Together, we entered the tent. The interior was hot and dark, the stench of vervain nearly suffocating me. It took every ounce of my strength not to bend at the waist and scream in agony. I forced my eyes open and looked at my brother, who was chained in the corner. Four men yanked on his restraints, trying desperately to keep him in place.
The second Damons eyes landed on me, his face lit up.
"Welcome to hell, brother," Damon whispered, his lips barely moving as he locked eyes with me. Then he turned to Jasper. "So, Jasp," he said, in a conversational tone, as if they were just two men engaged in a friendly talk at a tavern, "you found a new sap to do your dirty work. Well, come on, brother. Lets see if you can stake me."
"His bark is worse than his bite," Jasper said, holding out a stake to me. From its stench I could tell it had been soaked in vervain.
"Give me your gloves," I said with an air of authority. Touching the wood would give me away instantly.
"Wont give you much protection. Those fangs can go through anything," Jasper protested.
"Just give them to me," I said through clenched teeth. Damon watched the exchange intently, clearly enjoying my predicament.
"Okay, if theyll make you more comfortable. " Jasper shrugged and handed me his leather gloves. I pulled them over my hands and took the stake from Jasper, my hands trembling slightly. How could something so light be so deadly?
Damon let out a low chuckle. "Is this the best you could rustle up? He looks about ready to keel over."
I glared at my brother. "I'm trying to save you," I whispered. Damon just snorted derisively.
"Please," I added.
"Please what?" he said, wrapping the chains around his hands.
"Please let me save you."
"Sorry. Can't help you there," he said, before yanking on the chains. Two of the guards fell to the ground in surprise.
"Do something!" Jasper said gruffly. "Youve got to stick him, let him know his place."
"Listen to your boss," Damon sneered."Be a man and stab me. A real man isn't afraid of blood, isn't that right?"
Jasper bent down and grabbed a stake from the ground.
"Cmon, boy. Earn your keep," he said, using the side of the stake to nudge me forward. I gasped. Pain shot up and down my skin, as if Id been touched by a hot poker.
Damon laughed again.
The flap opened, and Callie poked her head through the tent.
I looked wildly over at her. "Callie, you shouldnt be here!"
Both she and Damon looked at me quizzically. A sickening feeling spread through my limbs. The vervain, the heat, the stakes
Just then, with a simple twist from his chains, Damon broke free and lunged toward Callie. Callie shrieked, and Jasper dove to shield her.
Time seemed to stop, and without thinking, I hurled my stake through Damons belly. He fell backward, gasping, blood spurting from the wound.
"I said, please!" I hissed wildly, in a voice only Damon could hear. Callie cowered near the flap, her eyes wide as she glanced between me and Damon.
Damon looked up, wheezing as he pulled the stake from his stomach. Then I heard the faintest, hoarse whisper over the shouts of Jasper and the trainers as they moved to re-chain Damon.
"Then please know that your hell hasn't even yet begun, brother."
Chapter 24
I ran down to the lake, the sound of the stake ripping through Damons flesh echoing in my mind. Once I got to the shore, I stared at my reflection in the water. My hazel eyes stared back, my lips pressed into a thin line. With an angry jerk, I threw a pebble into the pond, shattering my image into a thousand little ripples.
Part of me wanted to jump in the lake, swim to the other side, and never come back. Damn Damon to hell if death was what he wanted so much. But no matter how much I wished hed die, I couldnt kill him. Despite everything, we were brothers, and I wanted--needed--to do everything in my power to save him. After all, blood was thicker than water. I laughed bitterly as I thought of the deeper meanings of the metaphor. Blood was also more complicated, more destructive, and more heartbreaking than water.
I sank into the brackish sand at the waters edge and lay back with a sigh, letting the wan November sun cascade over me. I dont know how long I remained like that before I felt muffled footfalls vibrate the ground beneath me.
I sighed. I dont know what Id hoped to find, coming down to the lake, but my peace and quiet was ruined when Callie sat down next to me.
"Everything okay?" she asked, throwing a small rock into the lake with a plunk. She didnt turn to face me.
"I just could you leave me alone?" I muttered. "Please."
"No."
I sat up and looked her square in the face. "Why not?"
Callie pursed her lips, her forehead crinkling as though she were working through a complicated problem. Then, hesitantly, she reached out with her tiny pinky finger and traced the outline of my lapis lazuli ring.
"The monster has a ring like this," she said.
I jerked my hand away in horror. How could I have forgotten about our rings?
Callie cleared her throat. "Is the vampire, is he your brother?"
My blood ran cold, and I jumped to my feet.
"No, Stefan! Stay." Callies green eyes were wide, her cheeks flushed. "Please. Just stay. I know what you are, and Im not afraid."
I took a step back, my breath coming in rapid gasps. My mind spun, and I felt nauseated all over again. "How can you know what I am and not fear me?"
"Youre not a monster," she said simply. She rose to her feet as well.
For a moment, we just stood there, not speaking, barely breathing. A duck cut an arc through the lake. A horse whinnied in the distance. And the scent of pine tickled my nose. I noticed then that Callie had removed all the vervain from her hair.