The last time he’d seen Jade, she’d been laughing in a doorway with a cigarette between her fingers, guiding Ashleyback inside like she could keep the world out if she just pushed hard enough.
For a second, the room went still in a way that had nothing to do with sound.
Even the hum from the other room felt distant, swallowed.
Not shock. Not disbelief.
Just a hard stop.
Too late.
Sage exhaled once, shallow, and his focus snapped back into place.
He didn’t look away.
Didn’t give himself that.
“Where the fuck is Ashley?” Sage muttered. Did the killer take her?
His head came up, scanning the room again—faster now.
“Who’s Ashley?” Micah asked.
“Two women live here. That’s Jade—Ashley’s roommate.”
“You think Ashley killed her?” Boston asked.
“No. Ash loved Jade.”
“So, then who killed her?” Micah said, moving to the wall, eyes flicking over a photo of the two women.
“That’s a good question,” Sage murmured. He already had a pretty good idea.
His gaze tracked outward instead—walls, surfaces, anything that had been touched, moved, staged. This wasn’t a random hit.
The slice to Jade’s throat was deep. Precise.
Control.
Behind him, Boston went quiet—no further commentary, no edge.
His posture shifted just enough to watch the door instead of the room.
Micah dropped into silence, but Sage felt it, their attention was fixed on him now instead of the scene.
Didn’t matter.
This wasn’t theirs anymore.
Sage straightened slightly, eyes still moving, locking pieces together faster now.
Ashley wasn’t going to end up like Jade.
His jaw set, control sliding back into place where it belonged.
This was personal.
Daniel Voss was going to pay.
