Chapter 1
June 12th:
It was another scorching hot day in Mystic Falls, the temperatures hitting record heights. Caroline Forbes turned the volume of her TV up as the weather forecast came on, a cheery yet rather sweaty looking woman appearing on the screen, pointing at the highlighted area of the map behind her…
"It looks as if we've got more of this heat to come, folks, so keep that sunscreen topped up and those drinks on ice. We're in for another week of sky rocketing temperatures." she announced
Caroline flicked the TV off and groaned, throwing the remote onto the couch as the TV screen went blank…
"Stupid heat," she sighed "kills all the darn plants."
She felt a small tap on her foot and looked down to see her 4 month old puppy patting at her ankle with his paw. She smiled and lifted him into her arms…
"I know you don't like the heat either." she informed him as he began to lick at her hand as she tickled behind his ears
Suddenly, his floppy ears twitched, his head turning sharply towards the door as he bounced off her lap and sped to the door. Caroline following, she saw he was sat in front of the door, pawing at the wood and whining. Caroline knew this situation all too well – he'd heard the mailman. There was a squeak of the gate opening at the bottom of the yard, which sent the puppy into a chain of small barks and whines...
"Out of the way, daft dog." Caroline sighed, smiling warmly as she did so.
Reaching out to the door handle as the mailman reached her porch, she pulled it open to him, seeing him poised to knock…
"Good morning." she greeted him
"Morning, Miss." he mirrored, handing her a parcel "Some letters and a couple of parcels for you today."
"Thank you." Caroline replied
Shifting the puppy into her arms as she took the parcel from the mailman, the dog barked, frustrated at being unable to get to the floor…
"Atticus, will you stop it?" she asked
She set him on the ground and he sprinted out of the door and across the dirt to the grass…
"I'm sorry about that." she sighed
"It's okay." the mailman replied as he handed her letters to her "He's a cute dog."
"Deceivingly cute," she informed him "he'll chew anything he can get his teeth into."
"He's a Beagle, right?" he asked
Caroline nodded her head as she set the parcels she'd received on the table before turning back to the mailman…
"My brother has one." the mailman explained "Active little things, they are. Well, I'd best be on my way. This mail won't deliver itself. Have a nice day, Ma'am."
"No it won't. I certainly don't envy you in this heat. Thank you for this!" she proclaimed as he began to make his way down the yard "Atticus, leave the birds alone. They've done nothing to you!"
She shook her head as she watched the dog run across the yard, chasing the birds who were trying to peacefully bathe in the water bath she had laid out. Sighing, she realised he wasn't coming in anytime soon and began flicking through the letters. After the usual suspects, she came across another familiar envelope. It's colour was faded and the edges were worn – it was barely holding together. This letter had been appearing on a frequent basis over the last few weeks, but it wasn't addressed to her. Quickly grabbing the dog lead from the hook in the hallway, she made her way out of the front door, shutting it behind her and called Atticus, him immediately obeying her order and she linked the lead around him and made her way after the mailman…
After a few minutes, Caroline saw the mailman at the Millers house. The Millers were a working class family who kept livestock, unlike Caroline who simply grew her own products and kept chickens for the eggs and a couple of cows for the milk…
"Excuse me!" she yelled
Slowly bringing the sprint she'd began to a stop, she realised she had nothing on her feet and the heat was literally blistering her feet. She could barely keep her feet on the ground for more than a few seconds. Guessing the heat was probably too much for Atticus too, she picked him up into her arms, much to his disapproval, the bark he let out grabbing the mailman's attention…
"Hey, you're the girl from the farmhouse, right?" he asked "Hey, buddy! Did you need something?"
"Yes, actually," Caroline replied, wincing as she moved over to him "this isn't mine. This is addressed to a Valerie Tulle, me, not her…"
"Do you or do you not live on Spring Hill Road?" he questioned
"I do, yes, but…" she began
"And you do live at Honey Bee Farm?" he inquired
"Yes, but…" she replied
"Then that letter was sent to the right place." he informed her
"What?" she asked "No! Can you not return it to the sender or something? Someone obviously wanted this to be received. No one writes letters these days…"
"No return address. I can take it back to the postal office but that's about all." he admitted
"And what will happen to it?" Caroline inquired
"It'll probably get destroyed." he replied "So what are you doing?"
"I'm not letting you destroy it." she informed him "It's fine, I'll keep it and see if I can't find out who this Valerie woman is."
The mailman nodded his head in understanding and adjusted his cap… "Your call, Ma'am. Have a good day."
With that, Caroline placed Atticus on the ground and the two sprinted back to the farm. She let them both inside and let Atticus off his lead, watching as he made his way over to his water bowl, obviously as parched as she was. Helping herself to a glass of her homemade lemonade, she dropped into one of the chairs at the kitchen table and stared at the letter in her hand. It was calling to her – something about it seemed so personal and someone had obviously taken a lot of care and effort in writing it. The words on the envelope were written in perfect cursive, so elegant and very traditional! Without really thinking about it, her fingers were toying with the edges. Maybe, just maybe if she opened it, she could find out who was sending the letter and return it back to them?
She sighed and shook her head – bad idea! Anyway, wasn't it illegal to open someone else's mail? A little voice in her head seemed to be having a battle with itself. Taking a breath, she moved her finger under the only sealant keeping the envelope stuck down, the rest having already been opened or worn away. She felt guilty as she opened it and took the paper from the envelope, along with a small, silver locket. Holding the locket between her fingers, she gazed at the letter, beginning to read it aloud…
"Dear Valerie,
I hope this letter finds you well. I know it's been some time since I wrote and I can only apologise, but time has been very sparse around here and a letter home hasn't been on my list of priorities, but today, I finally got some time to write to you, to let you know I'm okay and I hope this letter will bring you some reassurance. I hope the weather is picking up for you – I know it's almost summer now, not that it makes much difference around here, the Afghan heat is full throttle all the time, but I'm now used to it."
Caroline looked at the date in the top corner of the letter and saw it had been dated over 3 months ago. It had taken so long for her to receive it, and now she was sure it was going to be a little longer before she found it's intended recipient. Continuing to read, she felt her eyes fill with tears at the emotion conveyed through such simple words…
"It feels like years since I've seen you, when in fact it's only been 5 months. I still have your picture, although it is looking a little worse for wear now. I don't know how much longer I'm going to be out here or when I'll next get the chance to write to you, so I've enclosed a locket for you. I'd like you to wear it, keep it next to your heart, so you know I'm always there. I pray every night that it'll be my last night away from you, that this war will be over and you and I can be together again, but it's not to be.
Never forget I love you. All my love,
Stefan x"
Caroline wiped her eyes as a tear dripped down her cheek, dampening her skin as it did so. This guy was pouring his heart out onto this piece of paper and she was reading it. It felt a little wrong; it was all so private. She felt her heart skip a beat as she saw the stamp at the bottom of the letter – a US Military logo for the Department of the Army. He was a solider. He was fighting in Afghanistan. Doing the first thing she could think of, she rose to her feet and picked up a piece of writing paper and a pen and began to write…
"Dear Stefan…"
TO BE CONTINUED…