That was it. That was the breaking point. If I didn’t intervene, someone was going to get hurt. Or arrested. Or both. “Chloe,” I said softly, “it’s dangerous being here with her. Paula has a criminal record. If you’re here voluntarily, you look like an accomplice. If anything happens—” “Where is safe?” she snapped. “Home? I’ll probably be arrested the moment I arrive for trying to frame Dean for my kidnapping and murder.” Before I could answer, Roman stepped in front of me. “And that’s such a bad thing? What, you don’t want consequences for your actions? What sort of person are you?” Chloe stiffened like he’d struck her. “I’m never going to prison,” she said sharply. “I’m not going to spend the rest of my life behind bars wearing some hideous orange jumpsuit. Think again if you think I’ll let that happen.” Roman stepped closer—deliberately, intimidatingly. “Good thing you’ve never been a match for me, Blondie.” Chloe’s face drained of color. Her mouth trembled, opening but no words left. Paula stepped in front of her like a guard dog. “Not if I can help it, tough guy.” Roman laughed. Actually laughed. The sound bounced off the cramped apartment walls, bitter and amused. “You think you can challenge me?” he asked, eyes glittering with disbelief. “Let me be clear, junkie—a million of you can’t do a damn thing to me. I will crush you, literally and figuratively. Let that sink in.” I felt my pulse thundering in my ears. This wasn’t going anywhere good. Roman’s temper was a ticking bomb, and Paula was unpredictable, and Chloe looked like a trapped, cornered animal. I turned to my sister. Softening my voice. Focusing only on her. “Chloe, you still haven’t told us who she is to you. Is she… dealing you anything? Are you using?” Chloe’s head jerked up sharply. “No,” she said vehemently. “She’s the person who saved me.” Roman scoffed. “What is she, your life force?” Chloe lifted her chin, defiant now. “She’s the person I love.” Silence. Absolute, suffocating silence. My heart dropped straight into my stomach. What? Roman blinked. Then again. “Come again?” Chloe reached for Paula’s hand. Paula laced their fingers together possessively. Chloe’s voice didn’t tremble this time. “We’re in love,” she said. “Meet my girlfriend.” And that was when everything, absolutely everything, shattered. ~~~~~~~ Chapter 200: You Need Help Savannah For a moment, none of us moved. No one breathed. No one blinked. And then, unexpectedly Roman let out a sharp, incredulous laugh—the kind that sounded almost painful. “Remember when you said my side of the family was worse?” he asked, running his hand through his hair. “Yeah. I don’t think so anymore.” I shot him a look but he only grinned wider. I tore my gaze away from him because if I focused on anything other than the chaos unraveling in front of me, I’d lose my mind. “That’s not true,” I murmured, mostly to myself. “That’s impossible… What about Dean?” His name was the first that flew out of my mouth, but it didn’t matter. I just needed something—anything—to make sense. Chloe shrugged, her face annoyingly calm. “Fuck him,” she said flatly. “I never liked him.” I blinked twice. “What? Chloe, you literally made out with him. I saw you. You were even having sex with him!” My voice rose without my permission. Chloe stiffened at the reminder—barely, but I caught it. Her eyes flicked to Paula before she tilted her chin up. “Well… I swing both ways,” she declared, attempting confidence. “And besides, I wanted to cause you pain. I loved seeing you cry.” She smirked like it was some sort of victory. She further added, “Why choose one flavour when I can have the whole menu?” Roman groaned into a laugh. “Fucking hell. Your family tree is nuts, Savannah.” But I wasn’t laughing. Something inside me cracked. “No,” I said sharply. “You’re lying. You’re up to something. What about—” I searched desperately for another name, another detail, something to break whatever twisted story she was weaving. “What about Zane? You used to date him.” She rolled her eyes. “And?” I pointed at Paula, anger rising like a wave I couldn’t pull back even if I wanted to. “You dated both brother and sister? That’s disgusting, Chloe. You need help!”