“Mom?”
Jade smiled.
“I'm okay.”
“Okay.”
She hung up.
Then she noticed Harlan staring at her.
“Family emergency?”
“My son.”
“Your husband?”
“I'm a single mother.”
Harlan nodded.
“Must be difficult.”
Jade looked at him.
“It is.”
Something about the way he said it felt almost personal.
Then his radio crackled.
“Harlan, status?”
He answered.
“Still on scene.”
A pause.
“Any reason to escalate?”
Harlan glanced at Jade.
“No.”
Jade heard the response.
“Then clear.”
Harlan didn't move.
He pressed the radio.
“Copy.”
Ruiz looked at him.
“You heard dispatch.”
Harlan's face tightened.
“Yeah.”
“Then we're done.”
Harlan looked at Jade.
“Not necessarily.”
Jade smiled.
“Sergeant, if you have another lawful reason to detain me, please tell me.”
He didn't answer.
Ruiz stepped forward.
“Sergeant.”
Harlan finally turned.
“Fine.”
He walked toward his cruiser.
Kline lingered.
Jade looked at him.
“Officer Kline?”
“Yes?”
“You didn't believe that complaint, did you?”
He hesitated.
“I'm not supposed to discuss investigations.”
“That wasn't my question.”
Kline glanced toward Harlan.
Then lowered his voice.
“The caller knew your name.”
Jade's expression changed.
“What?”
“The caller didn't just say there were two German Shepherds.”
He looked at her.
“They said, ‘Dr. Brooks is letting her military attack dogs terrorize the neighborhood.’”
Jade went completely still.
Kline continued.
“And they said your son was afraid of them.”
Her blood went cold.
Nobody outside her immediate family knew Finn's name.
Not yet.
Not enough to use it like that.
Kline looked uncomfortable.
“I thought you should know.”
Then he walked away.
Jade stood motionless.
The complaint wasn't about the dogs.
It was about her.
Someone was building a story around her.
And now they had involved her son.
She looked toward Vale's house.
The curtains moved.
Just slightly.
Someone was watching.
Jade's grip tightened around the leashes.
Zeus looked toward the house.
Ares did too.
Jade whispered:
“Easy.”
Both dogs settled.
She stared at the window.
Whoever had started this had made one mistake.
They had assumed Jade Brooks would panic.
They didn't know her.
She didn't panic.
She investigated.
The Man Behind the Complaint
Gregory Vale was waiting outside his house when Jade returned.
He stood beside a silver SUV, holding a garden hose.
He smiled.
“Morning, Jade.”
She stopped.
“Morning.”
“Everything okay?”
Jade looked at the police cruiser disappearing at the end of the street.
“Apparently not.”
Vale chuckled.
“Neighborhood drama?”
“Something like that.”
He looked at Zeus and Ares.
“Those dogs?”
Jade didn't answer.
Vale sighed.
“People are nervous.”
“Who?”
“Neighbors.”
“Which neighbors?”
He shrugged.
“You know how people are.”
“No.”
Jade stepped closer.
“I don't.”
Vale's smile faded.
“You're new here.”
“I've been here three weeks.”
“Exactly.”
“I bought the house legally.”
“I didn't say you didn't.”
“You said I'm new.”
“You are.”
Jade studied him.
“Do you have a problem with my dogs?”
Vale shrugged.
“They're big.”
“They're quiet.”
“They could still hurt someone.”
“So could a car.”
Vale frowned.
“What's your point?”
“My point is that you're avoiding the question.”
He crossed his arms.
“I think you're being hostile.”
Jade almost laughed.
“You called the police on my dogs.”
“I didn't.”
“You didn't?”
“No.”
“Then who did?”
“I have no idea.”
Jade nodded slowly.
“Interesting.”
“What?”
“You've told me you know neighbors are nervous.”
“So?”
“And you knew the dogs were the subject of the complaint.”
Vale hesitated.
Jade watched his face.
The smallest hesitation.
The tiniest movement of the eyes.
A trained handler noticed such things.
Vale recovered quickly.
“I heard the police talking.”
“Before I came home?”
“I don't know.”
Jade stepped closer.
“You're lying.”
Vale's expression hardened.
“You can't accuse me of that.”
“I just did.”
He stared at her.
Then smiled.
“You think your military background scares me?”
“No.”
Jade's voice became quiet.
“I think you're trying to make me angry.”
Vale said nothing.
“And I think you've underestimated me.”
She turned.
“Have a good morning.”
As she walked away, Vale called after her.
“Jade.”
She stopped.
“You should really think about whether this neighborhood is right for you.”
She turned her head.
“Why?”
Vale smiled.
“Because people here value peace.”
Jade looked at him.
“So do I.”
Then she walked away.
Inside the house, Finn was waiting.
“Mom?”
Jade entered.
He ran toward her.
She hugged him.
“I'm okay.”
“I know.”
“You worried?”
“A little.”
Jade looked at him.
“You did the right thing by telling me about Mr. Vale.”
Finn nodded.
“Are the dogs okay?”
“They're fine.”
He hugged Zeus.
Zeus licked his cheek.
Finn laughed.
Then Jade noticed something on the kitchen counter.
An envelope.
No stamp.
No address.
Just her name.
Jade Brooks.
She hadn't seen it before.
She picked it up.
“Finn, did someone come here?”
“No.”
“Did you open the door?”
“No.”
She examined the envelope.
Nothing.
She opened it.
Inside was a printed photograph.
Jade stared.
It showed her running with Zeus and Ares.
Taken from a distance.
The date was printed at the bottom.
Yesterday.
Another photograph.
Finn feeding the dogs.
Taken from across the street.
Jade's stomach tightened.
A third photograph.
Finn walking to the school bus.
Her fingers became cold.
Then she found a handwritten note.
You should have listened the first time.
Jade stood very still.
Finn looked at her.
“What is it?”
Jade folded the photographs.
“Nothing.”
“Mom.”
She looked at him.
“Go upstairs.”
“Why?”
“Please.”
He knew that tone.
He went.
Jade locked the front door.
Then the back door.
Then every window.
She called the police.
But before she could explain, her phone rang.
Unknown number.
She answered.
“Hello?”
Silence.
Then a distorted voice.
“You were warned.”
Jade's eyes narrowed.
“Who is this?”
“You don't belong in Clover Ridge.”
“Is that right?”
“You should move.”
“Or what?”
A pause.
Then:
“Your son gets hurt.”
Jade went completely still.
The call ended.
For a few seconds, she didn't breathe.
Then the old soldier inside her took over.
She opened her laptop.
She created a file.
She labeled it:
INCIDENT LOG.
Date.
Time.
Description.
Evidence.
Witnesses.
She uploaded the photographs.
She saved the call record.
Then she looked at the security cameras.
She rewound the footage.
At 3:18 a.m., a dark vehicle had stopped near her house.
Someone got out.
The person walked toward her mailbox.
The figure was wearing a hoodie.