A Stepdaughter Infected Her Stepmother With HIV After A Secret Liaison, Leading To Murder True Crime

…

Harper walked slowly around the body, careful not to touch anything.

The kitchen looked as if a hurricane had blown through it.

Overturned chairs, shards of broken crockery, open cupboards.

On the wall opposite the entrance hung a mirror, now broken, with a long crack across the surface.

Beneath it lay a kitchen knife with a wooden handle smeared with dried blood.

Thought, Wade muttered.

And hard.

He leaned over, examining the victim’s hands, traces of skin under the fingernails.

Defensive, so she was trying to scratch her attacker.

That’s a good lead.

Gabe, he called out, and the deputy showed up in the doorway.

Get the guys from the county crime lab.

Forensics, too.

And canvas the neighbors.

See what they saw.

Hear what they heard.

Harper continued his sweep.

There was an open envelope on the table and next to it a piece of paper with the official stamps of a hospital from nearby Riverside.

Putting on a fresh pair of gloves, Wade carefully picked up the document.

HIV test results positive.

Harper felt a chill inside.

A nurse, a woman who by duty knew all about this disease and what it meant.

What kind of shock must she have felt when she got these results? He carefully placed the paper in a clear evidence bag.

It could be connected to the murder.

It had to be connected.

20 minutes later, the yard was filled with squad cars.

Forensic officers in blue jumpsuits scured around the house taking pictures and collecting evidence.

The medical examiner, Dr.

Ramirez, was examining the body.

Preliminary cause of death was between 10 and midnight.

He told Harper, “Multiple stab wounds.

Cause of death is obvious.

Blood loss.

I’ll know more after the autopsy.

Wade nodded and stepped out onto the porch.

The crowd of onlookers had groaned despite the drizzle.

Harper called out to Gabe.

What are the neighbors saying? Mrs.

Wilson and the Parker couple across the street heard the screams around 11:00 at night.

No one called the police.

The deputy’s voice was condemning.

They figured it was just another family fight.

Wade frowned.

A domestic dispute.

So Judy wasn’t alone last night.

Where was the husband? According to the neighbors, Cole had gone hunting with friends for the weekend.

Should be back today.

We’re trying to get in touch with him.

The conversation was interrupted by the sound of a car pulling up.

Cole Brooks’s old pickup truck pulled up to the curb and a man in his 40s with an unshaven face and a worried look jumped out.

What’s going on? I got a call.

He froze when he saw the yellow tape in the sheriff’s grim face.

Wade, what about Judy? Harper came up to him, put a hand on his shoulder.

I’m sorry, Cole.

Brooks’s face contorted as if in physical pain.

He rushed toward the house, but the sheriff held him back.

You can’t.

This is a crime scene.

Crime scene? Cole didn’t seem to understand the meaning of the words.

What crime? Judy was murdered, Cole.

I’m sorry, Harper repeated.

Cole Brooks stared at him with widened eyes that reflected his utter incomprehension.

Then his knees buckled, and if it hadn’t been for Gabe taking him under his arm, the man would have collapsed onto the wet pavement.

“It’s impossible,” he whispered.

“I talked to her yesterday.

She was fine.

” Asked if I’d taken my blood pressure pills.

He was interrupted by the sound of another car pulling up, a beat up blue sedan.

Driving it was a young girl with short black hair and a pale face covered with freckles.

Zoe Brooks, Cole’s daughter from his first marriage.

She got out of the car, slammed the door harder than necessary, and headed toward her father, ignoring the curious stairs of the crowd.

What happened? Zoe’s voice was flat, almost indifferent.

I got a call at work saying the police were at our house.

Cole lifted his head, tears in his eyes.

She’s dead.

Harper finished for him, watching the girl’s reaction carefully.

Zoe blinked.

Just this.

No shock, no horror, no tears.

Nothing like her father’s reaction.

How did this happen? She asked in the same even tone.

She was murdered, the sheriff answered.

Last night.

The girl nodded slowly as if she had received confirmation of some thought of her own.

I need to talk to both of you, Harper continued.

But not here.

Let’s go to the station.

I’m not going anywhere.

Cole shook his head.

I have to see her.

I have to.

Dad.

Zoe took his hand.

The first emotional gesture she’d ever made.

The sheriff’s right.

We better get out of here.

Something in her words made Harper wary as if the girl were in a hurry to leave the scene of a crime.

He scrutinized her face.

pale with a scattering of freckles and dark circles under her eyes, evidence of sleep deprivation.

Her thin lips were tightly pressed together, her hands in the pockets of her worn denim jacket.

