Be Careful When You Bite Me

Chapter 19

I took over the wheel for a shaking Dimitri who moved out of my way without saying a word.

"Which way?" I demanded, blinking away my tears," straight?"

"Yes, k-keep going straight, I'll let you know when to turn."

I nodded and did as instructed. I felt the phone ring in my bra again and fumbled with the wheel, steering with one hand.

"Hello," I answered Luna," we're on our way."

I heard Luna let of a breath of relief," okay, he knows the way out, call me when you get to the border, I'll be waiting for a few miles down."

"Okay," I responded and almost hung up the phone before I heard her but hardly say," can I talk to him?"

I felt the tears flood my eyes once again and handed Dimitri the phone.

"Hello," he said," yes, I remember.....alright, I'll see you soon."

He tried to hand the phone back to me but I shook my head," keep it."

I tried not to think about Damon. I knew my thoughts should be more concerned with the Mark of Eros and my mother being a witch but I couldn't get the image of Damon as the guards dragged him out of my head. There wasn't much I could have done to help him and I knew that but the guilt still entrapped me. I felt almost as if I were to suffocate if I kept thinking about it. My breathing was louder and quicker than usual and I knew Dimitri was genuinely concerned about why I was acting like this but I didn't have it in me to open up my mouth and to explain. I knew as soon as I uttered the first word I'd want to curl up and cry.

I thought of the looks that Seth, Isabelle, Matheos, and Elisabeth had given me. They had gotten what they wanted now, there was no way after this that Damon would be crowned King.

It's for this reason that I had to get out. I had to leave and forget all about their stupid world, even if it meant that I keep my memory. Once Seth gets crowned, the first thing he'll do is get rid of me, that is if Isabelle doesn't kill me first or Matheos or even Elisabeth.

I wondered if Luna and Asia knew that I was half-witch and pondered on why they didn't tell me.

"Turn here," I heard Dimitri's abrupt voice interrupt my mental panic attack. I did as he said and turned.

We drive for another forty-five minutes or so, each second dragging by like ten. I wanted to just get there already and get to New York where I can start planning on getting home. I had no money or no way to get there but I would rather walk all the way to my house than have to live another day like this.

"There is it," Dimitri said sitting up," there's the border."

I could see up ahead stone walls that bore two metal gates in the middle guarded by two guards. The stone barrier went on forever, way past my sight disappearing into the trees.

"There isn't a way out unless it's through those gates," said Dimitri as if reading my thoughts.

I felt anxiety and panic collide as one and result in the sudden urge to throw up.

"I can't do this," I mumbled to myself," they're going to catch us, I can't do this."

"They won't," Dimitri's voice was oddly calm," they don't stop castle cars, keep the windows up, they can't see on the inside."

"The front mirror-"

"It's pitch black as well, vampires cannot drive in the sun, the glass is tinted, they can't see us-"

"What if they realized the car was missing back at the castle-"

"They won't, they're all busy with the Council-"

"We're human and they're vampires! There's no way we can pull this off."

"I'm going to die anyway," Dimitri's voice was oddly calm," I'm going to die without ever having fought for a chance to survive."

I turned to look at his blue eyes that were glossy with tears holding the same fear that I felt.

"Me too," I whispered," they will kill me."

"Might as well die trying to live."

I took a deep breath and continued my way towards the gates. The guards were now looking our way but they haven't opened up the gates yet.

"Do they see us? Are they going to open the gates?"

"Yes, they will-"

"When?" We were almost twenty meters from the gate now and it still hasn't opened.

"They will."

I tried not to panic and convinced myself that whatever happens will happen. If the guards don't open up the gates, we will get caught and most likely die at the hands of someone at the castle. I'd rather die at the hands of a guard. I wondered what I could do to piss a guard off enough that he would kill me on the spot, I knew it would be much less painful and way quicker than it be Isabelle.

To my surprise, the guards spared us one more glance before opening up the loud gates to reveal the other side of the border. We drove past the two who bowed their heads slightly to the car. I tried to keep quiet and calm and as soon as they were no longer in sight in the review mirror, I peaked towards Dimitri who had a look of awe on his face.

"We did it," he mumbled," we're out."

I nodded, realizing that I didn't feel the same relief that he did," we're out."

We drove past the sign that read Oakridge just as Luna had said. Dimitri held the phone in his hands trying to call Luna but I knew he didn't know how.

I held my hand out," I'll do it."

I rang Luna's number and held the phone up to my ear.

"Did you do it? Did you make it past the border?" Her voice sounded frantic.

"Yes, we just drove past the sign, we should reach you in a few minutes."

"Is Dimitri alright?"

"He's fine, here, ask him yourself."

I handed the phone to an anxious-looking Dimitri. He grabbed it from my hands," hello?"

We drove for a couple more miles before a bright blue car that parked on the side of the road caught my vision. Standing beside the car with her long black hair draping behind her was Luna. I halted the car right in front of hers and got out. Dimitri had already beaten me out and now was running towards his love.

