Chapter 5

Chloe Waller POV:

A few nights later, I was walking home from a late study session at the library, the strap of my portfolio digging into my shoulder. As I passed the city' s most exclusive jewelry district, a flash of movement in a brightly lit storefront caught my eye. I stopped dead in my tracks.

It was Holden and Fabiola. They were in Cartier, standing at a private viewing counter, looking at rings.

Fabiola held up her hand, a massive diamond winking on her finger. She was beaming, turning her hand this way and that, admiring the sparkle. "Put it on for me, Holden," she cooed, sliding the ring off and handing it to him.

Holden took the ring and, with a tender smile that twisted my insides into a painful knot, he slid it onto her finger. He did it without a single ounce of hesitation, his movements full of a gentle reverence I had never seen from him before.

My heart didn' t just break. It plummeted into a dark, bottomless abyss.

For seven years, I had loved him. Seven years of quiet devotion, of unwavering support, of secret, hopeless pining. And it had all been erased by six months. My seven years couldn' t compete with her six months.

Fabiola' s gaze flickered towards the window and our eyes met. Her smile tightened, and a flash of pure venom crossed her face before being replaced by a mask of saccharine sweetness.

She quickly grabbed Holden' s arm, preventing him from turning around. "Oh, baby, we should get a little something for Chloe, too," she said loudly, her voice dripping with fake generosity. "As a thank you for being such a supportive friend."

Holden, oblivious, beamed. "That' s a great idea, Fab."

His easy agreement was another twist of the knife. Fabiola' s mood soured instantly. She made a quick excuse and dragged Holden out of the store, her grip on his arm like a vice. Before he could spot me, she pulled me into the dark, narrow alleyway beside the shop.

"We' re picking out our engagement ring," she hissed, her face inches from mine, her sweet facade completely gone. "We' re getting engaged."

The portfolio I was holding slipped from my numb fingers, crashing to the ground. The sound echoed in the sudden silence.

"You' re... getting engaged?" I whispered, the words feeling like sandpaper in my throat.

She nodded, a cruel, triumphant smile spreading across her face. "Yes. And you can be my maid of honor, if you want. A front-row seat to our happiness."

My vision started to tunnel. The edges went dark and fuzzy, and a dull, heavy throbbing began behind my eyes.

"Congratulations," I choked out, the words automatic, meaningless.

I watched them walk away, hand in hand, disappearing into the twilight. I stood in that alley for a long time, the cold seeping into my bones, my legs numb and tingling.

The world had gone quiet. The city sounds faded into a dull roar.

A scuffling sound from the far end of the alley broke the silence. A man stumbled out of the shadows, reeking of stale beer and muttering curses under his breath.

My heart lurried. I tried to move, to run, but my legs felt like they were filled with cement. I stumbled and fell to my knees.

"Well, well, what have we here?" the man slurred, his eyes, dark and predatory, fixing on me. He took a staggering step closer.

Panic, cold and sharp, finally cut through my stupor. I scrambled backwards, my hands scraping against the rough pavement.

"Get away from me!" I cried.

He lunged, his grimy hand clamping over my mouth, his other arm wrapping around my waist like a band of steel. He started dragging me deeper into the darkness.

"You' re a pretty little thing," he rasped, his foul breath hot against my ear. "Just be a good girl and no one gets hurt."

Terror gave me a surge of strength. I bit down on his hand, hard. He roared in pain, his grip loosening for a fraction of a second. It was all I needed. I wriggled free and ran.

I didn' t get far. He grabbed a fistful of my hair, yanking my head back with brutal force. My vision exploded in a shower of white stars, and then everything went black.

As my consciousness faded, a single, hazy thought flickered through the darkness. A figure. A man' s silhouette, running towards the mouth of the alley.

"Hey! Get away from her!" a voice yelled.

Then, there was only silence.