“Zoe’s right, Cole,” Wade said, helping his friend to his feet.

“Let’s go to the station.

It’s calmer there.

” In the sheriff’s office, Cole looked lost.

With his hands on his head, he sat motionless, only occasionally flinching as if he’d been hit.

Zoe sat in a chair by the window, looking out over the town street.

Her posture was tense, ready to snap out of it at any moment.

Cole, you said you were going hunting, Harper began.

When exactly? Yesterday morning about 8:00, Brooks answered horarssely.

With Bill Jenkins and his brother, we went to their hunting cabin in the mountains.

No communication there.

He raised reened eyes to the sheriff.

went down to the valley this morning and the phone picked up a signal there and I saw the mist.

So you have an alibi for the time of the murder.

Wade nodded.

That’s good.

Alibi? Cole frowned.

What? You think I might have? It’s standard procedure.

Harper replied calmly.

I have to check everything.

He turned to Zoe.

Where were you last night? The girl shifted her gaze from the street to the sheriff.

There was no fear or anxiety in her eyes, just a strange detachment.

At work, at the Bluebird, we had a rush of customers because of the soccer game, and I stayed until closing time, almost 2:00 in the morning.

Ask Maggie, the owner, and then I went to a friend’s house for the night, closer to her.

Didn’t want to go home.

WDE nodded, taking notes.

I’ll be sure to check.

He was silent for a moment, then asked directly, “How was your relationship with Judy?” Cole looked up, “What kind of question is that, Wade? We were married for 4 years.

We were fine.

” The sheriff stared at him intently, trying to catch the falsity, but no.

Cole’s grief was genuine and deep.

“How about you, Zoe?” He shifted his gaze to the girl.

She shrugged.

“Normal? Just normal? What do you expect, Sheriff? An emotion slipped into her voice for the first time.

Irritation that I’d cry over her body.

We weren’t close if that’s what you mean.

She was my father’s wife, not my mother.

Cole looked at his daughter reproachfully.

Zoe, don’t be so what? She snapped.

I’m just telling the truth.

Judy tried to be my friend, but I was grown up.

I didn’t need a second mother.

Harper listened to their bickering, noting the tension between father and daughter.

A strange deep tension beyond the usual teenage rebellion.

Though what teenager? Zoe was 21, a grown woman with a heavy personality and it seemed a lot of internal problems.

There’s something else, Wade said, deciding to change the subject.

Judy’s medical test results were found in the kitchen.

She’d recently found out she had HIV.

Cole flinched as if he’d been electrocuted.

What? That’s impossible.

she would have told me.

The results came back 5 days ago, the sheriff continued.

Maybe she hadn’t had a chance to tell you yet or didn’t know how to tell you.

But we Cole stammered, his face flushed.

I have to take a test.

I’ve already arranged for you to be admitted without a waiting list at the clinic.

Harper nodded.

It’s an important part of the investigation, Cole.

HIV? For the first time in the entire conversation, Zoe sounded surprised.

Are you sure? Absolutely, the sheriff answered, keeping his eyes on her.

Official lab results.

The girl turned away from the window, but not before Wade noticed the strange expression that flashed across her face.

What was it? Fear, surprise, or satisfaction? Harper leaned back in his chair, drumming his fingers on the table.

The puzzle was starting to come together, but there were still too many pieces missing.

Judy Brooks, HIV nurse, murdered in her own home while her husband was out hunting.

A stepdaughter who treated her coolly at best.

Traces of a desperate struggle, indicating that Judy didn’t expect an attack.

“I’ll need to check all your contacts,” he said aloud.

“Who Judy had been in contact with in the last few days? If there had been any strange calls or visits.

” “She’s been working a lot,” Cole answered deafeningly.

often took extra shifts, said the clinic was understaffed.

She went to the cafe a lot, too, Zoe added abruptly.

She had lunch there almost every day.

And not alone.

With whom? Harper asked quickly.

With Dr.

Donovan, she shrugged.

They were friends.

Wade made a note in his notebook.

Frank Donovan, a doctor from the local clinic.

Single, recently moved to Midriver from Boston.

Not very social, but professional according to his patients.

“Were they close?” the sheriff asked, watching both Brooks’s reactions.

“Just co-workers,” Cole replied.

“Frank’s a good guy.

He used to come to our house a lot.

We even went fishing together a couple times.

” Zoe hummed, but didn’t say anything.

Harper looked at his watch.

It was almost noon, and he felt like the day had been going on for a week.

Okay, that’s enough for today, he said, getting up.

Cole, take the test as soon as possible.

