Forty-Six

Detective Sullivan's P.O.V.

The back of my button-up shirt stuck to my skin, the wet fabric doing nothing to help cool me as I moved through the woods. I cracked open the lid of my water bottle, splashing the lukewarm liquid over my face.

Water splattered off my face as I blew out a frustrated breath of air. I squinted my eyes, angered that I had broken my sunglasses half an hour back, after tripping on a fucking rock. This was exactly why I worked in the city and wasn't a park ranger.

I smacked my hand down on my forearm, feeling the bite of a disgusting insect.

After all of this, I lost them. I looked back and forth on the trail, looking for any sign of Seraphina Hastings. That bitch thought she was going to get away with everything she had done, and I was not about to let that happen.

There weren't many footprints on the hiking trail, and I paused when they disappeared from the dirt path. A quick scan to my left and right had me coming up blank. I knew she was here. I just needed t