My eyelids were heavy when I opened them to complete blackness. Where was I? How had it gotten so dark already? I blinked a few times, but the blackness didn't disappear. The air was warm and confined, triggering a clammy sensation in me. My brain was foggy as I tried to recall what had happened. The last thing I remembered was Linda's hands around my neck. My head ached, and my throat was parched. I had no idea where I was, but at least I was alive. Blissfully alive.
Sweat trickled down my face as I tried to raise my head, but it connected with something solid, forcing me down on my back. There was movement underneath me, and I knew I was in some type of vehicle. Why couldn't I see anything? A horn blared in the distance. Where were we going? Was I in the trunk?
Terror seized me, and I wondered what they planned to do with me. I reached my hands out on either side, hoping there might be a tool in the trunk I could use. My arms couldn't stretch out completely. There was some type of wall on each side of me. I put my palms above my head, and there was one there too. Whatever I was in began to rock slightly from side to side. A box of some sort. Oh God. A terrifying realization occurred to me.
I'm inside a coffin. They're going to bury me, like they had planned for Eddie.
I took several deep breaths, trying hard not to hyperventilate and remain focused. Now was not the time to panic. Think, Sal. Think.
Tears streamed down my face. I'd always been claustrophobic and not a fan of the dark. Mike had often teased me that the nightlight in Cookie's room was more for my benefit than hers. How much air was left in this thing? Could anyone outside hear me if I screamed?
The vehicle stopped, but before I could open my mouth, loud angry voices commenced from behind me.
"You stupid idiot," Arthur growled. "How the hell did I let you drag me into this?"
"It's too late now," Linda retorted. "And you'd better make sure I get the twenty grand that you promised me."
Arthur cackled like a witch. "Why should I give you anything? Boy, you played me like a violin. Got me to do all your dirty work for you. If I'd known that Eddie changed the will, I never would have helped you do away with him."
"You wanted him gone too," she shot back.
"Yes, but I didn't know you'd already offed him," he retorted angrily. "I told you to wait, but no, you wouldn't listen. He told me on the phone that he wanted to make amends—that it had been too long. Then he said he wanted to talk to me about something else. Probably where to find a good divorce lawyer."
She laughed. "You're crazy."
"I could have worked things out with him. If I'd have known he was leaving me the funeral home in his will, I never would have helped you. But he was already dead when I got there. What a fool I was. I should have run away and let you embalm and bury him yourself."
"Shut up! I still can't believe he'd disinherit me like that."
He grunted. "Then you're dumber than I thought. What I don't understood is that after you begged me to help dispose of him, you up and leave his body there? You were supposed to stay with him at the funeral home until I got back. What the hell were you thinking?"
"It was only for an hour." Linda's tone became defensive. "How was I supposed to know that moron friend of his would turn up looking to take a nap? Dom Muccio is a wacko. I had no idea Eddie had given him a key."
The car jerked forward again, and I assumed that the light must have changed. They continued squabbling, but it was difficult to hear everything over the sound of the vehicle. Most of my questions had already been answered. Linda had killed Eddie with the cyanide. She and Arthur had previously discussed killing him. Perhaps she was going to stage it to look like someone else had committed the murder. I wasn't sure. Arthur had turned up to meet with Eddie but instead found Linda with a dead body. They'd put aside their animosity to dispose of Eddie. They weren't having an affair either—at least that was one thing they hadn't pretended about. It was obvious they couldn't stand each other.
The car stopped again, and Linda's words floated through the air. "If I'd known he was going to change the will and leave the funeral parlor to you, I never would have killed him. What would have been the point? So you owe me. I don't care what the will says. Part of the place belongs to me, so you'd better pay up."
I brought my hand to my mouth in horror. Poor Eddie's death could have easily been avoided, but Linda's greed had instigated his killing. His own wife! She'd been sure she'd inherit the funeral home then sell it to Arthur for a nice profit. She'd played the brokenhearted widow to a tee, sobbing her heart out, not wanting to sell but being forced to for need of the income. It had all been a lie.
Arthur, in turn, thought he would profit by Linda selling the funeral home to him at a cheaper price, which was why he'd helped her prepare Eddie for burial. He hadn't known the funeral home had been left to him. Yes, Karma had come to call, but not soon enough to save Eddie.
The vehicle was still moving. With terror I realized I was taking the ride that had been meant for Eddie. Were we going to a cemetery? Tears began to flow down my cheeks. I closed my eyes against the darkness and tried to concentrate. After all the near-death experiences I'd been through before, this might be the most terrifying.
I reached above my head and pushed hard on the lid, but it didn't budge. Was I in a pine box like Eddie? They wouldn't throw good money away on the likes of me. My father had told me about the cheap clasp on the outside. I pushed harder, but the lid refused to budge.
