Chapter Fifty-Seven: Cristian Balescu

Three and a half years ago

Mystic Falls, VA

Winifred was leaving the hospital, wrapping her long coat around her as she stepped outside into the cold. She stopped when she spotted Cristian's car.

Cristian remained still, gripping the steering wheel tightly, as he stared back at her. He couldn't deal with this a second time. She'd already unleashed hell on him for taking a photo of the spell from her grimoire and sharing it outside their coven, but if she approached him again, he wasn't sure he could contain his temper right now.

He was prepared for the beating he knew he would receive from his father later. The punishment would have been far worse had it been for anyone else but Stef. It's not that his father had a fondness for her, but he was pleased when they started dating. Cristian wasn't entirely sure why. He knew her heritage – knew there were witches in her bloodline – but she'd never displayed signs of having any magic. She would now, of course, with the ritual performed. Still, it wouldn't go down well with his father if the vampire remained unknown. He had to get the name from Stef and end them immediately. The sooner she transitioned permanently into a witch, the better.

Winifred remained standing in front of Cristian. His headlights were on, so she could only see his outline inside the car, but she just shook her head at him in disappointment and then carried on towards her own vehicle, which she then drove away.

He breathed a sigh of relief.

Soon afterwards, he noticed Stef.

About fucking time.

He sounded the horn aggressively to get her attention. She didn't flinch like he'd expected. He felt mildly disappointed by that. Sometimes it was amusing to frighten her.

As she opened the door and sat down in the passenger seat next to him, he could sense something different about her, though he couldn't immediately tell if the ritual had been completed. "Where's Lyle?" he asked, irritated. If he had to track down that stupid piece of shit, there would be hell to pay.

"He wasn't needed," Stef informed him. "I haven't completed the ritual."

Just like that, he couldn't look at her. Letting him down was completely typical. He faced forward, tensing his muscles, shaking his head in disappointment. This wouldn't do. He didn't like others screwing with his plan. "You will complete it," he decided for her. It wasn't up for debate. "Have you had human blood?"

"Yes."

"Adam's?"

"Yes." He still wasn't looking at her, so she kept her answers brief. If he wanted a conversation, he could damn well turn his head towards her.

He blinked slowly. Took a breath. At least one step had been completed. "You've got twenty-four hours to feed on the blood of a witch –"

"Why don't you offer me your blood for the spell?" she interrupted. She already suspected he wouldn't, she just needed to hear him refuse. "Oh right... because it's dangerous."

So she'd discovered that all by herself, had she? No wonder she stopped it. "If I offered you my blood, Stefanie, then my life would be linked to yours. If something happened to you, I'd be dead too, and I know that's not what you want for me. I need you to stop thinking about yourself for a second, and consider the effect this has had on me. I went out on a limb for you and you're not even grateful. You have the audacity to put me through all that, only to refuse –"

"I fucking died, Cristian!" she screamed at him.

He clenched his jaw, the skin around his eyes tightening in anger, thrusting a finger into her face. "You will not raise your voice at me!" he screamed back. Normally, Stef would have shrunk down into her seat the moment he shouted at her, but this time she didn't, and that made it a lot harder for Cristian to calm down. In fact, she turned towards him, unintimidated and confrontational, which only pissed him off more.

"The hell I won't!" she yelled. "I died and you gave me a spell that could kill everyone involved without even warning me first!"

"YOU DEMANDED IT!" Cristian shouted furiously in her face. How dare she act like he had deceived her. "I gave it! No questions, no warnings, no fucking Latin dictionary so you could dissect each word – I just gave it! I sent you the spell! I sent you Lyle! I did all I could to save your life and, as usual, you have given me extra work to do! Now I have to find you another witch that's willing to let a vampire feed on them! NOT. FUCKING. EASY. STEFANIE!"

"I've already got one!" she retaliated.

Cristian's anger caught in his throat. Taking calming breaths, he drew his head away, eyeing her with suspicion. It took him a moment to speak. It took a moment for him to believe her. "Who?"

"Raid Vaziri," Stef declared. He didn't have to know she didn't intend to use him. If she wanted to find a witch, she would find her own: one deserving of a potential death sentence. In the meantime, this would get Cristian off her case. "He performed the spell."

He let that sink in... then he began to laugh. A full, neck extending, chest shaking, booming laugh. There was no way that could be true. But, as his laughter died away, he remembered that Lyle was nowhere to be seen. Magic definitely surrounded Stef – he could sense it – and who else could have performed the spell, if not him? This was absurd. Raid wasn't a witch. Even if he was, the guy didn't have an ounce of control in his body. He was too much of an untrained punk to direct his magic into a spell like that. But Cristian was prepared to humor her. "So you expect me to believe that you discovered the risks to the spell and Raid is still willing to offer you his blood?" he said, unconvinced.

"Yes," Stef said matter-of-factly. "Because, unlike you, Raid actually cares about me."

Cristian fixed her with a piercing glare. "Is that so?" He'd have to monitor that very closely. "In that case, Raid's blood is not an option for you."

Stef was surprised. By his own admission, the spell was dangerous, and Cristian had never liked Raid, so why was he suddenly protecting him?

Cristian continued, "Until I find – and kill – the vampire who turned you, the human and witch would need to be protected. If Raid cares for you as much as you say, the time may come when I'll have to remind him that you're mine. I wouldn't like anything to stand in the way of that."

"Are you threatening him?" she burst.

