Author's Note: Thanks to the continued support through the story. Even though it often takes me awhile to get a new chapter up, I do work hard on them so I appreciate any feedback or just the fact that people are actually following it! :) Thanks to any new favoriters or followers!
And special thanks to the reviewers of chapter thirteen: bigtimerushlover101, taylyons, Kayla, Claudiaxbabii15, SangoIchimaru, and the guest.
You guys are awesome sauce! :D
Oh and just as a heads up, Daryl's angry in this chapter (shocker!), so expect some foul language! :x

CHAPTER FOURTEEN.
I KNEW YOU WERE TROUBLE.

"We have to tell the others..." Edwin looked hopelessly at Andrea, possibly waiting for her to volunteer to do it. That moment did not come.

"I don't know," she sounded skeptical and he just knew that he was going to have to be the one to break the news to everyone. "They might take it easier if it came from you."

"I figured that much," he rubbed his arm in that nervous tic kind of way that OCD patients usually did, over and over while he thought it through.

"I'll get everyone to meet out in VI's room." Andrea quickly stood up and dressed herself in appropriate clothes. She had been wearing pajamas and spending most nights in Edwin's room, not sleeping together in the sexual sense, just talking and enjoying each others company and warmth. It was a welcomed distraction from all the plaguing thoughts of her sister.

Dr. Jenner did the same as she had, getting dressed into regular clothing before making his way to their little meeting. He did so slowly, trying to drag it out before he had to actually break the horrifying news of the inevitable explosion. No one besides himself and Andrea knew that the whole establishment would be blown to smithereens in a matter of hours. Edwin planned on telling them the day before, and the day before that but the time just never seemed right. He never wanted to crush their happy spirits. The time for paradise had come to an end.

"Oh," he said when he came into the view of 'main headquarters' and saw that everyone had already gathered. Andrea must have put on her bossy pants to get them all there so quickly. "Um, thanks for coming out here..." he let his voice trail off as every nerve in his body tightened. He hadn't prepared a speech and did not expect to walk right into them all there already, staring at him, waiting for an explanation.

"What's so important that we all had to be dragged out here anyway?" T-Dog moaned from one of the seats, he had been taking a nap and did not appreciate the disruption. If only he knew what was coming he wouldn't have even considered napping.

"I just... well I have to..."

"Out with it," Shane grumpily called from his spot on the floor. He had his head in his hands and was still obviously worked up from the conversation he had with Taylor.

"Um," he found himself unable to speak. All he had to do was tell the truth, but that wasn't always so easy.

"The place is gonna blow up!" Andrea finally shouted, impatient that Edwin wouldn't just say it. She shook her head and surveyed all the shocked faces before her. Everyone's jaws seemed to have dropped all the way to the floor and their eyes were all wide as saucers. For a moment she thought that maybe nobody heard her or it just wasn't registering. There were no screams of panic, no whispers to one another, nothing. It was so quiet you could hear a pin drop and that worried Andrea even more.

"What?" Lori finally had spoken, clutching tightly to Carl's shoulders. He still hadn't been one hundred percent comfortable with his mother since their argument, but at that moment there was no one he wanted more than his mother.

"The CDC is going to be blown to bits," Edwin had finally found his voice though it was barely louder than a whisper. "We all have to leave, or die."

"Thanks for being so delicate about it," Carol scolded as her weeping daughter sobbed into her shirt. She held Sophia close and shot daggers at Dr. Jenner. He hadn't intended for it to come out so harshly but that was just the way things seemed to happen with him.

"So what now?" Lori looked between Shane and Edwin expecting one of them to have a brilliant idea. Every body in the room was speechless.

"We have to leave, I guess," Andrea shrugged her shoulders finally speaking the words that nobody wanted to hear. They didn't want to leave the tropical paradise that they had come to love in the few days that they had spent there.

"How much time do we have?" Rick looked over at the clock that was counting down on the wall, they all had noticed it but nobody bothered to ask what it was for. He had a pretty good idea now, "is that how long?" He pointed to the giant, flourescent numbers. "Less than a day?"

"The power will start shutting down before that. We have maybe eight hours," he spoke matter-of-factly and still rather quietly due to the knot growing in his stomach and throat. These people trusted him and he let them down. He hadn't known them very long but there was at least one of them that he had grown fond of and if she was let down, they all were.

"Everyone get packing," Shane stated in a monotonous tone.

"I don't want to leave!" Carl cried out, making everyone in the room nod their heads in agreement. They didn't want to leave either, but it was a hell of a lot better than being blown up.

