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Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fourteen - Ripped In Half

Monday, 10th April 2006

THIRD PERSON

"You can't catch me!" the little girl shouted at her brother. He chased her around the mansion's playground, slowing his pace so she could get away. She accidentally tripped on the playset flooring and fell. He rushed to her to help her up and dust the dirt off her dress and legs.

"Are you okay?"

She nodded and gave a toothy smile. He smiled back and before they could continue, a voice emerged from the backyard door.

"Kristian! Krystallia! Time for dinner!" the maid called from the door, looking around to find the children. They giggled and hid under the slide, out of the maid's sight. She huffed and came out to find them.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are!"

When the maid got close enough, they jumped out and scared her. She stumbled back a bit before regaining composure and placing her hands on her hips.

"Playful little devils, it's dinner time," she said, her lips fighting back a smile from looking at the adorable children. They nodded and followed the maid in. They entered the dining room and saw a man and a woman walking to their seats.

"Mommy, daddy!"

The girl ran into her father's arms as he picked her up to place a loving kiss on her soft cheek. She giggled when he placed her down and she wrapped her arms around his leg. The woman looked around, "Tian, where's your brother?"

"Here."

A boy that looked identical to the other slowly walked down the stairs and took a seat. The other sat beside him and the man picked his daughter up to put him in the seat next to him. The couple sat down and they ate dinner while chatting about the day.

Soon, dinner ended and they went their ways. The couple went to their bedroom and the three children went to their shared one. The kids changed into their pajamas and hopped into their own beds. Soon enough, they were sound asleep peacefully.

Until a gunshot woke them up.

The girl got off the bed and went to her brothers for comfort. The younger twin held her in his arms and they followed the older twin towards the footsteps that led down to the living room.

They sneaked up behind the man and when he was in the foyer, only the older twin recognized the man.

It was their father's third in command, Larry. He always came to spend time with them and was an overall nice guy. The blood on his clothes suggests that he-

When the girl noticed the drawer that had a pistol in it was open, it was too late.

A gunshot rang through the mansion and the man fell on his knees, blood spilling out of his forehead. She looked at her brother's hand that held the gun and buried her face in her other brother's chest, bawling her eyes out.

When a scream from one of the upper floors erupted, they didn't hesitate before sprinting up to the source and their breathing got caught in their throat.

There laid their parents on the bed. Mom had a bullet in her head and dad had one through his heart.

When the parents' heartbeat stopped, their children's stopped with them.

Their father's right-hand man, Joseph helped clean up the crime so they got scot-free. Everything resumed like usual, but the children couldn't take their minds off their parents.

They were just eating dinner and chatting like any happy family, and everything changed in a matter of hours.

Having no relatives close by, they were put under the care of Joseph. But no matter how many people came to cheer them up, their heart wouldn't start beating again.

The girl just turned six and witnessed a cold murder at the hands of her brother and her parents' lifeless bodies. That broke the little girl's heart, mind, and soul beyond repair.

From that day onwards, she never cared about school anymore. She would skip whenever she felt like it, her whole sweet demeanor changed into a fallen angel that knew her way around heaven and hell simultaneously.

She was very smart, quick to backtalk adults, and lied her way out of trouble. She always lied like it was breathing and never got caught. After getting expelled, her report cards were completely modified with the help of Joseph to get into another school.

Her best friend Sam was with her every step of the way. They did everything together, from arguing with adults to pulling fire alarms. They knew each other's deepest, darkest secrets. But no matter how much they love each other, he never knew the secret that she buried with her parents.

The tough act was all a stupid lie. Deep inside her heart, rip away all of the muscle tissues and wipe away all of the blood, you'll see a vulnerable girl who just wants her parents, her innocence, her angel side back.

But the tissues too tough to rip apart and the blood too much to wipe clean. No one had the key to open up the lock on her heart, except her. And she fed it to the hungry demons living in her brain.

Her brothers have already moved on, leading the gang, continuing their parents' legacy. But the girl, her heart never pumped again after it stopped. It was broken with her mind and her soul.

She was ripped in half. She didn't want anyone to unlock her heart and see the little girl she kept locked up but at the same time...

She wanted someone to save her. She wanted someone to dig through her soul, completely tear apart her heart to find her deepest secret, and patch it back up again.

She wanted, needed, someone to revive her heart.

But she doesn't know if anyone's fit for that job.

Woah, did I finally write a flashback chapter as a bonus? You bet I did!

On a serious note though, I hope this chapter lets you know what the twins and Krystallia went through during adolescence and childhood respectively. Thank you for choosing to read AYR.

See you!

-Phantom