ying that it made Ariana's pulse rush. What was the girl trying to pull? She had just confessed on the plane. She couldn't turn around and try to take it back now.
Briana Leigh slowly pushed herself up on her wrists and spat dirt from her mouth. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" she cried. She shook her head, still bleary, then held out a shaky hand. "Give me the keys! You're as crazy as she was!"
Ariana bent at the waist so she could get right in Briana Leigh's traitorous, lying face. "You are not going anywhere."
Then, as Briana Leigh's eyes widened, Ariana dug her fingers into the hair at the top of the girl's head and yanked as hard as she could. Briana Leigh screamed out as Ariana dragged her flailing body alongside the dock and into the water. Ariana wasn't worried about her being heard, however. She knew from experience that random shouts and screams were a common thing on Lake Page, thanks to the residents of the Brenda T.
"Let go of me!" Briana Leigh cried, her legs kicking out, splashing in the shallow water at the edge of the lake. Drugging her had been a good idea. The trip took enough exertion with Briana Leigh in her weakened state. If she had been at full strength, Ariana wasn't sure she would have been able to take her.
"What are you doing?" Briana Leigh shouted as Ariana pulled her into waist-deep water. Her arms and legs splashed around, grasping for something, anything to get hold of. "Emma! What the hell are you doing?"
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Ariana turned the girl around and slammed her back against one of the dock's pylons, knocking the wind out of her. Briana Leigh's eyes went wide as she fought for breath.
"My name is not Emma," Ariana said, using that tone she reserved for idiots. "It's Briana Leigh Covington."
For the first time, sheer terror registered on Briana Leigh's face. As if she had just figured out that she was going to die. Ariana savored the satisfaction for the slightest of moments before plunging the girl's head into the water.
Briana Leigh, of course, struggled. Even all the alcohol and drugs couldn't kill her survival instinct, but they did dull her strength. Her legs and arms jerked while Ariana held her head under the water, using every ounce of her power to keep the girl down. Sweat popped up on her brow and under her arms. At one point Briana Leigh's nails dug into her skin. The whole thing was very unpleasant, really. And even though she had killed Sergei the same way, she wished she could have done it in a more humane way. Even as much as she hated Briana Leigh for what she had tried to do to Kaitlynn; as much as she hated her for her greed and her traitorous heart and her shallow ungratefulness for all she had; all that considered--drowning was still not a pleasant way to go.
But if Ariana wanted to kill two birds with one stone, this was the only way.
After the longest few moments of Ariana's life, Briana Leigh was still. Ariana turned her over in the water. Briana Leigh's cold, dead eyes stared up at her. Bile rose up in Ariana's throat. She shuddered
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and closed Briana Leigh's eyes with her thumb and forefinger, then turned and retched into the water.
You had to do this to survive, she thought, wiping her mouth with her trembling hand. And you had to do this for Kaitlynn.
Her moment of queasiness over, Ariana was ready for the next step in her plan.
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THE upper hand
In contrast to the insane rhythm of Ariana's heart, the night was incredibly tranquil. She pulled her car over to the side of the road and killed the lights, gazing out at the small, square cottage through the trees up ahead. The beware of the dog sign on the tall wooden fence was foreboding, but not as much as the maniacal barking coming from behind the gate.Ariana smiled and got out of the car. It had rained recently, so she slipped out of her shoes to avoid leaving any discernible footprints in the wet earth. As she walked the few yards to the gate, she felt as if her body was on high alert. Her skin prickled with every breeze. She could distinguish every scent in the air--the fresh note of wet leaves, the tangy smell of barbecue coming from some backyard party. Crickets chirped, the wind rustled the trees, raindrops dripped from the gutters on the house, and the barking, the all-too-familiar barking, made the hairs on her arms stand on end.
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But in a good way. An excited way. Ariana had taken a brief detour from her plan thanks to Briana Leigh's acting skills, but now she was back on track. It was all coming together.
Ariana quickly picked the lock on the gate, a skill she had learned not in prison, but from Gage Coolidge back at Easton. He who had picked many a well-stocked liquor cabinet. The lock easily popped open and the dog lunged. Ariana pulled the roll of roast beef from her purse. Wrapped inside were crushed Ambien. She held the meat out and smiled.
"Here, Rambo," she whispered.
The dog walked forward, took the meat, and nuzzled her hand.
Five minutes later Rambo was passed out in the backseat of the Audi. Ariana pulled out her untraceable disposable phone and dialed the cell number she had stolen and memorized more than a year ago. Dr. Meloni picked up on the first ring.
"Dr. Meloni here."
Ariana smiled. The self-importance was obvious in his voice. He probably thought there was some emergency at the Brenda T. Some crisis that only he could solve. But he had no idea what was about to hit him. It was all Ariana could do to keep from laughing. She had him right where she wanted him. Finally, she had the upper hand. Her only wish was that he could know that it was her. That he could feel the sting of it. But that could never be.
"I have your dog," she said, talking in low, controlled tones and mimicking a Boston accent for good measure. Meloni had heard her Southern drawl and her practiced Northeastern voice, but never a
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