And I’m going to need a complete list of the people Judy’s been in contact with.

If you remember anything unusual about her behavior in the last few days, call me right away.

When the Brookses had gone, Harper sat still for a long time, staring out the window at the quiet street of Midriver.

The leaves were falling from the trees, twirling in a slow dance.

The town was preparing for winter as it had every year before.

But now something was different.

The peace had been shattered by a brutal murder and the shadow of that crime fell on every resident.

Wade reached for the phone.

Need to call the clinic, set up an appointment with Frank Donovan.

Maybe he could shed some light on the story or confuse it completely.

The voice in the back of the sheriff’s mind kept telling him that it was more complicated than it seemed at first glance, and that the truth would be scarier than either of them could imagine.

The morning was foggy and dank.

Sheriff Wade Harper parked the squad car outside the small one-story building of the Midriver Clinic.

Here, behind those red brick walls, Judy Brooks had spent most of her time saving lives and caring for patients.

Now, she was gone, and Harper was determined to find the culprit.

The waiting room was the usual bustle.

A few patients waiting, a nurse behind the counter filling out paperwork.

On a table in the corner was a small bouquet of white liies, a tribute to a fallen colleague.

“Is Dr.

Donovan in?” Harper asked the receptionist.

“Room three?” The woman nodded.

“He wasn’t seeing any patients right now.

” The sheriff walked down the hall, noting the silence, broken only by muffled voices from the offices.

At the door labeled three, he stopped and knocked.

“Come in,” came a voice from within.

Frank Donovan was sitting at his desk studying some medical charts.

He was visibly tense at the sight of the sheriff, though he tried to hide it behind a professional smile.

“Sheriff Harper, what can I do for you?” The doctor’s handshake was sluggish, his palm moist.

WDE noted the pour of his face, the shadows under his eyes.

The man was obviously sleepdeprived or very nervous.

“Dr.

Donovan, I’m investigating the murder of Judy Brooks.

” Harper began, sitting down in the chair across from him.

“And I need your help.

” Frank nodded, shifting papers on the desk unnecessarily just to keep his hands busy.

“Of course, in any way I can.

How well did you know, Judy?” The question seemed to take the doctor by surprise.

He swallowed, looked away, then looked at the sheriff again.

“We were co-workers.

worked together for almost 3 years.

Just co-workers.

Pause.

Donovan pressed his lips together as if weighing his answer.

No, more than that, he finally admitted.

We had an affair a year ago.

Tell me about it.

Harper leaned back in his chair, watching him carefully.

What’s there to tell? Frank shrugged.

We worked together, talked a lot.

One thing led to another.

Lasted about 3 months.

Then she decided she couldn’t do that to her husband with Cole.

Yeah, she loved him despite all the problems in their family.

We broke up, but we stayed on good terms.

That was a year ago.

Donovan spoke evenly, but his fingers drumming on the table showed his nervousness.

When was the last time you saw Judy? The day she died at the clinic.

She was working that day.

Harper nodded, making a note in his notebook.

Then suddenly changed the subject.

Dr.

Donovan, when did you find out about your HIV status? The effect was immediate.

Frank turned even paler, his hands frozen over the papers.

Harper had requested all the information about the doctor before the visit and was surprised by what he saw.

3 months ago, he answered after a pause.

A routine checkup.

And did you tell Judy? No.

Our affair ended a year ago.

The time lapse was too long.

I couldn’t have been the source of the infection.

The sheriff looked at the doctor carefully, trying to see if he was telling the truth.

“Did Judy know about your status?” “Yeah,” she asked me when she got her results back.

She was in shock, looking for a possible source of infection.

“Did you discuss with her who else she might have gotten it from?” Donovan shook his head.

“No, she was sure Cole was healthy.

” said he’d recently gotten a physical for his insurance.

Harper made another note, then asked sharply, “How well do you know Zoe Brooks?” The question clearly took Donovan by surprise.

His hands, which had been motionless until then, began fumbling nervously through the papers again.

“Zoe, Cole’s daughter? I’ve seen her a few times when I’ve been to their house.

Why do you ask?” “Just trying to get a full picture,” Wade answered evasively.

“She ever go to the clinic?” No, I don’t remember her seeking medical attention lately.

Harper nodded, rising.

Thank you for your help, doctor.

I may have some more questions.

Donovan walked the sheriff to the door, clearly relieved by the end of the conversation.

On the threshold, Harper turned around.

By the way, where were you the night of Judy’s murder between 10 and midnight? At home, the doctor answered without hesitation.

I was watching TV, then reading.

