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populated by singles. I remembered Jord once looked at a house here and decided the area was too boring for a single guy. Lorena, as a mom, clearly had different priorities. I crossed the sidewalk, taking the pathway that led up to her steps and small porch.
    My hand was already raised to knock when I noticed the door was ajar, not by much, maybe only an inch or so, but enough to make me frown. Lorena never left her door open, or unlocked, even when she was home since she'd had the uncomfortable feeling someone had been in her home a month ago… and she was expecting me. I pushed it open a little further and poked my head around. “Hello?” I waited a moment, then, “Hi, Lorena. It’s me. Lexi.”
    Nothing.
    I stepped inside. Lorena’s purse was on the console by the door and her pumps underneath it. A radio played in the kitchen, pumping out a Bruno Mars track. Despite the upbeat music, a chill traveled through me. Something wasn’t right. The house was too still.
    “Lorena?” I called one more time, just in case she was in the bathroom. Still nothing. I remembered her telling me she just had a deck built out back and she liked to sit there some mornings.. I closed the door behind me, shrugged off my discomfort, and walked past the leather couches and the round, oak dining table. I veered off to the left into her kitchen. Stepping inside, I saw her; and a cold wave of fear gripped me, rooting me to the spot.
    Lorena couldn’t answer the door. She would never answer the door again.
    She lay sprawled on the floor, facing the ceiling, eyes open and motionless. Judging by the stillness of her body, she clearly wasn’t breathing. A knife handle protruded from her chest and her top was soaked red. The blood pooled beneath her, spreading into a vile puddle as I watched.
    I gazed down at my dead friend, knowing there wasn’t a damn thing I could do to bring her back.
    It could have been seconds, or minutes, I didn’t know, before I fumbled in my pocket for my phone and hit “speed dial.” This time, I didn’t call Maddox; I called Solomon. When his voicemail clicked on, I left him a calm message telling him my friend was dead and where to find me.
    After hanging up, I slid my back down the wall until I was huddled into a crouch, my arms around my knees. I was trying not to look, but unable to resist, being so close to Lorena and a whole world away. All I could do was sit on the cold tile and wait anxiously for Solomon to come.
     
     

 
     
     
    Chapter Four
     
    “One death is unlucky, two deaths a coincidence, and three is downright suspicious,” said Solomon.
    We were sitting in my living room, an hour after being finally allowed to leave the crime scene, but even my sunny, little house couldn’t cheer me. Not after the brutal scene I stumbled upon.
    Solomon came for me, as I knew he would. He entered the house, stealthy as always and found me staring at Lorena’s body. After checking my vitals, he took charge, carrying me outside and settling me on the porch steps before calling the police.
    Maddox arrived first, apparently back from the fraud squad to homicide, then my oldest brother Garrett, now a lieutenant. After them, came a stream of cops, the coroner, the morgue van — the guys driving it did a double take when they saw me, then waved cheerfully like we were old friends. Solomon insisted on taking me home before they removed Lorena’s body. He hadn’t left me alone for more than a minute or two since.
    Now, there was just the two of us. Well, the two of us, plus Delgado, Fletcher and Flaherty, the three other PIs at the agency. Lucas declined for reasons Solomon didn’t share, and chose instead to text them several times to check on me.
    With the exception of my colleagues camped in my living room, and the horrible scene every time I closed my eyes, all was normal in my world. I clung to it, seeking it out, taking comfort in all the things that hadn’t changed. Next door, Aidan had some machinery