Rage?
Vindication?
Triumph?
But standing there, looking at the ruins of two people I once loved more than myself, I felt only exhaustion.
“You know what the saddest part is?” I asked quietly.
Jason said nothing.
“You were so focused on replacing me that you never realized I was the reason your world worked at all.”
He looked like I had struck him.
Perhaps I had.
I picked up the pen.
Signed the papers.
And slid them back across the table.
“There,” I said calmly. “The path is clear now.”
Allison stared at the signature with dawning horror.
Because now she understood.
She hadn’t won.
She had inherited a sinking ship.
Daniel placed a protective hand against my back as we turned toward the exit.
Behind us, Jason’s voice broke.
“Cat.”
I paused—but didn’t look back.
“One day,” he said hoarsely, “you’ll regret this.”
I smiled faintly.
“No, Jason. One day, you’ll understand what you traded away.”
Then I walked out beside my brother into the cold Manhattan afternoon, leaving the wreckage behind me.
And for the first time in months—
I could finally breathe.
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