"We have to baby, I'm sorry," Lori kissed the top of his head which only made him wretch away from her.

"I'll go get my stuff," he forced himself out of her arms and stormed past everyone staring at the floor as he went. Truthfully everyone in the group wanted to react that way, cry, throw a fit, be angry, but they were all grown ups and had to act as such.

"Maybe it's for the best," Taylor whispered as she finished putting the few things that she had left into a knapsack. Bailey sat at the end of the bed whining, she figured he just knew that everyone was feeling a little on edge.

"What? You actually want to leave here?" Rick looked over with puzzled expression, confused with her sudden confession. He was under the impression that she liked it here as much as anyone else.

"No, well... yes." She sighed and threw the bag on the bed, startling the dog. "I don't know! We're stuck underground twenty-four seven. I like to see the sun every once and awhile, ya know? And honestly, I don't like that I'm always in such close quarters to some people," she rolled her eyes momentarily forgetting that he was looking directly at her.

"Who would that be?"

"No one," she instantly regretting saying anything.

"Cassidy?" She shook her head at his first guess. "Daryl?" He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. With this newest revelation Rick was ready to leave too, the sooner she wasn't constantly twenty feet away from Daryl, the better.

"I'm sorry," she picked the knapsack back up and slung it over both of her shoulders respectively. Her eyes met with the floor to avoid his.

"Hey, stop it." Rick's hands cupped her face delicately, forcing her to meet his gaze. "Don't be sorry for something you can't control. What'd he now? Should I kick his ass?"

"Nothing, he did absolutely nothing, and I feel like that wouldn't be the best of all ideas. I'd end up having to sew you up again," she frowned and he kissed her lips gently. Once he felt them turn upwards into a smile from the kiss he let his hands down, drifting towards the line where her jeans and shirt left a gap of exposed flesh. His fingers skated across her hips towards the small of her back.

"It's a shame we had to stop the other day," his eyes flashed and a wicked smile spread across his lips. Taylor was happy for the distraction from their Daryl talk and kind of enjoyed Rick's darker side.

"Well it would have been awkward to do that with Carl sleeping on the couch," she nodded her head over to the small sofa that was in the corner of the room. The previous night had started out with the two exploring new territory, that is until Carl knocked at the door pleading with them to sleep in their room for the night. Taylor happily agreed, and Rick was also pleased that his son was showing interest in him again- though his lower half was not as thrilled with the child's poor timing.

"Well he isn't here now," he began to trail kisses down her neck and took his time to nibble and suck at a tender spot he had come across. Once another one of her moans escaped all bets were off.

"We... can't," her poor attempts at protest urged him to continue on.

"Whose stopping us?" He slid the knapsack backwards off and let it fall to the ground carelessly. After that small distraction was out of the way he pulled her shirt off in a quick, swift motion that seemed to be effortless.

"The..." her breath hitched for a moment as his hands began to unclasp her bra. "This entire place is going to explode!" She shifted herself out of his grasp. "That doesn't bother you?"

"No, we've got a few hours. Everyone won't be ready to go for awhile anyway. What's the point in sitting around?"

"I just need a second," she doubled over as her head spun in circles and her hearing tottered in and out. "I... I can't breathe."

"Okay wait." He grabbed her as her knees buckled and she nearly hit the floor. "Just sit down for a second," he placed her the bed and bent in front of her, his concerned eyes watching her chest rise and fall at an alarming rate. "I think you're having a panic attack." Rick knelt down in front of her and smoothed her hair out of the way. He held her hand tightly hoping that it would soon pass. It only took a few moments for her breathes to become steadier and the color to flush back into her cheeks.

"Sorry, I don't know what happened," she inhaled deeply and nearly jumped out of her skin at the knock that came from the other side of the door. He glanced over his shoulder at the noise but turned back to her quickly.

"I'm just happy you're okay." He leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. Before either of them could move the visitor let the door swing open idly. He let out a low scoff and shook his head with an impassive smirk.

"Sorry," he looked over the scene and came to the obvious conclusion. There they were on the edge of the bed and Taylor was barely dressed, it didn't take a rocket scientist to put two and two together. "Shane said to make sure everyone would be ready to leave soon."

"Here," Rick handed Taylor her shirt as he nodded towards the door, "just gonna use the restroom real quick and then we'll be ready." She slipped her shirt back over her head without looking up. The second the door clicked shut he ran a hand over his mouth and let out a bemused chuckle.

