A\N Omg, the support you guys are showing to this story is amazing! Thanks so much, I appreciate every review you give. Please do not hesitate to suggest and even constructive criticism is appreciated, it will help me as a writer to improve both my writing and English language.

PS: I just got my helix piercing pierced, and damn it hurts… so a little review of this chapter will always make me feel better ;)

Enjoy,

Amy

The silence in the car was overwhelming, however none of them could talk about what was going on their minds. Damon was beyond confused and scared at the same time… He couldn't believe that he had almost gotten into a fight with someone who's his own race and who has greater authority than him, just to save a young human slave. He was scared that the thing he hated the most, his humanity, was finally fighting its way back in just inches away from being clearly visible.

On the other hand, the same thoughts were on Elena's mind. Why did he save her? He himself admitted that they had power over him, so why would he risk it? It didn't mean that she wasn't grateful that he saved her, because only God knew what could've happened if Damon didn't show up-In fact, her clothes were almost ripped to shreds, and she immediately blushed as she realized how exposing she were. It seemed that Damon noticed, and he surprised her even more when he handed her his black leather jacket without a word. She gratefully took it and carefully, inhaling his scent, put it over her own top.

"Thank you," Elena heard herself say when she thought the silence stretched out for too long. "Thank you for coming to my rescue…I don't know what could've happened if you weren't there in time."

Damon nodded his head and then after a while he said, "I can't guarantee you that they will free Jenna. However, Jeremy is still at home. They said they'll handle it-I can't do very much at the moment."

Elena nodded. "Thank you for trying."

He sighed. "You're welcome. I hope this rang a bell though, and that you learnt to be more thankful."

She knew what he meant. Susan's body traumatized her, and she realized that the main percentage of human slaves were in the same position as Susan. In a certain way she was… safer with Damon. Apart from feeding on her he didn't do anything to hurt her.

"Yes," She gulped, looking at his blue orbs.

"Damon?" She asked again after a while.

"Yeah?"

"Who was that man?"

"He's Vladimir's most trusted guards. His name's Duncan. They are the ones that originally created the truce, but ironically enough Duncan is the vampire most known to break rules."

"I never got that," Elena said confused, "What rules should there be?"

"There were a few," Damon said as if he was trying to remember. "One of them said that the human should be used for blood only. The second, the one I told you about, was that children under the age of 16 should not be taken or leave them without parental guardians. However, if a mother asks to be… 'bought', the child has to move in too."

"There are humans who willingly ask to be bought?" Elena gasped in surprise.

"Elena, not everyone has the same life. There are cases where a teenage runaway ended up pregnant and homeless…She offered herself in exchange for a place to stay for the baby's sake. Another one was abused by her husband at home, so she took her thirteen year old daughter to live with her in a vampire's house."

"But does the kid have to be fed on?" Elena shivered at the thought.

"Let's just say we're not supposed to," Damon said uncomfortably. "But something about vampires is that they always get what they want. The truce was just a gesture of selfishness. Another rule, for example, is that each vampire should have only one human." He cleared his throat before continuing, "There are vampires that rebel for human rights, too. But this often results in conflicts. Vampires that rebel for human rights are the animal-blood drinkers, and those that live only on bloodbags."

Elena bit her lip at this information. She tried not to imagine what other humans like her were going through, and what her own fate was. She looked down at her hands but the moment was shortlived as she felt cold hands on her chin, gently turning her face around.

"Elena," He said in a voice which sounded like a whisper. "I know that you are probably scared now, but I promise you I will never do what Duncan did to that girl."

By the time they were back, Elena was soundly asleep and Damon easily took her in his arms, using that moment to drink in her beauty as she lay asleep. He put her on her bed and took her shoes off before covering her with a thick blanket.

Damon instinctively reached out and brushed his fingers across the curve of her cheek and down the smooth column of her throat. She looked so peaceful lying there, no trace of tears on her cheeks-possibly because of him-, and she looked fresh and intensely appetizing. It wasn't long since he fed on her, however her blood was something which he never understood. Damon had a great self control, never totally giving himself to the blood; however with Elena it was different. She didn't know it; however Damon struggled to feed from her the gentlest way possible and to fight against the urge to drain her dry. Her blood was intoxicating and magical in a way that made Damon wonder if she was something else-something more than human. Her pulse point was throbbing, mocking him from the slender column of her throat. Resisting the urge, Damon closed his eyes, the veins on his face disappearing once more. However he didn't hesitate to impulsively lie down and brush his lips against the soft flesh of her neck, feeling the delicate heartbeat.

He withdrew when she stirred just a little and went back to his own bedroom, cursing himself for being so weak.

.

.

Elena's eyes popped open the next morning, feeling a little sore. She changed to comfier clothing and when she turned she saw Damon greeting her with a grin.

