Kate Mercer was a cop. A detective. A senior investigator for the Arizona Attorney General.

Then she got too close to the wrong case.

When Kate refused to stop investigating a financial fraud scheme, she didn't just lose her job—she was blacklisted. For a year, no one in Phoenix would hire her. Her career was over.

Until The Ashford comes calling.

A mixed-income apartment building needs a new superintendent. The pay is good—suspiciously good. Free lodging included. Yet for someone with Kate's background, it's not a good fit. Not even close.

But after a year of rejection, Kate can't afford to say no.

What she doesn't expect is how familiar it all feels. Tenants who vanish without explanation. Financial discrepancies buried inside bank accounts. Staff who know far more than they should—and say far less.

Then Kate sees the patterns. The same ones that got her fired.

The Ashford isn't just poorly managed. It's part of the operation she was investigating a year ago. And someone hired her knowing exactly who she is.

When she starts asking questions, the response is swift: warnings disguised as concern, silence where cooperation should be, then violence that makes it clear she's crossed the line twice.

Kate has a choice: walk away and stay alive, or finish what they tried to bury her for starting.

Some buildings have secrets. The Ashford is one.

And Kate Mercer just moved in.

Book 1 in The Kate Mercer Files.