Chapter 14
Posey's shaky breath was all Killian could focus on. He sat still as a rock, staring at the glass vase at the center of the table as Dr. Trystand, Clare, Ares, and Hayden all sat in front of him along with Kiara's parents.
"I...I don't understand," Posey said, her eyes watering. "Why....how....Tobias?"
Tobias shifted uncomfortably in his chair. He looked at his wife and felt his heart shatter all over again. The look of despair and fear in them made his frozen heart crack like ice.
"This isn't real," Killian shook his head. "I get what you're saying. I'm looking at the evidence. But you're wrong."
"Killian," Ares leaned forward and folded his hands together on the table. "I know this is not easy to hear right now. But we only want to he-"
"I know Kia," Killian said firmly. "I know her inside and out. I know what she's like when she wakes up or when she thinks no is watching. I know what she's like when things don't go her way. Yes, she is spoiled and doesn't fit everyone's image of a normal girl. But that doesn't mean she's a....she's not a psychopath."
Posey's breath hitched. Her hand covered her soft lips as she tried not to cry. This was her baby they were talking about. She had raised her. Loved her unconditionally. Carried her in her arms. Sang to her when she was sick. Listened to her when she was angry. Posey couldn't stop all the memories running through her mind. Why had they gone wrong?
"Before she was taken to the island, did you notice anything strange with Kiara's behavior?" Dr. Trystand asked.
"No," Killian shook his head. "There was nothing that was out of the ordinary. She was herself. She was happy."
"It is possible the events on the island may have triggered something in Kiara," Clare watched Tobias very carefully. He was extremely quiet. "She could have been suppressing her instincts because she was surrounded by us and she mimicked how we behaved. But begging on the island and having to defend herself....that's a very high stress situation."
"No," Killian shook his head adminantly. "This is all wrong. She's not this person you're making her out to be."
"Killian," Hayden slowly started. "She killed an entire family."
"You were going to take out Livia Murd yourself," Killian snickered. "Why is that not considered murder?"
"I wasn't going to take out her whole family," Hayden defended. "Just Livia."
"Who is Livia Murd?" Posey asked. "Why did Kiara go after her?"
"Livia Murd is....was an old benefactor of project skyfall," Ares cleared his throat. "She pulled out when Ben left the project. But recently, she started to invest in the rebuilding efforts."
"How did you find this out?" Tobias asked.
"Murd reached out to Adeline and Ben," Ares explained. "She wanted to see if she could persuade them to go back to project skyfall."
Tobias slowly nodded.
"How did Kiara know about her?" Posey asked.
"That's what we are trying to find out," Clare took in a deep breath. "Nora said Kiara had asked her to transfer over some files onto her laptop from a hard drive. Livia's name was on one of the files."
"Where did she get the hard drive?" Posey shook her head.
"We don't know," Ares said. "She's working with someone who is giving her in-"
"This is ridiculous," Killian rose from his seat and ran a hand through his hair. He left out a breath as if trying to decide what to do or what to say.
