Page 1 of Nails

CHAPTER ONE

Six-year-old Riley Aiken giggled, holding her mom’s hand as they walked to their car.It was a hot summer night, and the air carried the lingering scent of popcorn from the movie theater they had just left.

“Mommy!Did you see when the princess fought against the evil lady and saved the prince?She wasn’t scared at all!”Riley exclaimed as she swung their joined hands back and forth.

Her mom laughed as she smiled down at her.Her blue eyes, which matched Riley’s, were sparkling in the dim light.“I did, sweetheart.The princess was very brave.”

Riley beamed up at her mom as she skipped alongside her.“Do you think that Daddy will come with us next time?”

Just as her mom started to answer, a large figure emerged from between the parked cars blocking their path.The man was dressed in all black and wore a black ski mask.

Frightened, Riley ducked behind her mom.Before her mom could react, the masked man brandished a gun and aimed it at her mom.

The sharp crack of a gunshot rang out, causing Riley to scream.Her mom’s gasp filled her ears.Her eyes widened as her mom staggered backward and grabbed her chest.

“M-Mommy?”Riley’s voice trembled as she stood frozen in place.Her small eyebrows scrunched together as she watched a dark red bloom spread across the front of her mom’s pale pink blouse.

Seconds later, her mom collapsed on the ground beside their car.Her body was shaking as blood pooled beneath her.

“Mommy!”Riley screamed as she dropped to her knees, her tiny hands shaking as she reached for her mom.Her mom’s breath came in short, shallow gasps.Her chest rose and fell in an uneven rhythm.

She pressed her palms against her mom’s cheeks.“Mommy, get up!”she pleaded as her voice rose in panic.

Suddenly, a large shadow loomed over them, making Riley look up.She locked eyes with the man who had shot her mom.He stood just a few feet away with the gun in his hand and was now pointing it at her.

For some reason, at that moment, the threat of the gun didn’t scare Riley.The black ski mask may have covered his face, but all Riley could focus on were the dark, cold, and merciless eyes that burned into her.And for a moment, time seemed to stand still.

Shouts started echoing through the parking lot as people began running towards them.

The man stiffened, and his head jerked toward the approaching crowd.He looked back at Riley and met her eyes again before cursing and bolting toward the woods surrounding the parking lot.

Riley followed the person with her eyes until her mom’s shaky voice got her attention.

“R-Riley…”

Riley began to cry as her mom’s hand shook as she reached up and cupped Riley’s cheek.“I love you, baby,” she choked out.Her lips trembled as blood bubbled from her mouth.She gasped for breath as the light in her blue eyes, which were once full of warmth and love, faded with each passing second.

“Mommy, I love you,” Riley sobbed as tears streamed down her little cheeks.She pressed her small hands against her mom’s chest as if she could hold her mother’s life inside her.

Suddenly, arms wrapped around her from behind, pulling her away as strangers gathered around, some of them trying to help her mom and some murmuring soft reassurances to her.But Riley fought against them.Her tiny fists pounded against whoever dared to take her from her mom’s side.

Riley’s vision blurred with tears as she kicked and screamed for her mom.The people trying to help her mom were working quickly.But soon, their faces grew somber, and they started to back away.Riley couldn’t understand why they weren’t helping her mom anymore.

“Somebody help my mommy!”she pleaded as tears slid down her cheeks.But as she looked down at her mom, she noticed her mom’s eyes and the rest of her body had gone still.

Riley’s sobs quickly turned to screams that pierced the night as she called out to the person who made her feel loved the most.

“Mommy!”

But the only response she got was the distant sound of sirens.

“Riley…Riley!”

A nudge to her shoulder snapped Riley back to the present.The echoes of her own cries still rang in her ears, but the memory faded like smoke.She inhaled sharply, blinking against the harsh lights inside the HSI field office.She looked around, noting all the stacks of paperwork and the scent of burnt coffee in the air.She was no longer that helpless little girl crying in a dark parking lot.She was thirty years old, an agent with Homeland Security Investigations, and still chasing a ghost.

“Hey, you okay?”

Riley turned to see her friend and colleague, Special Agent Ryan Engram.He was standing beside her desk, looking at her.His dark brows furrowed with concern.