Chapter 4
Ryan's expression finally shifted.
He fixed his gaze on the lighter, his voice growing lower. "What do you want?"
"Let me die," I said.
Ryan's eyes went cold. "Evelyn, don't disgust me with this kind of thing."
"You said anything."
"Not this."
I picked up the lighter. The metal casing was icy against my palm.
I was still scared of fire.
My back was already tense before my thumb touched the switch.
With a click, the flame flickered to life.
It was a tiny flame, but it made it hard to breathe. Cold sweat trickled down my spine.
Ryan's eyes narrowed suddenly.
He lunged at me.
The flame flickered, and he snatched the lighter from my hand, snuffing it out in his palm.
There was a faint sizzling sound as his skin burned, but he didn't even flinch.
"Evelyn!" he shouted.
He grabbed my hand, shoved the lighter back into my palm, and forced me to grip it tight. His knuckles pressed painfully into my skin.
He said, "My mom left me this.
"It's not for you to use to threaten me or to kill yourself."
His eyes were red, and his voice was low. "What do you want?
"You want the lead role?
"Want Elsie out?
"Or do you want me to admit in front of everyone that I was the one who screwed up back then?"
He stared at me. "We can talk about any of that. But dying? That's not happening."
The red mark on his palm started to swell.
He still thought I was bargaining for something.
I slowly let go. The lighter fell onto the bed with a soft thud.
"Forget it, then," I said.
Ryan's fingers froze.
I said, "You don't have to do anything for me anymore."
*****
Ryan made sure someone was always keeping an eye on me.
They took my phone, and posted two bodyguards outside my door.
He ordered his assistant, Leo, to clear out anything sharp.
They took everything—even the fruit knife, the glass, the nurse's scissors, and the vase.
"Turn the lights warmer," he said. "Evelyn hates the dark, but can't stand harsh lights either."
Leo hesitated. "Mr. Chase, what about Ms. White?"
Ryan shot him a look. "Let her wait."
The room went quiet for a moment.
Ryan's face turned cold. "I'll head to the set later. Watch Evelyn for now."
Elsie's call flashed on the screen for a moment, and then disappeared.
But something still went wrong with Elsie.
She claimed she had an anxiety attack before filming and refused to come to set.
The producers, investors, and streaming platform were all waiting on Ryan.
Leo was at the door, whispering to urge Ryan for the third time.
Ryan answered the call while I sat on the hospital bed.
He shot me a look.
In that look, there was irritation, wariness, and a flicker of fear he couldn't quite hide.
I smiled. "Go on. She's a sore loser."
Ryan's face darkened. "Evelyn, don't say things like that."
But he still left.
The two bodyguards outside got called away by Leo to take care of some paperwork at the base, and the nurse was rushed off to the set after a phone call.
Once the footsteps faded, I yanked out my IV and snuck out through the fire escape.
Chase Studios had an airfield out in the suburbs for filming.
They shot all kinds of aerial scenes, explosions, and action on the runway there.
I'd filmed a plane chase there before, so I knew about the staff entrance behind the hangar, and that they usually ran aerial tests early in the morning.
By the time I parked outside the base, the sky was just starting to lighten.
The System asked, "Evelyn, where are you going?"
I stared at the runway lights in the distance. "I'm flying home."
It went quiet for a couple of seconds. "This isn't flying."
I pushed open the car door and headed toward the hangar. "I know."
Inside the hangar, Ryan's private jet was getting prepped for takeoff.
The roar of the engines made the ground tremble.
The wind swept in from the runway, pressing my hospital gown against my body.
I walked barefoot.
The wind was hot, and the lights were blinding.
The roar of the engines was almost enough to split my eardrums.
Back when Ryan was shooting explosion scenes, I used to hide in the break room, trembling.
He'd cover my ears and say, "Eve, it's alright. I got you."
But now, I wasn't trembling.
The runway lights lit up one after another, as if guiding me toward another world.
Benedict had promised me that when I got better, he'd take me on a plane to see the ocean.
I didn't think I'd ever get better.
So I was flying back to him now.
The System's countdown started again. "Ten, nine..."
I spread my arms and ran toward the plane as it taxied down the runway.
The wind whipped my hair around. My hospital gown billowed out, like a white dress that didn't fit.
"Ben," I shouted into the wind. "I'm coming to you!"
Suddenly, a shrill alarm went off in the control room.
Someone way off in the distance was screaming their head off, "Stop the plane!"
The screech of the plane's brakes ripped through the early morning, so sharp that it made my bones ache.
All I could feel was the rush.
So close. Just a little faster.
The next second, a pair of blood-streaked arms came at me hard from the side.
As I was knocked down, Ryan twisted his body in midair, forcing a turn.
His back slammed into the rough runway first.
The momentum sent us skidding several feet, gravel scraping his arms and shoulders raw.
But his hand stayed clamped on the back of my head, shielding me from hitting the ground.
His other arm shielded my back, like he remembered I couldn't take a hit there.
The plane's roar was right above us.
Ryan pressed my face into the crook of his neck, and his arms locked around me like steel.
I could hear his heartbeat thundering in his chest, wild and frantic.
"Evelyn, do you have any idea how dangerous that was?" he shouted.
With Ryan pinning me to the ground, I suddenly laughed. "Ryan, why do you always have to be such a killjoy?"
His eyes were red, almost scary. "Are you trying to get yourself killed?"
I nodded. "Yeah, I was so close."
Ryan flinched, as if my words had stabbed him.
I didn't cry or scream, nor did I clutch at his clothes as I used to, overcome by the roar and the blinding light.
I just stared at him in silence, like I was waiting for him to get out of the way.
His breath came in harsh, broken gasps.
But when the bodyguards and medics rushed over, the first thing he said was cold as ice. "Evelyn, if you want to die, do it somewhere else.
"Don't stain Chase Studios' runway.
"Do you know how much we're losing tonight just because this plane has to stay grounded?"
I let out a soft laugh. "Then you shouldn't have saved me just now."
Ryan's face went pale.