Then Luna laughed weakly.
“You’re imagining things, Chloe.”
“Am I?”
Chloe leaned forward.
“Because Jasper has footage of you and Tristan going up to the roof that night.”
That was a bluff.
But Luna didn’t know that.
Her composure shattered instantly.
“Oh my God,” she whispered.
Before Chloe could speak again, Luna’s phone buzzed.
The sound made her jump.
She grabbed the phone and read the message.
Her entire body went rigid.
“What is it?” Chloe asked.
Luna didn’t answer.
Her hands trembled violently.
“Luna.”
Finally Luna looked up.
Her eyes were full of terror.
“He knows,” she whispered.
“Who knows?”
“The man.”
Chloe’s heart skipped.
“What man?”
Luna’s voice broke.
“The one who made us do it.”
The words hung in the air.
Chloe felt like the ground had shifted beneath her feet.
“What are you talking about?”
Luna covered her face with her hands.
Tears slipped through her fingers.
“I didn’t want Zoe to die,” she choked.
“We were forced.”
Chloe stared at her.
“Explain.”
Luna lowered her hands slowly.
Her voice shook.
“A year ago… Zoe found something.”
“What?”
“Evidence.”
“Evidence of what?”
Luna swallowed.
“A man at the school… he was doing something illegal. Something huge.”
“What kind of illegal?”
“Money. Blackmail. I don’t even know all of it.”
Chloe’s mind raced.
“And Zoe threatened to expose him?”
Luna nodded.
“He panicked.”
“What does that have to do with you and Tristan?”
Luna’s expression crumpled.
“He had dirt on both of us.”
“What kind of dirt?”
“Tristan crashed his car drunk last year,” Luna whispered.
“He hit someone.”
Chloe’s breath caught.
“He didn’t kill them, but the guy was seriously injured. The man covered it up.”
“And you?” Chloe asked.
“I stole something from the school fundraiser,” Luna admitted shakily.
“He found out.”
Chloe felt sick.
“So he blackmailed you.”
Luna nodded.
“He said if we didn’t help him silence Zoe… he would ruin our lives.”
“What did he make you do?”
“He told us to bring Zoe to the roof that night.”
Chloe’s chest tightened.
“Why?”
“He wanted to scare her into keeping quiet.”
“And?”
Luna’s voice broke.
“Things got out of control.”
“What happened?”
Footsteps echoed suddenly from the front hallway.
Both girls froze.
The door creaked open.
Tristan Hale stepped inside.
His face was pale.
And behind him stood a tall man wearing a dark jacket.
The stranger’s eyes swept across the room.
Cold.
Calculating.
“Well,” the man said slowly.
“This is awkward.”
Chloe’s heart dropped.
“Who are you?” she demanded.
The man smiled faintly.
“Someone who hates loose ends.”
He pulled something from inside his jacket.
A knife.
Luna gasped.
“I warned you both,” the man said calmly.
“Keep your mouths shut.”
Chloe stepped back instinctively.
Tristan looked terrified.
“I didn’t tell her anything,” he insisted.
“You didn’t have to,” the man replied.
Then his gaze shifted to Chloe.
“And you must be the curious girlfriend.”
Chloe’s pulse thundered.
“If you hurt us—”
“Oh, I won’t hurt you.”
His smile widened slightly.
“Unless you force me to.”
He raised the knife slightly.
“Because if this secret comes out… you’ll end up just like Zoe.”
The threat hung heavy in the room.
Chloe’s mind raced for an escape.
Then—
CRASH.
The front window exploded inward.
Glass shattered across the floor.
The man spun around in shock.
Before he could react, a figure burst through the doorway behind him.
Jasper Voss.
He moved fast.
One swift motion knocked the knife from the man’s hand.
Another punch sent him crashing into the wall.
The man collapsed to the floor, groaning.
Silence fell.
Chloe stared at Jasper in disbelief.
“You followed me?”
Jasper didn’t answer.
Instead he stepped forward and ripped the man’s mask down.
The stranger’s face was revealed.
Luna gasped.
“I know him,” she whispered.
Tristan looked equally stunned.
Chloe turned back to Jasper.
“What’s going on?”
Jasper met her gaze.
For a moment, his calm mask slipped.
Something raw flashed in his eyes.
Anger.
Grief.
Then he spoke quietly.
“My name isn’t just Jasper Voss.”
He gestured toward the unconscious man on the floor.
“I’ve been investigating him for a year.”
Chloe frowned.
“Why?”
Jasper’s jaw tightened.
Because of Zoe.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small silver necklace.
The same kind Zoe used to wear in old photos.
“My sister,” he said quietly.
“Zoe Collins.”
The room fell silent.
Chloe’s breath caught.
“You’re… her brother?”
Jasper nodded once.
“I transferred to Westview to find out who killed her.”
His eyes moved to Tristan and Luna.
“And now… I finally have my answer.”