Chapter 10

Her hands were shaking as she lifted the ornate brass knocker. Her hand had barely closed around the heavy metal when it was wrenched out of her fingers as the door jerked open.

Damon frowned down at her, his eyes skeptical as his brows arched. "What are you doing here? I wasn't actually serious about you spending the night, you know."

"Let me in," Bonnie said softly, keeping her head down and sighing. The night weighed heavy on her shoulders, the darkness seeping deep into her soul. She felt a kinship to the black emptiness.

Damon leaned against the doorframe and smiled. "What's the magic word?" he teased in a singsong voice.

She raised her eyes, her voice wooden. "I saw Katherine."

The smug smile slid away and his eyes widened. His body went rigid as he leaned forward, his predatory eyes sweeping the front lawn for any signs of Katherine. Satisfied she wasn't around, he moved back from the doorway, letting her in wordlessly. Once she was inside, he shut the door behind her.

Bonnie walked down the hallway, heading for the formal living room on autopilot. She didn't stop until she reached the center of the room. Damon touched her elbow and she flinched away. He came around in front of her, hissing when he saw the bruises on her throat. His hands moved to touch her again, but he seemed to think better of it and stopped himself. Instead he crossed his arms over his chest.

Bonnie touched the marks absently. "That bad?"

"Katherine did that." It wasn't a question. He pressed his lips together, breathing hard through his nose. He raked a hand through his hair, frustrated.

Bonnie nodded. "She was waiting for me when I got home. For a second I thought she was Elena, but then …"

His eyes shut for a brief second. "Bonnie, I'm sorry. I didn't think she would come see you so soon. Katherine usually likes to … It doesn't matter."

Bonnie went to the couch and sat down hard, staring blankly at the fireplace. "I couldn't stop her. I tried, but she just …" She bent forward, burying her face in her hands.

Damon stayed where he was, unsure of how to respond. Emotional human teenagers were not something he was overly familiar with.

"My father was there," she said, defeated. Her voice was muffled through her fingers.

His eyes widened and he came around the couch, kneeling before her. "Did she—"

She shook her head, looking at him with worried emerald eyes. "But she made it clear she could. And she will. If I don't…"

"Don't what?" he pressed, eyes narrowed.

"She wants you dead. You and Stefan." She grimaced, the words leaving a sour taste in her mouth.

He flinched visibly. After a beat he let out a bitter laugh and shook his head. "Guess I shouldn't be surprised."

"She wants me to help her."

Damon stiffened. After a beat he gave her a sardonic smirk. "And you said no? I'm shocked. After everything—"

"It doesn't matter," Bonnie interrupted, balling her hands into fists. "I see that now. What happened before with you and me … I can't think about that now. What I need to do is stop her. She threatened to kill my father, my friends … I need to protect the people I love."

"Where's your dad now?" he asked suddenly.

"He had to go out of town for the rest of the week. He's spending the night at a hotel in D.C. He left an hour ago. His flight leaves for Los Angeles early tomorrow." She glanced at the watch on her wrist and laughed nervously. "Actually, in three hours. Thank God for that."

He nodded slowly. "Good. At least he'll be gone."

"But that doesn't change anything now. I tried to hurt her, Damon," Bonnie told him, her tone broken and raw. "I gave it everything I had and it wasn't enough."

"Today was a hard day," he reminded her. "You used a lot of your Power and—"

"And how long until my Powers are at full strength? And even then, will me at full strength even be enough?"

"I don't know," he answered honestly. "Your abilities are more than I would have expected from someone so new at this, but Katherine has time on her side. The older the vampire, the stronger they are. Katherine has been feeding on human blood for centuries. There's no telling what type of Power she has."

"I'm never going to be stronger than her," Bonnie whispered, shaking her head. "I don't think I can stop her."

Damon's eyes narrowed as he watched her, realizing she was seconds away from a full-on breakdown. He hadn't stopped to consider the toll this was all taking on her, mentally and physically. She was completely worn down, on the brink of exhaustion.

He touched her knee, hesitant. "You're not doing this alone, you know."

"It's too much. I can't handle all of this. You were right—I am just a kid. I don't know enough about magic. Maybe if Grams was still here …"

"But she isn't," he reminded her firmly, his gaze unwavering. "And you are strong enough to handle this, Bonnie. You're not just some novice. You're a Bennett. That's why Katherine came to you—she wants you on her side because she knows how strong you are."

