of secrets. You just nee

Mercer's anat

thmic bursts, casting jagged shadows that slithered across the stainless steel tables like the serpent in the symbol she'd found

rface. I see w

His shoulder brushed against hers - not quite an accident, not quite intentional. She could feel the heat of

e asked, his voice delibe

heir cadaver's ribs during that first anatomy lab. The memory was so vivid she could smell the formaldehyde, see the way the overh

The note in her hands was real. The body on the ta

hesitation. She could see him filing away her reaction in that cop brai

Daniel had always preferred. She remembered how he'd laugh at her for using cheap legal pads, how he'd press one of his

personal effects," she sai

-

er Room -

clinical precision on the stainless steel c

thers, purchased at the downtown location a

index finger slightly stretch

sk (initials R.A.W., conte

phony (Thursday night performance

fted the peacoat, running her fingers along the seams. The wool was expensiv

the lining?" she aske

oorframe, arms crossed. "

slit through the inner lining with barely a whisper. Nestled inside the

shoulder blades was the same serpent-and-staff symbol she'd found on the rib bone. The edges were

a sharp breat

bled as she flipped the photo. A date was wri

new her own. Knew the particular slant of the 'a', the way the 'g's

resented. This wasn't just a murder. It was a timeline. A recei

e past two weeks," Evelyn said, her voice steadier than she

wed. "You think t

ymbol. "I think we're seeing the end of a story that started weeks ago. An

-

Scene - Textil

eyes watching their approach. Evelyn stepped out of Hale's unmarked car, the rain immediately finding its way beneat

, flashlight cutting through the

e. Evelyn knelt, her fingers hovering inches above the stain. Eve

al spray. See how it fans out?" She traced the pattern in the a

ou're saying this was a

catching the glint of something metallic nea

ameras flashing like lightning strikes. One of them call

ndled instruments. She could hear his voice, low and intimate in her ear as he cleaned his dissec

what the killer had left on the

eedle driven straight through her left pupil. The needle's thread was red-surg

his breath. "Okay,

red the day it was taken-Daniel had kissed her in the hallway just before the photographer snapped the s

o say. "And I want that

rks on the concrete wall, almost hidden in the shadows. She moved

eside each one, a tin

d, her voice tight. "Y

der brushing hers as he squinted a

n to the next, moving down the line. Each date was pre

she whispered. "He's been

Below yesterday's date, someone had drawn a single, fresh

you,

-

Revelation

gans slid out in a rush of formaldehyde and decay, the smell thick enough to taste. She was

bitch," sh

n the corner chair, jerked

ovements precise as she extracted the anomaly. The liver had

exactly, tied with a red thread identic

er identified as 20-year-old S

ld's mol

to the light, she saw the tiny cavity on the distal s

red, the words tasting lik

to Evelyn's face. "How th

upted. "From when I was a kid.

ame time. Hale's voice dropped to a wh

ked. Where he'd had

he implications were too large, too terrifying to

ing it to Hale. "I want to know e

atcher's voice was tinny through the small speaker: "Detective?

-

- Alley Behind Sym

ley was arranged li

ed against t

ded primly

the neck down with a

be recognizable. Evelyn's breath caught when she saw the delicate features, the

woman who'd reported Daniel to the ethics board after c

d to open it to know it was hers-the one that had gone missing during second-yea

t, but Evelyn couldn't look away from Sarah's face. They'

fully. "Dr. Shaw? There's

aced atop the garbage bags, was a small cooler. When Evelyn lifted the lid,

human heart. And wrapped around it like a

ight into the cooler

left for her. But she was a professional. She was the one they called when t

ngers closing around the small card tucked

tomy was our love la

-

nspooling - Evelyn'

gers of Scotch-not the same brand as the vial from the body-but couldn't bring herself to drink

man looking back at her was a stranger-pale, shadows under her eyes, lips pr

unshot in the silent apartment. Evelyn le

recise taps-the rhythm they'd used to knock on each other's dorm doors

Tap

ed up the sash, leaning out into the cold night air. The alley below was empty

ture so familiar it

into the shadows like he'd

mething glinted in the moonlight. An ivory-

asleep in her anatomy lab carrel,

loved watchin

was dated