Silas has been in the shower for a while.

I stood and walked over to the window to stare outside at the dark sky. Stars decorated it like a million diamonds. Was Ethan one of those stars? Was he watching over us? I turned away and walked over to the bedside table where I had placed the small note David had given me. Something he found, he had said.

I never got the chance to read it because we needed to leave.

Opening the drawer, I reached inside and pulled out the note. I unfolded it with shaky fingers and frowned. It was not what I expected.

You'll find whatever you need underneath the river tree. Our treasure buried will set you free.

The bathroom door suddenly opened and Silas stepped out. I spun around, not surprised to find him frowning at me. His eyes darted from the note to my face. Silas had a towel wrapped around his waist. He had the ends clutched together with one hand while the other hung limply at his side.

My eyes darted over his exposed skin. He had red marks and healing wounds almost everywhere. My eyes lingered on the deep lashes near his right hip. It looked ugly and it kind of made me feel a little sick. It was deep and bleeding again.

Silas followed my gaze and muttered a curse. He pulled the towel away and balled it up before pressing it against the wound.

I swallowed. "D-do you want me to l-look at that?"

"No, it'll heal."

"D-David gave it to me earlier. He said he found it." I stepped closer and held it out towards him. "It says something about treasure."

He took it from me and froze. After a few seconds he crumbled the note into a ball and threw it onto the bed. With a growl he walked over to the wardrobe and pulled clothes from the drawers. Silas pulled on a pair of jeans and threw the t-shirt onto the bed before walking into the bathroom. I silently followed him and watched as he placed a bandage on the bleeding wound.

"Where are you going?" I asked him when he pulled on shoes and then his shirt

"To the river."

"Why?"

He nodded towards the note. "To dig for treasure."

"I'll come with you," I said, already walking over to put my shoes on.

"You won't." Silas glared at me. "You're going to stay here."

"Silas—"

"No arguing, sweetness."

I stared at him as he walked over to the door. "What's wrong with you?"

Silas paused with his hand on the door handle and turned slightly to glance at me over his shoulder. "Nothing."

"Silas."

"Just fucking drop it Lara. Nothing is wrong with me."

"Then why were you about to kill your own father?"

He growled and without a word, stormed out of the room and slammed the door shut behind him, making me wince. I was frozen in place but it only lasted for a few seconds. Hurrying towards the door, I threw it open and hurried after him. Silas was already out of the house by the time I caught up on him.

"Silas."

I heard him growl softly. "Get back inside, Lara."

"I'm not done talking to you!"

He ignored me. It was hard to keep up with him as he moved through the trees and deeper into the woods. My feet hurt since I hadn't pulled on my shoes, my legs felt like jelly and my lungs ached because I couldn't catch my breath. After a few more steps, I was forced to stop.

I bent forward with my hands on my knees and tried to catch my breath. My eyes started to burn with unshed tears when I glanced up and found no sign of Silas. He left me! He left me knowing full well that I had no idea how to get back to the house.

"You're a bastard!" I screamed. "I wish I never met you!"

"That's a low blow, Lara," Silas suddenly said from my left. "How can you say that to me?"

"Because it's how I feel." I swallowed and tried to fight the tears. "You're not the same man you were when I met you."

Silas let out a harsh laugh. "And you think that I'm the only one who had changed? What about you, Lara? What about how you changed?"

I slowly straightened and turned to face him. "What about me, huh?" I pressed a palm against my chest and glared at him. "Of course I've changed Silas! The life I knew had flushed down the drain the moment I met you. I should've listened to Andrea! I should've left like I wanted to. I should never have agreed to marry you." I sucked in a breath. "I wished I had never have met you or your brother or you damn family!"

"Lara—"

"No! You shut up and listen to me. I'm sick of you telling me what to do. I'm sick of you always putting your needs before me!"

"My needs?" he snarled. "All I've ever done was put your needs before mine! Everything I do is for you!"

"That's not true," I told him. "Who were you thinking about when you were about to kill your dad? It couldn't possibly be me. You were willing to kill your own father for a title you never wanted. How is that thinking about me, Silas?"

He spun around and ran a hand through his hair. His eyes were focused on the ground. My eyes dropped to his trembling hands at his side. Why was he suddenly so angry? I swallowed and walked over to him. Silas flinched away from me when I place my hand on his chest. It hurt. It hurt worse than knowing that Ethan would never be coming back.

"You just want him," Silas whispered. "All you ever think about is him. When I kiss you, you compare my kisses to his. When I touch you, you remember his touch. When I make love to you, you compare it to the times you had with him."

Silas raised his head and looked at me. My breath got caught in my throat when I saw the anguish in his eyes. He was hurting because of me. He was angry because he thought that I was like his parents. Silas was angry because he thought that Ethan was the man I was thinking of when I was with him.

How could he think that?

"Silas." I moved closer and cupped his cheeks. He nearly managed to jerk away but I held on. "Look at me." Peculiar eyes shot up to mine. "Sometimes when I'm alone my mind wonders and I think of him. I think of everything we used to talk about. I think of those days in Ottawa and the wonderful time the three of us had." I stepped closer and pressed my body against his. "I don't think of him when you kiss me or touch me or make love to me. I don't compare you with each other. I love you, Silas."

"I—"

I pressed a finger against his lips to silence him. "Right now I wish for you to go back to being the man you were when we met. I don't like this Silas that's filled with hate and the need for revenge. I don't like this man who's blaming himself for something that was out of his control. I don't like you for thinking that you should've been the one to die in that fire. I don't like you because you think that I prefer Ethan over you."

"But you do."

"No I don't Silas." I searched his eyes. "I prefer you over Ethan. I hurt that he's no longer here and that I will never be able to see him again, but if I lost you . . ." I trailed off and shook my head. "If I were to ever loose you then I would have no reason to live."

"Lara—" He broke off and shook his head. "Please don't leave me."

"Never."

Silas leaned down and smashed his lips onto mine. He wrapped his arms around me and crushed my body to his. Pain shot through me but I said nothing. This was what he needed and if he wanted to use my body to get rid of his anger, then he could.

Silas had already been hurt enough. It was time I started giving instead of taking.

I clutched at his shoulders when he lifted me. Silas took a few steps forward until my back came in contact with a tree. His lips left mine and trailed down my neck. I gasped when his teeth nipped at his mark. Silas growled and pressed his hips tighter against mine.

"Mine," he growled. "You're only mine. You can't think of him when I'm kissing you or touching you. You can't think of him while I'm inside you."

"Never," I breathed. "Only you."

"Good." He pulled back and stared down at me. "I'll make it right. I'll find Luca. I'll be the best dad to our babies. I won't ever make the mistakes my parents made."

"I know you won't." I smiled at him. "I know you will be a great fucking dad."

Twigs suddenly snapped from behind him. Silas tensed and instantly spun around with a low warning growl. I blinked and then frowned at Wrin. Had he been following us?

Wrin's eyes darted between us but locked on Silas. "We know who started the fire."