"Morning, Elena."

"Good Morning," She said politely and simply.

"I'm going out for a while. If you need anything, Larissa will be here."

"Oh. Okay," Elena nodded.

When Elena found herself alone in the room, she went to take her normal cup of coffee.

"Hey, Larissa," Elena said, sipping some of the coffee.

Larissa was about twenty two, she was energetic and she seemed to be really sweet however Elena knew that she must've gone through so much because her face told it all. She felt the urge to talk to her.

"Oh, hey dear," She gave Elena a small smile. "Do you want a sandwich?"

"No, I'm good thanks," Elena replied, putting the mug on the table again. "I never really talked to you…"

Larissa sighed, taking a cup of tea herself. "I've gone through much."

"How did you end up here?"

"I was happy," Larissa smiled. "I lost my parents at a young age so I grew up in an orphanage. It was only a few years ago that I went out of there, however I found some people taking advantage of me since I didn't really know the world outside. I lost money and hope… so I had no choice other to turn to a vampire's help." She sighed. "A year ago, even before the truce, I managed to find a vampire. It was a long story, however when I begged for help he let me inside his house, for the price of my blood, of course. He was a vampire that liked drinking from one person, so he thought it was a good deal."

Elena's blood was running cold.

"At first the idea disgusted me. But I wanted a decent place to live, at least have some food-So I accepted the deal. I grew very close with the vampire that I ended up completely and utterly in love with him… and he fell in love with me."

Elena's eyes widened, she never expected that a vampire could be capable of loving someone.

"However, we weren't destined to be together. A few months later, he was staked by someone they never caught. They took me away from there and sent me to another one, Thomas. This time I didn't have a choice since the truce was already made. Thomas was cold and ruthless, and I suffered so much the days I spent there. Then he sent me here to work because they can do whatever they want with you. Thomas never wanted the blood-he just enjoyed causing pain."

"I'm so sorry," Elena said breathless after a while. "You've gone through so much."

"I will only tell you one thing, though. Not all vampires know the difference between love and lust," Larissa locked her eyes with Elena's. "But when it's real, you can't walk away. Trust me."

The words confused Elena. What was she implying?

Larissa then gave her a small smile and started to clear up the table.

.

.

When Elena found herself alone again, she knew what she had to do next, and that was tour the house. Even though months had passed there were still areas she didn't explore and the house was bigger than she thought. One room was monstrous, with a modern LED television and even a surround system-Something that looked typically human and normal. She kept touring the houses when a room in the left caught her eye. To her surprise, she found it locked and curiosity immediately overwhelmed her desperately trying to open the door.

"And what are you doing?" She heard a small voice, and Elena turned to see Damon in front of her.

"I-I…"

"Curiosity killed the cat," Damon muttered. "What is it so interesting that you want to see?"

Elena looked down. "Nothing, I guess. What's in that room?"

"If it's locked, I think it is locked for a reason," Damon said in a chiding tone. "So that both the contents and every explanation that there might be are kept… a secret."

Elena immediately shut her mouth, not wanting to upset him and he seemed surprised by this.

"I managed to find something about Jenna," He said changing the subject. "The human rights movement is alert and fighting for it since Jeremy is fifteen and without a legal guardian now. However Vladimir's against us…Against you, too. Duncan is like his child, what he wants and doesn't get is what he'll aim for."

She stared at him, feeling herself melted by his blue eyes. He then reached out for her face, and assured her, "I won't let anything happen to you. That's what matters."

He took a step closer to Elena.

"When I first saw you," He smiled, grabbing a stray piece of her hair and twirling it around his finger, "I was mesmerized by how determined you are. How you try to stand up for the people you love and how you tried to save a girl you didn't even know. How beautiful you are," He added slowly.

Where was this going? Elena's heart suddenly started to beat faster, not quite ready for what was going on around her. He was talking to her in a sweet, caring way that both scared her and made her give in to her emotions. Yes, she had been denying the attraction because she didn't want to be used.

Damon's finger ran down her chin, her neck and stopped at her collarbone and he felt an odd sense of pleasure when she shivered. "And then when I got the first taste of your blood… I wanted nothing else than to make you mine. In every way possible."

Elena shivered as she saw Damon taking a step closer. Her instincts screamed at her to walk away, to take a step back, anything. But no, instead she stood frozen there enjoying his touch, his light caress right below her soft lips. He was looking at her eyes now, and then his thumb moved on her bottom lip, gently pulling them down. Elena knew what was about to happen, but consequences be damned, she felt that this was right.

Then Damon's lips were suddenly on Elena's, his hands stroking the back of her neck clenching her tighter to him possessively, and Elena closed her eyes as Damon deepened the kiss.

What was she doing? What was wrong with her?

No. There was no turning back now.

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