110

110
 Selene:

It’s been three hours since I told Maximus everything. How Maya was the one behind our children’s disappearance, and how Nelly had been working with Jess to have us killed. Me and the kids.

He was in complete disbelief.

When Anna and Asher got home from school, the first thing they did was run around the house, calling for Nelly. My chest tightened. How do I explain to them that the woman they adored..the one who tucked them in at night, played hide-and-seek with them, and made them laugh…was the same woman who orchestrated their kidnapping? The same one who’s been trying to end my life for months?

How do you even begin to say something like that?

It hit my mom the hardest. She’s known Nelly for years, loved her like one of her own. To find out it was all a lie... it’s been crushing. It’s a different kind of heartbreak when betrayal comes from someone you called family.

She begged me not to tell the kids. Said they’re too young to carry something this heavy. And maybe she’s right. One day, I’ll explain it all to them. But not now.

So I told them Nelly had to leave because her mom’s sick, and that she won’t be coming back. It’s a soft lie, but one I’m willing to tell for their sake.

After I sent Maximus the text, along with everything I’d uncovered. He called me.

Reassured me.

Said everything was going to be okay.

That he’d make a call to someone at the department who could act fast.

Now I’m pacing the room, my heart thudding so loud I swear I can hear it echoing in the silence.

Jess can’t get away with this. She can’t slip out of the city before justice catches up to her.

I need that arrest to happen. I need this nightmare to end.

Then suddenly, I hear my phone chime, loud and sharp.

I lunge for it, snatching it off the table, my hands trembling.

A message from Maximus.

“Selene, head to the station now. I’ll meet you there soon.”

I don’t waste a second.

With Angela keeping the kids busy, laughing and playing inside, I grab my keys, fly out the door, and jump into the car. My hands are trembling as I grip the steering wheel, my foot slamming the gas.

The drive is a blur..just a few minutes, maybe less..and then I’m pulling up at the station.

My heart pounds like a war drum as I park and throw the door open. The moment I step out, I freeze.

There it is.

The police station.

I just stand there for a beat, staring at the building like it’s haunted. My legs feel like lead, and every nerve in my body screams.

This place...

It’s where Neo’s still locked up. Still waiting for a trial that feels like it’s never going to happen.

The memories rush back…cold floors, harsh lights, the ache of helplessness. And now I’m here again.

I don’t know if I’m ready for this.

Then—

A light tap lands on my shoulder.

I flinch.

I spin around, heart in my throat, and come face-to-face with the last person I ever expected to see out here, walking free.

The waiter.

I stumble back, my breath catching. My mind goes blank for a second as panic slams into me.

“What are you doing here?” I manage to choke out. “How are you even out?”

He poisoned me. Left me for dead. He was supposed to be behind bars.

How the hell is he standing in front of me like nothing ever happened?

He must see the confusion written all over my face, because he starts speaking right away.

“What am I doing out of jail?” he asks. “I can’t tell you that. But I didn’t escape, if that’s what you’re thinking. I just... I needed to find you. I needed to apologize.”

“Apologize?” I echo. I take a step back, instinctively. My body remembers what my mind is trying to process..this man nearly ended my life. Trust isn’t something he gets from me.

But he keeps talking, his eyes wild with something between desperation and fear. “I lied,” he says quietly. “I had to. I didn’t have a choice. I did it to protect my family.”

He inches closer. I retreat again, every muscle in my body tense and ready to run.

“I was paid,” he says, lowering his voice. “Thousands of dollars. To kill you. But I didn’t do it. I couldn’t. And now I’m on the run because I didn’t follow through with what she wanted. Please. You have to believe me.” His voice cracks. “Your friend—Neo..he’s not the one behind it. He didn’t do anything. He’s innocent. Please… drop the charges. Let him go.”

It feels like the ground just gave out beneath me.

What?

My chest tightens like a vise, and I suddenly can’t breathe.

Neo? Innocent?

The truth hits me like a punch to the gut. I stagger back, blinking, trying to make sense of what I just heard.

“Who was it?” I demand, my voice trembling but firm. “Tell me. Who paid you to kill me? I need a name!”

Something in me tells me it’s Jess. That bitch!

He freezes.

His fear is unmistakable now, practically written across his face. He’s dressed like he’s trying to disappear—hood up, sunglasses on, sleeves pulled low—but I don’t care about any of that. I don’t care how hard he’s trying to stay hidden. What I care about is the truth.

He should’ve thought of that before poisoning me. Before selling his soul.

You don’t make deals with the devil and expect to walk away clean. The devil doesn’t do clean.

Finally, he speaks.

“The woman who gave me the poison… she said our boss was your step-sister. Jess Norman.”