"You fuckin' kiddin' me?" In a blind rage Daryl's fist connected with the wall, leaving a nice dent in its place. Bailey immediately scooted himself under the bed and Taylor visibly jumped. She bit her lip and finally forced herself to look up. She opened her mouth to speak but was instantly shut down, "Save it." As the tears welled up he turned to leave, "go cry on your fuck buddy's shoulder."

The door slammed and he stalked away without looking in any direction besides forward. He was going to get his things and leave. He could not stand being in this place for one more moment. The air was stale and he couldn't hunt to blow off steam. The longer they were here the higher the risk became of him beating someone to bloody pulp. There was nothing to do there to take his mind off of all the other things that threatened to push him over the edge as well: his brother, Taylor and Rick, Cassidy suffocating him, he was too pent-up here and it was beginning to show.

"Hey did you-"

"Yeah, they're coming," Daryl quickly cut Shane off before he could finish. He didn't give him a second glance before leaving him in the dust. He opened the door with a little more force than necessary causing it to crash into the wall behind it.

"You okay?" Cassidy peered up from her bag and noticed the scowl that had entrapped his features.

"Fuckin' peachy," he grabbed the crossbow from the corner of the room and pulled it over himself, adjusting it on his shoulder until it sat comfortably. He gathered up a few miscellaneous items and dumped them into a bag.

"Yeah you sure look it," she chided after finishing the last of her packing.

"I just wanna get my shit n get out," his snarky reply made her reach out to grab his hand. He retracted it and backed up. "This isn't workin' out. When we get to wherever the hell we're goin', you and I ain't doin' this no more." He plucked the bag off the bed and left to go out the door.

"What? Sex with no attachments... I thought that's what you liked?"

"Yeah, so did I." He left the room and found no compulsion to go back. It turned out to be easier than walking away from Blondie. He thought of the nickname he'd given her and let a ghost of a smile cross his lips. The image of the kiss he'd just witnessed burned in the back of his mind and his smile quickly dissipated. He heard the voice of his former self whisper in his ear, "Women are nothin' but fuckin' trouble. Daryl Dixon ain't never been attached to a girl n never will be." He began to think his former self was just a lying asshole.

"So what? She's not going to tell him then?" Shane nodded his head at her question and she let out a huge sigh of relief. She swiped the sweat away from her forehead that began to build with the scare that Shane had just presented her. She knew that he confronted Taylor about the secret and they made an agreement to keep it under wraps. "Our secret is safe?"

"For now." He said solemnly as he grabbed all three of their bags and easily carried them out. Lori snatched Carl's wrist in her hand and dragged him along. Since Carl was now in tow they kept everything very vague, not wanting him to even get a whiff of what they were talking about.

"What do you mean for now?" They had nearly made it to the doors when he whipped around and she saw his face had fallen. This whole thing was truly eating him up.

"She said that she's not going to tell him. She also said that we should tell him," he sighed and dropped the bags near the door, they were still waiting for everyone else to come up so they could pack up the cars. "I think she may be right."

"What?! That's insane Shane we can't," she glanced down at Carl who was busying himself with looking out the window at the city. Her voice dropped to merely a whisper, "we can't tell Rick. He would lose it."

"Anything could make him lose it. Anything could make any one of us lose it! The longer we keep it from him the worse it's going to be when he finally finds out-"

"IF! If he finds out," she snapped and glared at him in disbelief that he was even considering telling him.

"He has someone by his side now, this is probably the most opportune time we're ever going to get. Down the line he might not have Taylor there."

"As if she's even there right now," she swatted her hand at the air and rolled her eyes. "You even said you saw her shacking up with Daryl. The little tramp."

"Hey!" He lightly grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her to lock eyes with him. "I think I've given her enough grief for all of us. She doesn't need anymore."

"Oh so you're feeling sympathy for her now? Unbelievable." Lori shook her head and stepped out of his hands. She folded her arms across her chest and waited for an explanation.

"No I just... I might know how she feels."

"What other girl are you screwing on the side?" Her scrutinizing glare made him recoil and take a step back. He had never seen her look more angry.

"No one. I mean... it might not be black and white to her like it is to you. She always looks happy when she's with Rick. And when she realized I knew about her and Daryl she seemed genuinely upset, like she regretted it," he wiped his forehead off as Lori had done before. Their argument had made his body go into overdrive and the heat coming from the windows was being to take its toll.

"Fine you can take her side," she started but Shane interjected quickly.

