Elisa's POV

"Fuck it." Alec said throwing the book.

I glanced at him from the mirror and stopped brushing my hair.

He looked ready to puke.

I sighed and stood up, "Now what?" I asked as I went to the wall and picked up the book I dared him to read.

"I've never read such a worst, pathetic, puke worthy novel in my entire existence. How can a vampire be this head over heels in love with someone just because he can't read her fucking mind?" He sneered.

I rolled my eyes, "Hey, don't say anything about it, I love this book." I argued and wiped the non-existent dust on the cover.

He looked at me like I have sprouted another head and then shook his head, "This conversation is useless, I'm going to the library to read a bloody murder novel." He said and strided towards the door.

"Wait... I'm  coming with you." I said. Truth to be told, I was scared of staying alone in the room all by myself. What if the attacker attacked me upon seeing that I'm alone in the room with no one to save me?

Alec raised a brow at me and I shrugged, "I want to continue reading my novel too." I said as I went ahead of him and opened the door.

It was a partial truth and I hoped I did not flinch.

His hand circled my wrist stopping me from going out of the door and turned me to face him.

I looked anywhere but in his eyes.

"You know that I won't let anything happen to you, right?" He said causing me to glance in his eyes.

His eyes held the determination of his promise and I smiled and nodded my head

He intertwined my fingers with his and we went to the library together.

I got my book as Alec selected one from the shelf.

"Let's go and sit in the garden." I suggested and he nodded his head.

Before going out I checked on Olivia to see that she was playing with Adam and I smiled and left them.

Since the incident with Olivia, Alec checked all the food items and then only allowed us to eat them. Master Gilfred had appointed more guards near Olivia and Adam never left her side.

I checked on her every few hours just to assure my heart that she's fine and healthy.

We went in the garden and I found a perfect spot to read my book.

"Let's sit under that tree." I said to Alec.

We went under that tree and I  plopped down as Alec sat beside me.

There was a beautiful kind of silence between us. No one was uttering anything but engrossed in our own imaginary world of novels. Oh! What a beautiful bliss.

After a while my neck began to hurt from not moving it and my body for so long, I unknowingly laid my head on Alec's shoulder and continued reading.

I felt his body stiffen but did not heed any attention because the hero in the novel proposed heroine by just saying, 'I'm keeping you with me.' I mean, is that a way of proposing your love of life?

(A/n: That's true, read the novel The secret by Julie Garwood. It's wonderful and yes the hero proposed her that way in the book. Enjoy.)

Why was this ground feeling so hard. I squirmed and tried to adjust myself in a comfortable position but the ground was feeling way too hard.

Alec sighed beside me and I glared at him. What? It's the ground's mistake for being so hard, not mine.

He kept his book down and picked me up without effort. I yelped as he placed me on his lap which was really soft compared to the ground.

"Comfortable?" He asked amusement lightning his grey eyes.

I blushed and nodded my head and continued reading.

He picked up his book but now I couldn't concentrate because I can only think about how good it felt on Alec's lap.

Stupid. Stupid hormones!

I cleared my throat and asked him the first question that came to my mind.

"How does this mate thing work?" I asked and then mentally face palmed myself.

Idiot Elisa.

He looked at me from his book and smirked, "Why the sudden interest Elisa?" He asked.

"Fine. Don't tell." I said and picked up my novel again.

I was so red by now that if someone touched my cheeks they would think that I have fever.

"Well, when a vampire is created or born-"

"Wait what? I thought vampires cannot conceive." I said interrupting him.

"Well, you need someone to start a particular species. There were only 3 vampires that were born and from their the descent of vampires started. No one knew how they were born but the ones which are born are purest vampires and they're called the bona fides meaning an orginal vampire. Only a marriage between two bona fides can conceive a child. But that cannot happen because there's only one bona fide left in the world." He said the last part in a low dangerous tone.

Why does it feel that I've heard the word bona fide somewhere.

"Well back to the mate thing, when a vampire is created, a force acts in such way that at the same time his or her mate is created or will be in the future. Usually a vampire's mate is a vampire only, but in rare cases it can be humans or witches or werewolves etc. For some vampires it takes  decades and centuries to find their mate and for some it takes only years. It all depends on the fate." He said the last part looking at me.

I couldn't help but feel hurt in my heart at the thought of him waiting half millennia for his mate and instead finding a sorry excuse of human as his other half.

"Well the fate must be very angry at you for selecting me as your mate." I said and looked down at the grass.

I could feel the tears pool in my eyes at that thought. Oh my God! I shouldn't be feeling like this things. Why am I feeling sorry for my captor?

