DEATH PLAYBACK

CHAPTER 6: THE LIST

Jaxon drove for three hours. He didn't stop. He didn't turn on the radio. He just drove.

They ended up at a cabin in the woods, two hours outside the city. It belonged to Marcus. His old partner had bought it when he got married, years ago. No one knew about it except Jaxon. It was off the grid. No electricity. No running water. No phone service.

Perfect.

He pulled up in front of the cabin and turned off the engine. It was almost morning. The sky was starting to get light.

"Where are we?" his ex-wife Sarah said. She was still shaking.

"Marcus's cabin," Jaxon said. He got out of the car. "No one knows about this place. We'll be safe here."

He carried Lily inside. She was asleep in the back seat, exhausted. He put her on the couch in the living room and covered her with a blanket.

Sarah stood in the doorway, watching him.

"What's going on, Jaxon?" she said. Her voice was quiet. Scared. "Who was that woman? Why does she want you?"

Jaxon didn't answer. He was too tired. Too sore. Every muscle in his body still hurt from the adrenaline burst.

【HEY YOU MIGHT WANT TO TELL HER. SHE DESERVES TO KNOW. AND ALSO SHE'S PROBABLY GOING TO THINK YOU'RE CRAZY IF YOU DON'T EXPLAIN.】

"She's right," Jaxon mumbled.

【WHAT? I'M ALWAYS RIGHT. YOU SHOULD LISTEN TO ME MORE OFTEN.】

Jaxon sat down at the kitchen table. Sarah sat across from him.

"I know this is going to sound crazy," Jaxon said. "But there's a voice in my head. A system. It lets me see the last ten seconds of a dead person's life. I touch their blood, and I can see how they died."

Sarah stared at him. For a long time, she didn't say anything.

"Okay," she said finally.

Jaxon blinked. "Okay?"

"Okay," Sarah said. She leaned forward. "I've known something was wrong with you for three years, Jaxon. Ever since Marcus died. You stopped sleeping. You stopped eating. You drank all the time. And then... a week ago? You stopped drinking. You started acting like you had a purpose again. I don't care if there's a voice in your head. I just care that you're okay. And that Lily is safe."

Jaxon stared at her. He hadn't expected that. He'd expected her to call him crazy. To run.

"Thank you," he said.

"Now," Sarah said. "Who was that woman? And what does she want with you and your... system?"

Jaxon told her everything. From the moment he touched Amy Chen's blood. To Carter. To the warehouse. To Victoria.

Sarah listened. She didn't interrupt. She just sat there, quiet, taking it all in.

When he was done, she sat there for a minute, thinking.

"Victoria," she said finally. "What was her last name?"

Jaxon shook his head. "She didn't say."

Sarah stood up and walked over to the bookshelf. She pulled out an old photo album. The one from when Jaxon and Marcus were partners. She flipped through it until she found a picture.

She slid it across the table to Jaxon.

"This woman?" she said.

Jaxon looked at the picture. It was from the police banquet, five years ago. He and Marcus and Sarah and Marcus's wife. And standing in the background, talking to the chief, was Victoria. Blonde hair. Same smile. Same cold eyes.

"Who is she?" Jaxon said.

"Her name is Victoria Hale," Sarah said. "She was the head of the police foundation. She ran all the charity events. She gave Marcus an award two weeks before he died."

Jaxon's blood ran cold.

She'd been there the whole time. She'd known Marcus. She'd known Jaxon.

【HEY JAXON. REMEMBER THAT CASE MARCUS WAS WORKING ON BEFORE HE DIED? THE ONE HE WOULDN'T TALK ABOUT? THE ONE HE SAID WAS "BIGGER THAN BOTH OF US"?】

"Yeah," Jaxon thought.

【I FOUND IT. IN THE SYSTEM MEMORY. HE HAD A LIST. A LIST OF NAMES. ALL COPS. ALL KILLED THE SAME WAY. THROAT SLIT. JUST LIKE THE SLASHER VICTIMS.】

【AND GUESS WHO WAS LAST ON THE LIST BEFORE MARCUS DIED?】

"Who?"

【VICTORIA HALE.】

Jaxon stood up so fast his chair fell over.

"She killed Marcus," he said. He was shaking. "She killed him. Because he was getting too close."

Outside, a twig snapped.

Jaxon froze.

He grabbed the gun off the table.

Someone was outside.

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