tiny & vicious || h.s ✔️

~29~

Song: This City by Same Fisher

Harry's POV

Bags upon bags were thrown on the white marble floor. We were moving out. Leaving this gorgeous bungalow, we had called home for a couple of weeks and going back to our real home. The palace had repaired over the course of a few months and extra security had been added to the walls, gates and hallways. We couldn't risk another mistake. Our castle was a fortress and it was a wonder how they got inside but it helped us notice our many blind spots. With the new improvements, I was confident. A threat would not hurt us now. Not once we were behind the palace gates.

Blair yawned cutting off my thoughts for now. She entered the living room, still dressed in her blue dinosaur pyjamas from last night. I felt my eyes light up at the sight of her.

Theo entered after her in matching pyjamas and I smiled at them both before giving them a group cuddle and some kisses. They giggled softly in my arms. Stepping out of the embrace, I set them down next to Louis and Liam, leaving them to watch over the children. Making my way upstairs, I briefly looked around the house. A sense of melancholy and solemnity hung over it like a cloud, raining on our parade each time we laughed and reminding us of the events of last night. My eyes found Jordyn's room as I ascended the staircase. I knew that's where I would find my wife. Cuddling Jordyn's clothes and crying to herself, she didn't even notice me walk into the room.

Back in the forest, we transported Jordyn's body to the morgue in our palace. It took a great effort from all of us to pry Aria's fingers away from her and place her in the car. I remembered the way she fought against me like I was the force separating them. I didn't want to, but we needed to leave before the cartel arrived. The bruises she left on my skin burned as I felt for them. She was in a blinding fit of rage and grief; she didn't even notice when she kicked me in the legs harshly or bit down on my shoulder while she cried. She didn't notice when we entered the house. All she noticed was the missing presence of her best friend. We all noticed it. The emptiness of her clean and tidy room. Now a room destroyed by Aria's grief. It turned her into a monster. A quiet, unhinged monster. She silently threw things around the world and hid herself under Jordyn's blankets.

Last night, she didn't even return to our room and I didn't dare disturb her. It was only this morning when she allowed me into Jordyn's sacred space. I could see the grief eating away at her. Turning her into a shell of the person she used to be. Tears permanently stained her cheeks and mascara tainted the fresh white pillows.

She missed her. We all did. Especially Niall. There was always some connection between him and Jordyn. Something different from the rest of us. He was always so tender and careful with her. Something a little like love. He too was trapped in his room. Trapped in his self-made cell full of despair. A little part of me tore away once she confessed her reason for betrayal. A baby. A little girl. She would've been best friends with Blair, and it was that fact which made her death pierce my heart more. It was a fresh wound. Knowing Angel could have been so much more if she was given the chance. She could have excelled in our palace. Grown up with all of us by her side. Loving and cherishing her. I would have been blessed to have a niece, and I would spend the rest of my days making her, Blair and Theo happy. A small smile graced my face. Jordyn was with her now. Her mother was with her now.

Returning to the present, I gazed around the room. The thick feeling of death consumed the atmosphere. My eyes flickered to my wife, watching her clutch a photo frame to her chest. I squinted my eyes, struggling to see the image.

Once I saw it, sadness loomed over me again. Two bright young girls. One with dark skin and beautiful long hair and another with contrasting caramel eyes and short brown hair. Aria's hand was around Jordyn's shoulder in that moment, their smiles lighting up the darkness in this room. The picture was beautiful. In that moment, there was no guns. No weapons. No death. No blood. Just two little girls, laughing together. It was pure bliss. I smiled solemnly, creeping closer to Aria. She flinched when I laid a hand on her shoulder and pulled her into my arms. She said nothing. I said nothing. Nothing needed to be said. White walls stared back at me as I soaked in Jordyn's presence. Her beautiful soul.

I didn't feel tears spill down my cheeks or sadness in my heart. I felt content. I felt the last memories of her face in my memory. I felt her passing grace. In this moment, I knew she was happy. I knew she had found true bliss, and that was all I could have asked for.

-----

The journey to the airstrip was quiet. All of us consumed by our thoughts. A few moments ago, as we walked out the door, I finally pried Niall from his room and led him to the car. He was as broken as Aria was. Losing the one you loved was hard but losing the one woman you adored to pieces was impossible. I felt for him. If I lost Aria, I would be destroying everything and everyone in my path for vengeance. But as I glanced at his sorrowful face, I could tell he wasn't out for blood. He was simply searching for closure. Closure only a funeral could give him. He needed to see her put to rest. We all did.

As I sat in my seat, absentmindedly peering at the landscape, I felt a hand in mine. Aria's gorgeous wedding ring glinted in my palm and I smiled. She paid no notice to me, obviously still trapped in that troubled mind of hers, but I didn't need her attention. Knowing she was okay was the only thing I desired and this little micro action of hers no matter how small, told me she would be.

Louis quietly fed Liam directions every so often. We were all cramped into one seven-seater car while my mother, Gemma, Theo and Luke sat in the one trailing us. We weren't used to being in one car together but with the loss of one soul, one car was all we needed. My eyes scanned the room. I saw Aria doing the same thing and I knew what she was looking for. She wanted Jordyn. She wasn't used to not having her by her side. None of us were.

But Aria and Jordyn were inseparable. Even after having Blair, Aria always sat next to her sister. She needed to and in times like this I finally knew why. Because this was what she always feared. To lose her sister one day and lose the seat beside her the next day. It scared her. Shook her to her very core. She needed Jordyn and I wasn't quite sure how to handle it. I felt her eyes close and her head rest in the crook of my neck. She sniffled quietly while she slept, still subconsciously thinking about her best friend. I ignored her tears, wanting desperately to take them away but I knew I couldn't.

The airstrip was close now and I shifted in my seat. I peered at my daughter, deciding to check on her. She just held her hands in her lap and stared outside. I didn't know how she felt. Betrayal wasn't easy and Blair had suffered the worst of it. Almost being killed by the woman who helped raise her was tough and I couldn't image how my little nine-year-old was dealing with it. Maybe when we boarded the plane, I could ask and hopefully she would tell me.

The grey metal of the plane reflected against my glasses. I flinched at the light and put my head down. I opened the car door and saw everyone flinch at the movement. They were so deep in their own thoughts; they didn't notice when we left the cars and boarded the plane. Their feet subconsciously moved one by one towards the plane seats while I stayed back with the pilot. I briefly spoke with him before joining my family in the body of the plane.

The plane door closed with a tiny click and we abided by the rules quickly, waiting for take-off. I helped Blair with her seatbelt before strapping myself in. I noticed Aria staring out the window and I sighed, strapping her in. She made no movements in response to my touch. She just let me tuck her in like a child. I kissed her cheek, feeling a strong sense of sorrow fill me. I stared at the side of her head like a lost puppy. I wanted her to do something. Talk to me or even tell me off. Do something instead of sitting there like a monotone robot. But I knew we had a long journey before she even did that.

As the lights dimmed, my eyes fluttered closed. Sleep consumed me quickly and I rested an arm over Blair's body, pulling her to me.

It was only when the lights flashed on and the door fell open with a loud gunshot, that I regained consciousness.