Arron waited in his hospital bed, trying to make sense of why Jennifer had moved him so far away. He hadn't seen her since he learned she'd been working with John — and not in a good way.
Arron wanted to leave town too, but not the way Jennifer planned.
Yes, they had dated for a while.
Yes, they'd once been close.
But everything changed the day Arron discovered Jennifer was cheating on him… with John.
When he told his mom, she hadn't believed him.
Now it felt like his whole life was catching up to him.
He reached for his phone and called Sue.
She didn't answer.
He texted her: Call me. It's important.
Little did Arron know…
Sue had been missing for days.
She hadn't been seen since she secretly followed John to one of his meetings.
---
Back at the hospital, Jennifer stormed down the hallway screaming at the staff.
"I NEED to see Arron! I'm the only one he has!"
The nurses tried to calm her, but she shoved one aside. Security rushed over, and within minutes the police arrived. They escorted her out of the building and warned her to stay away from the hospital.
Jennifer stomped into the parking lot furious, shaking with anger.
---
Meanwhile, miles away, Jose woke up again — still tied to a chair, still bleeding. His head pounded. His vision swam.
But this time… he wasn't alone.
Sue sat taped to a chair directly in front of him.
"Sue? Sue, are you okay?" Jose whispered.
She didn't respond.
That's when Jose noticed the blood trailing down the right side of her face.
He looked around desperately — but no one else was in the room.
He prayed Sue was still alive.
---
Back at home, Mark and I finished our homework while Courtney wrapped up dinner.
Homemade mac and cheese and hamburgers — my favorite.
During dinner, Courtney finally spoke.
"I got a call from Arron today," she said softly. "He's awake. He's okay. And once he figures out where he is, I can go get him."
My whole chest filled with relief.
Mark smiled and kissed my cheek.
"Told you he'd be fine."
I blushed, but I smiled.
Then I remembered something important.
"Beth told me her dad overheard John and Jennifer talking. He thinks they know where Arron is."
Courtney paused with her fork in mid-air.
"Are you sure Matt said Jennifer and John?"
"Yes," I said. "He didn't even know she was in town."
Courtney took a bite of food, thinking.
"Matt did call Steve about that. And Steve called me right after."
As if on cue, Courtney's phone buzzed — a message from Steve.
"He just got a call," she said quietly. "Another body was found. Only two miles from where Eric was found."
The room went silent.
---
Steve rushed to the scene. When he arrived, the medical examiner was already turning the body over.
A woman.
Face-down in the dirt.
When they flipped her, Steve's breath caught.
It was Sue.
Sue had suffered the same brutal torture as Eric — broken knees, fingers cut, head wound — but her face was still recognizable.
And then something clicked in Steve's mind.
He'd seen this pattern before.
Years ago.
In a cold case he could never close.
Keith Jones.
Arron's real dad.
Keith had supposedly died in a car accident. But Steve had always suspected foul play. And in the cold case file, Keith had the same wound patterns on his body that Eric and Sue now had.
Same cuts.
Same torture.
Same execution style.
Whoever killed Keith…
…also killed Eric.
…also killed Sue.
…and was still out there.
Steve stumbled back from the body, heart racing.
After all these years…
he might have finally found Keith Jones' killer.
But now he needed to find proof.
And fast.
Because Sue's death meant the killer was one step ahead.
And Arron was still missing.