She knew Zeke. They had a history. And while her relationship with the former detective turned DEA undercover agent hadn’t ended happily, he was otherwise an honorable man.

Evans was a stranger who’d given her an intimate smile and whose honor was unproven. He was also in a unique position to take advantage of vulnerable young women. Those facts, combined with Kayla’s warning, solidified his position on her suspicious list.

Hugging her coat close, she pushed outside and followed the walkway, past the lengthening shadows of Ivy Hill, head dipped against the frigid wind.

She shivered . . . but the icy gusts pummeling her didn’t bear the bulk of the blame. That belonged to the ominous goings-on at this high-priced girls’ school.

Ties to a Mexican drug cartel. Missing teenagers. A guidance counselor with questionable intentions.

Were all those seemingly disparate pieces related?

If so, what was the link?

And what other secrets—and connections—were waiting to be discovered?

So many questions, so few answers.

Yet.

But she’d find them. If Stephanie and her boyfriend had met an untimely end, they would get justice. She’d see to it.

And no one—including the handsome DEA agent who’d disrupted her investigative strategy—was going to distract her from that goal.

No one.

Will downed the last bite of his nuked dinner, swigged his beer . . . and glanced at the laptop on the other end of the table, fingers itching.

He ought to shut it down for the night. Watch a movie, read a book, go to the gym. Those would be the safest pastimes on this Monday evening.

Except none of them were appealing—especially the gym. Despite the new physical patrol policy he’d instituted at Ivy Hill, exercise stunk.

And he’d had his fill of it for today.

What he needed was an activity to help him relax.

If Suz was here, there would be several possibilities—but until the six-month separation she’d mandated was over, his wife was keeping her distance.

So he’d have to entertain himself.

He rose and wandered over to the trash can, dinner container in hand. Tossed it in the bin. Retrieved another beer. Wiped down the counter.

Eyed the computer again.

Swigging the beer, he ambled over.

What could it hurt to browse through a few sites? No one would find out. It wasn’t as if anyone other than Suz—and his anonymous benefactor—knew about his issue. And Suz wasn’t around.

He sat at the table, muting the red alert that began beeping in his mind.

Yeah, yeah, he was venturing into dangerous territory. Exposing himself to temptation. But he wouldn’t succumb. He’d learned his lesson.

Digging himself into another hole would be stupid.

A man deserved a little fun, though—as long as he had the funds to pay for it and the self-discipline to maintain control. Hadn’t he earned a reward for all his months of self-restraint?