Chapter 3

Olivia went on, "He said you're too strong-willed—always fighting to be first. Being with you feels like too much pressure, exhausting even."

She patted the thermal blanket on her body and waved it in front of my eyes, "This blanket's really warm. Too bad you'll never get to use it again."

Staring at her ferocious grin, I tried to reach out and stop her, but my frozen arms wouldn't even lift.

Olivia suddenly grabbed the ice axe and slit my professional mountaineering jacket hard.

That jacket was a high-cost, custom-made windproof and cold-resistant one from the institute. The waterproof fabric on the chest split open instantly, and cold wind rushed in right away.

My eyes nearly popped with rage. I mustered my last bit of strength to push her away, scrambling out of the cave. "Are you crazy? Do you even know what a broken jacket means in a blizzard?"

I screamed hoarsely, my voice torn to pieces by the wind and snow. Alex and the team were reinforcing the tent not far away; hearing the commotion, he frowned and walked over.

Olivia's eyes turned red in a flash. Tears poured down like broken beads as she cried and threw herself into Alex's arms. "Alex, I just wanted to brush the snow off Emily, but she pushed me—she even said I ruined her jacket on purpose..."

My eyes widened. It felt like all the blood in my body froze instantly.

Alex looked at the split on my chest, his face darkening so much it seemed ready to drip. "Emily, you're out of your mind."

He continued, "Olivia tried to help you out of kindness, and not only do you not appreciate it, but you even falsely accuse her of ruining your gear?"

"No, that's not true. She did it with the ice axe!" I pointed at Olivia, my fingers shaking from the cold, but I couldn't get out a single coherent sentence.

But Alex didn't even look at me. His gaze on me felt colder than the blizzard, sending chills through my entire body.

Mark fanned the flames from the side, "I think she's just jealous that Olivia's getting your care—she's making up excuses to throw a fit!"

Other teammates echoed him. "Yeah. She's got the best gear on the whole team, but she's always complaining about the cold. Now her jacket's broken, and she's blaming someone else!"

"Just because she's the lousy team leader, she thinks she can be this overbearing? It's Olivia's first time in the snow mountains—does she really have to target her like this?"

The team members chattered and accused me. Every word felt like an ice pick stabbing hard into my heart.

I opened my mouth to defend myself, but my throat felt frozen shut, no sound coming out. I could only shake my head in despair, wondering why nobody saw the ice axe in her hand.

Alex held the trembling Olivia, gently wiping her tears. "Don't cry. She's always like this—better gear just makes her more delicate. She flips out over the tiniest thing."

Olivia sobbed in his arms, "Alex, should I have never touched her stuff? Does Emily hate me that much?"

"You did nothing wrong—it's her heart that's twisted. She just can't stand seeing someone else get more attention than her," he said.

Alex's words hit like a heavy hammer, shattering my last bit of hope. This partner I'd fought alongside for two years was trampling me into the mud in front of everyone.

I collapsed onto the snow. Looking at the split in my mountaineering jacket, cold wind seeped in through the gap, making the gaps between my bones ache. That jacket was my last warm barrier—my only hope of surviving the blizzard. Now it was all ruined.

Olivia buried her face in Alex's arms, but secretly shot me a triumphant grin. The curve of her lips was so obvious.

"Emily, listen to me." Alex looked down at me, his tone icy. "Either apologize to Olivia right now, or you can forget about joining this expedition."

I looked up at the man in front of me—familiar yet strange. Years of tacit understanding and countless times sharing life and death were worth nothing to him.

"I..." I barely started speaking when a violent dizziness hit. Cold wind rushed into my torn jacket, and the suffocating feeling from hypothermia engulfed me instantly. My vision went black, and I fell hard onto the snow.

My body temperature dropped lower and lower, and my limbs began to spasm uncontrollably. Each spasm felt like ice needles piercing the gaps between my bones, and I could feel my life slipping away bit by bit.

"Emily! Emily, what's wrong with you?" Olivia suddenly ran over, her voice filled with feigned panic. But I clearly saw the uncontrollable glee hidden in her eyes.