"Well at least they picked out the most beautiful and mysterious one for me." He said and I looked up at him.

He thinks I'm beautiful?

"You must know that one vampire has one only one mate for the eternity and once his or her mate dies, so do they." He said.

"But what if your mate is human and for some reason you couldn't find him or her and they die due to any reason?" I asked.

He laughed, "That's not possible Elisa. Every vampire meets his mate. One couldn't die without at least meeting them once and I told you that vampire-human mates are really rare and if it is then destiny brings them face to face with each other." He explained.

"So you would die if I die?" I asked in a small voice and held my breath.

He looked at me with hard expression, "No. I won't because I've not accepted you as my mate completely and even if I did, I would not end my life because I don't love you or anything." He said.

"Thank God!" I sighed with relief but felt a pang in my chest.

"What? You're not angry?" He asked and looked surprised.

"Why would I be? I don't want you as a mate and I'm gonna marry someone else in future and I don't want you stuck with me. I want you to move on because I will surely move on one day and leave you." I said and he balled his fists on my back making my old scars hurt again.

"Ow! Ow!" I hissed and stood up. My back was now burning with old scars and I could feel warm liquid making a trail along the arch of my back.

What the hell?

Alec stood up as well and I looked at his fists. I took them in my hand and opened them and I gasped.

Instead of his nails, there were now sharp, a finger long black talons, more like claws extending from his fingers.

That's why my back hurt. He balled his fists on my back and in the process he opened up my old scars.

Great. Note on sarcasm.

"Elisa? Did I do something?....is...that smell... your....blood?" He asked and his eyes widened as he realised what he had done.

I didn't say anything and rushed back to the castle.

I ran up the stairs, tripping every now and then and finally reached my room and went into the bathroom locking the doors.

I moved my hair on one shoulder and glanced at my white now turning red top.

The sight of blood on my back brought up so may buried menories and I tried my best not to succumb in them.

Every whip, every violent marks and beatings of my brother came in front of my eyes and I fell to my knees.

My every single mistake followed by Strict punishments of my brother haunted my mind.

Please stop!

I clutched my ears to stop the voices but I couldn't.  I--

"ELISA!"

A voice was trying to reach my ears. I knew this voice, yes, I know this voice.

As that voice reached my ears again, I was slowly able to climb back from my memories and land in the present.

I opened my eyes to find that I was no longer on the batroom floor but on someone's lap.

I looked up to see that Alec had a look of concern etched on his face as he rubbed his hand on my arm.

I removed my hands from my ears and glanced around the room to see if my brother found me.

"I'm here. I will not let him hurt you again." Alec tried to assure me.

But no amount of assurance could take away the memories of my dark past.

I looked back at Alec and he wiped away the tears I didn't knew were flowing down my cheeks.

I took in deep breaths to calm myself.

He's not here.

He will not find you here.

"Hey, I told you he would never lay a hand on you again." He said and I nodded my head.

I stood up from his lap and he stopped me from going away as he trailed a finger down my wet spine.

Instead of pain I only felt the tingles as he traced his fingers.

"I'm so sorry Elisa. I didn't know my talons will do this amount of damage--"

"It's not completely your doing." I said and instantly regretted it.

He turned me around to face him, "What the hell do you mean by 'not completely'" he hissed at me.

"Nothing." I kept my face void of any emotion and was actually able to keep myself from flinching.

"Don't test my patience, Elisa." He said and there goes my lie. I did not utter a single word and he sighed.

"At least let me help bandage you." He said coming closer and I immediately took a few steps back.

"No need. I'll d-do it m-myself." Shit. I shouldn't stutter.

For a second hurt passed his eyes but he immediately masked it.

He asked me the question I dreaded the most because now I don't know the answer myself.

"Don't you have a little amount of trust in me, Elisa?"

That caused more tears to fill my eyes and gush out, trailing my cheeks because I don't even know if I trust him or not.

If he would have asked that question a few days back then I would've easily answered a no but now my heart wanted to yell out yes and my brain shouted no. I was sandwiched in the middle by my brain and my heart.

"At least try to trust me once Elisa and I would never break it." He practically pleaded me.

Should I trust him?

Every person in this world has broken my trust.

Kate. When she lied to me about that night. That's why my mind told not to trust her completely.

My parents when they said to trust them that everything will be alright.

And then there was my own blood. My brother who crumbled my trust in such a way that I was myself broken from inside.

I looked back at Alec to see that he was waiting for my answer, "Every person in this world has broken my trust somehow Alec. It is easier to say trust me but a lot harder to actually carry out the action and keep that thread of trust from breaking." I said.

