“Ethan Mercer, did you miss me?”
A pretty girl in a sleepdress was draped over me, all soft curves and half-hidden skin, her voice sweet enough to mess with a man’s head.
My mind was foggy. One arm was around that slim little waist I could almost circle with one hand. I stared at her, dazed, and blurted, “Who... are you?”
She lifted the lace of her nightgown just a little. On her shoulder blade was a small red mole, vivid in the dim light.
“Well?” she said, smiling at me. “Remember now?”
My heart instantly started acting up. At that point, honestly, who even cared who she was?
Then—
Bang. Bang. Bang.
A brutal series of kicks slammed into the door outside.
I shot upright and yelled, “Who is it?”
“Hijacking! Hijacking! Open up now, or I’m firing!” someone shouted from outside.
My mood got wrecked on the spot. I cursed inwardly, annoyed out of my mind. Yeah? Then shoot, if you’ve got the guts.
Bang... bang... bang...
Several bullets came straight at me.
My whole body jerked hard, and I snapped awake from the dream. Only then did I remember—I was on a plane, flying back home.
Right in front of the cockpit, a bald man was waving a handgun around, screaming himself hoarse at the cockpit door.
That was when it hit me.
Our plane had been hijacked.
Bang!
The bald man fired another shot at the cockpit.
The next second, the aircraft dropped so suddenly it felt like an elevator cable had snapped. My stomach lurched. My heart clenched.
Panic surged through me, sharp and cold.
Then everything went black.
I had no idea how much time passed before consciousness slowly crawled back. My head felt heavy, like it had been stuffed with wet cotton. I struggled to undo my seatbelt and tried to stand, only to realize my body was stuck in a half-reclining position.
Outside the window, the moonlight spilled down like water.
By that pale glow, I could see the nose of the plane jammed against a huge tree, tilted upward at an angle.
I grabbed the seatback in front of me and forced myself to stand. The cabin reeked of blood so strongly it nearly made me gag, but I clenched my teeth and endured it.
“Is anyone there?” I shouted.
No answer.
Not a single voice came back.
A chill crept up my spine.
I took out my phone, switched on the flashlight, and carefully searched everything I could see within the beam.
In one corner of the cabin, a whole bunch of people were crushed together in a heap. I walked over and checked them one by one, but every single one of them had already lost their heartbeat.
Then, out of nowhere, a faint voice drifted up from behind me.
I spun around.
A girl was lying sprawled across several bodies, covered in blood from head to toe.
In that dim, shaky light, my heart jolted.
Wasn’t that Natalie Voss?
The goddess I’d had a crush on forever. The new-generation movie queen.
Why was she on this plane too?
“Natalie… Miss Voss.” I carefully patted her face, hoping to wake her up.
No response.
She didn’t move at all, her eyes shut tight.
Panic started clawing at me. I bent down and gave her mouth-to-mouth. Her lips were soft, exactly the kind I liked—yeah, sure, my brain flashed some messy thoughts, but this was no time for that.
I blew in a few hard breaths, but she still showed no sign of waking.
Left with no choice, I unfastened two buttons on her top, getting ready to do chest compressions.
The moment the buttons came loose, my own heartbeat went crazy.
I’d been staring at her through a screen for who knew how long, and now I was seeing the real thing up close.
My eyes betrayed me and lingered for two quick seconds on the view in front of me. Then I forcefully shoved those thoughts aside and steadied myself, trying to act like some old monk in meditation as I started treating her properly.
Not long after, Natalie finally let out a weak groan and slowly opened her eyes.
Her mind clearly hadn’t caught up yet. The second she saw a man pressing and touching around on top of her, she shrieked and swung her hand.
Smack.
Her slap landed square on my face.
I froze for a second. “What are you doing?”
She shot upright, only to realize her clothes were open, her skin exposed, and her whole body smeared with blood. Terror exploded across her face, and she started screaming at the top of her lungs.
“Help! Help!”
I grabbed her shoulders and held her still. “Stop yelling. I’m the one who saved you.”
“Who are you?” she demanded, glaring at me with those huge, beautiful eyes.
“My name is Ethan Mercer.”
She looked around at the wrecked cabin, and little by little, the daze in her eyes faded. Then she asked, voice trembling, “Is… is anyone else alive?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “You were the first one I tried to save.”
Natalie Voss looked a little moved. “Thanks. Go check on the others.”