“What did you say?” Ryan snapped.
“I said I love her.”
Claire reached into her purse.
“The notary’s downstairs.”
Ryan grabbed my hand tightly.
“You’re signing those papers, Emily. Alive or dead.”
But I wasn’t dying anymore.
I was waiting.
Five minutes later, there was a knock on the door.
“That must be the notary,” Claire said.
The door opened.
But the voice that entered wasn’t a notary’s.
“Good evening, Ryan. Before you go anywhere near Emily again, you’re going to explain why her brakes were cut.”
No one breathed.
And I realized—
the worst was just beginning.
PART 2
The silence that followed was so heavy even the heart monitor sounded louder.
Ryan slowly released my hand—not out of fear, but because he was calculating.
“Who let you in?” he asked.
“The same staff who already spoke to the police,” Ms. Parker replied. “And the forensic mechanic who examined the vehicle.”
My only ally.
My only defense.
And still, I was trapped inside my own body, unable to warn her that Ryan wasn’t alone.
Because the real danger in that room wasn’t him.
It was Claire.
She didn’t sound scared.
She sounded annoyed.
“Emily had an accident,” she said. “It’s cruel to make things up right now.”
“Interesting accident,” Ms. Parker replied. “The brakes were tampered with. They didn’t fail—they were cut.”
Footsteps moved closer to my bed.
Claire leaned near my ear, her breath warm and steady.
“That proves nothing,” she whispered. “Anyone can access a parking garage.”
But her hand trembled.
For the first time in her life—
