Chapter 97
Elizabeth
I didn’t sleep.
Not really.
I lay in bed staring at the ceiling while the words repeated themselves over and over again.
He is not what you think.
I rolled onto my side.
Then onto my back.
Then onto my other side.
Still nothing.
Sleep refused to come.
Because what exactly was I supposed to do with that information?
The creatures behind the prison door had lied before. They manipulated. They played games.
But this…
This had felt different.
Almost like a warning.
I sat up with a sigh.
Moonlight spilled through my curtains, turning my room silver.
I glanced at the clock.
Three in the morning.
Wonderful.
I was officially losing my mind at three a.m.
I threw the blankets aside and climbed out of bed.
Maybe water would help.
Or maybe I’d stare into the kitchen and contemplate my terrible life choices.
Either way, I wasn’t sleeping.
The mansion was silent as I made my way downstairs.
No Lucien dramatically appearing from nowhere.
No Tristan reading one of his ancient books.
No Adam moving around with his usual calm authority.
Just silence.
I entered the kitchen.
The lights above the island glowed softly.
I grabbed a glass.
Filled it.
Took a sip.
And nearly jumped out of my skin.
“Couldn’t sleep?”
I spun around.
Damon stood in the doorway.
Black T-shirt.
Dark sweatpants.
Messy black hair.
He looked annoyingly good for someone who had apparently also woken up in the middle of the night.
I pressed a hand to my chest.
“You need to stop doing that.”
A faint smile tugged at his mouth.
“Doing what?”
“Appearing.”
“I walked here.”
“Silently.”
He shrugged.
I narrowed my eyes.
He looked entirely unbothered.
I hated that.
“Couldn’t sleep?” he repeated.
I sighed.
“No.”
He walked into the kitchen.
Not too close.
Just close enough that I could smell cedar and something faintly spicy.
I hated that I noticed.
“You?” I asked.
“I don’t sleep much.”
Right.
Vampire.
Ancient hybrid.
Probably didn’t require eight hours and a cup of coffee to function.
Lucky him.
I leaned against the counter.
The silence settled between us.
Strangely comfortable.
Then he looked at me.
Really looked at me.
His silver eyes narrowed slightly.
“You’ve been thinking.”
I laughed softly.
“That obvious?”
“To me.”
That shouldn’t have made my stomach flutter.
Unfortunately, it did.
I looked down at my glass.
The moonlight reflected in the water.
“I had another… thing.”
I wasn’t sure what else to call it anymore.
Vision.
Dream.
Hallucination.
None of them seemed right.
Damon went still.
“What kind of thing?”
I hesitated.
I wasn’t sure why.
Maybe because I didn’t understand it myself.
Maybe because I wasn’t sure if I should tell him.
I looked up.
He was watching me carefully.
Waiting.
I swallowed.
“I heard the voice again.”
Every trace of amusement disappeared from his face.
“What did it say?”
I stared at the water.
“It said…” I trailed off.
Because saying it aloud suddenly felt strange.
Damon’s voice softened slightly.
“Elizabeth.”
I looked at him.
The way he said my name should honestly be illegal.
“It said I was getting closer.”
Silence.
“And?”
I hesitated again.
The kitchen suddenly felt too warm.
His gaze never left mine.
“And it mentioned you.”
That got his attention.
I could practically see the shift in him.
“What about me?”
I looked away.
Because somehow it felt easier.
“It said… you’re not what I think.”
Silence.
Long silence.
Then—
He laughed.
I blinked.
“What?”
A small smile appeared on his face.
“The ancient prison creatures have finally figured out that I’m charming.”
I stared at him.
“You’re impossible.”
“They’re a little late, admittedly.”
I laughed.
I couldn’t help it.
A real laugh.
Soft and quiet.
The sound seemed to surprise both of us.
Because his expression changed.
Slightly.
Something warm entered his eyes.
Then he smiled.
Actually smiled.
And for one horrible second, I forgot what I was saying.
Forgot the prison.
Forgot the visions.
Forgot everything.
Because he looked…
Happy.
The realization startled me.
I didn’t think I’d seen him look genuinely happy before.
I quickly looked away.
Which only made things worse because now I was very aware of him smiling.
