Sara didn’t know, but she knew she had to try.
“What about Carrie Ward? What did she have to do with anything?” she asked Layla, in order to distract her and let her know that she was still there in front of her. As the woman scoffed a laugh, she started moving backward imperceptibly.
“You’re curious, Sara—I like that. I knew you’d want to know everything,” Layla commented with amusement. “Carrie was just like you, you know, she liked snooping in other people's business. I knew her arrival in Starville could only mean trouble, so the night we met at Chez Marie…well, letʼs say it wasnʼt exactly a chance encounter.” Layla stopped all of a sudden, and Sara’s breath caught in anticipation. She almost screamed with relief when she heard her chuckle.
“I don’t even know how many times Bob Landon had asked me out, so I figured accepting his invitation for that night would be the perfect chance for me to go there without raising any suspicions,” the woman resumed, her tone betraying her vexation. “I saw you guys immediately as I walked into the restaurant, but yʼall were so focused on your conversation that you didnʼt notice me, so I hid behind that big wall aquarium by your table. I heard Jack talk about the file he and Carrie had been working on in Chicago. For all I knew, that file could contain something revealing about me or Dad. I had to see it before Jack or Brent did! I didn’t want to kill Carrie, because I knew her death would raise a lot of questions…but what was I supposed to do at that point? I hit her on the head and threw her off the balcony, just like I did with J.T. Isnʼt that ironic?” she chuckled again, an almost hysterical gurgle.
Now a few feet away from her, Sara stopped and turned around. She held her breath and waited as, evidently surprised by her silence, Layla asked, “Sara? Are you here?”
When she didnʼt answer, the womanʼs voice turned to steel. “Donʼt be stupid, hon. You know you canʼt run away from me. Soon the moonlight will be back, and Iʼll see you.”
Sara ordered herself not to listen to her and resumed her escape toward safety.
***
Jack’s chest tightened when he walked into the bathroom and saw no sign of Sara there. Not that he’d really thought he would, but he had hoped. He knew that sheʼd been there, though, because her fresh scent still filled the air, and her purse was sitting beside the sink.
“Where are you, baby?” he muttered shakily, looking around in search of anything that might give him a clue about what had happened. His mind raced back to Charlene, Carrie… His blood turned to ice at the implications of those thoughts, but he shook his head furiously to shove them away and pushed aside the cold knot in his stomach. Nothing would happen to Sara. He’d make sure of that. If Brent really was the one responsible for all this—and, God, he wished with all his heart that he wasn’t!—this time he’d picked the wrong woman for his perverted games. All he needed was to stay focused and think rationally. Where could Sara have been taken without anybody seeing anything?
Rushing out of the house, Jack studied his surroundings. The pool area was right in front of the door; heʼd been right there talking to Richard, and there was no way he wouldnʼt have noticed anything. He moved his gaze to the other side of the house. The sun had set a while ago, but the lights scattered everywhere throughout the property made it easy to see, with the exception of a large, dark area to his right.
The cornfield.
His heart raced madly as he started running toward it, squinting his eyes to get them used to the sudden darkness. He had no idea where he was going as he pushed his way through the corn. All he knew was that Sara was there somewhere—she had to be!—and he needed to find her before…
Suddenly, the thick cloud above his head thinned out, and the moonlight came back over the field. Then a gunshot sliced through the silence.
***
Sara kept quiet even when Layla let out a cruel laugh. Although she was prepared for it, the powerful echo of the gunshot made her jump. She instinctively ducked among the stalks but had to bite her lip to keep from screaming. Layla must have shot blindly. There was no way the woman could know where she was, she tried to encourage herself, her hand slipping to her belly, as if to reassure her baby.
Taking a deep breath, Sara stood again and took a few silent steps forward. Relief washed over her when the bright lights of the Haydensʼ ranch appeared in the distance. Evidently, she was farther from Layla than she’d thought. Another few feet, and sheʼd be out of the maze…
“For the love of God, Layla, whereʼs Sara? What have you done to her?”
She nearly jumped out of her skin again at the sound of the familiar voice in the distance. Her blood turned to ice. No. This could not be happening!
