Raven's P•O•V

Alec lunged at DeMalo, his whole body slamming against his brother's as he met him half way. Alec's hands went for DeMalo's throat, wrapping them around it as he choked him.

Alec forced him back against the wall. I was shocked at DeMalo's lack of power against Alec. I regretted thinking that as DeMalo kicked Alec in the chest with enough force to send him reeling backwards. I gasped and wanted so bad to run to him.

Alec steadied and looked at him with a deadly look.

Alec advanced on DeMalo with rage and threw his fist at him, sending a thunderous blow to his twin's face. DeMalo took the first punch, but quickly blocked each one after.

I could see the wrath in Alec getting more and more prominent. Suddenly, DeMalo gave up and slammed a hard hook into Alec's jaw. Alec barely flinched before throwing DeMalo a couple feet.

DeMalo's back crashed against the stone wall, causing it to crumble around him. He huffed and got to his feet.

"Is that all you got?" Alec roared at him. DeMalo chuckled mockingly, brushing himself off.

"Oh that's not all." DeMalo smirks and Akantha walks to him, pulling out a kris-styled dagger from under her ripped dress. Her thigh sheath wrapped around her pale skin. She offered it to DeMalo. We all watched this, eerily silent.

Not even I had heard this part of the plan.

I stepped forward, surprisingly breaking the barrier of her spell. Yet, I stopped and knew it was no use. My feet planted to the ground and felt as if my shoes were made of lead.

"A dagger," Alec mused, "how sweet." He looked to his brother mockingly. "Knowing you came armed doesn't surprise me at all. You never were the best at brawls, now were you?"

DeMalo's eyes flared with rage, but faded quickly as he regained his ego.

"You should have no problem then." DeMalo scoffed, twirling the curved dagger in his palm.

I caught Alec's gaze as he glanced at me from the corner of his eye. I wanted to scream in protest as he looked away and faced his brother.

"You're right. I don't." Alec said simply and circled around his brother.

They watched each other like cage fighters circling in the ring. This time DeMalo jumped on Alec.

My heart thudded against its brittle cage. I felt the want it withheld. The want for everything to go away, and for this to not be real.

I knew how real it was the second everything blurred and DeMalo and Alec went at it. Cracking, breaking, crashing noises filled the air as they fought around us. I almost wondered if the noise was the splintering of the mens' thought-to-be unbreakable bones.

Suddenly, everything slowed around me and as I watched, I saw the glint of the dagger coming down onto Alec's chest, slicing through his porcelain skin. Black blood followed the dagger up and painted the wall in streams of purple. I screamed a scream that felt like a thousand knives coming up from my lungs. My eyes welled with tears as I heard Alec grunt and watched him drop to his knees in front of DeMalo.

The cut was a mere sliver of black across Alec's chest, ending at the end of his right rib and up above right where his heart was. Mere might not have been the best word as I could see the black river flow out of Alec's chest. Although it didn't look deep, the blood told another story.

Alec's shoulders bent as he looked at the split wound that now displayed his pale chest with gushes of purplish black. He looked up at DeMalo like he didn't believe it. Somehow, he didn't look extremely hurt by it, which was a relief to me.

DeMalo's laugh was cynical, almost criticizing as he circled around his brother. Alec watched him, panting in anger and hidden pain.

"You know what I want, Brother. And I don't have to kill you to get it," DeMalo spoke. He looked to Akantha for a brief second and nodded. As he did this, Akantha's eyes flared purple as she gripped her pendant. Something clicked when I saw her do this.

Every time she used her magic, the pendant provided it for her.

That must have been what DeMalo meant by having something to hold against her. It was her powers. Her pendant gave her the strength to use them accordingly.

My thoughts were cut off as I felt my throat tighten like the time DeMalo choked me in my room. I gasped and could almost feel the fingers gripping the oxygen out of me.

"Frankly, I just don't want your blood on my hands," DeMalo continued as I fell to my knees, grasping my neck as I wheezed in pain. I could feel my muscles start to weaken.

"Leave Raven out of this." Alec growled at DeMalo. He looked to me and his eyes were filled with pain that reciprocated my own.

"Give me what I want, and I won't hurt her." DeMalo countered and Alec went silent. I shook my head furiously at him. I needed to tell him -

"I can't give you what you want DeMalo. You know I can't." Alec said almost desperately. He was starting to break as he no longer thought of his pain but focused on mine.

DeMalo looked up to Akantha and didn't say a word. With a simple mantra of words, she twisted her hand and I felt cuts start to make their way up my thighs like getting whipped with a knife. They cut sharp and quick as an invisible force sliced through my skin. I whimpered every time another came. The blood dripped down my legs like soft rivers, but I focused on Alec instead of the pain.

