To the naked eye, Veda Vandyke has it all. An amazing boyfriend who's madly in love with her-with savage bedroom skills that bend her spine nightly, a flourishing medical career that brings her a sense of accomplishment, and even a few new friends who keep her in good spirits when times get tough. But Veda Vandyke has a secret. A dark secret. A secret that could erase every inch of adoration that gleams behind her boyfriend's eyes. That could end her medical career and land her in prison for life. A secret that could cost her every loyal friend she's made since returning to that sleepy island called Shadow Rock. Veda Vandyke has a secret... and an insatiable thirst for revenge. She wants revenge more than she wants friends. She wants it more than professional success. She wants it more than the tantalizing, forbidden love of her beautiful Italian boyfriend, Gage Blackwater. She wants revenge more than she wants a friendship with that brooding detective, Lincoln Hill, the man who saved her life-the man who is closing in on her secret much faster than she'd care for, reminding her that a prison cell is just one foolish mistake away. But Veda doesn't plan on making any foolish mistakes. Her only plan? Finish her medical residency with minimal drama, exorcise the darkness that is invading her heart like a virus, and become the kind of woman who deserves Gage Blackwater's undying love. Veda knew she wasn't that woman. Not yet. Not until she finishes destroying every last monster who'd destroyed her, ten years ago, on that sleepy island called Shadow Rock.