‘Please, I need help!’

Beside her, William struggled to open his eyes, squinting against the sudden brightness.

The figure holding the light stood behind its glare, making identification impossible.

But those trembling hands gave him an immediate clue.

“William?” he whispered weakly.

William swallowed hard, unable to form words.

Patrick tried to move but found himself completely immobilized.

The crushed metal of the vehicle pinned him firmly in place.

“Elise!” he called out urgently to the woman beside him.

Elise felt strangely weightless, as if floating through clouds, wondering if this was what death felt like.

That eerie lightness surely belonged to the afterlife.

Then suddenly, a heavy pressure brought her back to reality.

Pain shot through her head and body as consciousness returned.

She blinked dazedly at the blinding light.

“Are you hurt?” William asked anxiously.

Elise tried to speak, but her throat burned with pain.

She swallowed with difficulty, finally managing to croak, “I'm okay. What about you?”

“Fine,” William replied, nodding toward the light. “William's here.”

Elise stared into the darkness but could see nothing beyond the glare.

“I'm getting you out,” William stated, his voice flat and emotionless.

Elise didn't question his sudden appearance—survival was her only concern.

William set down his phone and began wrenching at the severely dented door.

Despite his efforts, the door refused to budge.

Gritting his teeth, he warned, “Cover your heads. I'm breaking the glass.”

Most windows had shattered, but dangerous shards remained in the frame, blocking their escape.

Elise and William ducked as low as possible.

William used his elbow to smash the larger fragments, then brushed away the smaller pieces.

Elise thought she saw blood on his hands, but the darkness made it hard to be certain.

William showed no reaction to any pain, working silently.

“Reach for me,” William told Elise after clearing the window, extending his hand.

She struggled to move past the deployed airbag, their hands meeting in the darkness.

Their palms connected, slick with blood—impossible to tell whose it was.

William pulled firmly, but Elise didn't move.

“I'm stuck. The seatbelt's still fastened,” she explained.

William immediately crawled into the wreckage, crouching beside her.

He pushed the airbag aside and fumbled for the seatbelt release.

The mechanism was jammed shut.

As William strained against the stubborn buckle, Patrick suddenly asked, “Do you smell that?”

Elise inhaled sharply, then they exchanged alarmed glances before looking at William, who continued working frantically.

“Gasoline!” they exclaimed simultaneously.

The fuel tank must have ruptured!

After such a high fall, the friction could easily ignite the leaking fuel!

William heard them and clenched his jaw tighter.

Putting all his strength into it, he finally forced the seatbelt open.

The sudden release sent him stumbling backward from the effort.

The wreckage groaned ominously around them.

But William was immediately back at Elise's side, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her free from the airbag's embrace...