Wicked Obsessions (41 page)

When knocking, pounding and shouting didn't produce any results, Parkins smashed a window and climbed in. Quickly he unlocked the front and back doors and let in the rest of the team. A brief search of the house proved that someone was living there, and a damp towel in the kitchen suggested the inhabitant hadn't been gone long. The only place they couldn't easily check was behind a door in the kitchen that had been locked from the other side. While two of the troopers worked at removing the hinges on the outside of the door, Parkins called Drew inside to take a look at the strange portrait in the corner of one bedroom.

"That's Teri's work, all right," Drew confirmed as soon as he saw the painting of Selena behind bars. He bent down to examine the signature. "Look here-it's dated July nine. Teri must have painted it after Selena took her away. She's got to be here!"

Just then one of the troopers came back to the bedroom. "We got the hinges off that door. It leads down to a basement. You ready?"

Parkins turned to Drew. "You'd better go back outside. We don't know what we'll find behind that door."

Ignoring the suggestion, Drew followed Parkins to the kitchen, but was held back by Morris while Parkins headed cautiously down into the basement, followed by three of the officers.

* * *

Teri wanted to scream out a warning, but Selena had her pinned against her with one hand over Teri's mouth and the gun barrel pressed to her temple.

"Hush now," Selena whispered, tightening her grip on Teri's face. "I don't want to hurt you, but I won't let those men get their hands on you."

Teri understood instantly. Selena would kill her before allowing her pet to be rescued.

The moment the first police officer appeared, Selena pointed the gun at him and fired. That man jumped off the stairs and rolled on the floor while three others behind him did the same thing, only to discover there was nowhere to hide. Selena pulled the trigger three more times at the moving targets, but in spite of the bullets ricocheting around the basement, only one man was hit.

They all had their weapons out, but Selena kept Teri securely in front of her as a shield. As soon as it became obvious that they weren't going to shoot, she turned her gun back on Teri.

"You all want her alive, don't you?" Selena ranted at them. "You want to take her from me so you can play your man-games with her. But I'm not going to let you have her. I swore to protect her and I will, even if it means ending both our lives right now. I have two bullets left, one for her, then one for me. But it would be better if you would all just go away and leave us alone."

Teri recognized Sergeant Parkins as he set his gun on the floor and got up slowly with his hands raised. "Selena, you can't kill Teri. That would break your vow as The Protector, and you've already made one mistake too many."

Teri felt Selena loosen her hold on her a bit.

"How do you know who I am?" Selena asked warily.

The officer took one step toward the cage and spoke in a gentle voice. "I found out from someone with greater powers than you. You failed once, Selena. If you fail again, you can no longer be called The Protector. Your title will be granted to someone more worthy."

Teri prepared herself as she sensed Selena's attention turning completely to the officer. Although the gun was still directed at her, it was no longer pressed against her temple. But Teri realized that even if she could break away, there was nowhere for her to run within the cage. If only she could slip her fingers into Selena's pocket while she was distracted and get the key to this bright officer, he might be able to get the door open and end the stalemate.

Selena was obviously confused by what the officer was telling her. In her little-girl voice, she asked, "What do you mean, I failed?"

Parkins looked up the stairs behind him and called, "Mr. Marshall, why don't you tell her how she failed?"

"Marshall?" whined Selena in disbelief and pointed the gun at the stairs.

"No-o-o!"
Teri screamed as she slammed her elbow into Selena's stomach, then bashed the girl's forearm with her doubled fists as hard as she could. The pistol fell from Selena's hand, clanged against the bars, and slid under the bed. In a blur of movement, Selena dived to the floor to retrieve the gun, and Teri threw herself on top of her. While Selena groped beneath the bed for the gun, Teri dug her hand into Selena's pocket, pulled out the key to the cage, and tossed it through the bars.

Teri saw Parkins grab the key and insert it in the lock, but he wasn't quite fast enough. In the same seconds that it took him to open the cage door, Selena found the gun, bucked Teri off her back, and hauled her up in front of her again. The other two officers had moved up beside him and were prepared to shoot, but Selena had her gun pressed against Teri's temple again. The slightest movement could mean her death.

"Put down your guns and back away from the door," Selena ordered angrily. "You, too," she shouted at the downed officer beneath the steps. As soon as they were out of the way, Selena brought Teri out of the cage and moved toward the stairway. "Okay, all of you, get in the cage." She waited impatiently for them to drag the injured man inside with them then demanded, "Now call everyone else down here to join you. There are four of you here. I know I saw one more coming toward the house."

