Chapter 1

~Saturday August 30, 2025~

Red and blue lights washed over the scene by the time I reached Kensington Manor just before midnight. The stone manor was an imposing structure against the night, with towering spires and sharp edges. The emergency vehicles looked out of place, like they had appeared in a reality-defying nightmare.

The college party was over; the music was off and no one was drinking. Students milled about in clumps, wrapped in borrowed jackets as they stared or whispered. Many recorded the scene on their phones, chasing something they could post later. A few of them were probably live on social media.

A stretcher being wheeled down the driveway caught my attention. The EMTs weren’t running, which was a good sign. Running meant urgency, panic. The large guy on the stretcher was trying to sit up. Even better. He’d soon learn that protocol was protocol, no matter how minor his injury.

I stepped out of my car and shut the door behind me. For a brief moment I stayed still, drawing in a breath against the pressure of my vest. The bruise on my ribs faded from deep purple to an ugly yellow-green over the last couple of weeks. Fading and healed were not the same thing.

My last vest had saved my life from the bullet, while the new one pressed in all the wrong places. It wasn’t enough to slow me down, but it was enough to remind me it could. I made sure the discomfort didn’t show on my face. A young, female detective always needed to exude strength. Otherwise I’d never be taken seriously.

I quickly adjusted my vest before heading toward the tape. My partner, Detective Adam Nielsen was easy to spot as he surveyed the scene: composed as ever, tie straight, expression unreadable. He took in the ambulance, the patrol units, the crowd, and the manor with a single sweep of his eyes.

We had both just gotten back to regular duty. I was out for a while because of my ribs, and Adam had to be cleared after the shooting. The gangsters were firing at me, but there still had to be a proper investigation. I was actually surprised Adam got his gun back so soon after killing Jacob Barlow.

“Another college party,” he said when I approached. “I wouldn’t have gone to so many in my day if they all ended like this.”

“At least this one’s not on campus,” I replied, shaking my head.

I didn’t add anything else. I didn’t need to. I’d already seen how similar nights ended when they went the wrong way.

Officer Javier Gomez spotted us and lifted the tape so we could duck under. “Detectives.”

“What do we have?” I asked.

“Male victim, late teens,” Javier answered. “Knife wound to the arm. EMTs say he’ll keep the arm and the attitude.”

“Suspect?” Adam questioned.

“In cuffs. Knife recovered,” Javier answered. “He got rough with a girl. Guy stepped in, caught the blade for it.”

“Names?” I requested.

Officer Gomez’s expression shifted. “That’s why we called you.”

I felt Adam straighten beside me.

“The victim’s Daniel Mitchell,” Javier began. “Football player. Freshman at CSUA.”

I nodded once. “The suspect?”

“Tyler Montrose.”

That landed. Not random or a drunken fight. Pressure. The trial was coming up fast with evidence stacked up against him and the others. If Tyler went looking for trouble here, it was because something was already cracking. After what he had done to those girls, I had no sympathy.

“Where is he?” I asked.

“Side patio. Boyle’s got him,” Officer Gomez answered. “He’s agitated.”

“When isn’t he?” Adam grunted.

“Montrose or Boyle?” I smirked.

“Good point,” my partner chuckled.

Javier didn’t smile, his eyes on me. “Kelsey Aguila was the apparent target.”

That hit hard. Kelsey. For an ugly moment the scene in front of me blurred. Different houses, different nights. Traumatized women, their sense of safety and justice in the world shattered. A body in a dorm room staring at me with lifeless eyes, another at the bottom of a stairwell. I shut it down and returned to the present.

“Was she hurt?” I asked.

“No,” Javier shook his head. “Shaken up. A few guys were giving her trouble. I don’t know the exact sequence of events, but Kelsey used a handheld taser on Montrose.”

“Good for her,” I nodded in approval. “The other guys?”

“Gone, from what I understand,” Javier explained. “A bunch of people were able to leave in the chaos before we arrived to secure the scene. Kelsey’s sister is in there with her now.”

“Klarissa?” I questioned. Another name I knew.

“Both inside,” Officer Gomez confirmed.

If Klarissa was with her, Kelsey was more likely to stay grounded. I knew the younger sibling had a tendency to get overwhelmed and break down.

“Let’s see Montrose,” Adam said.

I moved immediately, with Adam falling in beside me as we headed toward the side of the house. The celebration after the first CSUA football game of the season had apparently spread to the entire house. Discarded plastic cups, chairs out of place, a table turned over, the patio door wide open.

