Book #4 of the Willow Darby Series

Deklyn Boyd is a student favorite on Huron University’s campus. You won’t find an empty seat during any of his lectures. Department colleagues find him personable, engaging and intelligent. But his private life is the reason why documentaries get made and binge watched. Willow Darby’s investigation into a rash of unrelated bombings has drawn her into a dangerous game. One that has potentially lethal consequences for its loser.

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PROLOGUE

It was an early unseasonable thaw that found Maddie Sorensen embraced with a run on a paved trail between two neighboring counties. The winter months in Michigan had been especially brutal. Melting mounds of snow were certainly a welcomed sight.

Her successful interview process had landed a position with an accounting firm and relocation to the Great Lakes state before its first snowfall in November. The crisp, fresh air outside provided a respite from an indoor track and treadmill at the local community center.

Maddie’s first road race was growing closer to fruition. The city’s annual St. Patrick’s Day 5k would provide a springboard for an upcoming race filled season during the warmer months. She had returned to her former cross-country running weight in high school after months of religious exercise and healthier eating habits.

A sudden cramp struck with brutality when she tried to quicken her pace. The pain from it caused her to double over at the waist. She eventually regained an upright posture by taking a few cleansing breaths. Maddie contemplated a light jog but immediately decided against it when another stabbing sensation materialized.

The sounds of running water from a shallow creek and black-capped chickadees were her only companions out miles away the parking lot. It was an odd sight that drew her attention to a tattered jacket then another article of women’s clothing. A few feet further down into a drainage ditch brought shock. Maddie struggled to process it.

A partially decomposed female was face down only yards away. She had never seen a dead body outside of a traditional funeral home setting. The playlist for her run blared through dangled earbuds. Maddie’s music was soon replaced by the voice of a 911 operator.