Page 13 of Tank

“I have to stay until the end.” He said that he understood. “I don’t know what to do about her. I should probably leave you in charge and go and see about her, but I’m afraid, like you said, that it would trigger her again. What should I do?”

“Nothing. Unless you need to go see to her, we’ll just tell Ben about what happened. He had to see the ambulance pull in.” She nodded and said that he’d been directing traffic when she’d been put inside. “Let’s go talk to him and see if we can get him to tell us what to do. I know you want to go and see to her, and I don’t blame you. I’d want to do the same with my brother.”

They talked to Ben, and he told Serenity that it would be all right if she left. The banker was going to take care that the money was going to be taken care of and that she’d be able to pick up the money tomorrow that was left from the sale. He didn’t know about the money already coming out of the sale, and he thought that she should keep it that way. As soon as she was gone, he started to make sure that things were taken care of for her and that everything was set up the way that she wanted. It was the least he could do for her when he couldn’t be with her.

It looked to him like everything was sold. Even the box lots that had been plentiful were being packed up by people. As soon as he was able to see that Ben and his helpers were packing up too, he decided to reach out to his cousins and tell them what was going on.

“Is Serenity going to be all right with her, you think?” He said that he didn’t know, but Beth had been acting strange all day. “I’m sorry to hear that. I hope that they can do something for her.”

“The only thing that might be different is that Serenity might set her off again. You should hear what she was saying to her. That she was going to kill her if the money didn’t all come to her.” Cassian asked about the sales. “I don’t know, but Ben seems to be pleased. I don’t know that we’re into our relationship as far as we should be for me asking about money. She got it so that I could take care of the auction while she’s gone, but we didn’t discuss money.”

“Let us know if we can do anything for her. She’s a really nice woman, and we all like her a great deal.” He said that he did as well. “Well, of course you do. You fall in love quickly when you’re around your mate. You have it a bit differently than the rest of us have in that she lives so far away, but you’ll get there.”

“She didn’t want me to bid on the house. She said she was afraid of what Beth would do.” They all said that they could understand that. “You should have heard her. She was looking for Helen but didn’t remember that she was gone. I hope that Serenity can get her some help. I don’t know which Beth scared me more. The one that was willing to kill her sister for taking the money that was rightfully hers, or the pitiful one that was looking about as lost as I was feeling about her.”

After closing the link to his family, he began cleaning up the areas where people left their empty boxes. He’d been to auctions before, so he knew there would be a mess. After getting the trash cans all lined up after emptying them, he was ready to call it a day. But Ben wanted to talk to him, so he was able to get things going with the money. He made sure he paid attention because he was going to have to tell Serenity when he saw her, but for right now, he was going to do his best for her. If that meant going to the bank with Ben, then that’s what he’d do.

It was nearly seven when he heard from Serenity. She said that her sister was still out of it and that the doctors were running tests. She also told him that she had no idea who she was or that they were related. He was relieved that she wasn’t causing a scene again and told her that.

“So am I. I’ve tried staying out of her way when she’s awake, but she just stares at me like she doesn’t know who I am.” He said that he didn’t know if that was natural or not. “Me either. Helen was a little like that towards the end. Sherman, I don’t think I can lose another sister. Even if she really does hate me, it’s going to devastate me when they tell me that her mass is a tumor and that they can’t operate. I’ve been keeping up with the doctors since they brought her in.”

“I’ll be there as soon as I can.” He wanted to tell her that he loved her, but decided that there was going to be time for that. She wasn’t going to be going home when she thought, he realized, and they’d have time for all kinds of conversations. As soon as he was ready to go to the hospital, he called her on her cell and let her know. He couldn’t wait to tell her that the house went for over five hundred thousand dollars. Much more than it was slated to go.

Chapter 6

Beth didn’t know what was going on, but she was going to blame Serenity. They had her tied to the bed she was in, and that wasn’t making her happy. Just as she was going to start screaming again for help, the one person that she was pissed off with walked into the room.

“Have them untie me.” Serenity said it wasn’t up to her, but they would untie her when she was less combative. “The only person I’m going to hurt is you. You had them do this to me, and I want free right fucking now.”

