Charlotte got the cash for the deal from Thomas and Vincent. It was a serious chunk of change, and the guy they paid off was pretty happy, so he gave them some really good dirt on Chloe.

"We've been covering our tracks since the whole Annie drowning thing, got it all on tape. We didn't touch the house fire since that was all set up beforehand, but we did buy the stuff that lit the place up. We've got receipts and all, solid enough to pin it on Chloe."

Charlotte looked over that stuff for ages.

Watching Annie on her phone, struggling in the lake, she figured out why that bracelet was never found.

Her Annie, she'd walked right into a trap for that thing, held onto it so tight, even when she was dying.

"Chloe." After she'd seen all the evidence, Charlotte took a deep breath, shut her eyes, and just let the tears fall. "Chloe!"

She was hell-bent on making Chloe pay big time.

She sent the stuff to Thomas and Vincent, and it crushed them, like reliving losing family all over again.

But they were also kinda pumped, 'cause it meant they could finally nail the one who started all this.

"Charlotte, get yourself back here. We gotta talk about what we're gonna do next!"

But then Vincent got all worried, "Liam's not gonna try and block us like before, is he?"

Maria got burned alive, and Liam knew Chloe did it but still went along with his granddad's sick lie. Ended up engaged to Chloe and even had a kid with her.

Charlotte was worried about the same thing.

Riding back, Liam looked like he'd seen a ghost. She knew without asking it was 'cause of the mess with Chloe and the families. holds this content.

Charlotte just stared out the window, silent.

Liam thought she was still mad, held her hand, and said with a sad tone, "I meant what I said."

Charlotte wasn't buying it.

She yanked her hand away and asked him, while he looked all confused, "If I dig up proof Chloe hurt Annie and Maria, you gonna try and stop me from getting back at her?"

It was more about justice than revenge.

Liam scrunched up his face: "You..."

"Just tell me, will you stop me?" Charlotte was dead serious.

Liam spoke up, heavy-like: "Leave it to me, it's not your problem."

"No, Liam." Charlotte's eyes were full of sorrow. "I don't need your help. I need you to stay out of it."

If he stayed out of it, she, Thomas, and Vincent could handle Chloe.

But if Liam stepped in, it'd all get messy.

"Just don't get in my way, that's all I ask."

Liam didn't know what to say.

"You still hold that engagement against me..."

"Forget the past. Just promise me you won't interfere."

Charlotte touched his face; Liam looked down, his face all hurt and stubborn, a side of him she didn't usually see.

"I really hope we can make it work this time," she said earnestly, studying his face closely. "We've made enough mistakes, let's not repeat them, okay?"

Did he even have a choice but to agree?

Charlotte felt a wave of relief wash over her once Liam agreed.

"Keep your word, Liam. Betray this deal, and we're through, no second chances."

In a matter of three hours, Charlotte and Thomas had their plan down to a T.

How to expose everything, how to shut the Beaumont family up, how to make Chloe confess and not be able to turn things around.

Risking it all, again and again, Charlotte's hard work was about to pay off.

"Now we follow through with the plan," Charlotte said, feeling exhausted like never before.

She lay back on the floor, staring up at the white ceiling, and whispered to herself, "No one's going to get in our way."

She had done right by Annie and Maria.

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At last, she could live for herself.

Charlotte closed her eyes, overcome by fatigue.

"I'm gonna take a nap. It's in your hands now, Uncle, Vincent"

"Rest easy. When you wake up, everything will be just as it should be," Vincent reassured her gently.

Charlotte fell asleep with a contented smile that didn't fade, even in her sleep.

Thomas and Vincent were jittery with excitement as they delegated the tasks.

The plan was unfolding smoothly until, moments after they sent out the evidence against Chloe, it disappeared without a trace.

"What the heck?!" Thomas was in shock. "Our plan was foolproof. We were subtle with the news drop. It shouldn't have caught anyone's attention yet. Who's messing with us?" Vincent had his people on it. When he heard that name, his face turned crimson with rage, the name coming out through gritted teeth.

"Liam Paker!"

It was Liam, again!

Charlotte was pulled from her sleep still smiling faintly.

"Is it done? That was fast."

But her smile quickly faded when she saw Thomas and Vincent's stormy expressions.

"What's wrong?" Charlotte's hands balled up tight.

"Liam," Vincent spat, eyes blazing with anger. "Liam's goons stopped our messages. He's keeping the truth buried. He's protecting Chloe!" When Charlotte heard Liam's name, her heart sank like a stone.

She closed her eyes, a pained frown creasing her forehead.

Liam had promised her.

He said he wouldn't stand in her way!

So what was he doing now?

Playing her for a fool?

Or maybe he was still hung up on his childhood sweetheart, Chloe, and wanted to keep her safe, no matter what she'd done?

It made sense.

After all, Chloe was carrying his child.

Charlotte realized how naive she had been-too naive!

She'd fallen for Liam's lies once again!

"I'll handle this."

Charlotte grabbed her phone and stumbled out the door.

The moment of truth was here, and she wasn't going to let anyone stop her.

When the call connected, neither Charlotte nor Liam spoke.

All they could hear was each other's breath, growing more and more ragged with each passing second.

Finally, Liam's voice came through, rough with emotion.

"Charlotte."

"Just wait."

"Please, just wait for me."

"I haven't broken our deal."

"We can have a future."

"There's no future left." Charlotte's voice was hollow with resignation, "Not even a full day has passed, Liam, and you're already betraying me."

"I have my reasons," Liam's voice was deep and somber.

Charlotte gave a bitter laugh: "What reasons? It seems to hurt me is just the best way to serve your interests."