“Stay out of this, Brent, Iʼll take care of everything. Just go away,” she barely heard Laylaʼs irritated voice say.
“Hold your hands up! I mean it, Lay. Drop your gun right now, or I swear to God, Iʼll shoot you.”
Sara shuddered at Brentʼs anguished tone. She felt guilty for staying in her hiding spot, but what else could she do? She needed to get away from there as soon as possible. She needed to look for help. It was the only thing she could do without endangering Brent and herself any more than they were already. Throwing all caution to the wind, she started running as fast as she could without looking back. She was just about to reach the end of the maze when she crashed into a hard, solid chest. She didnʼt even have time to scream before a large hand clamped over her mouth. “Sara! Sweetheart, itʼs me!”
The shock paralyzed her for a few moments. But then she burst out crying with relief as she flew into the arms of the man she loved more than anything. “Jack! Oh, Jack! My God, I thought Iʼd never see you again!”
“Are you all right? Are you hurt? Dammit, itʼs so freakinʼ dark I canʼt see crap!” Jack pulled her away slightly and smoothed a hand over her belly. “Tell me youʼre okay…that you both are.”
Sara nodded frantically. “Weʼre fine. I managed to run away by hiding among the stalks. And the darkness was my blessing, so please, donʼt curse at it too much.”
He pulled her back into his arms, pressing her against his chest. “I heard the shot, and I thought Brent…” His voice broke, and he kissed her with desperation.
Hearing Brentʼs name was like a cold shower for Sara, and she abruptly pulled away from him. “Itʼs not Brent, Jack. Heʼs not the one who kidnapped me, and heʼs not the killer. Itʼs Layla!”
He looked at her as if she had lost her mind. “What?”
“I know it sounds crazy, and I found it hard to believe it, too, but itʼs true. Laylaʼs the one who killed J.T., Charlene, and Carrie, and even her own mother. You were right, Max told J.T. his secret―he told him that Layla killed his ex-wife. Of course, J.T. decided to tell the police the truth, so Layla killed him, too, but Charlene saw her at the ranch that night and decided to blackmail her,” she explained in one breath.
When Jack shook his head in confusion, as if to erase what she was telling him, she grasped his arms and shook him desperately. “Honey, please, listen to me. Layla is obsessed with you―sheʼs always been! She was mad at you because you rejected her when you were kids, so she let you take the blame for everything. I donʼt have time to tell you all the details now…but please, you have to believe me!”
He took her hands and squeezed them. “Of course I believe you.”
“Thank you.” Sara exhaled in relief, squeezing his hands back. “Laylaʼs in the maze, and sheʼs armed. Brent just got there, too, and he doesnʼt know Iʼve escaped,” she continued in anguish. “We need to do something. We need to help him.”
Jack stiffened as he looked around to assess the situation. A most determined expression was on his face when he put his hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eye. “Listen to me, babe… I want you to do exactly what you were going to. Go back to the ranch and tell Nicky everything you just told me.”
“But…what are you going to do?” she asked him, dreading his answer.
He took a long breath. “I
have to help Brent, Sara. I need to distract Layla and buy some time until the police get here.”
“No!” Color leached from Saraʼs face, and she shook her head hard. “Itʼs too dangerous!”
“Please, donʼt argue with me now.” He gave her a faint smile, his hand pressing on her belly. “You need to think about our baby. Please. If you listen to me just this one time, I swear Iʼll let you have your way the next thirty or forty years.”
Sara tried to return his smile, but tears welled up in her eyes as she hugged him tight. “Promise me youʼll be careful and wonʼt do anything stupid.”
“I promise.”
“Dammit, if you get yourself killed, I swear Iʼll bring you back to life just so I can kill you again myself!”
“Deal. Now go. And Sara? If we survive tonight, Iʼm fucking marrying you in the morning.” Jack smiled and gave her a quick kiss before he turned around and disappeared through the maze.
Chapter 36
When Jack reached Layla and Brent, the sight of them pointing their guns at each other made him gasp. He had to admit that, had Sara not told him the truth about Layla, he wouldn’t have hesitated to take the womanʼs side. But because he knew the truth, he took another step forward and tried to appear as normal as he could as he approached them. “What the hell is going on here?”
