Chapter 57 - Banished

Thump, thump, thump.
I gasped and sat up. I heard footsteps coming down the stairs, I have been down here long enough to memorize the sound of the human boys boots. These footsteps were different, they were not his.
Someone is coming but who?

I pushed aside a metal tray of uneaten food and medicine. I could not stomach anything anymore. I wanted nothing more than to breathe in the scent of fresh air.
I hurried to the entrance of the prison. I held on to the metal bars and eagerly watched as the shadow of the figure stepped into the limited light.
It was Damon.

He finally came, I was beginning to think that he had died.
"You came."

I'm not sure why I felt relieved. Perhaps it was the possibility of finally getting an explanation but just seeing him brought me a sense of solace.
He had something in his grasp, a metal chair.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"Shhh."

He stationed it in front of the cell and sat down.
"I don't understand-"

He stared at me blankly. He wore navy dress pants and a cream silk button up. His massive arms were crossed across his chest, the shirt looked as if it would soon burst.
"Damon, why am I here?"

"Why'd you do it?" He suddenly asked.

I swallowed my dry throat," what?"

"You know what."

For a moment, we just stared at each other.
"I know everything."

"What do you think you know?" I spoke through gritted teeth.

"The night of the party, when you disappeared to Somber Forest, you were hoping that the vampire prison was empty right?"
I remained silent.

"So you could get some silver, so you can use it to kill me-"

"No-"

"You and Maria, and your pathetic human lover, you've been plotting this for a while. To kill me so you two can be together and somehow you were foolish enough to think you'll be able to save the human race-"

"That's not true-"

"Oh no?"

"Well, yes. In the beginning. But not anymore, you need to let me explain-"

"Oh, what changed? Was it that I told you I'd spare your father and now suddenly you don't give a rat's ass about the human race?"

"No, I didn't want to kill you! I just wanted you to listen to me-"

"Hard to listen when you're dead."

"That's why I couldn't go through with it. You were killing thousands of humans, I had to do something-"

"You manipulated and lied to me and I believed for a minute that you were genuine-"

"I am genuine, that's why I couldn't let you drink the potion!"

"Just like the rest of the human race, you turned out to be filth-"

"Damon, let me out of here so we can talk properly!"
He began to stand up.

"If you wanted me dead so bad, why not let the vampire kill me in Somber Forest? Why save me?"

I shook the metal bars as I screamed out loud, with tears streaming down my face," because I fell in love with you!"

I was met with silence. Damon did not respond and it was hard to see him through blurry eyes. I blinked away as much as I could and I could finally see his face.

He looked surprised and then he said," I won't be a fool to let you manipulate me again. You're a great liar, but you will die just like the rest of them."

I felt my heart race down the rest of my body and hit the ground," Damon, please-"

He was already headed back to the stairs. I shook the bars again and screamed out," Damon, wait! Come back, please! Listen to me!"

I heard the echoes of his steps running up the stairs and then the echoes of my sobs for hours more.
Bullet came stomping down the steps sometime after. He had keys in his hands. I hurried to my feet.

"You're letting me out?" I asked.

"Yes, it's time to go."

The entire cell shook as he whipped the door open.
"Where are you taking me?"

"Let's go."

"Not until you answer me."

Bullet gave me a threatening look. I sigh and stepped out of the cell. He followed me up the stairs and then guided me down the foyer. Tessa and the human boy peered at me with satisfied look on their faces. I followed Bullet outside into the night the entire time my stomach rumbled with the pain of hunger.
I should have eaten my meals, I knew that. But eating the food felt as painful as starving, and the other required less work.
Bullet opened the doors for the van and I took a moment to appreciate the hot but none the less fresh air.

"Get in."

"Where are we going?"

"Now."

There was obviously no use in arguing with him and so I stepped inside of the car and took my seat. Bullet slammed the doors shut and took his place in the driver's seat. His phone rang and he answered.

"We're on our way now. We should arrive before midnight."

He hung up and we were on our way to my inevitable doom.
It didn't take a genius to figure out where we were headed. I found myself asking again and again whether I truly regretted not killing Damon and someone, I always doubted that I did.
Even if I had killed him, surely, I wouldn't be able to live with myself. I had said the words to him, what I had been so fruitlessly trying to avoid admitting which is that I had fallen in love with him.
Fallen straight to my death, I thought sarcastically.

My only true regret was that as a result of my weakness that I would fail to save the human race. I could not register it, when tbis all had gone so south.
I could not begin to think of how Damon figured it all out. There was no way to get all of that information from a silent clip off the cameras, someone must have talked, but who?
Perhaps it was Tiffany, perhaps Luke became suspicious and she spilled everything.
It doesn't matter now. We were all going to die, even when Damon figured it out that I cannot be killed by gas, he will find a way to end me.
Perhaps a joyous beheading like the vampire he once murdered alongside Luke during my earlier time here.
At the very least, I would be reunited with my father and Evan.

The car slowly came to a halt in front of the rustic sign that read ; Akbur Hills Prison.