Laney stared at him. Something in his eyes must have told her that he remembered. “Now you see why I had to lie baby. Why I’ve kept us from going to the police, and why I wanted to just give him the necklace, even now. I didn’t want you to have to remember this. I didn’t want you to face it again.”
Oh fuck me.
In the instant the memory had flowed through him, he’d been lost in it, but now he found himself here again. Back in a concrete canyon holding death in his hand. A loading dock instead of a dry river basin, but the decision the same.
Only heartbeats had passed. The snub-nose revolver was still pointed at Bennett. Through the walls of the club, bass still throbbed. The glaring buzz of the sodium light was unchanged.
But everything was different. He knew what he’d done.
And what it had cost him.
Bennett had his mask back in place, his features collected. He held his hands out and vaguely up. “Easy, brother. Easy. You tried this once, and you didn’t like it.”
Daniel stared down his arm. Shoulder, bicep, elbow, forearm, hand, pistol. All connected. A gun is just a tool of your will. You pull the trigger, the man in front of it dies.
It’s not the gun that does the killing.
“Tell you what.” Bennett lowered his hand.
“Don’t!” Daniel’s mouth was dry. His throat closed tight.
“Easy! I was just getting your necklace. Okay?” Very slowly, Bennett slid two fingers into his pocket, pulled the glittering chain out. “Here.” He dropped it on the concrete. “See?”
It all comes down to this. Every mile you drove, every memory you chased, every moment you’ve had of this too-short life. Everything you’ve learned along the way. All conspired to bring you right back where you started.
Sweat dripped down his forehead, and he wiped it away with his other hand. Laney watched him. His Laney, the woman he loved, and who loved him.
My god. You almost—you were going to—
“I’m so sorry, baby. I didn’t know. I didn’t—”
“It’s okay. I understand. I love you.”
“Listen, Daniel.” Bennett’s voice calm. “We can work something out.”
You’re here again. Only this time you realize what it means.
When he’d driven to the river basin, the gun in his glove compartment, he had been telling himself that he would give the man a chance to walk away. But he’d known that he didn’t really want that. He’d wanted the man to give him a reason to kill. He’d gone there with murder in his heart.
Only you didn’t understand. You thought it was just another story you were writing. Didn’t understand how taking a life would change you. How part of you would die too. Didn’t realize you were living the last days of Daniel Hayes. At least the Daniel Hayes you thought you were.
But pulling a trigger is different than typing words on a keyboard. Different than imagining the story of your life. Different even than writing a real-life scene, the way you scripted the one for Bennett’s cameras, and the twist that left you with the loaded gun.
“You’re not a killer, Daniel.” Bennett spoke calmly. “Let’s just all walk away.”
“Shut up!” Laney turned to Daniel. “You don’t have to.”
“What choice is there?”
She held out one hand. “Give me the gun.”
“What?”
“I’ll do it.”
The words tore through him like a fist through a screen door. He could see the fear in her eyes, the dread. See that she remembered what killing had done to him, and knew that the same thing might happen to her. That some part of her would die along with Bennett. And yet she was willing to do it. Not because she wanted to, but to save Daniel from going through it all a second time.
He shook his head. “No. I won’t let you.” He wanted to lie down somewhere and close his eyes. Somewhere with cool breezes and the smell of flowers. You are who you choose to be. Make sure you can live with the decisions you make.
He lowered the gun.
Bennett smiled.
“I’m sorry, baby.”
“Don’t be,” Laney said. “You have nothing to be sorry for.”
You are who you choose to be.
“Yes,” Daniel said, “I do.”
He turned, snapped the gun back up, and pulled the trigger. In the confines of the loading dock, the explosion was enormous. It left his ears ringing enough that the second shot seemed quiet in comparison. The silence that followed pressed heavy.
Make sure you can live with the decisions you make.
Bennett staggered. His legs went wobbly. He raised one hand, touched his chest. Stared at the blood that soaked his fingers. Eyes wide and stunned. Like he couldn’t believe what he was looking at. Then he collapsed.
Daniel stared. It all flashed through him in that moment. The long journey of the last days. The terror, the confusion, the stakes. The road and the loneliness and the exhaustion and guilt. Laney and the life he’d lost and then found again.
Sophie. Most of all, Sophie.
He looked at the body on the concrete.
I can live with that.
Daniel Hayes put his arms around the woman he loved and drew her to him.
5 INT. TELEVISION STUDIO—MORNING
A graphics package for THE TODAY SHOW wipes from the screen, revealing a desk in front of huge windows. The windows look out onto a cold morning in Manhattan. A crowd of tourists bundled in snow gear peer in the windows, snapping pictures and waving.
Four people sit at the desk: MEREDITH VIEIRA, a girl-next-door beauty; AL ROKER, kind-eyed and smiling; DANIEL HAYES, looking uncomfortable; and LANEY THAYER, radiant and at ease.
MEREDITH
We have the most amazing story to share with you this morning. You’ve all heard about the terrible accident involving our guest Laney Thayer. And of course we all know about the media circus that followed, including a police investigation and implications of murder. This morning, for the first time, Laney and her husband screenwriter Daniel Hayes, are going to share what happened to them. And what a story it is. Laney, Daniel, thanks for being here.
LANEY
Thanks for having us. We’re big fans. MEREDITH
We’ve all heard the official version. But, Laney, can you share your personal take on everything that happened?
LANEY
Sort of.
(she laughs)
That’s the problem with amnesia.