apter 15
Reina’s dull, lifeless eyes suddenly lit up. “Right. Xavier has always taken my birthday seriously. He’ll be there for sure!”
In the days that followed, she ignored Hugo’s barrage of phone calls and threw herself into preparing for her birthday party. She booked a renowned string quartet to perform in the garden restaurant and even arranged for a fireworks show.
All that was left was for Xavier to show up.
Time ticked by, minute after minute. Midnight came, but Xavier never appeared.
Reina buried her face in her hands and sobbed uncontrollably. Her voice was thick with despair and regret. “Xavier, how could you be this cruel? You won’t even give me a chance to make things right? Do you want to see me dead before you’ll show your face? Fine. Then I’ll give you what you want!!! She headed straight for the racetrack and swung her leg over the bike. Just as she was about to take off, her friends rushed in and blocked her path. “Reina, are you out of your mind? The rain just stopped. That mountain road is wet and slippery! You could die out there!”
“I know you want to force Xavier to show up, but this is way too extreme! What if something really happens to you? What will your family do?” “I’ll be fine,” Reina replied. “Even if Xavier’s angry with me, he would never just stand by and watch me get hurt. He’ll come. I know he will.” Everyone was frantic. Their voices overlapped in panic. “But what if he doesn’t?”
“There’s no ‘what if‘.” Reina slipped on her helmet and said with certainty, “He’ll come!”
“Reina, please don’t do this.” Hugo rushed forward and grabbed her arm. His face was contorted with worry. “Forget about me. Just think about mom for a second! What’s she going to do if something happens to you?”
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“I won’t die.” Reina shook off his arm and looked at him coldly. “Now get out of here. The last person Xavier wants to see right now is you.” With that, she twisted the throttle and tore onto the track. As her bike roared through the mountain’s sharp turns, the tires began to skid on the rain- slicked road.
Then, she caught sight of a red bike speeding up behind her in her rearview mirror. She smiled and leaned into a sharp, clean countersteer.
Her bike flew through the air like a slingshot and hit the ground hard, dragging along the road with a teeth–grinding screech.
Thrown off with brutal force, Reina crashed into the mud. Filthy water splashed everywhere, streaking her face with dirt.
She lifted her head to look at the rider on the red bike. A relieved smile broke across her face.
“Xavier, you finally showed up. I knew you still loved me.”
“Ms. Yarrow, I’m not Xavier. I’m Joseph Reed from the racetrack!”
Joseph struggled to help Reina to her feet. “This road is too dangerous. You never should’ve come out here alone. Let me take you back.” “You’re not Xavier?” Reina gave a bitter laugh, then collapsed to the ground, slowly losing consciousness.
Xavier really didn’t want her anymore. Not even if she put her life on the line.
When she opened her eyes again, she found herself in the intensive care unit.
Leon walked in and said, “Ms. Yarrow, Mr. Caldwell sent you a birthday gift.”
Reina eagerly ripped open the package. When she pulled out the document inside, a wave of dread wasited over her.
