CHAPTER 171

The evidence was gone? All of it? I had been counting on that evidence to build my case, to prove what had happened to me. Without it, what did I have?

Theo’s smirk grew as he watched the realization dawn on me. "You see? It’s over, Varya. You don’t have anything."

I stood there, frozen, my mind racing. How could he have done this? How could he have erased everything? The surgery, the hospital records—those were supposed to be permanent.

They were supposed to be proof of what had happened to me. And now, they were gone.

I felt a hand on my shoulder—Kylo. His touch grounded me and reminded me that I wasn’t alone in this.

"It’s not over," Kylo said, his voice firm.

"We’ll find another way. Just because Theo thinks he’s erased everything doesn’t mean there’s no trail. People remember. There are witnesses. There’s always something."

My desire was to believe him. I wanted to cling to the hope of ever finding justice again where we can hold him accountable for what he had done. Standing the