"It's not necessary that every person you meet will break your trust. I have saved your life Elisa and I promised you that you'll not go through the pain again, don't you think that I deserve a little trust in return? I may have kidnapped you and hate you but that doesn't mean I want to gain your trust only to break it." He asked.

It was becoming more difficult not to trust him when he said those words. Oh God! What should I do?

My heart already trusted him.

But my mind did not.

At least give him a chance. My heart said.

If you don't take the risk of trusting someone then how can you be so sure that you would fall in love with someone in future? Because if you love someone then you completely trust them without even thinking about it. There is no love without trust and there is no trust without risk.

My heart explained and I finally decided

To trust Alec.

I went near him looking straight in his eyes all the while my mind was screaming not to trust him. But I cannot do anything now.

My decision was made.

"Please don't make me regret trusting you because if you break my trust then I won't be able to trust anyone in my life ever again." I said to him as more tears gushed out of my eyes.

"Never." He said. Such a simple word but held with a lot of determination.

"You'll not find me beautiful when you see what lays inside me." I warned him.

"Beauty is not what looks on outside, it's what lays inside the person, that defines it." He said.

I turned my back to him and waited for him to open my top.

He gently unbuttoned my top and  fear clawed me as I waited for his disgusted look upon looking at my scars.

He unbuttoned the last one and I squeezed my eyes close.

I waited for his hiss or shriek or yell or anything but nothing came. Not a single voice or gasp. Nothing.

Instead I felt the softest brush of his lips on my scar and I opened my eyes.

He continued his soft kisses and trailed them down my back and I couldn't stop the moan from coming out of my throat.

He kissed my shoulder blades and travelled the path up my neck to my ears and back down.

His hands came from behind and wrapped aroung my stomach as he continued his beautiful torture of laying soft kisses on every inch of my back, my neck, my shoulders.

He turned me around to face him and claimed my lips without wasting a moment.

I could taste the coppery taste in his mouth, probably my blood but I did not heed it any attention because every cell in my body was concentrated on the wonders of his tongue and lips and electricity that passed through his lips and travelled my body. I wounded my arms around his neck and played with his soft hair.

I pulled back to take in gulps of air and he began tracing his lips on my jaw, leaving wet kisses as I moaned once more.

I pulled his lips back in mine and felt the heat down my stomach.

I could also feel the hard length of his body pressing aganist my core.

Suddenly a phone began ringing but he continued kissing me.

I pulled back, "Alec.....the phone.." I said breathlessly.

He cursed and took out the phone from his pocket and answered it but I did not remove my arms from his neck and neither did he from my waist which was not bleeding or hurting anymore.

In fact he began kissing my neck and would occasionally mutter a 'Mhmmm.'

I was surprised to find that my top was still attached to my body from the front. I--

"Okay. We'll be there." He said and threw his phone on the bed.

He pulled my lips in his again for a long kiss that left me breathless again.

When the kiss ended he put his forehead to mine and stared deep in my eyes.

We were both breathing heavily and the loud drumming of my heart could be heard even from a distance.

"You trust me, right?" He asked suddenly and this time I was able to answer without hesitancy.

"Yes." I said.

"Then let me heal your back." He said and I pulled away from him abruptly.

I clutched the front of my top from falling down as tears once again filled my eyes.

See! He's disgusted by me. He's so disgusted that he can't even bear to look at me without healing them.

I shouldn't have trusted him, I--

"No Elisa. Please. I am not disgusted or anything. I just want to heal you. Not only physically but mentally too. You always get drowned in your past when it occurs in front of you. I just want to heal them because then you would be able to move on without your past interfering your future. Please just listen to me Elisa." He explained with a desperate tone.

I looked in eyes and could see that he was not at all disgusted, his eyes held the truth about what he just said and I took a deep breath and shook my head.

"No." I said.

"Just tell me why?" He pleaded.

"Everytime, I heal back from old scars, new ones appear in their place. Everytime. I can't go through that again--"

"Damn it Elisa. I told I wouldn't let that son of bitch near you again. Why don't you believe me?" He asked in a frustrated and angry tone.

"I-I." I didn't have any answet. Yes, I believe that Alec won't let me near my brother again but....

That but always stayed in my mind.

"I'm sorry Alec. It's not that I don't believe you. It's--"

"It's just what Elisa." He yelled and that spiked my anger up.

