CHAPTER TWENTY
535 Words
CHAPTER 20: THE LINE WE CAN’T CROSS
(Damian’s POV)
The cabin was silent, but my mind wasn’t.
I stood outside, leaning against the wooden railing, staring into the darkness of the forest. My body ached, exhaustion pulling at my bones, but the real weight pressing on me was something worse.
The curse.
It hadn’t weakened.
If anything, it felt stronger.
The beast inside me was still there, prowling beneath my skin, watching, waiting.
I flexed my fingers, willing the claws to stay hidden. Filled my breathing to stay even.
But every time I closed my eyes, I saw her.
Not Devereaux. Not the bodies we left behind.
Selene.
Bleeding. Falling.
I had caught her, held her in my arms, and felt her heartbeat hammer against my chest.
And it had terrified me.
Because I almost lost her.
And if this curse kept growing—
"You’re not sleeping either?"
Her voice pulled me from the storm in my head. I turned to see her leaning against the doorway, arms crossed, exhaustion evident in her posture. She had cleaned up as best she could, her wounds wrapped, her leathers replaced with a loose linen shirt and pants that must have belonged to my mother once.
Something about the sight of her here, like this, made my chest tighten.
"No," I admitted.
She stepped onto the porch, her bare feet barely making a sound against the worn wood. "The curse?"
I gave a short nod.
She sighed, rubbing a hand over her face before leaning against the railing beside me. "We should have answers by now."
"We don’t."
Frustration flickered in her eyes. "I don’t like not knowing how to fix this, Damian."
Neither did I.
But what worried me more was the fact that the longer I spent around her, the harder it was to control.
My gaze dropped to her hands, to the faint smudges of dried blood still on her skin.
I reached out before I could stop myself, my fingers brushing against hers. "You’re still hurt."
She stilled, her breath catching for just a second.
Then she huffed a quiet laugh. "Look who’s talking."
I should have pulled away.
But I didn’t.
I just stood there, fingers lightly touching hers, my heart pounding too hard, my mind telling me to stop this before it started.
Because if I gave in—
There was no going back.
"Damian."
My name on her lips was softer this time. Almost hesitant.
I looked up, meeting her eyes. The fire in them, the exhaustion, the quiet vulnerability she rarely let anyone see.
And for one insane moment, I almost closed the distance between us.
I wanted to. Gods, I wanted to.
But I knew better.
I clenched my jaw and forced myself to step back, breaking the contact.
Selene’s expression didn’t change, but something flickered in her gaze—something I wasn’t ready to face.
"We should rest," I said gruffly, turning toward the door.
She didn’t stop me.
But as I walked away, I heard her whisper—
"One day, you won’t run from this, Damian."
I didn’t turn back.
Because I wasn’t sure if she was right.
Or if I was more terrified than she was.
- Writer
