Blurb：
Fiona Evans is dying at the hands of serial killer Robert Kroger when her mother, Captain Sarah Evans, calls. Oblivious to her daughter’s plight, Sarah demands Fiona be a bridesmaid at her cousin Hannah’s wedding to Fiona’s ex-boyfriend. Two days later, Sarah is assigned a gruesome case—a dismembered body found in a septic tank. The victim is Fiona, but Sarah doesn’t recognize her. As Sarah Evans leads the task force to hunt Robert Kroger, Detective Miller reveals Fiona’s loyalty and guilt over her father Andy’s death. Can Sarah Evans uncover the truth before Robert Kroger strikes again? A gripping thriller of family secrets and serial killer horror.
Content：
I was dying at the hands of a serial killer when Mom’s call came through.
Her voice was sharp, filled with irritation right from the start.
“Your cousin is getting married next week. You will be there as her bridesmaid.”
“Her fiancé used to be your boyfriend. If you don’t show up, what will everyone think of her?”
By then, I was already fading from blood loss, too weak to even speak.
Mom didn’t notice anything wrong. All that came through was her impatient scolding: “What’s wrong with you? Can’t even say a word?”
“Listen, even if you’re going to die, you’re doing it after you’ve been her bridesmaid.”
Two days later, she was assigned to investigate a horrifying case involving the dismembered body of a young woman.
With one look, she recognized the killer’s signature.
Yet she didn’t recognize the victim was me — the daughter she hated the most.
My remains were discovered by workers cleaning out a septic tank.
Three officers, wearing heavy-duty masks, spent a full day and night pumping out waste before they recovered all of me.
When Mom arrived at the station, her expression was grim.
“Time of death? Do we have an ID?”
The medical examiner, Dr. Barnes, pulled off his gloves, exhausted.
“Approximately two to three days ago.”
“The body is severely destroyed. No facial recognition or fingerprints possible. I’ve requested DNA testing — results in three days, at the earliest.”
During the case briefing, the entire room was thick with anger.
“The victim was only in her twenties. She had her whole life ahead of her. It’s disgusting.”
“This was torture. Pure evil. What a f**king monster.”
One veteran detective, who’d worked with Mom for years, suddenly went still. He looked toward her, seeking confirmation.
“Captain Evans… based on the method… it looks like it’s him.”
Mom’s eyes had been fixed on the report. Now she looked up, her gaze sharp.
“It’s Robert ‘The Butcher’ Kroger. I’ve studied him for ten years. It’s him.”
“This crazy man believes that the retina retains the last image a person sees before death. That’s why every one of his victims has their eyes destroyed.”
The room fell into a heavy, sickened silence.
The newer detectives hadn’t worked the case from ten years back, but everyone knew the name Robert Kroger.
The string of young women’s disappearances had once made national headlines.
He’d vanished for a decade. Now he was back, and his return could only mean one thing.
As the captain of the violent crimes unit, and the one who knew Robert best, Mom immediately formed a task force.
They began canvassing, knocking on doors, chasing every possible lead.
Detective Miller, a close friend and Mom’s former academy classmate, was stuck at the station due to an injury, reviewing old case files.
After everyone had left, he looked her over.
“You didn’t even have time to change, did you? This case couldn’t have come at a worse time. You’re supposed to be helping Fiona with the wedding.”
At my name, Mom’s expression shifted from focus to pure resentment.
“That girl is the last person I want to help. The wedding is for Hannah. Fiona was just going to be a bridesmaid.”
Detective Miller looked confused. “So… Fiona’s ex-boyfriend is marrying Hannah? How did that happen?”
“Why shouldn’t it happen? Any man in his right mind would choose Hannah over that… that thing that got her own father killed.”
Miller let out a heavy sigh.
“It’s been three years, Sarah. When will you let it go? I miss Andy too, but what happened wasn’t entirely Fiona’s fault.”
“She’s carried that guilt all this time. Even after you threw her out, she still asked about you.”
“She told me that no matter what, she’d do anything you asked.”
Mom cut him off, her voice trembling with anger.
“I know exactly who she is. Always playing the victim in front of others.”
“She says she’ll listen? Then why hasn’t she answered my calls about being a bridesmaid? It’s been two days — radio silence.”
“She’s a selfish, spiteful creature. No wonder she couldn’t keep her boyfriend.”
Mike shook his head but didn’t push further.
Ghostly, I stood right beside Mom, hearing every hate-filled word.
Tears streamed down my ghostly face.
Mom, I wasn’t ignoring the call.
I just…
I was already dead.
The body you just saw… it’s me.
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