"The light seems a bit dim." She glanced at the photo before looking up at the sky. "It's windy here.""You can always edit the photo afterwards," he said. "Are you cold?""A bit. Let's not take any more photos." She took the phone from him. "Eric, I asked you to come here to tell you that we should stop seeing each and contacting each other."She summoned the courage to speak her mind. Her heart was racing by the time she was done, and she immediately bowed her head to avoid looking at him."I can't restart my life until I cut all ties with you." She stared at the snow at her feet. She felt a lump in her throat. She had not felt the urge to cry since she had come to a decision a few days ago."Of course, Layla," Eric said calmly. "If this can help you turn over a new page in your life, I won't object to it. I will never bother you or your family."She immediately looked up. "That's not what I mean. You are a close friend of Mom. I don't want your friendship to be affected by me.
"Let's search for a place to brace for impact!" Eric had acted in movies which had scenes similar to the situation they were in, and he knew the basics of what to do in an avalanche. "If we can't run, we need to wait for rescue to come."There was no way to predict natural disasters, and though the screaming had not ceased, Layla felt much more at ease.In the worst-case scenario, she would die with Eric. Her parents had other children, and they would not need to mourn for long over them. The only regret she felt was that she had asked Eric to come to Cambrode. Had she not done it, he would have never come, and he would not be in this disaster."I'm so sorry, Eric." Layla could not see how they would make it out of this alive, and she had to say what was on her mind while she still could. "I shouldn't have asked you to come here. I put you in this situation.""It's not your fault, Layla! We aren't the only people here; no one can predict something like this! Don't feel guilty! Do
The snow crashed down on him with his back taking the brunt of the impact."Eric!" she tried to touch his head. "Eric, move closer! Closer! It's fine if you are pressing against me!"The space was far too small and though she wanted to grab his arm, her arm would bump into the wall as soon as she moved."... It's fine... I'm fine," Eric said weakly. "Just wait. It's not over yet...""Why are you so good to me, Eric? Is it really just because I'm Avery Tate's daughter? Is that really the only reason why you like me?" Darkness loomed over them and though Layla could not see his face, she could sense his breath on her skin. "I regret it now, Eric. I don't want to cut all ties with you.""Let's talk about something else, Layla!" Eric did not know how much longer he could withstand it."If we get out of here alive, I'm marrying you," Layla said. "Eric, if you die and I get to live, I'm not marrying anyone for the rest of my life.""Don't say that, Layla. I should have been dead a lon
The avalanche had disrupted and damaged the communication system in the area, so there was no hope in calling for help.Thankfully, the avalanche immediately made international news.The other two employees of Tate Industries who were in the hotel received the news and started calling Layla and her assistant Emma right away."Ms. Tate won't pick up.""Neither will Emma. The signal has to be out over there! What should we do? Should we order a taxi and go there?""The roads are probably all blocked!""So are we just going to stand here and wait?! If something happens to Ms. Tate, we—""Stop being so pessimistic! Ms. Tate didn't go alone. Eric Santos went with her, didn't he?""So what if he did? There's a gigantic avalanche. It's not like Eric can control it! You have probably seen too many movies and have mistaken him for some kind of hero!""Why are you shouting at me?! I just want Ms. Tate to be safe."The two argued heatedly."We need to call Mr. Foster! Are you doing it
She could not help but shiver as she found her phone and called Hayden."Hayden, Layla is in danger! She went to the mountain with Eric, and there was an avalanche! Your dad and I will go to Cambrode right away! You inserted a GPS chip into Layla's phone before, right? Check to see if you can locate her!"Hayden immediately tensed at her voice and said, "I'll look into it right away! Don't worry. I will head to Cambrode right away as well! I will find her!"Avery sobbed her response before hanging up.Elliot had ended the call with his assistant and was calling another person to submit a request to fly.There was only one flight per day in the morning that departed from Aryadelle to Cambrode, and if they wished to depart immediately, they would need to take a private jet, but all private jets needed to be registered with the Air Défense Department and a flight course would need to be provided.By the time Elliot ended the phone call, Avery was already in tears.She had gone thro
Avery was on her way to the airport, and her heart sank when she received the call from Emma.She put the call on speakerphone so that Elliot could hear it as well. Unable to contain herself, she shrieked as soon as Emma answered the call. "Emma!""Ms. Tate, I can't reach Layla at all! She won't answer her phone! I just escaped the mountain, and I don't even know where I am right now... I've traveled so far to get a signal. There has been a horrible avalanche! I'm so scared!" Emma cried. "I don't know if Layla is still on that mountain... It's hell on earth over there!"When the avalanche took place, Emma was at the bottom of the mountain where there was a lot of space leading to different roads.The people around her instantly started running when they saw the avalanche, and since it was Emma's first time seeing such a disaster, she did not know the severity of the situation and stood still for a while.She did not start running until she saw waves of snow bearing down on her, an
Meanwhile, in Cambrode, Emma had returned to the hotel and regrouped with the other two colleagues, who were in tears.The team leader and the manager had planned to head toward the mountain but were told by the driver that all roads that led to the mountain were blocked when they got into the taxi.Even if they managed to move in that direction, the police were stopping people from approaching or taking photos, so they eventually gave up since there was no point in going if there was nothing they could do.To their pleasant surprise, Emma returned to the hotel, but she was so distraught that the only thing she could do was cry. The manager went to boil some hot water before picking up the menu to order room service.By the time the hotel staff delivered the dishes, Emma was exhausted from crying."Emma, take a sip of water." He poured her a glass of warm water. "It's warm."Emma accepted it and gulped down the water while the manager pushed a plate of food toward her."I know
In Aryadelle, Ivy did not find out about what happened to Layla until she returned home from university.Avery and Elliot took the next flight to Cambrode that afternoon, and as they were in too much of a hurry to tell Ivy and Robert what had happened, Robert found out about what had happened from the news, and he immediately called Layla. Layla did not answer the phone, nor had she replied to any of his text messages.Feeling unsettled, Robert called Avery, only to realize that Avery had turned her phone off.Panicking, he called Elliot, and as expected, he could not reach his father either.Robert immediately broke down in tears.This was the first time he could not reach his parents, and he knew that his parents would never turn off their phones unless something had happened. With tears welling in his eyes, Robert immediately called Hayden.Luckily, Robert managed to reach Hayden right before he was about to shut his phone off to get on his flight.When Ivy returned home,