Janelle turned her head toward the television hanging on the wall closest to her, and her heart stuttered when she saw Kelsey’s name across the bottom of the screen. Janelle caught the call letters in the corner of the screen and saw it was one of the major networks.
“That can’t be good,” she said as she straightened away from the wall.
Nathan looked over his shoulder, following her gaze, then turned his body toward the crowd. “No,” he agreed quietly as a hush fell over the crowd.
“We’ve been keeping you up-to-date on what happened with up-and-coming Hollywood actress Kelsey Morgan and have a new revelation to our story. Our news desk received a manifesto, sent to us by Richard Wagoner, detailing his plans, and reasons, for what happened in that dark cabin by the lake last night. We’re going to share its gruesome details with you now.”
Janelle shuddered at the way the blonde anchorwoman seemed to be gleefully announcing the events of one of the darkest moments in her life. The night her husband kidnapped her son, Zach, and nearly killed her sister. He’d planned to kill Zach as well, but thanks to Patrick, Zach had survived with only a slight physical injury. The emotional toll had yet to be measured.
Richard’s face appeared and took up a majority of the screen. He looked serene, resolved, relaxed, and gave a sad smile to the camera as he launched into his speech. “Ladies and gentlemen, by the time you see this, I will be dead. But first, let me introduce myself. My name is Richard Wagoner. While I may be a nobody to most of you, I am a husband, father, son, and brother. To one special woman that you all know and love, I am a brother-in-law.”
He held up one of Kelsey’s most recent headshots. “Yes, this lovely lady is my wife’s sister, Kelsey Morgan. You know her as ‘the girl next door,’ ‘America’s newest sweetheart,’ ‘A rising star.’ I know better. Kelsey Morgan isn’t what she seems. She’s a selfish, inconsiderate, heartless bitch. And she has a secret.”
Richard held up an eight-by-ten school picture of Zach and Janelle’s eyes widened slightly.
“This is Zach, the boy I’ve been raising as my son.”
“We have to go,” Janelle said, panic tightening in her chest as she turned to the elevator and pushed the call button again. She poked it repeatedly until Nathan laid his hand on top of hers.
“That won’t help,” he said calmly.
“It can’t hurt,” Janelle snapped and looked toward the hallways on both sides of her, searching for a stairwell. The door opened, and Janelle ignored the three people already on and quickly stepped through the doors.
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