James C. Cornwallis

In the fall of 1996, Kensley is coming apart at the seams.

The gangs that once ruled the city have splintered into reckless factions. Election rhetoric crackles over the airwaves. Patrol cars circle harder, trust erodes faster, and everyone is watching everyone else. In the middle of it all, a thirteen-year-old boy vanishes from school without a sound.

Davin Leclair is the child of two deceased rival gang members, and the city has already written his story for him. Bullies call him "Prince Split." Teen messengers hint that he should align early. Adults project their guilt, fear, and mythology onto a kid who just wants to stay alive.

James Cornwallis-twenty-one, insomniac, working hospital security and quietly investigating forgotten cases-refuses to let that happen.

As James searches for Davin, he confronts an unraveling uncle convinced a cassette tape holds proof of murder, rival crews desperate to control a narrative, and a truth that threatens the foundations both gangs depend on. The tape doesn't reveal who killed whom-it reveals parents trying, and failing, to protect their son from the violence they helped create.

Surrounded by found family, aging mentors, unresolved love, and a city that never truly rests, James must decide how far he's willing to stand between a child and a future built for him by force.

Gritty, suspenseful, and deeply human, this novel explores legacy, choice, and the quiet acts of care that keep people from becoming what the world insists they must be.