Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Maya drove through the dark streets like a woman possessed, her knuckles white on the steering wheel, tears streaming down her face. The parking garage where she'd last seen Daniel was fifteen minutes away. Fifteen minutes to find out if he was alive or if she'd gotten him killed.

Her phone kept buzzing with messages from the unknown number, each one a countdown, a threat, a reminder that she was running out of time. She ignored them all.

The parking garage loomed ahead, concrete and shadows. Maya pulled in and killed her engine, her heart hammering so hard she thought it might burst. She grabbed the flashlight from her glove compartment and got out, scanning the area.

Daniel's car was gone.

Maya's breath caught. That could mean anything. Maybe he'd driven away. Maybe the killer had moved the body. Maybe the whole video had been staged.

But then she saw it—dark stains on the concrete where his car had been parked. She knelt down, her flashlight revealing the unmistakable pattern of blood, already drying in the December cold.

"No," Maya whispered. "Please, no."

Her phone buzzed again. She yanked it out, ready to scream at whoever was tormenting her, but stopped when she saw the message.

"Looking for proof? Check Pier 47. But come alone, or his sister dies right now."

Maya's hands shook as she stared at the text. It was a trap. Obviously a trap. They wanted her alone, vulnerable, easy to kill.

But if there was even a chance Daniel was alive...

She got back in her car and drove toward the pier, her mind racing through scenarios. If Daniel was dead, she needed to get to his sister first, warn her, protect her. If he was alive but injured, she needed to get him to a hospital without being followed.

And if this was all just a game to lure her out and kill her—well, Maya had died before. She'd frozen to death in the apocalypse, alone and broken. At least this time, she'd go down fighting.

Pier 47 was abandoned, a relic from when the shipping industry had thrived in this part of the city. Now it was just rotting wood and rusted metal, the perfect place for a murder.

Maya parked and walked toward the pier, her flashlight cutting through the darkness. The wind off the water was brutal, cutting through her coat like knives. In the distance, she could hear the sound of waves against the pylons.

"Hello?" she called out, her voice swallowed by the wind.

No answer.

She walked further, her footsteps echoing on the wooden planks. Her flashlight swept across old shipping containers, broken crates, graffiti-covered walls.

And then she saw him.

Daniel was tied to a metal pillar, his head slumped forward, blood staining his shirt. Maya's heart stopped.

"Daniel!" She ran toward him, dropping to her knees. Her hands shook as she touched his neck, searching for a pulse.

There. Weak, but there.

"Oh thank God," Maya sobbed, her fingers fumbling with the ropes binding him. "Daniel, wake up. Please wake up."

His eyes fluttered open, unfocused. "Maya?" His voice was barely a whisper. "Run. It's a trap."

"I know," Maya said, working frantically at the knots. "I don't care. I'm getting you out of here."

"Too late," a voice said behind her.

Maya spun around, and her blood turned to ice.

Vanessa stepped out of the shadows, a gun in her hand and a smile on her face.

"Vanessa?" Maya's mind couldn't process what she was seeing. "What are you—how—"

"Surprised?" Vanessa laughed, the sound cold and cruel. "You shouldn't be. Did you really think Ethan would choose you over me? Did you really think you could destroy him without consequences?"

Maya's thoughts raced. In her previous life, Vanessa had seduced Ethan months from now. But here, in this timeline, Vanessa was already involved. Already working with him.

"Ethan sent you?" Maya asked, still trying to buy time, her fingers working at Daniel's ropes behind her back.

"Ethan doesn't know I'm here," Vanessa said, stepping closer. "He thinks I'm just his secret lover, his little distraction. But I'm so much more than that. I've been planning this for years, Maya. Years of pretending to be your friend, listening to you whine about your problems, watching you waste the opportunity of a lifetime."

"What are you talking about?"

"Ethan Hart!" Vanessa's voice rose, sharp with fury. "Do you know what I would give to be in your position? To marry into that family, to have that power, that wealth? And you were just going to throw it away. You were going to expose him, ruin him, destroy everything."

Maya's blood ran cold. "How long have you known?"

"Since the beginning," Vanessa said smugly. "I've been watching you, Maya. Following you. I saw you meet with Daniel. I heard your plans. And I realized—why should I let you destroy Ethan when I could save him instead? When I could be the hero?"

"You killed Daniel—"

"I didn't kill him. Yet." Vanessa gestured with the gun. "That was my associate. Very expensive, very thorough. But I told him to keep Daniel alive for now. I wanted you to see what happens when you cross me."

Maya's fingers finally loosened the last knot. She could feel Daniel stirring behind her, consciousness slowly returning.

"So what now?" Maya asked, keeping Vanessa's attention on her. "You kill us both? How does that help you win Ethan?"

"Oh, I'm not going to kill you," Vanessa said. "You're going to kill yourself. Tragic story, really. Maya Chen, overwhelmed by wedding stress, having an affair with a private investigator, unable to handle the guilt. You shot your lover, then turned the gun on yourself. So sad."

She raised the gun, pointing it at Daniel.

"No!" Maya lunged forward, but Vanessa was faster. The gun swung toward Maya instead.

"Don't move," Vanessa hissed. "I will shoot you right now if I have to. It's not the plan, but I'll make it work."

Maya froze, her mind calculating distances, angles, possibilities. Vanessa was three feet away. The gun was steady in her hand. Behind Maya, Daniel was trying to stand, but he was too weak, too injured.

