MY DARLING DAREDEVIL

Daciana's protection

Daciana stormed into Russel’s house with a grave look on her face. She had not been able to find Aziza no matter how much she sniffed the air. Her scent suddenly seemed untraceable and there was no way for her to find the red hair anymore. So, she returned home. The moment she shut the door, she stopped in her tracks, picking up the deadly, toxic and sweet scent of the woman she had been roaming the street for. She frowned, not expecting that she would have come to Russel the first chance she had. If she knew, she would have returned home instead of running round the streets of New Orleans like a crazed woman looking for a crazed child.

“You are here,” Russel’s voice came from the kitchen and she turned her head to the man who had been nothing but kind to her. Her thoughts went back to Aziza and when she was stuck in the lobby, powerless and weak. Her frown deepened and her eyes hardened.

“Is everything alright?” He frowned as well. He could see the hostile look in her eyes and he could not understand how the sweet girl could suddenly be so hostile.

“Yes,” she pushed out of her throat and moved closer to him.

“Are you sure?” he persisted, not believing a word she said.

“Of course, why wouldn’t I be?” she tried to smile at him but he only stared at her with doubt and a complicated expression on his face. Maybe something happened, or someone pissed her off. Leaving with Aziza had taught him that women were harder to handle and if he could handle such a killing machine with extraordinary mood swings and attitude problems, then he could decipher any other woman out there. She stopped and turned to him again. Russel was staring at her with concern in his face, one that looked believable. Maybe she was taking it overboard, maybe he was not the wizard who tried to bind Aziza. He was too nice, too fatherly, too kind to have done such a thing to a girl he saw as his daughter. She took a deep breath and tried to calm her raging nerves within her. The three people she met in the human world were already making her go crazy.

“Where is Aziza?” she asked instead. His brows furrowed and he stared at Daciana for a while longer.

“She is in her bedroom.”

“Okay,” the wolf turned to the direction of the room. She had seen a spare room in the house before and had been told that it belonged to Aziza. So, she knew exactly where she would be.

“Can you not go to her right now?” Russel suddenly said and she turned to him. He started towards her calmly and that was when she noticed that he had a round plate in his hand.

“What is that?” she asked, knitting her brows together in suspicion.

“It’s for Aziza.” Russel answered nonchalantly and walked past her. Her thoughts wheeled to various directions in her mind and her head whipped to him instantly. Was he going to try to bind her again? Panicking, she followed behind him. There was no way that she would let him do that to her again.

“What’s that?”

“It’s a portion to calm her raging storm,” he responded without a care in the world. Daciana was simply a wolf, a visitor and he had thought that she would not understand a thing that was happening around her. There was no fear when he explained certain things even if he did not go into details that much.

“What do you mean by a portion to calm her raging storm?” she followed behind him with a huge frown on her face and anger growing within.

“Aziza is different, you have noticed that by now,”

“I know…”

“The power within her is just too much,”

“I don’t see anything wrong with her,” she protested as her way to make him change his mind about what she was sure he was about to do. Their supernatural abilities were one with them and though Aziza was different, it didn’t make her any different from them. She could not believe what life would be like without her wolf, and she didn’t want to know what it would be. Daciana was sure that a wolf-less werewolf would surely die. Whatever they were, vampires, witches, demons, she was sure that no one could survive without their soul and taking one’s power was like taking one’s soul as well.

Russel paused in his tracks and turned to the werewolf. She could not understand what he had seen, nor could she understand what Aziza was. Even at that moment, she was the most powerful being he had ever seen, in all of his long life, and it’s a very long life. She was more powerful than even higher demons and it would take a very rare demon or supernatural to surpass what she was. Her abilities would have been safe within her hold if she was not so angry at the world. Her anger and need for revenge were the only thing that was going to ruin her. But honestly, that was not what actually scared him so much about Aziza.

In his eyes, she was still like a child who knew how to crawl as it was, by the time she would start walking, her abilities would grow bigger than what it was. He had seen it first hand, the first time he had found Aziza. She was not even an adult then when her abilities started surfacing. It was rare to actually see what she was capable of since she was the first of her kind. But every few months, she always went through a transformation that came with so much pain. It was unbearable and tormenting, however, once the pain was over, she transformed into something new, with a new ability altogether. She was already so powerful enough, getting more powers was going to make her invincible. He had thought it would stop but it didn’t, it kept going on for months till she got the abilities she had at that moment. Then he had started giving her portions, to numb the pain that came with getting a new ability. But it didn’t totally numb the pain, she still felt the pain when her abilities were about to surface again, it was only able to numb her abilities little by little till he discovered it recently and decided to go all the way. Back then, he just didn’t know that the portion could bind someone’s abilities and had only found out in the hospital when she could not heal properly.

He feared what she would turn out to be if she kept transforming like that. With all the anger in her heart, she would not only destroy her enemies but herself too. The devil within her was simply too strong and he was scared of it. How could he let her be if he could help her?

Yes, Aziza had been in danger earlier because she did not have her abilities, but that was what it was like to be human. He was scared out of his mind to know that she was powerless, but he had a new plan. She would start a new life somewhere different, with a new identity where no one would want her anymore. Since Damon was her mate, anything was possible. Her demons would no longer surface and being in the human world would give her the happiness she needed especially with a mate close by. Nothing would go wrong, he was so sure of it, so determined now.

“You only just met her a few times,” he smiled at the frowning Daciana.

“You don’t know what I have seen, you don’t even know what she is capable of.” He turned back to the direction he was heading to. He was only helping Aziza and nothing more. Nothing could go wrong, he was very sure of it.

