Chapter 154: Chapter 154

Chloe’s POV

She looked older in that moment.

Smaller.

“Jack didn’t deserve prison,” she muttered.

I felt something inside me harden.

“My sister didn’t deserve death,” I said quietly.

The words landed heavier than shouting ever could.

For a second, Margaret’s eyes flickered.

Not remorse.

Recognition.

“You still blame us,” she said.

“I don’t blame,” I replied. “I remember.”

The guard shifted behind her.

Time was almost up.

“You’ll regret this,” she whispered.

“No,” I said calmly. “I won’t.”

I stood up slowly.

She watched me carefully, her pride refusing to crumble completely.

“Enjoy the rest of your life,” I said. “You have plenty of time to think.”

I did not wait for her response.

As I walked out, I felt lighter.

Not because revenge tasted sweet.

But because closure did.

Margaret no longer haunted me.

She was confined.

And I was free.

They caught Sylvia three weeks later.

She had not escaped as cleverly as she thought. Her passport had been flagged. One of the offshore transfers tied to the embezzled funds had led investigators straight to her. She had tried to negotiate. Tried to claim she was manipulated. Tried to position herself as another victim.

It did not work.

When I heard she had been detained and formally charged, I did not feel shock. I felt inevitability.

Still, I went to see her.

The holding facility where she was kept was different from the others. Smaller. Temporary. Sterile. The walls were pale and the lighting unforgiving. There was no glamour here. No audience. No filters.

She was escorted in wearing a plain detention uniform. Her hair, once styled to perfection, was pulled back carelessly. Her makeup was gone. Her eyes looked darker without it.

But the attitude remained.

When she saw me, her lips curved into something bitter.

“So you came,” she said, taking the seat across from me.

“I did,” I replied calmly.

She did not wait for a formal start. She leaned forward immediately.

“You look satisfied,” she said. “Does it feel good? Destroying everyone?”

I folded my hands neatly on the table.

“I didn’t destroy anyone,” I answered. “You all destroyed yourselves.”

She let out a sharp laugh.

“That’s convenient.”

“It’s true.”

Her gaze dropped to my body briefly, noticing the way motherhood had softened and strengthened me at the same time.

“You really think you won?” she asked.

“I’m not competing with you,” I said.

“You always were,” she snapped. “You just pretended you weren’t.”

I studied her quietly.

Sylvia had always thrived on comparison. On being seen. On being chosen.

“You wanted Drake,” she continued. “You wanted the company. You wanted power. You wanted everything.”

“I wanted peace,” I said simply.

She scoffed.

“Peace? You seduced a married man.”

“You chased a married man,” I corrected.

Her eyes flared.

I almost smiled.

The silence that followed was sharp.

“You took everything from me,” she muttered. “The spotlight. Jack. The attention. The life I was supposed to have.”

“You built your life on proximity,” I replied. “Not substance.”

Her jaw clenched.

“You think you’re better than me now? CEO. Mother. The chosen one.”

“I think I survived,” I said evenly.

She leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms.

“You don’t even belong in that world,” she said. “You came from nothing.”

“And I built something,” I answered.

Her lips trembled slightly, though she tried to hide it.

“You don’t understand,” she said quietly. “I was supposed to rise. I was supposed to marry into power. That was my way out.”

“And you thought stealing would secure it?” I asked.

“I thought aligning with the right people would.”

“You aligned with criminals.”

She looked away for a moment, her composure cracking just slightly.

“You ruined my reputation,” she whispered.

“You recorded mine,” I replied calmly. “You spread lies. You stood beside people who framed me.”

Her eyes flicked back to mine.

“You’re not innocent,” she said. “You slept your way up.”

I did not flinch.

“I worked my way up,” I answered. “And I fought my way out.”

She stared at me as though trying to find insecurity.

“I will never be below you,” she said suddenly. “Even in here.”

“This isn’t about above or below,” I replied. “It’s about accountability.”

“You think your life is better than mine now?” she challenged.

I considered the question.

“My life is honest,” I said.

She shook her head.

“You’ll lose him,” she said. “Men like Drake get bored.”

“Then I will still have myself,” I answered.

That unsettled her more than any insult could have.

“You sound so calm,” she muttered. “Like you’re untouchable.”

“I’m not untouchable,” I said. “I’m just done being afraid.”

Her fingers tapped nervously against the table.

“They won’t sentence me like they did to Margaret,” she insisted. “I’ll negotiate. I’ll testify. I’ll make a deal.”

“Maybe,” I said.

“You think this is the end for me?” she pressed.

“It’s a consequence,” I replied.

She studied me one last time.

“You think your life can never fall?” she asked quietly.

“It already did,” I said. “And I rebuilt it.”

That silenced her.

For a moment, I saw the girl she had once been. Ambitious. Insecure. Desperate to be chosen.

“I didn’t take everything from you,” I said softly. “You handed it away.”

The guard signaled that time was up.

Sylvia leaned forward one last time.

“You’ll regret this,” she whispered.

“No,” I replied calmly. “I won’t.”

I stood and walked out without looking back.

Her voice did not follow me this time.

And for the first time since all of this began, I felt completely unburdened.

Not because they were imprisoned.

But because I was no longer tied to their chaos.

My life was not better because theirs collapsed.

It was better because I finally chose myself.