"Everyone has secrets, and everyone has something to hide, but the real question is what are you willing to do to keep yours hidden inside."
When Juliet, Violet, and Scarlet's abusive mother and stepfather were mysteriously murdered. Their lives to...
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"Good to see you too, darling," the woman replied, handing her bag to one of the servants as she stepped inside.
"Mother-what are you doing here?" Rafael asked incredulously, his confusion evident.
"Well, you said you wouldn't be able to make it to the family Christmas festivities, and I decided to come to you if you weren't coming to us," she explained matter-of-factly.
"But-"
"What I want to know, Rafael, is what in the world possessed you to lie to me," she interjected sharply, her tone cutting through Rafael's attempts at explanation.
"Mom, I don't know what you're talking about," Rafael began, but she cut him off before he could finish.
"Rafael Valentine, don't you dare lie to your mother!" she said sternly, her tone leaving no room for argument.
"Now tell me what the hell is going on or so help me God-" Her voice was interrupted by the loud sound of glass shattering.
All eyes turned to look at Juliet, who had just dropped a glass tray. She stared wide-eyed at the now shattered tray, her hands trembling in shock and terror. Frozen in fear, she couldn't bring herself to react, her eyes never wavering from the shattered glass.
The woman narrowed her eyes at the poor girl, who only seemed to shake even harder.
"Who is-" the woman began, but Dante cut her off.
"Juliet, are you alright?" Dante asked again, his concern growing as Juliet remained unresponsive. She attempted to pick up the glass, cutting herself in the process, but she didn't react to the pain. Blood oozed from her finger onto the floor, but her face remained detached as she tried to clean off the glass, seemingly unaware of the injury.
Concern etched on his features, Dante moved closer, gently taking Juliet's uninjured hand in his own. "Juliet, look at me," he urged softly, his voice filled with worry.
Juliet's unfocused gaze slowly shifted to meet Dante's concerned eyes. There was a flicker of recognition in her expression, but it was quickly replaced by a distant emptiness.
She look away from him as if was distance away from him. Concern deepened in Dante's eyes as he gently guided her away from the broken glass, leading her to a nearby chair. "It's okay, Juliet. Let me take care of that," he said softly, reaching for a first aid kit.
As Dante tended to her wound, the rest of the family watched on, their worry evident. The sudden shift in Juliet's behavior had caught them all off guard.
As Dante guided Juliet away, Scarlet watched with growing concern etched across her features. Seeing her sister whisked away only intensified her worry.
Juliet's state had been deteriorating by the day, and Scarlet couldn't deny the weight of her concern. It gnawed at her, a constant nagging presence in the back of her mind, as she grappled with the helplessness of not knowing how to ease her sister's suffering.
The woman stood there, her face frozen in shock as she stared at the glass on the floor. Her hard gaze softened just a bit as she looked back at Rafael.
"Was that-" she began, but couldn't bring herself to actually say it. Rafael nodded solemnly, and the woman let out a small gasp, her shock evident in the way her hand flew to cover her mouth.
"My God," she said, tears welling up in her eyes as she looked at Rafael. "How long?" she asked softly.
Rafael's expression tightened, his own emotions stirring. "What?"
"How long has she been here? Why didn't you tell me?!" she shouted, her voice filled with anguish. She looked around frantically, searching for any signs of the other girls, and spotted Scarlet and Violet in a corner.
"They've been here for a while now," Rafael began, his voice tinged with regret. "We didn't want to overwhelm them. They were in a vulnerable state."
She glared at Rafael, her frustration boiling over. "Still, I'm their grandmother. We've all missed them and searched for them for years. Don't we have the right to know?"
"Mom, I don't want to fight with you, and I ask you to please keep this to yourself," Rafael pleaded.
The woman glanced down at the floor, "I'm afraid it's too late now," she said apologetically.
"What do you mean?" Rafael asked, confusion evident in his voice.
Before the woman could respond, loud voices sounded from outside the door, growing louder by the second.
"Stephan, for God's sake, I told you not to wear that shirt! You look like a tourist going to Hawaii," a voice exclaimed from outside.
"Bah, let me be, Nadia," the other voice retorted before the door burst open, revealing about a dozen people crowded outside. Their voices mingled in a cacophony of chatter and laughter, filling the room.
The crowd stopped in their tracks, their chatter falling silent as they glanced around at the scene before them.
"What the fuck"
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AUTHORS NOTE
So what did you think of this chapter?
What do you think will happen next in the story? Any suggestions for the next one?
