Her sense of desperation turned to panic when the sounds of the footsteps reached her. She now cursed herself for not having a phone in the bedroom. She held her breath as she saw the doorknob slowly turn until the lock halted the movement, but both the lock and the door were very old. As something hit the door with a solid blow, she instinctively jumped back, a small scream escaping her lips. She scanned the room before her gaze settled on the four-poster bed. She raced over and grabbed one of the pineapple-shaped finials off one of the bedposts. Thank God she had never gotten around to having the bed actually canopied. The finial was solid wood and weighed at least a pound.
She held it in one upraised hand and stepped quickly over to the door. It shook as another blow landed, the lock bending under the force of it; the doorframe started to splinter. After that impact she reached over, quietly unlocked the door and then stood back. With the door unbolted, the next blow sent it and the man flying into the room. Sara’s arm came down swiftly and the finial hit flesh. She raced through the doorway and down the hallway. The man she had struck lay on the floor holding his shoulder and moaning.
Sara knew that Rayfield and Tremaine were dead. Then the man she had just hit was either Dellasandro or — she shuddered at the thought of the man being in her home — Warren McKenna. She navigated the stairs in two jumps, grabbed her car keys off the table and threw open the door on her way to the car. She let out a shriek of terror.
The second man stared back at her, calmly, coolly. As he stepped forward, Leo Dellasandro pointed a pistol directly at her. The man in black came racing down the stairs holding his shoulder, his gun trained on her as well. Dellasandro closed the door. Sara looked at the man behind her. It must be McKenna. But then her expression changed. This man wasn’t nearly big enough to be the FBI agent.
The ski mask came off and Richard Perkins glared at her. Then he smiled at her obvious astonishment and pulled some papers from his knapsack. “You must have overlooked my name on the Fort Plessy service roster, Sara. How sloppy of you.”
She stared at him angrily. “The marshal of the Supreme Court and the chief of its police, parties to a despicable crime.”
“Harms killed that girl, not me,” Dellasandro said.
“Have you made yourself believe that, Leo? You killed her, not Rufus, just as sure as if your hands were around her neck.”
Dellasandro’s face turned ugly. “That sonofabitch. If I had my way I would’ve pumped him full of lead instead of some damn drug. He was a disgrace to the uniform.”
“He was dyslexic,” Sara screamed at him. “He didn’t follow orders because he couldn’t understand them, you idiot. You destroyed his life and that girl’s for nothing.”
A smirk appeared on Dellasandro’s face. “I don’t see it that way. Not at all. He got what he deserved.”
“How’s the face, Leo? John really popped you. He knows everything, of course.”
“We’ll just have to visit him too.”
“You, Vic Tremaine and Frank Rayfield?”
“You’re damn right,” Dellasandro said with a sneer.
“Your buddies are dead.” Sara’s smile emerged as Dellasandro’s faded. “They ambushed Rufus and his brother, but just like last time they couldn’t finish the job,” she added tauntingly.
“Then I hope I get the chance to do it for them.”
Sara stared him up and down and finally shook her head in disgust. “Tell me something, Leo. How did vermin like you ever get to be a police chief of anything?”
He slapped her across the face, and would have hit her again if Perkins hadn’t stopped him. “We don’t have time for this crap, Leo.” He gripped Sara by the shoulder. That’s when the phone rang.
Perkins looked at Dellasandro. “Fiske?” He looked again at Sara. “Fiske is with Harms, isn’t he? That’s why you had to split up, isn’t it?” Sara looked away as the phone rang again. Perkins stuck his pistol under her chin and his finger tightened on the trigger. “I’ll ask you one more time. Is Fiske with Rufus Harms?” He pushed the gun harder against her skin. “In two seconds your head will disappear, I swear to God. Answer me!”