I live alone so no one can confirm.

Wade nodded, memorizing the information, and walked out.

Cole Brooks was waiting for the sheriff in the waiting room of Riverside Hospital.

He looked haggarded, his face gaunt, deep shadows under his eyes.

He had just gotten the results of his HIV test.

Negative, he said, handing Harper a piece of paper.

I’m healthy, Wade.

The sheriff studied the document.

Indeed, the test showed no presence of the virus in Cole’s blood.

That raised new questions.

If not from her husband, who could Judy have gotten it from? I don’t understand, Cole continued, rubbing his forehead.

We’d been together for 4 years.

If not me, then who? Harper put his hand on his friend’s shoulder.

I’ll find out, Cole.

I promise.

On the drive back to Midriver, the sheriff pondered the information he’d received.

Brooks wasn’t infected.

Donovan hadn’t learned of his status until 3 months ago, although he and Judy had had an affair a year ago.

The timeline didn’t add up.

Something was escaping Harper’s attention.

Some important piece of the puzzle.

Waiting for him at the station was his deputy, a young and energetic Gabe Tucker.

Boss, I checked out the Brooks house like you asked.

Found something interesting.

He handed Wade a small book with a dark blue cover.

Looks like Judy’s diary.

It was hidden in her office under a stack of magazines.

Harper took the journal, opened it.

The woman’s neat handwriting was evenly spaced on the paper.

The last entries caught his attention.

I can’t believe what’s happening.

The results are in.

I have HIV.

How? How? Cole’s healthy, I’m sure.

He got tested for insurance a month ago.

Frank swears he didn’t find out his status until 3 months ago.

Our affair ended a year ago, so the symptoms couldn’t have shown up this late.

That leaves only one explanation and it horrifies me.

The next entry dated a day later.

Saw them together today outside the Pine Forest Motel.

They didn’t see me.

Zoe and Frank.

I guess there was something between them, but I didn’t want to believe it.

How could he? After our affair, and her, the stepdaughter I tried to love as my own.

I feel betrayed twice.

And finally, the last entry made on the day of the murder.

took a sample of Zoe’s blood for analysis.

I know I’m breaking all the rules, but I have to be sure.

Results came back today.

Positive.

She’s infected, too.

From Frank, but when did their affair begin? And did she know his status when she used my stuff? I’ll talk to her tonight.

Cole needs to know the truth.

Harper closed the journal, feeling the pieces of the puzzle fall into place.

Judy discovered that her ex-lover is dating her stepdaughter.

Both are HIV positive.

And somehow Judy got the virus.

“Gabe, I need a surveillance on Zoe Brooks,” the sheriff ordered.

“I want to know who she’s seeing after work.

” That evening, Wade parked in front of the Bluebird Cafe where Zoe worked.

The girl stood behind the counter taking orders without giving away her inner turmoil.

At 9:00, Frank Donovan entered the cafe.

He chose a table by the window, ordered coffee.

From his seat, Harper saw Zoe smile slightly as she approached him, a fleeting gesture, but full of meaning.

They exchanged a few words, and the sheriff noticed Donovan discreetly slipped the girl a small note.

The doctor left 15 minutes later, Harper followed him and watched him head toward the Pine Forest Motel on the outskirts of town.

Parking nearby, Wade watched as Donovan took a room and disappeared inside.

Returning to the cafe, the sheriff continued his surveillance of Zoey.

At 11:00, as the cafe was closing, the girl took off her apron, said goodbye to her co-workers, and walked outside.

Getting into her blue sedan, she drove straight to the Pine Forest Motel.

Harper gave her time to enter the room, then drove closer.

Through the loose curtains, he saw the silhouettes of two people, a man and a woman.

They hugged, then retreated to the back of the room, out of sight.

That was enough.

The sheriff returned to the station where Gabe was waiting for him with new information.

The boss checked Donovan’s medical records.

He had indeed learned of his diagnosis 3 months ago at a routine checkup.

Tests were negative before that.

So, he couldn’t have infected Judy a year ago, Harper said thoughtfully.

That’s what it looks like.

And here are the results of Zoe’s blood test that Judy had secretly run.

The assistant held out another document.

Positive.

Apparently, she’d been infected by Donovan in recent months.

The sheriff nodded, putting the picture together.

But there was still the big question.

How had the virus gotten to Judy? And who had killed her that night? The answers came unexpectedly.

The next day, driving past the Brooks house.

Harper noticed two cars, Cole’s pickup truck and Zoe’s sedan.

Unusually, they were both home at the time.

Cole was usually working in the shop, and Zoe was at the coffee shop.

