The Safehouse Between Us

The story unfolds in a city of flood-damaged archives, old cannery buildings, late-night markets, and apartments where people live under identities meant to keep them safe. Official records carry enormous power here. What gets preserved, or quietly disappears… can determine whether someone is believed at all.

Lena Ortiz restores those records for a living. One night, she receives a voice message from a woman whose death certificate she personally archived eighteen months earlier. The message sends her back to Aldric Vale, a former detective and the man she hasn’t spoken to in three years.

Following that trail means entering a protection network where safety comes with conditions, and confronting the secrets that ended their own relationship.

There’s a mystery running through the book, alongside a second-chance love story. Both ask a question that matters to me: what happens when someone believes protecting you gives them the right to decide for you?

It’s about damaged trust, institutional power, and the difficult work of caring for someone while respecting their freedom.

I'm releasing this book to raise funds for humanitarian work. All proceeds I receive after platform and payment-processing fees will go toward that work. I won't retain any for personal gain. I'm unable to publicly disclose the specific recipients or activities.