What Doesn't Kill You...

The Demonstration

Panic rose in Violet's throat. Performing in Alistair's club was tantamount to agreeing to join Obsidian. What little freedom she'd managed to achieve working for Charlie would all be for naught. Even Charlie couldn't break a oath made between vampires. She wanted to scream her refusal at the top of her lungs. Wanted to tell Alistair where he could shove that favor.

But the words died on her lips.

They needed to know if there was a Rogue. Rogues were just as destructive as the necromancers they sought to hunt down. Alistair kept smiling. He knew. He knew the inner turmoil she suffered. Knew that he'd backed them into a corner and that there was no other way out.

"No offense to Violet, but I'm sure your audience has had its fill of death metal screeching. Why not give them something new?" Damon cut through Violet's downward spiral of despair. She looked up at him in surprise. Even Alistair seemed a little taken aback.

Rising, Alistair walked around his desk and leaned casually against it. "And what would that be?"

Damon gave him a cold smile and spread his arms. "Why me, of course. Deathless. A demonstration of true immortality." He knew he'd gotten under Alistair's skin. A nervous tick started at the corner of his left eye. Good. He despised anyone who abused their abilities. Violet wasn't his favorite person in the world, but knew what it was lose your freedom and your very will to someone else. Damon wasn't about to stand by and let that leech get his way.

Alistair glared at Damon for a few moments, then laughed. It echoed and boomed around the room, louder than it had any right to be. Back to the parlor tricks. "I accept. Tonight's entertainment will be a demonstration by Deathless of his true immortality. Just to make things more interesting, I'll be the one to choose the instrument of your death."

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"What the hell where you thinking?!" Violet demanded once they'd been led backstage for the demonstration.

Damon shrugged out of his blazer and started unbuttoning his fresh silk shirt. He couldn't afford to damage another one. "Better me than you. I won't have to join his band of merry bloodsuckers afterwards. We need the information and this is the quickest way to get it."

Violet pinched the bridge of her nose. "Are you insane? You do know he's going to pick the most painful way to kill you, don't you?" She paced the small backstage closet, they'd been given to prepare. She had no idea what possessed Damon to be so stupid. Knowing Alistair, he'd give him a slow death to make him suffer. Alistair already despised Damon for his power and now he'd thwarted another attempt to recruit her. This wasn't going to end well.

Damon tossed his shirt on the spindly chair in the corner. "Trust me. I've been through worse. It's not the first time, I've had to do the bidding of a psychopath."

Violet paused in her pacing and looked at him. Really looked at him. Damon wasn't as fearless as he claimed. His shoulders were tense and the reckless smile on his lips did not hide the fear in his eyes. It wasn't just fear in his eyes. There was a kind of furious determination that burned at the back of his brown eyes. What had he been through?

Not much was known about Damon Montgomery and how he became Deathless. All she knew was that a necromancer had made him what he was. Her eyes strayed down his lean, muscled torso in a clinical way. He was stronger than he looked. Something caught her eye just above his right hipbone. A tattoo? A black rose curved from his hipbone and disappeared under his slacks.

Damon noticed her gaze. "Like what you see?" He joked playfully, distracting her from his tattoo. Violet rolled her eyes and looked away. He surreptitiously pulled his slacks higher over his hips. He'd rather go through several painful deaths than talk about that tattoo.

"We're ready for you." A pixie-faced vampire peaked around the door.

Damon nodded and looked at Violet. "Ready?"

Violet sighed. "Yes, but I still think it's a bad idea."

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"Ladies and gentleman, we have a special performance for you tonight." Alistair announced, waving his arms grandly at Damon and Violet on stage. "Tonight, for one night only, the legendary Deathless will demonstrate his immortality."

Damon smiled thinly at the crowd, squinting against the harsh stage lights. Couldn't they come up with a better nickname?

"Prepare to be astonished as his lovely assistant pierces his heart with her blessed blade!" Alistair shouted above the roar of the crowd.

Violet's eyes widened in shock and horror, her smile frozen on her lips. And there it was...another shoe. Damon had suspected Alistair was up to something when he wanted to choose the instrument of death. He leaned over to whisper in Violet's ear. "Don't worry. Even a blessed blade can't kill me. Just do it quickly."

"Is there a problem?" Alistair inquired, smiling devilishly.

"No!" Damon replied quickly. "It won't be first or the last time I get impaled." He gave Violet a reassuring smile. "Ready?"

Violet nodded stiffly. She stepped a few paces back and drew her blessed blade. The short wide sword was sheathed at her back. The scroll work on the flat of the blade gleamed under the stage light. Alistair stepped back into the wings, watching every second.

"One...two..." Damon counted.

"Three." Violet whispered and lunged. The sword pierced his chest, sliding in to the hilt.

Damon gasped in pain. His vision dimmed and faded. He could feel his body go slack and hit the stage. Distantly, he sensed Violet's presence hovering above him. Alistair's voice echoed somewhere far away. The familiar embrace of death wrapped its arms around him.

I didn't give you this gift to show off for petty favors.

Her voice echoed through his mind just before her spell recalled him to life. It was almost as if he could feel Isabella's hand over his heart summoning his soul back from the land of the dead. The fire of life burned through his body, sealing his wounds and reviving him. Damon bolted upright, gasping for air.

His heart pounded furiously in his chest. Fear pumped through his veins. His eyes frantically scanned the crowd. Where was she? Where was Isabella? He couldn't see past the light blinding him. She couldn't be here. Not without Charlie knowing. The crack of Violet's hand across his cheek focused his attention on her.

"Are you okay?" She demanded breathlessly.

He nodded dumbly, still in shock. It was the first time Isabella had contacted him since the night he escaped her control.

Dragging him to his feet, Violet rounded on Alistair who had been clapping with the crowd. "Satisfied?"

"Immensely." Alistair smirked and turned to the crowd. "And there you have it. True immortality. Deathless never disappoints." He bowed elegantly and strode off stage.

Growling low in her throat, Violet stalked after him, towing Damon behind her. Alistair was waiting for them. "Well? You got what you asked for, you sadistic bast-"

Alistair held up a hand. "Yes, I did. And now I owe you an answer to your question."

"It's about time." Damon grumbled weakly, pulling on his shirt the pixie-faced vampire handed him.

"Nothing." Alistair replied succinctly.

Violet and Damon froze.

"Excuse me?" Violet replied slowly.

Alistair grinned. "About the Rogue. I know absolutely nothing. Thank you for stopping by. You really helped me out of a bind."