Bell

ficers. Maps of the crime scene were projected onto the wall, red circles

tired eyes, cleared his throat. "Alright,

cers exchanged uneasy glances. They knew wha

ing, consistent with a prolonged struggle. Multiple defensive wounds on her forearms and ha

eel the horror, but remembering it all. The terror

ured. Dental records are being checked, but it's slow going. And we'r

ctly coiffed hair. His jaw was clenched, his knuckles white as he gri

heck every abandoned warehouse, every remote property in a fifty-mile radius. I want

er, every trace. And this identification, Miller, it needs to be expedited. T

e crime scene. Keep me updated." He strode out of the room, his long legs carryi

client, on the case.

ifully engraved with his initials and a tiny, almost invisible, star. It

ing it into his hand. He' d smiled, a rare, genuine smile, an

compass. "What's that, darling?" she' d purred, her voice dripping with artificial sw

silver. Then, with a sudden, vicious twist, she had snapped it in half.

breaking. I lunged for her, my han

that surprised me. "Ava, stop it! What's wrong wit

arter! She broke

celia didn't mean to." He'd turned to her, his voice softenin

t, a theatrical sob wracking her body. "She's always

e was cold, lethal. "Get out of here

a testament to her cruelty and his blind devotion. I had curled up on the bed, my body aching, my heart shat