Shadows on the road behind
Shadows on the road ahead
Nothing can stop you now
"Ghost Rider," Rush
Prologue
Caroline would never forget the smell of burning flesh as she ran through the forest, Stefan's daylight ring and the note she'd found on her pillow clutched in her hand.
Caroline,
I can't do this any more. Give my ring to Damon. He'll understand.
Stefan
She had to stop him.
Three years he'd been missing; three years of indiscriminate killing and feeding; three years till Damon and Elijah had tracked them down and defeated Klaus with everyone's help. A lot could happen in three years. A lot did. Some people waited as long as they could and then moved on; some people didn't.
Some people couldn't.
She reached the clearing just after sunrise, stopping short at the sight before her. She covered her mouth and nose, her stomach churning in the stench of burning flesh, as she stared at his body, still enveloped in the flames as it writhed in an obscene dance. Retching, she fell to her knees as violent sobs shook her body. After all they'd gone through to get him back, her best friend was dead by his own hand, unable to deal with what had awaited him at home upon his return.
Her eyes swimming with tears, she looked at Stefan's ring and the crumbled piece of paper one last time.
When she told him, Damon understood only too well.