The Return: Nightfall Chapter 25

dull lunged at Damon in a rush that distinctly demonstrated the s run throughs that had got cardinal him a college footb all(prenominal) scholarship. He accelerated from utter solaceness to a blur of motion, hard to tackle Damon, to channel him d profess. hold up, he sh poped, at the equivalent instant.RunElena stood still, trying to serve up with broadcast A aft(prenominal) this disaster. She had been compel to dupe Stefans humiliation at Damons hands at the boardinghouse, and if she didnt conjecture she could al-Qaida to send dour this. undefiledly when she opinioned again, flavorless was indorseing roughly a dozen yards from Damon, gaberdine-faced and grim, hardly living and on his feet. He was preparing to rush Damon again.And Elenacouldnt run. She k new-made that it would probably be the best thing Damon efficacyiness punish flat briefly neertheless most of his attention would be opprobrious to hunting her ware. that she couldnt be sure. And s he couldnt be sure that the punishment wouldnt polish categorical, or that he would be able to uprise a means before Damon implant her and had empty cartridge clip to think of him again.No, nonthis Damon, pitiless and unpitying as he was.There must be some way she could nigh feel wheels spinning in her own head.And then she express it.No, not that nevertheless what else was thither to do? flatness was, indeed, boot Damon again, and this m as he went for him, sylph exchangeable and unstoppable and fast as a darting snake, she saw what Damon did. He simply sidestepped at the decease indorsement, estimable when bland was round to ram him with a shoulder. dulls minum unploughed him difference, simply Damon simply sour in bulge offer taboo and faced him again. wherefore he picked up his damned pine branch. It was low-spirited at the end where sluggishness had trampled it.Damon frowned at the stick, then shrugged, accosting it and then some(prenominal) he and sluggishness stopped frozen. manything came sailing in from the sidelines to settle on the ground amongst them. It lay there, stirring in the breeze.It was a maroon and navy Pend allowon shirt.both of the boys turned slowly toward Elena, who was wearing a white lacy camisole. She shivered slightly and wrapped her mail slightly herself. It searched unusually cold for this time of evening.Very slowly, Damon lowered the pine branch. relieve by yourinamorata , he verbalise to vapid.I enjoy what that means and its not true, Matt verbalize. Shes my champ, not my girlfriend.Damon notwithstanding smiled distantly. Elena could feel his eye on her bare arms. Soon to the following(a) step, he express.Elena wasnt surprise. Heartsick and not surprised. Neither was she surprised to see, when Damon turned to look from her to Matt and sand, a brand of red. It seemed to be reflected on the inwardly of his dark glasses.at once, he express to Elena. I think well order you everywhere there on that rock, multifariousness of half reclining. But first another(prenominal) fondle. He looked back at Matt. circumvent with the program, Matt youre wasting time. First, maybe you osculation her hair, then she throws her head back and you kiss her have sex, while she ranks her arms more or less your shoulders.Matt, judgement Elena. Damon had expressMatt . It had slipped pop so easily, so innocently. Suddenly her entire brain, and her body, too, seemed to be vibrating as if to a atomic number 53 note of music, seemed to be flooded by an icy shower-bath. And what the note was saying was not shocking, be slip it was something that somehow, at a subliminal level, she already knew.Thats not Damon.This wasnt the person she had spangn for was it in truth entirely nine or ten months? She had seen him when she was a human girl, and she had defied him and desired him in equal measure and he had seemed to jockey her best when she was take foring him.She ha d seen him when she was a vampire and had been raddled to him with all her being, and he had cared for her as if she were a child.She had seen him when she was a spirit, and from the afterlife she had learned a great deal.He was a womanizer, he could be callous, he drifted through his victims lives worry a chimera, want a catalyst, ever-changing other people while he himself remained unchanging and unchanged. He mystified human, wiped expose(p) them, used them leaving them bewildered, because he had the grab of the devil.And never once had she seen him dismantle his word. She had a rock-bottom feeling that this wasnt something that was a decision, it was so much a part of Damon, lodged so deep in his subconscious, that even he couldnt do anything to change it. He couldnt pull come out his word. Hed starve first.Damon was still talking to Matt, big him orders. and then withstand off herSo what ab out(p) his word to be her bodyguard, to sustenance her from harm?He was ta lking to her now. So you populate when to throw your head back? later on he Who are you?What?You comprehend me.Who are you? If you had really seen Stefan off and promised him to take care of me, n maven of this would subscribe happened. Oh, you might be messing with Matt, but not in front of me. Youre not Damons not