Bloodlust (The Vampire Diaries 15)

Damon laughed again.

The flap opened, and Callie poked her head through the tent.

I looked wildly over at her. "Callie, you shouldnt be here!"

Both she and Damon looked at me quizzically. A sickening feeling spread through my limbs. The vervain, the heat, the stakes

Just then, with a simple twist from his chains, Damon broke free and lunged toward Callie. Callie shrieked, and Jasper dove to shield her.

Time seemed to stop, and without thinking, I hurled my stake through Damons belly. He fell backward, gasping, blood spurting from the wound.

"I said, please!" I hissed wildly, in a voice only Damon could hear. Callie cowered near the flap, her eyes wide as she glanced between me and Damon.

Damon looked up, wheezing as he pulled the stake from his stomach. Then I heard the faintest, hoarse whisper over the shouts of Jasper and the trainers as they moved to re-chain Damon.

"Then please know that your hell hasn't even yet begun, brother. "

Chapter 24

I ran down to the lake, the sound of the stake ripping through Damons flesh echoing in my mind. Once I got to the shore, I stared at my reflection in the water. My hazel eyes stared back, my lips pressed into a thin line. With an angry jerk, I threw a pebble into the pond, shattering my image into a thousand little ripples.

Part of me wanted to jump in the lake, swim to the other side, and never come back. Damn Damon to hell if death was what he wanted so much. But no matter how much I wished hed die, I couldnt kill him. Despite everything, we were brothers, and I wanted--needed--to do everything in my power to save him. After all, blood was thicker than water. I laughed bitterly as I thought of the deeper meanings of the metaphor. Blood was also more complicated, more destructive, and more heartbreaking than water.

I sank into the brackish sand at the waters edge and lay back with a sigh, letting the wan November sun cascade over me. I dont know how long I remained like that before I felt muffled footfalls vibrate the ground beneath me.

I sighed. I dont know what Id hoped to find, coming down to the lake, but my peace and quiet was ruined when Callie sat down next to me.

"Everything okay?" she asked, throwing a small rock into the lake with a plunk. She didnt turn to face me.

"I just could you leave me alone?" I muttered. "Please. "

"No. "

I sat up and looked her square in the face. "Why not?"

Callie pursed her lips, her forehead crinkling as though she were working through a complicated problem. Then, hesitantly, she reached out with her tiny pinky finger and traced the outline of my lapis lazuli ring.

"The monster has a ring like this," she said.

I jerked my hand away in horror. How could I have forgotten about our rings?

Callie cleared her throat. "Is the vampire, is he your brother?"

My blood ran cold, and I jumped to my feet.

"No, Stefan! Stay. " Callies green eyes were wide, her cheeks flushed. "Please. Just stay. I know what you are, and Im not afraid. "

I took a step back, my breath coming in rapid gasps. My mind spun, and I felt nauseated all over again. "How can you know what I am and not fear me?"

"Youre not a monster," she said simply. She rose to her feet as well.

For a moment, we just stood there, not speaking, barely breathing. A duck cut an arc through the lake. A horse whinnied in the distance. And the scent of pine tickled my nose. I noticed then that Callie had removed all the vervain from her hair.

"How can you say that?" I asked. "I could kill you in an instant. "

"I know. " She looked into my eyes as if searching for something. My soul, perhaps. "So why havent you? Why dont you now?"

"Because I like you," I said, surprising myself with the words.