Chapter 1

To help her secret lover win the Skydiving Championship, my fiancée secretly sabotaged my parachute.

I plummeted toward the open ocean at over two hundred miles per hour like a dying meteor. In my final moments, completely numb, I dialed her number using my satellite phone.

She thought I was just throwing a tantrum.

"Ethan, this trophy means nothing to you, but it’s Julian’s only chance," she snapped through the static.

"If it bothers you that much, I’ll marry you right after the competition, okay? Just let him have this."

Little did she know, according to competition safety rules, every second of my bodycam footage would automatically upload to the cloud and stream publicly if I died.

Her crime would soon be laid bare before the entire world.

...

I stood among the roaring crowd at the Pacific Skydiving Championship. Banners fluttered in the coastal breeze, and cheers filled the air, but not a single person noticed me.

Because I was already dead. My body was resting at the bottom of the icy blue ocean.

Up on the podium, Julian stood on the highest tier, hoisting the gold trophy that represented the pinnacle of professional skydiving. Right below him stood my fiancée, Chloe. Together, they smiled radiant smiles, their hands clasped around the cup.

I was just a wandering ghost, forced to watch the glory that belonged to me being handed to Julian.

Julian looked down at Chloe with misty eyes, his voice trembling with emotion as he delivered his speech into the microphone:

"Without Chloe’s unwavering support, I never could have achieved this honor today!"

Chloe rubbed the back of her neck with a bashful smile.

"Julian earned this through his own sweat," she said softly. "When no one was watching, he jumped from six thousand feet over and over again. He knows every gust of wind and every inch of this sky."

Before she could finish, Julian leaned down and planted a sloppy, passionate kiss on her cheek, leaving a bright red lipstick mark behind.

The crowd went wild, chanting enthusiastically:

"One more! Kiss her again!"

Chloe squeezed his hand gently and offered the audience an apologetic smile.

"Next time, guys. This stage belongs to skydiving honors, not our romance."

The spectators cheered even louder, surging toward the stage to celebrate with them.

I stood there motionless as people walked right through my translucent silhouette. A crushing weight pressed against my chest.

Chloe was supposed to be my woman. That trophy was supposed to be mine. I was the one who should have been standing under that spotlight.

Instead, I was trapped in the cold shadows, unable to ever feel the warmth of the sun again.

Memories of my final moments flashed uncontrollably in my mind.

"Ethan, this race is just another feather in your cap, but it’s Julian’s last chance. Can’t you just back out and let him take it?"

"If you do, I promise I’ll marry you the second the event is over, alright?"

Those were the words I had begged to hear for years. I only got them right before I died. But by then, it was already too late.

Only in death did I realize she had tampered with my main parachute just so Julian could win.

What she didn’t expect was that my reserve chute would malfunction as well. I hurled toward the raging sea at terminal velocity. My flesh shattered against the water, yet my soul somehow drifted right back here.

The person who killed me was the woman I loved more than life itself.

And now, her adoring gaze was fixed on another man.

Watching their picture-perfect happiness, my heart turned to ice.

Skydiving is an extreme sport with zero margin for error.

I had been the undisputed favorite. Julian had always been the perpetual runner-up.

Because of that, he had always treated me like a thorn in his side. Whenever I competed, he was doomed to take second place.

Just yesterday, after I cooked a lavish dinner for Chloe, she had looked at me with hesitation and asked, "Ethan... can you skip this championship?"

"Why don't we just fly to the Maldives for a vacation instead?"

I had frowned. She knew better than anyone how hard I had trained for this event over the past year. I had made four or five jumps a day, pushing through brutal weather just to master the drop zone.

All of it was for that historic tenth consecutive title.

I had told her flat out: absolutely not.

She had looked annoyed, but dropped the subject.

Only when I died did I finally understand what she had meant.

She wanted me to forfeit so Julian could steal the spotlight.

She used to tell me that I was the love of her life.

Yet the moment Julian reentered her world, she changed completely.

She began chatting with him on SnapChat every single night until dawn.

Even with me sitting right beside her, she treated me like a ghost long before I actually became one.

Down near the stage, reporters thrust their microphones toward Chloe.

"Miss Miller! Your fiancé, Ethan Cole, was aiming for a historic tenth consecutive victory today, but he failed to show up at the finish line. How do you feel about this upset?"

Chloe’s face stiffened instantly. Deep down, she knew that spot belonged to me.

Julian quickly grabbed the mic, stepping in front of her.

"Nobody stays undefeated forever in sports. Even Mike Tyson got old. Maybe Ethan’s prime is just behind him. We all need to accept the results with grace."

Listening to his smug voice, I laughed bitterly.

No one knew better than Julian how he had obtained that trophy.

It was soaked in my blood.

Because this was an international competition broadcasted live, countless people had placed bets on sportsbooks.

With my flawless track record, millions of dollars had been wagered on my victory.

"Bullshit! Rigged!"

"The sportsbooks pulled some shady crap! Refund our money!"

Bettors in the crowd began screaming, furious over the unexpected upset.

Chloe’s expression remained composed as she spoke into the mic: "Athletes make mistakes. There was no foul play. Ethan lost today, but I’m sure he’ll train harder for the next event."

Right then, an audience member staring at his phone suddenly yelled:

"Holy shit! A competitor’s parachute failed! Someone crashed into the ocean!"

"Look at that custom canopy... Isn't that Ethan Cole’s gear?!"

The entire venue fell dead silent. Even Chloe’s eyes flashed with pure panic.