Chapter 1 — The Man Who Refused to Die
Vanessa's fake screams echoed through the canyon.
"It's an accident!"
"My husband fell!"
"Somebody help!"
Tourists rushed toward the cliff while Eric wrapped an arm around Vanessa, pretending to comfort her.
Neither of them noticed the faint metallic sound rising from below.
A cable.
Then another.
Seconds later, a black rescue platform slowly emerged from the mist beneath the cliff.
Nathan Whitmore sat calmly in his wheelchair.
Completely unharmed.
The wheelchair was attached to a hidden steel harness anchored beneath the overlook.
Two men in climbing gear guided the platform safely onto solid ground.
Silence.
Vanessa's face drained of color.
Eric stumbled backward.
"How...?" he whispered.
Nathan looked at them with tired eyes.
"I built this observation deck five years ago."
His voice was calm.
"I paid for every safety system after a child nearly died here."
He glanced toward the hidden emergency cable beneath the railing.
"I knew exactly where I'd land."
Police officers stepped out from behind the trees.
So did detectives.
One officer calmly handcuffed Eric.
Vanessa froze.
"What is this?"
Nathan slowly removed a tiny recording device from inside his jacket.
"This."
He pressed a button.
Their conversation from minutes earlier echoed through the canyon.
"One push... and everything belongs to us."
"No witnesses."
"Do it now."
Every word.
Perfectly recorded.
Vanessa's knees nearly gave way.
Nathan looked at her without anger.
"I begged because I wanted to hear you make the choice."
"You made it."
As officers escorted them away, Vanessa screamed his name.
Nathan never looked back.
But that night, sitting alone in his empty mansion, victory brought him no peace.
Because betrayal had taken far more than his fortune.
It had stolen his ability to trust anyone.
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Little did he know...
Someone unexpected was about to change that.