Arthur grunted loudly from behind me, startling me out of my thoughts. "I know you were angry about the will, but damn it, woman. You almost gave yourself away when Dom stopped by with his daughter. Your ranting about how nothing was fair was a bit over the top, even for you."
"I was upset," she admitted. "How did you want me to act? They seemed to buy it."
"No, they didn't!" he roared. "Maybe he did, but I could tell by the look on his daughter's face that she didn't believe it. She was suspicious of us from the beginning."
Yes, my face was literally going to be the death of me.
"You weren't much better. Wanting to hire his stupid blog service? Then going to see her about the coffin cookies?" Linda asked in disbelief.
The car started again. "Hey, that blog is genius. It would be good advertising for the place. Dom's ego is a mile long, so I was just feeding it. Besides, I knew she'd say no about the cookies. That was just a cover-up. She's been suspicious of me since I walked in on you two in Eddie's office."
"You wanted them to suspect me all along. Have them think that I did it. You never could be trusted," she said angrily.
"And you could?" he laughed. "You wanted everyone to think I killed Eddie. I know you were saying stuff behind my back. The day he died, he told me on the phone about your little gambling debt. You disgusted him. Why he didn't divorce you sooner, I'll never know. Hell, I'm not sure why he ever married you. Plenty of other fish in the sea and better looking as well."
The car swerved, and Linda shouted something. It was getting more difficult to breathe inside the coffin. If they were fighting, we might get into an accident, but that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. It could bring the police, who I sorely needed right now.
The coffin shifted and moved against one side of the vehicle. In desperation, I pushed on the lid again. Sweat and tears mixed together and ran down my face, and it was becoming more difficult to remain calm. This time I heard a satisfying click, and the lid moved slightly. Thank God. I inhaled several gulps of air then was forced to put the lid back in place. It was too heavy to hold up for long and I didn't want to take a chance that Linda or Arthur might see any movement.
The vehicle slowed, and we started going uphill. We must be near our destination. I had no idea how long I'd been unconscious after Linda had choked me. I lifted the lid again. Whatever sunlight was left was quickly evaporating, so chances were that it had to be after seven o'clock. Someway, somehow, I'd have to surprise Linda and Arthur when they lifted the coffin out of the vehicle. But there were two of them and only one of me. The odds weren't in my favor, so how was I going to pull this off?
I simply had no choice. I needed to live—for my baby, for Mike, for my family. Mike always joked that I had nine lives like a cat. I prayed that I hadn't used up all of them.
My family had to be worried, and Josie must be going crazy by now. Grandma Rosa had been wary before she left for church. A sickening thought swept through me. What if Josie had arrived before Linda and Arthur had left? Did they attack her too?
For the moment, I had to concentrate all my efforts on getting myself out of here. When Josie arrived at the funeral home, she would have immediately sensed something was wrong and alerted the police. Would they know to look for me in a graveyard?
I felt inside my jean pockets. My cell phone was gone, as I'd suspected. The pictures I'd taken of the divorce document were on it, but Linda and Arthur had probably already disposed of them. The vehicle was moving more slowly, and I tried to prepare myself. It would stop soon, and then they would be coming for me. If only there was some way that I could defend myself. I felt around in the darkness but knew there was nothing inside the coffin except for me. There might be something in the back of the hearse I could use as a weapon, but it would be too risky to climb out and look.
I ran my hands over my shirt and jeans and connected with something in the pocket. Confused, I pulled it out. My fingers wrapped around a plastic object and a soft piece of cloth. My heart instantly melted. Cookie's new rattle.
The vehicle stopped, and a car door slammed. My heart thumped loudly against the wall of my chest. This was it. They were coming.
"Get your lazy behind out here and help me," Arthur yelled.
"Forget it," Linda shouted back. "You can lift her by yourself. The grave's already dug. It's for the Morgan funeral tomorrow. I'll send the guys a text later to dig a fresh one—say that I forgot about a body or something."
Arthur muttered, "I hate that you've gotten me into this. We need to move fast."
"They can't prove anything." Linda sounded bored, like she had better things to do. "No body, no evidence. That's the way it works, brother dear. I hope she can hear me if she didn't already die of fright. Betty Crocker deserves it for all her snooping. She should have minded her own business."
"You're one crazy broad." Arthur said something else in an undertone, but I couldn't make it out. "How the hell am I going to lift her all by myself?"
"Eddie said you once bench-pressed 250 pounds," Linda yelled. "She can't weigh that much."
There was a thud, which must have been the back door of the hearse opening. Suddenly, the coffin and me were sliding across the back of the vehicle.
Arthur muttered something about "heavier than she looks." The coffin crashed to the ground and wobbled for a few seconds. He yelled again for Linda. "Get over here now and help me. I can't move this thing alone!"
