Chapter 1

The Napa air felt cool, a welcome change from the city.

Our wedding was three days away, everything set for the Rossi family's version of perfect.

Izzy, my fiancée, was on a call, pacing the vineyard overlook, her voice sharp even from a distance.

She was discussing floral arrangements, or maybe guest lists, always something.

I leaned against the rental car, a black Escalade, feeling a familiar mix of love and a strange, undefined distance.

Izzy was wealthy, from a family that owned half of this valley, it sometimes felt.

I was just Ethan Walker, an architect, good at my job, but not from her world.

She said it didn't matter.

I believed her.

"Ethan, darling, come look at this view one last time before we head back," she called, waving me over.

Her smile was bright, the kind that charmed everyone.

I smiled back, walking towards her.

The sun was setting, painting the hills gold.

I thought about our future, about Lily, her daughter, whom I was ready to love as my own.

Izzy wanted to formally adopt Lily with me after we married. It seemed right.

A car engine revved, loud, too close.

I turned, just a glance.

Headlights, blinding, rushing out from a side track I hadn't even noticed.

There was no time to think, no time to react.

Just a massive impact.

A sound like thunder.

Then, a searing pain shot through my back, my legs.

I was airborne for a second, a horrible, weightless moment.

Then I hit the ground, hard.

The world went black, then gray, then a haze of agony.

I heard Izzy scream my name.

Or maybe I imagined it.

The last thing I saw before everything faded was the taillights of the car, disappearing fast down the dusty track.

Then, only darkness.