PROLOGUE

Detective Victoria Blackwood

The rain fell down in a relentless cascade, washing the streets of Shadowfell City in a torrential downpour. In front of me stood a dark figure covered in an all-black outfit hardly visible. The only thing I could make out was his silhouette.

A sudden lightning strike revealed a man not more than 6 feet standing next to the body of a female, a knife in his gloved hands dripping blood. A wicked smile on his only visible mouth. The rest of his face was covered by a hood. His teeth red from the blood of the victim as he continued to smile not moving an inch.

Goosebumps broke out in hives on my skin. My heart pounded in my chest as I stood frozen in the rain-soaked alley, my hand hovering over the holster of my pistol. The figure before me remained eerily still, his wicked smile etched into my memory like a nightmare I couldn't escape.

With a steady hand, I withdrew my weapon, the weight of it familiar in the face of danger. I trained my sights on the hooded figure, my finger poised on the trigger, ready to defend myself and apprehend the perpetrator.

But as the seconds ticked by, the man made no move to flee or attack. Instead, he seemed to revel in the chaos and fear he had wrought, his chilling smile widening with each passing moment.

My instincts screamed at me to act- to confront the man and demand answers, to put an end to this madness once and for all. But something held me back, a nagging doubt that whispered of deeper mysteries and darker truths yet to be revealed.

Taking a cautious step forward, I called out to the figure in a voice that betrayed none of my fear.

"Drop the knife and step away from the body," I commanded, my tone firm and unwavering.

I tightened my grip on the pistol, my senses on high alert as I watched the hooded figure's every move. The man's smile remained fixed in place, his eyes glittering with malice as he stared back at me.

"Drop the knife and step away from the body," I repeated, my voice steady despite the adrenaline coursing through my veins.

But instead of complying, the man's smile twisted into a cruel smirk, and he took a step closer to me, the knife still clutched tightly in his gloved hand.

A surge of fear shot through my veins, but I refused to back down. With a determined glare, I raised my weapon, ready to defend myself if necessary.

Suddenly, the man lunged forward, his movements swift and unpredictable. I reacted instinctively, firing a shot that echoed through the alleyway as the bullet whizzed past the man's head.

He stumbled back, startled by the gunshot but undeterred in his advance. With a feral growl, he charged at me, his knife flashing in the dim light as he closed the distance between us.

I dodged his attack with a grace born of years of training, my heart pounding in my chest as I fought to keep the killer at bay. But he was relentless, his movements fuelled by madness and a thirst for blood.

As we grappled in the rain-soaked alley, I knew that I was facing a foe unlike any I had encountered before. This was no ordinary criminal—this was a predator, a creature of the shadows who reveled in the chaos and destruction he wrought.

With every passing moment, my resolve hardened, my willpower to bring the killer to justice burning brighter than ever. I would not rest until he was behind bars, where he belonged, and the streets of Shadowfell City were safe once more.

But little did I know that the man I was hunting was just a pawn in a much larger game—a game of power and deception that would test my courage, my loyalty, and my very soul.

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