Teri could almost see Parkins mind working for several seconds before he called out, "Kirby. Come down here."

"With your hands up," Selena added. When another officer reached the basement she made him remove his gun belt and get in the cage also. "Where's Marshall?"

"He's not really here," Parkins told her. "I lied about that. He's alive, but after what you did to him, he won't be leaving the hospital anytime soon."

Selena made a growling sound. There was no way for her to know if anyone was still upstairs but she couldn't stay in the basement either. Towing Teri along with her, Selena shifted the gun from one hand to the other, closed and locked the cage door, and returned the key to her pocket. Still considering the officers a threat, she kept Teri in front of her and started up the stairs backward.

Teri gagged when Selena's forearm cut off her air passage as she pulled her up onto the first step. After several steps, Teri learned to anticipate the moment she needed to step up by listening for the clack of Selena's sandals right before she would yank Teri up by the throat. Teri wondered how Selena was navigating the stairs backward with those floppy shoes, then scolded herself for thinking of something so silly when her life was about to end, but her brain didn't seem to be functioning any better than her starved body.

Three-quarters of the way up the stairs, a stray memory came to her about how, if you are ever being forcibly held, going completely limp could help you get free. Anything was worth a try at this point. Drew was alive and she was determined to see him again.

Teri waited until the next step up. One sandal landed, and as Selena lifted her other foot, Teri went slack.

She had only meant to slip out of Selena's grasp, but as Teri drooped, Selena lost her shoe, then her balance. With a hard jerk, Teri twisted aside, causing Selena's heavy body to catapult forward. Clinging to the railing, Teri gaped in shock as Selena toppled down the stairs, shrieking and flapping her arms and legs like a huge ragdoll as she tried to stop her fall. With a sickening crunch of bones, Selena landed on the white concrete floor.

No one moved or spoke for several heartbeats. Then Selena's eyes suddenly popped open and she raised the gun toward Teri.

Teri wanted to move, but her body refused to cooperate. She could only stand there, quivering with terror. But Selena couldn't seem to pull the trigger. Her head turned slowly toward the chair where Juliette was perched, as if she were listening to something the doll was telling her. A moment later, Selena's hand began to spasm.

With a keening cry, she pointed the gun at Juliette and squeezed the trigger. As her mentor exploded into pieces, Selena brought the gun to her own temple.

And fired again.

With the ear-splitting sound of the gunshots still echoing throughout the basement, two more officers sped down the stairs past Teri as she collapsed onto a step. She was not sure she had the strength to get up on her own, until someone sat down beside her and stroked her cheek.

"Drew!" she cried, throwing her arms around him. For a long time they merely held each other, oblivious to the gruesome scene below them. There was so much to say, but not yet. When one of the officers needed to get by, they rose to go upstairs also, but Drew hesitated when he saw Teri turn to look back at the creature on the basement floor.

"May she rot in Hell," he said, without an ounce of sympathy.

As for Teri, her time in Hell had ended... permanently.

Epilogue

"Congratulations, Teri," Ann said, giving her a warm hug. "I think this is the best showing the Forsythe Gallery has had since your exhibit last year. Your idea to share the spotlight with Drew was sheer genius! I'm not suggesting your
Faces
series isn't magnificent, but displaying the paintings alongside his original photography showed brilliance, pure brilliance!"

Teri blushed with pride. "Thank you. We couldn't be more pleased. Pardon me, but Drew seems to need rescuing from one of your more enamored blue-haired patrons." She made her way through the champagne-sipping crowd to her husband's side. Smiling at his fawning admirer, she linked her arm through his and politely excused the both of them.

"Thanks, darlin'," he murmured with a wink as Teri led him to a quieter corner of the gallery.

"My pleasure." She raised up on tiptoes and softly kissed his mouth.

He couldn't resist wrapping his arms around her in spite of the lack of privacy. "They love you."

"They love
us,"
she corrected and let her gaze scan the collection on display. "It
is
good."

Drew watched her closely and knew the precise moment when she looked at the final collage of the series—Selena... in all her faces and moods... including insanity. Simultaneously fascinating and repelling, it had drawn the most attention at the exhibit. "You okay?"

Teri nodded and smiled for him. It had taken a year before she could work on that last painting, but she had felt driven to do so. With its completion, she was able to put an end to her nightmares.

And now, snuggled safely in her love's embrace, Teri could almost forget about the damaged young woman who had dragged her through the terrifying corridors of dark obsession.

Almost.

The End

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