“You hit a doctor and a nurse when you had your temper fit.” She said they were messing with her. “They were trying to draw blood from your arm. Neither one of them deserved to be knocked around like you did to them. The doctor had fifteen stitches when you hit him in the face.”

“I don’t care what I did to them. You get me out of these things, or I’m going to do the same to you.” She asked her how she was when she was tied up. “You heard me. Get me out of these things or else, Serenity, or so help me, I’m going to kill you where you stand.”

“Where did you get the gun?” That shut her up. She’d forgotten that she’d been able to get herself a gun when she’d been home this time. “In the event you ask for it, the police have it. When you came in, you handed it over to them like you’d never seen it before.”

“It’s none of your business. And they’d better give it back to me. I’m going to kill you with it. Do you have any insurance policies like Mom and Dad did? I’m going to collect on it as soon as I shoot you dead.” Serenity said nothing. That was all right with her. The sooner she was dead, the better things would be for her. “How much money did I make from the sale today? It had better be a goodly amount, or I’m going to make you suffer when I don’t get enough.”

“The sale was eight days ago. The house sold for five hundred and five thousand dollars. That’s not counting the furniture sales and the box lots. Your split of the money is two hundred thousand three hundred and fifty dollars. You don’t have to worry about taxes being paid on it because—”

“What do you mean, I only get two hundred thousand? It should have been the five hundred that the house sold for.” She was handed a sheet of paper and read it over. “I’m not paying the auctioneer one hundred thousand dollars to do his job. What do these amounts mean? And taxes. I told you that I wasn’t paying taxes on the money that you owe me. You get that back right now.”

“The house is paid off as well. I’m sort of glad that you weren’t there when things were taken care of. No one got hurt when things didn’t go your way.” She yanked on the ties and didn’t feel them give at all. She told her again to get her out of these ropes. “No. I like you being tied to the bed. It certainly makes having a conversation with you much easier. I don’t have to worry about you hitting me anymore.”

“You just wait. When I get out of these and I will, I’m going to strangle you to death. I want to see your eyes when the life goes out of them.” Serenity had tears going down her cheeks, and she thought it was funny. There was no way that she was going to be swayed by tears. “I loathe you, Serenity. And if I don’t get my money, you’re going to regret it for the rest of your life. And it’s going to be a short one too.”

“You’re going to jail as soon as you get out of here. For assault and battery on the staff here.” Beth screamed loudly and long. She hurt her head when she did that and had to breathe deeply to make the pain lessen. “Do you need something for pain? If not, I have more to tell you.”

“You’d better be telling me that I’m getting out of here soon.” She shook her head and sat down. “What do you want? In the event you don’t get it, I’m pissed off at you, and I don’t care what happens to me once you’re dead.”

“You’re dying.” She asked her what she said. “I said you’re dying. You have a tumor in your brain that has grown since the last time you had a scan. Unlike Helen, your tumor is inoperable and is growing at a rapid rate. It’s pressing against your brain in a way that messes with your memory and emotions. Not to mention other things. You’re going to die, and you don’t have much longer to go. I’m sorry.”

“How do you know? You don’t know shit.” She told her how they’d contacted her doctor and had him send her records over to the hospital. “You’re lying. They did do a scan, but it only showed a mass.”

“The doctors here operated on you while you were being nice. You signed the consent form and cooperated with them throughout the entire thing.” She called her sister a liar. “No, I’m not. If you could feel your head, you’d know that you’ve been operated on by feeling the bandages. You more than likely hurt in your head.”

“I do.” She tried to reach her head without any success. “Let me go, Sen. I swear that if you don’t, you’re going to regret it for the rest of your life.”

“That’s something else you should know. They couldn’t remove the tumor. It’s a mass that has wound itself throughout your brain. They can’t operate to remove it from your brain. I’m sorry, but they’ve only given you about six months to live.” She said she wasn’t sorry at all. “To be honest, yes, I am sorry that you’re dying. You’ve been mean to me since we were children. But you’re still my sister.”