The Guardian Demon [A Taron Egerton FanFiction]

15: Another Breaking Point

Barney's funeral was small. The old man didn't have a family, just a couple of relatives who showed up out of nowhere just for the sake of being in the same place with some celebrities, or so they thought.

Only a few of the music industry big names had shown up. Other than that, there were only Mallory, Maria, and Jenny who, according to her, had to cancel a very important business deal to be able to attend the ceremonies, not just to be by her friend's side, but because she loved him as well.

Mallory shrank at a corner, trying to hide away from the minor crowd who gathered at her house after the burial ceremonies, holding a glass of brown liquor in a shaky hand with Jenny close to her.

As for Kenny, he didn't attend the funeral, he was nowhere to be seen. Mallory attempted to call him, but all that she had as a response was the automatic message of his voice mail.

Mallory kept wondering why he wasn't there with her. She was lonely and scared, she needed him. She was looking for some comfort, a shoulder to cry on, a person to listen to her, to tell her that everything will be alright, even if that was a lie.

Taron wasn't better, either. He grew fond of the old man during the time he had spent with him, Barney was witty, wise, and easy-going,  he would miss the sarcastic nicknames he used to call him with.

The only difference between him and Mallory was that Taron knew how to hide his emotions, he was able to wear his hard mask and go on, busying himself with all the funeral arrangements in addition to managing every detail about the security of the event.

Although, the dark part of his mind was upset that the man died without him being able to know more about his involvement with the Russians.

By evening, everyone had finally left, leaving three grieving women to take care of each other. Taron was clueless about how to deal with such circumstances, so he decided to give them, and especially Mallory, the time they needed to recover.

What really impressed him was that Mallory was able to hold herself together the whole time, she seemed calm and collected during the funeral, not a single tear had fallen from her eyes. But he knew that, under all that strong facade, she was damaged. Barney wasn't just a friend of her, he was a part of her family, her partner, her advisor, and her well of secrets.

That night, Mallory had finally received a reply from Kenny to her numerous messages, but it wasn't the kind of reply she was seeking.

Once she had read the text message on her cellphone, she handed the device to Jenny to double-check that what she had just read wasn't a malfunction of her weary brain.

"I'm sorry, but I can't be with you anymore, my life is in danger when I'm around you, can't take that risk again," Jenny read out loud, holding the cellphone up as she sharply stood, unable to hide her anger.

"That asshole," she hissed, "who does he think he is? How can he actually do such a thing, and at such a critical time?!"

Mallory, on the other hand, sat immobilized in her spot, her eyes were glassy and glazed, void of any emotions, not a single voice had come out of her colorless lips.