Chapter 1

In the back seat of my car, my fiancée sat up, rubbing her sleepy eyes. "Why is it so dark? Ethan, we’re in the middle of nowhere. Where are you taking me?"

I gripped the steering wheel so hard my knuckles turned white. I didn’t answer.

Chloe kept talking. "By the way, of all the wedding dresses I tried on this afternoon, which one did you like best?"

"Ethan?"

"Why are you ignoring me?"

Because I didn't dare to look at her.

My fiancée, Chloe, had been dead for six months.

"You’re regretting it again. You want to call off the wedding, don’t you? I just don't get it. What is so good about that cheap little bitch? She does nothing but spend your money! You wouldn't have this company today if it weren't for me!"

"Let me tell you something, Ethan. Over my dead body will you ever leave me!"

Chloe’s voice kept ringing in my ears.

I was paralyzed with fear. My foot slammed down on the gas pedal. I didn't dare to look in the rearview mirror, not even once.

Ever since I got back from the Cascade Mountains, she had been in my car. Her voice grew louder, sharper, and more grating. The hair on my neck stood on end. It felt like her lips were pressed right against my ear.

"Ethan, don't be like this. I won't yell at you anymore. Just talk to me, okay?"

"Haha, are you still pretending?"

"I know you can see me!"

"Ethan... Ethan..."

I couldn't take it anymore. I let out a terrified scream and floored the gas. If I could just make it through the last traffic light, I’d be in the crowded downtown area!

But as I sped through the intersection, a blinding flash of light hit me from the side.

There was no time to swerve. The impact sent my car spinning and flipping through the air. The airbag deployed with a deafening bang, pinning me to the seat and choking the air from my lungs.

Behind me, Chloe was still whispering in my ear, laughing.

"Are you coming to join me now?"

"Hehe... I told you. Dead or alive, you’re staying with me!"

Her face leaned in close. Her hair was matted with blood, her skin pale and rotting.

My soul shivered with pure terror. Ignoring the agonizing pain in my body, I fumbled to unbuckle my seatbelt, crawled out of the shattered window, and scrambled on my hands and knees toward the other driver.

"Help! Help me—"

"Ethan Vance? Are you out of your mind?"

"Who the hell runs a red light at midnight? Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

The driver who hit me was my biggest business rival in Seattle, Marcus Sterling!

But right now, my pride meant nothing. I pointed frantically at the back seat of my wrecked car. "Chloe... Chloe is in there—"

Then, I froze.

Inside my car, other than a smear of blood on the seat, there was absolutely no one.

Marcus glared at me with pure disgust. "I’m warning you, Ethan. You were speeding and ran a red light. Don’t you dare try to pin this on me! And your missing fiancée has nothing to do with me. If you hire those internet trolls to spread rumors that I kidnapped her again, I’ll sue your ass into bankruptcy!"

I couldn't speak. I just sat on the cold asphalt, trembling.

With Chloe gone, the adrenaline began to fade. A searing, tearing pain ripped through my body. I looked down and realized I was covered in blood.

Marcus called 911 and stood by his car, waiting.

I forced myself to stand, ignoring the pain, and hobbled over to him. "Marcus... when you hit me, did you see... was there anyone else in my car?"

Marcus spat on the ground. "Fuck off! For the last time, I didn't hit you, you ran into me. And did you hit your head too hard? You don’t even know if there was someone in your own car?"

Suddenly, Marcus paused, his brows furrowing deep. "Wait a minute. Ethan, did you just say Chloe? Isn't she still missing? Did you find her?"

Seeing Marcus’s genuine confusion, I realized what had just happened was likely a hallucination.

I let out a shaky breath and lied, "No... still looking for her..."

And I would never find her.

Because she was dead. Buried in a place where no one would ever look.