At 3:07 in the morning, a man from the United States Embassy in Switzerland called to tell me there had been an avalanche—

Right on cue, two uniformed officers from the Swiss Federal Police knocked on the open door frame and stepped into Evan’s hospital room, accompanied by an agent from the U.S. State Department.

"Evan Bennett?" the Swiss officer asked in crisp, accented English.

Evan looked from the officers to me, his chest heaving with panic. "Yes? What's going on?"

"You are under arrest for identity fraud, filing a false police report, and forgery of medical documentation," the officer announced, pulling a pair of steel handcuffs from his belt. "Additionally, your employer in New York, Vance Logistics, has filed formal criminal charges for corporate embezzlement regarding misuse of commercial credit accounts."

"Embezzlement?!" Evan screamed, trying to pull back against the pillows. "No! That was a mistake! It was an expense error!"

"Your corporate card was revoked four hours ago, Mr. Bennett," the U.S. State Department agent added calmly. "And your wife has officially canceled all primary credit lines associated with your name. You are currently in a foreign country with zero financial assets, no valid credit cards, and a revoked corporate passport."

Evan turned to me, weeping openly now, grabbing at his hair. "Claire! Please! Don't let them take me! Call Arthur! Tell him to fix this! You're my wife!"

I leaned down close to his ear, whispering so only he could hear:

"I was your wife when I paid your debt, Evan. I was your wife when I bought your clothes and built your life. But today, I'm just the author who wrote your ending."

I turned on my heel and walked out of the room as the Swiss officers pulled him out of bed and snapped the steel cuffs around his wrists. His screams for mercy echoed down the white tiled hallway, but I didn't turn back once.

I walked two doors down to Room 314.

I pushed the door open.

Madison Cole was lying in bed, her right leg encased in a heavy traction cast, surrounded by heart monitors. She looked pale, exhausted, and bruised.