SIENNA POV
I'm standing in the police station parking lot, watching them take Julian away, and something inside me just... snaps.
I'm done crying. Done being helpless. Done letting other people destroy us.
"Mara." I grab her arm. She's still sobbing, barely standing. "We're going to fix this."
"How?" She wipes her eyes. "Dad just got arrested. Tyler betrayed us. Vanessa and Lyra have everything they wanted. It's over."
"It's not over until I say it's over." I pull out my phone. Start typing. "Tyler thinks he won? He has no idea who he's messing with."
"What are you doing?"
"Fighting back." I pull up every photo, every text, every piece of evidence I've collected without even realizing it. "Tyler's been texting me for weeks. Obsessive texts. Creepy texts. He followed me around town. He showed up at places I never told him I'd be." I scroll through. "This is stalking. Harassment. And I have proof."
Mara's eyes widen. "You're going to report him?"
"Better. I'm going to destroy him the same way he destroyed us." I take screenshots. Save everything. "But first, we need to prove that video is edited. And I know exactly who can help us."
"Who?"
"Lyra."
Mara stares at me. "The girl who wants us all dead? That Lyra?"
"She doesn't want us dead. She wants Julian to suffer. But she saved him at the marina, remember?" I'm already walking to my car. "She shot Marcus to protect Julian. That means somewhere deep down, she still cares about her father. We just have to find that part of her."
"This is insane."
"So is letting Julian go to prison for something he didn't do." I start the car. "Are you with me or not?"
Mara takes a breath. Nods. "I'm with you. What's the plan?"
"We find Lyra. We make her understand that Vanessa used her. That Vanessa doesn't care about revenge—she just wants money and control. We turn them against each other."
"And if that doesn't work?"
"Then we break into Vanessa's house and steal the original video files ourselves."
Mara laughs. It sounds a little hysterical. "You're actually crazy."
"Probably. But I'm not giving up on your dad. Not now. Not ever."
We drive to the marina where Lyra was last seen. It's empty now. Crime scene tape still marks where Sarah's body was found.
"She's not here," Mara says.
"No. But someone who knows where she is might be." I walk to the marina office. An old man is inside, watching TV.
"Excuse me," I say. "Have you seen a young woman? Dark hair, twenty-two, carrying a rifle earlier?"
"The crazy one?" He doesn't look away from the TV. "Yeah. She rents a storage unit on the east side. Number forty-seven. Pays cash. Keeps weird hours."
"Thank you!" I'm already running back to the car.
We drive to the storage facility. It's one of those places where people keep boats and equipment. Unit forty-seven is at the end. The lock is broken.
"That's not creepy at all," Mara mutters.
I push the door open. Inside is like a war room. Photos of Julian covering the walls. Timeline of events. Plans. Schemes. Evidence.
And in the center—Lyra. Sitting on the floor. Crying.
She jumps up when she sees us. Grabs a knife from the table. "Get out."
"Not until you listen." I step inside. Mara follows, though she looks terrified. "Vanessa played you."
"I know exactly what Vanessa is." Lyra's hand is shaking. "She helped me get revenge. That's all I needed."
"She used you to get Julian's company. To get his money. She doesn't care about your pain. She doesn't care that your mother died." I move closer. "She cares about herself. Just like she always has."
"Shut up." But Lyra's not raising the knife. She's listening.
"Julian is going to prison for something he didn't do," Mara says. "My dad—YOUR dad—is going to lose everything because Vanessa edited that video. Because Tyler reported lies. Because they manipulated both of you."
"He deserves it," Lyra whispers. But she doesn't sound sure anymore.
"He abandoned you. I get it. He was a terrible father to you." I'm right in front of her now. "But he's also the only father you have. And once he's in prison, once his life is completely destroyed, you'll never get the chance to make him understand what he did wrong. You'll never get closure. You'll just have... nothing."
Lyra's face crumples. "He didn't come when Mom died. I waited. I called. I left messages. He never came."
"Because he's an idiot," Mara says softly. "He's selfish and blind and he makes terrible choices. But he's also human. And he regrets what he did to you. I saw his face when he realized. He was destroyed."
"Too late." Lyra's crying harder now. "It's too late for apologies."
"It's not too late to do the right thing." I reach for her hand. She doesn't pull away. "Help us prove the video is edited. Help us expose Tyler's harassment. Help us show the truth. Please."
"Why should I?"
"Because you're better than Vanessa. You're better than Marcus. You're better than everyone who betrayed us." I squeeze her hand. "You saved Julian at the marina. You could have let Marcus kill him. But you didn't. Because you're not a murderer. You're just a girl who's been hurt. And I understand that. More than you know."
Lyra looks at me. Really looks. "You love him."
"Yes."
"Even though everyone will hate you? Even though your life is destroyed?"
"Even though." I don't look away. "Love isn't about choosing what's easy. It's about choosing what's real. And Julian is real. This thing between us is real. I won't apologize for it."
Lyra drops the knife. Sinks to the floor. "I'm so tired of being angry."
