**Laurel's POV**

Jennifer approached with her phone, showing photos captured during the chase.

"This college student suddenly has a woman with him," Jennifer said,pointing to the images. "What should we do about her?"

She handed me the phone with concern. "Laurel. look at this. The short hair, this figure... doesn't it look like..."

I narrowed my eyes at the photo, taking in every detail. "It's Audrey Sinclair."

*Height, how thin she's become, and the length of that short hair... who else could it be? So her relationship with this college boy really is special.Going to a men's dorm this late to rescue him. The way they're escaping together, they look like star-crossed lovers.*

*Blake still thinks about Audrey so much. Even the night after their divorce, when he was drinking, he kept calling her name..."

*I wonder how he'd react knowing his precious Audrey is running off with another man in the middle of the night.*

Jennifer frowned, lowering her voice. "Laurel. They're asking if they should stop the pursuit."

"The students are in a car leaving campus," she continued. "Plus there's now this woman... we only paid to catch one person..."

I smiled. "I'll pay extra."

"Tell them to follow in their cars. And crash right into them!"

Jennifer froze. "Laurel, this... isn't this going too far? I thought we just wanted to teach him a lesson?"

"Don't you see what a perfect opportunity this is?" I asked, my eyes locked on the phone screen. "Blake still has feelings for Audrey.He divorced her but threw her a birthday party."

"If it weren't for Audrey, I wouldn't have been humiliated at the Four Seasons Hotel. If tonight, Audrey and this college student get into a car accident - even if they don't die - everyone will know about it."

I leaned back against the pillows. "Everyone will talk about how Audrey was secretly meeting a male student at midnight. Everyone will discuss how, just days after divorcing Blake, she's already found someone new."

"When that happens," I continued, "even if Blake still has feelings for her,his pride won't allow him to have anything to do with her again."

"Besides, if Audrey becomes disabled in this accident, for the rest of her life.she'll just be a pitiful woman no one dares approach."

Jennifer stared at me, her face draining of color.

"Is there a problem?" I asked, noticing her hesitation. "Hurry up and make it clear to them! If they wait any longer, those two will get away!"

Jennifer jumped slightly before nodding. "Yes, yes, of course..."

She rushed to the hallway to make the call. From the corridor, a man's unfamiliar voice came through: "Are you sure? That car- we can't afford

to pay for damages to something like that!"

"We'll cover the cost of any damages," Jennifer responded firmly. "Will that work?"

"Then there's no problem. I'll ram into them right away."

*kAudrey's POV**

"Blake," I said, eyes fixed on the side mirror. "They're coming closer."

Headlights approached rapidly from behind. The black SUVs were gaining ground, closing the distance with alarming speed.

Blake checked his rearview mirror, jaw tightening. "What the hell do these people want?"

The car accelerated smoothly as Blake pressed the gas pedal. I gripped the door handle.

"Blake," I warned, still watching the vehicles. "They seem like they're going to ram us."

"They're speeding up fast. If we don't accelerate in the next five seconds, it'll be too late."

Blake frowned, pressing harder. "Lunatics."

The engine roared in response, pushing us forward. City lights blurred past as we raced through the night.

"What did Ethan do to deserve this?" Blake asked, eyes darting between the road and mirrors. "This can't just be about what he posted online."

I shook my head. "He's from a small town, just a college student working

part-time jobs at NYU. The only powerful people he's ever offended are you and Laurel Rose."

Blake laughed coldly. "Are you sure that's all? Maybe besides you, he has other 'big sisters' he's offended plenty of people with."

I felt a flare of annoyance. "Ethan isn't like that."

*The SUVs following us have increased from one to three. One of them even has a reinforced front bumper - the kind designed to minimize damage when ramming other vehicles. That modification is illegal,which means the people inside don't care about the law.*

*Is Laurel really trying to kill Ethan? All he did was expose that she hired trolls to smear me online!*

Through the rear window, I could see all three vehicles gaining. The lead SUV pulled directly behind us, its headlights flooding our car with harsh white light.

"They're still gaining," I said urgently.

Blake tossed his phone into my lap. "Call Michael, get backup!"

I scrolled through his contacts ,but before I could dial, Blake's eyes suddenly widened. "Forget it! It's too late!"

My heart dropped as I followed his gaze. The road ahead was blocked by concrete barriers, with flashing construction signs indicating a closed section. We were speeding toward a dead end with nowhere to turn.

*They've somehow directed us onto a blocked road! If we crash into those barriers at this speed...*

Blake's eyes met mine for a split second. In that brief moment, we both understood what needed to be done. Without a word, Blake yanked the steering wheel hard to the left, directing the car toward the shoulder.

The car's tires screeched as we veered off the main road, heading toward a rocky embankment that sloped down toward the beach. Behind us,crashing metal filled the air as two pursuing vehicles collided with the barriers.

The third SUV followed our turn but couldn't match the car's handling. It clipped our rear bumper, sending us into a spin. The world outside became a blur of lights and shadows as the car spun toward the edge.

"Blake," I whispered, voice shaking. "Are we going to die?"

Blake's hand found mine, gripping it tightly.′′NOo,we won't!"

As the car teetered on the edge, Blake released the steering wheel and reached for me. He pressed my head down against his chest,his arms forming a protective cage around me.

"What are you - " I started, but my words disappeared as the car plunged over the edge.

The sensation of falling was immediate and terrifying. My stomach lurched as gravity pulled us downward. I instinctively wrapped my arms around Blake, clinging to him as our only anchor in the chaos.

I heard Blake's seatbelt unlock with a click. Before I could process what was happening, he had shifted his body to completely cover mine, using himself as a human shield.

*Being held tightly in his arms, I can clearly hear his heartbeat and labored breathing. We're falling, crashing. In these brief minutes. my hody

is thrown around with each impact as the car rolls. My stomach is in turmoil, and pain consumes me entirely.*

In his warm embrace, my wildly beating heart calmed slightly, finding strange comfort even in this moment of extreme danger.

The sound of metal crumpling and glass shattering filled my ears as the car finally crashed onto the beach below. The impact threw us forward,then back against the seats. Blake's body absorbed most of the shock, his arms never loosening their protective hold.

When the movement finally stopped. I became aware of something warm and wet trickling down. I looked up, and my heart froze.

"Blake! You're bleeding!" I cried out.