Wonderful.
Absolutely wonderful.
“You laugh quietly,” he said.
I looked back at him.
“What?”
“When you really mean it.”
I blinked.
“You noticed that?”
A beat.
Then—
“I notice a lot of things.”
Oh.
Oh no.
Why did that make my heart beat faster?
I took another sip of water.
I wasn’t even thirsty anymore.
I just needed something to do with my hands.
“You analyze everyone, don’t you?” I asked.
“No.”
“No?”
“No.”
I frowned.
“But you notice things.”
“I do.”
“Then you analyze people.”
A corner of his mouth lifted.
“Not everyone.”
I looked at him.
The kitchen suddenly felt very quiet.
“Who, then?”
His eyes held mine.
“You.”
Oh.
I forgot how breathing worked.
Completely.
The silence stretched.
Dangerously.
I looked down at my glass.
The water was suddenly fascinating.
“Why?” I asked quietly.
I heard him move.
A second later, he was standing beside me.
Not touching.
Just there.
Close enough that my heart decided to become completely unreasonable.
“Because you’re difficult to understand.”
I looked up.
“Me?”
His expression remained serious.
“Yes.”
I almost laughed.
“I’m probably the least complicated person here.”
“You think so?”
“I know so.”
He looked unconvinced.
I frowned.
“What’s complicated about me?”
A pause.
Then—
“You pretend you’re less afraid than you are.”
I blinked.
“You worry about everyone before yourself.”
I stared.
“You ask questions even when you’re afraid of the answers.”
My throat suddenly felt dry.
“And,” he added, “you think no one notices when you’re overwhelmed.”
Silence.
Complete silence.
Because…
He was right.
Every single thing he had said was right.
I swallowed.
“You really do notice things.”
A small smile appeared.
“I told you.”
I stared at him.
Then laughed softly.
Not because anything was funny.
Because I didn’t know what else to do.
“You know what’s unfair?”
“What?”
“You’re annoyingly observant.”
His smile widened.
“And you’re avoiding the subject.”
I blinked.
“What subject?”
“The vision.”
Right.
The prison.
The mysterious warning.
My terrifying life.
I exhaled.
“I don’t know what it means.”
Neither of us spoke.
Then he said quietly,
“Neither do I.”
I looked at him in surprise.
Because Damon almost always had an answer.
Or pretended to.
Admitting uncertainty seemed… rare.
For a moment he looked thoughtful.
Then something else crossed his expression.
Something I couldn’t quite place.
Concern.
Maybe.
Finally he looked at me.
“If anything else happens, you tell me.”
I smiled slightly.
“There it is.”
His eyebrows furrowed.
“What?”
“The bossy part.”
“I wasn’t aware it ever left.”
I laughed again.
This time he did too.
The sound echoed softly through the empty kitchen.
Then—
A crash sounded somewhere upstairs.
Both of us froze.
The moment shattered instantly.
Damon’s expression hardened.
The smile vanished.
Predator.
That was the only word for it.
He was moving before I could react.
I set my glass down.
“What was that?”
He looked toward the ceiling.
“I don’t know.”
Another sound.
A thud.
Much closer.
Then silence.
I swallowed.
The mansion suddenly felt enormous.
And very empty.
Damon looked at me.
“Stay here.”
I crossed my arms.
“No.”
One dark eyebrow lifted.
“No?”
“No.”
A pause.
Then, somehow, amusement appeared in his eyes.
“This is the part where you’re supposed to listen.”
“This is the part where I don’t.”
He almost smiled.
Almost.
Then he sighed.
“You are difficult.”
“You said that already.”
Another thud echoed above us.
The amusement disappeared.
I looked toward the staircase.
A strange feeling settled in my stomach.
Not fear.
Recognition.
The mark on my hand tingled.
Once.
Then stopped.
Damon noticed immediately.
Of course he did.
His eyes narrowed.
“What?”
I looked upstairs.
The uneasy feeling grew.
“It’s up there.”
Silence.
“What is?”
I swallowed.
I wasn’t sure.
I wasn’t sure at all.
But somehow…
Somehow I knew.
I met his gaze.
And quietly said,
“I think something is waiting for us.”