Her gaze dropped to her lap and she watched his hand on her leg. "I need more Power," she said quietly, almost to herself. She lifted her gaze, her eyes narrowed with concentration. "If I'm going to have a shot in hell at stopping her, then I need more, Damon."

His gaze darkened. "You mean—"

"The blood exchange," she confirmed, her mouth going tight with resolve. "I don't think we have a choice."

"You're sure?" he pressed, his voice low. His eyes looked almost silver in the light.

She nodded slowly, breathing raggedly. Confusion filled her eyes. "I don't know … I mean, how do we …"

His expression was unreadable, except his eyes. They were flooded with a myriad of emotions: confusion and desire mingled as one. His eyes darkened, the veins beneath them rising to the surface.

Bonnie watched, horrified and fascinated as his fangs descended and he raised his wrist to his mouth, taking a savage bite. After a second, he extended his arm to her, the crimson blood flowing freely down his forearm.

She licked her lips, nervous, and brought her hands up his hold his arm. She lowered her mouth to the wound and opened her mouth. She swallowed a small amount of the liquid, distasting the metallic taste of copper in her mouth. It was warmer than she expected and thicker. Once she was past the foreign taste, it was almost sweet, but there was something more, something under the surface.

She swallowed again and then felt it. She could feel his Power as it started to fill her. The exhaustion she had been feeling moments earlier began to ebb away, a new energy replacing it. Her eyes slid shut and she sucked harder now in earnest, barely noticing when Damon groaned in response or when his free hand found the back of her head, his fingers tangling in her hair as he encouraged her to keep going.

Each swallow filled her with a new passion, stirred something so deep and so primal inside of her, she didn't know it existed. She could only imagine this was what it felt like to be high. Everything was alight and alive, a golden euphoria spreading throughout her body.

She was disappointed when Damon started to push her off gently. Finally, she let her mouth leave his wrist, and opened her eyes, licking her lips. One glance proved the wound on his arm was already healing.

His eyes were still ringed with red, his fangs still descended as he watched her tongue flick out. He gaze dropped to her wrist and took it in his hands. He started to raise it to his mouth when she did something neither of them expected.

Bonnie moved forward on the couch, opening her legs and leaning forward. She tossed her hair over one shoulder and baring her throat to him. She swallowed once and saw the hesitation in his eyes as they both realized the implications to what she was offering.

She trusted him.

"It's OK," she whispered so quietly no average human would have picked it up. Her pulse picked up. The steady thrumming became so loud they both heard it.

He needed no further encouraging. He surged forward, bracing a hand on either side of her body and his fangs sank into the soft skin of her neck, piercing her carotid artery.

She felt the sharp sting as his teeth broke her skin and then she felt the slow drag of blood being pulled from her body. But there was something more there, a new awareness of Damon as his mouth moved against her neck.

For the briefest of moments, her mind flashed back to the horrific scene in the woods when he had attacked her. She had felt his hand fist in her hair and jerk her head back, arching her neck to expose the long column of her throat. His teeth had torn into her brutally, forcefully taking her body's life force and draining it away. There was no pleasure in that moment. The terror that slammed through her had overridden any hopes of that.

It was nothing like the pleasure she felt now. The initial pain had faded into the background and was being replaced by an exquisite form of bliss that had her leaning into him even more. Giving her life to him was vastly different than him taking it. The power she was asserting over her own life was intoxicating.

She could feel his body starting to grow warmer with each swallow, she could feel their Power mingling and mixing together. One of his hands smoothed up her back, tangling in her hair as he held her against him. Her hands moved to his shoulders, gripping him and pulling him closer still.

After what only felt like seconds, he pulled away from her neck, panting. He hovered above her, his eyes conflicted as he licked away the last traces of her blood from his mouth.

Bonnie's gaze met his, her chest heaving between them. The air between them sparked and crackled. She smiled softly, slightly dazed and feeling better than she had in months. Since before Grams had died. The Power running through her veins felt ancient and strong, giving her a renewed energy.

And an entirely new awareness of Damon. She swallowed, her breath catching.

"Are you OK?" he asked softly, his eyes wide.

She nodded slowly. "Yeah. You?"

"Yeah," he whispered, his gaze drifting back down. The scent of her and the feel of her blood in his veins was overwhelming, intoxicating.

"Damon." She breathed his name a second before his lips crashed down on hers.