It felt good, finally, to have something work as planned. Vindicated.  Satisfied.  Elizabeth McKreedy hit the button on the remote, and clicked the TV off.  She had checked three different news shows, and they had all concurred.   The old woman was in custody, and it looked like no one was the wiser.  It was a shame that she was leaving without seeing the real bitch six feet under.  That would have been icing on the cake.  But this would have to do for now.

      She was rather surprised that she didn't feel the stab of guilt.  The good girl inside usually did.  But there was no doubt that  Peppers would get exactly what she deserved.  It was righteous that she should go to prison for murdering that poor man, and if she had to pay for Liz's little sins too, what did it matter?  Even if they found that cell phone, there was no way it could be traced back to her.  The old hag would probably end up in a loony bin somewhere anyway.  She was as crazy as they come, and no one would take a word she said seriously.

      From under the motel mattress, the woman removed an old news paper clipping cut from the New Orleans Times-Picayune. Though the hair was a different color, and the woman in the photo wore thick glasses, there was no mistaking the perfect teeth and dimples.  That job had been a disaster from the very beginning.  She had warned Cassie that it was a mistake.  But as always, Cassie went ahead and did what she wanted, leaving a trail of shit behind her.  A trail Liz was forced to wade through. A dirty, humiliating trail that had cost her everything.

       No more.  She had to think about the two of them now.  It was unfortunate that the priest had to be involved.  He seemed a nice enough person.  But his role was essential to the rest of Plan C, and she couldn't afford to get sentimental now. She took out her iphone, snapped a photo of the clipping, and sent it to her laptop.  Liz knew the first thing Cassie would seek out would be a new computer.  The hacking was part of who she was, and it wouldn't be long before she checked her email account. She quickly typed a bitter note, explaining where the rest of the money had gone, and attached a file with the photo of the news clipping.  She could picture the fit Cassie would throw when she got this message, but by then, they both would be long gone and out of her reach.

         She placed the last few belongings in the suitcase, and called for a ride.  Checking that the room was void of anything personal, she closed the door behind her, and headed towards the motel's large dumpster.  Confident she was truly alone, she lifted the lid and threw in the black hooded sweatshirt, and the pipe wrench, grimacing at the loud banging sound it made against the sides of the container.
That finished, she dragged her luggage to the main road to wait for the taxi.  A wave of nausea hit her, and she felt the need to sit down on the bench.  Patting her still flat stomach she whispered, "It's going to be alright little one, I promise.  Just the two of us."

                                 

                                                                  THE END

Copyright 2012 Victoria Rocus