"Where are we going, Damon?" I growled in frustration, but he remained silent. We had been walking for a long time now, leaving the palace behind and now entering a town I had no idea existed around here.
"Damon!" I repeated, hoping for an answer.
"I have no idea," he growled back, his frustration evident. "I just need to cool off a bit."
"Why do you need to cool off?" I yelled, my anger boiling over. I stopped in the middle of the road, demanding an explanation. Damon halted as well, his expression seemingly unaffected.
"Hmm," he simply replied, provoking me even further.
"All you have to say is 'hmm'??" My anger intensified, and without thinking, I pulled my hands away from his grip and ran into the nearest forest. I could hear him calling my name, but I didn't let it stop me. I ran with all my strength, seeking solace in the solitude of the trees.
As I ran, questions flooded my mind. Did I need to cool off too? Why were all these things happening? And why couldn't Damon just tell me the truth? The uncertainty gnawed at my thoughts, fueling my frustration even more.
Leaping over a fallen branch, I abruptly turned left and continued running. "That's it!" Damon suddenly appeared right in front of me, causing me to collide with his chest, bumping my head in the process.
"Don't start running into a place you don't know, Ava," he warned.
"So what if I run? Huh? It's safer to be away from that twisted family of yours, a family where twins engage in incest. It's insane, Damon!" My voice grew louder with each word, while he remained silent.
"And then Jeffrey, your younger brother, kissed me. Zulu almost killed me because I called you a bastard, and you..." I hit his chest in frustration. "You keep hiding things from me, and I hate you for that!"
"Don't hate me," he pleaded.
"I do!" I exclaimed, thunder crackling overhead as the rain began to pour down. Neither of us moved to seek shelter. "I want to know who Lara was to you, Damon."
"You don't want to know, Ava," he replied with a bitter smile. "I know all of this seems very confusing to you, Ava. My life has never been nice. Yes, I had a relationship with my sister, and it disgusts you, but that's my past," he growled. "Lara is my past, and I don't want to remember her."
"Then why do I look just like her?"
"Ask the gods, Ava," he mumbled. "I didn't create you; they did." I stared at him in disbelief as he looked around our surroundings, surrounded by trees. I had no idea how to find our way back.
"Come, let's get into that cave, and when the rain stops, we'll leave," he said, holding my hand and leading me toward a nearby cave.
Sitting down, I watched as Damon removed his clothes and lit a fire using wooden planks he found inside the cave. "You have a tattoo on your back?" I stood up and moved closer to him.
"It's not a tattoo; it's a birthmark," he replied. "I was born with it."
"But you said you aren't a dragon, and why haven't I seen it before?" I asked, recalling the times I had seen him shirtless.
"It reveals itself to women that it likes," Damon shrugged. "And it likes you."
"Wait," I stepped back He turned around as I folded my hands, my curiosity piqued. "You aren't a dragon, but a dragon lives in you," I stated.
"A weak dragon," Damon continued, then proceeded to remove his trousers, leaving only his underwear, which strangely appeared dry. "Ava, my father and mother are dragons... I was supposed to be born a dragon."
"Of course," I nodded, trying to absorb this new information.
"But mine is weak. It dies sometimes and stays dormant for centuries. It weakens me, so I have decided I am not one of them," he explained, exhaling heavily. "Dragons cannot heal wounds, Ava, and yet, I healed yours," he added, pointing out how the wound on my neck vanished after he touched it. "Take off your clothes, Ava. You'll catch a cold."
I hesitated for a moment, feeling a bit uncomfortable. "I am fine," I replied, slightly defiant.
"Ava," he pleaded gently.
"Okay," I relented, unzipping my dress and removing it, standing before him in just my bra and underwear. "Happy now?" I questioned, seeking confirmation. He nodded and quickly averted his gaze, focusing on the flickering fire.
I found a spot close to the fire, sitting down and rubbing my hands together for warmth. "Damon?" I called out softly.
"Mmmm," he responded, still appearing lost in his thoughts.