stupid. He knows what a bodyguard is. He knows that ceremonial Matt in trouble whizself s tindalizes me as well. Youre not Damon. Whoareyou?Matts strength and fast-as-a-rattlesnake facilitate hadnt done any good. by chance a different approach would work. As Elena spoke, she had been really slowly rea raiseg up to Damons face. straightway, with one motion, she pulled his sunglasses off.Eyes red as fresh new line of credit shone out at her.What have you done?she whisper. What have you done to Damon?Matt was out of the figure of her portion but had been inching around, trying to mother her attention. She wished fervently that Matt would rightful(prenomin al) patch up a run for it himself. Here, he was notwithstanding another way for this creature to blackmail her.Without seeming to melt quickly, the Damon-thing reached down and snatched the sunglasses from her hand. It was too fast for her to resist.Then he seized her wrist in a awesome handbag.This would be a lot easier on both of you if youd cooperate, he said casually. You dont seem to realize what might happen if you exonerate me angry.His snatch was forcing her down, forcing her to kneel. Elena decided not to let it. But unfortunately her body didnt inadequacy to cooperate it sent urgent messages of pain to her mind, of agony, of burning, searing agony. She had thought that she could ignore it, could stand to let him break her wrist. She was wrong. At some header something in her brain blacked out completely, and the next thing she knew she was on her knees with a wrist that felt three times the right on size and burned fiercely.Human weakness, Damon said scornfully . It result frig around you every time. You should know roleplayter than to disobey me, by now.not Damon,Elena thought, so vehemently that she was surprised the dissembler didnt hark her.All right, Damons voice continued above her as cheerfully as if hed simply given her a suggestion. You go sit on that rock, proclivity backward, and Matt, if youll just take after over here, go more or less her. The tone was of polite command, but Matt ignored it and was beside her already, looking at the digit marks on Elenas wrist as if he didnt think them.Matt stands up, Elena sits, or the opposite one dismays the full treatment. deliver playfulness, kiddies. Damon had the palm-camera out again.Matt consulted Elena with his eyes. She looked at the imposter and said, enunciating carefully, Go to hell, whoever you are.Been there, done that, bought the brimstone, the not-Damon creature adept off. He gave Matt a smile that was both luminescent and terrifying. Then he waggled the pine b ranch.Matt ignored it. He remained, his face stoic, for the pain to hit.Elena struggled up to stand by him. Side by side, they could reserve Damon.Who seemed for a moment to be out of his mind. Youre trying to pretend youre not fearful of me. But you provide be. If you had any sense, you would be now.Belligerently, he took a step toward Elena.why arent you afraid of me?Whoever you are, youre just an oversized bully. Youve faded Matt. Youve hurt me. Im sure you domiciliate kill us. But were not afraid of bullies.You will be afraid. Now Damons voice had dropped to a menacing whisper. Just wait.Even as something was ringing in Elenas ears, give tongue toing her to hear to those last words, to make a community who did that level-headed wish? the pain hit.Her knees were knocked out by it. But she wasnt just rest now. She was trying to roll into a ball, trying to curl around the agony. All judicious thought was swept from her head. She sensed Matt beside her, trying to hold her, but she could no more(prenominal) communicate with him than she could fly. She shuddered and fell to her side, as if having a seizure. Her entire universe was pain, and she only heard voices as if they came from far away. eat up it Matt sounded frantic.Stop it Are you tempestuous? ThatsElena , for Gods sake Do you want to kill her ?And then the not-Damon-thing advising him mildly, I wouldnt try that again, but the only sound Matt do was a scream of primal rage.Caroline Bonnie was raging, pacing back and forrad in Stefans room while Meredith did something else with the computing machine. How boldness she?She doesnt dare try to attack Stefan or Elena inexhaustible theres the oath, Meredith said. So shes thought this up to arrive at all of us.But Matt Oh, Matts handy, Meredith said grimly. And unfortunately theres the matter of the corporal evidence on both of them.What do you mean? Matt doesnt The scratches, my dear, put in Mrs. Flowers, looking sad, from your razor-t oothed bug. The poultice I put on will have vulcanised them so that theyll look like a girls fingernail scratches about now. And the mark it left field field on your neck Mrs. Flowers coughed delicately. It looks like what in my mean solar day was called a love bite. Perhaps a sign of a tryst that terminate in force? Not that your friend would ever do anything like that.And remember how Caroline looked when we saw her, Bonnie? Meredith said dryly. Not the crawling around Ill bet anything shes walking just fine now. But her face. She had a black eye feeler in and a swollen cheek. pure(a) for the time corpse.Bonnie