Chapter 38

I glared at her and took a threatening step forward. She only glared back and held the gun firmer, making me smirk. That made her brows furrow as she scowled in anger. She still couldn't move an entire arm, which pretty much left her powerless. "Careful there, Sis. I'm the one with the gun now," she seethed, and my smirk only grew wider.

"Yeah, well, I'm the one with backup and two good arms," I replied back, and her scowl deepened. "Why don't you drop the gun and fight me now, you coward? Stop relying on a gun for protection."

"I can beat your ass with or without a gun," she said, and I rolled my eyes.

"I'm not the one who ended up with a knife on my shoulder last time," I mused, and she clenched her jaw in response.

She immediately took the safety off and pulled the trigger; however, the bullet went straight to the ceiling since Danielle kicked her arm up. "Kenneth, get her out of here! I'll deal with Eva," Danielle commanded, and Kenneth stared at her hesitantly.

"Are you sure you—"

"Yes. Just go already!" she shouted, and at that moment, Izzy jumped on her back. They both fell to the ground and Danielle kicked her off, before Kenneth took hold of my arm.

He dragged me down the hallway until we reached a familiar worn-out door. The door that Steven escaped through the other day.

"Behind this door will be a group of guards waiting to lead you out of here, undercover. Wesley and the rest are with them; they will get you out of here as safe as possible," he grunted and kicked the door open.

"Who would've thought I would end up being the damsel in distress?" I muttered, pretty much to myself.

The sound of a familiar pained shout filled our ears, and we both turned around hastily.

Izzy stood over Danielle with a bloodied hand clutching a butterfly knife, while Danielle lay on the ground, holding her side.

No...

"Danielle!" Kenneth shouted and began running toward her, but I stopped him.

Danielle glanced back at us, and tears were streaming down her cheeks. Izzy gave us a crazed grin, throwing the knife away and picking up her fallen gun. I froze in place as she pulled the trigger, the bullet piercing the back of Danielle's head.

Kenneth's screams resounded through the entire room as he broke free from my hold. This time, when he charged at her, I didn't stop him.

I only stood there...paralyzed.

Kenneth pulled out a gun and aimed at Izzy in time for her to do the same. All I could do was stand there and watch, too shocked to move. Everything was happening too fast. Two more gunshots were heard, and I blinked to look at the scenery in front of me clearer.

Izzy fell to the ground with a bullet through her chest, and Kenneth panted heavily. Danielle's slumped figure lay lifeless on the ground, a pool of blood forming underneath her.

Kenneth turned to look at her. "Dan..." he whispered, and I felt my own heart breaking for him. A huge sob left his mouth and he knelt on the ground while I still stood there, motionless. I watched how he cradled her body in his arms and sobbed even louder, burying his face in the crook of her neck. He pressed her body against his own, staining himself with her blood.

"Kenneth..." I whispered and took a step forward, finally regaining movement.

"No!" he yelled and glared at me with tears in his eyes. "Don't you come any closer!"

"Ken, I—"

"This is your entire damn fault," he sobbed. "She died protecting you!"

"That's not—"

"You got her killed! I could've saved her if it wasn't for you! She would've survived!" he yelled, his deadly gaze burning me. "I wanted to keep her out of this—away from you and your problems ever since you almost broke her arm. Yet, she still fought for you! Don't you dare pretend to care about her now, after you left us both to die!"

Commotion was heard from the background, but we ignored it. He continued sobbing, before he stood up hastily and aimed his gun at me. "She didn't deserve to die. Not like this. All because of you and your stupid anger issues. I've never met such a hypocrite before in my life."

I only stood there, not knowing what to do.

Danielle and Kenneth had been the cringiest, yet most amazing couple I had ever seen. They were inseparable—probably even each other's soul mates for all I knew. Seeing Kenneth like that made my heart break.

He was right. I was a hypocrite. I didn't deserve their friendship.

I refused to move, even as he had his gun aimed at me.

Footsteps grew louder around us, and suddenly guards appeared in the hallway behind Kenneth. He let out a scream before shooting at me, but his shot failed miserably as it hit the wall beside me.

I wasn't given any time to process everything—it all happened in slow motion.

All I could see was blood. From Danielle, Izzy, and now Kenneth, as he shook with every bullet he received. My eyes were wide as he fell to the ground, the gun falling some feet away from him.

Was this really happening? This must be a dream...

It had to.

