Run: 2026-02-16-01KHKB1H9ZXT84R98WW69P9KM1

Rain needled the deserted pier. Detective Quinn adjusted wool collar. Patrol cars glowed beyond tape. The ocean smelled wrong tonight. An officer waved her over. Flashlights combed shadows beneath pilings. A gull screamed, went silent. Body found, Detective, officer called. Mara ducked under the tape. Her shoes splashed through puddles. Wind pushed rain sideways, stinging. The pier groaned like wounded. Underneath, water slapped supports rhythmically. Floodlights painted everything leprous yellow. The victim waited atop crates. Face turned seaward, eyes open. Mara noted expensive ruined coat. No wallet, jewelry, or phone. Rain had washed away blood. But bruises flowered along throat. Ligature marks, narrow and cruel. This wasn't the tide's work. Officer Ramirez hovered nearby, chewing. You called it in, Ramirez? Found by a jogger, ma'am. Jogger's gone home, pretty shaken. Witness statements already taken, useless. Nobody saw anything before storm. Mara crouched, studying the hands. Fingernails clean, no defensive scratches. Whoever killed her knew trust. She looks familiar, Quinn thought. Not from files, something else. Coat label read Harrowgate Club. Expensive place, wrong side town. Ramirez, get membership records tomorrow. Tonight, guard that door personally. He frowned toward bait shack. Somebody might return for something. Behind them, ocean whispered secrets. Above, thunder rolled like drums. Mara straightened, feeling unseen eyes. She turned; pier seemed empty. Somewhere below, phone vibrated faintly. Not the victim's; else waited.