Moonlight pierced thick forest clouds. Footsteps crunched frozen gravel sharply. A woman gasped, dropped keys. Cold wind whispered through bare branches. Gunshot cracked—silence swallowed sound. Scarlet bloomed on white snow. Her body lay still, posed. A single blue glove fluttered. Wind carried distant, muffled sirens. Watch read ten forty-five exactly. No footprints led from corpse. House windows stayed dark, unblinking. Neighbor’s dog howled once, abruptly. Curtains stirred despite locked latches. Faint perfume lingered—lilacs and iron. One shoe stood neatly placed. Cell phone buzzed inside dead hand. Message read: “I know everything.”