I watched as they engulfed each other in a tight hug. It looked like the two could finally breathe now that they were in the presence of each other. Luna's eyes opened up in the drape of Dimitri's neck and glistened with tears. They met mine and I almost wanted to look away at the feeling of anxiety that played with the pit of my stomach.

Her eyes said thank you but I could only smile back.

We got into Luna's car a couple of minutes later and ditched the palace car. The three-hour drive back to New York began.

I sat in the back seat whilst Dimitri sat in the passenger and Luna drove. I wanted to ask her about my mother or if she knew anything but I decided I didn't want to ruin the moment that she was having with Dimitri. She drove with one hand, the other gripped his tightly.

I stared out the window and tried not to wonder about what the Council was going to do to Damon. I pictured him chained up and whipped, bleeding from his wounds in a dark murky prison.

I tried to imagine the kind of prison the Council would put him in and pictured the one that I was in. It must be one that's much much worse if it had the ability to tame a vampire. There was an odd feeling in my chest that I couldn't shake. They weren't nerves and I didn't care much anymore for being caught. I felt unsettled and fidgety, it was hard to stay still. Back home when I felt like this, I would run for a few miles to shake it off but I couldn't do that now. My overly creative imagination liked to flood my thoughts with images that made me feel even worse. This was a bad habit that I had acquired since I was a little girl. I had self-diagnosed myself with panic attacks and could always feel them coming. As soon as I started to feel panicked and started to fidget, I'd remind myself of the good things in life as an attempt to halt the attack before it turns into complete frantic. The feeling of trepidation was beginning to suffocate me. The alarming feeling of dread that something bad could happen to Damon cut off my breathing like getting hit with a ton of brick. Being inside the car felt like I was still underground, chained up to the cold rugged pavement of the cell. I clutched my chest in an attempt to calm down my breathing but I only made it worse.

I rolled down the window and tried to inhale and exhale slowly. Luna had slowed down and was now calling out my name but the ringing in my ears made it hard to listen. I focused on taking my breaths and reminded myself that it will pass. I felt my chest began to squeeze on its self and prayed that this goes away faster. I pictured Damon being staked and winced at the thought. I couldn't stand to be inside of my own mind anymore, I needed to get out. We had reached Brooklyn now and I told myself that I'd be out of the car soon.

"Holly, are you alright?" I could finally hear Luna's voice," Holly?"

"They took him," I burst out, sudden tears blurring my vision," the Council, they took Damon."

Luna remained silent but I could see her expression had turned sad in the mirror.

"Did you hear me!" I demanded," they took him!"

"I heard," her voice was quiet.

"What do we do, we can't let them take him-"

"There's nothing we can do for him now Holly-"

"They will kill him, because of me-"

"You don't know that."

"Yes, I do! Those people don't know how to spare someone's life, I can feel it, they're going to kill him, Luna!"

"That is neither mine nor your business anymore, Damon made his choice."

"How could you say that?" I wondered if it was because she was reunited with her lover if that made her lose all care for Damon.

"We don't stand a chance against the Council-"

"Drop me off at Asia's," I spoke the words without taking a second to think.

"Holly, you said you wanted out-"

" I can't let them kill him."

"They'll kill you both."

"I don't care!" I snapped," I-I can't just let you take away my memory, I can't let myself forget that I had gotten Damon killed, I just can't!"

"This isn't your world Holly!," Luna's angry eyes met mines in the mirror," this is how The Underworld handles things, it may not be right but it's just the way things are, the only way the Council will keep from coming after you is if we do the ritual-"

"This is my world!" I couldn't hold back anymore, tears flooded my view and I spoke through gritted teeth," I know that my mother's a witch Luna, this is my world."

Luna's eyes stayed locked on mines and her expression told me that she knew.

"What good will it do if I drop you off at Asia's? When the castle finds out your missing, it's the first place they'll go checking-"

"Xavier is there, he'll help me-"

"Help you do what Holly? Break into the Council's prison? Help Damon escape? He's probably already dead!"

"Just drop me off!"

Luna let out a defeated sigh before nodding," fine."

The ride to Asia's was silent and when we reached the high-rise building, I let myself out of the car and slammed the door.

Luna came out out of the car running after me," Holly, wait."

I ignored her and flung open the front doors to the building. Her grip caught my arms and she whipped me around to face hers. She handed me the cellphone from before," take this, and call me if you need anything."

I nodded and grabbed the phone from her hands. I began to make my way towards the elevators, hearing the last words she said to me which were," be careful."

I got to the eighteenth floor and marched down the familiar carpet until I was standing right outside 1809. Before I could knock on the door, it flung open and to once again reveal a shirtless Xavier.

"Where's Damon?" He poked his head out to glance outside into the hall.

"I'm alone," I said," can I come in?"

"Who is it?" I could hear Asia in the background.

"It's Holly," Xavier replied and muttered in annoyance," again."

"Please, I need to talk to you."

