Eviscerating the Snake - The Complete Trilogy

by Ashley Fontainne

  “So, exactly what did you plan to do once you arrived here and confirmed that she was, indeed, the woman you thought?”

  “Kill her,” he replied, his voice strong, steady, and unapologetic.

  For the next three hours, I listened to the events of the night as told through the eyes of the man that had spent nearly half of his life waiting for a chance to avenge his son’s murder. Revenge, blood, more revenge, more murder. It was a vicious cycle that never ended, swallowing every last shred of decency and humanity in its voracious path. No matter the original cause, justified or not, the end results were the same—carnage.

  So much death, so much destruction. I remembered the day in the conference room and how filled with satisfaction I had been for exposing everyone’s hidden deceptions. I felt vindicated, morally superior to them all. I had pictured myself as a feminine form of David that slew a giant snake, never realizing that when I ripped open the belly, more snakes would emerge. Piper had been bad, but the most poisonous one had been Nicole—a deadly black mamba.

  When I saw her with a gun pointed at me earlier, all my suppressed memories hit me with full force. Dear God, why couldn’t I have remembered when I woke up in the hospital? If I had, then I could have told the police what truly transpired and maybe saved Eric from suffering such a horrible death. Another family would be grieving the loss of a loved one. Eric may have hurt a lot of people, including his wife, but he didn’t deserve to have his brain blown out of his head by the woman he thought loved him.

  And I was sitting in a hospital waiting room, praying that the man I loved survived.

  I still couldn’t quite fathom the truth about Nicole, or Cassandra—whatever her name was. A woman living under the identity of another that fled everything she knew because she killed her batterer. I wanted to hate her for all the pain and sorrow she caused not only me but countless others, but I couldn’t. If what she told me earlier was true, then at one time, she had been a hapless victim of a vile monster, just as I had been. Her decision to become her own redeemer and take matters into her own hands was no different than what I accomplished ten months prior; we just opted for different paths on the road to revenge. Either way, people were dead.

  “Ms. Tanner?” A quiet voice brought me back to reality. I stood up quickly when I realized the man standing in front of me must have been the doctor that operated on Steve.

  “Yes?” I said, my voice shaking, afraid of what was coming next.

  “Mr. Ronson is out of surgery now and in recovery.”

  I felt my knees weaken as tears of joy flowed down my face.

  “How is he?” my father asked, wrapping his arm around my shoulder as he held me before I fell.

  “The bullet missed his heart by mere millimeters. The internal damage was severe, but we managed to extract all the fragments and stop the bleeding. He is a very lucky man but is going to require a lot of physical therapy.”

  “Is he awake?”

  “Yes, he’s conscious now. And calling for you,” he said, focusing his attention back to me. “Please, follow me. He told me if I didn’t hurry up and bring you to see him, he was going to get out of the bed and come find you.” The doctor smiled, taking my arm and leading me through the doors to the recovery room. “He’s a determined man, and I can’t afford to have him trying to move right now.”

  The room was cold and sterile, the sound of electronic equipment bleeping. It was a magnificent sound—his heartbeat. Steve’s long torso was hidden under a pile of blankets, his feet almost dangling off the edge of the bed. My heart locked when I saw all the tubes sticking out of him, his chest bare except for the enormous bandage covering his right side. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t move forward. The love of my life was another innocent victim suffering because of me. Overwhelmed with grief, I stood there frozen in place, unable to face him, hot tears streaming down my face.

  “Are you just going to stand there and cry, or are you coming to give me a hug?” he said, his voice barely audible, the look of relief at seeing me unmistakable behind his eyes.

  Hearing his voice allowed me to find my legs, my heart leading the way over to his side. I stood there shaking, terrified to touch him for fear I would cause him more pain. God knows I had cost him enough. How in the hell could he ever forgive me? If it weren’t for me…

  “Steve, I’m so sor…” I said, then lost all my composure as the sobs broke free.

