**Chapter 3: The Nurse's Secret**
### **Morning Routine**
Shams groaned as his alarm blared, the shrill tone cutting through the remnants of a dream. He fumbled for his phone—**iPhone 16 Pro Max, because why settle for less?**—and silenced it with a swipe. The screen lit up with a text from an unknown number: *Missed you last night.* He smirked, typing back a quick reply before tossing the phone aside.
Downstairs, River was already hunched over the kitchen counter, gripping a mug of black coffee like it was the only thing tethering him to sanity. His bloodshot eyes flicked up as Shams sauntered in.
"Morning, sunshine," Shams chirped, grabbing a protein bar from the cabinet.
River's voice was gravel. "You spent your entire first paycheck on *that*?" He nodded at the phone.
Shams shrugged. "A man needs his toys. Besides, it's an investment."
"In what? Your ego?"
Before Shams could fire back, River's phone buzzed. **Captain Reyes' voice was sharp, urgent: "Get down here. Now. Jannah Divine Galgo—26, nurse—found dead in an alley near St. Vincent's. Ten stab wounds. Doesn't look random."**
The air between them shifted. River was already grabbing his jacket.
Shams swallowed the last bite of his bar. **"Let's go."**
---
### **The Crime Scene**
The alley reeked of garbage and copper. Jannah's body was curled on the pavement like she'd tried to fold herself into safety, her white scrubs now a canvas of red. **Ten stab wounds—all in the back, precise, methodical.**
Shams crouched beside her, gloves snapping against his wrists. **"No defensive marks. She didn't see it coming."**
River exhaled through his nose. "Or she trusted whoever did it."
**Clues:**
1. **A silver locket** clutched in Jannah's stiff fingers—inside, a faded photo of a man, the engraving *"To J, Forever Yours."*
2. **Tire tracks** gouged into the wet pavement—someone had peeled out fast.
3. **A smudged thumbprint** on her phone screen, the last call logged to a contact named *M.R.*
---
### **Suspects:**
1. **Dr. Marco Ruiz (The Married Boyfriend)**
- Chief resident at St. Vincent's, polished, with a wedding band he kept spinning around his finger.
- Alibi: *"I was in surgery until 3 AM."* (Nurses confirmed it, but his scrubs were suspiciously fresh.)
- **Motive:** A mistress was a risk his reputation couldn't afford.
2. **Isabella Ruiz (The Wife)**
- Elegant, ice in her voice, but her hands shook when she lit her cigarette.
- *"I had no idea he was cheating."* (But Jannah's texts read: *She knows. She won't let go.*)
- **Motive:** A woman scorned, with a BMW that matched the tire marks.
3. **Officer Clark Delgado (The Best Friend)**
- Baby-faced rookie, assigned to patrol the area. His uniform was too crisp, like he'd just put it on.
- *"Jannah was family."* (But his eyes darted away when he said it.)
- **Motive:** ?
---
### **Shams' Mistake**
Shams zeroed in on Isabella. **"It's her. The wife always does it."**
The evidence lined up:
- Her car's tires matched the tracks.
- Her alibi was flimsy—*"I was home alone."*
- The way she'd looked at Jannah's photo—like she wanted to burn it.
But when they brought her in, Isabella didn't fight. She just sagged into the chair, tears smudging her mascara. **"I hated her,"** she whispered. **"But I didn't kill her."**
Shams hesitated. **Something was wrong.**
---
### **The Twist**
Back at the scene, Shams turned the locket over in his hands. **"Forever Yours"**—but the engraving didn't match Marco's handwriting from the hospital forms.
Then he saw it: **Clark's police badge.** The same cursive. The same flourish.
**Clark had given her the locket.**
A warrant for Clark's locker revealed:
- A **switchblade**, still damp from cleaning.
- A **crumpled note** in Jannah's handwriting: *"I can't keep pretending. It's Marco I love."*
---
### **The Truth**
Clark hadn't been just a friend. **He'd been in love with her for years.** When she chose Marco, something in him shattered.
**"She was supposed to pick *me*!"** Clark screamed as River wrestled him to the ground, his voice raw with grief and rage. **"She promised!"**
---
### **Aftermath**
Back at the precinct, River slumped into his chair, rubbing his temples. **"You were so sure it was the wife."**
Shams didn't answer. He stared at the case file, his jaw tight. **"I won't miss next time."**
But across the street, a figure lingered in the shadows—**someone had been watching them the whole time.**
**TO BE CONTINUED…**