Chapter 5

The post-championship party was supposed to be a commiseration for Ethan's team, a way to lick their wounds.

Noah had reluctantly gone, feeling obligated to support his teammates despite his disgust with Ethan's performance.

He'd texted me earlier, saying the mood was grim.

I was at a farewell dinner with my New York Hayes Construction team, a bittersweet affair.

My flight to London was in two days.

Around 11 PM, my phone exploded with calls and texts from Noah.

"Olivia! Are you okay? Where are you?"

"Something terrible happened at the party!"

"Call me NOW!"

My blood ran cold. I excused myself from the table, my heart pounding.

I called Noah. He answered on the first ring, his voice frantic.

"Liv! Oh my god! There was an attack! Someone threw something... some kind of chemical!"

"What? Who? Is anyone hurt?"

"Ethan... he shielded Sophia. She was screaming. But you... you were nearby, weren't you? Some of it splashed... Oh God, Olivia, are you alright?"

My mind raced. I hadn't been at that party. I was miles away.

"Noah, calm down. I'm not there. I'm at dinner with my team. What happened? Who was hurt?"

Relief washed through his voice, quickly replaced by renewed panic.

"Oh, thank God. I thought... I saw someone who looked like you from the back... dark hair... God, I was so scared."

He took a shaky breath.

"It was awful, Liv. This masked guy just ran in, threw this liquid, and ran out. It hit Ethan and Sophia, but Ethan took most of it trying to cover her. And... and a girl standing near them got hit too. Badly. On her arm and shoulder. They think it was some kind of acid."

My stomach twisted. "Who was the girl?"

"I... I don't know her name. She was just... there. Screaming. Her clothes were smoking."

"And Ethan? Sophia?"

"Sophia's hysterical, but mostly just scared. Ethan's arm is burned, but he's more worried about Sophia. He wouldn't let the paramedics look at him until they checked her. The other girl... they rushed her to the hospital. It looked really bad, Liv."

A cold dread seeped into me. This was Sophia's doing. It had to be. This level of viciousness, the targeting...

Later that night, after the initial chaos died down, Noah called again from the hospital.

He sounded exhausted.

"Ethan's got second-degree burns on his arm and part of his back. He's in pain, but he'll be okay. Sophia has minor splashes, mostly just frightened."

"And the other girl?" I asked, my voice tight.

"She's... she's in surgery. Severe burns. They're not sure... Olivia, it was horrible."

Then he said, "Ethan asked about you. When he was calmer. He asked if you were at the party, if you were okay."

A flicker of... something. Fleeting concern.

"What did you tell him?"

"I told him you weren't there, that you were safe. He seemed relieved. For a second. Then Sophia started crying about a broken nail, and he was all over her again, fussing."

Of course.

"Noah," I said, my voice hardening. "This isn't random. Sophia is behind this."

"What? Liv, no... she was a victim too..."

"Was she? Or was she the target, and Ethan just the shield? And that poor girl, just collateral damage?"

Noah was silent for a moment.

"He's always been like this for her," he said quietly. "Even in college. Remember that time she got a bad grade and accused the professor of harassment? Ethan went and slashed the guy's tires. He almost got expelled."

"Or when she wanted front-row tickets to that concert and they were sold out? Ethan pulled the fire alarm at the venue so they'd evacuate and she could sneak in."

Incidents I'd vaguely heard about, dismissed as college antics. Now they painted a darker picture. A pattern of reckless, almost fanatical devotion and a willingness to break any rule, hurt anyone, for Sophia.

My resolve, already solid, turned to ice.

Cut all ties. Erase him.

He was toxic, and Sophia was the poison he willingly ingested, again and again.

And anyone who got too close to them was at risk.

That innocent girl in the hospital, burned because she was in Sophia's vicinity.

It could have been me.

If I hadn't seen the truth in that hotel hallway. If I'd still been by his side.

The thought sent a shiver down my spine.

My escape to London wasn't just a new beginning.

It was a lifeline.