Layla jumped, startled. Brent gave him a shocked look and lowered the gun heʼd instinctively pointed at him. “Holy shit, Turner, do you have a death wish?”
Jack raised his hands with a cold chuckle. “Not tonight, Hayden. Iʼm just here to try the maze. Whatʼs going on?”
Layla started talking before he could answer. “Brent has lost his mind, Jack,” she muttered, sobbing. “He told me heʼs the one who killed J.T., Charlene, and Carrie, and now he wonʼt let me go.”
Brent gasped, his eyes wide. “Donʼt believe a word she says! She’s the one who killed everybody! Sheʼs—”
Jack raised his hands again. “All right, why donʼt you both drop your guns and explain what the fuck youʼre talking about?”
Brent and Layla exchanged a long, challenging look. Neither of them lowered their guns, but he blew out a deep sigh. “I swear to God, Jack, Iʼm telling the truth. Remember that phone call you asked me to trace? Well, I did, and guess what? It was made from a pay phone on Main Street. Layla made it.”
Her jaw dropped as he stared at him. “That’s insane! You have no way to prove that!”
“Yes, I do.” Brent shot her a grim look, then turned back to Jack. “Nobody from the shops in the area saw anyone use it―in fact, they didnʼt even know that old phone still worked. But the bank next door to it has a security camera that points right at it. I saw the tape from the camera, Jack. Layla made that phone call, knowing that weʼd suspect Max. Of course, she couldnʼt know heʼd already killed himself then.” A dead silence followed his words. Strangely, Jack didnʼt seem surprised by his explanation. Layla, on the other hand, kept shaking her head frantically. He sighed. “Jack, do you remember why we never really believed Max could be guilty?”
Jack frowned, his gaze finally leaving Layla and flitting to him. “Because he had alibis for every single murder.”
“Exactly!” Brent nodded in satisfaction. “But Layla doesnʼt. She was supposed to be eating pizza with her dad the night Carrie was killed, but the delivery guy specifically said he only saw Max, not her. And guess what? Three months ago, she rented a car in Dallas―a white pickup, just like the one that almost ran Sara down.”
“Youʼve got to be kidding me! Jack, donʼt listen to him—”
“Cut the crap, Lay,” Jack cut her off. “Thereʼs no need to keep lying. I know Brent is right. Charlene told me everything the night you killed her,” he lied, hoping to sound convincing.
“What?”
“She told me that you killed J.T., and that she caught you and blackmailed you for years.” He knew heʼd scored when Laylaʼs eyes filled with shock, and she took an instinctive step back.
“No way… Youʼre bluffing.”
Brent shook his head in disbelief. “Why didnʼt you tell me, Jack? We could have done something. We could have saved Charlene… Oh, God, Carrie…”
Jack didnʼt answer, his gaze fixed on Laylaʼs face. “I know youʼre the killer, Lay. Now all I want to know is what youʼre planning to do after tonight.” Silence dropped in the field as both she and Brent stared at him in shock.
“I donʼt understand,” she muttered, looking him straight in the eye. “If you knew the truth, why didn’t you say something before?”
“What for?” Jack scoffed a bitter laugh. “Let’s face it, babe, as far as this damn town is concerned, I’ve always been guilty. Do you think anybody would have believed for a second that the beloved sheriff’s daughter could be the cold, ruthless killer behind all of those deaths? I knew that I wouldn’t accomplish anything by accusing you, so I decided to take some time and wait for the right chance to tell the truth. And now that moment has finally arrived. Now I know exactly what to do.”
“What do you mean?” Brent and Layla asked in perfect unison.
With a smirk, Jack took a few steps toward her. “I have a plan, Lay. I know how to get ourselves out of this mess and make both of us look like innocent little angels,” he said with feigned indifference as she stared at him with a pensive look on her face.
Brent winced at his words. “Jack!”
“Go on,” she cut him off. Jack never moved his gaze from hers. “The thing is, you and I are incredibly alike. We could do amazing things together.”