Two officers stood near the edge of the patio, with Tyler Montrose between them. His hands were cuffed behind his back, and I could see the tension in his shoulders. Light brown hair in a buzz cut. He kept shifting from foot to foot as he breathed quickly. At only eighteen, he looked so young, but I quashed any budding sympathy as I remembered Stephanie and Kelsey describing his crimes.

Tyler looked up as we approached, his eyes narrowing in recognition. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.”

I stopped a few feet in front of him. “Tyler.”

He let out a short, sharp laugh. “Yeah, that’s me. Guess I’m flattered you remembered.”

“I remember,” that was all I gave him.

Adam shifted at my side, posture relaxed but angled enough to cut off any attempt at running. “You wanna tell us what happened here?”

Tyler snorted. “Nothing happened.”

“Someone’s bleeding,” Adam pointed out.

“He jumped in!” Tyler shot back. “That’s not on me. I don’t even know who the fuck he is!”

“You had a knife,” I told him, stopping him for a second.

“It’s not illegal to carry a knife,” Tyler said, but there was less conviction in his voice.

“Depending on what you do with it,” Adam replied.

Tyler shifted again, glancing toward the front of the house. Police lights, an ambulance, crowds. I could tell reality was closing in on him.

“This is getting blown way out of proportion,” Tyler muttered. “I didn’t touch her.”

“Kelsey Aguila?” Adam questioned.

With a sharp inhalation, Tyler’s eyes snapped to Adam before he turned to look at me. There it was. Terror. The fear of someone young who has finally realized the consequences of their actions may be something they can’t escape. Something that could, and would, ruin the rest of their life.

“Tonight?” I asked. “Or the last time?”

“I didn’t-” Tyler started, then stopped himself. His jaw tightened. “I don’t have anything to say about that.”

“You already know how bad things look for you,” I said. “Tonight just made it worse.”

Tyler looked at me like he wanted to say more. The words were there, pushing up, looking for somewhere to go. Then something shifted. A different kind of fear won out against his terror of prison.

“I want my lawyer,” Tyler said, slamming the door shut.

Adam let out a quiet breath beside me. “That didn’t take long.”

Tyler lifted his chin, getting a bit of his attitude back. “Yeah, well, I’m not stupid.”

I held his gaze. Up close, I could see the way his bravado was thinning. It frayed at the edges. His breathing hadn’t settled and his shoulders were still too tight. He wasn’t in control. Tyler wasn’t thinking about me any longer. He was thinking about what happens next.

“You made a bad call tonight,” I said before softening my expression. “There’s no defense for what you did, but this doesn’t have to be the end of your life. We can protect you from whoever you’re afraid of.”

“I’m not afraid of anything because I didn’t do anything,” Tyler snarled. “Lawyer. Now, bitch!”

“Get him out of here,” Adam said to the officers.

They nodded, tightening their grip on Tyler’s arms as they turned him slightly away from us. For a second, Tyler hesitated as he looked at me. There wasn’t defiance in his expression, but something else. I could see it; Tyler realized he was in deep shit and he didn’t see a way out.

It happened so fast. Tyler twisted himself free of Officer Boyle’s grip, allowing him to tug his other arm free from the second officer. Ty bolted: hands cuffed behind his back, balance bad, judgment worse. He didn’t come at me on purpose, he just ran blindly, bent forward like he thought that would somehow let him escape.

I barely had time to turn before his shoulder slammed into my side. Pain ripped through my ribs so fast the air flew from my lungs. My feet slipped on the wet grass and I staggered back, barely catching myself before one knee hit the ground. The agony hit sharp and sudden; too close to something I hadn’t forgotten.

For a second I couldn’t breathe. My body stopped cooperating, with every attempt to draw in air resulting in a savage fire in my ribs. There was shouting, but it sounded so far off. Tears instinctively flooded my eyes as I struggled to regain control. It was slow going, and I felt a presence beside me.

“Sarah,” Adam’s voice.

I looked over to see Tyler going down hard a few yards away. Two officers had tackled the struggling teenager as he cursed loudly. I put one hand on my ribs and forced a breath. It hurt, but I managed to get some oxygen to clear my head. Turning my face, I let my hair obscure my face in an attempt to wipe away my tears without anyone noticing.

“I’m fine,” I managed, slowly getting to my feet.

“You sure?” Adam asked, looking like he wanted to touch me to help, but knowing better than to try.