The sheriff parked nearby and cautiously approached the house.

Muffled, but clearly angry voices were coming from the Ajar living room window.

I know everything, Zoe.

Cole’s voice shook with rage.

I saw you with Frank.

How could you? What’s the big deal? Zoe answered coldly.

I’m an adult.

I can date whoever I want.

That’s not the point.

You know he’s HIV positive and now you have it.

And Judy had Cole’s voice broke.

Do you realize I’m not an idiot? I saw her diary.

She wrote that she suspected you of being deliberately infected.

Harper froze, listening to every word of this conversation.

So what of it? Zoe answered after a pause, her voice sounding strangely calm.

She was trying to replace my mother.

Mdd life, watching me.

Took my blood at the hospital for her tests.

She deserved everything she got.

God, Zoe.

There was terror in Cole’s voice.

What did you do? I didn’t kill her if that’s what you mean.

The girl grinned.

Unfortunately, someone beat me to it.

The conversation was interrupted by the sound of breaking dishes.

Harper thought he’d heard enough, but stayed where he was, wanting to know more.

You’re a monster, Cole whispered.

My own daughter.

Me? Zoe sounded angry.

She was the monster trying to destroy my mom’s memory, trying to steal you away from me.

Zoe, listen to me.

No, you listen.

I’m glad she’s gone.

Whoever did this, there was a long pause.

Sheriff Harper decided he’d heard enough.

He needed to think about the information he had received.

Before he left, he went over the events of that fateful night one more time in his mind, trying to visualize how it all happened.

Judy Brooks came home late around 10:00 at night.

The quiet, empty house greeted her with an oppressive silence.

In her light blue nurse’s uniform, she walked into the kitchen and turned on the light.

On the table was an envelope with the results of her last checkup tests.

She opened it slowly, even though she already knew the contents.

Rereading the dreadful diagnosis, Judy didn’t notice any movement in the shadow of the doorway.

It was only the creek of a floorboard that made her flinch and turn around.

Standing in the doorway was a figure whose face was obscured by a shadow.

Judy recoiled, knocking over a chair.

Who’s there? Instead of answering, the figure stepped forward.

Tension hung in the kitchen, thick and palpable, like a thunderstorm.

Judy retreated to the wall where the mirror hung.

The what do you want? Her voice trembled.

The figure silently pointed to the results envelope.

Judy realized.

The intruder knew about her diagnosis and what she was going to do with that information.

Suddenly, the figure rushed forward.

Judy screamed, trying to dodge.

A struggle ensued.

Chairs overturned, glasses shattered, lockers flew open.

Judy fought back desperately, clawing at her attacker, leaving bits of skin under her fingernails.

At one point, she found herself pinned against the wall.

The blow was so strong that the mirror behind her cracked, creating a long zigzag crack.

Judy dashed to the table where a kitchen knife with a wooden handle lay.

Grabbed it, turned around, but it was too late.

A hard blow knocked the knife out of her hand.

It fell to the tile floor with a thud.

Judy tried to run, but slipped on the shards of broken dishes.

The figure raised the knife.

The broken mirror reflected only the movement of the hand, not the face of the attacker.

The first blow came in the stomach.

Judy cried out at the pain that pierced her.

The second, third, fourth was to the chest.

The nurse’s light blue uniform was soaked with blood around the multiple wounds.

The clock on the wall showed 11 when Judy’s last scream died out.

She lay on the kitchen floor with her arms spread out, her blonde hair strewn across the tiled floor.

Wide-open eyes stared up at the ceiling, seeing nothing.

A knife with a wooden handle, smeared in blood, lay beside the body, either dropped from the killer’s hand or deliberately left as a false trail.

The broken mirror reflected only the dark figure leaving the kitchen, but not a single detail that could give away the killer’s identity.

It was an overcast and chilly fall morning in Midriver.

Sheriff Wade Harper sat in his office, pouring over files on the Judy Brooks case.

It had been a long time since the murder, and there was still no clarity.

Thin threads of evidence were woven into a tangled pattern centered on the Brooks family and their broken relationship.

A phone call interrupted the sheriff’s musings.

“Harper, here, sheriff, this is Lewis at Riverside Labs.

” The voice on the other end of the line sounded excited.

We have the results on the tissue from under the victim’s fingernails.

Wade straightened in his chair, tensely awaiting the continuation.

I The DNA belongs to a woman.

We matched it to the sample you sent over.

A perfect match to Zoe Brooks.

Harper exhaled slowly.

Unexpected, but logical at the same time.

