Page 83 of The Best Friend
Good. Do it. Iwillhim to call them.
The basement is dark now, aside from the overspill of light filtering down the stairs. Darcy is on tiptoe at the thin strip of window, peering through a gap at the bottom of the blinds.
‘Shit,’ she mutters. She crosses the room and follows after her brother, leaving me alone.
After a moment, Jared’s voice falls silent and the doorbell stops ringing. That can’t be a good thing. Can it? What the hell is going on up there? I hear more footsteps outside on the gravel. Then, Darcy’s voice – her words like machine-gun fire, angry and sharp. Callum replies, his voice low and pleading, becoming louder as they return to the house.
‘You told me to,’ he says.
‘You could’ve killed him, you idiot,’ she replies. ‘Now what are we going to do? Ugh, I should have come up here myself. I’m sure I could have explained her phone being here. Now it’s all ruined.’
‘Sorry, Nic. I mean, Darcy.’
‘I always have to sort out everything myself. Bring him to the basement, then.’
The overhead light flashes on and I blink and squint as my eyes adjust to the brightness.I hear footsteps, and the thud of something heavy being draggedalongthe floor and then down the stairs. Darcy’s tan boots appear on the wooden steps, followed by the rest of her. Callum is following behind her. He’s half-dragging my husband. Oh God, Jared looks like he’s…
‘Calm down, he’s still alive,’ Darcy drawls, reading my worried expression.
I try to speak, try to ask what they’ve done to him, but this damn gag is doing its job of keeping me quiet.
Darcy sets another wooden chair next to mine and Callum plonks my husband onto it. Jared’s head lolls and he lets out a low moan. Darcy holds him steady while Callum binds his hands and feet. Once he’s secure, Darcy starts pacing up and down the length of the cellar, tapping her fingernails together, her eyes narrowed, her mouth screwed up. She doesn’t know what to do. She’s worried.
So am I.
Thirty-Three
Thank God.I know I shouldn’t want Jared to be caught up in Darcy’s plan, but now he’s here, my stomach isn’t churning quite as much. I’m convinced we’ll have a better chance of getting out of this together. Darcy has feelings for him, I’m sure of it. She won’t let him die, and Jared won’t let her kill me.
Darcy paces the floor, a frown on her face.
I gaze at my husband, his eyes closed, his head drooping over his chest, hair falling over his forehead. Suddenly, his eyes fly open. He snaps his head up. Unfortunately, he’s already been secured to the chair, his hands tied behind his back. ‘What the…’ He moves his shoulders and jerks his body, trying to figure out what’s going on. I can’t even warn him about what’s happened as I still have this stupid gag over my mouth.
Jared glares at Darcy who’s standing in front of the wine rack. And then his gaze lands on me, tied up and gagged beside him. His eyes widen further. ‘Lou! What the hell’s going on? Darcy? Why am I—’
Darcy holds up her hand to halt his questions but he ignores her.
‘Will somebody explain what the fuck my wife and I are doing tied up in here. And did someone just hit me on the head?’ He blinks and swings his head from left to right, catching sight of Callum who walks over to Darcy’s side. ‘Who the fuck are you?’ Jared asks.
‘It’s unfortunate,’ Darcy replies. ‘You were meant to get back in your car and leave. If you’d done what you were supposed to, you wouldn’t be down here now.’
‘What?’ Jared sounds woozy. ‘Where are we?’
‘Mike’s wine cellar,’ she replies.
‘In your house? In the basement?’ His voice is clearer now. He blinks and glances wildly around.
‘Correct,’ she says.
‘I don’t know what you’re playing at,’ he growls, ‘but you better untie us right now. Are you insane?’
I want to shoutyes she fucking is insane and if you’d listened to me in the first place this wouldn’t be happening.
He turns to look at me, fear and concern clouding his eyes. ‘Louisa, are you hurt? I was calling you. I heard your ringtone.’ He turns back to Darcy. ‘Take that gag off her mouth! Why do you have my wife down here? My head hurts like a bastard. What the hell is going on?’
‘If you could be quiet for a minute,’ Darcy says icily, ‘I’ll tell you.’
Jared’s face darkens and twists, his eyes are narrow slits. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so angry.
