Trail of Ashes

Cardinham Preparatory is an elite school that most parents would die to send their kids to. And that's exactly the price one father paid.

After a student disappears from the top boarding school, the police launch a full-scale investigation to find her. Unfortunately, after a month of searching, they have no option but to move on. The disappearance baffles authorities and becomes a blight against the school's sterling reputation. That's when one of the teachers turns to Ivy Morris for help. Ivy is reluctant to go back to the school she once attended, but she's a sucker for a good mystery and it seems as though the student vanished into thin air. While attending a memorial service hosted by the school, the investigators quickly realize that not everything is as it seems at Cardinham Prep, and there might be much more involved behind the disappearance.

Immediately following the touching memorial service, the school's distinguished principal goes missing and it's not long until they find his body. To discover the truth about what happened to the student and the principal, Ivy and Zasha have to delve into a complicated family history. The answers they find will have disastrous consequences for everyone involved. It quickly becomes apparent that not everyone wants the truth to come to light, and the investigators have to deal with a mysterious perpetrator with a penchant for arson.

Will they discover what happened to the missing student? Or will they pay a fatal price so that Cardinham can keep its secrets?

Volume Four of the Morris Agency Mystery Series. Approximately 60,000 words in length. It is a standalone (reading prior or future volumes not required to enjoy the book, no cliffhanger).