It was the split second I was waiting for. I threw open the lid, pressed the button on Cookie's rattle, and shone the light into Arthur's surprised face.
He blinked and shielded his eyes while I jumped out of the coffin. My foot connected with the wood, and I stumbled to the ground. I was surprised at how weak I felt, but I had more important things to think about—my life, for one. I started to scream for help at the top of my lungs as I ran down a neat row of cemetery plots and one freshly dug grave. Was that the one meant for me?
"Get back here!" Arthur shouted and then proceeded to call me every vile name he could think of.
Footsteps pounded the ground behind me. Darkness had started to descend, and I glanced around the cemetery, unsure of which way to go. There wasn't a living soul in sight. Okay, people didn't often visit cemeteries at night, but I could have used any help I could come by. I ran on, still unsure of where I was headed.
We were in Colwestern's cemetery, but I wasn't very familiar with the place. My grandfather was buried here, but I hadn't been out to visit him for a couple of years. Grandma Rosa came faithfully once a week. How I wished I'd come last month when she'd asked me, but it had been after one of Cookie's sleepless nights. Now I was paying the price for being an awful granddaughter.
Thankfully, there was a full moon, which helped to guide me. A bout of nausea almost brought me to my knees, but I forced myself to go on. I had no idea where this would lead, and tried to keep my eyes peeled for a wrought iron gate that meant I was at the cemetery's entrance. My vision blurred from dizziness, causing me to stumble, and I almost ran straight into a tree.
The blessed sound of a siren wailed in the distance. It grew closer, but I couldn't stop yet. Was someone coming for me? I couldn't stop to find out. My lungs were ready to burst. At that moment, the front gate came into view. I ran toward it as a yell sounded from behind. Arthur tackled me to the ground like a football player.
The blow stunned me and had affected Arthur as well. He was breathing heavily as he landed on top of me. I managed to roll to my side and lifted my leg, which connected with his stomach. He staggered for a second then came at me again, this time smacking me hard across the face. He pinned one of my arms with his hand while I struggled.
"Let go of me!" I screamed.
"You're not going to ruin everything!" Arthur shrieked. The moon reflected off his face. His hair was disheveled, streaks of dirt ran down his cheeks, and spit had collected at the corners of his mouth. He reached for my neck, as if to trying to force me into unconsciousness again, but I grabbed his hand and bit it as hard as I could. He let out a bloodcurdling scream. There was a shovel lying a few feet away. My fingers connected with the handle as Arthur clamped a hand over my mouth and nose. I struggled under the pressure but managed to lift the shovel and brought it down on the side of his head. For a few seconds, Arthur remained motionless above me, staring into my eyes. Then he fell forward, collapsing onto my chest.
Breathing heavily, I managed to roll Arthur off me and stagger to my feet, but my victory was short lived. Someone pushed me from behind, and I fell to the ground. Linda stood over me, her evil smile in place once again. I raised an arm above my head in a vain attempt to protect myself.
Linda laughed as she picked up the shovel. "Say good night, Sally."
"Hold it right there!" Brian called. We turned our heads, and I could see the shadows of two figures nearby. Both came into closer view. Adam was with him, and they both had their guns trained on Linda. She clutched the shovel between her hands, stared at them and then back at me.
Brian clicked the safety on his gun. "I wouldn't if I were you."
Linda let the shovel slide to the ground, inches away from my head. Adam sprang forward and drew a pair of handcuffs from his belt, placing them around Linda's wrists. "Linda Phibbins, you're under arrest for the murder of Eddie Phibbins and the kidnapping of Sally Donovan. You have the right to remain silent…"
Linda started sobbing as Adam led her away to the squad car. Another siren screamed in the distance as Brian rushed forward and helped me to my feet. Another officer appeared and, after conferring with Brian, placed handcuffs on Arthur, still motionless on the ground.
I leaned against Brian for support. "Thanks for getting here in the nick of time."
He shot me a worried glance. "You look terrible and definitely in need of medical attention. There's a huge lump on your head."
"Nothing new, right?"
Brian almost smiled as he put a hand on my elbow and led me to an EMT vehicle that had just pulled up. His expression was grim. "Did they have you tied up in the hearse?"
"No." My voice cracked. "I was in a coffin. They were going to bury me alive."
Brian sucked in some air. "Sally, it may be time to hang up your sleuthing apron. I thought having a gun to your head was the worst thing that could happen to you, but apparently I was wrong."
The EMT led me to the back of the vehicle, where he examined my head.
"I thought so too, but I'm here to tell the tale, and Eddie's gotten justice. Maybe something good will come out of this."
"Like what?" Brian asked.
Josie's minivan screeched to a stop next to the cruiser. As she ran over to us, I gave Brian a weak smile. "No idea. It's just a feeling I have."