Chapter1 Rebirth

Scarlett’s POV

The roaring cheers suddenly cut off.

Every pair of eyes in the arena turned toward me—Scarlett, the former champion captain, sprawled flat on the ice.

Madison, my opponent, had just scored the winning goal. She'd broken through my defense in the final thirty seconds, faking left before slamming the puck past our goalie's blocker side. The buzzer sounded. Game over.

The crowd erupted. I tried pushing myself up, but white-hot pain shot through my left leg.

My knee buckled. I collapsed back onto the ice, gasping.

Through the blur of skates and legs rushing past me, I saw him. Pierce. My boyfriend stood at the edge of the rink, not even glancing my way. His arms were raised, his face lit up with pure joy as he cheered. For her. For Madison.

My sister.

I pressed my palms against the frozen surface, forcing myself upright despite the screaming agony in my leg. The team surrounded Madison, lifting her up, chanting her name. Nobody looked back at me limping off the ice.

The award ceremony began almost immediately.

I stood off to the side of the podium, leaning heavily on my good leg. Each second felt like an eternity. The announcer's voice boomed through the speakers, praising Madison's incredible performance, her lightning-fast reflexes, her game-winning goal.

Then Pierce walked onto the ice carrying the trophy. Of course they'd asked him to present it.

He was a former NHL player, a local hero, the perfect celebrity presenter. He smiled at Madison like she'd hung the moon.

She threw her arms around him, pressing close. Too close. The embrace lasted several beats too long.

Over Pierce's shoulder, Madison's eyes found mine. Her lips barely moved as she whispered words meant only for me.

"You can't beat me at anything, sis. Not on the ice. Not with men."

My chest tightened.

I tried to keep my expression neutral, but something must have shown on my face because Pierce noticed.

He pulled back from Madison, his smile fading as he looked at me.

"Really, Scarlett? You're gonna stand there looking like that?" His voice carried an edge of irritation. "Can't you just be happy for your sister? Congratulate her?"

Madison turned, her face a perfect mask of concern. "Pierce, don't. She's upset. I understand." She paused, tilting her head with false sympathy. "I mean, it must be hard watching someone younger do what you used to do, but better. She's probably jealous of my technique."

"Madison, that's not—" I started, but Pierce cut me off.

"She's right though, isn't she? You've been sulking ever since you got injured." He shook his head, disappointment clear in his eyes. "I thought you were stronger than this."

A staff member called Pierce's name, gesturing urgently toward the exit. Something about the sponsors waiting. He shot me one last disapproving look before walking away.

他刚一走远，麦迪逊就凑近我。她灼热的呼吸喷在我的耳边，她的声音里充满了毒液。

“刚才那一击可不是意外。我是故意要打断你的膝盖。”她轻声笑道，“现在滚到某个地方去死吧，你这个没用的残废。”

我还没来得及回应，她就直起身子，利落地打了个响指，指向观众席上的特定区域。

我顺着她的目光望去，看到了他。一个穿着深色连帽衫的身影，正鬼鬼祟祟地沿着上排走动。我的心猛地一沉。

然后尖叫声响起。

“着火了！着火了！”

看台上多处开始冒出浓烟，火焰沿着墙壁窜起。人们惊慌失措地涌向出口，互相推搡踩踏。自动喷水灭火系统徒劳地发出断断续续的喷水声。

短短几秒钟内，整个竞技场就陷入了混乱。

就在我恍然大悟的那一刻，我明白了她的计划。在冰球比赛中我的腿受伤后，我姐姐放火烧了比赛场地，想趁我动弹不得的时候把我活活烧死。

我猛地转身看向麦迪逊，胸中恐惧与愤怒交织。“这一切都是你做的？你为了达到目的，竟然愿意杀害无辜的人？”

她给了我一个淡淡的微笑，眼神像冰冷的蛇一样闪烁。

然后，她尖叫起来。那不是罪犯的尖叫，而是受害者的哭喊，精心装扮，听起来像是她自己身处险境。

皮尔斯跑了回来。

他环顾四周——麦迪逊站在我身边，火焰从四面八方逼近，浓烟弥漫。他毫不犹豫地冲上前去，一把抱住麦迪逊，将她紧紧搂在怀里。

“我在这儿呢，你安全了。”他的声音温柔而充满保护意味。

他甚至都没看我一眼。

我受伤的腿一软，想跟上他们，结果却使不上劲儿。我重重地摔在冰面上，膝盖传来一阵剧痛。“皮尔斯！皮尔斯，等等！”

他没有回头，只是继续往前走，抱着麦迪逊穿过烟雾，朝最近的出口走去。我看着他宽阔的肩膀消失在烟雾中。

浓烟滚滚，每一次呼吸都像在灼烧我的肺。火焰包围了溜冰场，切断了所有逃生路线。

我的视线开始模糊。热浪袭来，令人难以忍受。我无法呼吸，也无法思考。

“就这样吧，”我茫然地想，“我就要这样死了。”

透过熊熊燃烧的火焰和我粗重的喘息声，我听到了什么。一个声音。有人在叫我的名字。

但为时已晚。

我眼皮沉重得睁不开。疼痛感渐渐消退，取而代之的是一种奇怪的、冰冷的麻木感。

我闭上了眼睛。

--

我不知道自己在黑暗中待了多久，但我的眼睛终于睁开了。

我站在冰场中央，双腿有力而稳健。没有疼痛，没有烟雾，没有火焰。只有头顶明亮的灯光和看台上兴奋的交谈声。

“斯嘉丽，加油！”皮尔斯的声音从替补席上传来。“下一个轮到你了。走吧！”

麦迪逊滑到我身边，表情甜美得像蜜糖。“怎么了？你脸色苍白。”她眼中闪过一丝恶意的笑意。“你不害怕吧？不怕跟我比赛吗？”

一切都瞬间崩塌了。游戏结束了。火势也减​​弱了。

皮尔斯抛弃我等死。麦迪逊的忏悔。

我无助地躺在冰面上，浓烟灌满了我的肺。

我以前经历过这一切。所有的一切。

我获得了第二次机会。

我的手猛地伸出，从播音台上抓起麦克风。刺耳的啸叫声响彻整个体育馆。

所有人都转头看向我。皮尔斯一脸困惑。麦迪逊的笑容僵住了。

我举起麦克风，声音清晰洪亮。

“我不参加这场比赛！所有人立即撤离大楼！有人想放火烧这里！”