Chapter 45

Chapter 9:

Trisha’s P.O.V

“So, how did it go for the two of you?” Rosanna asked as she unboxed another fancy wine bottle from one of the boxes that Damien had brought along with him as a peace offering.

“Fine.” I told her curtly, my mind full of dread for the future. Damien and I had arrived back on the Shelter later in the evening where everyone had pretty much assumed that we wouldn’t return at all.

According to some of the Shelter’s gossip vines, Lucas had thrown a tantrum at having been left behind and Rosanna had pretty much sulked all day until Neema had reassured her that I was coming back. But Damien had brought in enough rations with him so that Rosanna and her crew could spend the winter months in comfort without having to eat canned soups and stale bread. The wine had been an instant hit and so had the fresh meats and fruits. As a result, Rose had declared that we’d be having a feast tonight, in honor of the Vampire King’s arrival.

Everyone was all hyped up since then, even the ever brooding Carig was up and about, helping with the decorations and Neema was having a blast ordering everyone around. After Damien had brought us back onboard, he and Lucas had disappeared into the rooms that they had been allotted and haven’t come out of it since. It was half past ten in the evening and the celebration was about to begin soon, although the real celebration won’t start until all the kids have been put to bed.

“So are you going to tell me what’s brewing between the two of you or am I to assume that the Vampire King didn’t just come all this way to find you to have some petty chit chat?” Rose inquired.

I wasn’t sure how to answer that. Rose and I weren’t exactly best friends, even though we were on good terms but I wasn’t about to go on sharing Damien’s secrets with anyone else. If Damien decides to tell others then it would have to be his choice, not mine and the more people he tells, the more he puts them in danger. But the topic about Damien and me was entirely too personal to discuss with Rose.

When they finally came after me, I just couldn’t stand there and let them kill me. I had to see you again. I just had to be with you, even if it was for my final moment.

Damien was good at innuendoes, that much I have to give to him. He keeps on asking me if I still love him, if I still care but he never discloses his feelings, not directly anyways. How am I supposed to just assume that he might feel the same about me when he never says anything clearly? Damnit! I need to clear things between us once and for all.

I still remember how you looked that day….blue dress, hair in bun, eyes that were still too innocent for a vampire and most of all…I remember wanting to kiss you on those plum red lips of yours. I wanted it so badly, but I knew that if I gave in, I’d scare you off. And ever since that day, I’ve had my eyes on you.

That was what Damien had said to me before we had had to face Vandal. And I remember clearly that he had also told me that he didn’t want to live the rest of his life without me…and then a few hours later, he’d told me to leave him for good. His mood swings changed every instant and he was the most unpredictable man in the planet.

How could I trust myself with Damien again? What if he does the same this time? What if after all this is over, Damien just decides to leave and never look back? And why did I always end up a prisoner to my heart? Why did I let Damien have so much influence over me?

“Hello? Earth to Kristin!”I snapped out of my thoughts as Rose snapped her fingers in front of my face.

“Sorry,” I ran a hand through my hair. “I was a bit lost in thought.”

“I figured as much. You seem awfully distracted ever since you came back from wherever His Highness had taken you.” Rose tilted her head to the side as she inspected me with a smirk. “Did something interesting happen?”

“You’re awfully nosey for a pirate.” I told her with a frown. “Why are you so eager to find out what happened between Damien and me?”

“Honey, why are you so oblivious?” Rosanna shook her head in exasperation. “Isn’t it obvious? He’s a handsome young man with no obligations and I’m a hot young chick with no commitments. We’d be a perfect fit! Just think about it! The rulers of the land and the sea coming together in a holy union!”

My jaw just hit the ground. Are you fucking kidding me? Damien could be killed any minute by the Elder’s fucking goons and Rosanna was talking about a bloody holy union?

But Rosanna didn’t know about Damien, did she? So she could be thinking whatever the fuck she wants. But that doesn’t mean I still don’t want to rip her fucking head off! What the fuck was she doing thinking about going after Damien?

“Yes,” I spoke through gritted teeth. “What a union.”

I got up from the seat on the lower beck and headed to my room, no longer in the mood to sit and chitchat with Rosanna. Several people asked me to join the dinner party as I was heading down to my room but I politely declined with a forced smile. By the time I reached my room and slammed the door shut, I was fuming.

God knows how many women were after Damien in the first place and now we had Rosanna Clintoff to top off that list! It’s not like Damien and I have claimed each other and shit but why the fuck can Damien never make the fucking first move if he wants me to stay in his life! Why do I always end up being the one suffering in silence!

I caught a hint of my reflection in the mirror and I stopped pacing my room to take a good look at myself. The difference between me now and the me from one year ago was as vast as the difference between night and day. I still had the same blue eyes but now there was more knowledge in them, more experience. But the eyes were the only thing that were still the same.

My hair was cut short to a few inches above my shoulders and it was died black with dark red highlights. I had added the highlights to act as a reminder of Damien because before today, I hadn’t thought I’d ever see him again. Even my physique has changed ever since Rosanna took me under her wing. I’d had to train hard and keep up with everyone on deck; I had to become a new person who didn’t need to depend on anyone else to protect my son. But even though there were so many changes in me, my heart was still the same. It still beat for Damien and I don’t think it’ll ever stop.

Call me foolish or stupid but I’d go through Hell and back to save Damien and save him I will. There’s no Trisha without Damien and I’d rather die than watch him get hurt.

“Upset you, have I?”

Startled, I turned towards the door to find Rosanna standing there with her hands on her hips and as much as I wanted to strangle her to death for suggesting a ‘holy union’ between her and Damien, she was still technically my superior. Unwillingly, I turned to face the woman who was now a competitor to win Damien’s heart.

Let’s get this show on the road, shall we?