A 9-year-old called her father from the hospital after a terrifying night—he stayed calm, knowing one surviving piece of evidence could expose everything

reach Blackwood Ridge before anyone had time to prepare a story.

He wanted to find Luke and Reid before they found a lawyer, a police officer, or another relative willing to call brutality a misunderstanding.

For one terrible minute, he imagined giving them the confrontation they expected.

Then he thought of Anna in a hospital bed, waiting to learn whether continue reading …