A daughter who hated her stepmother enough to deliberately infect her with a deadly virus.

Why wouldn’t she go further? Are you sure? He asked, even though he already knew the answer.

Absolutely.

There’s a one in a billion chance of error.

Thanks, Louis.

Not a word to anyone.

The sheriff hung up the phone and leaned back in his chair.

So, they found Zoe’s skin under Judy’s fingernails.

So, at the time of the attack, the victim fought back desperately and scratched the killer.

But, was this proof of Zoe’s guilt or just another twist in a clever game? Harper recalled the girl’s alibi for the night of the murder.

She worked at the Bluebird Cafe, then went to spend the night at a friend’s house.

Witnesses had corroborated.

But what if she went out? Or if her skin got under the victim’s fingernails for some other reason? Perhaps they’d gotten into a fight the afternoon before the murder.

The sheriff shook his head.

Too many questions, too few answers.

Needed to talk to Frank Donovan again, more openly, without proarication.

Frank Donovan had looked haggarded when Harper had met him in a park on the outskirts of Midriver.

The meeting had been arranged away from prying eyes.

In a small town, the walls had ears.

“Thank you for agreeing to meet, doctor,” the sheriff said, taking a seat next to the doctor on a bench by the lake.

Donovan nodded, rubbing his hands together nervously.

There was a fresh scratch on his right palm, a long one, already healing.

From a sharp splinter, from fingernails? Harper mentally noted that detail.

I have new questions, Frank, and this time I want absolute honesty.

The doctor raised reened eyes, a clear sign of insomnia or tears.

I’ve always been honest with you, Sheriff.

Not always, Harper said softly.

You haven’t told me about your relationship with Zoe Brooks.

Donovan shuddered, then slumped his shoulders as if he were shrugging off a heavy weight.

I didn’t know if it was relevant, he said quietly.

Everything’s relevant when it’s a murder, Harper replied.

Tell me about Zoey.

When did it start? Frank was silent for a long time, staring at the water.

The fall wind rippled the surface of the lake, ruffled the thinning leaves on the trees.

Finally, he spoke 8 months ago.

She came to my clinic, not as a patient, just came in after hours.

Said she knew about my affair with Judy.

And how did she take it? Interested.

Donovan grinned bitterly.

with some pleasure.

Even she she suggested we continue this conversation over dinner.

I agreed and I don’t know why.

Maybe it was the loneliness.

Maybe some perverse curiosity.

And it turned into an affair.

Yes.

Fast and furious.

There was something about her.

Attractive, dangerous.

I knew it was wrong.

She was too young.

She was my patients daughter, stepdaughter of my ex-lover.

But I couldn’t resist.

Harper watched Donovan’s facial expression carefully.

He wasn’t lying, but he was still hiding something.

Did you love her? Frank shook his head.

No, it wasn’t love.

More like obsession.

Revenge.

Revenge? Who? Judy, he whispered.

I still loved her.

Even when she went back to her husband, I couldn’t forget.

And then Zoe came along and it seemed like the perfect way to I don’t know, revenge to hurt.

Stupid, I know.

And Zoe, what was driving her? Same thing.

Revenge.

She hated Judy.

She thought she’d stolen her father from her, destroyed her mother’s memory.

Frank ran his hand over his face.

We both used each other to hurt the same person.

It’s It’s disgusting, I realize.

The sheriff nodded, mulling over what he’d heard.

Two lonely souls united by their hatred for a third.

It’s a story as old as time.

And then you found out about your HIV status.

Yes, 3 months ago, Donovan answered without hesitation.

At a routine checkup, I was shocked.

I couldn’t believe it.

At first, I thought it was Judy, but our affair was too long ago.

Then I suspected Zoe, but uh I had a one night stand.

I think I got it from a prostitute.

Did you tell Zoe about the diagnosis? Of course, I did right away.

It would have been a crime not to.

And how did she react? Frank frowned, remembering.

Strange, too calm.

Said she was going to take the tests, but she didn’t seem frightened.

I should have suspected something wrong, but I was too preoccupied with my own problems.

Frank, did you know that Zoe wanted to infect Judy on purpose? Donovan’s eyes widened in shock.

His face pald.

What? No, that’s impossible.

She couldn’t have.

That’s insane.

The reaction was genuine.

Donovan really didn’t know about Zoe’s plan.

“I’m afraid that’s exactly what happened,” Harper said, recalling the report with information from Zoe’s computer that had come in a couple hours ago.

“Zoe had been putting blood in the food, infected her systematically for months.

” Frank covered his face with his hands, his shoulders shuttering.

