The Mistress: Book Four in The Doll Collector Series

Chapter 31: The Mistress

"You didn't see what I saw! You saw blood, I saw the carnage and that is something that you can't forget! I am not a monster, I too am protecting their wives and children, especially, from the crimes their fathers have committed against the sanctity of their home."

"By having them bury their father?"

"I buried mine and my mother. Believe me, burying my father for what he did wouldn't have hurt me. It was the loss of my mother, that wrecked me so deeply. I was so lost without her. My life had no meaning. Imagine that, giving a child an existential crisis by killing their mother. When I met you, I was petrified that you would betray me and I didn't know how to deal with it. I held so much contempt for men who were unfaithful to their wives that the only release was this. I had to do it, I had to show them that their actions have consequences."

My eyes brimmed with tears, making it blurry to see Alec sitting across from me.

"Yes, actions do have consequences. Alexandra, you are under arrest for the murder of Elizabeth Stepp and Alan Dietrich, Cindy Goldstein and Michael Lupin, Dr. George Karp and Katie Rosen, Tim Ross and Elena Montgomery, Tristan Calder and Veronica Wystrach, and John Braun."

He removed a pair of handcuffs from his pocket. I leapt from my chair, throwing my plate of chicken at him. Alec raised an arm to deflect the plate. It shattered on the floor, giving me a tiny window to make a run for it.

Alec had long legs and caught up to me before I could make it to the front door. He threw his body over it, blocking my path.

"Alexandra, please don't make this difficult."

I kicked off my shoes throwing them at him and dashed upstairs. My heart was rattling in my chest as I picked up the pace and barricaded myself in our bedroom. We were up two stories, I couldn't exactly jump out of the window without breaking something. My eyes darted about the room, looking for a weapon or something to protect myself with.

I pushed away the thought that it was coming down to this the moment that Alec's body hit the door. It rattled against the frame. Our doors weren't the strongest, they could manage two or three hard thrusts before breaking down.

Think Alexandra! The bathroom, surely something in there. One bangs, two bangs, Alec was inside the bedroom. I slammed the bathroom door shut and threw the lock on.

"Alexandra, don't make this difficult, think of our kids." he said.

"Did you think of our kids before you decided to turn me in?" I cried, wrapping a towel around my hand.

"You're a serial killer, I can't let you walk Alexandra. You've killed innocent people."

His body slammed against the door, sending a crack echoing off the tile. I punched the mirror, covering my eyes as the glass shattered into the sink. A large shard shined up at me as I grabbed the base with the towel.

Alec made one last attempt at breaking down the door, but that was the one that was successful. My muscles twitched as the door clattered onto the floor. Little pieces of splintered wood fell at my feet.

I made direct eye contact with Alec. His eyes were streaked red, tears brimming at the corners. So much pain was written across his face. It cut at my heart. This was not at all how I wanted this to end, but I wouldn't go down for dishing out justice.

"Lexi, please." he pleaded.

"Don't." I spat, holding the glass shard tightly.

"Lexi, this isn't you. Look at us."

I charged at him, stopping short the moment his gun barrel met my forehead.

Alec squeezed his eyes shut.