"You won't get away with this," Maya said. "The police will investigate—"

"The police are paid off," Vanessa interrupted. "The Hart family owns half of them, remember? Your own evidence proved that. And the ones who aren't corrupt will believe the suicide story. I've made sure of it. I've planted evidence in your apartment. Text messages. A fake diary. All of it pointing to an unstable woman having an affair."

Maya's heart sank. Vanessa had thought of everything.

"Ethan will know," Maya said desperately. "He'll figure out it was you."

"Will he?" Vanessa smiled. "Or will he be grateful that his fiancée's messy death was ruled a suicide instead of a murder? Will he mourn for a few months, then find comfort in the arms of his loyal friend Vanessa, who was there for him through the tragedy?" She laughed. "You really don't understand men, do you? Ethan doesn't love you. He never did. But he'll love me, once you're gone."

Behind Maya, Daniel groaned. He was trying to get up, trying to help, but he was too weak.

Vanessa's finger tightened on the trigger. "Goodbye, Maya. I wish I could say this was difficult, but honestly? I've been looking forward to it."

The gun fired.

Maya heard the shot, saw the muzzle flash, felt time slow down.

But the bullet never hit her.

Instead, Daniel had thrown himself in front of Maya, using the last of his strength. The bullet caught him in the shoulder, spinning him around. He collapsed, blood spreading across his chest.

"Daniel!" Maya screamed, dropping to her knees beside him.

Vanessa cursed, raising the gun again. "Fine. You both die now. Less elegant, but it still works."

Maya looked up at the gun barrel, at Vanessa's cold eyes, and knew this was it. She was going to die. Again. But this time, she wouldn't come back.

The gun fired again.

Maya closed her eyes, waiting for the impact.

It never came.

Instead, she heard a grunt of pain, the clatter of metal on concrete, the sound of bodies colliding.

Maya's eyes flew open.

Vanessa was on the ground, the gun knocked from her hand. Standing over her, breathing hard, was a figure Maya had never expected to see.

Marcus Hart. Ethan's brother.

"Marcus?" Maya gasped.

He didn't look at her. His eyes were fixed on Vanessa, cold and furious. "You stupid girl," he said quietly. "Did you really think we wouldn't notice you playing your own game?"

Vanessa's face had gone white. "Marcus, I can explain—"

"Shut up." Marcus kicked the gun away, then pulled out his phone. He made a call, his voice brisk. "It's done. Pier 47. Yes, bring the car. And a cleanup crew."

Maya's mind spun. Marcus was involved? How deep did this conspiracy go?

Marcus finally looked at her, his expression unreadable. "Get him to the hospital," he said, gesturing to Daniel. "There's a car waiting at the north entrance. The driver will take you to a private clinic. They won't ask questions."

"Why are you helping me?" Maya demanded.

"I'm not helping you," Marcus said coldly. "I'm protecting my family's interests. Vanessa's amateur hour was about to bring the FBI down on all of us." He glanced at Vanessa with disgust. "Murdering investigators, threatening witnesses, leaving evidence everywhere. Pathetic."

"What are you going to do with her?" Maya asked, though part of her didn't want to know.

Marcus smiled, and it was the coldest thing Maya had ever seen. "That's not your concern. Take your boyfriend and go. And Maya? This debt is now paid. You owe the Hart family. Remember that."

Two men in black suits appeared from the shadows, moving toward Vanessa. She started screaming, fighting, begging.

Marcus turned his back on her, already pulling out his phone to make another call.

Maya knew she should help Daniel, should get out of there, should run before she became the next victim. But she couldn't move, couldn't process what was happening.

Marcus looked at her over his shoulder, his eyes hard. "You have ten seconds to leave before I change my mind about letting you live. Ten. Nine. Eight—"

Maya grabbed Daniel, hauling him to his feet. He groaned in pain but managed to walk, leaning heavily on her. Together, they stumbled toward the north entrance, leaving Vanessa's screams behind them.

A black car was waiting, just as Marcus had promised. Maya got Daniel inside, and the driver pulled away without a word.

As they drove through the dark streets, Daniel's head on her shoulder, his blood soaking her coat, Maya's phone buzzed.

A message from Marcus.

"The video evidence of our meeting has been destroyed. The surveillance footage from tonight doesn't exist. As far as the world is concerned, nothing happened at Pier 47. But Maya—you still have Ethan's evidence. Destroy it. Marry my brother. Play your role. Or next time, I won't save you."

Maya stared at the message, her mind reeling.

Vanessa had tried to kill her. Marcus had saved her. But why? What was his angle? And how did he know about the evidence?

The car pulled up to an unmarked building. The driver opened Maya's door. "The doctor is waiting inside. He'll take care of your friend. No police. No records."

Maya helped Daniel out of the car, her thoughts churning.

She'd been playing chess while the Hart family was playing a completely different game. Vanessa had been a pawn who'd tried to be a queen. Marcus was something else entirely—a power player who operated in the shadows.

And Maya? She was still just a girl who'd traveled back in time, in way over her head.

But as she walked Daniel into the clinic, as the doctor rushed forward to help, as she saw the relief in Daniel's eyes when he realized he would live, Maya made a decision.

She wasn't going to destroy the evidence.

She wasn't going to marry Ethan.

She wasn't going to play by the Hart family's rules anymore.

In twelve days, the world would freeze. And in the chaos of the apocalypse, old debts wouldn't matter. Old threats would be meaningless.

Maya would survive. She would prepare. And when the freeze came, she would make sure only the people she chose would live through it.

Starting with Daniel.

But first, she had to figure out what Marcus really wanted. Because the Hart family didn't save people out of kindness.

They always had an agenda.

And Maya had a terrible feeling she was about to discover what it was.