Home / Romance / The Law And The Liar / Chapter 4: The Dead Don’t Text

Share

Chapter 4: The Dead Don’t Text

Author: Maraden
last update Huling Na-update: 2025-07-09 02:51:15

Grief is strange. Some days it’s heavy, like a wet coat you can’t take off. Other days, it’s just a whisper in the background—a scent, a sound, a slip of memory. Then there are moments, like this one, when it grabs you by the throat and drags you back into the past.

I woke up just after 4 AM, heart pounding, body tense. Not from a nightmare. I don’t get those anymore. I’ve seen enough in real life that my dreams are oddly quiet now.

I rolled over and checked my phone, expecting a boring notification or a missed alarm.

But there it was.

1 new message

Unknown number

“You missed something. Locker 208. King Street Station.”

I stared at it, frowning. No name. No context. But something about the way it was written…

It hit me in the gut.

Kaden used to text like that. Blunt. Direct. No fluff. Just words that cut straight to the point. But it couldn’t be him. It wasn’t him. Kaden was dead. Buried. Gone. I was seventeen when I stood at his grave, when I dropped a rose onto the casket and whispered goodbye to the only person who ever truly understood me.

But still… I couldn’t look away from that message.

I should’ve reported it. Blocked the number. Gone back to sleep.

Instead, I was dressed in twenty minutes and behind the wheel ten minutes after that, driving through wet, quiet streets toward the station I hadn’t been to in over a decade.

King Street Station used to be one of Kaden’s favorite places when we were kids. He’d sneak out sometimes and disappear for hours, only to come back with stories about street performers and overheard secrets. I thought it was just big brother mischief. Now? I’m not so sure.

The station was almost abandoned at this hour, just a sleepy security guard watching old TV reruns in the booth. I slipped past unnoticed and found the row of lockers at the far end.

Locker 208.

Rust flaked off the handle. The keyhole was jammed, but I managed to pop it open with the back end of a pen.

Inside were three things:

• A brown envelope

• A USB stick

• A black-and-white photograph

I picked up the photo first. My breath caught.

Kaden.

He looked older—about how he’d look now, if he were still alive. Standing next to a man I didn’t recognize, near what looked like a warehouse or shipping dock. The date printed at the bottom?

Four months ago.

My legs nearly gave out. I had to lean against the locker door to steady myself.

What the hell was this?

The envelope was packed with newspaper clippings, mostly about internal investigations and missing evidence from old police cases. Names circled in red ink. And one name appeared again and again:

Detective Inspector Jansen.

My boss.

My breath came short. My skin felt too tight. I closed the locker, pocketed the USB and the envelope, and left before anyone could see me.

Back in my car, I sat in silence, clutching the steering wheel, trying to slow my racing heart.

Was this a setup? A warning? Or… something else?

And why now—after all these years?

If this was some sick game, I’d play it. If it was a lie, I’d rip it apart. But if there was even a sliver of truth… if Kaden was alive, or if he had known something—something worth dying for—then I wasn’t going to stop until I uncovered it.

Whatever it took.

This wasn’t a coincidence.

This was a message.

And I got it.

Loud and clear.

Patuloy na basahin ang aklat na ito nang libre
I-scan ang code upang i-download ang App

Pinakabagong kabanata

  • The Law And The Liar   Chapter 22: What My Brother Knew

    The moment we got back to my apartment, I locked the door behind us and shoved the flash drive into my laptop like it might burn a hole through my hand if I waited another second. I had questions. I had rage. But more than anything, I had fear. Because this drive had his initials. K.B. Kaden Black. And if there was even a chance it held what I thought it did, then everything was about to change. The screen blinked, then opened a folder. No password. No encryption. Just raw, unfiltered data—like he wanted someone to find it. Like he knew he wouldn’t make it out. I clicked the first file. A video. My breath caught. It was Kaden. My brother. Sitting in a car, sweat on his forehead, voice low like he was scared even the air might be listening. “If you’re seeing this… it means I didn’t make it out.” My chest tightened. Raffaele stepped behind me, resting one hand on the back of my chair. Silent. Watching. “I was right. Vento’s dirty. He’s been working with a syndicate moving

