Read Online Time to Live: Part Five by John Gilstrap - Free Book Online Page A

won’t be a problem if she does what she’s told and keeps her head down at the end.”
    “But—”
    “Nicki, please. I don’t want to go through all of this again. I’m tired and I hurt. I know what I’m doing, okay?” He added with a smile, “Not that you can tell by looking.”
    “If I get killed,” Gramma said, “you’ll both be the murderers that you claim not to be.”
    Brad shifted in his chair, wincing against the belly spikes. “I already am the murderer that Nicki claims not to be. She’s innocent of everything but hanging around with me.”
    “Unless you count kidnapping,” Nicki said.
    “You had nothing to do with that, either,” Brad snapped. “You hear that, Granny?”
    The new tone to his voice seemed to startle Gramma.
    “You remember that, okay? All of this—everything bad that has happened here—has been my doing. Nicki wanted to call the police from the very beginning. None of this is what she’d signed on for.”
    “Then let her go, too,” Gramma said. “If she’s innocent, it’s the thing to do. It’s the reasonable—”
    A high-pitched synthesized Bach fugue cut her off. The sound startled them all.
    “Cell phone,” Nicki said.
    They shifted their eyes to Gramma. She nodded toward the bag perched on top of the television. “In my purse.”
    “You expecting a phone call?” Brad asked.
    “I only have it for emergencies,” Gramma said. “I don’t think I’ve ever gotten a call on it.”
    “Gee, who do you think it’s for?” Brad asked, clearly knowing the answer. The arms of the kitchen chair popped as he pressed against them to raise himself to his feet. He hobbled over to the purse, pulled out a cheap featureless cell phone, and pressed the Send button. “Yeah?”
    * * *
    Donnelly jumped as if someone had nailed him with a cattle prod. “What the hell’s he doing?” A second later, it was obvious. “Cell phone! Where the hell did he get a cell phone? Goddammit, why didn’t someone think to jam that!”
    * * *
    Carter’s heart froze as a man’s voice answered, “Yeah?” He worked hard to keep his voice soft. “Is this Brad?”
    “Who wants to know?”
    “This is Carter Janssen. Nicolette’s father.”
    “She hates to be called that.”
    “I know,” Carter said, holding his head just so, thankful for the good signal and not wanting to risk it. “I rarely call her that, actually. Usually it’s Nicki. Is she there?”
    “Yeah, she’s here. I don’t know that she’ll want to talk to you.”
    “How about you, Brad?” Carter said. “Are you willing to talk to me?” Carter imagined himself as a fisherman, luring his prey oh-so-gently toward the hook. If he pushed too hard, he’d lose him before he had a chance to present his proposal.
    “She’s here of her own free will,” Brad said. The words sounded rehearsed.
    “I know. But things have changed, Brad. They know who the real killer is from the Quik Mart. It’s a kid named Jeremy Hines, the sheriff’s boy, and he’s in custody.” He decided not to mention the sheriff’s murder.
    “So?”
    Carter scowled. It was obvious, wasn’t it? “So Nicki has nothing to run from anymore.” He paused to let the words sink in. “She needs to know that. Will you let me speak to her?”
    Brad’s tone got softer as he said, “Maybe she doesn’t want to.”
    “Give her the chance. Please. Just let me talk to her for a few minutes.”
    “How do I know this isn’t some sort of a trap? You could be making all of this up.”
    “You’re not getting it, Brad. Nicki doesn’t have to worry about traps. She’s free and clear, and she needs to know that.” Another pause, just a second or two. “There’s also a way out for you, Brad. There’s a way to turn all of this into something good.”
    Carter could hear voices on the other end of the phone, but they were not directed at him. One of them belonged to Nicki. “Brad?” Carter said. “Are you there?”
    * * *
    “Who is it?” Nicki