Total pages in book: 89
Estimated words: 86878 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 434(@200wpm)___ 348(@250wpm)___ 290(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86878 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 434(@200wpm)___ 348(@250wpm)___ 290(@300wpm)
He doesn’t respond as his eyes stay locked on me.
Only now do I realize how empty and emotionless they are. He takes another step and raises the gun, pointing it directly at me.
My knees turn to jelly as my body quakes.
As much as I want to glance around and get my bearings, I can’t take my eyes off him. I’m afraid of what he’ll do if I look away for even a second. I’m running out of space and options. A cry escapes from me when my back hits the boards at the edge of the rink, and I realize there’s nowhere left to go.
The cold metal of the barrier presses against my spine, but it’s nothing compared to the icy terror that spreads through my veins.
“Nathan,” I gasp. “Don’t do this.”
“I made you.” His voice remains low.
Eerily calm.
As if what he’s saying makes perfect sense.
“No one will ever push you to be the best the way I did. You need me, Ava.”
My teeth chatter as my heart jackhammers against my chest.
There’s nowhere for me to run. He has me trapped.
The only thing I can focus on is the gun in his steady hand.
My tongue darts out to lick dry lips. “Nathan, please—”
His finger hovers over the trigger, and time slows.
My chest constricts until breathing becomes impossible.
Until thought becomes impossible.
Until there’s nothing left for me to do but pray.
37
Hayes
My foot is heavy on the gas pedal as I speed through the quiet streets, gripping the wheel so tightly my knuckles ache.
I fumble with the phone, redialing her number, trying to get a hold of her.
Just like the previous times, it goes straight to voicemail.
As I pull into the parking lot of her building, I look for her apartment on the fourth floor. The place is shrouded in darkness. Only then do I glance around for her silver Jetta and realize it’s not here.
Fuck.
I shouldn’t have pushed her away. I told myself the right thing to do was to let her go so she could follow her dreams. Just like Coach said. But right now, all I can think about is how I screwed everything up. And now I can’t shake the feeling that something is wrong.
Where would she go at this time of night?
I rack my brain, trying to think, as my heart hammers in my chest.
Then it hits me.
The rink.
I rev the engine and squeal out of the lot, taking the turn sharply and flying toward the arena. Skating is her refuge, the one thing that has the power to calm her. But as I pull into the parking lot, something feels… off.
Ava’s car is here, parked in its usual spot, along with a few others. My gaze settles on a vehicle I don’t recognize with out-of-state plates, and a cold wave of unease rolls over me.
I cut the engine and rush inside the arena. As soon as the glass door slams shut behind me, the familiar chill hits me, but it does nothing to calm the rising panic in my chest.
The rink, the place that’s always felt safe, now feels too quiet.
Unnaturally still.
My footsteps echo off the walls as I move through the building.
The need to find her pounds through me like a steady drumbeat. Each step only intensifies the feeling.
As I come to the second set of doors, I catch sight of her.
Ava’s at the far end of the ice, backed up against the boards. She’s pale, and even from here, the stark terror written across her expression is palpable.
And she’s not alone.
Nathan is on the ice, standing too damn close, with a gun pointed at her.
My heart stutters before beating into overdrive.
“No one will ever push you to be the best the way I did. You need me, Ava.”
The chilling calmness of his voice has my blood freezing in my veins.
“Nathan, please—” she whispers.
My body moves before my brain can catch up, slipping toward the benches. I need to find a way to get him to stop pointing the gun at her. I crouch lower, keeping behind the boards, moving quickly but quietly. Ava shifts, turning slightly, and Nathan follows her movement. His back is to me, the gun remaining trained on her.
This is my chance.
It might be the only one I get.
I leap over the boards and hit the ice hard. It doesn’t take long for me to regain my balance. Nathan is too focused on Ava to notice me just yet. Even though he continues to talk, I barely hear him over the rush of blood that pounds in my ears.
“I didn’t want it to be like this,” he says, his voice cracking as it rises. “But you let them twist everything. Do you have any idea how much I loved you?”
I’m closer now.
His grip tightens on the gun, and I see the barrel shift, moving away from Ava. My heart seizes when I realize where it’s now pointing.