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Alva sneered. “We know who you are. Micheline confirmed it. She ran into this one here in the bathroom.” She pointed at Ainsley with a look of undisguised contempt. “Thought you could fool us, didn’t you?”
“Honestly, I don’t know why it took us as long as it did to figure out you two were frauds. You’re not a couple in trouble. I’ve seen the way you look at each other. It’s clear you’re in love.”
Brody’s words sent a shock through Ainsley and she glanced at Santiago. Was he right? Did Santiago love her?
“Our relationship is none of your business,” Santiago said, his voice low and tight. “But you’re right about one thing—we’re stronger together than you’ll ever know.”
The ferocity of Santiago’s response brought tears to her eyes. Was he speaking from the heart or bluffing? Either way, it sounded like he thought their relationship was on solid ground. And in some ways, perhaps it was. They might not have a romantic future together, but Ainsley knew they would always be friends at least.
“Whatever,” Brody said. “Let’s go.”
Santiago made no move to follow the command. “No. You’re going to have to shoot me here.”
Brody stared at Santiago for a moment, as if judging his sincerity. Then he shrugged. “All right. Have it your way.” He turned, pointin
g the gun at Ainsley.
The breath stalled in her chest as she stared at the black hole facing her. Her heart beat frantically against her ribs, as though trying to escape her body.
“I’m going to count to three,” Brody said calmly.
He opened his mouth again, but before he could say “one,” Santiago interrupted him. “Okay, okay!” he shouted. “Whatever you want. Just leave her alone.”
Brody smirked. “That’s what I thought.”
“It’s not too late to walk away.” Santiago glanced from Brody to Alva. “The police are coming. I called them as soon as I found Ainsley. They’ll be here in a matter of minutes. If you let us walk out of here, I’ll tell them I made a mistake.”
The Woodses looked at each other. “Guess we need to move fast, then,” Brody said. Alva nodded.
“I’ll get her,” she said, taking a step toward Ainsley. “You deal with him.”
“Wait, what’s happening here?” Santiago asked, alarm sounding in his voice. He blocked Alva, preventing her from reaching Ainsley. “You don’t have to do this.”
“We’re going to take a little walk,” Brody said. “Back to your cabin.”
“So you can shoot us there?” Santiago spoke loudly, and Ainsley realized he was trying to draw attention to them.
Brody realized it, too. “Son, you can yell all you want,” he said with a chuckle. “There’s nobody around to hear you. We canceled the seminar and sent the other couples off on a guided nature meditation. It’s just us here now.”
“Don’t you think the police will realize what you’ve done when they arrive and find us dead?”
“You mean, when we take them to your cabin and unlock the door to find the pair of you slumped on the sofa, killed in an apparent murder-suicide?” Brody asked.
Alva tsk-tsked. “There was such animosity between them all week, wasn’t there, dear? Everyone saw it. We had complaints about your loud arguments in the middle of the night, and one of our employees had to go out there after you tossed a chair through the window.”
Ainsley’s blood ran cold as the woman smiled evilly. “Don’t you see?” she asked. “You’ve been leading up to this all week. The only tragedy is that we didn’t see the signs in time to stop you from killing your wife and then turning the gun on yourself.”
Brody aimed the pistol at Ainsley again, his mouth set in a hard line. “Move,” he ordered Santiago. “I’m not going to ask you again.”
Santiago reluctantly stepped to the side. Ainsley could practically see the wheels turning in his mind and knew he was searching for a way out of this situation. Her own thoughts were a jumbled mess, thanks to the drugs and her own panic.
She glanced around the room, trying to find something, anything they could use as a weapon. But all she saw was the table in front of her and a few plastic chairs. Nothing that would offer protection from a bullet or a means of defense. Maybe they’d have better luck at the cabin?
But as Alva approached her, a glint of violence in her eyes, Ainsley knew they couldn’t let themselves be taken to the cabin. If they cooperated at this point, the Woodses would slaughter them like spring lambs. Hell, she wouldn’t put it past the couple to shoot her and Santiago in the back and make up a story later. No, she decided, her resolve growing with every heartbeat. Ainsley wasn’t about to let this woman win. She might die today, but she wasn’t going to go down without a fight.
Alva reached her side and leaned over, wrapping her arms around Ainsley’s torso. “Come on,” she said, grunting as she tried to pull Ainsley out of the chair. “Let’s go.”
Ainsley got to her feet, pleased to find she was rapidly regaining control of her limbs. She leaned on Alva, but not too much. She didn’t want her to know just how much she weighed.
