyone believes you’ve lost your mind.

You’ve made it so easy for us. I can keep you here forever, living like a vegetable—well, long enough for Michael to have the estate transferred to him.

” She gets down close to my face and I can smell her onion breath.

“If we come up with any complications and the estate doesn’t go to him—you die. ”

She straightens, and I’m afraid she’ll head back to her office. I take a chance and moan and thrash about. I’m risking another dose of the zombie drug but I must do this, John needs time to search her computer, although surely the video will catch her death threats—but what if it doesn’t?

I get her attention and she checks the monitors again. I fall back into a stupor but she hovers over me, watching me. I feel like a mouse waiting for the cat to pounce and my heart rate spikes again. I moan again and toss my head around.

“What did they give you?” Dolly hits the button on the blood pressure machine and it tightens around my arm. “Your heart is racing. Maybe you’re allergic to the medication. That’s good, it will be a reason why you died. I can’t be blamed, how sweet is that?”

I want to open my eyes and scream at her.

This woman is supposed to care for people and what did it take to turn her into a monster—greed.

I’m worth more dead than alive to Michael and no doubt he’s offered her a life of luxury on my inheritance.

How long has it been? Ten minutes maybe.

Every second counts. I moan again and toss my head but under my lashes I see Dolly’s attention move to the door leading to the conservatory.

Has she seen Alex? My heart rate increases and I try to take deep calming breaths to prevent the machine screaming a warning.

Not Alex—Michael. My loving brother who wants me dead is heading straight toward me.

“She’s back I see and where’s John?” His voice is just above a whisper. “His Lexus is parked outside the conservatory. If he finds me here, all hell will break loose.”

“I haven’t seen him.” Dolly turns to stare at the passageway. “It was the guy that kidnapped her. He brought her back. He said she went crazy and needed to be sedated.”

“So why isn’t John here to see Jessie? Surely Alex told him he’d brought her here?” Michael dashes a hand through his hair. “There’s only John’s vehicle so Alex must have left.” He turns to the passageway. “You sure you haven’t seen or heard him?”

“Positive. No one is here apart from Maria.” Dolly sighs. “She doesn’t even know Mrs. Harper is here. She’s probably in her room. You do know, she moved into the house from the cottage. She said it was on Mr. Harper’s orders.”

“We must finish this now before he shows. You know what to do.” Michael grabs Dolly by the shoulders.

“I need to get the heck out of here. Remove all the machines from her first. Do it and then head back to your room. You never saw Alex bring her back—right? The cops will blame everything on him. If John is here, he’ll find her and then we’ll be home free.

” He kisses her. “I know I can count on you, Dolly.”

“Okay.” Dolly turns away from him and removes the pads she stuck to my chest. “Go, it will be all over soon. She’s very weak and her heart isn’t good.”

I hear footsteps as Michael, the brother I still love and once trusted, leaves me to die.

A sob almost escapes and I smother it. How could he do this to me?

I moan again and lift my hands up beside my head, hopefully making it harder for her to inject me with a fatal dose.

I can’t allow her to do it. I must find the strength to hold her off in time for Alex or John to save me.

I hear her go to the closet and can’t see what she’s doing from under my lashes.

The drawer where she keeps the drugs is on the other side of the room and within view.

What is she planning? She comes back carrying a pillow and panic rolls over me in waves.

I must escape but as I open my mouth to scream, the pillow is over my face and I’m in terrible suffocating darkness.

All my childhood terrors grip me; fear of the dark, fear of monsters, fear of being buried alive rush at me in the darkness.

I fight for a breath but fabric crushes my nose.

My hands are beside my face and I push up as hard as I can.

Dolly isn’t expecting me to fight back and I get a second’s reprieve as I push the pillow up an inch and suck in air.

Blankets tangle around my legs as I kick and roll, trying to get free.

The pillow is tight, the air is gone. My body is screaming for oxygen, my lungs hurt, bright spots flash in front of my eyes.

My heart pounds and then misses beats. I’m drifting away.

Oh God, I’ll never get to hold my girls again—I’m so sorry, I can’t fight anymore.

Light almost blinds me as the pillow is pulled free. My vision blurs as someone leans over me.

“Jessie.” John’s voice is in panic mode as he shakes me. I’ve never heard that before. “Jessie, breathe. Dear God, breathe.”

I suck in a breath and then another and slowly everything comes back into focus. I want to speak and tell him everything is okay but I can’t form words.

“That’s right, big breaths.” John sits me up. “Look at me, Jessie. You’re safe.”

John is holding me now and rubbing my back.

Over his shoulder I see Alex gripping Dolly’s arms behind her back; his eyes are wild and almost frantic.

She has a bruise on one cheek. Did John or Alex hit her?

I don’t really care. The air is cooling down my burning throat.

I take deep breaths but my head is fuzzy and my eyes are so sore.

I don’t want to lift my head from John’s shoulder.

The monsters are gone and suddenly everything is okay.