Chapter 204: Born From Chaos And Blood
Damon’s POV
She stood there, trembling, her back pressed against the wall, lips swollen from my kiss, chest rising and falling with quick, frantic breaths. She looked like she was trying to hold herself together—to build those damned walls back up. But I had already seen her.
I had tasted her surrender.
And gods, it took
everything
in me not to go back and finish what we started.
But I didn’t. Not because I was noble. Not because I cared about right or wrong.
No—I didn’t lie beside her that night because if I
did
, I wouldn’t be able to stop myself.
I knew what would happen. I’d touch her. She’d melt. She’d fight it. I wouldn’t stop. And the line between bond and consent would blur into something neither of us could take back.
And no matter how much of a monster I am, I don’t want her
that
way.
I want her
willing
.
Burning.
Begging.
So I turned away.
Not for her sake.
But because the fury boiling inside me would make me
take
what I wanted—and the only thing more infuriating than her rejection... was knowing I would never be satisfied unless she
gave herself to me freely.
I stopped at the door, jaw clenched so tight it hurt.
"I’m not staying," I said, voice cold as a grave. "Because if I do, I
won’t
keep my hands off you."
And with that, I vanished into the dark hall, leaving her alone in the room, the scent of our heat still clinging to the air.
The war could wait till dawn.
But someday...
She would be mine.
Body, mind, and soul.
Elena – POV
What the hell is wrong with me?
I slammed the door shut behind him, my heart still racing like I had just survived a battlefield. I pressed both palms to my cheeks, willing the heat to fade, but it wouldn’t. It
lingered
, like the taste of him on my tongue.
I kissed him back.
Gods, I kissed him back.
I didn’t just kiss him—I
melted
into him. I let his hands roam, let his mouth command mine like I belonged to him. For those stolen minutes, I forgot
everything.
Kane. Dean. My pain. My loss. It all evaporated under the inferno that was Damon’s touch.
The hybrid’s touch,
I reminded myself bitterly.
My knees buckled, and I sank to the edge of the bed, fists clenched in the fabric of my dress.
"Stupid. Stupid," I hissed under my breath, cursing the way my body had betrayed me. Cursing the way my soul had
responded
.
He’s a monster. A tyrant. Power-hungry. Ruthless. He
killed
his own pack members, he declared war on the supernatural world... and I
kissed him back.
You wanted to.
Zena’s voice emerged, sharp and cold in the recesses of my mind.
"No, I didn’t," I muttered aloud, but even that sounded weak.
You did. You
do.
You feel it.
Our bond
is alive. Strong. Real. You
know
what he is to us.
"He’s a villain, Zena," I snapped, standing abruptly and pacing the room like a caged animal. "He’s dangerous. He’s everything we should be fighting against, not running toward!"
And yet you ran
to
him. The moment he touched you, you
stopped fighting.
I groaned and pressed my hands to my temples.
Zena wasn’t wrong.
The pull—the
mate bond
—it wasn’t just some magical thread. It was a
force of nature.
And now that Dean and Kane were... gone, their marks vanished, I felt the new bond like it had been lying in wait all this time. Quiet. Patient. Now flaring to life like wildfire across my skin.
My body recognized him before my mind could. My soul
responded.
Even now, my wrist still tingled where he’d pinned me. My lips ached from where he kissed me. My heart felt like it was betraying me—skipping for the wrong man.
He’s not Kane. He’s not Dean.
He’s
both.
And yet he’s something
else entirely.
Zena growled low in my mind. You keep calling him a villain. Evil. And maybe he is. But he is still
ours.
You rejected Kane once. It did nothing. Remember what happened?
My stomach twisted at the memory.
The rejection didn’t work—not until Kane accepted it. Which he never truly did. That bond had remained, tugging and tightening no matter how much I tried to sever it.
I know you’re hurting. I
am too
, Zena whispered now, her voice softer. But pain doesn’t change who he is to us. You can keep lying to yourself, or... try to make him better.
I laughed. Bitter and broken.
"Make him better? Do you even hear yourself? He threatened to wipe out entire species. He says he’s going to conquer the vampire kingdom by killing the royals. That’s not something you change with sweet words and good intentions, Zena."
