Crime & Passion (25 page)

***

Suzie circled Madeline’s neck from behind
with her arms, holding something in her hands just below Madeline’s
line of vision. Madeline struggled to get the woman off her, and
Suzie yanked her hands backward, pulling the object taut against
Madeline’s neck and cutting off her airway.

Oh, Lord, no. It’s a rope. She’s going to
strangle me.

Madeline reached behind her head, raking her
nails against Suzie’s hands as the rope tightened further. Madeline
attempted to stand. With her height, she’d have an advantage on her
feet. She twisted her head sideways, trying to loosen Suzie’s hold
on the rope as her lungs cried out for air.

She gripped the arms of the chair to heave
herself up, doing her best to wrench the rope out of Suzie’s hands
as she moved. The pressure let up a bit on the rope and Madeline
sucked in a deep breath.

“Oh, no you don’t, bitch,” Suzie said. “I
won’t let you get away. Donnie’s mine, as soon as I take care of
you.”

Hard knuckles rapped against Madeline’s
temple, dazing her, and she fell back against the chair. Stars
obscured her vision as the rope tightened. She couldn’t get oxygen
and her lungs burned as they hungered for air. Madeline clawed
Suzie’s fingers, trying to loosen their grip.

“Stop fighting,” she whispered into
Madeline’s ear. “It’ll all be over soon.”

Doing the only thing she could, Madeline
brought her head forward then quickly snapped it back against
Suzie’s face. Pain erupted against her skull, but she was sure it
was worse for her attacker.

“My nose!” Suzie shrieked.

The tension around her neck loosened and
Madeline swallowed in sweet breaths, wedging her fingers under the
edge of the rope and ripping it off her neck.

Her only chance was to run to the bedroom
while Suzie worried about her nose. Her phone was there and she
could call the police. She leapt from her chair and tried to make a
dash for it, but wooziness slowed her as her vision darkened.

“You’re not going anywhere!” Suzie tackled
her from behind and Madeline fell to the floor. Bony fingers
wrapped around her neck. “You can’t live.”

Madeline bucked wildly, trying to throw Suzie
off her back. She felt the other woman shift and Madeline lurched
rapidly to the side. There was a sickening thud as Suzie’s head
connected with the coffee table and the glass top shattered.

Madeline looked at the jagged shards.
Great! More weapons for the psycho bitch.
She jumped to her
feet, hoping Suzie was stunned enough to stay down until she got to
the bedroom.

She hadn’t taken more than three steps before
a hand closed around her foot. Madeline’s forward momentum caused
her to go down again. She kicked out as hard as she could, wishing
she had shoes on to do more damage as her bare foot connected with
some part of Suzie’s body.

“You can’t have him.” Suzie gripped
Madeline’s bare leg beneath her robe, digging in with her long
fingernails and sending sharp pains shooting through her as Suzie
tried to scale Madeline’s body like a cat climbing a tree.

“I don’t
want
him.” Madeline twisted,
flipping onto her back and kicking Suzie as hard as she could. Her
heel connected with the soft tissue of Suzie’s stomach and Madeline
scooted backward along the floor. “He’s all yours. I promise.”

Suzie crouched in a kneeling position,
tracking Madeline’s movements. The woman snatched up one of the
large glass pieces and jumped onto Madeline’s stomach, forcing her
flat against the carpet. She used her legs to trap Madeline’s arms
at her sides, though Madeline thrashed wildly in an attempt to
throw her off.

Suzie lowered the glass shard against
Madeline’s throat. The sharp edge pressed into the skin with
stinging pain.

Madeline stopped moving, hardly daring to
breathe. “Please, Suzie, please don’t hurt me. I know you love him,
but don’t let that turn you into a murderer. I really don’t want
him.”

Madeline didn’t know if there was a sane side
to appeal to in this woman, but if so, she had to find it. Suzie
clearly had the upper hand.

Blood dripped down Suzie’s face from where
Madeline head butted her nose. She didn’t seem to feel any pain.
“It doesn’t matter what you want, Maddie.” Suzie’s eyes softened in
what Madeline could only hope was compassion. “This is about Donnie
and what he wants.”

The pressure of the glass against her neck
eased off slightly, and Madeline dared hope sense penetrated the
cloud of insanity.

