Andrea McKellar sets out to investigate after she finds one of her closest friend dead in his apartment. After a series of clues pointing to the fact that his 'suicide' was not at all what it seemed she finds herself in a maze of confusion unsure of how to leave or what to do until she reunites with Cade Rollins, her childhood crush and the victim's cousin. Cade Rollins is your typical rich badboy player and someone who couldn't careless about anyone but himself, he returns to his home town and finds out that his cousin was murdered, he tries to find the person responsible but things prove difficult especially when the only person who has useful enough information for him is the one girl he loathes, the one girl he never wanted to set eyes on again, the only girl he ever loved, Drea McKellar. Will they be too caught up in the mixed feelings they share for each other to find out who the killer is, to realize that they may have a potential serial on their hands or that whoever it is might be hiding right under their noses.
Prologue
The black and white fur rug was stained with visible streaks and drops of blood but it eerily blended into the rug like it was part of the design, like it belonged there. I looked down at my hands that were soaked in blood.
"Can I go wash my hands?" My voice comes out hoarse and void of any emotion. I meet the gaze of the policeman who is sitting right opposite me and staring at me, he's been staring at me like that for some minutes now not asking any questions. I don't know what he was waiting for me to say and I was tired of sitting at a place, I was getting uncomfortable.
"You can go when we're done". I tear my eyes away from his and look out the window as the ambulance disappears from sight, the siren fading. My vision begins to blur but I blink it away.
Tap
Tap
Tap
I look down at where the noise is coming from, the officers' left leg. He's tapping his leg slowly on the rug, the rug underneath his feet creating a soft rhythm with his shoe, making me want to rip his leg out from his body because I crave silence and hearing the relaxing sound is ironically making me a little antsy but that would be a little violent and would grace him with part of the reaction he's hoping for.
"Is there anything you want to say Andrea?" He keeps his eyes on me like he's looking to read my reaction as he talks but I just stare at him blankly, ignoring his scrutiny.
"No".
"I heard you're supposed to leave for college in a week". I shrug and shift my gaze back to the bloody rug.
"Tell me what happened". He prods, this is the third time he's asking me to tell him what had happened and it is annoying. I know what he wants though, for me to slip up and say something different than what I said the first two times.
"I already told you". I shift a bit in my chair to adjust my position and feel a stab of pain at my side; it was probably a small gash from the knife. He nods and glances round the room.
"Are you sure there's nothing else you want to say or add...that you might have forgotten". He repeats and keeps on staring, waiting for any slight indication that I'm lying.
"You've already asked me that". I figured he had a bad habit of repeating himself but seriously, what did he want me to say, that I'm the one who did it, that I killed someone and made the call to 911 to drive the suspicion away from me? I could see that it was somewhat suspicious that I was the only one at the crime scene and I was covered in blood, the blood of the victim but that didn't prove anything.
He stands and drops a card on the coffee table that rests between us.
"Call me if you remember anything or you just need to talk, you're father's on his way". I nod and he leaves. I pick up the card to see the police department's number and his personal number, getting up I toss it in the bin.
There's no way I was ever going to call anyone from the police or even slightly connected to the police, he probably just gave it to me so I would know where to call if I ever felt guilty enough to confess not because he cared about my safety or because he would listen to whatever I had to say. They wanted me to confess, to take the fall for a crime I didn't commit, a murder. They wanted someone to pin the crime on so the case would be closed quickly, but I wasn't the killer.
I wasn't a murderer
Yet.
On her wedding day, Khloe’s sister connived with her groom, framing her for a crime she didn’t commit. She was sentenced to three years in prison, where she endured much suffering. When Khloe was finally released, her evil sister used their mother to coerce Khloe into an indecent liaison with an elderly man. As fate would have it, Khloe crossed paths with Henrik, the dashing yet ruthless mobster who sought to alter the course of her life. Despite Henrik’s cold exterior, he cherished Khloe like no other. He helped her take retribution from her tormentors and kept her from being bullied again.
In order to fulfill her grandfather's last wish, Stella entered into a hasty marriage with an ordinary man she had never met before. However, even after becoming husband and wife on paper, they each led separate lives, barely crossing paths. A year later, Stella returned to Seamarsh City, hoping to finally meet her mysterious husband. To her astonishment, he sent her a text message, unexpectedly pleading for a divorce without ever having met her in person. Gritting her teeth, Stella replied, "So be it. Let’s get a divorce!" Following that, Stella made a bold move and joined the Prosperity Group, where she became a public relations officer that worked directly for the company’s CEO, Matthew. The handsome and enigmatic CEO was already bound in matrimony, and was known to be unwaveringly devoted to his wife in private. Unbeknownst to Stella, her mysterious husband was actually her boss, in his alternate identity! Determined to focus on her career, Stella deliberately kept her distance from the CEO, although she couldn't help but notice his deliberate attempts to get close to her. As time went on, her elusive husband had a change of heart. He suddenly refused to proceed with the divorce. When would his alternate identity be uncovered? Amidst a tumultuous blend of deception and profound love, what destiny awaited them?
"Never let anyone treat you like shit!" I learned that the hard way. For three years, I lived with my in-laws. They didn't treat me as their son-in-law but as a slave. I put up with everything because of my wife, Yolanda Lambert. She was the light of my life. Unfortunately, my whole world came crashing down the day I caught my wife cheating on me. I have never been so heartbroken. To have my revenge, I revealed my true identity. I was none other than Liam Hoffman—the heir of a family with trillions of dollars in assets! The Lamberts were utterly shocked after the big reveal. They realized what fools they had been for treating me like trash. My wife even knelt down and begged for my forgiveness. What do you think I did? Did I take her back or made her suffer? Find out!
Rumors claimed that Fernanda, newly back with her family, was nothing more than a violent country bumpkin. Fernanda just flashed a casual, dismissive grin in response. Another rumor suggested that the usually rational Cristian had lost all sense, madly in love with Fernanda. This frustrated her. She could tolerate gossip about herself, but slander against her beloved crossed the line! Gradually, as Fernanda's multiple identities as a celebrated designer, a savvy gamer, an acclaimed painter, and a successful business magnate came to light, everyone realized they were the ones who had been fooled.
"I've warned you from the beginning. Don't marry him, but you won't listen." She stood close to me and smiled with concern. "You are not a woman worthy of a man as handsome, rich, smart, and virile as Blaze." My whole body trembled at her words. "Have you no shame?" I asked in a quivering voice. "Take a good look at yourself, Heather." She looked at me in the mirror. "You can't even look at your ugly face. Do you think Blaze can endure a lifetime of looking at that face?" Heather Bailey had a surprise from her husband that night: a divorce agreement. After a year of marriage and facing ups and downs, she couldn't believe Blaze intended to divorce her. But she was devastated when she saw him gazing lovingly at another woman because that person was closest to her. Shortly after she put her signature on their divorce papers, shock waves caught her up. Her flower shop was severely burnt, beyond repair. Her father's company collapsed, and her parents blamed her. She struggled to rebuild her life from the ground up and became more successful than ever. Having many customers who came from influential families, she started her action against Blaze. She won the very thing he wanted. But that was just the beginning.
Corinne devoted three years of her life to her boyfriend, only for it to all go to waste. He saw her as nothing more than a country bumpkin and left her at the altar to be with his true love. After getting jilted, Corinne reclaimed her identity as the granddaughter of the town’s richest man, inherited a billion-dollar fortune, and ultimately rose to the top. But her success attracted the envy of others, and people constantly tried to bring her down. As she dealt with these troublemakers one by one, Mr. Hopkins, notorious for his ruthlessness, stood by and cheered her on. “Way to go, honey!”