Love And Betrayal | ✔️

23. Shh, she must never know

The thing about happiness is that it's pretty short lived. It's gone as quickly as it appears.

Ariana's eyes which held shock one moment ago, now transform into one of pure rage. Her face twists into an ugly scowl and she grabs the nearest knife just when I take a step ahead.

My heart skips a beat. "Arie, what -"

"Stay away from me! All of you!" She snarls, "Stay the hell away from me!"

"Arie, put that knife down. We're not here to harm you. I'm your sister and I'm here to-"

But my words get cut off again by her angry growl.

"Of course I know you're my sister. You're the bitch who wanted to kill me five years ago!" Taking a step closer, she points the knife directly at my heart. "You think I don't remember? No. I remember EVERYTHING!"

What the hell is she talking about? I wanted to kill her? I'm her twin for heaven's sake. Why the fuck would I do that?!

"You've got it all wrong. I'd never do that to you!" I protest.

She laughs bitterly. "You think I'm stupid? I'm not falling for your bullshit, Luna Kiara Evergreen."

I flinch. Ouch. Never thought hearing her say my name would hurt so bad. My position, my identity - everything sounded so foreign coming from her.

GreyHound. This has GreyHound written all over it.

And when GreyHound makes a move, you know you need to think ten times before you make a countermove.

I raise my hands up to show I mean no harm. "Arie, please. Whatever you've heard about us is wrong. I'm your sister, I want to take you back home; we all want to." I add, sharing a glance with both Aden and Ashton. "It's why we are here. I don't know what lies GreyHound has been telling you, but believe me none of it is true. Believe me, I'm your family and your home is with us, not these rebels who're brainwashing you."

"Home? I have no home!"

"You have! It's with us, among us -"

Unknowingly, I take another step forward. That happens to be a big mistake.

"I SAID STAY AWAY FROM ME, BITCH!"

Her growl echoes over the walls and the floor, leaving a resounding impact on all of us. While Ashton still seems too shell shocked to react, Aden growls back in retaliation.

"There's no need to shout, Arie." He snaps, taking a protective stance in front of me. "For fuck's sake, hear her out for a second-"

But, he never gets to finish his sentence.

Arie's eyes darken from blue to black, her hand grips the knife tightly. With one swift move, she throws it, directly at us.

Seconds seem to slow down. Everything around me seems to slow down.

My eyes shut, preparing myself for death.

The knife hurtles through the air, coming straight at me.

Aden throws himself over me.

And then I feel it. I feel it before I hear it or see it - the pain, the blinding pain that shoots up within him, nearly setting every fibre of his being on fire.

The knife pierces into his chest, drawing a agonizing scream from him. He staggers backwards. My hands reach out, trying to grab him before he hits the floor. Blood. Blood is all I can see.

He risked his life for me.

Me.

ME.