My blood turns to ice.
“Is that him?” Sage shrieks in the background. “IS THAT ETHAN?”
“Seth?” I say urgently.
“She’s coming toward me,” he mutters. “Sage—hey—back up?—”
Footsteps pound. Too fast. Too close.
“GIVE ME THE PHONE!” she screams.
My stomach drops straight through my body.
“Ethan?” Tony says sharply. “What’s happening?”
I don’t answer. I can’t.
Through the phone, I hear a struggle. Fabric rustling. Seth grunting as he stumbles back.
“Is that you?” Sage yells, manic now, thrilled. “ETHAN, YOU’RE SKIING? WITH THAT HOAR? YOU CHEATING BASTARD! I SAW YOUT CALL LOGS.”
Seth snaps. “Back the fuck up?—”
Something thuds hard. A body hitting a wall.
“She’s hitting me,” Seth says, breathless. “She’s trying to grab the phone.”
“Ethan?” Sage shrieks again, closer now. “COME HOME! COME BACK TO ME. NO ONE TOUCHES YOU LIKE I DO. SHE CAN NEVER BE ME.”
My heart is pounding so hard it hurts.
“Seth,” I say. “Get out. Now.”
“I’m trying—is this a psychotic break down? Does she have a history?”
Another crash. A sharp intake of breath.
“Give it to me!” Sage screams. “LET ME TALK TO HIM!”
The sound cuts abruptly—wind, then muffled chaos.
Then—
A car door slams.
The sound changes instantly. Closed. Hollow. Safe.
Seth’s breathing fills the line. Ragged. Fast.
“I’m in the car,” he pants. “I locked the doors.”
Through the phone, faint but unmistakable, I hear her.
Screaming.
Pounding on metal.
“ETHAN!” she wails. “ETHAN, COME OUT! I KNOW YOU’RE THERE!”