"Not yet I'm not," he stated. He could keep it on the backburner for now. "I will find you another witch. In the meantime, you will provide me with the name of the vampire who fed you their blood, then this will all be over. We can go back to being happy together."

Stef scoffed. "I was never happy with you."

The words stung Cristian briefly, before realizing it wasn't real. "That's the vampire within you talking, Stef. You know you don't mean that."

"I do," she confirmed, taking a deep breath to say what she'd come here to say. "I'm breaking up with you, Cristian."

She finally said the dreaded words he had been expecting to hear at some point. Quite frankly, he expected them sooner. It didn't make a difference. She was going nowhere, and he was going to enjoy showing her the consequences of those words... after he gave her the chance to take them back. It wouldn't be fair otherwise. It took a second for Cristian to weigh up the risks: she was a vampire, so she could heal. She wasn't yet a witch, so he could still overpower her. So, in his mind, he pressed the button and the time bomb started ticking. 10, 9, 8...

"You're making a mistake."

"I'm not."

7, 6...

"I haven't been good to you."

"I know."

5, 4...

"I can change."

"You won't."

3, 2...

"Is there someone else?"

1...

She.

Fucking.

Hesitated.

0...

The sound of two thumps for two hits. Not one, but two. The pain didn't come first; it was the shock. The shock that he'd unleashed a closed fist to her face. The shock that it was followed by him grabbing the back of her hair and slamming her face against the dashboard. The shock of the pain that was slowly registering. The shock of seeing her blood splattered over the vinyl. The shock that, not only could Cristian do this, but that each movement had flowed from him effortlessly in a fluid motion, like a well-timed, well-practiced dance. The shock that she didn't strike back and stop him... not because she couldn't, but because, unlike him, she had never envisioned physically hurting him... never predicted that there would be the need. The final shock was that she stupidly didn't... fucking... predict... it.

The pain came next. The throbbing started it off, fuelled by the beating of her rapid heart. The excruciating sharpness came when she touched her face with her hands. Despite removing them immediately, the pain remained, then continued to spread as though her fingertips had set off a chain reaction. Her brain wasn't processing the split in her nose that didn't feel right. In her mind, it wasn't there simply because it shouldn't be there, but yet it was.

She lowered her face, positioning her forehead over the footwell, watching the blood drip and finally cease; breathing heavily as a wave of adrenaline flooded her, numbing her, except for the tiny stings that were working to stitch her back together. When the stings turned into tingles and eventually stopped, she reached up to her face. No split. No pain. No throbbing. Just blood.

Blood.

That's what he'd needed from her.

And that's exactly what she needed from him.

If his reaction was a dance, hers had a live orchestra. She sprung forward with a speed that surprised her. His hands went up. She took them in hers. She twisted them. She broke them. His scream was her music and her fangs pierced into his neck before he could suck in a breath. She didn't hold on for long. The desperate craving she had for blood dwindled as she felt the magic course through her. She released him, shoving him back, and sat back in her seat.

Cristian was panting and screaming in shock. Good. She would enjoy this for a few seconds. A few seconds before she'd have to heal him with her own blood before someone coming out of the hospital heard him.

10, 9, 8...

Oh shit! An orderly was coming out for a smoke.

She bit into her wrist, jumped back up, and shoved the blood into Cristian's mouth, muffling his cries. As she stared into his eyes, telling him to 'Be quiet', she noticed his pupils react to her words. He went instantly quiet. That was interesting. Could it be...?

The orderly was hovering by the entrance. There was no time to waste. If there was even a chance she could compel witches, it was time to start practicing.

"You will not remember anything after the moment I got into the car. You will not see any blood. No matter what I tell you, you will not hit me..." she said, successfully compelling him. She had more to say, reciting it in her mind. And you will not hurt me... You will accept our breakup... You will protect Adam and Raid...

But she didn't get the chance to continue.

Cristian's magic was fighting the compulsion.

Fuck! She had never done this before! His magic was wrapping around everything she'd just said, packaging it up, preparing for it to be sent over to the Coven. It wrapped... it wrapped... and it wrapped; bundling up each word. 'You will not remember anything' was swallowed by his powers.

Shit! The Coven can't know she'd done this! She stopped the compulsion and found a way to fight back, matching his magic with hers. He'd captured those words, but she wouldn't let them leave him. The words were all he had – and they weren't going anywhere.

That's when she felt Cristian give up... but not entirely. She waded through his magic trying to find out what he was up to.

Like a bird pecking away at a worm that was lodged underground, she found his magic tapping away at her compulsion. Except, instead of a bird, it was her voice. He'd stored the sound of her voice, using it as a key to unlock the compulsion and reveal it to the Coven. All she had to do was admit what she had done.

She broke free of his magic, leaving that bird pecking away... for as long as he lived if necessary. She could keep a secret. The Coven would never find out.

Sitting back, Stef calmly used the sleeve of her top to wipe any remaining blood from her face, waiting for Cristian to register that she had just got into the car.

It happened quickly.

Cristian felt a sudden headrush. He put his fingers to his temples. Stef's presence had caused a wave of magic to infect him, a power far greater than his own, making him feel like he was about to enter a dreamlike state. But it lasted only a second before that sensation was gone and he was left extremely uncomfortable with the unwelcome introduction to her new capabilities.

He didn't need to ask her if the ritual had been completed: he already knew. "Where's Lyle?" he asked, irritated. If he had to track down that stupid piece of shit, there would be hell to pay.

Stef then realized she needed to change her story.

"He wasn't needed," she informed him. "The ritual was completed without him."