Chapter 1
The rain started softly, then grew heavier, drumming against the pavement like a heartbeat she couldn't ignore.
Maya Carter stood alone beside the road, shoulders hunched under her jacket, staring at the roadside memorial.
A photo. Some flowers. A candle burned out weeks ago.
Alex. Her brother.
Three months.
Three months since the police knocked at the door in the middle of the night. Three months since everything changed.
Maya crouched down slowly, brushing rain from the photo. His smile stared back at her, bright, carefree.... alive
"You were supposed to come home that night". She whispered. Voice barely audible over the rain.
Everyone said it was an accident.
Car crash. Late night. Unfortunate. Done.
But Maya didn't believe it. Not really.
Alex wasn't reckless. He was careful, responsible, thoughtful.
How could someone like him lose control?
Her fingers clenched the frame. Her chest tightened, a familiar ache rising that she had thought she'd learned to carry quietly.
Something about that night didn't sit right. Something no one would tell her.
The wind carried the soft smell of wet asphalt and rain. Her heart ached for him, for the brother she had lost and the truth she couldn't find.
Maya stood up, placing the photo back beside the candle, and started walking.
The street was empty. Streetlights flickered overhead. Cars passed without slowing. Everything looked normal. Too normal.
Yet a shiver crawled down her spine.
Across the street parked in the shadow of a dark building, a black car waited. Its windows tinted so dark, no one could see inside.
Maya didn't notice. She never looked back.
Inside the car, a man watched the empty street.
Ethan Vale tapped his fingers lightly on the steering wheel, eyes scanning the quiet surroundings. He had been waiting for someone .For something..... but not this.
Not the girl walking past the memorial, wrapped in rain and sorrow.
He didn't know her but something about her unsettled him.
The rain fell harder. Footsteps echoed. The man in the car started the engine and drove away, leaving the memorial and the girl behind.
Maya didn't know how close their paths had come tonight and neither did Ethan.
But one thing was certain; the night had shifted.
And nothing would ever be the same again.
The first chapter guys!!!
I'm so excited. Y'all have no idea what's in store. 😌😍
Happy reading.........🎀
