𝐒𝐇𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐃

Chapter 30

Kiara

From across the party, I could feel Christian's fuming gaze on me as he stood by the bar counter with his discarded suit jacket in one hand and a drink in another. I ignored him and continued to laugh in my conversation with Noah. He thought it would intimidate me. I know for sure he's thinking of a revenge plan to get me back.

Whatever. I'll deal with him when the time comes, right now I am focused on things at hand like the ridiculous cake with my face on it staring right into my soul.

"When can I cut it?" I asked Aaron with a horrified look on my face.

"Soon," He chuckled at my expression.

"It's not soon enough," I tugged at his suit sleeve. "It feels like the cake is going to haunt me in my dreams."

"Ok ok," he laughed. "I'll be right back." He gathered our family for cake cutting and the staff quickly set up a center table for the cake.

Guests surrounded us with their flutes of champagne, expectably waiting for the cake cutting. I heard Aaron hired the best baker in the country for my cake. The cacao for this cake was handpicked and picked from the Amazon forest.

Aaron is truly extra.

It was time for the toast before the cake-cutting and since the eldest, that responsibility was upon Declan.

My older brother turned to me, his cold expression softened when his gaze settled on me. "We are here to celebrate the return of my sorrelina, Kiara. And yes she's that little girl most of you remember doing crazy antics," I laughed at his remark. "I'm extremely happy she's finally home. Anyone who tries to give her a hard time will face my wrath. Mark my words and I won't be merciful." He ended the toast with a threat. How nice of him.

The projector screen in front of us started and videos of younger me were playing. I smiled at the screen, indulging in the recollection of my childhood. No matter how much I said I said, I could never hate it. It's too precious.

With a huge grin on my face, I cut the cake. At that moment, I felt infinite. I was surrounded by people who truly loved and cared for me. I felt at peace for once. And despite resenting my brothers for everything, they were the ones to clean my wounds and apply the pretty princess bandage.

I wanted to pause this moment and live in this moment for the rest of my life.

But oh, the ghosts from your past never leave you, do they?

No matter how much you try to stuff it down, it always resurfaces, ruining perfectly good moments like this.

I thought I could ever be at peace.

One moment, everyone was laughing at the video of a two-year-old me drawing on a white bag with red lipstick and then the second everyone was shocked at the sudden change of clips.

A curd-hurling scream left my mouth. "Stop it! Please stop it! Shut it down!" I cried helplessly.

It was that video. The stalking one. The video that he filmed when I didn't know. It was foolish of me to think that just hiding it away in a dark corner of my closet would make it go away.

In the video, I was in my bedroom where I was changing. In the clip, I slowly removed my jacket and when my t-shirt was next I couldn't watch it. I could only shout for it to stop but it won't stop. Feeling ashamed of what's next to come looked away still loudly crying for it to stop.

"Shut it down!" Declan's angry voice boomed.

When it didn't stop, He removed his gun and shot the screen. Shot and shot and shot till it was nothing but a pile of black pieces of glass and wires.

I trashed against him when he picked me up from my hyperventilating state on the ground. "Shh," he caressed my hair, trying to calm me down. "Shh, Kia. It's all over. I'm here, piccola." I stopped screaming at his words but the tears never stopped.

"It's all over, Tesoro." He softly said and I sobbed against his shirt, while he gently rocked me in his arms like a baby trying to calm me down.

"I'm sorry," I whispered after crying nonstop for at least twenty minutes. "I'm so sorry, I ruined the party."

"Don't be sorry, Kia. It wasn't your fault." he wiped away my tears, carefully placing me on a bench and sitting next to me. "I'm going to track down that bastard and make him regret his entire existence." His jaw clenched as his features darkened.

I sniffled, nodding. I glanced around and noticed we were at the Wisteria Path. A breath of relief left my body, I was glad to be away from that godforsaken scene.

"You won't need to track him down," I spoke up in a small voice.

Declan's neck snapped to me. "You know who did this?"

"Hmm," I slowly nodded. "I was given a box full of other photos of me with a note. I just didn't want to bother anyone anymore."

"Kiara," he started slowly. "You're are saying that someone blackmailed you and you didn't inform any of us because you thought you were a burden?"

"I didn't want to be more of a burden than I already am," I whispered.

"Piccola, you were never a burden and you never will be. You are my sister and I don't care how small the problem is I want you to tell me. Fuck, even if it is a small scratch, I'm there for you. So don't ever think you're a burden." He ran a hand through his hair, muttering a string of curses under his breath.

"Got it?" He asked pulling me in a hug and I felt tears brimming in my eyes. "Yup," I mumbled weakly.

"Now, tell me the name of this motherfucker." His tone switched from soft to ice-cold in less than one second.

"Jacob Hall." I felt my body shudder at his name. "He was Mom's one of the exes but he was the worst one. He was cruel. Very cruel," My eyes closed shut as the stuff that I buried deep was out in the open.

"What did he do?" Declan's jaw ticked and I knew he was controlling his anger because I was there. But the thing I'll reveal will make things worse.

"He was abusive but so was Mom it didn't make a difference until that day. Mom wasn't home and he—he tried to," I stared at my feet, feeling tears drop down. "He tried to force himself on me."

He got up instantly, shutting his eyes close before loudly cursing. "How could have I let this happen?" A vein popped on his forehead.

"I'm going to kill him." He said darkly.

I thought I did.

A day passed since we returned to Chicago after that terrible day. After my conversation with Declan, I was able to tell my other brothers what had happened without breaking down into a sobbing mess. It was difficult but I needed to get it off my chest.

Everyone was in a murderous mood. I didn't know what was happening and I honestly did not want to get involved in murder plans. Everyone was on the move since five am in the morning. Whenever I stepped downstairs to get something in the kitchen I found my brothers shouting on the phone or carrying weapons.

I stayed in my room watching TV and stuffed my face with a tub of ice cream from morning to night. As I was watching Netflix suddenly all the boys piled up in my bedroom and crowded my bed making my king size seem small.

"It's over." Declan declared. "We killed that fucker."

THE END

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and that's it
it's over.

omg i still can't believe that shattered is complete but it is. pls read the next chapter for an important announcement

love,
ash