Melody Scarlett Jackson is no stranger to tragedies. They happen all around her one after the other. So when she moves in to Thunder Beach, Virginia, it's no surprise when someone's murdered. But then another person drops dead. And another. Soon enough, all the evidence points back to her. If she doesn't find out who is the real murderer, she'll end up behind bars. Worse, the killer will never be exposed.
🔪🥀🗡️
Melody Jackson is an orphan. Since she was eight, she's been moving from foster home to foster home, each one filled with too much toxicity or too much happiness. All she wants is peace, so when she moves in with a seemingly normal foster couple, she thinks this one is it.
But the students at her school are all too hostile when she arrives. Small towns aren't used to new additions, are they?
Melody doesn't consider herself ugly, but everyday is a test of her sanity when girls criticize her appearance. She also doesn't consider herself weak, but her strength is pushed to the limits as she's shoved and bustled everyday. Mostly, she doesn't consider herself a nerd. At her old school, she was the opposite. But what makes them hate her so much?
When she meets Noah Lennox, she immediately falls in love. She feels safe in his arms. Especially when she's named suspect number one in the murders and the hostility gets worse. But she's not sure she can trust him. Or anyone.
Someone is killing, and Melody intends to find out before it's too late.
When Jane Madarang's neighbor Natalie kills herself and leaves behind cryptic instructions, it's up to Jane and her classmates to unearth deadly secrets.
*****
Natalie Driscoll is dead.
She threw herself out a window and left her neighbor Jane to unravel their town's darkest secrets. Following Natalie's instructions leads Jane to three other high school students who all have something to hide. The four of them must carry out Natalie's final errand while solving the mysteries written in her diary. But the secrets they unearth may be far more dangerous than what they ever imagined.
Content and/or trigger warning: This story contains scenes of suicide, violence and murder that may be triggering for some readers.
[[word count: 100,000-150,000 words]]