Chapter 82
Elizabeth
“It found her.”
The words barely leave Damon’s mouth before everything explodes into motion.
The creature moves first.
One second it’s standing near the gates beneath the storm.
The next—
It vanishes.
Pure instinct makes me stumble backward.
“Inside!” Adam shouts.
The wolves outside shift immediately, snarls ripping through the night as golden eyes flash violently in the darkness.
Then the screaming starts.
One wolf launches forward.
A blur of claws and fury.
But the creature catches him midair by the throat.
Like it’s nothing.
Like the wolf weighs absolutely nothing.
My stomach turns as the thing slams him into the iron gates hard enough to bend metal.
Oh my God.
Selene curses sharply under her breath.
“That’s not possible.”
The creature slowly lifts its head again.
Rain slides down its face in crimson streaks mixed with blood. It looks almost human now that it’s closer—dark hair, pale skin, tall frame dressed entirely in black.
But the eyes—
Wrong.
Completely wrong.
Not glowing.
Not silver.
Just endless darkness.
Like looking into a hole instead of a person.
And somehow…
It’s smiling directly at me.
Damon steps fully in front of me this time.
Protective in a way that no longer feels subtle.
“Elizabeth,” he says sharply without looking away from the creature, “go upstairs.”
“What? No!”
“Now.”
The command in his voice sends heat down my spine despite the situation.
Which honestly feels psychologically concerning.
“I’m not leaving everybody down here!”
Another wolf crashes through the gates outside as chaos erupts across the courtyard.
Selene’s wolves attack all at once.
Fast.
Violent.
Deadly.
The creature tears through them effortlessly.
Not even struggling.
Fear grips my chest tighter.
“What is that thing?” Chloe whispers.
No one answers her.
Which is answer enough.
The creature suddenly stops moving.
Its head tilts slightly toward the mansion.
Toward me.
Then—
It speaks.
“You opened the connection.”
Its voice doesn’t sound human.
It sounds layered.
Like several voices speaking at once beneath the same sentence.
My skin crawls instantly.
“I did not!” I shout back before I can stop myself.
Damon shoots me an incredulous look.
“Now is not the time to argue with nightmare creatures.”
Fair.
The creature smiles wider.
“There you are.”
Every survival instinct in my body screams.
Run.
Now.
The symbol on my hand burns violently beneath my sleeve.
Pain slices through my arm.
I gasp softly.
The creature notices immediately.
And its expression changes.
Not anger.
Recognition.
“Oh,” it murmurs. “You carry the seal.”
The storm intensifies violently around the mansion.
Windows rattle.
The ground trembles faintly beneath us.
Selene suddenly steps forward beside Damon.
“We need to kill it before it reaches her.”
The creature laughs softly.
Actually laughs.
“You cannot kill what exists beyond your realm.”
Okay.
Didn’t love hearing that.
Adam appears beside us carrying another silver dagger glowing faintly with symbols.
“Move.”
Damon grabs my wrist instantly and yanks me sideways just as Adam throws the dagger.
The blade slices through the storm—
Straight into the creature’s chest.
For one second—
Nothing happens.
Then black blood splatters across the courtyard stones.
The creature looks down slowly at the blade sticking from its chest.
Almost curious.
Then back up at Adam.
“Well,” it says calmly, “that was rude.”
It rips the dagger out.
And heals instantly.
Complete silence falls across the foyer.
Even the wolves stop moving.
Because oh.
Oh that’s bad bad.
Chloe stares blankly.
“I would like to formally resign from this supernatural situation.”
The creature takes one step toward the mansion.
The wards flare bright blue instantly.
Power slams into the creature hard enough to shake the ground.
Finally.
Something that works.
The creature hisses sharply, dark veins appearing beneath its skin for half a second before fading again.
Interesting.
Damon notices too.
His expression sharpens slightly.
“The wards hurt it.”
Adam nods once.
“But not enough.”
Outside, Selene’s wolves begin dragging the injured back toward the gates while circling protectively around the courtyard.
Selene herself never looks away from the creature.
“You shouldn’t have crossed,” she says coldly.
The creature smiles lazily.
“And yet here I am.”
Damon steps slightly closer to the doorway.
Every muscle in his body tense.
Dangerous.
Beautiful.
Terrifying.
The creature’s gaze shifts toward him slowly.
Then—
Amusement flickers across its face.
“You’re bonded to the key.”
My stomach flips.
Again with that word.
Damon says nothing.
The creature’s smile deepens.
“That will make this easier.”
Silver flashes across Damon’s eyes instantly.
And suddenly—
He’s gone.
A blur.
A violent rush of movement too fast for human eyes.
He slams into the creature outside hard enough to crack the stone courtyard beneath them.
The impact shakes the entire mansion.
“Oh my God,” Chloe breathes.
The fight is brutal instantly.
Not elegant.
Not graceful.
Pure violence.
The creature throws Damon across the courtyard with terrifying strength, but Damon recovers midair unnaturally fast, landing smoothly before launching back at it again.
Rain pours harder around them.
Silver eyes versus endless black ones.
Monster versus monster.
And somehow the sight steals my breath anyway.
The creature blocks Damon’s attack easily this time.
Too easily.
Its dark eyes flick toward me again.
Always back to me.
“You feel it too, don’t you?” it asks softly.
The symbol on my hand burns harder.
I stagger slightly.
Damon notices instantly.
His expression darkens.
“You will not speak to her.”
The creature sighs dramatically.
“You vampires grow so possessive.”
Then suddenly—
Everything stops.
The creature freezes.
Its head turning sharply toward the woods beyond the gates.
Like it heard something.
Or someone.
For the first time since arriving—
It looks annoyed.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The creature looks back at me one final time.
And the smile returns.
“We’ll meet again, little door.”
My blood runs cold.
Then the shadows around its body twist violently—
And it disappears.
Gone.
Just like that.
Silence crashes over the courtyard except for the rain.
Nobody moves for several seconds.
Trying to process what just happened.
Selene finally exhales sharply.
“That’s impossible.”
Damon slowly walks back toward the mansion.
Blood streaks across one side of his jaw from a cut already healing.
His sweater soaked from rain.
Dark hair dripping into silver eyes that lock immediately onto me.
Not checking himself.
Checking me.
“You’re hurt,” I whisper instinctively.
His expression shifts slightly at the concern in my voice.
“Not seriously.”
The intimacy of the moment catches me off guard.
Especially when his gaze drops briefly to my lips before returning upward.
Heat curls low in my stomach.
Seriously?
Now?
During demon attacks?
I need therapy.
Adam suddenly breaks the moment.
“We have bigger problems.”
Right.
Ancient murder creature.
Forgot for a second.
Selene walks toward the mansion steps slowly.
“That thing should not exist outside the prison.”
Damon’s jaw tightens.
“And yet it knew exactly where to find her.”
Fear creeps back into my chest instantly.
The creature called me the seal.
The door.
The key.
And somehow—
It sounded happy about it.
Damon steps closer to me quietly.
Close enough that only I hear him when he says:
“You’re not leaving this house alone again.”
I look up at him.
“You don’t get to decide that.”
One corner of his mouth lifts slightly despite everything.
“Watch me.”