“Yes,” I said in a flat voice.

Behind Adam, Tyler was breathing hard as two officers pulled him to his feet. Any arrogance was long gone. All that remained was fear and adrenaline. He didn’t struggle as the officers pulled him back, roughly encouraging him to start walking. When he noticed me, he dug in his heels.

Tyler’s head jerked toward us “I didn’t mean-”

“Save it,” Adam growled. “You’re making this worse.”

I got to my feet fully and straightened my jacket before anyone could offer help again. Every breath I took still hurt, but the worst had passed. I couldn’t wait to get out of the vest and put something on the bruise, but that was later. Until then, I had work to do.

Javier had come around, concern on his face. “Detective?”

“I said I’m fine,” I snapped, harsher than I should have.

My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I almost ignored it for a second. Giving in, I pulled it out of my pocket and checked the screen. Steven Thomson was calling. A small smile crossed my face before I schooled my expression into something more neutral. Adam noticed, his face unreadable.

I stepped off to the side before answering. “McLorn.”

“Sarah,” Steven sounded controlled, but I could hear the concern in his voice. “It’s after midnight. You’re up late.”

“We don’t all have relaxing office jobs,” I smiled slightly.

“Speaking of your job,” he began in a light voice, “by any chance, are you down the street at the Kensington Manor?”

“I am,” I replied suspiciously. “How would you know that?”

“My daughter’s a cheerleader, remember?” Steven chuckled. “I’m well-aware of that party. The Phoenixes played a great game. Drew Kensington didn’t get out clean, though; hurt his ankle.”

“No one told me that,” I said with interest. I still had to talk with the host. “Was Kayla at the party? Is she still here?”

“No, she didn’t go,” he answered quickly. “Lexi did, along with Ashley, Marcia, and Ashley’s boyfriend. Ashley found her baby sister had crashed the party with some friends. They’re all at the mansion. They’re safe.”

I turned slightly, putting more of the patio behind me. “How many?”

“The four I already mentioned, Melissa, and four of her friends,” Steven answered. “The names I got were Naomi, Violet, Priya, and Chloe. Kayla is at the house, but she didn’t go to the party.”

Ashley had done the smart thing by getting the younger girls out. The Thomson Mansion was just down the street, and it was quite safe. A high gate, a responsible adult with money, and no chance of a drunk college idiot following them. The last thing I needed was a group of minors to worry about.

“They’re alright?” I asked.

“As alright as a group of shaken college kids can be after seeing a knife,” Steven sighed. “Melissa’s upset, Ashley’s holding it together. I’m going to make them call their parents to come pick them up. Unless you need to talk to them now?”

“They’re minors, I’d need the parents anyway,” I pointed out. “Statements can wait. They’re witnesses. Get me names and I’ll follow up tomorrow.”

“Try not to be too scary,” Steven teased. “Their parents are already gonna give them hell.”

“When am I ever scary, Steven?” I asked playfully, finding myself remembering the feel of his soft lips and strong body.

“No comment,” he laughed.

When I turned, Adam was looking at me again. It was a brief, thoughtful look; one that made wonder what was going through his head. I gave him a nod, disguising my smile. I was not going to give him anything to ask about. I’d bring up the witness interviews later.

“Sarah,” Steven whispered, concern in his voice. “You okay?”

“I’m fine,” I said automatically.

“Of course you are,” Steven responded. “If you decide you don’t wanna be alone; you’re welcome any time. Kayla would love seeing you.”

“Thank you,” I swallowed, maintaining my professional appearance. “It’s late. Get some rest. I’ll text you in the morning. Remember to get me those names.”

“I will,” he promised. “Goodbye, Sarah.”

A lot of the noise faded as we stepped inside. The music was off and no one was partying. A few students lingered in the foyer, speaking in low voices. One patrol officer was stationed near the base of the staircase to keep anyone from wandering deeper into the mansion.

I spotted them off to the right, in what looked like a sitting room just off the foyer. Kelsey Aguila sat on the edge of the couch, her hands wrapped tightly around a water bottle. Her shoulders were drawn in, like she was trying to make herself smaller. Her eyes were fixed on the doorway.

Klarissa stood nearby, arms crossed as she shifted her weight. She looked up when she heard our footsteps. Her gaze traveled from Adam to me, her expression tightening the moment she recognized me. We had spoken at a couple of crime scenes already; once because she was an RA on the floor of a murder, and again when the sorority girl was at a party and her friend was killed.