My stomach twisted. “That’s not true,” I breathed. “Isn’t it?” she hissed. “I was scared when Kingston showed up. When I tried to run, you grabbed my hand tighter. You wouldn’t let go. Remember?” Her eyes gleamed with triumph. “You were sad, so you pushed me toward him. You wanted him to distract himself with me. Admit it!” Her words slammed into me so hard I stumbled. That day. That god-awful day Kingston raped me in his office and I came home hoping someone would believe me and defend me. I had been terrified, confused, bleeding, hurting. And when Chloe tried to leave, I had clung to her because I needed her. Because I didn’t want to be alone with my assailant standing next to me. But she saw something else. “I didn’t… I didn’t mean…” My voice broke. “Chloe, I was scared. I wasn’t trying to—” “Good,” she whispered. “I’m glad you remember.” Her shoulders deflated. “Now you understand why I hate you the way I do.” Her face was washed with tears and snot, her hands shaking uncontrollably. For the first time, she didn’t look like the villain she always played. She looked like a child who had been broken by the same monster who broke me. But unlike me, she never escaped the lie. I opened my mouth, but nothing came out. Every explanation sounded like an excuse. Every word tasted like guilt. Roman’s arm wrapped around me because my legs were about to give out. I leaned into him helplessly. My voice finally returned in a thin, trembling whisper. “Asher Kingston is dead, Chlo,” I said. “But even from the grave, he’s still controlling us. He spun lies so deep, so perfectly crafted, that they grew roots in your mind and strangled everything else.” My throat burned. “He turned me from a victim into an accomplice in your eyes. He raped me, Chloe. He hurt me. But he made you believe I helped him. He wanted us both ruined.” A sob caught in my chest, painful and sharp. Chloe shook her head defiantly, choosing not to believe me. “No. You're lying. I refuse to believe you.” “How the hell am I supposed to clear my name,” I whispered, “when the person who destroyed our lives is still doing it even after he’s gone?” The room stayed painfully silent. And for the first time in my life… I didn’t know if redemption was even possible. ~~~~~~~ Chapter 198: We're All Different Savannah For a long, suffocating moment after the words left my mouth, silence pressed in from every corner of the apartment. It was the kind of silence that made your ears ring, made your own heartbeat sound like a hammer inside your skull. Chloe stood rigidly beside Paula, her arms crossed tight across her chest as if holding herself together. I stood across from her, Roman hovering protectively behind me, one hand lightly at my back, as if anticipating that I might break or collapse. I took a shaky step toward my sister and Roman’s grip tightened instantly. “Sav, no,” he warned softly. But I ignored him. I had to. There were some distances only I could cross. I took another step toward my sister, even though my knees felt like they were made of water. “Chloe,” I whispered, voice barely steady, “listen to me…” She turned away sharply, wiping a tear with a quick, angry swipe. “No. I don’t want to listen. You’re only going to lie again. That’s all you do. All you do is lie, Savannah. You pretend you’re the victim so people will take your side. All you’ve ever done is twist things to make yourself look innocent.” Her voice splintered on the last words, but the bitterness stayed. My stomach twisted, but I forced myself to stay steady. She really believed that about me? Well, if she wasn't going to believe me, then I was going to continue screaming it loud until it got stuck in her head. “He raped me,” I said, louder than I intended. The words echoed against the walls. “That's the truth!” Chloe froze. I could see the way her spine locked up, the way her breath hitched slightly before she snatched it back, refusing to show weakness. “Asher Kingston raped me!” The words burst out of me again, raw and loud and impossible to take back. “He wasn’t my boyfriend. I wasn’t sneaking around with him. What you saw that day—what you thought was my period—wasn’t that. It was… it was the aftermath. It was after he raped me in his office.” My voice broke. “Then he drove to our house to talk to your father like nothing happened—” “Our father.” Chloe corrected. “He's your father too. You keep saying ‘Julius’ or ‘your ‘father’.” “He's not my father. Just yours. But that's a story for another day.” Chloe stiffened, but she didn’t turn. I pushed forward. “Please,” I said, voice cracking, “you have to believe me. I would never have sold you out. I would never have taken you to that cursed house if I knew what he was doing to you behind that mirror. I would’ve burned the whole damn neighborhood down before letting that happen. I swear on my life, Chlo Chlo.” Her shoulders jerked at the nickname—the one I hadn’t used in years. Slowly, painfully slowly, she turned her head toward me. Her eyes were red around the edges, rimmed with pain and disbelief. Her lips trembled. The nickname hit her like a soft blow because I knew that look on her face. That was the look of someone who wanted to believe. Someone holding on to the last thread of resistance.That tiny reaction—her turning—felt like the first breath after nearly drowning. I stepped closer again, and this time, she didn’t move away. I swallowed hard. “I need you to hear me,” I continued. “That day… the day everything went to hell… I’d gone to class like normal. After lectures, Professor Kingston told me to meet him in his office. I didn’t suspect anything, Chloe. You should know I didn’t. I trusted him. I trusted him like family. We all did.” My throat tightened. My hands trembled. I paused, trying to swallow the panic clawing its way up. Roman’s warm hand slid into mine, grounding me. His fingers threaded through mine, steady and firm. I leaned back just enough to feel him at my spine. He didn’t say anything, but he didn’t even need to. His presence was the anchor I needed. Chloe and Paula watched us in silence. Chloe’s jaw clenched. Her eyes glistened. I forced myself to continue. “Asher Kingston raped me that day, Chloe. That’s the truth. I never dated him. I never wanted him. I was never his. I saw him as an uncle, nothing more. And I swear to God, that is the truth.” A sob clawed out of my chest. “He forced me to the ground. He held me down. He forced himself on me. He said disgusting things to me. Things I still hear in my head.” My voice wavered. “No one believed me. Not even my mother. Then he did it the second time because I dared to speak about the first assault.”