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Without warning, his arms wrap around me, my head tucked safely under his shoulder. Hard, calloused fingers rub my back. “We’ve all become dependent on people we wish we hadn’t, Stella. Trust me. Though it doesn’t make us weak, admitting it to ourselves is what makes us strong.”
That does it. The waterworks are unleashed, a river of pent-up emotion and relentless sorrows. “I’m sorry, Damon, but you don’t understand. Who’ve you ever depended on?”
He places a soft kiss against my temple. It’s not romantic, not in the slightest, more like what I’d expect a relationship between siblings would be. What I assume he and Ruby have, what I sometimes wish Sebastian and I had.
“Like I said, you’d be surprised. My relationship with Scarlett, if you could even call it that, was destined to fail because, if I’m being honest with myself, I never wanted it. I was dependent on our connection. She came into my life when I needed someone to rely on, something to make me feel in control because I was trying to figure out who I was independent of my sister. And that hasn’t changed. I’ve got skeletons of my own in my closet, and although it may not be as big as yours, or filled with thousands of dollars in designer clothes, it’s still just as dark.”
He doesn’t understand, but then again, why would he?
“At least you're free from it, Damon. I will never be free. He expects something from me, payment for everything he’s done for me, and he’s going to cash in soon. I know it’s not the worst thing that could happen, but after having my entire life controlled, I thought maybe one day I’d be free. But freedom is nothing but an illusion. A fucked up rose colored illusion that blinds us to our reality.”
“We were born in different worlds, yet our realities aren’t much different. I’ve done something myself that is guaranteed to tie my hands for the rest of my life. The problem is, I wouldn’t do anything different. But you can fight back, Stella. Don’t accept your fate. You can beat the monster controlling your life and you can find a way to make him see that you’re willing to slay any of the monsters of his past as well.”
If only it were that simple. I fear Stephan Silver can’t be slayed.
