The Syringe
Chapter 104 · ~2.1k words
Clatter. The heavy Beretta skittered across the floorboards, sliding down two more risers into the dark well of the foyer. Diana let out a guttural grunt as her spine impacted the third step from the top. The flashlight she had been holding rolled away, its beam spinning wildly across the ceiling, creating a strobe effect that made the shadows dance like demons.
Elena didn't wait. She burst from the linen closet, her socks silent but her momentum a force of nature. She didn't go for the gun. She went for the woman.
She lunged down the stairs, her body weight a weapon, and tackled Diana just as the imposter tried to roll onto her knees. They collided with a sickening thud against the banister. Diana was larger, her muscles hardened by a life of parasitic survival, but Elena was fueled by the cold, crystalline clarity of a mother who had seen the burn mark on her son’s thigh.
"You're not my sister!" Elena screamed, her fingers clawing at Diana’s face, seeking the real woman beneath the bohemian mask.
Diana snarled, a sound more animal than human. She grabbed Elena’s hair, her knuckles digging into the scalp, and yanked backward with a violence that made Elena’s vision white out. Diana shoved her against the wall, her forearm pinning Elena’s throat against the cold plaster.
"You should have signed the papers, Elena," Diana hissed, her breath smelling of coffee and bile. "It would have been so much easier for you. Now, I’m going to make sure you’re awake when I pull the plug."
Elena’s lungs burned, the pressure on her windpipe cutting off the air. Her hands flailed, her left hand digging into the pocket of her cardigan. Diana was stronger, her weight a crushing mass, her eyes lit with a predatory glee as she watched Elena struggle.
Diana shifted her weight, preparing to slam Elena’s head against the wall again. That movement was the only opening Elena needed.
She pulled the 10ml syringe from her pocket. She didn't hesitate. She didn't aim for a vein or a nerve. She just struck.
She jammed it into Diana's thigh and pushed the plunger.