She stopped fighting and went still beneath him. Her nostrils flared with her powerful inhalations. Her chest heaved rapidly as she watched him through terrified eyes. He kept his hand over her mouth as he tried to steady his own breathing, and the pounding of his heart. This was not the way that he had wanted this to go.
"I'm going to take my hand away. Don't scream Sera. I mean it."
She nodded and he eased his hand from her mouth. She inhaled deeply, a tremor raced through her as she shivered beneath him. Blood stained the corners of her mouth, his blood. He wiped it away gently. She winced and turned her head from his touch.
His head bent in defeat. Of course she would be repulsed by him. He was a monster. But he had been hoping that maybe, just maybe, she would be able to accept him. He knew now that she wouldn't. The knowledge ripped his soul to shreds.
"You're the one that wanted the truth!" he spat.
She flinched as his words tore at her. Yes, she had wanted the truth, but who in their right mind could ever imagine that this was it? That he was some kind of monster. That he was a killer. No one could have. No one who was sane anyway, and right now she wasn't entirely sure that she still was.
She couldn't stop the mind numbing horror that filled her. "You're hurting me," she croaked out.
His grip on her wrists eased, but he didn't release her. "Look at me Sera."
She bit into her bottom lip as she took another shuddery breath. She forced herself to turn her head, open her eyes, and look at him. The monster was gone. It was Liam hovering over her, his green eyes haunted with turmoil. His jaw was clenched so firmly that a muscle in his cheek jumped wildly. Even though the creature was gone, he was still completely deadly.
Another tremor raced through her. She had seen the ferocity in his vivid red eyes. She'd seen the snarl that twisted his features into something inhuman, something that she didn't recognize. He could kill her in the space of a heartbeat. Rip her throat out and drain the blood from her before she even had a chance to scream, let alone struggle.
Yet, he made no move to attack her.
That realization gradually sank in and eased the tension in her muscles. Warmth, and love, suddenly flashed through his eyes, melting the coldness in them, making him more human. A sob broke from her. She bit on her lip to try and stifle it. The coldness settled back over his gaze and instantly shut out any warmth.
"Now, are you going to listen to me?" He waited for her to nod her acknowledgment. "Good, because not only does my life revolve around this, but so does yours, and so do four others that I care about. Do you understand?" She could only manage another weak nod. "You can walk out of my life Sera, I will understand if you do, but you cannot breathe a word of this to anyone. Do you hear me?"
She took a deep breath and nodded. She would have told him anything that he wanted to hear. If there was any chance of her being able to escape then she would say, or do, whatever it took.
"Good. Because if you do, I don't know if I'll be able to protect you."
"You'd kill me?" she breathed.
The wrath that emanated through his gaze caused her to recoil. Instinctive terror surged through her, and she began to thrash in his grasp. His hands tightened on her wrists as he held her in place. Pain shot down her arms, she cried out as tears sprang to her eyes. His grasp instantly loosened.
"Sera stop it. I don't want to hurt you." His words sank slowly in and her resistance ceased. She lay, panting beneath him, as she met his sincere gaze. "I told you that I would protect you no matter what, and I meant it. But there are others Sera. I can't stop them all. I can't let you go if you're going to tell anyone."
Sera laughed as she shook her head. "Who would believe me anyway Liam? They would lock me in a nuthouse if I started talking about a vampire boyfriend in a frat house."
"Believe it or not, there are people that would believe you. We can't afford to have that happen, okay?"
"Yes."
"Do I have your promise that you're not going to say anything?"
"If I say no, what will you do to me?"
His eyes reflected his torment. "Take you away from here, keep you away from people. I would hate to do it Sera, but I can't risk our lives being destroyed. You may grow to hate me for it, you probably hate me now, but that's something that I'm willing to live with. As long as you stay alive, and safe, then nothing else matters."
There were no lies within his eyes. There was only a desperate need for her to understand, and for her to concede to his will. She swallowed heavily, unable to believe that he would let her leave this room if she gave him her word not to say anything. What kind of monster would do that?
Eventually, she began to realize that he wasn't a monster. That he was still Liam, her Liam. He could have killed her many times already, but he hadn't. He didn't have to let her go. He could make her do whatever he wanted. He was ten times stronger than she was, and she was fairly certain that she hadn't even seen a hint of what he was truly capable of. She didn't hate him; she didn't think she could ever hate him. She was terrified of him right now, as she had every right to be, but she didn't hate him.
"Do you promise Sera?"
"Yes," she whispered.
His head bent as he took a deep, shuddery breath. He released his hold on her and sat back. She levered her arms beneath her and scooted back on the bed as he stood and walked away. Rubbing her tender, bruised wrists, she watched him in disbelief. He really was going to let her go.
"You can leave."
