Chapter 1 Chapter 1: Blood and Beginnings

The smell hit me first.

I'd been a detective for eight years, but some smells never got easier to stomach.

"Detective Jenkins?" Officer Martinez waved me over to the narrow alley between two brownstones. His face was green around the edges. "We've got a bad one."

I pulled my jacket tighter against the October chill and ducked under the yellow tape. The West Village always looked like a postcard in the morning light, all charming brick buildings and tree-lined streets. Today, it looked like a crime scene.

The body lay crumpled against a brick wall, arms twisted at impossible angles. Female, mid-thirties, blonde hair matted with blood. Her designer dress was torn, revealing defensive wounds on her arms. She'd fought back. That was something, at least.

"What do we know?" I asked, crouching beside the victim while careful not to disturb the scene.

"Anonymous tip came in around six this morning," Martinez said, consulting his notepad. "Caller reported screaming around midnight, but didn't think much of it until they saw the news about increased crime in the area."

I frowned. "What news?"

"Haven't you been watching? There have been three similar cases in Manhattan over the past month. Different precincts, but same MO. All young women, all found in alleys, all with defensive wounds."

My stomach dropped. Serial killer. The words every detective dreaded hearing, but the challenge I'd been craving. After two years of handling domestic disputes and petty theft, I was ready for something that would test my skills.

I stood up, scanning the alley. "Any witnesses?"

"Working on it. Canvas is ongoing, but you know how it is in this neighborhood. People mind their own business."

The West Village was like that. Expensive enough that residents valued their privacy, old enough that everyone had secrets. It was the perfect hunting ground for someone who didn't want to be seen.

"Have we ID'd her?"

Martinez nodded grimly. "Sarah Walsh, twenty-eight. Works at some fancy art gallery in SoHo. No known enemies, model citizen type. Neighbors describe her as quiet, kept to herself."

I pulled out my phone and took photos of the scene from multiple angles. Something was bothering me about the positioning of the body, but I couldn't put my finger on it. The killer had arranged her carefully, almost respectfully. Her hands were folded over her chest, and her legs were straight. This wasn't just murder—it was a statement.

"Detective Jenkins?" A new voice interrupted my thoughts. I looked up to see a tall man with dark hair and sharp cheekbones approaching the tape. He held up a press badge. "Alex Chen, New York Tribune. I was hoping I could ask you a few questions about the connection to the other murders."

Great. Media attention was the last thing we needed on day one. I'd seen too many investigations go sideways because reporters got involved too early.

"No comment," I said automatically.

"I understand your position," he said, not backing down. "But I've been following these cases for weeks. I might have information that could help."

That stopped me. Reporters usually wanted information, not offering it. I studied his face, looking for the usual signs of a glory-seeking journalist. Instead, I saw genuine concern and something that looked like determination.

"What kind of information?"

"Not here," he said, glancing around at the growing crowd of onlookers. "Somewhere we can talk privately."

Every instinct told me to walk away. Getting involved with the media was career suicide for a detective. But something about Alex Chen made me curious. Maybe it was the way he looked at the crime scene with real sadness instead of excitement, or the fact that he wasn't pushing for quotes and photos like the other reporters starting to gather.

"Coffee shop on Bleecker in an hour," I heard myself saying. "The one with the blue awning. And this stays off the record until I say otherwise."

He nodded. "Understood."

As I walked back to my car, I couldn't shake the feeling that this case was going to change everything. Sarah Walsh deserved justice, and something told me Alex Chen might be the key to finding it.

My phone buzzed with a text from my partner, Detective Morrison: "Heard you caught the West Village case. Lucky you. Captain wants to see you ASAP."

Captain Rodriguez was waiting in his office when I got back to the precinct. His expression was grim, which meant either budget cuts or bad news. Given the morning I'd had, I was betting on the latter.

"Jenkins, sit down." He gestured to the chair across from his desk. "I'm pulling you off the Walsh case."

"What? Why?"

"You're being reassigned to a task force. Federal involvement now that we've got a pattern across precincts." He slid a file across the desk. "Report to Detective Jameson at One Police Plaza tomorrow morning."

I opened the file and felt my blood run cold. Four crime scene photos stared back at me, all showing young women positioned exactly like Sarah Walsh. The killer wasn't just active—he was accelerating.

"Jameson's running this?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.

Rodriguez nodded. "Problem with that?"

Yes, I wanted to say. Jameson and I had history, the kind that ended careers and destroyed reputations. But I also knew this was the biggest case I'd ever be assigned to.

"No problem, sir."

"Good. And Jenkins? Don't screw this up. There's a lot riding on this task force."

As I left his office, I realized I was about to be thrown into the deep end with a serial killer, a complicated past, and a journalist who might know more than he was letting on.

Sarah Walsh's face flashed in my mind, and I made a silent promise. I would find her killer, no matter what it cost me.

The hunt was about to begin.