And yet, he didn’t
force
himself on us. He stopped. Even when you were vulnerable. Even when he wanted to keep going. He left.
I stilled.
That was... true.
And maybe that’s what frightened me the most. That under the rage and bloodlust, there
might
be a shadow of restraint. Of control.
That perhaps... somewhere deep in that dark, chaotic soul...
There was still
something
worth saving.
No. I shook my head violently. I won’t fall into that trap. I’m not going to become the woman who falls for the villain and thinks she can fix him. That’s not me.
But Zena just huffed, smug and relentless. You already started to fall, Elena. You just don’t want to admit it.
I sank back into the bed, curling in on myself like the guilt and heat might swallow me whole. My heart was still pounding. My lips were still tingling. My wolf was furious with me—and still
aching
for the mate that had just left the room.
Damon.
Not Kane. Not Dean.
Damon.
The bond is real.
And the war is just beginning.
I sat up with a groan, scrubbing a hand down my face.
"Okay," I muttered to the empty room. "So, escaping is out of the question. For now."
Not because I didn’t
want
to run. Oh, trust me, I did. Every instinct told me to bolt lik e hell. But after what happened—after what he
didn’t
do—I knew he wouldn’t hurt me. Not physically. Not yet, anyway. Emotionally? That was a different battlefield.
Still, if I couldn’t run...
"I’ve got to do something," I murmured to myself, pacing the length of the room again. My voice bounced off the walls, echoing my growing desperation.
Because if I sit here and do nothing, I’ll go insane. He’ll tear apart the world one kingdom at a time, and I’ll just be the broken mate staring into the fire pit wondering what I could have done differently.
Think, Elena. Think.
Damon is Kane and Dean—
fused
. That’s what they said, right? Two halves becoming whole. Meaning... maybe, just
maybe
... Kane and Dean are still in there. Just twisted. Drowned out by this... apex abomination they created when they were forced back together.
"But if they’re part of him..." I whispered, hope rising like a flickering candle in a storm, "maybe I can
reach
them."
Zena stirred.
She didn’t say anything right away. Just exhaled through our bond like she was annoyed I’d only
just
caught up to the idea.
"Zena?" I asked hesitantly. "If Damon is the true hybrid—if he’s really Kane and Dean combined... then technically, Kane and Dean are still in him, right?"
Technically
, she drawled in my head, clearly unimpressed.
I frowned. "So it’s not a dumb idea to try to bring them back out? If I could just... trigger something. Memories. Emotions. Something to crack through that psycho exterior—"
Zena snorted.
I paused. "What?"
You don’t actually care about the plan. You’re just trying to justify why you want to stay close to him.
"Excuse me?" I snapped.
You want him. You liked kissing him. You liked how alive it made you feel. That’s why you’re dreaming up some fantasy about resurrecting Kane and Dean from his ashes. Newsflash, Elena—you kissed him back.
"I did not!" I shouted out loud, cheeks flaming.
You
did
, she growled with amusement. And now you’re hoping you can fix him so that it’s
okay
to keep doing it.
"Zena, he’s—he’s a tyrant. A killer. He wants to conquer the supernatural world!"
And yet,
she said with a purr,
as long as I’m with my mate, I don’t care if he wants to burn down kingdoms or snore like a dying moose. He’s ours.
"You’re the worst," I grumbled, plopping back onto the bed like a sack of regret.
And you’re lying to yourself, she said cheerfully.
I flopped onto my side and stared at the wall.
It was a stupid idea. A ridiculous one. What kind of person thinks they can
rebuild
the souls of their dead mates inside the body of the man who helped destroy them?
...Me. Apparently.
Because if I could reach
any
part of Kane or Dean inside that monster’s skin... maybe I wouldn’t feel so utterly alone. Maybe I could stop hating myself for feeling something when he touched me. Maybe I could pretend this bond wasn’t born from blood and chaos and violence.
I touched my lips, still warm from that kiss.
"I’m not giving in," I whispered. "But I’m not giving up either."
Let’s see how much of
them
still lives inside you, Damon.
Let’s see if there’s anything left
worth saving.
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