EL_Turo

Forensic psychologist Dr. Cora Evans has built her career solving unsolvable cases, despite the strange gaps in her own memory. When she returns to her rainy hometown of Port Blackwood to consult on a series of mysterious disappearances, she finds herself haunted by nightmares of dark water and watching birds – dreams she can't explain but somehow recognizes.

Private investigator Mason Reid has been tracking similar cases for years, following a pattern only he seems to recognize. When their investigations collide, Mason's familiarity with Cora is unsettling – he knows too much about her, yet claims they've never met.

As more people vanish, Cora and Mason uncover a terrifying connection: all victims experienced identical nightmares before disappearing. The trail leads to Blackwood Lake, where twenty years earlier, three children drowned under mysterious circumstances – one body never recovered.

Something ancient dwells beneath the lake's placid surface – something that knows Cora, that's been waiting for her return. As buried memories begin to surface, Cora realizes her connection to the lake runs deeper than she ever imagined, forcing her to confront a forgotten promise made long ago.

A promise that might cost her everything.

THE SHADOW BETWEEN US

Mason Reid hated small towns. They held secrets like wet earth held footprints—everything looked smooth on the surface, but the impressions were always there if you knew where to look.

Port Blackwood was worse than most. Six months working cases in this rain-soaked corner of misery had taught him that much. The town clung to the coastline like it was afraid of being washed away, all Victorian facades and rotting piers, pretending the glory days weren't a century behind it.

He sat in his rented Jeep outside Caroline Webb's craftsman-style house, watching the police come and go. The rain drummed steadily on the roof, keeping time with his thoughts. He'd been tracking these disappearances since the second victim turned up—something about the pattern had triggered alarms in his head that he couldn't ignore.

The evidence folder beside him contained everything the police didn't have: connections between victims, patterns in the timing, and a theory about what the bizarre ritual objects meant. What they didn't have was a name, a suspect, or a solid lead on who might be next.

He flipped open his worn leather notebook, scanning his notes on the newest victim. Caroline Webb. Kindergarten teacher. No apparent connection to the previous victims except age range and gender. Disappeared between 10 PM Tuesday and 6 AM Wednesday. Husband claims to have slept through the night. No signs of forced entry.

Mason's phone buzzed with a text from his contact at the department. She's on her way. Fair warning: she's not happy about you being here.

He smiled grimly. He hadn't expected Dr. Cora Evans to welcome him with open arms. Her reputation preceded her—brilliant but cold, precise to the point of obsession, and fiercely territorial about her cases. What the text didn't say—what his contact couldn't know—was that Mason already knew more about Cora Evans than anyone at the Port Blackwood Police Department.

Including the reason why she couldn't remember him.

A black Audi pulled up to the curb, and Mason's chest tightened. Through the rain-streaked windshield, he watched her emerge: tall and slender, dark hair pulled back in a severe knot, movements efficient and controlled. Everything about her screamed keep your distance. She hadn't changed much in the fifteen years since he'd last seen her.

Except for the eyes. Those had changed.

Taking a deep breath, Mason grabbed his folder and stepped out into the rain. Time to reintroduce himself to the woman who had once known him better than anyone else in the world—and who now wouldn't recognize him at all.

Chapter 2: Mason