Prologue
Ten years ago
Shell Ridge, California
It had been a long night on patrol. Marlee removed her hat and smoothed back the curls that just wouldn’t stay out of her face. She’d had a bad feeling all day that she couldn’t shake. She blew out a breath as she replaced her hat and waited for her partner, Ron Carter, to park the car. No sooner did he shut off the engine than she was out of the vehicle and making a beeline for the precinct.
“I won’t take offense,” Ron hollered good-naturedly after her.
She lifted a hand and threw a glance over her shoulder at him. Ron had been on the force for over twenty years, but he loved what he did. And he was a good cop. “Sorry, Carter. I’ve had enough of your face today,” she teased.
His laugh followed her into the building as she finished the last of her duties and hurried to change so she could get home. Halloween had always been a special time for her and her twin sister, Macey. For as far back as she could remember, the two of them had always dressed up and given out candy. It was a Frampton family tradition that their parents had passed on to them.
Marlee pulled up to the small house she shared with her sister. She couldn’t stop smiling as she grabbed the bag next to her purse. Marlee glanced inside at the tiny costume within. It was the first of many she intended to buy for her future niece that was due in a month.
She had a hop in her step as she walked to the back door of the house. When Macey had gotten pregnant, and the father wanted nothing to do with her or the baby, Marlee had insisted that she and Macey should raise the baby together. As twins, they were rarely apart. It was the perfect solution. Macey had agreed, and from then on, they hadn’t looked back.
“Mace, I’m home!” Marlee shouted as she turned the locks behind her and then tossed her keys in the bowl next to the back door. She set her purse down as well as the bag. “Mace? You in the bath again? I bet you’re stuck. Again,” she said with a chuckle as she walked through the kitchen and living room to the stairs.
When there was still no answer, Marlee frowned. “Macey?” she shouted again.
Fearing the worst, Marlee ran up the stairs and looked in all three bedrooms as well as the bathroom, but there was no sign of her sister. Marlee took in a calming breath and realized that her twin had probably been unable to sleep again and was out front.
Marlee made herself calmly walk down the stairs and open the front door. But the second she found the chairs on the porch empty, her heart began to pound with dread. She closed and locked the door and ran to her purse to look for her cell phone, hoping against hope that her twin had sent a text and that Marlee had somehow missed it. Maybe Macey was in early labor. It happened.
“Please let it be something like that,” Marlee murmured to herself as she dug out her phone, though the knot that had been in her stomach all day intensified.
There was no text from Macey.
Marlee’s hands shook as she called her sister. It rang and rang and rang before going to voicemail. Marlee called three more times before she gave up and dialed the hospital. She heard what felt like an eternity of rings before someone finally picked up. “I’m looking for my sister, Macey Frampton. She’s eight months pregnant, and I need to see if she’s been admitted.”
Marlee closed her eyes, that bad feeling from earlier intensifying with each second, and every beat of silence on the other end of the line.
“I’m sorry, ma’am. There’s been no one admitted by that name,” said the woman.
Marlee disconnected the call. Her heart thumped so loudly she could feel it slamming against her ribs. She looked down at her phone and dialed the precinct. Their town was small. There was crime, but nothing like in the big cities.
Why then did she feel as if that were about to change?
“Sergeant Adams,” said a deep voice when the line connected.
“Hey, Sarge. It’s Marlee. I’m probably freaking out for nothing, but Macey isn’t home or at the hospital. I—”
“Frampton, I need you to listen to me carefully.”
The moment Adams spoke, the room began to spin. Marlee had been a police officer for three years now. She knew exactly what those words meant.
“Marlee? Can you hear me?” Sergeant Adams’ voice pierced the fog descending around her. His tone held a note of anxiety—and sorrow.
She swallowed, grabbing hold of the table that held her purse. Macey had found the console at a garage sale and lovingly sanded it down to the bare wood before painting it with swirls and stars. Her sister had a gift for sure. She could pick up a paintbrush and create anything.
“Yes,” Marlee answered, realizing she had to reply.
“Ron is out front, Marlee. You need to let him in.”
The phone dropped from her numb fingers as she looked through the house to the front door. The outline of a man could be seen standing there as blue and red lights flashed behind him, shining through the windows to dance on the walls.
The last thing Marlee wanted was to answer the door. She wanted to rewind the day and start again, this time listening to that feeling within her so she could change whatever this was.
But she couldn’t do that.
Marlee made her way to the door as if walking through quicksand. Her hand was clammy and slipped on the knob as she tried to turn it. Finally, the door swung open, and she looked into her partner’s brown eyes.
In that instant, she knew that this wasn’t just bad. It was the worst kind of horrible. Her knees started to buckle, and Ron was instantly beside her, his arm wrapped around her to hold her up. Marlee squeezed her eyes closed against the tears that threatened.
“I tried to stop you before you left,” Ron said. “But you were already driving off.”
It took her two tries before she found her voice. “What happened?”
“You should sit down,” he urged.
“What happened?” she demanded, her voice louder as she leaned her head back to look at Ron’s aging face.
His brown eyes lowered to the floor for a heartbeat before he drew in a deep breath. “Macey was attacked.”
“Attacked? What does that mean? Is she hurt? What about the baby?” There were so many questions, and she wanted all the answers immediately.
But Ron didn’t answer. He just looked at her.
Marlee shook her head and tried to pull out of his arms, but her partner wouldn’t let her go. “I’m sorry, Marlee.”
At those words, the dam burst, and the tears fell. She hated herself for them because she needed to be strong right now. She was a cop. She knew exactly what was going on, but not even that could help her rein in the bone-deep sorrow that filled her.
“Take me to her,” Marlee demanded as she sniffed and looked at Ron through her tears.
His dark brows snapped together as he shook his head. “You don’t need to see her.”
“Take me to her, or I’ll go myself.”
“Goddamn stubborn woman,” Ron mumbled under his breath.
But his hand was gentle as he placed it on her back and led her out of the house. Marlee spotted another patrol car, and two more officers guarding her place. They wouldn’t meet her gaze. She kept her attention on putting one foot in front of the other to get to the car, but once inside, her mind raced with the kinds of horrors that could’ve befallen her sister.