BLADE

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

            Trix and Briana were slightly taken aback after hearing this, knowing how powerful Demethry Smith is. But Taylor didn't have a damn.

             "Who cares about who's your evil father?!" She asked before swaying Phoenix. Claude's head rolled down the ground and his blood started creating a pool.

                 Briana lost her strength and she weakly sat on the ground. Trix walked towards Lalaine and Drake. Taylor walked towards Nathanya who was holding Lace's dead body.

                 "I... it's my fault." She said, blaming herself.

                  "No. It's her choice." Taylor answered her.

                   Suddenly, a man from the unit Brawler shouted.

                     "There's a bomb planted here! Quickly go out! There's only a minute left!" He shouted.

                     Briana and Taylor quickly picked up Lace and helped Nathanya to get up. Trix also did the same and took Lalaine with her. They were about to reach the exit when a small explosion sounded. The warehouse quickly got into a fire. Trix's expression was unreadable. No one knows what's running on his mind. They still continued walking towards the exit even though the fire was getting bigger and bigger. When they were about to reach the exit, Trix suddenly stopped running and pushed Lalaine towards Taylor.

                      "Take her with you." He said.

                      "Trix?! What the fuck are you doing?! Come with us. Now!" Briana said and tried her best to pull Trix but the latter shook his head.

                      "You see this man? I promised to be with him. Always." He said while staring at the now cold body of Drake.

                      "Trix. Please. Come with us." Lalaine also begged him but he didn't listen. Taylor was about to pull him when suddenly, the ceiling collapsed, becoming an obstruction between them.

                      " Go. I want to be with him. And by the way, thank you." He said, before turning his back behind them and walking inside the burning warehouse.

                       He laid Drake's body on the ground and sat beside him, talking to him while waiting for the bomb to explode.

                      "How can you be so unfair? You promised not to leave me but you still left. You are my strength. Without you, how will I be able to stand strong?" He asks but receives no answers. When he felt that the bomb was about to explode, he laid beside Drake and whispered.

                      "If there will be a next life, let's meet again. Let's die together. I love you." He said and closed his eyes, just in time as the bomb exploded.

                        Briana, Nathanya and Lalaine were crying outside the warehouse. Taylor remained emotionless but deep inside, an unbearable pain started dwelling in. Lalaine kneeled on the ground while crying.

                       "I'm sorry. It was all my fault. I'm so sorry." She said.

                        "Anyone can be blinded by anger. Don't blame yourself." Taylor told her. Lalaine can't help but feel more guilty after seeing the other side of Taylor. She felt very guilty after seeing how Taylor listened to Drake and spared her, how she forgave her even though she doesn't deserve it.

                        "Where shall we go? We can't go back to our condo. Mr. Demethry might be waiting for us there." Briana said. Taylor thought about it for a minute.

                        "At our den. We can temporarily stay there." Taylor said then carried Lace.

                         "Let's go." She said. Briana can't help but to shed more tears. She knows that Taylor was in great pain as well. She suddenly remembered all the times where Taylor had to hide her concern for Lace.

                         "Is Taylor mad at me?" Lace asked Briana who was cleaning her wound. Briana looked at her and smiled.

                         "She's not. It's not your fault anyway so why shall she be mad at you? She just looks cold but she's reasonable. Calm yourself down okay?" Briana answered her. Hearing this, Lace let out a sigh of relief. Minutes later, Taylor came in, her katanas almost covered in blood.

                          "What happened?" Briana asked her.

                          "Lower your voice. I just took care of the bastards that almost killed her. Don't tell her anything okay?" Taylor said in a low voice. Briana nodded.

                              Briana smiled bitterly when she remembered how Taylor tended Lace when she was having a very high fever. How she cleaned her mess, and cooked for her but said she ordered it. Briana knows clearly that before Nathanya came, there was a clumsy Lace Taylor genuinely cared about.

                              They drove all the way to the academy but they stopped at an abandoned garden all of a sudden. Even though the garden was abandoned, it was clean and the plants were green and fresh.

                              Taylor carried Lace out of the car. She then removed the cloak she was wearing and laid Lace there. She looked for a thing she could use to dig a grave for Lace.

                                "She takes care of this garden." She said while digging.

                                  "All of the plants she's taking care of at the dorm and at our den, they all came from here. She will always tell me how beautiful her garden was. And it was indeed beautiful. She seemed to forget but this is also the exact place where I saved her. I saved her here, then I'll also bury her here." She continued digging until the pit could bury the body of Lace.

                                    Briana's vision had become blurry because of her tears. Nathanya can't breathe properly and the same goes with Lalaine. She had lost both her brothers that's why she knows how Taylor was feeling right now.

                                     After she was satisfied with the grave she dug, Taylor covered Lace's body using her cloak. Then, she carried her and laid her slowly on the pit. Briana was trembling really hard. The feeling of pain and regret reigns on her. She was just about to confess her love for Lace but she was too late.

                                     After putting Lace in the pit, Taylor started covering her.

                                 "Let me handle all your problems. Let me take revenge for you." Taylor whispers.

                                   "And I'm sorry for not being able to die with you." Briana suddenly said as tears continued rolling down her cheeks.