  “Hey, I’m not dead you know. I may be a mess, but I still have one good arm to hold you with. Come here, baby,” he said, his left arm raised, motioning for me to come to him.

  I leaned down and embraced him, thanking God for the miracle He gave us both.

  “GREAT! I WILL MEET you tomorrow for lunch and we will go over the details. You sure you want to limit the dates to only three months?”

  “Yes, I’m sure. I will explain why tomorrow when I call you before we board the plane. Talk to you then,” I said and hung up. My agent, Marsha, was a wonderful woman, but once she started talking, ending a conversation with her was rather difficult. Her infectious excitement about my book release was hard to ignore though, but I had to get in the shower and get ready for our trip. I could tell that she was surprised when I called her and informed her that I wanted to change some of the tour dates. It couldn’t be helped though.

  While the hot water cascaded down my back, I recalled the first time Steve and I took a shower in there together and I smiled, more than thankful that it hadn’t been the only time. It was almost impossible to believe it had been almost two years since the day I crawled into his hospital bed and we cried together, the joy we both felt at being alive overwhelming us. When the nurse had walked in and caught us, she was understanding but firm and insisted that I move, and from then on, I was only allowed to be beside the bed near Steve, not in it with him.

  My hand instinctively caressed my stomach, feeling the small bulge of the baby growing inside of me. The names were already picked out, and we were just waiting on the results from the amniocenteses—which could be at any moment—to discover which one would be the winner.

  Once out of the shower and dressed, I finished my packing for our belated trip to Tahiti. Even though we didn’t get married on the beach like we planned, it didn’t matter. Faced with the months of physical therapy Steve had to endure, taking a trip to some exotic locale was the last thing on our minds. We opted for a simple ceremony in a small chapel in Summerset, right at dusk, exactly one year ago. Our belated trip was going to serve as our anniversary present to each other, plus a long overdue family trip.

  I heard the doorbell ring as I shut the last suitcase, satisfied that I remembered to stuff everything inside. Purr Baby was lounging on the bed, curled up in one of his poses that always elicited a belly rub from me.

  “Come on, my little snuggle-bunny. I think your ride’s here.”

  Sandy knocked on the bedroom door as she walked in. “Hey, there he is. My buddy!” she said, scooping him up and nuzzling his soft head. “I promise you will have fun while Mommy and Daddy are off playing in the water and sun while we are stuck here in the desert. We see how we rate, don’t we?” Sandy said, then looked up at me and winked.

  Once Purr Baby was situated in his carrier, Sandy turned back and eyed me hard, then a huge smile broke across her face and she plopped herself down on the edge of our bed.

  “So, how far along are you? I know that radiant glow isn’t just from marital bliss.”

  I laughed, her candor and her uncanny knack for details exposing my secret.

  “Three months. But please, no one knows yet. Our plan is to tell my family in Tahiti,” I replied. She reached over and hugged me.

  “Congratulations! That kid will be gorgeous for sure! Wow, what a life you have led Audra. First, you snatch the most eligible bachelor this town has ever seen from all of us gals, a feat, by the way, that turned us all green with envy because we all had jumped through hoops to get his attention. Then the local economy was boosted from a
ll the crazy drama that followed you, and now this. I’m sure that means that once your book is released, it will be an international hit. It’s really sweet of you to start your tour here. At least this time Summerset will be in the news for something positive. So, tell me, did you include what happened to Nick?”

  “Thank you, Sandy. We are over the top excited too. I still can’t believe that I’m pregnant. When I told my agent, Marsha, earlier that I wanted to cut my book tour short, I think she assumed I had lost my marbles, but I wasn’t going to tell her why I had a change of plans until I told my family the happy news first. Steve bought out all the pink toys he could find at the store the other day. I think it’s safe to assume he is hoping for a girl. I just want him or her to be healthy,” I said, absentmindedly rubbing my stomach.

