Ava's POV
For a brief moment, the storm seemed to quiet around us, like even the wind was holding its breath. Anderson’s eyes stayed locked on me, but something in them changed.
I could sense the thoughts moving behind his gaze. He seemed confused. But then, in a matter of seconds, I saw that cold certainty snap back into place in his eyes, like a lock sealing shut.
“A life for a life,” he said, his voice like ice sliding over skin. “Five years isn’t nearly enough.”
Despair flooded through me, thick and suffocating, until I could barely breathe around it. My jaw tightened, my teeth grinding together as something reckless, something desperate clawed its way to the surface.
Before I could think, before I could stop myself, I moved.
I darted forward, straight into the path of his car, m
