Mega Dead — Danielle Davis

Detective Sydney Valentine is summoned to the San Sansolita home of Teena Travis, a brutal judge on the musical reality show Mega Star. Valentine finds Ms. Travis on the floor, her skull bashed in with her own Emmy statuette. Over the years, Ms. Travis earned the nickname “The Dream Crusher.” Detective Valentine learns that Ms. Travis treated everyone who walked across the stage equally -- with a sharp tongue and no concern for how her words cut the contestants to the bone. During the course of the investigation, Valentine discovers that fans of the show adored Ms. Travis. If that's the case, then who would want her dead? Did her poor treatment of contestants push one of them over the edge -- or is the killer someone else? When another person connected to the show is viciously murdered, Valentine is sure the cases are related. Mega Star's executive producer applies pressure on the detective to make an arrest due to his fear of decreased ratings, and the press pushes feverishly for answers. Then, Valentine must deal with the abduction of her sister, MacKenzie. Is Mac's abduction connected to the case? Detective Valentine must race to stop the killer while also trying to save her sister. Will she succeed at either? This is a novella and is 48,500 words.