  • The Law And The Liar   Chapter 21: Into The Gray

    I always thought the line between right and wrong was clear. Turns out, it’s not a line at all. It’s a fog. A thick, shifting fog where good intentions can still get people killed. And right now, I was walking straight into it. I sat in the passenger seat of Raffaele’s black SUV as he drove us through the industrial district—abandoned warehouses, graffiti-covered train cars, broken glass glittering on sidewalks like spilled secrets. “This informant of yours,” I said, breaking the silence. “Is he reliable?” Raffaele didn’t take his eyes off the road. “He’s alive. In my world, that’s as reliable as it gets.” “Reassuring.” He smirked, and I hated that I wanted to smile too. The GPS led us to an old boxing gym. The windows were boarded up, but the lights inside glowed faintly. It looked forgotten. Except the three men at the entrance holding their jackets a

  • The Law And The Liar   Chapter 20: Rules Were Made To Break

    I didn’t sleep. Not because Raffaele Moretti was sitting in my living room, legs stretched out like he owned the place—or maybe like he was trying not to look too ready to kill someone. And not because I had just learned that Marcus Vento, my brother’s old partner, was framing Raffaele to distract from his own sins. No, I didn’t sleep because the whole world felt like it had tilted. The law—the thing I built my life on—suddenly felt like a crooked ladder. And the only hand reaching out to pull me up belonged to a man who probably broke more laws before breakfast than I had in my whole career. I watched him from the doorway. He hadn’t said much since the phone call. But his presence was loud. Calm, dangerous, watchful. Like a loaded gun on a velvet cushion. “You really think they’ll arrest you?” I asked, arms crossed, heart thudding. He didn’t even flinch. “They’ll try.

  • The Law And The Liar   Chapter 19:The Line I Can’t Cross

    I broke every speed limit on the way to her apartment. The thought of someone threatening Myra—my detective—had adrenaline pumping through my veins like jet fuel. I wasn’t sure if it was rage, fear, or something darker threading its way through my chest, but whatever it was, it had me gripping the steering wheel like it was the only thing keeping me from losing control. When I reached her building, I didn’t bother waiting for her to buzz me in. I’d memorized her code the second time I visited—just in case. Now I was using it. She opened the door before I even knocked. “Nice timing,” she said, arms crossed, but I could tell by the way she hovered near the entrance that she was spooked. I stepped inside, scanning the space. Neat, minimal, functional—like her. But the tension in the air was anything but minimal. It was thick, coiled, hot. “Tell me what happened,” I said,

  • The Law And The Liar   Chapter 18: Shadows Don’t Lie

    I’d barely made it home when I tore open the folded paper Moretti had given me. Five names. Two dates. A location I hadn’t heard since my brother’s funeral—The Kingsmill Dockyard. Abandoned. Sealed off years ago. Now it was just a graveyard of rusted ships and broken deals. I recognized three names on the list. All tied to petty crimes. Nothing big. But one name made my blood run cold. Marcus Vento. A dirty cop. Still active. Still shielded by the force. And worse—he used to be Kaden’s partner when he first went undercover. I sat on my couch, the paper in one hand, my service weapon on the table beside me, and a storm raging in my chest. I’d been chasing shadows for years, and now suddenly the shadows were chasing me. My phone buzzed. Unknown number. You’re digging in places you shouldn’t. Let the dead stay dead. I stared at the screen, pu

  • The Law And The Liar   Chapter 17: Enemies and Echoes

    Raffaele I watched her leave, heels clicking against my marble floors, her ponytail swinging like a warning not to follow. Detective Myra Black. Sharp tongue. Quick mind. Eyes full of fire—and suspicion. Damn, she was trouble. And I liked trouble more than I should. The door closed behind her, and silence settled in. I leaned against the bar, poured myself a drink—something stronger this time—and stared at the glass like it had answers. I didn’t kill her brother. But I didn’t save him, either. And that guilt? It settled in the pit of my stomach like rust on a blade. “She’s not going to stop,” a voice said behind me. Luca, my right-hand man, stepped into the room, arms crossed. He’d been eavesdropping, of course. That’s what he did best. That and keeping my enemies off my back. “No, she won’t,” I muttered. “She’s getting close. I

Higit pang Kabanata
Galugarin at basahin ang magagandang nobela
Libreng basahin ang magagandang nobela sa GoodNovel app. I-download ang mga librong gusto mo at basahin kahit saan at anumang oras.
Libreng basahin ang mga aklat sa app
I-scan ang code para mabasa sa App
DMCA.com Protection Status