CHAPTER 2:
I am instantly set onto the ground, not gently, I might add. When I look up, a giant house stands in front of me, towering over me. It looks like some grand cabin resort that would be on the cover of some outdoor living magazine. Why the hell did Damon bring me here?
"Where the hell are we?" I ask, frowning.
"My house," Damon says as he leads me up to the porch.
"Wait," I ask softly. Damon turns around to face me. I take a deep breath as I look at him.
"Why haven't you killed me?"
Damon's face tenses, and I immediately regret asking him the question. In my entire life, I have never been afraid of anyone, but this man, Damon Salvatore, is the only person who has managed to intimidate me, and within a matter of seconds.
Without warning, I'm pinned on the ground, Damon's fangs bared once again. It startles me, his sudden action, but I'm not convinced that he would kill me. Otherwise he would've killed me back at the Tavern. Right? Suddenly, Damon's hands clench my throat, and suddenly, all of my fear returns.
I don't know a single thing.
"Who's to say I won't?" he hisses, and I close my eyes as I clamp my hands over Damon's, struggling to remove them from my throat. He doesn't budge.
"I-know-that-you-won't," I choke, gasping for air as I look into his bloodshot eyes. They're absolutely blazing with anger. Seconds pass without Damon saying or doing anything, and to my surprise, his hands suddenly release my throat, and I'm kneeling on the ground front of him, coughing and gasping for air as my heart rate calms down. Once it returns to normal, I stand up slowly, and Damon suddenly reaches out and grabs my left wrist for the second time tonight.
"You don't know what this is, do you?" he asks as he rolls my sleeve up.
"What what is?" I ask, getting annoyed as I look at my wrist. Nothing special is there. Just a small birthmark.
"This mark." he says, his voice stern as he glares at me.
"What, this tiny mole?" I scoff. Surely this is not what he's referring to.
"You don't see it," Damon says, frowning. He seems surprised.
I shake my head. "No. All I see is a little mole on my wrist," I say.
"How does this answer my question?" I sigh, getting annoyed.
Damon clears his throat.
"Because this mark," he says, "is the only reason that I haven't killed you." he says darkly, and I immediately swallow.
Is this supposed to comfort me?
"This mark, that you can't see for some reason, is the outline of a star."
I shrug, not seeing the big picture. It's just a stupid mark. How do I even know that he's not screwing with me?
"And what's so special about this mark?" I ask.
Minutes pass as Damon doesn't answer me.
"It's the mark of a Pureblood Vampire." he says finally.
"A what?" I ask, blinking rapidly.
"A human born to vampires. They don't need to have vampire blood in their system in order to transition. They're a rare type of vampire where they transition on their own over time."
"So, are you saying that I was infected by one?" I ask, trying to understand what he's telling me.
"Wait, you were bitten by another vampire before?" he asks.
I nod. "I-my parents, th-they were killed by vampires when I was little. I...I saw it all. One of the vampires found me and h-he bit me." I say, swallowing as I recall that night at my family's lake house.
"You weren't infected by a Pureblood," he says, "Because you already are a Pureblood."
I blink at Damon so fast that I am not sure that I actually blink at all.
"What are you talking about? My parents were human," I snap. If they weren't then they wouldn't have died.
"I'm talking about your biological parents," he says.
"They were my biological parents!" I defend, affronted. He doesn't know anything about my parents!
"Not if you're a pureblood." he shakes his head. "And you are a Pureblood." he says sternly. "The birthmark, the taste of your blood, proves it,"
My gaze drops as I look at my fingers. Could what he is saying be true? Of course not. But, what if it is?
"I-I can't be a-a vampire," I scoff. What world is this?
"There's no changing your fate, sweetheart. By your 21st birthday, you'll be a full-blown Pureblood vampire," Damon says.
But that's in one month.
Suddenly, Damon snatches my arm and I whimper as he takes my arm and drags me into the house.
"Finally, you're home-"
I look up, and at the top of the stairs, a blond woman stands, glaring at me. I'm almost certain that I see a flash of anger race in her sea-blue eyes.
"Who are you?" she asks me, her voice stern.
"E-Elena Gil-Gilbert," I say shakily, and immediately, I'm pinned to the ground. The woman bares razor-sharp fangs, and I squeeze my eyes shut, ready for the bite.
