Chapter 10

As the authorities arrived and hauled Nathan away, he suddenly emerged from his stupor, struggling fiercely like a trapped beast.

He gestured at me, yelling incomprehensibly.

"You ought to be detaining her! She's responsible for this! She's the actual killer!"

His visage contorted with fury as he bellowed, "Claire, you murderer! Why didn't you perish on that peak?!"

I remained there, dispassionately observing his breakdown, his frantic accusations reverberating through the frigid evening air.

The officers pushed him into the vehicle, his cries fading as the door slammed shut, confining him.

A breeze swept along the road, lifting the thin snow cover. Momentarily, it evoked memories of the snow on that mountain years ago—tinted crimson, weighing on my conscience like an immovable load.

But now, the wind had finally swept it all away.

The investigation into the missing Iridium-192 had at last concluded.