"Are you sure about that?" DeMalo now turned to his brother and asked. Alec didn't look away from me. Tears filled my eyes. Alec didn't answer him for a while. As the silence filled the room I gasped for air, hoping I could tell Alec what he needed to hear.

The burning sensation raised in my throat like the flames of a fire and Alec could tell I was about to speak. DeMalo gave me a critical look, almost daring me to say something.

Alec had found his way to his feet as I looked up to him. I opened my mouth and let the heat overcome my words as I gasped out in a faint, hoarse whisper,

"Th-e pendant."

Alec furrowed his brow for a mere second before he understood. DeMalo's eyes nearly burst out of his skull when he heard me. Everything slowed just like it had when they fought for the second time.

Alec raised his eyes to Akantha as she stepped back in surprise. Her spell was released from me as she unclasped her pendant. I gulped in air uncontrollably and felt the cuts seize.

No longer running in immortal speed, Alec bound across the marble floor and before Akantha could act, he gripped the pendant around her neck. His eyes flared as DeMalo tried to yank him back, but only caused Alec to rip the pendant from Akantha's throat.

The necklace fell and as it hit the hard floor, the Ruby pendant split down the middle. Almost like an earth quake, everyone froze in shock as the ground shook beneath us.

Akantha stepped back, looking at the broken pendant in utter horror. We watched as her skin started to wrinkle and age. No longer a beautiful twenty-something Mistress, her body started to deform.

Her scream caused the chandeliers above us to shake. She looked over herself as her skin clung to her skeleton.

All I could think was that she looked dead.

Akantha shriveled up, folding over and fell to the ground. As she did so, a hundred breaks sounded from her body. Her bones snapped and by now, she could barely breathe.

As Akantha gasped for her last breaths, no one moved. The shaking came to a stop and her dull violet eyes landed on Alec, before they rolled back into her skull and she stopped breathing.

Dimitri breathed awake as he unfroze from his spot. Irina and Piper ran to his side. The guards helped each other up. Everything returned from Akantha's spell.

"What have you done..." DeMalo breathed, barely a whisper. He looked at Akantha in sheer terror.

Alec didn't take another second to think over what just happened. He turned to DeMalo and went to grab him.

But soon DeMalo disappeared and left but a gust of wind behind him.

Beside me, the harsh wind caused Akantha's aged corpse to turn to dust and streak the floor like sand. The broken pendant and the dust was all that was left of her.

I looked up and saw Alec tense, just like he would before he ran. I stumbled to my feet, quivering, and grabbed his shoulder.

"Leave him." I ordered in a brittle voice. Alec turned to me and I felt my heart start beating again when I stared up into his bright red eyes.

The gash across his chest stayed split open but the onyx blood around it had now dried and the clotted blood stopped the flow. I moved my gaze down to the wound and I reached out, but Alec gently grabbed my hand and shook his head. I looked back up to him through my eyelashes.

Alec returned my gaze and pulled me close to him, no longer worrying about his wound as he just wanted to hold me close.

♱

Alec wasn't willing to let me sleep in my room that night. By the way he insisted, I knew he was just as afraid as I was, so I gave in to his wishes. Admittedly, I don't think I would've lasted a night by myself back in that room.

When I said that I should go get some pajamas from my room, Piper quickly told me she'd get them and bring them to Alec's chambers. I nodded to her, not wishing to tell her no, because I didn't want to go back into that closet...

Alec lead me to the west wing where his chambers were.

"Why don't we just stay in your room?" I asked quietly as we walked up the never ending, twisting steps to his chamber.

"I haven't slept down there since..." Alec trailed off, knowing I would now when he was talking about.

"Oh," I said in reply, and finally we made it to the top of the stairs. Alec lead me down the hall and we went to the double doors at the far end.

For a second I imagined what would have come about from the night Alec was supposed to turn me. What would have happened if I hadn't been kidnapped? I would've been taken here so I could meet Alec in this very room where he would turn me. I swallowed hard at the thought.

There was no doubt in my mind that I would've chosen being turned by the man I was falling for. All of me wished that was what happened that night instead of what did actually unfold.

Two guards stood at the doors. They bowed to Alec and opened the double doors for us. We walked in and I was shocked that another room could actually top Alec's original. This one quickly took my breath away.

The bed definitely looked fit for a king as it was the first thing you saw when you walked in. I turned in circles, looking in awe at the magnificence of the room.

"Its pretty overwhelming, I know." Alec chuckled. I turned to look at him. I nodded in agreement. I blushed as I could feel him watching me.

