Chapter One
Brinley
Red and blue lights flash in my rearview mirror.
“Nooo.” I exhale a heavy sigh, my stomach dropping in the process.
The lights are harsh against the gray Tennessee morning sky. I ease my rusted car onto the shoulder, my hands tightening around the steering wheel as the tires crunch along the side of the road. The engine ticks when I shut it off, the sound loud in the quiet stretch of road on the outskirts of Rixton.
Great.
This is not at all how I hoped arriving in town would go.
I lower my window as the officer approaches. He tips his head slightly when he reaches my door, eyes scanning the inside of my car. My back seat is packed with the random garbage bags I stuffed full of blankets and clothes for the move.
“Morning,” he says. “You know why I pulled you over today?”
“No, sir,” I murmur even though I probably do. I’m going to guess I wasn’t paying attention to the speed limit, and I laid a little too heavy on the gas trying to get the drive over with.
“License and registration.”
I hand them over to him, trying not to fidget in my seat as he studies my ID longer than what feels necessary. His eyes flick over to my face, then back again.
Something in his gaze shifts.
“You’re not from around here,” he says. It’s not a question.
“No.”
He nods once, glancing again toward my back seat, like he can see everything stuffed inside it.
“What brings you to Rixton?”
The question sounds casual, but his tone is not.
“I transferred to Rixton. I’m a student.”
There’s another pause.
“Where are you staying?”
If it were anyone else, I’d be apprehensive, but it’s a cop. He should be safe, right? I can’t ignore the warning bells going off in my head, though.
I keep my voice even when I say, “Just outside of town.”
He takes my license and disappears to his cruiser for a minute. When he comes back, he hums under his breath before handing it to me.
“I’m gonna let you off with a warning. Slow it down through here.”
“Thank you.” I nod, relief loosening my chest.
He takes a step back, then stops and looks at me again.
“Welcome to Rixton,” he adds. “We tend to notice new faces around here.”
When he turns and walks away, unease curls in my stomach.What is that supposed to mean?
I reach for the keys and turn the ignition, quickly pulling back onto the road.