“Perhaps if you weren’t so pretty.” Suzie
tipped her head sideways in a calculating manner, seeming to
consider her options. “Donnie’s very motivated by beauty, you know?
So shallow.” She laughed and shook her head, as though that were an
endearing quality.

Suddenly, Suzie dug the point of the shard
into Madeline’s face, directly below her left eye. She swiped it
downward in an arc toward Madeline’s mouth.

For a moment, Madeline didn’t think she
actually broke the skin. Sudden, burning pain erupted as the wound
began to bleed. She hissed in agony and tried to throw Suzie off
her.

Suzie punched Madeline’s face with her free
hand. Though it wasn’t as hard as the rap to her temple before, it
was enough to stop her struggles.

“You stop that right now, Maddie.” She smiled
sweetly, blood from her still-leaking nose draining into her mouth
to pool around her teeth. “I’m doing this so I don’t have to kill
you. I’m helping us both get what we want.”

Madeline closed her eyes, blocking out that
psycho smile and trying hard not to whimper against the pain.
“Okay. You’ve done what you needed to,” she said, although talking
caused her cheek to scream with agony as it separated the damaged
skin. “Let me up now.”

The other woman laughed, and Madeline opened
her eyes to see Suzie toss her black hair over her shoulder. “You
don’t think that’s enough, do you? What if it doesn’t scar?”

The shard plunged down near Madeline’s right
eye, barely missing the eye itself. Suzie pulled down viciously and
the edge of the glass penetrated deep, tearing through the soft
skin at Madeline’s mouth and scratching against her teeth.

Madeline screamed out as the pain ripped
through her.

“Oops. I broke that one.” Suzie clucked her
tongue against the roof of her mouth. “Let me grab another.”

Like hell, she would. As soon as Suzie’s
weight lifted off her, Madeline scrambled to her feet. She had to
get to the front door. By now, her neighbors would have heard her
screams and have gathered in the outside entryway to see what was
going on. Hopefully one of the useless gossips at least called the
police department.

“Someone help me!” Madeline screamed for good
measure as she raced for the door.

“No! Get back here,” Suzie screamed.

Madeline heard the woman’s heels as they
clicked across the floor. She grasped the handle of the door and
yanked on it, only to realize Suzie must have locked it when it
didn’t budge. She quickly unlatched the security lock and went for
the deadbolt.

A piece of glass slashed against the back of
her hand, and Madeline withdrew, meeting Suzie’s blue eyes.
Madeline swallowed hard and backed up a step, putting her back
against the wall. “No more, Suzie. You’ve done enough. That will
definitely scar me. Please...stop.”

Someone pounded on the door. “Miss Scott?
It’s Brice Carter. Are you okay in there?”

“She’s trying to kill me! Break the door
down!” Madeline yelled.

“Bitch!” Suzie screamed.

She angled the shard of glass at stomach
height and rushed Madeline at the same time as the wood of the door
made a splintering crash.

The glass pierced Madeline’s robe, shredding
through the skin of her stomach.

“I tried not to kill you, Maddie,” Suzie
whispered into her ear. “You left me no choice.”

***

Donovan paced the confines of his cell like a
caged animal. It had been over a half hour since he phoned Jeremy.
“What the hell is going on?” he snapped at the guard. “You have to
call the police station and find out.”

It was a different guard on duty, one Donovan
hadn’t talked to before. The man looked down his nose at Donovan.
“Don’t think you can order me around, Andrews.”

Donovan clenched his fists as rage rushed
through him. He didn’t have much interaction with the county cops
in the past. This man seemed almost delighted by Donovan’s
anguish.

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to
calm down. He’d get nowhere if the guard didn’t agree to help him.
“Look, I know you’re in charge here. I’m not trying to order you
around, but a psycho crazy bitch is after my girlfriend. I need to
know if she’s safe. Can you help me out?”

“I heard she’s not your girlfriend anymore.”
The guard scoffed and folded his arms against his chest, leaning
against the outer wall. “Can you make it worth my time? Got any
money?”

“You son-of-a-bitch.” Donovan rushed the
gate, shaking with rage.

One of his cellmates stepped forward, patting
his shoulder. “Calm down, buddy. The guards can make our lives hell
if they want to. Don’t ask for trouble.”

The guard sneered. “See, Old Jimmy’s got the
right of it. I’m in control. So, what will you do to get this
information?”

