Showing results by author "Carolyn Arnold" in All Categories

Preparing the empty house for another viewing, she knows she’s taking a risk showing it at night. She never told anyone she was here, but she desperately needs this sale. If she pulls it off, she can finally give her daughter the life she deserves. But as she climbs the stairs, goosebumps spread down her arms. She’s not alone…

A late-night drive leaves Detective Madison Knight stranded on a dark country road. When her phone’s flashlight catches a suitcase dumped in a roadside ditch, she makes a discovery she won’t forget. Inside is the body of a young woman. Tara Jackson was only twenty-one when she was stabbed to death and stuffed into the luggage. As Madison investigates, troubling secrets surface. Then another body is found—another young woman. Same age. Same look. The resemblance isn’t coincidence. It’s selection.

When therapist Sidney Callahan is found murdered in her remote home, Detective Madison Knight arrives at a crime scene that doesn’t add up. There are signs of a violent struggle—but no forced entry. And the peaceful retreat setting only deepens the mystery. Sidney specialized in past-life regression therapy and was preparing to publish a book exposing her patients’ experiences. Madison quickly suspects one of them didn’t want their secrets revealed. Then the investigation takes a darker turn.

On Christmas Eve, wealthy entrepreneur Claire Reeves is found brutally murdered in her own kitchen. The crime scene is intimate. Personal. But Detective Madison Knight quickly realizes it was carefully staged to deceive. As Madison investigates, Claire’s perfect life begins to fracture. Lies surface. Alliances shatter. And the list of suspects keeps growing.

It’s been five years since Detective Amanda Steele’s life was derailed by the tragic death of her young daughter. The small community of Dumfries, Virginia, may have moved on, but Amanda cannot. When the man who killed Lindsey is found murdered, she can’t keep away from the case.

When the body of girl is discovered in the walls of a Woodbridge church, Detective Amanda Steele is immediately called to the scene. On arrival she meets FBI Special Agent Sandra Vos who explains that while negotiating a hostage incident moments before, a gun was fired. The bullet missed its target but exposed human remains.

Joni Weir kissed her husband good-bye just that morning, but she never figured it would be the last time she’d see him alive. When the news hits that Officer Barry Weir was shot and killed in the line of duty, Detective Madison Knight and every cop in Stiles is itching for revenge. With evidence pointing to a drive-by shooting, the investigation takes Madison into the seedy underbelly of the city in the search for justice. But as she digs, the evidence only becomes more puzzling.

During a winter thaw, a young man’s body is pulled from a riverbank. His name is Chris Randall—and someone is determined to keep the truth about his death hidden. When Detective Madison Knight arrives on the scene, she quickly realizes this isn’t a simple homicide. Chris’s mother has lived for years with a devastating secret—one that shattered her family long before her son was murdered. She’s convinced the killer is the one man with the most to lose: Chris’s father.

Officer Barry Weir is shot and killed in the line of duty, sending shockwaves through the Stiles Police Department. Detective Madison Knight feels the loss as deeply as anyone—Weir was one of their own. What first appears to be a drive-by shooting quickly unravels. Witnesses contradict each other. Motives blur. And with every lead Madison follows, the danger intensifies.

A high-profile double homicide pulls Detective Madison Knight into direct conflict with her own department. Both victims are found dead inside the home of a powerful businessman—his wife, and an unidentified man quickly dismissed as a problem no one wants examined. From the start, Madison is ordered to keep the investigation quiet. Protect the family. Protect the department. Ask no questions. Madison refuses.

When beautiful wife and mother Alicia Gordon is found dead in a remote woodland cabin, Detective Amanda Steele is shocked to discover that she knows the husband. Amanda hasn’t spoken to Tony since she lost the love of her own life seven years ago, and seeing tragedy tearing her old friend’s family apart brings back so many painful memories. Alicia was alone when she died, but she was so young, and Amanda can’t help feeling suspicious. Then she discovers that Alicia’s sleep medication had been tampered with, slowly poisoning her over several days.

Tucking her daughter into her hospital bed, Gail sent up a silent prayer. Her daughter’s heart is failing and without this life-saving operation she will die. But soon her peace is shattered when a nurse races into the room: “Lock the doors, close the blinds. The hospital’s in lockdown. We have a shooter.”

She wakes surrounded by an inky black darkness and can barely breathe. A sack is covering her head, and her hands are tied behind her back. She desperately tries to struggle free as she hears footsteps walking toward her. She silently starts to cry as a chilling voice whispers “It’s time to pay for what you did…”

When Detective Amanda Steele is called to the brutal murder scene of successful local author Felicity Kelley, her blood runs cold. Because Amanda not only knew the victim, but was the last person Felicity called moments before she was murdered. Plagued with guilt that she never answered, Amanda is left wondering whether she could have prevented the murder and vows to catch the killer, no matter what.

When Detective Amanda Steele’s niece, Ava, begs her to look for a missing schoolfriend, she immediately agrees to take on the case. Eighteen-year-old Reese left home three nights ago after fighting with her mother and hasn’t been seen since. But when the teenager’s body is discovered brutally murdered, poised dramatically at the prom venue, Amanda is devastated she didn’t save the girl in time.

When the bodies of a local family are discovered on a quiet street in the small town of Dumfries, Virginia, Detective Amanda Steele takes charge of the case. Brett and Angela Parker were shot three times each, leaving no hope of survival, and their tidy suburban home has been ransacked. But there is no sign of their beloved six-year-old, Zoe.

When champion figure skater Michaela Glover returns to her hometown of Woodbridge for a special performance, Detective Amanda Steele is part of the cheering crowds. But when Michaela is discovered dead in her dressing room after the show, Amanda is the first to investigate the shocking scene. There is no sign of foul play, and the room is overflowing with flowers from Michaela’s adoring fans. But Amanda’s heart stops at the sight of a few roses tied with black ribbon and a note that reads “You’ll be sorry”.

When hikers find the body of a beautiful, young girl, on the banks of the Potomac River, Detective Amanda Steele is shaken and confused. What is the significance of the delicate flower resting on the girl’s torso? A sign of affection, or a twisted killer’s calling card? A long night hunting through cold cases gives her a possible lead: Twenty years ago, another local girl was murdered, with a red rose left on her body. Focused on the past, the last thing Amanda expects is the news that another girl has been found dead, another black orchid left behind.

When human remains are discovered behind a dumpster in Woodbridge, Virginia, Detective Amanda Steele rushes to the scene. Her heart drops when she arrives and is hit by the unmistakable stench of gasoline. Soon, her worst fear is confirmed: the victim was burned alive. With only an engraved gold wedding band surviving the blaze, Amanda knows it could be days before they have a confirmed ID. But when her partner Detective Trent Stenson arrives, he pales at the sight of the ring, recognizing it as belonging to his Aunt Gertrude’s husband, Don.

When a dog walker in a local Virginia park finds the bodies of a mother and daughter, Detective Amanda Steele is first on the scene. Her own daughter has a toy just like the girl’s elephant and seeing the child like this is her worst nightmare come true. Heartbroken, she vows to get justice.