I noticed a door in the far right of the room and walked in. His bathroom was like walking into a living room. It was enormous! There was a bathtub that looked like it could fit five people inside of it. The shower took up a large portion of the right wall. Alec stood in the door.

I saw the full size mirror and nearly didn't recognize myself at first glance. My hair looked dull, my face was paler than usual, and I didn't even want to look at my cut thighs.

I turned to Alec and rubbed the back of my neck, not daring to look in the mirror any more than I had to.

"Is it alright if I take a shower?" I asked him. Alec nodded with a small smile on his face.

"Of course. Piper should be coming up with your clothes in a bit." He told me.

When he turned, I asked him,

"Is someone going to be here to take care of your wound?" I asked, wondering if there would be someone here after I got out of the shower.

"No. It'll heal." Alec answered. I looked at him then to his chest with a skeptical look.

"Then at least let me take care of it before I take up the bathroom for a bit." I told him and got a white towel out and started to wet it down.

Alec obliged and came into the bathroom and sat on the edge of the bathtub. I wanted to care for him like he cared for me the night of my nightmare. I knew I couldn't just let him leave his wound like that.

I sat beside him and placed the towel to his chest gently. Alec didn't flinch even though the wound hadn't seemed to have gotten any better. Wiping away the now dried black blood, it stained the towel purple.

"Doesn't it hurt?" I asked, looking up to him. He tore his gaze away from my hand on his chest and looked to me. His eyes were now a calm maroon.

"Not anymore." Alec told me with a soft, reassuring smile. I returned it and wiped the remainder of the blood away. The wound was deeper than I thought it had been. I looked at it sadly.

"I'm so sorry he did this to you." I murmured, my fingers gently running over it. Alec placed his hand on my cheek and caressed my cheek lovingly.

"You couldn't have done anything, Princess. My brother is psychotic and compulsive. None of us could have stopped him." Alec said. I nodded slowly.

Piper walked in with my clothes and Alec and I both looked to her in surprise. I tried to shy away from Alec, my face heating up as she had probably saw us, but Alec held me close, not ashamed of it. I felt myself blush even harder at the thought of that.

"Here are your pajamas and your robe." She smiled at me. I smiled back, still happy to see her. I got up and went over to hug her since I wasn't able to earlier.

"Thank you Piper." I whispered, for the clothes and for the fact that she had probably kept Alec sane while I was gone.

"You're welcome." She murmured, seeming to know exactly what I meant when I said it. She parted from me and smiled at her brother before leaving.

I turned to Alec and smiled as he had started to tape the gauze to his chest. I went over to him and helped.

"I better take my shower." I said as he stood. He nodded and left the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

I stripped, throwing the clothes away, knowing that I wouldn't want to recall the memories of the week I wore them. I twisted the shower dial to the highest until steam flooded the bathroom and I got in the shower.

I scrubbed away all the memories and grime of the past week, wishing I could just forget. Thankfully the cuts weren't as deep as I had originally thought so.

I washed my hair quickly and stood underneath the hot water. I sighed and tilted my head back. Soon I turned off the water and wrapped a towel around myself. I dried off and went over to the counter to put on my pajamas.

I scoffed at what Piper had picked out. A silk pair of pajama bottoms and a silk tank top. I rolled my eyes and dressed.

I came out of the bathroom after brushing my teeth and didn't see Alec. I furrowed my brows and looked over the room. Suddenly, he appeared in front of me by surprise. I gasped at him. He gave me a crooked smile and I laughed quietly.

"You scared me." I smiled and held my robe around myself tighter.

"I'm sorry, Princess." Alec apologized as he towered over me. By now I had gotten used to his height, but right now my heart was racing from the scare.

Alec didn't step away so I slowly lifted my gaze up to his eyes.

"You cant even imagine how sick I was without you here." Alec finally stated, his voice gruff. My heart empathized the pain in his words.

"But I'm here now..." I murmured, my voice soft as I reassured him. I reached out and rubbed his bicep. I grabbed his hand and held it against my cheek.

"See," I whispered, "I'm here."

Alec gazed down at me and I let go of his hand. He held it against my cheek, then wrapped it behind my neck gently. He wrapped his other hand around my waist and pulled me closer to him. I gasped as he pressed me against him, my silken chest against his bare chest.

I could feel his heart beating against mine. He leaned down and put his head against mine softly. I could feel how close his lips were to mine.

"Then please stay." Alec murmured in a gentle voice, his tone almost begging. I nodded quickly.

"Always." I whispered and he bent down to kiss me.

😂

❤❤