Chapter 1
The sun was a blinding orb of yellow on the horizon, surrounded by clouds the shade of salmon and gray when Lainey Harper stepped out of her SUV, travel mug in one hand, clipboard in the other. It would be warm later, but she shivered in the damp chill.
Today was the day the contractors promised they’d finish.
The sharp scent of sawdust and fresh paint usually brought Lainey a sense of calm.
Today it made her stomach churned.
She stopped short, her breath catching in her throat. The front window of Stella’s Bakery, her favorite building of the entire project, was broken. Again.
And not just broken—shattered. Destroyed.
Shards of glass littered the sidewalk and sparkled like diamonds in the light.
Spray painted across the brick wall in angry black letters were the words: WALK AWAY.
Her stomach roiled. The cup of coffee she had earlier threatened to come up.
“Morning Miss Harper. I was hoping you’d see this before the crew got in,” said Gus, the construction foreman. “I’d like to get it cleaned up. The men are already on edge.”
Lainey didn’t answer. Her boots crunched over the glass as she moved closer to the front door.
Something was different. Her gazed dropped to the wooden frame of the door. Carved below the handle was a small, deliberate X.
She had no idea what it meant, only that it made her skin crawl.
“I’ve called the police,” Gus said. “But…” he shrugged.
Lainey sighed. “I know. Kids’, right?”
“Yup.”
It didn’t take her long to take photos of the damage and scribble notes to herself. Again. Her pulse raced through her body.
She wanted to believe it was kids, but she wasn’t that naïve. Not anymore.
A patrol car pulled up, turned off its annoying siren.
Two officers stepped out. “Morning, Ms. Harper,” a tall officer flipped open his notebook and surveyed the damage. “Anything stolen?”
“No.” Lainey huffed in exasperation.
This wasn’t the first conversation she’d had with the police.
“I know this is frustrating. But unless it escalates…” he trailed off with a shrug. “Sometimes people don’t like change.”
“This isn’t about people not liking change,” she snapped. “This is a threat.”
He didn’t respond just like before.
The police already suggested it was just kids fooling around.
She knew there’d be no fingerprints. No camera footage. No note written to oneself saying break window, leave a threatening message. No suspect. Nothing to find.
The officers left, but Lainey lingered at the site. Restoring the historic district was her dream job. It was her second chance after everything her former partner, Richard, ruined.
And someone wanted to destroy it.
She turned to leave, noticing that Gus was already sweeping up the damage and whitewashing the words.
Her phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
She froze.
Dare she answer it? The last few times she had, no one was there. But something told her this time was different.
One ring. Two. Three.
She couldn’t stand it anymore. “Lainey Harper.”
Silence.
Then a distorted voice said. “Walk away now. Or we’ll make you.”
The call ended with a click.
She stood frozen, the phone still pressed to her ear.
This wasn’t over.
It was only the beginning.
But what whoever calling didn’t know was Lainey Harper was no quitter.
And she sure as hell didn’t scare easily.