“Thanks for the call. If she comes home, please call me. And call the police, okay?”
“I already called them but they said there isn’t much they can do at this point. She needs help, Max. We have to get her help.”
“Thanks for calling me, Mrs. West.”
I ended the call and turned to look at Kari.
“What’s that about?” she asked curiously.
“That was Sam’s mom. Apparently Sam’s gone off the deep end.”
She snorted. “I think she already did that.”
“No. For real this time. Let’s get out of here. I’m going to follow you home—go straight there.”
Kari nodded and stood up. I opened the door to my office and then stopped dead in my tracks.
MAX
The barrel of the revolver caught the light from the security bulb overhead. It shook a little, the movement causing the steel to glimmer just enough to be visible.
I put both hands behind me and shoved Kari backwards.
“What the hell?” she asked defiantly, my little firecracker not happy with getting pushed.
“Yeah, what the hell?” Sam asked in front of me, stepping out of the shadows and pulling her hood off her head. “I came here so we could talk alone. Of course she’s here!”
Her tone was erratic, calm and then touching hysteria. Her hair was a mess, her eyes looked like she hadn’t slept in awhile.
“Well, I didn’t know you were coming.” I flashed her a smile, hoping to keep her calm. “You should’ve called and let me know.”
Sam’s laugh bounced around the office, the gun bouncing right along with it. I felt Kari’s hands on my back and I shook my head slightly, trying to get her to move back and away from the doorway.
“What’s going on, Sam?”
Her eyes were devoid of any feeling. A bead of sweat glistened across her forehead, her hair matted together in thick blonde chunks.
“Sam?” Kari asked from behind me and I stuck both hands out, grabbing each side of the door frame, preventing her from coming forward. “What’s going on?”
I kept my focus steady on Samantha. Her pupils were wide. She had such a sad, forlorn look on her face.
“Put the gun down, Samantha,” I said with an emphasis on “gun” so Kari would get what was happening. I didn’t want to talk to Kari directly; I knew that would only set Sam off further. I needed to focus, figure a way out of this.
“Can’t,” she said, taking one step towards me and then stopping, leaving a little too much space for me to cover to get the gun away.
“You can,” I said softly, trying to encourage her to do the right thing. “This isn’t like you. What are you doing?”
She sniffled, bringing one arm to her nose and wiping it with her sleeve. “I can’t make you listen to me, Max. I need you to listen to me.”
“I’m listening, Sammy. I’m all ears.”
She smiled faintly at the nickname I had given her as a child.
“It’s hard to listen to anything with a gun in your face. Put that down and we’ll go in the break room, make some coffee, and talk about whatever you want.”
“You don’t like coffee,” she said without emotion. “I know everything about you. You’d rather have tea or a Corona.”
I tried to laugh and make it sound genuine, but it was hard. I wanted to blast forward, grab the gun, and grab her around the neck. My heart was racing, my mind going just as fast.
I have to stay calm.
I took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. “That’s right, but I doubt there’s Corona in the break room.”
She watched me blankly. I started to take a step towards her and she shook her head and adjusted her hands on the gun.
“Kari, come here and let’s talk,” Sam said, her voice even, the barrel of the gun bobbing up and down a little bit with her words.
“You know I’m not going to let her come out here,” I said, standing still.
Sam’s eyes snapped to life, the void filling with a volatile mix of energy. “Why? Because you love her?”
“Yes,” I said smoothly. “And I love you, too, and don’t want you to do anything stupid.” I tried to take a step forward again but she took two backwards. “How did you get in here?”
“You gave me your keys. I made copies,” she smiled hauntingly. “You remember that.”
I’m a godforsaken fool.
The building squeaked again with the wind, the sound of the metal banging on the roof and echoing through the office. Samantha jumped at the sound.
“Stay calm,” I said putting both hands out in front of me. “It’s just the wind.”
A shaky smile ghosted her lips and she began to sing the words to a song about the wind beneath your wings. Her voice was hollow.
“Sam,” Kari said, stepping to my side. “Let’s talk about this.”
“Get the hell back in there!” I growled, looking at Kari out of the corner of my eye. “Now, Kari.”
“No!” Sam shouted, one finger coming forward on the trigger. “Get out here, Miss Perfect.”
I stepped in front of Kari, keeping my focus on Sam. “She’s not coming out here.”