When he lifted his head, there were tears in his eyes.

I uh I unwittingly helped her in this.

God, I killed Judy.

Not with my own hands, but you couldn’t have known,” Harper said softly.

“But Zoe knew your status when she started getting infected on purpose.

” “No,” Donovan shook his head.

“Our relationship began months before my diagnosis.

She couldn’t have planned it from the beginning.

” The sheriff nodded, making a mental note, so Zoe started dating Frank out of revenge.

When she found out about his diagnosis, she decided to use it as a weapon against Judy.

But who killed Judy? Zoe, who found out her stepmother discovered her plan, or someone else.

That same evening, Harper called Cole and Zoe Brooks into the station.

It was time for the final confrontation.

In a small conference room, he sat them across from him, keeping his eyes on the girl’s face.

Zoe looked pale but collected.

Her green eyes, so similar to her mother’s, looked direct and confident.

Not the eyes of a killer, the sheriff thought, but the eyes of a man capable of cruelty.

Cole, on the other hand, seemed a dozen years older.

Hunched shoulders, thinning hair with graying, deep wrinkles around his eyes.

Grief had dried him up, turned him into a shadow of his former self.

Thank you for coming, Harper began.

I have some new information on Judy’s murder case.

He placed a file folder on the desk, but didn’t open it.

It was an old police trick, letting the suspects suffer the suspense of the unknown.

The results of the DNA test on the tissue found under the victim’s fingernails, Zoe tensed imperceptibly, but kept a nonchalant expression on her face.

“What did they show?” Cole asked, swallowing nervously.

“That Judy had fought back and scratched her attacker at the time of the attack,” the sheriff answered, keeping his eyes on Zoe.

Skin was found under her fingernails.

a pause.

Zoe didn’t move.

Only the hands resting on the table trembled slightly.

“Whose skin?” she asked quietly, and Harper caught the faint tension in her voice.

“Yours, Zoe?” Cole turned sharply toward his daughter, a look of disbelief in his eyes.

“That’s impossible,” she said, her voice surprisingly calm.

“I was in the cafe at the time of the murder.

I have witnesses.

” “Indeed,” Harper nodded.

It’s an interesting moment.

How did your skin get under Judy’s fingernails if you weren’t home at the time of the attack? Zoe shrugged her shoulders.

We had a fight in the afternoon.

She accused me of stealing her money.

It was pretty violent.

She scratched my arm.

You can ask my dad.

He broke us up.

The sheriff shifted his gaze to Cole, who nodded slowly but not convincingly, as if he’d already realized who was at fault but was trying to defend.

Yes, it’s true.

They had a fight before I left for the hunt.

Judy was furious, screaming that Zoe had stolen money from her purse.

I thought it was just a family fight.

If only I’d known.

A clever lie, Harper thought.

Or was it true? A test was required.

I still have a theory, Zoe, about what happened between you and Judy.

I know about your relationship with Frank Donovan.

The girl didn’t blink.

I’m not hiding it.

And I know that you found out about his HIV status 3 months ago, that you yourself are infected, and that you deliberately infected Judy.

Now, her face changed.

There was a look of fear in her eyes that quickly turned to anger.

“That’s a lie,” she exclaimed.

“Bullshit.

” “We have Judy’s diary and the report from your computer,” the sheriff continued calmly.

“She guessed everything.

Took a sample of your blood for analysis.

found evidence that you’d been putting blood in her food, tampering with her personal belongings, slowly and methodically infecting her with a deadly disease for revenge.

Cole let out an exasperated sigh, his face contorted in pain.

Zoe, tell me it’s not true, please.

The girl remained silent, staring at one point in front of her, then her lips curved into a semblance of a smile.

What if it is true? What if she deserved it? Oh my god, Cole whispered, recoiling from his daughter.

She was trying to replace mom, Zoe shouted, her mask of composure cracking, crawling into my life, telling me what to do, how to dress, trying to steal you away from me.

The last bit of family I had left.

Harper watched this outburst of emotion in silence.

Zoe’s hatred for her stepmother was genuine, burning.

“So you infected her,” he said, not asking, but asserting.

Yes, Zoe shouted, jumping up from her chair.

And I don’t regret it.

She had to suffer slowly for years.

How I suffered when she came into our house.

But then she found out the truth, the sheriff continued.

Discovered the evidence.

Was going to go to the police.

She couldn’t prove anything.

Zoe blurted out, but there was a note of uncertainty in her voice.

That’s where you’re wrong.

Harper opened the folder and pulled out a piece of paper.

Judy kept a diary.

She detailed her suspicions.

