Sofia paced the length of Naomi's bedroom for the third time in ten minutes.
Outside, the wind rattled tree branches against the glass, but inside, everything was still — except her.
Naomi sat cross-legged on her bed, laptop open, a spreadsheet glowing on the screen.
"Okay," she said calmly, "we're not going to panic. We're going to organize."
Sofia stopped pacing. "You say that like this is just a group project."
Naomi gave her a look. "Honestly? It kind of is. Only instead of failing a class, we fail and your stepmom gets stalked—or worse. So yeah, I'm organizing."
Sofia sat down beside her, burying her face in her hands.
"I still can't believe I started all of this. I thought if I just exposed her—" she shook her head. "I didn't think it would go this far."
Naomi didn't say "I told you so." She didn't need to.
Instead, she turned her laptop toward Sofia. "Look. I made folders. One for the screenshots from the dating app. One for the texts he sent you, including the ones where he threatened you. One for the pictures he sent of Harper. I've also backed it all up to a cloud server under an anonymous login."
Sofia blinked. "You've been busy."
"I watch a lot of true crime," Naomi said. "And I don't trust him to stay quiet after that police warning. If anything, I think he's going to snap."
Sofia swallowed. "Harper's acting different."
Naomi raised an eyebrow. "Like she knows something?"
"Not everything. But… I think she suspects I'm hiding something. She keeps watching me. She asks questions in that calm mom-voice like she's trying to trip me up."
"Then we need to move faster."
Naomi clicked open a draft email. "Here's what I'm thinking: We record a conversation with him. One where he admits to everything. The blackmail. The photos. The stalking. Something solid. Something undeniable."
Sofia blinked. "How do we get him to talk?"
Naomi hesitated. "You'll have to talk to him."
Sofia's face drained. "No. No way. I blocked him."
"Then unblock him. Or wait until he reaches out again—which he will. But this time, you act cooperative. You tell him you're scared. You want to make things right. You lure him into talking openly. And I'll be recording."
Sofia shook her head. "What if he finds out? What if he sees through it?"
Naomi's eyes were steady. "Then we end it another way. But this is the cleanest shot we have. We make it look like you're on his side again. Just long enough to get what we need."
Sofia stared down at her hands.
"She's not a bad person, Naomi. Harper. She never was. I just… I wanted her to lose. And now I don't even recognize myself."
Naomi's voice softened. "Then take her side now."
Sofia nodded slowly.
"Okay," she whispered. "Let's finish what I started."
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