"I'm not on her-"

"It doesn't matter!" She huffed and looked away feeling completely betrayed, "we're not telling Rick and that's my final word on the matter." She shuffled over to where Carl was contentedly pressing his face against the glass to get a better look at the dead zombies.

"Hey," Taylor bounded around the corner and smirked at the two. "Jenner said you guys left some, uh..." she glanced over at Carl and reworded what she was about to spew out, "personal stuff in your room."

"I'll go get it," Lori began towards the hall when Shane quickly came up behind her. "I'll go too, there's something else I want to tell you." She shot him a weary look and then turned her gaze towards the child.

"Whose gonna watch Carl?"

"I can," Taylor gingerly offered up her services with a shrug of the shoulders. Lori scowled but finally nodded her head in reluctant agreement.

"Fine, we'll be back in a few minutes," she muttered and took off back to their room.

"Thanks," Shane was quick to add in, feeling slightly guilty after Lori's trash talking of her. Taylor ignored the dirty look that the brunette had shot her and approached Carl with caution.

"Hey short man, enjoying the view?"

A few minutes of bickering later and Shane and Lori were standing back at the lobby. Taylor and Carl were gone with only a lone Glenn struggling to get a few bags in their place.

"Here." Shane grabbed a bag and flung it over his shoulder with ease.

"Thanks," Glenn rolled his eyes at the emasculation Shane had just inflicted on him, he knew he meant well though.

"Where's Taylor and Carl?" Lori glanced around with painfully obvious worry sketched across her face.

"I thought I saw them go outside already, probably to the RV."

"What?! What if there's walkers?" Lori's voice had reached a new level of shrill that neither Glenn nor Shane had ever heard before. He winced and backed away a few steps in fear of his ear drums bursting.

"T-Dog already went out and picked them off. There weren't many... thinks they must have moved on while we were MIA."

"Okay," she let herself take a good breather, she knew T-Dog was well-trained with his gun and took comfort in that.

Once Lori had composed herself the rest of the group had migrated up front. They all exited quickly, although they still had roughly two more hours before the fireworks display; no one was really in the mood to take any chances. They gathered around the RV and everyone began making a game plan for who was riding where. That's when it happened. That's when the ground shook and the air erupted around them. Glass shattered, shards flew, fire burst through the air. The CDC had been demolished.

There were shrieks and yelps of utter disbelief, shock, and fear and everyone hit the deck to protect themselves.

"Where's Carl?" Lori stood up first and spun in a circle before frantically bulldozing through the RV. She ran back out with tears streaming down her face. By the time she exited everyone had slowly started to pull themselves up with stunned faces. "I thought you said they were out here!" She shouted at Glenn as both anger and sorrow flooded over her.

"I... I thought I s-saw them!" His stammering could only just begin to measure how shocked he was. This can't be happening.

"You said we had two more hours!" Lori immediately turned her aggression on Dr. Jenner. She lunged toward him in a feeble attempt to attack.

"They must have made a miscalculation with the countdown!" He replied with only an ounce of defensiveness in his tone. He truly did feel awful but knew that he was not the one that made that damn clock.

"My baby..." she fell to the floor in front of him and wept into her open palmed hands that were smashed to her face. She continued to cry as Shane knelt next to her, putting a comforting arm around her shoulder. His own eyes were prickled with tears.

"No..." Was Rick's only word, he couldn't get out more than that, he was too busy trying to remember how to convert oxygen into carbon dioxide. He could barely breathe at that moment. He stood in stunned silence after that, too shell-shocked to react in any other way.

"No... he shouldn't have been in there!" She repeatedly thumped her fist against the dirt. Daryl exited the RV and looked around in confusion.

"What happened? I thought that-"

"What were you doing man?" Glenn gave him a sideways glance.

"Takin' a piss, geez. Can't leave for two minutes without somethin' blowin' up," he gave a stern look to Glenn but it instantly faded when he saw his face. "What?"

"It... it exploded earlier than it was supposed to... Carl and Taylor were still inside." He shook his head and his eyes fell to the floor, the doubt that it really happened was still overwhelming him. Daryl could barely believe it himself- in fact, he downright refused to believe it.

"What? No!" He tried to charge forward blindly deciding that he would rush in and miraculously save her, save them both if he could. Glenn held him back and gravely shook his head. "Taylor?" His voice was barely above a whisper as he stared at the burning ashes.

"Just forget it man," Glenn let his arm down when he knew Daryl wouldn't fight back. The view of the smoldering rubble was enough to make it clear there was no saving anyone.

"They're gone."