I struggled to find some words. “But, but we thought Tyson—”
He interrupted me before I could finish. “Ingenious, wasn’t it?” he boasted, waving the gun around in the air. “Planting the earring and everything? I knew the police would pick up on that, and if they didn’t, you would.”
He gave me a devilish grin. “Setting up Tyson as the fall guy was perfect. Not that he gives a shit!”
“How did you—?” I hesitated and thought back to the confrontation in Quinton’s hallway. I clearly remembered that Tyson wasn’t wearing the earring because Dusty had ripped it out in the parking lot. “The day Tyson came to your place, he wasn’t wearing it.”
“Uh-uh-uh-uh-uh,” Quinton chuckled, shaking the index finger of his free hand like he was scolding a toddler. “Correction! The first time he came to my place he wasn’t wearing it.”
“What do you mean by that?”
Quinton ignored my question. “Now that I’ve had a couple of months to reflect back on it, Zoe, I really should have let him kill your bitch ass then. The stupidest thing I’ve ever done was prying his fingers off your neck.”
Now I was starting to get pissed. How dare he come off at me like that? I realized I needed to stay calm because Quinton was there for one reason and one reason only—to kill me. However, when he made his last statement, I threw tact out the damn window. I walked within two feet of him and slapped him in the face. “Then why didn’t you, you bastard? You fuckin’ piece of shit!”
Quinton rubbed his cheek. I started to try to grab the gun, but I didn’t want to risk Jason getting shot. I didn’t care what happened to me at that point. I probably deserved it anyway.
“Aw, come on, Zoe,” Quinton chided. “No need to be rude. Let’s not make this situation any uglier than it already is.” He pushed me down on the floor next to Jason. “Why don’t you just have a seat down there with your man? Cool your heels off.”
Quinton was really sick! I thought back to all the passionate afternoons and evenings we spent together. He was so romantic, so giving of himself. To think, all along he was a psychopath.
“As I was saying before you so rudely interrupted me, Zoe. Tyson didn’t have on the cross earring the first time, but he did the second.”
I glared up at him, trying to make some sense out of what he was saying. “The second?”
“Can you believe that piece of shit came banging on my door, demanding I leave you alone?” Quinton asked, enraged.
I was beginning to get a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. If Quinton was crazy enough to kill Allison and two police officers, what would keep him from killing Tyson? “And what did you say to him?”
“Aw, nothing much,” Quinton quickly replied. “I sat there for a few minutes, listening to him profess his undying love for you. I told him he really needed to be telling all of his bullshit to Jason. He said he already had and told me about their punk-ass fight.”
Jason yelled out, “You’re the punk, mutha fucka!”
Before I could stop him, Quinton kicked Jason in the head. “I beg to differ with you, Jason! You’re the biggest punk of all! You married the queen bitch and bred babies with her!”
I cradled Jason’s head in my lap and looked around for a weapon, anything I could use to defend us. I was willing to die, and I would have begged Quinton to get it over with if Jason was safe and in the clear. I couldn’t let Jason pay the ultimate price for my sins. I just couldn’t. Our kids needed at least one of us to survive.
Quinton was pointing the gun at Jason’s head. I desperately needed to change the subject, so I asked him, “What did you do to Tyson?”
Quinton started laughing, guffawing even. He went over and leaned on the counter in hysterics. I was just glad he stopped pointing the gun. “You want to know what I did to him? I’ll be glad to tell you. I killed his ass!”
I prayed the whole nightmare would go away.
“I killed his ass and buried him in the train yard right along with my brother, my sister, and Diamond!”
“Train yard? Diamond?” I just knew I had to be hearing things.
“Yes, Zoe.” Quinton came back over and knelt down in front of us. “You remember the first time I fucked you, Zoe? In the train yard? Guess what? We did it right on top of the graves I dug for my brother and sister fifteen years ago.”
I was in shock. “You killed your brother and sister?”
“Among other people,” he answered calmly. “As for Diamond, I know what you did with her, Zoe.” I looked away in shame. “I know what you did, and she paid the ultimate price for your pussy too. Just like Tyson.”
He ran his fingers through my hair, grabbed my face, and tried to force his tongue in my mouth. I refused it.
He stood back up. “I hate to borrow that old clichÈ, but if I can’t have you, nobody will.”
Jason tried to push his way up off the floor, using his hand to no a