“It’s your funeral,” Cara called as she stepped outside and closed the door behind her, rather proud that she’d managed to wiggle out of what could’ve been an awkward conversation. As she headed toward where her car was parked on the driveway, she felt an uneasy prickle on the back of her neck. Trying to look casual, she glanced down the street, but there weren’t any parked cars in sight. Her gaze roamed over the neighborhood, but it all looked quiet. Even the ever-present breeze had settled, leaving only the scuff of her shoes against the concrete to break the eerie silence.

“Stop it,” she ordered herself. “You’re getting paranoid.” Just to be on the safe side, though, she scanned the trees next to the house, looking for anything suspicious. Since they’d gotten an alarm system installed, the attempted break-ins had dropped significantly, but there was still the occasional treasure hunter trying their luck. Thanks for that, Mom.

The forest was still and dark. Despite the lack of any suspicious figures hiding in the shadows, the prickle of unease intensified, and she hurried back to yank open the door.

“Charlie!” she called.

“Yeah?” Charlie stepped into view.

“Make sure to set the alarm when you leave.” Still unsettled by the odd stillness of the forest, she frowned. “Or if you stay. And lock the door.”

Charlie straightened, meeting Cara’s gaze steadily. “Trouble outside?”

“Nothing I can see. Just a feeling.”

“Got it.” From Charlie’s sober tone, Cara knew she wouldn’t blow off the warning.

“Thanks.”

Dropping her serious expression, Charlie made shooing motions with her hands. “Now get to class before you’re late.”

Cara gave her a mock salute before closing the door and hurrying to the car. She hoped that they’d find their mom soon—as well as the valuable necklace Jane had stolen—so that their lives could go back to normal. Maybe it was wrong to hope that her only surviving parent would be back in jail, but Cara didn’t care. Jane had really screwed them over this time. If she hadn’t stolen the necklace, used their house for collateral on her bail bond, and then skipped town, then Cara would be happily attending classes and doing her usual research. Instead, Cara was scanning the bushes for danger and breaking into murderers’ motel rooms.

Accused murderers, her brain corrected, and she sighed. It was probably a good thing she’d sworn off chasing after Henry Kavenski. As far as he was concerned, she had a hard time staying objective. He hadn’t killed her, after all.

Plus he really was incredibly pretty.

Chapter 2

Her child development theories class was a good distraction from the utter chaos of the rest of her life. The two hours flew by, and she was disappointed when it ended and all her worries crashed back down on her. Not wanting to return to dealing with skips and the possibility of burglars lurking in her backyard, she dragged out the process of packing up her bag.