Asia walked right to where we were, her pearly smile lighting up the entire doorway," Holly!"

She pushed past her lover and took me into her arms. I felt the comfort of her embrace immediately and wanted to stay wrapped up in her grip and sob until I had no more tears.

Inside the condo, I was too anxious to stop and admire the place. I sat on the couch where Asia and Xavier both joined me. Asia had a look of concern on her face whilst Xavier looked fed up.

"Holly," Asia took my hands in hers," what happened?"

I swallowed back some nerves and began," today, the Council came, they took Damon, I'm not sure where."

Xavier got up off the couch snapped his next words directed at me in a way that made me flinch," what the hell do you mean-"

"Xavier," Asia looked up at him," let her talk." She gave me a comforting look that told me to continue.

"They showed up today, all of them, Vesto, Ameera, t-that witch Kia, Fabian..."

"Aboot and Isla," Asia finished.

I nodded," they told me that my mothers a witch, they couldn't kill me so they took Damon-"

"Why the hell did they do that, if you aren't a foreigner, then he didn't do anything wrong-"

"They said he needed a lesson in authority, I don't know what that means-"

"It means they're going to kill him!" Xavier barked out and I felt as if the ground beneath me had shifted," where the hell was Seth?"

"It was Seth and Isabelle that called them, they set it up to get Damon dethroned."

Xavier was pacing now, on hand gripped tightly at his silver hair.

Asia's big eyes met mines," did they say they were going to kill him?"

"No," I shook my head," I don't know, I couldn't tell, the guards dragged him away, I-I don't know where."

Hot rivers of tears raced down my face and I suddenly felt weak and helpless and most of all I felt stupid.

"How did you get here?" Asia asked softly.

"It's a long story, I stole a car from the castle, I made a deal the witch that Damon took me to before he brought me here, if I delivered a human boy to her she'd do the ritual-"

"What boy?" Asia asked.

"He's a villager boy, but they had mated but she couldn't get him out-"

"So as long as you were able to deliver the boy.."

"She would do the ritual."

"So why are you here?" Xavier snapped," why aren't you with her?"

"I couldn't do it," I mumbled," I couldn't go without trying to help or doing something."

"You've done enough," he continued, pointing a finger my way," Damon is going to die and you're going to be the reason!"

"Stop it!" Asia interjected, grabbing his hands and placing them by his side," she isn't the enemy here Xavier, Seth and Isabelle are. They're doing exactly what they did to you to Damon, and they're willing to get him killed to get to the throne."

"What do we do?" I asked," how do we help Damon, we can't let him die."

"The Council has him now," said Xavier," there's nothing ten of us could do, let alone just us three."

"It's not just us three, Luna would help, Dimitri too-"

"Two and a half witches, and a villager," he stated sarcastically," against six of the strongest members of the Underworld."

"We have to do something,-"

Asia was oddly silent. She was looking down at her feet.

"Asia," I said," please, we have to do something."

She shook her head," we battled the King and Queen for years and almost lost, we don't have any more fight left in us Holly, if we help you, it could end us-"

"It won't, please!" I exclaimed, careless to the fact that I was almost sobbing now, "you have to help me, he doesn't have anyone else-"

"We'll lose the fight against the Council in seconds Holly, we're finally happy."

"Then I'll go alone!" I snapped," tell me where they'll keep him!"

"You need to get some rest Holly, it's late-" Asia reached for me but I flinched away.

"I don't want to sleep," I said," I can't sleep, not when they could kill him any minute."

"We can offer them a trade," Xavier was speaking to Asia," Holly for Damon."

"Xavier," Asia spoke," how could you-"

Xavier faced me now," you care so much about him then offer them yourself for Damon-"

"They don't care about her, she's half-witch, if they wanted her they would have taken her!" Asia exclaimed, staring up in disappointment at Xavier.

He gripped his head in both hands, clearly stressed. Asia stood up and held Xavier in her arms. He nuzzled his face in the nape of her neck although he hovered over her. She wrapped her arm around his shoulders and held him.

I was lying in the same bed I had stayed in the last time I was here. The alarm clock beside me read 2:10 am.

Sleep was completely out of the picture and I wondered if where Damon was right now. Although I was shocked that Asia and Xavier wouldn't help Damon, I could only understand. I couldn't imagine fighting to be with the one that you love and having to fight all over again just as they were finally happy.

Was anybody ever really happy anymore? It's all temporary relief until the next wave of madness comes crashing down.

I shoved my face into the pillow but I didn't cry. I had no more tears in me and I was past wondering why I felt the way I did. It was pointless to try to pretend that I had no feelings for Damon. It was just clear as day that I was utterly and hopelessly in love with him as it was that he was going to die.

I heard the doorknob to my room turn and the door was slightly opened to reveal a small amount of light from the living-room. I could make out the tiny figure that was Asia.

"Holly, are you awake?" She whispered. I sat up and replied," what's going on?

"Get up," she said," we're going to go find Damon."