The referee gave the signal.
The starting gun echoed across the ice rink.
Competitors shot forward like arrows from a bow.
Ethan Sullivan immediately sensed Sophia Sullivan's presence beside him.
He hadn't expected her to join this speed skating challenge.
Memories flashed back to their first encounter.
Sophia had handled firearms with lethal precision that night.
She was never the demure, traditional type.
The adrenaline rush of short track speed skating suited her perfectly.
That intoxicating aura of danger.
Sophia focused intently on the track ahead.
Wind roared past her ears.
Extreme speed set her blood on fire.
The mysterious skater codenamed Zephyr took an early lead.
"Strategic pacing?" she murmured to herself.
Sophia was an endurance skater by nature.
Her signature move was conserving energy for the final laps.
Yet Zephyr was sprinting full throttle from the start.
Clearly trying to disrupt opponents' rhythms.
She decided to match his strategy.
Soon they left the pack far behind.
Gasps erupted from the stands.
"Someone's actually keeping up with Zephyr!"
"Maintaining this speed into lap three!"
"That woman might overtake him!"
Liam Winston's nails dug into his palms.
This defied all conventional tactics.
Sophia's explosive power seemed unnatural.
"She'll burn out before the finish," he cursed silently.
Ethan spotted the flash of red in his periphery.
A faint smile touched his lips.
He hadn't felt this racing thrill in years.
Sophia clearly had professional training.
How many more secrets did she hide?
They completed four laps ahead of schedule.
As they rejoined the group, chaos erupted.
Sophia sensed danger instantly.
Two skaters moved to flank her.
A collision with the advertising boards would be catastrophic at this speed.
"That's illegal interference," she warned coldly.
The skaters ignored her.
Instead, they accelerated their approach.
Ethan noticed the anomaly immediately.
Targeted attacks were rare in amateur competitions.
Their coordination seemed rehearsed.
Without hesitation, he cut between them.
Sophia reacted simultaneously.
She dodged the trap with fluid grace.
But sudden stops risked loss of control.
She chose to accelerate through the gap instead.
The audience gaped in shock.
"That speed rivals professionals!"
"Zephyr's half a lap behind now!"
"Why is the referee running to the sidelines?"
Then came the second ambush.
Both attackers changed trajectory.
One aimed for a frontal collision.
The other blocked escape routes.
Sophia recognized the lethal intent instantly.
This wasn't just rule-breaking.
Sicilian remnants?
Too sloppy for professionals.
At the last second, she surged forward.
Slipping through the narrowest opening.
Zephyr smoothly blocked pursuit.
CRASH.
The two assailants collided violently.
Slamming into the rink's safety barriers.
The crowd erupted in uproar.