Act I The little girl came out of the trees like a ghost. Officer Daniel Mercer saw the white nightgown first, a pale shape moving through the fog beyond the red-and-blue flash of…

Act I The first crack sounded like a gunshot. Dust fell from the rafters in a pale cloud, drifting through the thin slice of daylight from the barn window. The old wooden floor…

Act I The room was too beautiful for cruelty. Sunlight poured through the tall windows of the Whitmore mansion, washing the marble floor in pale gold. A white grand piano gleamed near the…

Act I The German Shepherd looked like a nightmare against the wet concrete. He stood over the little girl with his paws planted wide, his black-and-tan coat slick with pool water, his mouth…

Act I The shove was so violent that the room went silent before the waitress hit the floor. One second, the young woman in the pale blue uniform was standing beside table twelve…

Act I The first glass shattered before anyone understood why the dog had jumped. Orange juice splashed across the gray stone island, bright and sticky under the kitchen lights. A second cup toppled…

Act I The mud cracked before Claire understood the sound. At first, it was only a low groan beneath the rain, buried under the wind and the frantic scream of her toddler somewhere…

Act I Officer Caloe smiled before the suitcase was even fully open. That was the first thing Raymond Cole noticed. Not the uniform. Not the gloves. Not the badge clipped neatly to the…

Act I The wedding was perfect until the flower girl started running. White roses climbed the arch above the altar. Sunlight poured through tall chapel windows and turned every chair, ribbon, and petal…