Chapter 51 - CountDown

I tried to get back into the library but the door was chained shut and I recalled Damon had banned me from it. I didn't realize how serious he was.
I was having dinner alone when the chair at the center of the table stirred and suddenly Damon had taken a seat. He peered at me for a quick second and Maria came running in with a glass of his whiskey.

"I didn't know you'd be coming home tonight, Master," she bowed," I'll be right back with your plate."
Damon's hands were quick to grab her wrist and turn her back.

"Why were you in Akbur Hills for so long?" he asked, calmly.

The tension in the room thickened. I could see Maria struggle to form her words.

"The truth is, I went to find a new gardener, but I seen that one of my family members was sick, and I couldn't just leave-"

"You are banned from returning to Akbur Hills," Damon let her wrist go.

"But-"

"That's final."

Maria nodded and disappeared into the kitchen. It was Tessa that brought his plate and set it down. Damon chewed his steak while eyeing me. I ate, while staring at my plate nonchalantly.
"What's the matter with you?" he snapped.

"What do you mean? I didn't say anything."

"Exactly. You always have something dumb to say."

I shrugged," what's the point of banning her from Akbur Hills if you're going to gas it anyway? There will be no more Akbur Hills."

"What's the point of saving a sick family member if they are going to die in just a few days anyway."

I looked to meet his eyes," how many days exactly?"

"Hopefully two, maximum. We can't risk another vampire attack."
Two days. The potion will be done in two days as well.

"And my father?" I asked, as per Tiffany and I's conversation.

"What about him?"

"You will kill him too?"

"I see no point in killing your father, he's not a threat to any werewolves, and I've seen how sick he is. It's not long until he dies from natural cause."

So he really was sparing my father. But why?
Those reasons alone made no sense. Old or not, my father could still be a blood supply for a vampire thus bringing a risk. I did not dare ask.
If Damon preferred to conceal his act of kindness with lies, then I would move forward however he felt comfortable, even if it was based on a bed of lies.
I didn't regret having Maria administer him the blood; however, with Damon, it's always better to stay safe rather than sorry.

"I understand," I simply said," where will he go?"

"To another prison, or he can stay in Akbur Hills all by his lonely for as long as he wants-"

"He can come here. There's plenty of room. We need a new gardener after all-"

"Don't push it."

There was a threat in his eyes.
I did not push. Still, I felt relieved.

"Your shirt is bleeding again," I noticed the burgundy spots occurring on his navy button up.

"The other maid is upstairs, she's gathering supplies to clean it."

"Tessa?" I felt a tinge of hurt," I could have done it."

"It's not your job," he stood up and chugged the rest of his whiskey then disappeared up the stairs.

Why on earth had he chosen for Tessa to start cleaning his wounds? And why had he questioned Maria? Was he on to us?
I couldn't decipher whether is was nerves or jealousy that I was feeling.
By the time I got back into the bedroom, Tessa was heading out. She hadn't met my eyes at the door. I wondered what had happened between them.
Damon was in bed, on a call.

"Send over four hybrids by tonight. I want them patrolling this entire house twenty-four hours of the day," there was a vein of stress forming at his temples," and send over six of Luke's men."
He slammed the phone onto the beside table.

"Is everything alright?" I asked, slipping into a silky cream coloured bed dress.

"The vampire we killed in Somber Forest, she was the head of the clan."

"What does that mean?"

"It means, her army won't settle until whoever killed her is either dead or shifted."

"Can you even shift into a werewolf as a vampire?"

"No, you can't. That's why they were looking for you."

My chest sank as I took my seat next to him," me?"

"Yes, when someone kills their leader, they are next in command, sort of like werewolves. Since you can shift, they've been trying to hunt you down."

This was the last thing I needed right now.

"But I wasn't even the one that killed her, you took off her head!"

"They don't see it that way," Damon got out of bed," we killed most of their clan during the night of the celebration. There's only three of them left, and two were killed by Luke's patrols this morning. The third was spotted just now a few miles away from here."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I've been busy dealing with this all morning, I had no time."

I watched as he shrugged on a new button up.

"Where are you going now?"

"To make sure the hybrids arrive."

"But why? Isn't it easier to just let me go?"

He can have as many dolls as he wanted, and from the very beginning Damon had made it clear that I was disposable.

"You saved my life," he simply said.

Damon left and I was left alone.
Could I even shift now that I had werewolf DNA inside of me?
And wouldn't it have been much easier to let the vampires have me, rather than summoning the hybrids and the patrols to protect me?
I began to see it now.
Damon cared.