“I don’t need help,” she snapped. “Least of all from you. Leave me alone.” “And Zane?” I whispered, the words burning my tongue. “Wasn’t he… the father of the baby?” Chloe nodded without shame. “Yes. He was. It was a mistake. We hooked up one night and it happened. I didn’t know the idiot would ruin everything by getting me pregnant.” She folded her arms with an irritated pout, like this was somehow everyone else’s fault but hers. “If he hadn’t done that, I wouldn’t have had to pin it on Dean. And then everything wouldn’t have blown up in my face.” She huffed. “I’d have probably succeeded in ruining you. Dean messed up everything. So annoying.” The world tilted. It physically tilted. My knees weakened and I had to grab onto Roman’s shirt for balance. The words hit me like a fist—every syllable confirming the truth I already feared. The bonding I thought we’d done? The emotional progress? The idea that maybe, finally, she’d become a person I could reach—someone I could understand—even just a little? All of it had been in my head. All of it. Chloe hadn’t changed. She wasn’t healing. She wasn’t remorseful. She wasn’t confused or lost or scared.No. She was exactly the same vile, manipulative, selfish person she’d always been. Something inside me snapped. I didn’t plan it. I didn’t think. My body just moved. Crack. My palm connected with her face in a slap so sharp and vicious it echoed. Her head whipped so fast I feared I’d actually hurt her. She stumbled, her hand flying to her cheek as she let out a shriek that pierced the air. “What the hell is your problem?!” she screamed. Paula took one look at Chloe and lunged toward me with fire in her eyes probably ready to attack, ready to do God-knows-what. But she didn’t get far. “Don’t even think about it.” Roman didn’t raise his voice. He didn’t even move an inch. But his tone froze the air. Paula stopped mid-stride. Her rage turned into something else entirely—a stuttering fear she tried to hide but couldn’t. “She hit her!” Paula snapped, pointing with a shaking finger. “Why would you hit her?!”Crack. My hand flew before I even saw it happening. Another slap. This time across Paula’s face. Her mouth dropped open. Chloe gasped like someone had thrown acid at her. “Savannah!” she screeched. I held Paula’s stunned gaze. “Stay out of my discussion.” “What the fuck is wrong with you?!” Chloe shouted. “You,” I said, turning toward her. “You are what’s wrong with me. You. Chloe.” My voice stopped trembling. It sharpened. “I’m so unbelievably stupid for thinking you changed. For thinking any part of you wanted peace. Or family. Or honesty.” Her mouth fell open a fraction. “I actually believed I was talking to a sensible person. I actually believed the little bonding moments mattered to you. That maybe—just maybe—you’d finally stopped being a whiny, self-centered little bitch.” She recoiled. For the first time, she looked genuinely shocked. I didn’t stop.“How do you live with yourself?” I demanded. “How do you look in the mirror knowing how much pain you cause? Why do you love destroying everything? Why is misery your favourite hobby?” For a moment, Chloe’s expression wavered—hurt, something real—but she buried it instantly, replacing it with that hateful smirk. “Finally,” she sneered. “There it is. I knew it. I knew your little caring act was fake. You don’t care about me. You don't care what I've been through!” A tear slid down my cheek. I wiped it away before it could fall further. “Yes,” I said. “That’s exactly what you think whenever life doesn’t revolve around you. You turn everyone into the enemy.” Her eyes narrowed. “Well, congratulations,” I said coldly. “I’ll play your game. I don’t care about you. Not anymore. I don’t give a damn what you do or what happens to you.” “Fine! I don’t care about you either!” she yelled. “Good.” I stepped closer, forcing her to meet my gaze. “But let me make this very clear to you that you are going to New Hope, and you’re going to answer for everything. You and your girlfriend.” I pointed at Paula. “You’re going home. You’re going to talk to Mom. And then you’re going to the station, and you’re going to tell the police that Dean didn’t do anything.” Chloe stepped forward too, chest out, chin high, trying to intimidate me. “And if I don’t?” she hissed. “What are you going to do?” Before I could answer, Roman moved. He didn't move quickly but dramatically. Just one, intentional step. The floor creaked under his weight. “How would you like a bullet to the head, Chloe?” he asked softly.