Page 31 of If They Knew

“Sure,” Mary responds.

“No, I'm not leaving.” Logan crosses his arms and leans against the wall. “If she's going to talk, she can do it with all of us in the room.” Beatrice flinches at the sound of his voice.

I speak softly, trying not to spook Beatrice while still getting Logan out. “Logan, please, just five minutes to talk? She's upset, and you're only making her more scared.”

“No, Theo, this is serious. Besides,” Logan says, pointing at Beatrice. “She doesn’t look that sick to me. I don't give a rat's ass if she’s scared. She needs to tell us what the hell happened.”

Beatrice struggles to sit up in bed. I reach out to help her, but she lifts her hand to stop me. Then, once she is sitting up, she steadies herself and stands, staring directly at Logan. Her expression is no longer fearful. Now there’s rage burning in her eyes that hadn’t been there a moment earlier.

“How dare you?” she shouts, her voice a little hoarse.

“How dare I what?” Logan responds, seemingly unfazed by her. My eyes go back and forth between the two.

“How can you act like you have no idea what's going on? This is all your fault. You're the reason for everything. John made us spy on everyone, watching everything and reporting back to him so he can report to you.” Beatrice pauses to take a deep breath. She begins coughing, and Mary tries to interject, but Beatrice raises her hand and shakes her head. My eyes go straight to Logan and I watch his eyebrows lift at Beatrice’s words. He looks around the room at all of us listening, then turns back to Beatrice, who is nearly out of breath. “We all heard you both, talking behind closed doors, thinking nobody was listening. Well, I was listening, and I know what you're up to. Everyone in this room is going to find out.” She stops talking for a moment, and I think she is going to take a seat, but doesn't. “I'm already dead, so what do I have to lose anyway?”

“Is this true?” I ask, almost too stunned to speak. We all look at Logan, waiting for an answer.

“No. The only thing we ever spoke about was the food running low. I don't care what that bitch says, she's lying.”

“That's bullshit, Logan, and you know it. I heard what you said. You can't hurt me. I'll just tell them what I overheard you say.” Beatrice rasps out, coughing and wiping blood from her mouth with the back of her hand.

“This is bullshit. She’s obviously crazy.” Logan's words land hard, causing Beatrice to lunge forward, her weak body almost collapsing. Mary rushes to her to hold her back.

“See, I told you all, she’s fucking crazy!” This time, he pisses me off.

“Logan.” His attention snaps to me and our eyes meet. “Why don't you explain yourself? Surely she isn't making all this up.” He doesn't answer the question. Instead, he just stares, lips sealed in a straight line and brows furrowed together tightly.

It’s Beatrice who breaks the silence, “Logan and John plan on⁠—”

Suddenly, her words are cut off. She projectile-vomits blood across the floor, covering everyone's feet. We all leap backward.

“Oh, my god. Beatrice!” screams Mary, rushing to her. Beatrice continues to convulse uncontrollably, the same way Mary mentioned earlier about Jerry. The vomiting stops, and Beatrice wipes her mouth. Her face briefly clears like she is having a moment of clarity. She must realize this is her only chance to speak, so she quickly turns to me and grabs my arms.

Her face is gaunt and pale, and her eyes are bloodshot and shiny. Looking into my eyes, she utters two more words: “Killing you.”

She falls backward, her eyes rolling back as she starts to seize, her body shaking violently. All her muscles tense, and her head tilts back as far as it can naturally go. White foam appears on her lips. I stand frozen, overwhelmed by the scene and her last words.

I stand motionless, too stunned to speak as Mary quickly turns Beatrice onto her side, doing everything she can to save her. The seizure drags on for what feels like an eternity. Then Beatrice’s violent shaking stops, her body going limp in Mary's arms. I look at Mary and watch her eyes fill with tears. Within seconds, Mary wipes the tears streaming down her cheeks, and her expression shifts from sadness to rage. She begins breathing so hard and fast that she seems about to explode. I know exactly who is to blame—Logan.

Mary gently lays Beatrice across the blood and vomit-soaked floor and stands. For a moment, Mary stands there, her eyes locked on the lifeless body resting at her feet. No one dares to speak or break the silence.

“What… did… you… do…?” she says, each word slow and deliberate. Almost menacing.

The room remains silent, and Mary turns slowly, her face wet and her eyes bloodshot from crying, her jaw clenched tight. Her gaze sweeps over everyone in the room, her focus never wavering. Her eyes lock onto Logan and she stares at him as if she were a wild animal—a predator on the hunt, with Logan as her prey.

“I asked you a question,” she says through gritted teeth.

“Listen, this is all a big mis⁠—”

“What did you do?” She cuts Logan off, not giving him a chance to give her a bullshit answer.

“I was trying to tell you... This is all a big misunderstanding,” Logan says, taking a step back. We all stare at him in silence.

“Is he fucking serious?” Mary asks, almost giggling like it’s a joke. “How can this be a misunderstanding? People are dying and Beatrice seemed pretty fucking dead set on you and John being up to something.” Mary's words are sharp.

The room is terrifyingly quiet.

“Answer me, goddamn it,” she snaps.