Strong arms pulled me backward in a rush, and I didn't fight the person. My cheeks felt cold and wet as tears ran down my cheeks uncontrollably. More guards came, but this time from behind me. They started shooting at the other guards, and it was all just a bloody fight.

I was being dragged away from the fight scene, and Wesley's face came into my field of vision. "Lily, you're alright! Where are the other two?" he asked hopefully, but my eyes were trained on the worn-out door some feet away. After a moment, his expression morphed into one of sympathy and sorrow, and he nodded understandingly.

Lindsey immediately went to my assistance and led me to a white van not so far from the building, ushering me inside. I climbed in from the back and sat at one of the ends, burying my face in my hands.

"Look at me," Lindsey instructed, and I did so slowly. My gaze didn't focus on her or anything around me, just stared ahead into nothing.

A light shone in front of one eye, then the other.

"How is she?" Wesley asked once he jumped in the van.

"It seems as if she's in a state of shock. We should give her some space to recover from whatever caused it." I heard her say faintly, and a moment later, I was left alone.

I didn't notice when the vehicle started moving. In fact, I didn't notice anything at all. My mind couldn't stop playing the scene repeatedly, like a broken movie.

I couldn't believe that they died for me, and to think that I was the one that left them to die. The irony in this situation was sickening. I didn't blame Kenneth for wanting to kill me. Hell, even I would want to kill myself after doing such a thing.

They didn't deserve to die like this—they didn't deserve any of this.

I felt movement in front of me, but I didn't dare look at anyone or anything.

Kenneth was right, it was my fault that everything turned out this way. Many people were killed in these few days, only because I couldn't stay out of trouble. All because I wanted revenge on the man that left my mother and I to survive on our own.

"Amelia," someone muttered, finally getting my attention. My eyes met with a pair of familiar chocolate brown ones that stared at me with worry. Chase. "None of this was your fault. You shouldn't blame yourself for everything that is happening."

What?

"In fact, you are the biggest victim of them all. Whatever it is that your father has against your mother, you're the one paying the price. Your father is the one to blame for all of this," he spoke up.

"He is no father to me," I spat with so much venom that I was surprised I didn't turn into a deadly snake. "Don't try to divert the blame from me. Even if he started things, I fell right into his trap."

"Amelia." He sighed. "The point is that your fa—Steven is the one that got Danielle and Kenneth killed, not you. They were victims as well, just like me, but I didn't know it until now. Please, don't blame yourself for any of this."

All I could do was stare at him, not finding the words to speak properly. He reached forward and moved his thumb across my cheek softly, wiping away a tear.

I found myself leaning into his touch and closed my eyes, feeling tired. When I opened them momentarily, I found Chase staring at me intently, which made me furrow my brows.

He smiled softly. "You look like utter crap," he commented, and I couldn't help but chuckle. His eyes widened, then he smiled proudly at himself.

I grabbed his hand from my face and gave it a light squeeze, before leaning back on my seat. He started playing with my fingers mindlessly, and I stared at our hands.

Who would've thought that I would be falling for a nerd? Let alone, a nerd falling for me?

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Like utter crap," I repeated his words, and he smiled.

"Amelia," he started. "This might not be the right time, but I was serious about what I said back then."

"Because you always choose the right time to do things," I muttered sarcastically, then sighed. I bit the inside of my cheeks and looked away from him, letting go of his hand. "I was serious too."

"No. I may be naïve to some things, but I can see that you also want this," he whispered.

"And it's because I want it that I can't have it," I muttered.

"That's not true," he said, and I looked at him. "You can have this, Amelia. You feel the same way I do. If not, then you would've straight up rejected me from the beginning, but you didn't."

"I did reject you," I defended.

"By kissing me," he pointed out, and I looked away. "You said that loving a person like you would only bring me destruction, but that is not true."

"Yes, it is. Don't you see that the people that care for me end up injured or dead? Chase, whatever it is that you want can't happen. Can't you see that I'm trying to save you from my messed-up world?" I asked quietly, tears forming in the corner of my eyes, and he frowned.

"I'm not the one that needs saving here," he whispered and brushed a strand of hair behind my ear. "Let me try and help you save yourself instead."

I was about to refuse when I stared into his pleading eyes.

The vehicle came to a halt, but we didn't move... just stared at each other as everything was falling apart.

"I'll think about it."

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[Edited: September 15th, 2020 by michh_44]

I should probably chill with all the killing...so many deaths happening so fast. And to think that this book started with innocent pranks and stupid bullies. Quite the plot twist, aye? Vote and comment if you enjoyed this chapter! Best regards xx