Chapter 1

The scream of twisting metal ripped through the empty mountain highway.

"Hold on!"

Adrian's shout had barely left his mouth before the steering wheel jerked violently out of control.

The world spun.

My forehead slammed into the windshield.

The seat belt cut hard across my chest, stealing the air from my lungs.

Something warm trickled down my brow, blurring my vision almost instantly.

The SUV spun across the pavement.

Once.

Twice.

Then it crashed into the guardrail with a deafening impact.

Silence.

But we weren't safe.

Half the vehicle was hanging over the edge of the cliff.

The SUV swayed gently in the wind as the strained undercarriage groaned beneath us.

One more shift.

One more inch forward.

All three of us would plunge into the canyon below.

For several long seconds, no one spoke.

Smoke poured from beneath the hood.

Shattered glass covered the dashboard.

The sharp smell of gasoline slowly filled the air.

I looked down and tried to move.

The instant I did, a searing pain tore through my right leg.

The crushed dashboard had pinned it in place.

I couldn't even feel my toes anymore.

"Adrian..."

My voice came out as little more than a whisper.

"My leg..."

"I can't move."

He was already unbuckling his seat belt.

For the first time since the crash, I let out a shaky breath.

Three years ago, beneath an arch of white roses, he'd held my hands and promised me something.

As long as he was alive, no one would ever hurt me.

He would always protect me.

He would save me.

I believed him.

Then everything changed.

He went around me.

"Mandy!"

He lunged toward the passenger seat, grabbed Mandy by the shoulders, and pulled her into his arms.

"Look at me."

"You're okay."

"Don't be scared."

She finally broke down, sobbing against his chest.

"I... I was so scared..."

"I know."

His voice was unbelievably gentle.

Gentler than it had been with me in months.

"It's over now."

"I'm getting you out of here."

I stared at them in disbelief.

Blood dripped from my fingertips onto the floor.

"Adrian..."

Grinding through the pain, I reached toward him.

"I'm trapped."

"My leg..."

"It really hurts."

He paused.

For a single second.

Then he glanced down at the twisted metal crushing my leg.

His jaw tightened.

"I already called an ambulance."

The moment I heard those words, I felt hope again.

He was only taking Mandy out first.

He would come back for me.

He had to.

But he didn't.

Adrian bent down, slid one arm beneath Mandy's knees and the other behind her back, then lifted her into his arms.

I couldn't believe what I was seeing.

"Adrian!"

This time I screamed.

"I'm still here!"

"My leg is trapped!"

"I can't get out!"

He kicked the warped door open.

A blast of icy mountain air rushed into the SUV.

Without turning around, he tossed one sentence over his shoulder.

"The ambulance will be here any minute."

"Don't move."

Then he walked away.

Carrying Mandy.

Just like that.

I watched the man who had once sworn to protect me for the rest of my life carry another woman farther and farther away.

My hand remained frozen in the air.

No one reached back for it.

The SUV suddenly let out a sharp groan.

A shard of broken glass slid across the dashboard before disappearing over the cliff.

Then the entire vehicle lurched forward.

My heart stopped.

The smoke grew thicker.

The smell of gasoline became overwhelming.

My phone had fallen beneath the passenger seat.

It was only inches away.

No matter how hard I stretched, my fingertips couldn't reach it.

In that moment, I finally understood what true despair felt like.

Several minutes later, I heard the distant wail of sirens.

Rescuers surrounded the SUV, shouting instructions.

I couldn't make out a single word.

Someone smashed the windshield.

Someone else cut through the mangled metal pinning my leg.

When they finally pulled me free and laid me onto a stretcher, I instinctively turned my head.

Adrian was standing only a short distance away.

He wasn't looking at me.

He stood beside Mandy with one arm wrapped tightly around her shoulders.

She buried her face against his chest, trembling as she cried.

He lowered his head and gently brushed the strands of hair away from her face.

I knew that gesture.

He used to do the same thing whenever I cried.

The ambulance doors slowly closed.

As we pulled away, I kept staring through the rear window.

Neither of them looked back.

Not once.

I told myself over and over that Adrian had simply panicked.

He hadn't meant to leave me behind.

I had to believe that.

Because if I didn't...

Then the marriage I'd trusted with my whole heart for the past three years had become nothing more than a cruel joke.