Prologue

No, no, no. This can't be happening.

I stared in disbelief at my own body, lying lifeless on the ground, blood pouring down my face. My heart raced, though I couldn't feel it anymore. I couldn't feel anything.The sound of sirens filled the air as paramedics rushed out of their ambulance, scrambling to get to my car teetering dangerously on the edge of the cliff. The car... it was unrecognizable, smashed beyond repair, glass scattered everywhere. I watched as they pulled my body from the wreckage, carefully placing it on a stretcher. My face was pale, lifeless. That's me, I thought. But I'm right here… How is this possible?

One of the nurses checked my pulse, then looked up and shook her head. "I'm sorry, but he's not breathing anymore."

Wait—what? I'm not breathing? No, no, no, that's not possible. This isn't real. 

I turned to see my mother, her face twisted in agony as she stumbled out of the other car, Finn by her side. She screamed my name, her voice filled with so much pain it hurt to hear. "Grey! My son!" Her voice echoed, raw, desperate. Finn tried to hold her, tried to keep her from collapsing, but nothing could comfort her. 

"Mom, I'm here!" I shouted, rushing toward her. "I'm right here!" But she didn't see me. She didn't hear me. No one could. 

I screamed, waving my arms, shouting louder, "I'm right here! Can't you see me?" But I was invisible. It was like I didn't exist.

Panic surged through me. What's happening? Am I... dead? No. This can't be happening. I can't be dead. 

I watched helplessly as the paramedics loaded my body into the ambulance, the doors slamming shut behind them…

I tried to think. How did this happen? How did I end up like this?Flashes of the crash flooded my mind. The last thing I remembered was driving—speeding down a hill, trying to escape. But escape from what? Or who? There had been headlights behind me, too close, too fast. Someone had been chasing me, forcing me off the road.

Murder. Someone had tried to murder me.

Who would want me dead? Sure, I've crossed a few people, made some enemies along the way. But murder? Why would anyone go this far?

I stumbled backward, trying to piece it together, but it was useless. Panic wrapped around me. I can't die like this. Not now, not like this.Not with so many questions left unanswered.

Tears blurred my vision as I screamed into the night. "I want a second chance! This can't be the end. It can't! Please! Someone—anyone—give me another chance!"

The world around me grew darker, my cries fading into the silence. Everything I knew—everything I was—was slipping away.

But this isn't where it ends. No, I refuse to let it end like this.

Let me tell you how it all started.