Webb spared a single murderous look at Corliss. She was watching the man as if fascinated, but there wasn't a single flicker of fear on her face. She had let him in, and she was too stupid to realize he would kill her, too. All of them were dead, unless he did something.
He tried to move closer to Roanna, hoping that perhaps he could shield her with his body, that somehow she might survive.
"Uh-uh," the man said, shaking his head.
"You stand still, you bastard. ""Who are you?" Gloria shrilled.
"Turn loose of my sister!" "Shut up, bitch, or I'll feed the first bullet to you."
"It's a good question," Webb said. He stared at the man with a cool, hard gaze.
"Who the bell are you?"
Lucinda spoke, her bloodless lips moving.
"His name," she said clearly, "is Harper Neeley."
The man gave a rough, feral laugh.
"I see you've heard of me. 11 "I know who you are. I made it a point to find out."
"Did you, now? That's real interesting. Wonder why you never visited. We're family, after all." He laughed again.
Webb didn't want his attention on Lucinda, didn't want him watching any of them except himself.
"Why, God damn it?" he snarled.
"What do you want? I don't know you, I've never even heard of you." If he could stall long enough, Loyal might be able to work himself into position and do something, or the sheriff would arrive. All he had to do was stall.
"Because you killed her," Neeley said viciously.
"You killed my girl, you fucking bastard."
"Jessie?" Webb stared at him, astonished.
"I didn't kill Jessie."
"God damn you, don't lie!" Neeley roared, jerking the pistol from Lucinda's temple to point it at Webb.
"You found out about us, and you killed her!"
"No," Webb said sharply.
"I didn't. I didn't have any idea she was cheating on me. I didn't know until after the autopsy when the sheriff told me she was pregnant. I knew it couldn't be mine."
"You knew! You knew and you killed her! You killed my girl and you killed my baby, and I'm going to make you watch while I kill your baby. I'm going to shoot this little bitch right in the stomach and you're going to stand there and watch her die, and then I'm going to do you-" "He didn't kill Jessie!" Lucinda's voice rang out over Neeley's. She lifted her white head high.
"I did."
The pistol wavered slightly.
"Don't try to mess with me, old woman," Neeley panted.
Webb kept his attention glued to Neeley; the man's eyes were gleaming hotly, sweat beading on his face as he worked himself into a frenzy. He was planning to kill nine people. He'd already wasted one shot. The pistol was an automatic;
how many bullets did it have in the clip? Some carried as many as seventeen, but still, after the first shot he could hardly expect them all to stand there like sheep waiting for the slaughter. He had to realize that he was in an almost impossible situation, but that made him all the more unstable. He had nothing to lose.
"I killed her," Lucinda repeated.
"You're lying. It was him, everybody knows it was him."
"I didn't mean to kill her," Lucinda said calmly. "it was an accident. I was scared, I didn't know what to do. if Webb had actually been arrested, I would have confessed, but Booley couldn't find any evidence because there wasn't any. Webb didn't do it." She gave Webb a look of sorrow, of love, of regret.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
"You're lying!" Neeley howled, jerking her hard against him and tightening his arm around her throat.
"I'll break your goddamn neck if you don't shut up!"
Greg jumped for him. Quiet, unassuming Greg, who had let Lanette run their lives without even opening his mouth to give an opinion. Lanette screamed, and Neeley jerked back, firing once. Greg stumbled and fell forward, all of his coordination suddenly gone, his legs and arms moving spasmodically. He sprawled on the floor, his chest heaving and his eyes wide with surprise. Then he gave a funny little cough that turned into a moan, as blood slowly spread beneath him.
Lanette stuffed her fingers into her mouth, staring in horror at her husband. She started forward, instinctively going to him.
"Don't move!" Neeley screamed, waving the pistol erratically.
"I'll kill the next one who moves!"
Corliss was staring down at her father, her mouth open, her expression stunned.
"You shot my daddy," she said in amazement.
"Shut up, you fucking bitch. Stupid," he sneered. "You're so fucking stupid."
Webb caught the faintest movement out of the corner of his eyes. He didn't dare move, didn't dare turn his head, as
terror seized him. Roanna shifted again, just the slightest of movements, taking her a fraction of an inch closer to the doors.
On the code box to the left of the doors, Webb saw the green light change to red.
Roanna had opened the door.
Fifteen seconds. The deafening blare would be all the diversion he would get. He began counting, hoping he could time it right.
Tears streamed down Corliss's face as she stared down at Greg, feebly writhing on the floor.
"Daddy," she said. She looked back at Neeley and her face twisted with rage, and something else.
"You shot my daddy!" she screamed, lunging at Neeley, her hands extended like claws.
He pulled the trigger again.
Corliss skidded, her torso jerked backward even as her feet tried to keep moving. Lanette screamed hoarsely, and the pistol swung unevenly toward her.
The alarm went off, the shrill, deafening sound painful in its intensity. Neeley's finger tightened on the trigger even as Webb was moving, and the bullet plowed into the wall right over Lanette's head. Neeley shoved Lucinda to the side, his free hand coming up to cover one ear as he tried to bring the pistol around. Webb hit him, driving one shoulder hard into the man's stomach, slamming him back against the wall. With his left hand he grabbed Neeley's right wrist, holding it up so he couldn't shoot anyone else even if he pulled the trigger.