"What are you?" I asked, my voice filled with genuine curiosity. I wanted to understand him better, to comprehend the complexities that lay beneath his seemingly ordinary surface.
"You ask a lot of questions, Ava," Damon remarked, his voice laced with amusement.
"You boost my curiosity," I replied with a smile. Leaning in slightly, I listened attentively as he began sharing his story. "I was born a weak dragon, but that didn't mean I was mistreated by my father or mother. They loved me either way," he explained, throwing a piece of wood into the fire. "But I hated my life, Ava. People looked down on me, made fun of me, and called me names. My twin, Anna, was strong and fearless. She fought for me, but it only angered me more. I didn't want a woman fighting my battles," he paused, exhaling deeply. "So I left."
"What happened after that?" I asked, my curiosity growing with each passing moment.
"I killed my dragon and became someone else, although he still appears sometimes to remind me of who I am," Damon responded a hint of melancholy in his voice.
"So, what are you now?" I probed further, trying to understand the full scope of his transformation.
"I am human," he replied with a smile. "A dead one," he repeated the same statement from before. "Relax, Ava. It seems like you're eager to know everything about me at once... Let's take it slow, okay?" He offered me a reassuring smile. "I'm not used to sharing my secrets with others."
"Even Zulu?" I couldn't help but ask, noticing their close bond.
"What does Zulu have to do with this?" he narrowed his eyes, seemingly surprised by my question.
"You guys seem close," I clarified, my curiosity getting the better of me once again.
"We are close," Damon admitted, his gaze fixed on the fire. "She was my savior. She saved my sanity, brought me back to my senses when I almost lost my mind," he explained. An unexpected pang of jealousy washed over me, and I couldn't quite understand why. "That was twenty years ago," he added.
"What happened back then?" I pressed, eager to fill in the gaps of his past.
"The demon in me almost broke free," Damon confessed, lying down and closing his eyes, a yawn escaping him. "But it didn't, and I have Zulu to thank for that."
"Does that mean you're a demon?" I asked cautiously, unsure of what to make of
"No, Ava, I am just a human with different animals living in my body," Damon clarified, opening his eyes and staring directly at me. There was a certain intensity in his gaze. "Someone that wants you by his side forever."
Feeling my heart skip a beat, I took a moment to process his words. "You must care for Zulu so much," I stated softly, trying to make sense of his devotion. "I mean, you came all the way here to get her."
"I do care about her, and she cares about me," Damon replied. A contemplative silence followed, and then he added, almost as an afterthought, "Don't hate Zulu. She might act tough, but trust me, she is just a child, cursed to remain one forever. But her age keeps flying by anyway."
"I do not hate her," I quickly assured him, wanting to dispel any misunderstandings. "I simply don't like her."
"To me, it's the same thing," Damon muttered. Then, his tone softened. "Trust me, Ava. I may care for Zulu, but I can kill her if she touches you in a bad way." He held my hand and pulled me closer until our faces were only an inch apart. "Haven't you noticed? I can't live without you."
My face flushed with a mix of embarrassment and intrigue. I instinctively pulled away from him, remaining silent for a moment before breaking the heavy silence. "Tell me one thing, Damon," I said, mustering up the courage to ask. "What did you feel for Lara? Did you love her?"
Damon shook his head, denying any romantic connection. "No, Ava. It was an obsession. I was obsessed with her, and trust me, things ended badly." He didn't break eye contact with me, and I nodded in understanding.
"I trust you," I replied sincerely, feeling a flicker of vulnerability. Something shifted in his eyes, a flicker I couldn't quite decipher before it vanished. Damon swallowed, leaned in close, and before I could fully comprehend his intentions, he kissed me.
"Don't trust me, silly," he chuckled, gently kissing my cheek. "If you find out everything, you will hate me." I looked at him, my hand instinctively reaching out to touch his cheek.
"I trust you, Damon, and I know you won't harm me," I assured him, my voice filled with sincerity. Wrapping my hands around his neck, I closed the gap between us and kissed him back. To my surprise, he tensed up, clearly taken aback. In truth, even I couldn't quite comprehend why I had acted on that impulse.