Fade with the Wind

Not far from the mansion, a group of people stood watching the raging flames, screaming in excitement as they snapped photos.

"Hahaha! Revenge number ninety-ninth! A success!"

"Jason is finally free from that lovesick idiot Ivy Yarley!"

"When we go in later, I'm taking a few ugly crying shots of her and posting them online. Let the whole city enjoy the show!"

The dark red firelight illuminated their twisted, exhilarated faces with brutal clarity.

Standing behind the crowd, Jason felt something unfamiliar for the first time.

Discomfort.

Somehow, Ivy's expression from earlier resurfaced in his mind.

Only then did something click.

She had been too calm. Every previous anniversary, she had always been the most excited. From choosing the venue to decorating every tiny detail, she had taken care of everything herself. The entire anniversary had always been her effort alone. He had never once bothered to participate–and he had been perfectly fine with that.

After all, he did not love her. In fact, he had even resented her.

If she had not stolen Felicity's championship back then, the girl celebrating anniversaries with him would not have been Ivy in the first place.

Mere minutes ago, however, Ivy had been too quiet. On the drive to the mansion, she sat silently in the passenger seat. Other than saying a few strange, almost farewell-like confessions, she had not asked a single question about the anniversary plans.

She had been like a doll, letting him arrange everything.

At that moment, he had been gone for so long. The fire had been burning for so long.

Still, she had not called him even once. Nothing.

A chill ran down his spine. He fumbled for his phone, refreshing the screen again and again. Call log. Messages.

Nothing. No missed calls. No texts. No desperate pleas for help.

His heartbeat began pounding violently.

A suffocating sense of dread spread through his entire body.

Slowly, he lifted his head.

His face had gone pale as he stared at the mansion being devoured by flames.

Then, he suddenly broke into a run.

"Hey, Jason, where are you going?!" The others panicked and rushed to stop him.

Just as he was about to say something, a loud explosion split the air.

Boom! A massive mushroom cloud burst upward from the mansion.

Everyone's faces were drained of color.

Before they could react, explosions after explosions blasted in the sky. Thick black smoke billowed into the rain-soaked night. Debris shot outward like deadly arrows.

"Ivy!" Jason's mind went blank. All he could think was that Ivy was still inside!

He tried to charge into the mansion, but several people held him back.

"Jason, calm down! You'll die if you go in!"

"We've already called the cops! The rescue teams are on their way!"

"She'll be fine!"

Jason's eyes were bloodshot, locked on the sea of fire.

"Get lost!"

He had no idea where that surge of strength came from, but he broke free from the crowd and charged toward the flames.

"Jason!"

Boom!

Another violent explosion.

Rain poured down in sheets, extinguishing the fire, but the mansion was still smoking under the storm.

Rescue workers and search dogs combed through the debris.

They were searching for Ivy's body.

Yes, body. After all, no one was surviving that kind of fire and explosion.

In the distance, Jason stood in the rain with blood running down his face, ignoring the doctor trying to pull him away.

He waited for the verdict.

"Over here!"

A rescuer’s shout immediately lit up the light in his eyes. He dragged his stiff body and rushed as quickly as he could.

He arrived in time just as the rescue team lifted a body from the wreckage.

The corpse was barely recognizable. Its face had been destroyed. Blood and soot were caked together across burned flesh. The intense heat and explosions had curled the body inward, twisted grotesquely.

The horrifying, ruined face tilted toward him.

Unrecognizable to anyone else, but Jason knew. After all, not long ago, he delivered her into the fire.