  “And no, I left out the part about Nick. The investigation was still open when I finished the book. I didn’t want to risk including his story since it was still up in the air about what really transpired between him, Ethan, and Olin. Besides, Nick’s name was drug through the mud enough by the press when the investigation concluded and it was determined that he and Ethan were responsible for Olin’s death. Jesus, I still can’t believe that Nick was in cahoots with him to raid the Kemper coffers. The love of money truly is the root of all evil.”

  “Well, although I can’t say that I agree with that decision, I do respect you for your choice.”

  I felt my cheeks fill with blood at the uncharacteristic compliment from Sandy.

  “You truly are a warrior, Audra, and one with heart. I still can’t believe that you are donating half of all your royalties to the Rape Crisis Center in Phoenix. It’s still the main topic of conversation with all the gossip queens here in Summerset. Most of them think you’re nuts.”

  “After everything that has happened, it’s a wonder I’m not a raving lunatic. But you know, it’s the least I can do. If just one woman that has suffered the life changing experience of being raped is helped because of me, that makes it all worthwhile. Not seeking help is the worst mistake any victim of a violent crime can make.”

  “Well, I still applaud you for what you are doing. Tell me…the other snippet of local gossip is that you are letting Jan Patakee conduct your very first primetime interview. Is that true?”

  “Ha, one piece of tongue-wagging that happens to be accurate. She actually has turned out to be quite a valuable asset to have in my corner. Once she was offered her dream job at CNM, she apparently felt the strange need to thank me in some small way, so she is the one that put me in touch with my agent, Marsha. Both of them have been extremely helpful in terms of keeping the rest of the crazed media stalkers and book agents away from me. My gosh, the first six months were horrible! I couldn’t turn around without one of them accosting me, begging for an interview or deal. It wasn’t until Marsha’s kind heart came into the picture that I was convinced that releasing a book was a viable option—and a healthy one. She understood the magnitude of what happened and how telling the world the true story would help others facing similar situations to get help, rather than travelling down the road to revenge, like I did.”

  Sandy snorted. “Well, I hope you included all that craziness about Nicole…oh, I mean Cassandra. My God, now that part was absolutely unfathomable.”

  “I know. Hollywood can’t make this stuff up, even on their wildest days. Even though I know the truth now, it’s still difficult to accept. Over forty years living under the name of her dead twin. And a cold-blooded murderer to boot.”

  “Well, ding dong baby, the bitch is dead!” Sandy said, laughing as she stood up. “And shot by the man that more than deserved for his quest for justice. How appropriate. At least it’s finally over and your life is quiet.”

  I smiled as she picked up the cat carrier and made her way out to the front door. “That all may be true, but I promise you, the road getting here was bumpy and full of pitfalls, and one that I wished I never would have traveled.”

  “God knows everyone wants all the juicy details. I still can’t believe all the hype from it. Did you see the news this morning? Everyone is talking about it. I guarantee it will be a bestseller for months. Oh, maybe even a movie! Hmm, while you are on vacation, I think me and Purr Baby will concentrate on what famous actress should play my part.”

  “Whether it is or not, it doesn’t matter to me. What mattered was reaching inside and pulling out all the pain and sorrow that came from all of this. And to be a voice for those that were silenced before their time. My only hope and goal from sharing the story with others is that maybe, just maybe, they will learn to be kinder to one another and learn to forgive. Stepping inside the arena of revenge is dangerous place to be.”

  “I still can’t believe you tossed your career away to write a book! I always thought accountants were nerdy number crunchers that only saw the world through pluses and minuses. I must admit, I never pictured you as the literary type, you know, all full of flowery words that make people swoon.”

  I laughed at her honesty. The woman never did hold her thoughts back. “If it weren’t for Rosemary suggesting that I begin a journal to release all my emotions rather than keep them buried deep within, I would still be crunching numbers. Just not at Winscott.”

  “I still can’t believe the place is in business. I mean, even under the same name! I would’ve guessed that the first thing they would’ve done was a name change if they wanted to remain in business.”