"Then stop." Mara sits beside her. "Help us fix this. Be our sister. For real."
Lyra looks at her. At me. At the photos of Julian covering her walls. All that rage. All that planning. All that pain.
"Okay," she whispers. "I'll help you."
Relief floods through me. "Thank you. Thank you so much. We need—"
My phone rings. Unknown number. I answer.
"Sienna?" A woman's voice. Scared. Crying. "This is Vanessa."
I freeze. "What do you want?"
"I need help. I made a mistake. A terrible mistake. Tyler—he's not who we thought. He's—" She screams. A crash. The line goes dead.
We all stare at each other.
"That was a trap," Lyra says immediately. "Tyler wants you to come save her so he can—"
"Kill us," I finish. "I know."
"Then we don't go," Mara says. "We call the police."
"And tell them what? That the woman who just destroyed your father is in danger from the man who reported him?" I shake my head. "They won't believe us. They'll think it's revenge."
Another text. From Vanessa's phone. But not her words.
"She knows too much. Just like Sarah knew too much. Come to the boat house. Bring Lyra. Or I kill Vanessa and come for you next. You have thirty minutes. - Tyler"
A photo attached. Vanessa. Tied to a chair. Blood on her face. Terror in her eyes.
"He's going to kill her," Mara breathes.
"Yes," Lyra agrees. "And then us. This is an execution, not a rescue."
"We have to go anyway." I'm already moving. "Because if we don't, he wins. He gets away with all of it."
"We need weapons," Lyra says. She opens a cabinet. Inside are knives, pepper spray, and—
"Is that a TASER?" Mara asks.
"I came prepared." Lyra hands them out. "If we're doing this, we're doing it smart. We have a plan. We work together. We don't play hero."
"Agreed." I check the time. "Twenty-eight minutes. Let's go save the woman who destroyed us."
We drive to the boat house. The same place Julian was arrested hours ago. The sun is setting. Shadows everywhere.
Tyler's car is parked outside. Waiting.
"He knew we'd come," Lyra mutters.
"Of course he did." I grip the taser. "He knows I won't leave someone to die. Even someone who hurt me."
We approach carefully. The boat house door is open. We slip inside.
Vanessa is there. Tied up. Gagged. Bleeding. But alive.
Tyler steps out of the shadows. He's holding a gun.
"Right on time," he says. Smiling. "I knew you'd come. You're so predictable, Sienna. So noble. So stupid."
"Let her go," I demand. "This is between us."
"No. This is between me and everyone who made me feel small." Tyler's smile disappears. "You. Julian. Vanessa. Lyra. Marcus. All of you looked at me like I was nothing. Just some college kid. Not worth noticing. Not worth respecting."
"So you decided to destroy all of us?" Lyra asks.
"I decided to WIN." Tyler cocks the gun. Points it at Vanessa. "And I'm about to."
He pulls the trigger.
But nothing happens.
The gun clicks. Empty.
Tyler's face goes white. "What—"
Lyra pulls out her own gun. A real one. Loaded. "You really thought I'd come here unarmed? Amateur."
"How did you—" Tyler backs up.
"I unloaded your gun while you were distracted by your villain speech." A man steps out of the shadows behind Tyler. Marcus. Bloody. Injured. But alive. "Surprise."
Tyler spins. "You're supposed to be in custody!"
"Posted bail. Funny how that works." Marcus grabs Tyler. Pins him. "And now I'm fixing my mistakes."
Police sirens. Growing louder. Coming fast.
"I called them," Marcus says. "Told them everything. About my betrayal. About Tyler's plan. About Vanessa's blackmail." He looks at us. "I'm going to prison. I deserve it. But I'm taking this bastard with me."
Police pour in. Tyler is screaming. Fighting. They drag him away.
Vanessa is cut free. She collapses into Mara's arms. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. He was blackmailing me too. Threatened to kill you if I didn't help him destroy Julian."
Everything stops. "What?"
Vanessa nods. "Tyler's been planning this for months. Since the first time Sienna rejected him. He manipulated all of us. Used our pain against Julian. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."
The police chief approaches. "Is it true? The video is edited?"
"Yes," Lyra says. She hands over a USB drive. "Original files. Unedited. Proof Tyler manipulated evidence."
The chief looks at us. "Then Julian Cross is innocent."
Those words. Those beautiful words.
"He's being released now. All charges dropped. We owe him an apology."
I can't breathe. Can't think. Can barely stand.
"It's over," Mara whispers. "We won."
But I'm not celebrating. Because I see something in the chief's face. Something wrong.
"What?" I ask. "What aren't you telling us?"
"Julian was released ten minutes ago," the chief says slowly. "But he never came to the station lobby. And his car is still in the impound lot. It's like he just... vanished."
My blood turns to ice.
"Find him," I beg. "Please find him."
Because I know what Julian is thinking. His name is cleared. But his reputation is still destroyed. His life is still in ruins.
And I know exactly where a man goes when he thinks he has nothing left to live for.
The lake. The dock. The water where this all began.
I run.