0095
Damien
I would usually have been impressed by Neah's kill if I wasn't so worried.
Mallory nudges me, giving me the same look of concern. I knew what was going through her head and I slowly shook my own. We would need to be really careful.
Raven keeps her head buried against by chest, grossed out by how Neah had killed Roan. Neah had made him suffer over and over until she decided enough was enough. Or rather, she was done playing with her prey.
"Raven, go with Mallory, I need to speak to Dane."
Her dark eyes peer up at me. "Why, what's wrong?"
"I just need to confirm a few things, that's all." I reassure her, hoping it would be enough information to keep her from pushing. It wasn't that I wanted to keep secrets, but Dane was Neah's mate, he should hear the information from me first. "Come." Mallory smiles at her. "You are mated to my best friend, we should get to know each other."
Dane is looking at me suspiciously but Raven follows Mallory anyway.
A few moments pass and he orders Eric and Klaus to go with them, just in case Salem was about.
Salem wouldn't show himself yet, whatever he was planning, he was dragging it out, much like how Neah had killed Roan. I wonder if she knew she had spent hours torturing him.
"What?" He snaps when the dungeon door is closed and it was just us and a dismembered Roan.
"There was something you told me about her Lycan being a separate spirit."
"And? I know I said you could kill Roan, is that what this is about?"
"No. It's just, since I have been here, I have come to understand that when her Lycan is pushing forward her eyes are dark, almost black. It's her Lycan that helps her find the courage to kill." "Yes."
"They weren't black, Dane. They were her usual blue colour. She had no help from her Lycan. She wanted to kill. She wanted to torture him."
His strange crimson eyes lock with mine. "She has a lot of deep seeded anger. And it's not like any of us are angels. Not from what she told me."
I nod, half a smirk creeping across my lips. "She told you about my past."
He continues to stare back at me and I could see why so many were put off by him, but he didn't scare me. I had dealt with much worse.
"We all have a past Dane. Every single one of us, but I'm talking about the present. The one where you are at risk of losing your mate."
He slams me up against the wall, his arm pressing against my chest as he tries to hold me in place. "I suggest you take that back."
"I won't ever lay a finger on her." I shove him back and straighten out my shirt. "I made a promise to protect her. I am telling you that you need to stop her from killing anyone else. Now matter how much you agree with it."
"I'm not going to stop her from wanting to put things right. It's her right to hurt those who have hurt her."
"Then listen to me, Dane, because you will lose her and it won't be to death."
His brows fuse as he glares at me.
"How she is acting, is how I became a Rogue. It's how Salem became a Rogue as well as the others. Just now, she was completely oblivious to the rest of us. Like it was just her and the prick down here. She played with the body, slicing him open and letting him heal, over and over like it was a game. Exactly how the Rogues play with their food. I bet she doesn't even know how many times she did it."
He shakes his head. "You are wrong."
"Mallory saw it too."
"She was just getting revenge for Jess." He defends Neah, but I hear the scepticism that he tries to hide in his tone. Deep down he could see it too.
"Think about it, Dane. You grew up knowing how to punish people. Making them pay for their sins. Most Rogues didn't. The ability to kill with ease became a new adventure and I see that in Neah. You said it yourself. For the best part of sixteen years she was a slave. Her abilities were bound. Her true life was kept from her. And she has gained everything back in less than a year."
He shakes his head in denial.
"Roughly the same amount of time before a bitten Lycan turns fully Rogue if they don't control themselves."
"She wasn't bitten. And you still turned."
"Then maybe it's something to do with her being bound. I don't have everything figured out. All I see is that she is walking the same path as I did. Anger and hate fuels her." I turn around, resting my hands against the stone wall and hanging my head low.
This was not a problem that I thought we would run into.
We were supposed to be starting afresh, not running into past problems
"She is your mate Dane. I can see that you love her. We can all see that, there is no question about it. But if we don't get ahead of this, Salem will be the least of your problems." I turn around to see his frown. "It's Neah." He mumbles.
I knew my words were hitting home by the way he spoke with his jaw clenched.
"In theory, due to her being bound, I have been a Lycan for longer than she has. And trust me, I know what I see. Mallory brought me back from that, long after I had let myself go."
Dane snorts. "When we first learned what she was, do you know what she was afraid of?"
I shake my head.
"Becoming a monster. Ironic don't you think." He folds his arms across his chest. "Seeing as you came back from being a Rogue, can you help her?"
"I can try, but in truth, Mallory is probably the best one to help her. She was the one who helped me."
"Neah doesn't trust Mallory and that isn't going to change anytime soon."
"Then I suggest we find a way for Neah to accept Mallory."
He glances back at Roan's slumped body. "Do you really believe I'm losing her?"
I nod. "The thing is, she won't even realise it herself until it's too late."
****
Raven is sitting in the kitchen with Mallory by the time we head back to the house. Given the circumstances, they were both giggling and stuffing themselves with ice cream. "Where's Neah?" Dane asks
"She headed upstairs. She didn't want to see me." She sighs. Every day she was growing more and more desperate to find a way to please Neah. And still, Neah wanted none of it. Dane nods and leaves, hopefully to have an important conversation with his mate.
"Did you talk to Dane?" She asks as she shoves a spoon in her mouth.
"Yes."
"What am I missing?" Raven frowns. "We were having a laugh until Damien walked in and now, now you are acting like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders." "It's fine." I tell Mallory. "Dane knows so you can tell her."
Raven's eyes round as she listens to Mallory. Her lips part until her mouth is wide open and I can see her tonsils. She was terrible at hiding her feelings, but I love the fact that she thought she could. "Does she know?" Mallory asks
"Not yet. Dane doesn't want anyone to say anything to her. Which, in my opinion is fucked up, but she is his mate."
"He wants to protect her." Raven sighs. "She has spent most of her life fighting for it and now she has to do it all again." ""It's different."
"How?" Raven's dark eyes rise to mine. "How is it different?"
"Because that life was something she never wanted. This is something she is slowly choosing. She just doesn't know it yet." "Why?" Raven mutters with a whisper
"It makes her feel strong and powerful. It gives her the feeling of satisfaction."
"The sad thing is, if she had been raised a Lycan, she would never have this need inside her." Mallory gives Raven a sad smile. "We both know that is hearsay. Neither of us knows what her life could have been." I snap
"I can't lose her too, Damien." Raven pleads with me. "I can't, it will break me."
As she stared at me, I felt it. Every little glimmer of emotion that she was trying so hard to keep bottled up inside.
Mallory reaches a hand across the table to her. "Neah will need to want the help. It's the only way it will work."