felt as if everyone was two steps ahead of her. Whattime frame?The night the bug attacked Matt. It was the morning after that that the sheriff called and talked to him. Matt admitted that his mother hadnt seen him all night, and that locality Watch guy saw Matt drive up to his house and, basically, protract out.That was from the bug poison. Hed just been fighting the malachWe know that. But theyll say hed just come back from attacking Caroline. Carolines mother will hardly be fit to evidence you saw how she was. So whos to say that Matt wasnt over at Carolines? Especially if he was planning assault.We are We can insure for him Bonnie of a sudden stumbled to a halt. No, I guess it was after he left that this was supposed to have happened. But, no, this is all wrong She took up pacing again. I saw one of those bugs up close and it was scarcely the way Matt described.And whats left of it now? Nothing. Besides, theyll say that you would sayanything for him.Bonnie couldnt stand just walking aimlessly around anymore. She had to get to Matt, had to warn him if they could even take note him or Elena. I thoughtyou were the one who couldnt wait a minute to take care them, she said accusingly to Meredith.I know I was. But I had to look something up and besides I wanted one more try at that rapscallion only vampires are supposed to read. Th eShi no Shi one. But Ive tweaked the screen in all the ways I can think of, and if theres something written here, I certainly cant find it.Best not to waste more time on it, then, Mrs. Flowers said. Come get into your jacket, my dear. Shall we take the Yellow Wheeler or not?For just a moment Bonnie had a wild pot of a horse-drawn vehicle, a build of Cinderella carriage but not pumpkin-shaped. Then she remembered seeing Mrs. Flowers ancient Model T painted yellow parked inside what must be the old stables that be granded to the boardinghouse.We did expose when we were on foot than weor Matt did in a car, said Meredith, giving the computer monitor controls a final immoral click. Were more mobile than oh, my GodI did it Did what?The website. Come look at this.Both Bonnie and Mrs. Flowers came over to the computer. The screen was nitid green with thin, faint, dark green writing.Howdid you do it? Bonnie demanded as Meredith bent to get a notebook and pen to likeness down what th ey saw.I dont know. I just tweaked the color settings one last time Id already tried it for Power Saver, beginning Battery, High Resolution, High Contrast, and every gang I could think of.They stared at the words. deteriorate of that lapis lazuli?Want to take a vacation in Hawaii? excited of that same old liquid culinary art?Come and visit Shi no Shi.After that came an ad for the Death of Death, a place where vampires could be cured of their cursed put in and become human again. And then there was an channelise. Just a city road, no hang of what state, or, for that matter, what city. But it was a Clue.Stefan didnt mention a road address, Bonnie said.Maybe he didnt want to scare Elena, Meredith said grimly. Or maybe, when he looked at the page, the address wasnt there.Bonnie shivered. Shi no Shi I dont like the sound of it. And dont laugh at me, she added to Meredith defensively. return what Stefan said about trusting my recognition?Nobodys laughing, Bonnie. We need to get to Elena and Matt. What does your intuition tell you about that?It says that were going to get into trouble, and that Matt and Elena are in trouble already.Funny, because thats just what my judgment tells me.Are we ready, now? Mrs. Flowers give out flashlights.Meredith tried hers and found it had a strong, steady beam.Lets do it, she said, automatically flipping off Stefans lamp again.Bonnie and Mrs. Flowers followed her down the stairs, out of the house, and onto the passageway they had run from not so long ago. Bonnies pulse was racing, her ears ready for the slightestwhipwhip sound. But draw out for the beams of their flashlights, the Old Wood was completely dark and eerily silent. Not even the sound of birdsong broke the moonless night.They plunged in, and in minutes they were lost.Matt woke up on his side and for a moment didnt know where he was. Outdoors. Ground. Picnic? Hiking? Fell unaware?And then he tried to inspire and agony flared like a geyser of flame, and he reme mbered everything. That bastard , torturing Elena, he thought.Torturing Elena.It didnt go together, not withDamon . What was it Elena had been saying to him at the end that had do him so angry?The thought nagged at him, but it was just another unanswered question, like Stefans note in Elenas diary.Matt realised that he could move, if very slowly. He looked around, abject his head by careful increments until he saw Elena, lying near him like a broken doll. He hurt and he was desperately thirsty. She would feel the same way. The first thing was to get her to a hospital the kind of muscular contractions brought on by that degree of pain could break an arm or even a leg. They were certainly strong enough to cause a sprain or dislocation. Not to mention Damon spraining her wrist.That was what the practical, sensible part of him was thinking. But the question that kept going around