Chapter 1 - THE SILENT WITNESSI didn't sleep. I paced my bedroom floor, the stainless-steel watch in my palm digging into my skin. Marcus Hale didn’t just leave my life; he was wiped off the map. Everyone said he died in a boating accident in the Florida Keys. His body was never found.
I went downstairs at 3:00 a.m. to check on Owen. He was curled up, clutching the backpack. I carefully reached for it, intending to see if there was any ID. My fingers brushed the zipper, and Owen’s eyes snapped open.
"Don't," he whispered.
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"I'm not going to take it, Owen," I said, my voice shaking. "But I need to know. Where did you get that watch?"
He sat up, his shadow stretching long across the floor. "He told me to give it to you if he didn't come back. But he said you’d have to earn it."