Just then the outer door opened, and Eric
Sanders stepped through. His eyes met Donovan’s and he walked
rapidly toward him.

Donovan put the guard from his mind,
concentrating on the set of Eric’s mouth. He looked scared.

“Please, tell me Maddie’s okay.”

Eric shook his head, stopping in front of the
bars and reaching through to grip Donovan’s arm briefly. “I can’t.
I don’t know exactly what’s happening. Jeremy’s on his way to
Eureka right now. He called and asked me to talk to you. They’re
rushing Madeline by ambulance to the hospital.”

His chest felt heavy, each breath an effort.
“She’ll be okay though, right?”

“I don’t know. Jeremy said something about
her being cut up and glass puncturing her stomach.” Eric took a
step back and ran his hands along his arms, as though cold. “He
didn’t sound hopeful.”

Donovan fell to his knees against the grimy
floor, despair making it too much effort to stand. “No. It can’t
happen. Please tell me this is a cruel joke because you don’t like
me, and Madeline’s safe and sound.” He looked up into Eric’s eyes,
noting the pity in them. “Please.”

“I wish I could.”

Donovan wrapped his hand around the bar of
the cell, more to help hold himself up than anything. “Tell me they
at least got Suzie, and she won’t be able to hurt her again.”

Eric crouched down on his heels, getting on
Donovan’s level. “They did,” he said softly. “She’s at the local
clinic getting patched up. There’s glass embedded in her hands and
she has a broken nose. Her father’s with her.”

At least it sounded like Maddie got a piece
of her. “Tell me they’re not letting her go.”

Eric looked around the room at the other
occupants. “I can’t discuss the details of an ongoing investigation
with you.”

Donovan nodded. Of course he couldn’t. Even
if Eric wanted to tell him, Donovan was a murder suspect and other
people were listening to their conversation. “Do what you can to
make sure that doesn’t happen. If you can’t stop it and Maddie
l-lives.” He stopped and took a shuddering breath, unable to handle
the thought of her dying. “If she lives, protect her, no matter
what you have to do.”

“She really does mean a lot to you, doesn’t
she?”

Donovan gripped the bar harder and made the
effort to raise his head up. “She’s everything to me.”

“I’ll do what I can to help out. Jeremy asked
me to tell you he’d be in touch once he knows anything.” Eric
patted his hand. “Pray for her.”

“Andrews,” the guard said, “your lawyer’s
here.”

Donovan jumped up. He hadn’t hired a new
lawyer. That must mean Jeremy came back to town. He bit back the
bile rising in his throat, afraid of what his friend would tell
him.

He once again made the short trip to the
visitors’ room.

Jeremy looked up from the table and waved him
over. The man’s shoulders slumped inward and he looked haggard.
Gray stubble covered his face and his eyes were puffy from
crying.

Donovan sat down and rubbed his hand across
his temple. “I’m sorry I asked you to take care of all this, given
everything you’re going through.”

“It’s okay, Donovan. Maria would have wanted
me to help you and Madeline.”

Donovan swallowed a few times, unable to
moisten his scratchy throat. He took a deep breath. “Is
Maddie...did she...” He trailed off, unable to ask.

Jeremy reached across the table to pat
Donovan’s hand. “She’s alive, for now. They said the glass
punctured her stomach and nicked her kidney. She made it through
surgery and is in the ICU. The doctor wouldn’t tell me
much—something about her prognosis being guarded.” Jeremy shrugged.
“Whatever that means.”

The news struck a blow to Donovan’s heart.
Guarded didn’t sound like the doctor expected a quick recovery,
maybe not any recovery at all. “I have to get out of here. I need
to be with her.”

“I’m working on that,” Jeremy said, “though I
don’t know if I can make it happen before tomorrow. I’m waiting on
my broker.”

“Your broker?” Donovan’s mind flashed to the
image of Jeremy writing things out on the legal pad. “You didn’t
cash in your IRA, did you?”

Jeremy nodded. “And a few of my stocks.
Without Madeline’s help, I had to come up with the other forty
thousand on my own. I have to put the house up as collateral, so I
couldn’t borrow that much against it.”

“Call him back. Tell him not to do that.”
Donovan gripped the older man’s arm tightly. “I appreciate it, but
I can’t ask that of you.”