Chapter 89- Love, Loss, and Lies

The days dragged on in agonizing slow motion, each hour stretching into an eternity of grief and longing. Maria and Mason’s home, though welcoming, felt suffocating. There was no true escape—no place to be alone with my thoughts and away from the reality that gnawed at my soul. Their modest house had barely enough space for the two of them, and with Maria frequently absent, it often felt even emptier. Damon demanded her presence more and more, until last night, she hadn’t returned at all.

I called the mansion relentlessly, desperate for any update. When Maria finally answered, her voice was hushed, like she was hiding something.

“You know I can’t be talking with you,” she whispered. “If Damon found out—” 

I didn’t let her finish. “How’s my baby?” I asked, unable to stomach the mention of Damon’s name. His absence left a void in my chest that I couldn’t ignore, but acknowledging it only worsened the pain. My heart twisted at the thought of my son being cared for by someone else.  

“Baby Damon is healthy, but he needs his mother,” Maria admitted. “I’m trying to convince Damon to let me bring him to you for a few days, but he’s still raging.” 

The word sent a shiver down my spine. “What do you mean, raging?” 

“He flipped the breakfast table because his coffee wasn’t hot,” she confessed. “He shattered mirrors, tore shelves off the wall. I’ve never seen him like this… So angry, so heartbroken.”  

Tears welled in my eyes and slipped down my cheeks. “I didn’t do anything. I didn’t mean to—I never thought he’d react like this.”  

“He needs time. But listen, I have to go. If the staff tells him I’m speaking with you, he might shut me out, too.”  

I held onto the silence after she hung up, unable to move past the weight of those words.  

That evening, I told Mason I was stepping out for air.  

Under the glow of the moon, I was finally free to think, to untangle the mess of emotions strangling me. Had I allowed things with Malios to go too far? Did I cling to him because, in fleeting moments, I could convince myself he was Evan?  

If I stood in Damon’s shoes, how would I feel?  

The truth was undeniable—I would be furious. I hated the thought of another woman looking at Damon, let alone being in love with him.  

I wanted him back. I needed him back. My heart couldn’t endure the separation much longer.  

A rustle in the shrubs disrupted my thoughts. The cliché of the moment wasn’t lost on me, and I sighed before calling out, “Who’s there?”  

My heartbeat quickened, but not from fear—anger boiled in my blood.  

“It’s me,” Malios stepped out from the tangled plants. I should have expected him.  

“What the hell are you doing here?” My voice trembled with frustration. He was the reason I was stuck in this mess.  

“I’ve been here for days,” he admitted, his gaze earnest. “Ever since I overheard you and my mom talking on the phone.”  

“You were spying on me?” I accused.  

“No! I just wanted to make sure you didn’t do anything reckless—like walking alone at night when there’s a vampire hunting you.”  

I rolled my eyes. “She’s not going to find me here.”  

“Then why was I able to?”  

“You need to leave, Malios.”  

“I haven’t gotten a chance to apologize,” he said, stepping forward. I instinctively moved back.  

“For what?”  

“For everything,” he admitted. “For overstepping, for causing this chaos. I was selfish. I didn’t think about the consequences.”  

“You’re one of the best soldiers I know,” I pointed out. “How are you so… so—”  

“Emotionally clueless?” he finished. “I spent my life in Starionaries, trained to be the perfect Hybrid soldier. I never knew love—never understood what it felt like—until I met you. I don’t understand how people keep it a secret. Every time I saw you, not saying something felt like a crime.”  

I looked away. “You’re not in love with me, Malios. Maybe it’s admiration, maybe it’s infatuation. But it’s not love.”  

“I can’t stop thinking about you,” he murmured. “You’re all I think about. I’d like to stop, but I can’t. Isn’t that love?”  

I had no answer. The situation felt surreal.  

“You need to go home, Malios.”  

“I can’t leave you here—”  

“You don’t have a choice! I am not yours to protect.”  

“If he really loved you, he wouldn’t abandon you like this.”  

“He’s angry. He thinks I betrayed him—because of you. He doesn’t mean any of it.”  

Malios stepped closer, closing the distance between us. My pulse raced, anticipation clawing at the edges of my sanity.  

“You don’t treat the ones you love with cruelty,” he whispered. “If he truly loved you, he wouldn’t have the strength to do this to you.”  

He didn’t know Damon like I did. Damon was destructive—an emotional Damon was dangerous.  

“You should be grateful he didn’t kill you,” I muttered. “The old Damon surely would have.”  

“I’m not afraid of him.”  

“You should be.”  

Silence settled between us, thick and suffocating.  

“Malios, I don’t know if I misled you, but I need you to understand—I will never feel for you the way you feel for me. My heart, my soul, belongs to him. I can’t fathom life without him, and even if he were to leave me, no one could replace him. Not Evan. Not you.”  

Pain flickered across his face. He didn’t hide it.  

Suddenly, headlights illuminated the street. A van pulled up—Bullet’s van.  

I stiffened. “What the hell is Bullet doing here?”  

“He comes every night,” Malios said. “Damon asked him to. He leaves around eight in the morning.”  

I gaped at him. “How do you know?”  

“I overheard him talking to Luke. Damon wanted another Hybrid watching over you, but Luke refused—after what happened with me.”  

“So Damon’s been sending Bullet to protect me?”  

Malios exhaled, defeated. “I guess he still cares, though he has a strange way of showing it.”  

My chest tightened. Damon still cared.  

“You need to leave,” I hissed. “Now—before Bullet sees you and reports to Damon.”  

Malios didn’t move.  

“Malios,” I urged. “Go.”  

He looked at me like he had more to say. But I didn’t have another moment to spare for his feelings—not when all I could think about was Damon.  

I spun on my heel. “If you won’t leave, I will—”  

Before I could move, Malios grabbed my arms, pulled me toward him, and in an instant—  

He kissed me.