Chapter 80 Break her wings!
|| Author POV ||
“Your Momma–Your momma will never come back, baby. She’s not coming back.” Carolina wept.
Little baby froze.
The maid frowned immediately. “What do you mean? What happened to Mr. and Mrs. Sinclair?”
Carolina bit her lip hard, looking away in pain. Her voice came out broken. “They got into an accident.. on the way home.”
The old woman stepped back immediately.
Rosa tilted her head in confusion, the words too big, too far from her little world. “Accident?” she echoed faintly.
Her legs squirmed and she shifted in her aunt’s arms. “Momma?” she called again desperately. “Momma, where are you?” She turned toward the door again, expecting someone to step through.
Carolina hugged her tightly, whispering against her baby-soft hair. “They’re...they’re gone, sweetheart. I’m so sorry.”
Silence.
Rosalie blinked. Her round eyes widened instantly, confusion tangled with curiosity. She shook her head hard. “No, no! Momma’s coming. She said she will bring me candy and a looooots of toys.”
Kevin scrunched his eyebrows at the little girl. He was only eleven and old enough to understand what had actually happened.
Within moments, loud sirens were heard, indicating the ambulance had arrived. Kevin stood frozen. His small fists clenched at his sides as he watched Carolina rush out with Rosa in her arms.
The red and blue lights colored Rosa’s face as the big white vehicle came into view outside the house.
“Woaa!” Rosa gasped in awe, her voice was soft and naïve. “Look, Aunt, pretttty lights.”
Carolina’s heart cracked deeper. She hugged Rosa tighter, pressing her face into the child’s hair.
“Don’t look, baby. Please don’t look.” her voice broke.
But the child twisted in her arms, curiosity guiding her gaze. The doors of the ambulance opened wide. She saw men in uniforms pulling two stretchers from the back. Long white bags lay on top, zipped tight. Too still. Too cold.
“What’s that?” Rosalie asked, pointing her tiny finger. “Is that a new toy Momma bought?” she asked in her cute, innocent voice.
No one answered.
Rosa tilted her head again, her soft lashes fluttering. “Is thaaat a gift? Is Momma hiding in there?” Her lips curved into a hopeful smile. “She always plays hide and seek with me!”
“Baby, your momma.. she’s not playing! She’s not coming out!”
Rosa’s tiny brows drew together. Her innocent gaze darted to the stretcher. “Then... then what’s inside?” she asked, her voice small as a breath. “Why you crying, Aunt?”
Carolina cried, trying to block Rosa’s view when she saw the men opening the zippers. “Baby. Don’t.. don’t look–”
But it was too late. Rosa had already seen her mother’s favorite bracelet peeking out beneath the edge of the body bag. That tiny silver heart charm she used to play with while cuddling on her lap.
“I’m sorry, baby. They are dead!”
The words didn’t make sense to Rosa. She shook her head. A pout formed on her lips. “No! You lying!” she screamed, thrashing in her aunt’s arms. “Momma said she will buy me that pink bear! She promised!”
Carolina cried harder.
Kevin turned his back. He couldn’t bear it. The way Rosalie was still clueless about her parents’ death broke something in him. Carolina’s screams grew louder as soon as her eyes fell on her sister’s face.
Rosa’s eyes were wide. Her tiny chest kept rising and falling in sharp panicked breaths.
Her mother looked cold. Her face was stained with dried blood. Her father lay beside her. His head was limp to the side.
It was too much. Too much for a child’s heart to understand.
“Momaaaaaaa!!” Rosa screamed, her throat burning.
“No! Momma, open your eyes! Open your eyes! Look at me! Momma!” Her legs kicked wildly in Carolina’s arms, fighting to get closer. “Papa! Papa, wake up! Please! Please, Papa!”
The snow fell heavier. The sirens faded. So did her screams.
The echoes of her cries dissolved into silence as Rosa shot up in bed with a gasp, clutching her chest like her heart might rip through her ribs.
Her breaths came out shallow and broken. Her eyes which were already wet, spilled over again.
It was a dream. No—not a dream. A memory. The night her parents passed away.
She didn’t know why she dreamed of that night. After everything that happened yesterday, her memories crawled back.
Rosa blinked against the morning sunlight streaming through the curtains. The world outside was quiet and peaceful.
But inside her, everything was in ruins.
Rosa stared down at herself. She was no longer that chubby-cheeked baby in pajamas. No warm arms to hold her. Tears of sorrow escaped endlessly as she stared at the locked door.