"Do you think that I love this scars? Do you think that I like to wear those full body covering clothes that hide your scars? No, Alec. I don't have a choice. I love wearing dresses and shorts and jeans but I can't because of my scars and when the question comes about healing them, I'm reluctant because it breaks me when I think about my brother inflicting new scares on my new body. By keeping my scars I'm reminded that I'm not a free bird and at anytime I could be put back in the cage so I stay in low profile. Do you think I love living the life of always looking over shoulder? No! I don't but I have to because if I get the taste of freedom and if it is taken away from me then I would break even more. Look at the irony Alec! My scars help me from breaking. That's why I don't want them to disappear even if it is the most deepest desire of my heart." I completed my statement and took in a deep breath to  calm myself and all the while Alec did not utter a single word.

He grabbed my shoulders and pulled me to him so close that there were mere centimetres between our lips. "You need to MOVE ON! Stop living in your past, otherwise even God wouldn't help you. You need to let go and start living again. You're becoming a living corpse and I'm not gonna let that happen. I'll fucking heal you and then kill your brother when my eyes land on him but not without torturing him million times more the torture you endured. So enlighten me Elisa, I'll heal your wounds and you'll stop living in your past and start anew, because I'll ask you one last time nicely, will you let me heal your back?" He hissed.

I looked squarely in his eyes, "What if I say, no?" I asked.

He smirked at me, "Then I'll do it forcefully. Choice is yours, willingly or unwillingly?" He asked and I took a deep breath.

"If you want to heal me then you have to promise me something." I said in a deadly calm voice.

He nodded his head to continue, "Promise me that if you heal my back then you won't let anyone inflict the scars back again. Promise me that if you heal my back then this is the last time it should require healing and lastly promise me that you won't kill my brother." I said.

"I'll vow each and everything you said except for the last one. Listen to me, if you want me to not kill your you brother which I so want to, then you will allow me to torture him and when I think that his punishment and my vengeance is done, only then I will let him go." He stated and I agreed to it reluctantly.

"Fine. Shall we?" He asked and I ever so slowly turned my back to him.

He bit his wrist and poured his blood on my back, I could feel each and every scar that ever lived on my body close and disappear replaced by the smooth skin I instantly fell in love with.

I went in the bathroom and glanced at my back to see alabaster milky white skin void of any marks or scars and for the first time I was able to smile freely in my life after my parents....

Alec was right, I need to let go of my past and embrace my present.

Starting today.

But one more thing.

I went back to Alec who was standing near the bathroom door and blushed at the thought of telling him.

Oh god! How to tell him this? It's like I'm taking advantage of him.

"Alec... I... I " I trailed off because I couldn't continue.

"Yes?" He asked and I blushed even more.

I tucked a piece of hair strand behind my ear but before I could say anything he said,
"Do you have any other scars?"

I widened my eyes and looked at him.

How did he know that?

Can he read minds?

"How do you know that?" I asked in awe.

He growled angrily and didn't answer my question, "Where?"

"I-I--"

"Where Elisa?" He sneered.

"On my thighs." I said quickly and blushed even more.

Suddenly he knelt down on one foot in front of me and ripped my jeans off so that they became denim shorts that ended above my mid thighs.

"What the fuck Alec!" I yelled.

He didn't said anything but heal the same scars on my thighs not leaving a single blemish on them.

After healing he kissed my inner thighs and I felt my knees becoming like jelly.

"How could I ever repay you?" I asked slowly trying to stop myself from falling on the ground.

He stopped kissing looked up at me with those stormy grey eyes, "Just let go of your past and kiss me with everything you have. That's all I want." He said earnestly.

He was still knelt down on one foot, I sat on his upturn thigh and mashed my lips on his.

I kissed him same as before because everytime I kiss him, I give my everything.

I buried my hands in his hair and entered my tongue in his  mouth without his permission, he pulled me on top of him so that he was lying on the bathroom floor and me on top of him without breaking our  kiss.

My hair fell like a curtain on either side of us as he ran his hands on my new back which coursed way more tingles down my spine.

I pulled back to take in deep breaths and opened my eyes.

He was looking at me with such intensity that suddenly the temperature in the room spiked way up.

He tucked the curtain of my hair back and took my face in his hands gently as he kissed my forehead.

He pushed himself up along with me so that I was straddling him.

"Promise me you will let go of your past." He said looking in my eyes.

I smiled at him, "I promise I will." I said.

I hugged him and rested my chin his shoulder, "Thank you so much." I said.

He kissed my cheek and said, "For what."

I nibbled his earlobe and said

"For making me alive again."
*****

Hello my beautiful people.

I love you all.

I want to wish you a very very happy new year.

I hope that the next years bring you happiness and not even ounce of sadness.

Remember you're beautiful.

Until then hugs and see ya.
***