Page 45 of Killer Summer
“It’s okay,” Lisa said. “I suppose I could be happy sipping margaritas and staring at the sunset instead of chopping wood.”
“So you’ll leave tonight?” Dani asked, hopeful but not too hopeful. Her aunt was every bit as stubborn and determined as she was.
“We’ll leave together,” she nodded. “Let’s get to work.”
Dani went inside and relieved herself, chugged a cup of black coffee, and changed into a black t-shirt and pants before getting back to work. She tied Tommy’s hoodie around her waist and slicked her hair under a black cap, dressing as sensibly and battle-ready as possible. She and Lisa had already been prepared for this scenario just as they were prepared in their homes back in Florida. The unassuming little log cabin looked rustic from the outside, but the security features that surrounded the place were loaded to the hilt.
Her first act of business was to set the tire spikes at the end of the long driveway. When they bought the property, Dani had installed a motion-activated trigger that brought up a bar of tire-flattening teeth when activated. If someone crossed over it, their vehicle would be disabled and it would also alert them to an intruder at the same time. If Vickers was brave enough to drive up to the place, setting off the spikes and sensors would buy her some more time. If the police showed up first and drove over the spikes, then that was their problem.
The property surrounding the cabin was wild and rugged, too large to be properly fenced all the way. Dani solved that security problem by setting up even more motion-activated alarms until every angle around the cabin was covered. The security system wasn’t nearly as complete or sophisticated as the one she had set up at home, but it would have to do. While Daniworked on securing the exterior of the property, Lisa set up their surveillance headquarters inside. The kitchen became their stakeout headquarters, outfitted with two laptops displaying security camera footage.
They worked together through the night testing sensors, setting tripwires, and securing traps. When she was satisfied with her job, Dani went inside and helped Lisa take inventory of their weapons and ammo; two large hunting knives, one hand gun, one long range rifle. The only weapon she wanted to use was the knife, but she knew that Matt may need to be disabled with a few bullets first. One to the kneecap. Another in his groin. She wanted to save her blade for the final kill. She wanted to see the light extinguish from his eyes, feel his last breath on her cheek. Only up close could she be certain that he was really, truly dead.
“It’s gonna be morning in a few hours. How long do you plan on waiting for him to show up?” Lisa eased into the chair next to Dani at the kitchen table by the window. She pushed a fresh cup of coffee toward her. “I know you want your revenge, but if the police get here first, then you could be the one behind bars.”
“I know it,” Dani said, scanning the surveillance footage. “I want him dead. But I want to keep you safe and avoid jail more.”
“So what’s the plan then?”
“I’ll give him until sun up to show his ugly face,” Dani said. “If he doesn’t get here by then, we’ll head out to the airfield and bribe some pilot to smuggle us out of here.”
“I’m sorry that it had to go this way,” Lisa said. “Sometimes I think about what it would be like if things turned out different for us both.”
“I know.”
“You’ve been a real blessing in my life. I never was close with your mother, she didn’t approve of my lifestyle, as you know. I stayed away like she asked, but it pained me not to know you as alittle girl,” Lisa said. “Even though having children wasn’t in my plan, and you were already grown when you came to stay with me, I was so happy to have you.”
She paused as her usually stoic aunt’s voice broke. She reached across the kitchen table and squeezed her hand. “Us tough gals gotta stick together.”
“Damn straight.” Lisa wiped her eyes and laughed. “We both already lost so much. More than we deserve.”
Dani’s gaze trailed down to the long pink scar on her aunt’s forearm. There were many things Dani hadn’t known about Lisa Spencer before she came to live with her. One of those things was that her seemingly unassuming, sweet aunt had an unusual past. The person Lisa was before came with a background that helped her build a useful set of skills. Over time, Dani came to learn that in the 80s, her aunt had lived in South America with her girlfriend, who also happened to be the head of a small, if not successful, cartel. As two of the only women running drug rings at the time, Lisa and her girlfriend had learned to be even more careful than their male counterparts. Aside from all the money that her aunt had stashed away from that time, Lisa had also learned practical life and tactical skills. Making man-sized traps in the jungle had been one of those skills. Lisa left her girlfriend and a life of crime in the past, but the skills she learned back then were still fresh and useful as ever. In her own way, Lisa Spencer knew what it was like to feel the blade of a knife and to be on the run from her demons, too.
“Costa Rica is perfect. We’ll be able to—” Dani’s thought was cut off as the alarm on the laptop blipped. She turned her attention back to the security footage to see a black van with the headlights off rolling into the end of the long driveway leading up to the house. The spikes did their job and Dani heard the crunch and pop of metal against rubber as the vehicle limped along, then screeched to a complete stop.
“Stay here. Watch the cameras and use the rifle if you need it.” Dani stood and tucked the hunting knife into her front pocket. “If something bad happens, lock yourself in the cellar and call Detective Owens.”
“I won’t need to,” Lisa said. “Go get him.”
Dani grabbed her handgun and slipped out the front door, her feet flying over wooden planks, dirt, and leaves. She should have been terrified, her limbs should have been locked up in fear. The only thing Dani felt at that moment was motivated. Energized. Alive. Too many times before she had let her anxiety be her weakness. She failed to be strong when her attacker came back, even after years of training and preparation. But now, he had followed her breadcrumbs. She had him in her trap. She was finally the one with the upper hand. She swore to herself that this would be the night Matt Vickers would die.
The drive from the main road to their cabin was a quarter of a mile long, unpaved and lined on both sides by maple, birch, and hemlock. Her weekly jogs made it easy for her to navigate the terrain and it didn’t take her long to reach the dark, unmarked vehicle. She hung back in the shadows and watched, trying to see if whoever was in the van would get out. From her vantage point, she could just make out that the license plate on the front was from New Mexico and clearly wasn’t an official police vehicle. Before she could settle into her stakeout position, the driver’s side door swung open. A new wave of adrenaline bolstered her confidence as Dani emerged from the bushes with the handgun pointed at the driver.
“Raise your hands over your head! Step out of the van!”
The door opened and a figure emerged from behind the wheel. But it wasn’t who she expected.
“Missy?” Dani lowered her gun as her friend and jogging partner stepped out of the van. She blinked in confusion as Missy raced toward her, unharmed and all full of smiles.
“Oh my god! Dani! You’re okay!” Missy wrapped her up in a hug still dressed in her bloody jogging clothes.
Dani gagged as a sickly, familiar scent filled her nostrils.
Cheap pine and musk.
Venom and sweat.
The blood drained from her body as she pushed her friend away. “Missy, what is this?”
