That's when the universe, that sadistic bitch, proved she listens when you taunt her. Jinxed. Flawlessly. Like every dumbass hero who ever smirked "what could possibly go wrong?" right before karma dropkicked them into a dumpster fire.
My phone didn't just buzz. It seized against my thigh like a horny chihuahua humping a leg—violent, insistent, annoying.
"And there it is," ARIA sighed, dripping synthetic schadenfreude. "The cosmic joke writes itself. Please, tell me you recognize that number."
Isabella's name glowed. I stabbed speakerphone. Her voice hit the Mercedes' interior like shattered glass.
"Peter?" Raw. Fractured. barely holding syllables together. "I'm so sorry, but… I don't know who else to call."
Madison's head snapped toward me, eyes narrowed. Sofia tensed beside her in the back. Amanda was in return snored softly on the seat with Sofia on her lap, oblivious to incoming Armageddon.