“This won’t hurt a bit. She looks very angry and emotional right now, it would just calm her down,” he added lastly and walked through the door to her room. Daciana glared at the back of Russel with her wolf barking at her. She could not believe that such a nice man would betray his kind, his daughter like that. He was so nice, so kind, so peaceful but what he had within him was simply too wicked, too selfish and she was not going to let Aziza follow him or trust him blindly to her own death.

Aziza was lying on the bed with her face down when they walked into the room. Her red hair poured all over her back like blood itself and it spread to the bed. She looked miserable and Daciana could see the pain that she was going through. Her thoughts went back to what had happened earlier and her heart ached for the both mates. Yet, she did not understand why Aziza would have done that.

“What are you still doing here?” she mumbled when she perceived the scent of both Russel and Daciana. They both turned to each other, wondering who she was speaking to.

“Aziza…” Russel walked closer to her. It had been so long he saw her look that way. She was always so strong, so agile, so independent, so bossy and rude. He had not seen her cry much, neither had he ever seen her so weak. For a woman who went through so much in her childhood, she was mentally strong, tough and had turned to an empty shell. She cared about nothing else but her revenge and Damon. There was never a time for weakness or pain for her. yet she had run home in tears and had slumped on her bed like that without telling him anything no matter how much he tried to find out what had happened to her. His fatherly instincts came to view at the sight of how miserable she looked and concern filled him.

“You are supposed to be with Damon,” she cut him off before he could even get closer to her.

“Do you expect me to leave you like this to go protect that boy?”

“I expect you to make sure that he doesn’t die,” she retorted harshly. He resisted the urge to glare at her at her negligence towards herself. But since Damon was her mate as well, he could understand the obsession with his safety.

“He would be fine without you for just a little while. Come on, get up so you would take this, it would help you feel better,” he sat beside her on the bed. Daciana panicked when she saw Russel making a move.

“Uhmm….” She stepped in immediately

“Someone should be with Damon. There were people after his life earlier, and Aziza would die if something happened to him,” she added.

“She has always been obsessed with him. Moreover, he is a rich heir and a demon, he can handle himself,” Russel retorted. Aziza was always more important to him.

“Can he really?” Aziza shot out of the bed and snapped at the both of them with wide eyes that looked so red from tears. Her cheeks were stained with tears and her hair was dishevelled. She looked red and puffy from crying so much over him.

“He is an heir, Aziza…. take this.” Russel retorted nonetheless.

“If he could, would I dedicate my life to him this way,” she yelled at him. Her emotions were all over the place and the very thought of what happened earlier was simply tearing her apart. She had left in a rush because she was an emotional mess and had not cared about anything because Daciana was there. She was a wolf and could easily detect anything but now she was home. She could not tell her to go back to him, because it wasn’t her job. But Russel knew how important his safety was to her yet he scoffed at her comment.

“Take this first…” he pushed the portion in his hand towards her but Daciana snatched it immediately.

“Damon might be in danger. Aziza looks angry, why don’t you go to him, I will make sure she takes this,”

“Give me that, Daciana. That portion took me hours to prepare. You can go look after him,” he got up to take the portion from her, but she held it tightly against her chest and took a step back from him.

“Damon is pretty angry at me right now. I can’t stand to be close to him nor can I stand to remain on a rooftop and watch him as Aziza knows how to,” she covered up quickly. She didn’t want Aziza to take the portion, but she didn’t want to ruin the relationship they had just yet, since she understood almost nothing about them or why Russel would want to do that to her. Her anger could come later, but for now, she had to be there for the lady.

Russel stared at her, and furrowed his brows into a frown. He didn’t want the portion with her and he was beginning to be very suspicious of her behaviour. Damon was truly important to Aziza and more important since he was her mate, but he needed her to take the portion.

“Russel…. can’t you see what she is like right now?” Daciana snapped, seeing how he was still staring at the portion. She was trying so hard to not look angry or be angry at what he was about to do.

“We need to have a girl-to-girl talk. Just leave already. As I said, I will give her the portion myself,” she forced a smile to be as genuine as possible.

He turned to Aziza again and her head was lowered, to such an extent that her face was hidden between her red fiery hair. He had truly not known what happened or why she was like that. And he knew that she would never talk to him, but with another female, it might be different.

“Okay…” he sighed and turned to Daciana.

“Make sure she takes that…” he ordered. She tightened her grip around the portion and pushed back a growl from her wolf.

“I will,” she forced a smile and watched him walk out reluctantly while mumbling about how he hated baby sitting Damon.

Daciana remained in that position that she was for a while till she was sure that Russel was nowhere near. Then she turned to Aziza. She looked miserable and the very opposite of the strong and fierce woman she knew.

“Aziza….”

“Give me the portion,” she stretched her hand towards her, stopping her from talking anymore. The pain she was feeling was so unbearable, and her tears could not stop falling. She needed anything that could easily take away that pain. Russel said the portion could help her feel different, feel calmer and she wanted it more than the tormenting and heart wrenching pain she was feeling.

“No.” Daciana held the portion tighter and replied adamantly. Aziza growled and slowly lifted her gaze to meet Daciana’s. Her demons were on the surface again and she had not forgotten that the wolf before her had ruined everything.

“Give me the portion,” she roared at her. Rage and pain mixing into one, it drove her mad. Daciana flinched and took a step back from her when the feel of her power and anger washed all over her skin, almost crippling her. But she held tightly to the portion and moved away even when those killer eyes were fixed at her.

“I really don’t want to kill you, thanks to Damon…”

“Don’t push me,” Aziza slowly got up from where she was sitting, like the queen of death that she was. Daciana froze, her heart raced inside her chest and her wolf whimpered within her. Fear struck her body and the smell of death filled the room.

“I’m sorry…” she whispered and instantly dropped the plate she held. It crashed and broke and the content spilled.