Liam Payne’s sister Nicola Payne learned of his death the way many people did: through a news alert on her phone. “When I saw the news pop up on my phone that you had left us I went cold,” she said Monday in a tribute to her late brother.

Nicola Payne is breaking her silence on her brother Liam Payne’s death. “When I saw the news pop up on my phone that you had left us I went cold, I wanted to so much for this to be untrue,” Nicola wrote in a lengthy Instagram statement on Monday.

Liam Payne plunged to his death last week which sent shockwaves around the globe. His sister Nicola paid tribute to the One Direction star.