The Dark Horse (3)

What on earth could she do now to keep her family together, Amie worried a few days later.  If Joe was really getting some sort dementia she'd have to get ready to face a world without him.  And what about his business? For some time now, his partner had been covering for him when he needed to take a break, but did he know what was really happening?  Had Joe confided in him? Or was the partner still believing it was just his blood pressure medicine that was slowing him down. They were best buddies and golf partners as well. They had started their law business together years ago, after both had scraped and saved enough to go out on their own. Amie and Joe had been married for a few years then with one baby and another on the way, so things were tight but Amie had taken in papers to type up for churches and kids to babysit and she had worked like a trojan to help. When she thought about it now, she wondered where she had got the energy to do it all. But I was young then, she declared to herself.
"Where are you my Amie Mamie," she heard Joe murmur now as he came down the stairway. He seemed to be his old self as he came into the kitchen and bent over and kissed her on her lips. 
"Why Joe," she said smiling playfully, "you know I'm always right here." 
"Yes, I know, but what shall we have for dinner tonight? Should I pick something up from the deli?"  He asked. 
She was just cleaning up after breakfast and hadn't a thought about what to eat later. But here he was already worrying about it.
"Well, its really too early," Amie said as she put the dishies in the dish-washer and wiped down the placemats on the table. "Come on and sit down here with me as I clean up."  She invited.
"Or we could go out and have something wonderful and let someone else do the cooking." Joe insisted.
"Lets see how we feel a little later and then decide." Amie suggested and turned her back to wipe down and shine the granite counters she'd  had installed in her kitchen some years ago when they had renovated. And not paying attention now to what Joe was doing, she suddenly felt an arm go around her neck and tighten as he pulled her back against him, and then the cold tip of a knife dig into her throat.
"See how this feels and then we'll decide this?" Joe said in a muffled voice.
Amie tried to scream! But no sound came out of her throat. This was her husband, the man she had loved for decades. Why was he trying to hurt her? She tried to twist around to see his face but he was too strong and held her in a vise like grip.
His face was next to hers as he growled in her ear. "Listen, lady I don't know who you are, but you better get the hell out of here before my wife gets back, or she'll kill you. Understand!