Chapter 23 Chapter 23
ELIJAH’S POV
The next morning, I woke up with a restless mind, circling the same memory over and over.
Anna.
Her face haunted me. Her soft eyes, the way she had looked at me yesterday when I had ended it—it was all there, sharp and raw in my memory. I had broken things off with her because of what she did.
I hadn’t even wanted to believe it at first. How could she have sex with Damon? My own brother. The thought burned in me like fire. I had stared at her, shocked, and said words I didn’t mean. I had turned my back, walked away, and told her it was over.
For a moment, I thought it would hurt less if I told myself I didn’t care. I thought that I could get over it quickly. I thought that my anger and disappointment were enough to erase the rest.
But anger didn’t erase it.
It only made it worse.
I kept pacing my room, fists clenched, teeth grinding together. I tried to tell myself it wasn’t my problem anymore. That I didn’t need to think about her or him. But my pride and my heart were at war, and neither was winning.
It was then that the guards came to reveal something to me even though I didn’t call for them. They whispered to each other, glancing nervously in my direction. At first, I ignored them, thinking they were talking about some small matter.
Then one of them murmured too loudly, and the words hit me like a punch.
“What?” I demanded, my voice sharp.
Another guard hesitated, glancing down. “It’s… about Anna, sir. Luna Amanda ordered…”
I froze, because I knew whatever they had to say wasn't good. “Go on...” I commanded slowly, though my stomach twisted.
“Luna Amanda… she forced her guards… to take turns with Anna. She forced them to humiliate her, sir. That’s what she told her guards to do.”
I felt as though the floor had dropped away beneath me. My chest tightened. I couldn’t breathe properly.
I blinked, not believing the words I had just heard. “What did you just say?” I demanded, my voice low but trembling with rage.
The guard swallowed hard. “That’s what she said, sir. And… well… Damon—he… he saved her.”
I froze.
My fist tightened until my knuckles hurt.
Damon.
I had never hated him like this before. I had never felt such anger for anyone. But hearing his name in connection with Anna—knowing he had touched her, held her, and protected her… it felt like fire inside me.
And Amanda.
The disgust I felt for her was overwhelming. I could barely hold myself together. She had probably forced Anna to kneel, humiliated her, and allowed those guards to treat her like dirt. And Damon… he had saved her.
I didn’t know which made me angrier. The thought of Damon intervening or Amanda doing what she did—it burned both ways.
I slammed my fist against the wall. The sound echoed through my room. Papers scattered and a cup tipped over and crashed to the floor. My entire body shook with the force of my anger.
I could feel my blood pounding in my ears. My vision blurred, my chest tight. I wanted to scream and destroy everything.
Angrily, I stood abruptly, my legs unsteady. My hands shook with rage, and I didn’t care about control anymore. I didn’t care about dignity. I had to confront Amanda. I had to look at her and see if she could meet my eyes without flinching.
I found her in the library, standing by the window, her hands nervously clasped in front of her.
The moment she saw me, her face changed, and I could see the fear, the realization that she had crossed a line.
“Do you have any idea what you did?”
Her lips trembled. “Elijah… I—”
I slammed my fist against the table nearest me. The books on the top toppled, and the cups beside them also rattled. “Do you even understand what you did?” I shouted. “Do you understand what you forced Anna to endure?”
She flinched, her eyes widening with fear. “I… I didn’t mean for it to… to go that far!”
I laughed bitterly. “You didn’t mean for it to go that far? Amanda, she was humiliated. You forced her. You told your guards to… to touch her. Do you even know what you’ve done?”
“I was angry! I—” she tried to explain, her voice shaking.
“Angry?” I shouted, advancing toward her. “Do you call destroying someone you claim to care about ‘angry’? Do you call this… cruelty… ‘angry’?”
Her knees wobbled.
She took a step back. “Elijah… please… I—”
“You—” I began, gripping the edge of the table. “You disgust me, Amanda!”
Her eyes filled with tears. “I… I’m sorry. I… I—”
I shook my head sharply. “Stay away from Anna. Do you understand me? She is not yours to touch. She is not yours to humiliate. One wrong step—and you’ll regret it.”
Her eyes widened. “I… I will… I’ll stay away…”
I didn’t trust or forgive her. I just turned sharply, storming out of the library, my anger like a living thing inside me.
Down the hallway, I slammed doors as I went. The sound echoed, matching the fury inside me. I could feel my body shaking.
I reached the courtyard and stopped. My body trembled from head to toe. I pressed a hand against my forehead, trying to control myself, trying to breathe, trying to make sense of the storm inside me.
I closed my eyes, letting the world blur. My hands trembled, my body shook. I didn’t know how to feel first—rage or relief, hatred or longing—but the storm inside me didn’t care.
And for the first time, I realized something. No matter what happened, no matter how angry I was with Anna, I would still find a way to protect her.
Even if it destroyed me.
Even if it killed me on the inside.