Her fingertip gently touched her swollen lips.
⋆------------⭑
Killian rubbed his temple, stepping down the stairs. The throbbing ache in his skull pounded like a war drum. His head felt like it would explode.
Last night, he drank too much out of rage, out of fury but not with regret. He did exactly what he wanted. And he would do it again.
“Bring me coffee.”
He barked without even glancing at the maid. Lilia flinched slightly but bowed with a worried expression before quietly turning to leave.
The entrance door opened. Chris stepped in.
Killian let out a low sigh. Irritation brew under his skin. He dropped onto the couch, legs wide and palms rubbing his face.
“What now?” he asked flatly.
Chris walked over and sat across from him. “Killian.” he said. “We found that old man.”
Killian’s cold piercing eyes slowly lifted. The air in the room thickened.
“That old man?” His voice dropped like a blade being unsheathed.
Chris gave a short nod. “Yes. We tracked him down. He’s been hiding in Granada for the last nine years.”
Killian’s jaw clenched hard. His fingers curled into fists on his knees. “And?” he asked.
“We didn’t touch him yet. We waited for your command.”
A humorless chuckle fell from Killian’s lips. “Smart for once.”
Lilia returned, placing two cups of coffee before them, then left quietly.
“Send Henry.” Killian ordered. “Tell him to keep the bastard alive. I want to look him in the eyes before I end him.”
Chris nodded, then added cautiously, “And the academy? When are you pulling out? We gathered everything we needed months ago. Yet you stayed…”
A pause. “For Miss Sinclair? She’s already with you now.”
Killian didn’t reply. He looked away while eyes narrowed into cold slits.
“She found out.”
Chris didn’t move at first. He looked at the devil before him. Something worried him. He didn’t need clarification. He knew exactly what killian meant.
“Where is she now?” Chris asked, trying to keep his tone neutral, though a flicker of unease passed through his eyes.
Killian closed his eyes, leaned his head back and exhaled slowly. “Locked.” he said simply. Calm. Too calm.
Chris stiffened. “You locked her?” he asked immediately in disbelief. He didn’t expect Killian to cage that naive girl.
Killian’s dark lifeless eyes opened again. “I had no choice. She tried to run,” he said. “She knows who I am. What I’ve done. And worse–”
Chris’s eyes narrowed. “She got to know that my father was the one who caused her parents accident.”
“What?!” Chris blurted, listening to an information he never expected.
Killian didn’t answer. Chris stared at him for a moment, trying to process the full depth of the damage. He wanted to say something but he knew his words would not affect Killian.
“I know what I’m doing.” Killian spoke, lifting his coffee cup to his lips like it was just another morning, like he hadn’t just admitted to caging his girl.
Chris exhaled slowly, pressing his fingers into his temples. At this point, he wasn’t even sure if Killian could see clearly anymore, blinded by obsession. But Chris knew better than to press further. It was better to not press the devil.
The man sitting across from him wasn’t entirely sober.
“Alright. I’ll inform our men.” Chris said shortly with a sigh before standing up.
When he turned to leave, his eyes landed on Lilia standing near the hallway. Lilia straightened the moment she saw him. At his silent gesture, she approached and bowed respectfully.
Killian watched them from his place, sipping his coffee slowly. He didn’t care what they discussed. Chris was the one who brought that maid here in the first place. He could deal with whatever this was.
Last night’s scene burned behind his eyes. Her painful sobs. The way her voice cracked when she screamed, full of betrayal, pain and terror. The way she looked at him like he was a stranger.
The very innocent girl who begged for his love.
That look of Betrayal. He couldn’t digest the fact of her acting all differently. He didn’t even try to understand how she might be feeling. It kept clawing at his mind. Triggering him to a dark twisted extent.
He didn’t regret hurting her.
Killian clicked his tongue in irritation. Things changed overnight.
His grip on the cup tightened. Rage flickered in his gaze. How dare she?
How dare she try to run?
After everything. After he gave her his world, his protection, his obsession, his damnation!
Killian leaned back, resting his head against the couch. She wasn’t going anywhere. Even if he had to destroy the light in her eyes to keep her by his side.
She belonged to him. And he will make sure she never forgets that reality.
Killian took a long deep breath. A twitch of his fingers. A storm behind his eyes.
‘If she tries again, I’ll break her wings myself.’