That spurred me to start my own investigation into other unsolved cases, and the numbers were staggering. Statistically, one-third of murder cases go unsolved. Television and movies would have the public believe otherwise.
And maybe that’s not such a bad thing, making would-be murderers think twice before committing the act if he or she believes they won’t get away with it.
That was not the case for my attacker, however.
That person found me at my most vulnerable and struck.
A familiar ache blooms beneath my breastplate. Muscle memory, sparked by thought, of slashed ligaments and bone. The wounds healed, but my mind won’t let me forget. The phantom pain triggered by anxiety, stress. Anger.
Likely the most significant reason as to why I’m unable to solve my own case. I’m too psychologically connected. In the time that Rhys and I have worked together, I’ve helped solve six cold cases. One becoming a best-selling novel. With a second book slated to release in six months. But the emotional blinders go on when I stare into my past.
The closer I get to Florida, the more alive the pain becomes. A greeting from my former life.
Welcome home.
3
Book of Chelsea
Lakin: Then
He wanted her the way I wanted to be her.
Envy is a powerful and debilitating emotion. Stunting, all consuming. Jealousy can twist you into a gnarled creature, bent on self-destruction. Though at the time I felt powerless, as if the tighter I held on, the quicker the wispy tendrils slipped through my fingers.
I was losing Drew.
I saw it in his eyes. When he looked at her, called her name. He coveted her.
I coveted her life. Sitting three rows behind Chelsea, I positioned myself so I could see the way she tossed her blond hair, the way she chewed on her pen cap, the way her temples creased when she laughed at his jokes.
She was every man’s fantasy. And every woman’s nightmare.
But it was so much more than that; I craved to know more…look beneath the topical veneer she displayed for others, and dissect her. Open her up so I could learn what made her tick. How she appeared to be so open, made everyone around her love and hate her at the same time, while fearing being rejected by her.
She was a study into everything that I wasn’t.
I was attending the University of Central Florida on scholarship. Her affluent parents made donations to the school. I was poised at one end of the spectrum, and she the other—a much better fit for Drew. His own family held in high regard, knowing his doctorate would—finally—launch him to the proper level, where he would no longer have to teach.
I majored in psychology. A senior, Chelsea was auditing the class. If I didn’t stop comparing myself to her, Drew said, I was going to drive myself crazy. There was nothing between them. It was all in my head. She wasn’t his type. He flattered her because their families moved in the same circles. He had to be polite. Besides, she was a student.
So am I, I wanted to say.
Insecurity is not attractive to men.
But I couldn’t help myself. Couldn’t stop the obsessive thoughts. If I thought about it enough, somehow, I would prevent it from happening. Like wishing on a star; those dreams never came true.
I knew she wanted him, in the way beautiful girls want men, so they can toss them aside afterward. Their stamp on the man’s backside like a grade of meat: processed.
Me, on the other hand, I believed I had something special with Drew. I wasn’t outgoing. I was reserved, difficult to connect with, and Drew broke through my defenses. He swept in and shone a light on my dark little corner, and the fear of losing that intimacy…
I couldn’t lose him, or what we had. The dread of it hollowed me out inside, and I felt sick, helpless.
As much as I loathed what Chelsea was doing, I also hated myself for what her presence in my life was doing to me, flaunting my past, that other girl before Drew, right in my face. In a way, she reminded me of Amber—how my cousin’s vibrant, charismatic personality stole the spotlight.
I was always second to Amber. As kids, she demanded all attention on her. But I loved her, my best friend, and I was content to at least follow in her shadow. I was shy back then, but it wasn’t until she was gone that I became withdrawn.
Without Amber’s light, I didn’t want to see the world.
That’s why, this time, I can’t let Chelsea win.
Amber would make me stand up for myself.
I push the unhealthy feelings down, down. Breathe. Drew has helped me overcome so much; he’s opened me up in a way that I never experienced before, and when I’m finally on the cusp of sloughing off the rest of the dead shell encasing me, Chelsea swirls onto the stage, a self-indulgent twister wreaking havoc.
Class dismissed, I lingered near the doorway, pretending to check messages. I watched her lean over his desk, twirl her hair, her trilling laugh drowning out the rapid beat of my heart. I closed my eyes.
One more week.
Just another week and Drew and I would be leaving for spring break. Together. Away from temptations and fears. I’d have his undivided attention. I’d rekindle the spark that seemed to dwindle over the past couple of months.
The longer I watched them together, the more helpless I felt. They looked good. A perfect fit. Desperation slithered in through my widening cracks.
I have to stop this from happening.
But my dream, still fresh, mocked me. I’d already seen how this ends.
As Chelsea passed me, she tossed her hair, the ends smacking my cheek.
I still remember the strawberry scent of her hair.
4
Cold Case
Lakin: Now
Here’s what we know about the Delany case:
On Friday, March 23rd, 2018, at approximately 9:45pm, Joanna Delany was discovered dead at Lucent Lakes West. Joseph Meyer (pseudonym) was walking his dog (chocolate lab) on the pathway that abuts a man-made lake when he spotted what he first thought to be an animal washed up in the reed grass.
The curious lab directed their course toward the body, and Joseph muttered a profanity when he realized it was a naked woman floating near the bank (according to his statement). There was no question if she was dead: her pale body was encased in mud and grass. Her skin bloated, opaque eyes wide and vacant. Joseph forced his dog away from the scene and dialed 9-1-1 from the pathway.
Officer Leon Brady, a patrol officer with the WMPD (West Melbourne Police Department), responded to the call. Upon Officer Brady’s arrival, he radioed the precinct to request the on-duty homicide detective. Then he proceeded to question Joseph and take his statement.
Detective Orson Vale and trainee detective Allen Right ordered CSU to rope off the area around the victim and backside of the lake within ten minutes of their arrival to the crime scene. Detective Vale then requested the medical examiner and proceeded to inspect the scene and question the witness himself.
What followed, according to the reports, was standard procedure in a homicide investigation. No glaring mistakes of protocol or oversights stand out. But no foremost insight from either detective or major crimes, either.
The first hours in a murder investigation are crucial. Most of your pertinent information comes in during the first twenty-four hours on the case. Victim ID. Next of kin. Cause of death. The trifecta to help point the way to the prime suspect.