Chapter 56

Chloe’s POV

My breath caught in my throat.

For a moment, the words didn’t register. They just hung there in the air, heavy and unreal. I stared at the nurse, waiting for her to laugh and say she’d made a mistake.

“Nine hundred… thousand?” My voice came out barely above a whisper.

She nodded, already looking down at the paperwork again, like this was normal. Like my world hadn’t just tilted on its axis.

I felt the blood drain from my face. My fingers curled slowly into my palms as I did the math in my head. My savings. The little I had left after securing the apartment. Everything I’d worked for.

It wouldn’t be enough.

A cold weight settled in my chest. Panic tried to rise, but I forced it down. This wasn’t the time to break. Hilda was finally safe. Stable. I wasn’t about to let money be the thing that destroyed that.

“I’ll pay,” I said, lifting my chin, even though my heart was racing. “Just give me a moment.”

I stepped as