"Don't kill her, Caroline," Damon says, and Caroline freezes.
"Why not?" she hisses, licking her lips as she eyes me crazily.
"She's a pureblood."
I watch as Caroline's blue eyes widen. She stands up, with me in front of her. I whimper as she viciously grabs my wrist.
"Oh, my god," Caroline breathes, and I attempt to yank my hand away. Surprisingly, she lets me, and I rub it tenderly. Damn, she has a strong grasp.
"Where the hell did you come from?" Caroline asks, and I nearly hear a pinch of disbelief in her voice.
"I found her at the Tavern," Damon says.
"Interesting."
"She's staying with us for a while," Damon says.
"What?" Caroline and I gasp. I'm not staying here. I don't know these people at all, and they don't seem like the most hospitable people ever.
"No," Caroline snaps, and I would be offended by her lack of manners, but seeing as I don't want to stay here as much as she doesn't want me to, I'm not offended at all.
"Damon, she's a Pureblood! She's in danger, and we can't be killed for protecting her!" Caroline exclaims.
"Wait, what are you talking about?" I ask nervously. Damon had said that if I wanted to live, that I should go with him. I did. I thought that he was just threatening me, but it didn't seem like that was the case now.
"Thanks, Caroline," Damon snaps.
"Sorry," Caroline mutters.
"There are people who want you dead." Damon says softly, looking at me.
"What?" I ask, feeling all of the oxygen leave my body. "Why?"
"You're a pureblood, Elena," Caroline says. "The only way to trigger a Pureblood's transition, is by their 21st birthday, or..."
I swallow, knowing exactly what Caroline was about to say.
"Or death." Damon finishes.
"Oh, god," I swallow, feeling tears overwhelming me. Suddenly, realization dawns.
"That's why you didn't kill me," I say. "Because if you killed me, then I'd turn, and you'd be marked for death."
"Yes," Damon nods. "But that doesn't mean that we won't protect you,"
"What?" I blink. Why would they protect me? I'm nothing but a stranger to them, and apparently, they themselves could get killed for doing such a thing.
"I said that we will protect you for as long as we can," Damon says. Damon doesn't seem like the type to just offer a stranger his home. Why is he offering me a place to stay?
"Why would you do that?" I breathe, still not understanding.
"Because we can help each other out," he says.
"How?"
"It doesn't matter," Damon says. "All you need to know is that you'll be safe as long as you're here."
I don't know why, but I nod.
"Alright." I say. "Thank you." It's either this, or going back to my car and risk being killed in my sleep.
"Go get some sleep," Damon says, and he points upstairs. "First door on the left."
"Goodnight," I say, heading up the stairs.
"What the hell are you thinking, Damon?" Caroline pounced as soon as Elena was out of earshot.
"I'm thinking that we just found a pureblood," he smirked, despite his growing irritation as Caroline continued to scold him. Caroline was seriously beginning to piss him off. He knew what he was doing. She just needed to trust him.
"If they find out about this, we are dead, do you hear me? Dead! We're supposed to hand her in, not give her a pillow to rest her head on! Ten thousand dollars isn't worth this job!" Caroline snapped.
"It's fine. Caroline. I know what I'm doing." Damon told her. He was going to tell Caroline everything, but seeing as she just snapped at him, he'd changed his mind.
"You better damn well hope so because I'm not dying for going against their rules by saving a Pureblood. You were the one who got us into this mess, and you damnwell will be the one to get us out of it. I will not let you take me down with you." she hissed. "And when your brother gets back, he won't either."
With that, Caroline left the room, and Damon groaned.
Holy hell, the blonde could be such a drama queen. She underestimated him. But he knew what he was doing. He had Elena right where he wanted her. He wasn't playing games. He wasn't going to be the nice guy that Elena probably saw him as now. He knew what his job required. And he wasn't about to jeopardize anything for Elena Gilbert.
AN1: I know, a lot of you are probably seething with the fact that Damon and Caroline have a hidden agenda. But I promise it won't last long, at least for Damon.
AN2:PLEASE FAVE/FOLLOW. Oh, and PLEASE REVIEW :) It motivates me to update more!
PS: Please check out my other TVD/DE stories Mirrors, The Other Side of Me, Shelter, Star Crossedand Sweet Temptation. I'd REALLY appreciate it :)
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