"We need time, and I bought us some," I said harshly. "And I don't think I'm the one who's making the mistakes, Rachel. Or should I call you Mom? No. I can't call you that," I said with a shake of my head.

"I'm sorry you had to find out this way. But I still hope that knowing you and Dani are his daughters will stop Max from killing you."

"I'm not sure it matters to him at all, or if he even believes you. I'm not sure I even believe you. You've told so many lies."

Rachel's expression turned grim. "It doesn't matter what you believe. Giving him the jewels won't save us."

"He's not going to get them. I hid the box in the closet, but the jewels are somewhere else."

"Then he'll kill one of you for sure when he sees the box is empty. Where did you put them?"

I thought about telling her, but then Max returned to the room, cutting off our conversation.

He left the door partially ajar, and I could see a hallway and stained glass in the distance. My first impression had been right. We were in a church. But where was everyone else? Shouldn't there be a priest or a minister somewhere? Office people? Cleaning staff? Someone? It felt too quiet.

"One of these days, God is going to strike you down for all the evil dealings you've done in church," Rachel said.

He offered up an evil smile. "God isn't calling the shots. I am."

"How did you two get involved?" I asked, wanting to break up their conversation, which was filled with so much anger it made the situation more volatile.

"Do you want to tell her our love story?" Max asked, as he waved the gun at Rachel.

"It wasn't a love story. It was a nightmare," she retorted.

"It didn't start out that way," he said. "You wanted me so badly you couldn't stand it."

"I was stupid. I didn't know who you really were." Rachel turned to me. "I met Max in a bar in Brooklyn. I had just turned twenty-one and was working as a waitress while my sister was at NYU getting a degree in music. She was the smart one. I was anything but smart. Max and his friends would come into the bar, and I couldn't see past his charm."

I could understand how she'd been taken in. I'd thought Max was charming when I'd first met him, and he'd lied to me very convincingly about having a stepdaughter in the school and having dated my mother. "Go on," I said when the silence in the room lengthened. I needed to keep them both talking. Maybe buying more time wouldn't buy me and Dani a ticket out of this horrible situation, but at least I could find out more about why we were in it in the first place.