She shook her head. “I don’t believe you. You never wanted me before.”
“I never knew who you really were.” He took a deep breath before continuing. “You were younger than I was, Lay, and for years, I saw you as nothing but this cute, spoiled little brat who followed me everywhere. I never knew the real you until now—and now that I do, I think youʼre incredibly hot.” His eyes roamed over her body as his fingers played with a strand of her long hair.
Layla scanned his face, as if trying to read him. “I donʼt believe you.”
“Think about it. We can start over together if we want to. Nobody knows the truth besides me and you.”
“And Brent,” she pointed out, jerking her gun toward their gaping friend.
Jack dismissed her words with a wave of his hand. “He wonʼt be a problem. Nicky already suspects that he might be involved in the murders; it wonʼt be hard to convince her that he is.”
Brent winced. His knees almost gave in then. “W-what? Nicky…what?”
Jack ignored him. “Itʼs the two of us against him, Lay—and donʼt forget that youʼre the beloved sheriffʼs daughter. Trust me. We can do this.”
Layla bit her bottom lip, obviously pondering everything. “Sara!” she remembered suddenly. “She knows everything. She escaped after I told her the truth. I shot her, but I d-don't know if I h-hit her,” she stuttered confusedly as Jack took another step closer and slipped a hand to her hair.
Brentʼs mouth opened and closed soundlessly, his face draining of all color. “Saraʼs shot? Fuck, Layla! Tell me where she is—”
“Donʼt worry about Sara.” Jack’s gaze remained fixed on Laylaʼs. “The last time I saw her, she was lying on the ground with a bullet in her back. She doesnʼt matter anymore. All that matters now is you and me.”
Brent gave him an incredulous look…and thatʼs when he suddenly realized that he was bluffing. He could have believed everything Jack had said, except that he didnʼt care about Sara. Jack would die for Sara. He loved her; he wanted to marry her and was ecstatic about the baby they were expecting. Brent was sure of that just as he knew the sun came up every morning. He had no idea what game his friend was playing, but if he had a sensible plan to get them out of this predicament, then he was all for it.
Layla appeared to be just as torn as he was, because she kept staring at Jack, studying his eyes as if they could reveal the truth. “I don’t believe you,” she repeated.
&nb
sp; Jack held her intent gaze for a few more seconds, then dropped his arm. “All right. Then I guess Iʼll just have to prove it to you.” Ignoring her dumbfounded expression, he turned around and started walking toward Brent.
He pointed his gun straight at his chest. “Stop right now. Dammit, Jack, donʼt make me shoot you!”
“Do that, and Layla will shoot you right back. Right, babe?” Jack flashed an adoring look at Layla from over his shoulder. When she nodded like a puppet on a string, he turned back to Brent and extended a hand to him. “Just give me your gun, man. Don’t be stupid.”
Brent hesitated, his mind scrambling for possibilities. What if he was wrong? What if Jack was not bluffing? After all, he had already admitted heʼd lied for months about getting his memory back and about learning the truth about Layla from Charlene. But damn, even as he thought that, he couldnʼt bring his heart to believe it. Jack had to be bluffing. There was no way he would do that to him. And especially not to Sara.
“You’re never gonna get away with this,” he grunted with feigned disgust, finally handing him the gun.
Jack took it with a cold laugh. “That’s my problem, Hayden. Now shut up and get on your knees.”
When he obeyed, Jack removed the handcuffs from his waistband and latched one onto Brent’s wrist. Its metallic click resounded through the cornfield like a bomb. “Fuck, Iʼve always dreamed of doing this to a damn cop for a change,” Jack murmured with a cynical grin.
Brent winced. For a long, terrible moment, he thought again that heʼd read his friend all wrong. Only when Jack snapped the other end of the handcuffs shut did it hit him that this time he hadn’t locked it around his wrist. His heart nearly shot out of his chest at the realization that he was free, then again as he felt the cold metal of his gun pressing against his palm. Grabbing the gun with gratitude, he remained kneeled on the ground with both hands behind his back, pretending to be completely restrained as Jack stood back up.
Bound to the Past (Starville Series Book 1) Page 42
