Page 47 of Shattered Melodies

I stared down at the paper, feeling a sudden, dizzying rush of possibility. A way to make a life for myself here, in Oakwood. For a while anyway. I needed something to do and this seems like the perfect thing for him at this moment.

I folded the paper carefully, tucking it into my pocket like a precious treasure. It was a lifeline, a chance to start over and build something new. Something that was all my own, something that had nothing to do with the past or the pain or the endless, aching weight of regret.

After paying for my food and saying my goodbyes to Sarah, I drove around town for a while, letting the familiar sights and sounds wash over me like a balm. The old movie theater where Caleb and I had our first date, the park where we used to hang out with our friends, the school where we had dreamed of a future together.

By the time I got back to the house, it was late and I was exhausted. I dragged myself up the stairs, my body heavy with fatigue and my mind whirling with thoughts of Sarah and Caleb and the job and everything in between.

I was just about to collapse into bed when I heard a loud bang coming from the backyard. I froze, my heart slamming against my ribs like a caged bird.

What the hell was that?

CHAPTER 14

Ghost of the Past

CALEB

The shrill ringing of my phone woke me up, the sound piercing through the hazy veil of sleep like a knife. I fumbled for it in the darkness, my mind still foggy and my body heavy with exhaustion.

“Hello?” I mumbled, my voice rough and groggy.

“Caleb, it’s Jake. Sorry to wake you, but we’ve got a situation.”

I sat up, rubbing my eyes and trying to force my brain into gear. “What kind of situation?”

“There’s been a disturbance at the old Denison place. Someone reported hearing noises in the backyard, like an animal or something.”

I frowned, my brow furrowing in confusion. The old Denison place had been abandoned for years, ever since the family had packed up and left town without a word. No one had set foot on that property in ages, as far as I knew.

“And you need me because…?”

Jake sighed, and I could picture him pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration. “Because you’re the closest, and because I’m up to my eyeballs in paperwork from the Wilson case. I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important, Caleb.”

I groaned, but I was already swinging my legs over the side of the bed and reaching for my jeans. “Alright, alright. I’ll head over there now. But you owe me one, Jake.”

He chuckled, the sound warm and familiar. “I know. I’ll buy you a beer next time you’re in town, how’s that?”

I snorted, but I couldn’t help the small smile that tugged at my lips. “Make it two, and you’ve got a deal.”

I hung up and finished getting dressed, my mind already racing with possibilities. An animal in the backyard of the old Denison place it could be anything from a raccoon to a coyote to a lost dog.

I grabbed my keys and headed out to my truck, the cool night air sending a shiver down my spine. As I drove through the quiet streets of Oakwood Grove, memories began to flood back, unbidden and unwelcome.

Memories of a time when those streets had been my whole world, when the old Denison place had been more than just an abandoned house on the edge of town.

I gripped the steering wheel tighter, my knuckles turning white with the force of my grip. I couldn’t think about that now, couldn’t let myself get lost in the past.

As I turned onto the old dirt road that led to the Denison place, I felt my heart skip a beat in my chest. Because there, parked in the driveway like a sleek, shiny beacon was a sports car. It stood out like a sore thumb against the modest, rural backdrop of Oakwood Grove, all gleaming chrome and polished paint.

Like something from another world, another life.

I shook my head, trying to push down the surge of unease that rose up in my gut.

I parked my truck and climbed out, grabbing my flashlight from the glovebox. The night was still and quiet, the only sound the chirping of crickets and the distant hooting of an owl.

I made my way around to the back of the house, my boots crunching on the gravel path. The yard was overgrown and wild, the grass reaching up to my knees in some places.

I swept the beam of my flashlight across the ground, looking for any sign of the disturbance that had been reported. But there was nothing, no tracks or trails or any indication that anything larger than a field mouse had been through here recently.

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