Chapter 1
Brooke’s POV
“f**k this,” I muttered under my breath as I shoved the front door open harder than I needed to.
My backpack strap kept slipping off my shoulder, and my sneakers squeaked on the tile like they were mocking me too.
I’d just spent two hours standing outside Sarah’s apartment like an i***t while her roommate yelled through the door that there was no f*****g way I was crashing there.
Zero cash, zero plan, and now zero place to go. The house smelled the same as always—coffee and that lemon cleaner Mom liked—but something felt off.
Too quiet.
I dropped my bag by the couch and kicked off my shoes.
“Mom? Are you still here?”
No answer.
Her flight to visit Aunt Carla was supposed to leave later tonight, but the kitchen lights were already off.
That’s when I
