Heart of Darkness

"What are you doing?!" Rayven asked Skender. 

Why did he take the boy away from his sister? 

"I couldn't just do nothing," Skender said. 

"And you thought of going there personally to bring him? Don't you know that the shades are out there? You could have put them in danger." 

Skender's eyes widened at his sudden anger and Rayven realized he was worked up again because of the boy and his sister. He took a deep breath. He wouldn't have been so agitated had he not known William's secret. The shades were looking for him. Any wrong move and the boy would be in danger. 

But why was he caring again? He swore not to. 

"What is your problem, Rayven? When I don't act you get angry and now when I am doing something you get angry too." 

Rayven could see Lazarus standing at the entrance with a knowing smirk on his face. 

"William will be safe in the military camp and I made it seem like a punishment and not that I was doing them any favor," Skender explained then picked up his glass to drink his water. 

They sat in the dining room to have lunch but Rayven had already lost his appetite. In fact, he hadn't eaten anything for days. More than ever now, he wished for death. 

He felt confused and tortured all the time. His mind kept wandering to many places that were unknown to him. He felt lost. 

Standing up, "I'll go home." He said, and the others gave him a few looks before he left. 

Rayven teleported back home in fear of going by Angelica's house if he decided to ride. Going by wouldn't do her or him any favors. He knew that things had become more difficult for her and William but he did his best to ignore it. It was not his job to save them. 

When he arrived at his home, he sensed the unpleasant scent of Lucrezia. He clenched his fists as he found her sitting in his favorite place near the hearth.

"Rayven, Rayven," She clicked her tongue and shook her head. "You are impossible." She looked at her nails with the corners of her mouth down-turned. "I don't know what to do with you," she said. 

Rayven was confused. He had done nothing so why was she here? And what was she talking about?

"You could let me die," he said walking closer. "Or you could at least make my heart turn to the way it was before."

She shook her head again looking at the fire. "You never change." She sighed. "You remind me of why I hated you the most."

"I don't understand why you try to help me if you hate me so much." He said. "Just let me go." 

She turned her gaze to him. Her green eyes became vibrant, not with amusement this time. She was angry, and that was never a good thing. 

When he didn't know better, he used to anger her thinking that she might get enough one day and end his life but she only made his punishments worse. 

"Because I hate you, I will never let you die. Your suffering will be my entertainment." 

Rayven nodded, knowing very well she meant every word she said. 

She stood up and looked at him with an empty expression. "Don't worry or shall I say, you should worry that the red dot in your heart will soon turn black. You will be stuck again between life and death. You will cause your own suffering. I'll only watch." 

With a smirk on her face, she disappeared. 

Rayven roamed around the house not knowing what to do. When did he become so restless? Then he went to his darkroom with the thick curtains that blocked the daylight. He tried to sleep to escape his restlessness. 

Hours went by with him turning right and left without sleeping. At last, he gave up. He would see her just once. One last time before he went to find Luciana. One last time before he found a way to end his miserable life. 

Taking his horse he rode down the hill. He knew he shouldn't interact with her in case the shades saw him. Why would he talk to the woman whose father tried to expose them? It would indeed look suspicious. 

When he neared her house, he slowed down. He saw that the windows of her house were broken and she stood outside with a few bags packet. What was going on? Was she leaving somewhere? 

He halted before she could see him and waited to see who she was waiting for. After a short while, a carriage came to her house and a young lady stepped outside. 

"Angelica, did you wait too long?" The lady asked. 

"No. I just came out." Angelica smiled.

The young lady's servants picked the bags and Angelica followed her lady friend into the carriage before they rode away. 

Rayven sighed. Again he was wasting time. Angelica seemed to take care of herself just fine and he shouldn't draw more problems to her. 

Now that he knew she was safe with her friend, he locked her out completely. Now he just had to find a way to convince Luciana to end his life.

*****

"I knew it. I told you." Lucrezia told her sister excitedly. 

She had been so disappointed with Rayven and she almost decided to move away from him and focus on the others when he didn't help Angelica despite all the suffering she went through. Yes, he was extremely stubborn, and he still had a long way to go but there was a way for him. Even if it took a long time, she was willing to wait. She had to prove to her sister that these demons could be redeemed. 

Luciana shook her head. "He is still only thinking about his needs. He went to see her despite knowing that he could lead the shades to her." 

"No. He wasn't thinking rationally because he wanted to see her more than anything. It is a good first step for someone like him. You can't expect him to completely change overnight." Lucrezia defended him. 

"You are wasting your time on them. Our job is to know which ones we can redeem and let the rest go." 

"That is what I call giving up sister. You know me. I don't give up that easily," Lucrezia said. 

"What is the point of all this?" Luciana wondered. 

"What can redeem someone who went too far? Someone that became so lost? What could save someone whose heart had turned into stone? Are you not curious?" Lucrezia asked. "I think I might know the answer now." She said watching Rayven ride away from Angelica's house. 

This stubborn, selfish, and rude man had turned into this confused being in weeks only. Something she had failed to do for many years. Now she has found the tool to break down his walls. Or maybe they would break on their own. Either way, she might finally see a different Rayven. One she had hoped to see for a long time. 

"You lost the bet sister," Lucrezia smirked. 

"Not yet," Luciana said. "If I learned something doing this is that these demons always fall back into the same trap just when you think they have redeemed themselves. Let's wait and see who truly lost." 

Lucrezia nodded. She knew her sister wasn't one to be easily persuaded.