  “Well, stranger things have happened there, that’s for sure. In the beginning, changing the name wasn’t on the agenda, since doing so would have cost quite a substantial sum of money, which Winscott couldn’t afford at the time. But, after all the smoke cleared, some of the bigger clients came back when they realized that Carl was running the place. Turns out, being infamous isn’t always a bad thing. Of course, they’ve scaled back in size and employees, but he is keeping the place afloat. The proceeds from Nicole, err, Cassandra’s, insurance policy, as well as the others, helped tremendously. I talked to him the other day and he said that the last sexual harassment case was settled. Ironic that the ones that suffered were paid through money that came from the death of those that inflicted their wounds.”

  Sandy shook her head in disgust. “You know, if it weren’t for the media following the case from the very beginning, your book would have to be classified as horror fiction because no one would ever believe what happened.”

  “I still can’t believe it myself sometimes. When I started writing in my journal, I tried to define what really does scare me. The things that frighten most people like ghostly apparitions, mangled monsters lurking under the bed, the grotesquely rotted, brain-eating zombie that is ready to eat them for dinner—those don’t begin to send a chill up my spine. What strikes the chord deep down in my soul and doesn’t leave is simple—the human mind. The warped psyche of a damaged mind, one that has no traces of humanity left inside, is where true horror begins. The sinister acts that one human being inflicts upon another congeals to make up the most terrifying monster around. I know because I worked beside them for years, unaware of their presence until I awoke the sleeping monsters.”

  “Well, I stand corrected. You are quite the literary type. Wow, I hope that is inside the pages of your book. I can assume that I will get at least one advanced, signed copy that I can show off to my friends?”

  “Already have one for you. Hang on,” I said, then grabbed a copy off the table by the front door.

  “Oh, it is so awesome in person! God, look at that cover. Accountable to None. What a play on words! Oh, you made them accountable to the world! Bastards deserved no less. I am going straight home and read it tonight, even though I already know what happens. You win, and you get the guy. Lucky wench.”

  She stopped at the door and yelled into the kitchen at Steve.

  “Ronson, get out here and give me a chance to hug your neck and congratulate the newest Daddy in town! I’ve got to hurry up and drag this cat of yours to my house while you are
out cavorting in the ocean, so chop chop!”

  My cell phone vibrated in my pocket, so I stepped aside and let them chatter on. My heart pounded when I recognized the number was from my doctor’s office.

  “Audra Ronson.”

  “Afternoon, Audra. I have your test results back. Everything is looking great. No abnormalities or anything medically to be concerned with. You are progressing well and all your levels are spot on, and so are the babies’. How’s the morning sickness?”

  I felt my hands turn clammy with excitement. Thank goodness the baby was fine! Being pregnant when you are over forty, plus already having suffered one miscarriage made me an at-risk pregnancy.

  “That is wonderful news! And I haven’t been sick in four days, so I guess the worst part is over. So, are we having a…wait, did you say ‘babies’?”

  “Yes, I did. Congratulations, Audra. You’re having twins. A boy and a girl.”

  I swallowed the lump in my throat and turned my face away from Steve and Sandy. I didn’t want them to read the shock that I was sure graced my face. Oh my God…twins!

  “Your next appointment is scheduled the day after you return from your trip. Enjoy yourself, and congratulations again! See you next Tuesday.”

  The call disconnected and I stood there, tears streaming down my face. What a true miracle. I had been overjoyed when I found out I was having a baby, but secretly, I wanted another boy. Something inside of me had hoped that maybe Jesse’s essence could somehow migrate through the dimensions and reemerge, so I could truly hold him in this world for the first time. Steve, on the other hand, was all about pink and frills, hoping for a little girl to spoil rotten. The day after I had told him I was pregnant, he brought me home a stuffed pink elephant to celebrate, a dainty silver chain around its neck. I knew then that a girl was on his heart. After the call from the doctor, we both would have our desires filled. True elation filled my soul with peaceful tranquility, and for the first time in the last seven years, I felt that the nightmare of my former life was finally over.