Page 2 of Girl, Deceived

And then, just as suddenly as it had begun, the footsteps began to recede, growing fainter and fainter until they were swallowed by the night.

Exhaling a breath she hadn't realized she was holding, Jessica waited a few more minutes, ensuring he was truly gone before she dared to move. As the initial shock began to fade, a flood of relief washed over her.

Jessica waited a few minutes, snuck out of the alleyway and rushed towards her apartment door without slowing down. She found the sanctuary of her front door, barely able to remember the past few minutes, then scoured her pockets for the keys. With a trembling hand, she penetrated the lock with the key and turned, but the bolt inside wouldn’t budge.

After what felt like an eternity of fidgeting, it clicked open.

Relief came in an overwhelming wave, and the new sense of safety prompted Jessica to laugh. It must have just been some guy from the party playing a trick on her. Maybe it was the same guy she’d been talking to – the boring one who couldn’t stop talking about the film ideas he had.

But as Jessica wedged her door free from its lock, she felt the suffocating presence of another soul behind her.

The hair on the back of her neck stood on end. A cold chill raced down her spine. She had never been more aware of the fragility of the moment, the thin line that separated safety from danger.

She should have turned around. She should have confronted whoever was behind her. But fear paralyzed her, leaving her standing in the doorway, clutching her keys so tight that they dug into her palm.

Before Jessica could make another move, every breath evaporated as the masked figure struck.

CHAPTER ONE

Ella Dark’s career in law enforcement had sent her to every corner of the country, and she’d seen police precincts, jails and death rows in various states up and down the United States.

But one place she’d never been in was a courtroom.

Today, she checked that experience off the list, but it came at a deep emotional cost.

Along with her partner Mia Ripley, she was at the arraignment of the man who’d haunted her dreams her entire adult life.

Three days ago, Ella Dark's story had come to an end. For twenty-six years, she'd been plagued by an unknown figure, the man who killed her father when she was just five years old. What official records said was a natural death, Ella Dark believed differently, and so had taken investigation into her own hands. Outside of the FBI system, no less, but Ella had prevailed regardless.

Now she was in the courtroom, fixated on a large man in an orange jumpsuit withVIRGINIA COUNTY JAILstenciled on the back. The man was Logan Nash – a contract killer for an underground group known as the Red Diamonds. Untouchable, if legend was to be believed, but Ella dealt in truths and evidence, not myths. Logan Nash – or Raymond Pindell as his real name went – was nothing more than flesh and blood. He might have covered his tracks for forty years, but his little assassination career had come to an abrupt end at her hands. In Logan’s warehouse on the outskirts of D.C., Ella had pointed a gun to his forehead and willed herself to put this man in the ground where he belonged.

But ultimately, in a moment of unexpected clarity, she decided to let justice make the final decision.

But as the courtroom proceedings went on, she was beginning to think she'd made the wrong decision because justice was not prevailing.

‘Mr. Pindell, you’ve been arrested on suspicion of homicide, conspiracy to murder, aggravated assault and falsification of legal documents,’ read the judge. ‘If found guilty, you could face a custodial sentence of up to thirty-five years imprisonment. How do you plead?’

Logan, or Mr. Pindell as the court referred to him, glanced around the room with an unnerving calmness. His cold blue eyes briefly met Ella's, and a smirk crept across his lips. She fought the urge to jump out of her seat and lunge at him.

‘Not guilty, your Honor,’ said Logan, his gravelly voice echoing throughout the courtroom.

A chorus of murmurs spread like wildfire amongst the spectators. Ella's heart sank. The audacity of this man to deny all charges after everything he'd done was almost unbearable.

Ella watched as Logan's defense attorney, a slick, well-groomed named Lionel Marx, stood up.

‘Your Honor, we request bail be set for Mr. Pindell. He is a well-respected businessman with deep roots in the community. He poses no flight risk and has every intention of defending his name against these baseless accusations.’

The prosecutor responded, ‘The charges against Mr. Pindell are of the gravest nature. The evidence we will present in the coming trial will paint a picture of a dangerous individual with ties to an underground criminal organization. Granting him bail would jeopardize the safety of the witnesses and the community at large.’

Ella held her breath as the judge contemplated. The weight of the room pressed heavily on her shoulders. She thought about all the nights she had spent digging into this case, the countless hours, the tears, and the nightmares.

‘Your Honor, this so-called criminal organization is nothing but a boogeyman. It’s much easier to blame senseless crimes on a faceless group than to address the reality that crime is ingrained into the fabric of this country. Tell me, how many members of the apparentRed Diamondshave you had in your courtroom?’

The judge scratched his forehead. ‘None.’

‘Exactly,’ said Marx. ‘If this group were so prevalent, wouldn’t you have at least seen someevidenceof them?’

‘Just because the Red Diamonds have successfully eluded capture does not mean they are nonexistent.’

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