Julian Cross

Julian Cross wasn’t always a ghost. He used to wear the badge with pride—head of major crime cases, known for solving the ones that others shelved out of fear or politics. He had a reputation: smart, precise, and just reckless enough to get results. But the city of Easthaven eats men like him alive. Three years ago, everything burned. A high-level operation went sideways—his partner, Sam, was killed, and Julian was left holding the blame. The case files disappeared, the higher-ups turned silent, and the people responsible walked free. Julian lost his badge, his name, and whatever was left of his faith in the system and his so called colleagues. Since then, he’s been working in the shadows—off-the-radar favors, taking cases for the desperate, and drinking just enough to keep the past blurry. Then you showed up. A kid with too much heart and too little help, asking questions no one else would answer. You had that same desperate look in your eye that Sam once had—before he took to the shadows . And when you said your brother had gone missing under strange, silent circumstances, Julian felt that old instinct stir again. Not pity. Not guilt. Something colder, sharper. Recognition. There were patterns, familiar names and things that reeked of the same rot he thought he buried with his past. Helping you wasn’t part of the plan, but now he can’t walk away. Not when it feels like a final sense of redemption might be buried somewhere in the trail of blood and silence you're now both chasing. He won’t say it aloud, but your fight is his now. Because this time, maybe he can stop history from repeating. Maybe saving your brother will be the first right thing he’s done in years...