He pulls out his phone with a shaky hand and begins swiping.

“I have proof,” he mutters.

And he does.

Screenshots. Messages from Jess. Threats. Promises. Orders. She told him to finish the job..or she’d finish him.

Then he shows me the bank transactions. Large deposits. Her name. Her account.

Everything.

I nearly drop the phone.

Hearing it from Nelly was one thing. But seeing Jess’s words, her threats, the payments..it all hits differently. Harder. Heavier.

“You’re not leaving town,” I snap, my voice sharp and cold. “You hear me?”

He looks like he wants to bolt, but I step closer, daring him to run.

“You’re going to testify against Jess. That’s the only thing standing between you and a prison cell. And if you even thinkabout skipping town? I’ll find you. You and your entire family. I swear, I’ll make sure you spend the rest of your pathetic life rotting in a cell.”

My hands are shaking now, but not from fear. From fury.

“Because of you, I sent an innocent man to jail. My friend, Neo..he’s in a cage right now, paying the price for your betrayal. For her hate. Do you even realize what you’ve don-“

I don’t even finish my sentence before I’m sprinting into the police station.

The officers at the front desk glance up, startled, like I’ve completely lost it. Maybe I have. But I don’t care.

I barrel down the hallway and nearly crash straight into Detective Rivers. He grips my arm just in time to steady me.

“Miss Norman?” he asks, brows furrowing. “Is everything alright? Are you here about the case? We were just-.”

“No,” I gasp, shaking my head. “Detective, y..you have to release my friend, Neo. H..he’s innocent.”

The words pour out before I can stop them, my voice rising with every syllable.

“I just spoke to the real culprit. The waiter…he confessed. He showed me the proof. Neo isn’t guilty. Please… you have to let him go. I need to see him.”

Rivers stares at me for a beat, clearly caught off guard. But then, without saying much, he gives a quick nod and turns down the hallway.

I follow close behind, heart hammering against my ribs.

When we reach the holding cells, my breath catches.

Neo’s sitting on the bench, hunched over, looking exhausted. His hair’s a mess. His shirt is wrinkled and stained, still the same one he wore the day he was arrested. His eyes flicker up when he hears us, and the moment they land on me, his entire expression hardens.

Pain slices through me. I did this. I put that look in his eyes.

Detective Rivers unlocks the door. “You’re free to go,” he says.

Neo doesn’t move. He just stares at me like I’m someone he no longer recognizes.

“I’m so sorry, Neo,” I whisper, stepping forward. “I know there’s nothing I can say to make this right. I let you down. I let them blame you for something you didn’t do… because I was too caught up in my own anger and fear to see clearly.”

Tears sting my eyes.

“I put you through h..hell, and you didn’t deserve a single second of it. I’m so, so sorry.”

I reach for Neo’s hand, desperate for even the smallest sign that he’ll forgive me..but he pulls back, shaking his head slowly.

“I don’t know what hurts more,” he says, his voice tight with emotion. Then he lets out a short, bitter laugh that feels like it’s scraping straight from his chest. “That you didn’t believe me… or that you believed a complete stranger instead. Just like that. You let them turn you against me, Selene. You nearly destroyed everything I’ve worked for.”

He pauses, and i can see tears gathering at the corner of his eyes. 

“You almost ruined my life. How do you think that feels?!?”

Then he turns.

“Goodbye, Selene.”

I don’t move. I just stand there like something hollowed me out.

He’s right. Every word.

I let my fear speak louder than reason, louder than the years of trust between us.

And now he’s gone.

Tears blur my vision, slipping silently down my cheeks.

I start to lift my hand to wipe them away, but before I can, I feel an arm gently wrap around my waist..and a soft handkerchief brushing the tears from my face.

I look up, and meet Maximus’s eyes.

Those deep, beautiful eyes of his.

He hesitates for just a moment, like he’s trying to find the right words, then starts rubbing slow, calming circles across my back.

“It’s okay, Selene,” he says gently. 

“I’m s..such a fool.”

“No, no you’re not.” he murmurs. “All that sadness? Turn it into fire. Aim it at the one who really deserves it.”

His hand presses slightly firmer against my back.

“Because today, Jess isn’t walking away. Not this time. Come on. Let’s go finish this.”

I blink once and then face him. He’s staring at me now.

I’ve been feeling guilty ever since I knew Kylie isn’t his. He deserves to know, right? I need to tell him. How Jess had deceived him. How Mason, that disgusting brother of his, is the biological father of Kylie. And not him.

“Maximus.. I..” I stammer.

“What’s it, Selene?” He tilts his head.

I take a deep breath. Swallow hard.

And then say, “I need to tell you something. It’s about Kylie.”