And most importantly, she had your blood analyzed.

She secretly took a sample.

It came back positive.

That’s proof.

She was a nurse, Zoe.

And she wasn’t stupid.

She saw you taking her things, collected evidence.

She was going to talk to your father that night.

Show him the evidence.

The girl slumped in her chair, her hands clenched into fists.

the [ __ ] She was a real [ __ ] You had to stop her, the sheriff continued.

And that’s why you came home during your shift at the cafe, isn’t it? We checked the cameras.

You disappeared between 10 and 11:30.

Enough time to go home, deal with Judy, and come back.

Give yourself an alibi.

There was a heavy silence.

Cole stared at his daughter, unable to believe his ears.

Zoe.

His voice shook.

Tell him it’s not true.

The girl didn’t answer, staring at the space in front of her.

Her face became detached, like a mask behind which raging emotions were hidden.

“You set up the fight this afternoon on purpose,” the sheriff continued, comparing the facts to explain your skin under Judy’s fingernails.

“You thought of everything.

But what you didn’t count on was that we’d check the cameras in the cafeteria.

Your alibi doesn’t hold up to scrutiny, Zoe.

” Suddenly, the girl laughed.

a hollow, lifeless laugh.

Clever, sheriff.

Very clever.

She thought she was smarter than everyone else, too, until the last moment.

Zoe, Cole exclaimed.

What are you saying? The truth, Dad.

Her voice became surprisingly calm.

I came home.

I wanted to take the journal, destroy the evidence, but she was there waiting for you to tell me everything.

There was a look of horror on Cole’s face.

Killed her? She would have ruined my life.

Zoe answered as if that explained everything.

First, she tried to steal you from me.

Then, she was going to send me to prison.

I had to protect myself.

Harper stared at her, amazed at the strange calm with which she described the murder.

“Tell us what happened,” he asked quietly.

Zoe leaned back in her chair, her eyes glazed over as if she were looking into the past.

“I came home from work, said I had to go out.

The land lady didn’t mind.

It was a break between visitors.

I got home and Judy was in the kitchen going through her papers.

Started screaming that she had proof that I was responsible for her illness, that she was going to tell her father and the police.

Zoe was quiet for a moment, then continued.

I tried to explain to her that she had destroyed our family, that she deserved what she got, but she wouldn’t listen, only screamed louder, grabbed a knife, swung it.

I defended myself.

I took the knife away and the girl stopped talking.

Her eyes faded.

And what happened? The sheriff asked.

And I stabbed her once, twice, a third time.

I don’t remember how many.

She fought back.

She scratched.

And then she stopped.

Cole covered his face with his hands, his shoulders shaking with silent sobs.

After that, you went back to the cafe.

Harper summarized.

You created an alibi for yourself.

Yes.

Zoe nodded.

No one noticed I was gone.

Or at least no one made a big deal out of it.

And now you’ve come for me.

She raised her eyes to the sheriff.

I’m not sorry.

She deserved to die.

She wasn’t the good person everyone thought she was.

Harper stood up, pulling out his handcuffs.

Zoe Brooks, you’re under arrest for the murder of Judy Brooks.

A week later, Sheriff Wade Harper sat on a bench in Midriver Park.

Golden leaves swirled in the air, falling to the ground in a silent carpet.

The small town was slowly recovering from the tragedy, but the scars would remain for a long time.

Zoe Brooks confessed to murder and deliberate contamination.

She faces a trial and likely a long prison sentence.

Cole Brooks, crushed by grief and betrayal, sold his house and auto shop and left town.

Frank Donovan lost his license to practice medicine and also disappeared from Midriver.

The tragedy of the Brooks family served as a bitter reminder of the destructive power of hatred and unforgiven grudges.

The death of Carol, Cole’s first wife, set off a chain of events that led to another death.

The circle had closed.

Harper thought of Zoe, who had never been able to let go of the past.

About Cole, blinded by his love for his daughter, unable to see what his daughter had become.

About Judy, trying to start a new family, but facing an insurmountable wall of denial and hate.

Love and hate are two sides of the same coin.

Feelings so strong that they can both create and destroy.

In Brooks’s history, they have destroyed everything.

The sheriff rose from the bench, taking one last look at the golden autumn leaves.

Life in Midriver went on.

People still loved, hated, forgave, and avenged.

And he, WDE Harper, continued his neverending work of restoring justice, where human passions led to tragedy.

Justice was done.

But it didn’t get any easier.

Three lives were ruined.

One was cut off forever.

The other two were irreparably maimed.

And all because someone once failed to forgive.