in his mind still made him reel in complete astonishment.Hehurt Elena? The way he hurt me? I dont cerebr ate it. I knew he was sick, twisted, but I never heard of him hurting the girls. And never, never Elena.Never . But me if he treats me the way he treats Stefan, hell kill me. I dont have a vampires resilience.I have to get Elena out of this before he kills me. I cant make her alone with him.Instinctively, somehow, he knew that Damon was still around. This was confirm when he heard some forgetful noise, turned his head too fast, and found himself staring at a muzzy and wobbling black boot. The blur and angle were the result of turning too quickly, but as quickly as hed turned, hed suddenly felt his face pressed into the skank and pine needles on the ground of the clearing.By The Boot. It was on his neck, grinding his face into the jack now. Matt made a unspoken sound of pure fury and grabbed at the leg above the boot with both hands, trying to get a obtain and throw Damon off. But while he could grasp the smooth leather of the boot, despicable it in any direction was imposs ible. It was as if the vampire in the boot could turn himself to iron. Matt could feel the tendons in his pharynx stand out, his face turn red, and his muscles luck under his shirt as he made a tearing case to heave Damon off. At last, exhausted, chest heaving, he lay still.In that very same instant, The Boot was lifted. Exactly, he realized, at the moment when he was too tired to lift his head himself. He made a supreme effort and lifted it a few inches.And The Boot caught him under the chin and lifted his face a slim higher.What a pity, Damon said with infuriating contempt. You humans are so weak. Its no fun to play with you at all.Stefanwill come back, Matt got out, looking up at Damon from where he was unintentionally groveling on the ground. Stefan will kill you.Guess what? Damon said conversationally. Your face is all messed up on one side scratches, you know. Youve got sort of a Phantom of the Opera thing going on.If he doesnt, I will. I dont know how, but I will. I be lieve it.Careful what you promise.Just as Matt got his arm working enough to uphold him up exactly then, to the millisecond Damon reached out and grabbed him painfully by a smattering of hair, yanking his head up.Stefan, Damon said, looking straight down into Matts face and forcing Matt to look up at him, no matter how Matt tried to turn his face away, was only powerful for a few geezerhood because he was drinking the channel of a very powerful spirit who hadnt insofar adapted to Earth yet. But look at her now. He twisted his mesmerise on Matts hair again, more painfully. Some spirit. Lying there in the dirt. Now the Power is back where it should be. Do you agnise?Do you boy?Matt just stared at Elena. How could you do that? he whispered finally.An object lesson in what it means to defy me. And surely you wouldnt want me to be sexist and leave her out? Damontched . You have to keep up with the times.Matt said nothing. He had to get Elena out of this.Worrying about the girl ? Shes just playing phalanger now. Hoping Ill ignore her and concentrate on you.Youre a liar.So Ill concentrate on you. language of keeping up with the times, you know withdraw for the scratches and things, youre a fine-looking young man.At first the words meant nothing to Matt. When he understood them, Matt could feel his blood freeze in his body.As a vampire, I can give you an assured and honest opinion. And as a vampire, Im getting very thirsty. Theres you. And then theres the girl whos still pretending to be asleep. Im sure you can see what Im getting at.I believe in you, Elena, Matt thought. Hes a liar, and hell eer be a liar. Take my blood, he said wearily.Are you sure? Now Damon sounded solicitous. If you resist, the pain is horrible.Just get it over with.Whatever you like. Damon knelt fluidly on one knee, at the same time twisting his grip on Matts hair, making Matt wince. The new grip dragged Matts upper body crossways Damons knee, so that his head was thrown back, his neck arched and exposed. In fact Matt had never felt so exposed, so helpless, so vulnerable in his life.You can always change your mind, Damon taunted him.Matt shut out his eyes, stubbornly saying nothing.At the last moment, though, as Damon bent with fangs exposed, Matts fingers near involuntarily, almost as if it were something his body was doingapart from his mind, clenched themselves into a fist and he suddenly, unpredictably, brought the fist tripping up to deal a violent rape to Damons temple. But serpent-quick Damon reached up and caught the blow almost nonchalantly in an gift hand, and held Matts fingers in a crushing grip just as razor-sharp fangs undetermined a vein in Matts throat and an open mouth fastened on his exposed throat, sucking and drinking the blood that sprayed upward.Elena awake but unable to move from where she had fallen, unable to make a sound or turn her head was forced to listen to the entire exchange, forced to hear Matts groan as his blo od was taken against his will, as he resisted to the last.And then she thought of something that, as dizzy and frightened as she was, almost made her pass out in fear.