He should have known it was too good to be true. He should have known that the night was too perfect.
Caroline's smile had been radiant as he picked her up from her house. The sheriff looking on as her daughter bounced down the stairs to meet her boyfriend. It was normal. They were normal in that moment - as he brushed his lips across her cheek unable to stop his eyes from roaming over her body. The gold jumpsuit hugged her curves in ways that made him want to sweep her up into his arms and race to her bedroom, peeling away the fabric to reveal perfect flesh underneath. But he hadn't. Taking his role as boyfriend seriously he was determined that this would be an ordinary night. She was the girl he was in love with, and he was the boy she wanted to spend the rest of her life with. No vampires, no magic and definitely no Supremes.
It had been a gift to have Aidan and Accalia join his pack. Their knowledge was invaluable and it was through their words that he had found out about his birthright. The Lockwoods had been the first family to settle as a pack, no longer roaming wildly under a curse in their homeland. The superstitions though were far too prominent and it became too dangerous to remain. So they had traveled, settling easily in a place surrounded by wild land over a thousand years ago. And many had journeyed with them; and with that came responsibility. Food, shelter, protection, policing of those who would impinge the laws they had set for themselves. Soon it was decided as each family had an alpha, there would be an alpha of alphas. The judge, jury and executioner of the final word. None predicted the power that would come from bending a knee to one wolf. It infused him with authority for he was bigger, stronger, faster, and more ferocious than any before him allowing him to carry out his task with strength. And so he was birthed the first Supreme.
Tyler hadn't meant to keep any of it from Caroline; how his ancestors had created a world for themselves, a world that had passed down generations to generations and he was reaping the benefits. He knew how much the new wolves made her uneasy and with good reason. She had endured much pain at the hands those like them. And still she accepted him, a werewolf as her mate and tried to support him no matter what.
So tonight was to make up for that in any way he could. To show her that life would not always be her giving and him taking but that they could live a life of peace and happiness even as a vampire mated to a Supreme werewolf. When they entered the gym he marveled again at the capability of his girl. She was remarkable and he watched as she took a few moments to flit around to make sure all had gone as plan. He still had no idea how she pulled off half the things she could. Like the decorations – instead of the standard silver in the centre of the ceiling, she had a rotating plasma lamp that seemed to change colors. That was then surrounded by glow in the dark decorations in hearts and stars which added sparkle to the evening. A mural-sized backdrop adorned the gym walls, a painted mesh work of flowers, it was beautiful. Even the food table and drinks were decorated in gold glitter, with a red glow lighting the way to it. It was meticulous in a way that only Caroline could be. Making his way to her he pulled her to the dance floor. Laughing he gave her a mock pout when she screamed that she needed to check on something or the other and she conceded finally. Tyler was able to pull her in his arms and it was perfect – until the smell of blood filled the air.
The sickening coppery scent seemed to saturate the room then and had he been paying attention he might have smelled it earlier. Looking into Caroline's eyes he saw the moment she finally caught it. Were his senses more acute than even hers now? Taking her hand in his he pulled her as fast as it was possible to the source without raising suspicion. Following his nose he led the way to a classroom at the end of the hall. Tyler had to choke back the bile as she saw the remains of the girl. The sight was gruesome and he had thought he had seen everything.
Before he even had the thought to call them, both Salvatore's' blurred into the room.
"We smelled the blood," Stefan said by way of explanation, "Do you know her?"
"No," Tyler answered, looking at Caroline for confirmation but she shook her head.
"Where are Elena and Bonnie?" she asked her breath shaky as she took in the body. It was a sight for even a vampire to cringe at. Claws had ripped away her stomach leaving a gaping hole that spilled its contents. Her chest was no better it seemed as bits of rib showed.
"Left them with Baby Gilbert. He's becoming surprisingly proficient at weapons and even more suspicious than we are," Damon answered as he stepped closer to the body.
"You encourage him too much," Stefan this time, glaring at his brother.
Tyler could see it was a recurring argument between them when Damon rolled his eyes, "He's at a disadvantage. He stays that way and he dies."
"I know. I just…" the younger Salvatore began.
"Wish everything was sunshine and roses. I know little brother."
It was Stefan's turn to roll his eyes as he stooped. He took a few moments to focus on the body before saying, "She was brought here."
"What?" Tyler finally interjected.
Damon was on the other side looking down now. His eyes met Tyler's and he quipped, "I'm good but even I can't get the ladies to follow me once their dead."
"What the hell are you talking about Damon?" Caroline chimed back in, taking a single step forward.
"It's a message for Tyler."
Tyler looked at the folded piece of paper Stefan handed to him the cursive writing bearing his family name. Unfolding it, he bit back the curse that rose easily to his lips. On the inside were runes, drawn to perfection in a circle not unlike the one which adorned his arm.
"What does it say?" Caroline asked as he focused on the paper.
"Supreme. Death. Challenge." He replied his tone dry.
"What does that mean?"
Looking up he muttered, "I need to talk...to all of you. I'll get Accalia and the others to cover the perimeter."
Caroline stared at him before speaking, "And I'll call my mom."
"And as always…" Damon complained, "We get disposal duty. Awesome."
Stefan didn't even bother answering as he grabbed one side of the body. When his brother grabbed the other side they blurred out of the classroom.
Ty, she reached out to him with her mind, her blue eyes intense and in even this situation he couldn't help but think of how beautiful she was. Her hair was curled back from her face, the volume magnified with a bronze band accenting her forehead. She had a line of stars on her cheeks in gold, outrageously long lashes and smoky eyes. She looked shockingly exquisite.
Guiltily he met her eyes because he knew he should have talked to her about everything before this. He finally answered her, I have been keeping some things from you.
The step she took back was instinctive but he couldn't say it didn't hurt. But in truth he deserved it.
What have you been keeping from me? Again! We don't do secrets Lockwood!
I'll explain everything I promise. It just... it changed things and we were dealing with so much and I…
That doesn't mean you should start lying to me!
I know. His head sunk as she refused to look at him. Before he could think of something, anything to help her understand the others arrived and he began his tale.
"So you're as strong and as fast as a vampire? Without a full moon?" Stefan asked, his eyes appraising.
Before he could answer he saw a fist coming up to his face which he barely caught, so surprised was he. It was Caroline, her face blazing like an avenging angel. Guess you're still mad then, he thought at her but she didn't answer as she forcefully pulled her hand back from his.
"I love this heated moon thing! Makes for good TV!" The elder Salvatore spoke with a chuckle and he could see everyone else trying to hide their smiles. Caroline was not as easily amused as she shouted, "Shut up Damon." As she turned on him he raised his hand into the air in surrender and Tyler would be no doubt amused if not for how she had tried to break his nose.
"So getting back to the matter at hand," Stefan again, "The dead body and the note?"
"Another wolf is in town and he/she is challenging me."
"A duel? How archaic!" Damon again and this time it was Bonnie who gave him the stink eye. Tyler was pretty sure that would be the last they heard from him for the evening.
"They know of my Supreme status and probably think that by killing me that will give them power. So a body for everyday until the next full moon."
"Are you kidding me? That's 10 days!" Caroline looked incredulous.
"I never said we had to wait. We need to find whoever this is now before they kill anyone else." He stated.
"Damn right we are."
"Guess we're going hunting," It was Jeremy this time, a gleam in his eyes. When he noticed that the entire room had turned to him, he said "What? Damon would have said it if Bonnie hadn't pulled on his leash."
Stefan slapped his brother on the back and said, "Told you, you were encouraging him too much."
The ride to Care's house was tense and by tense he meant unbreakable bars of titanium. Caroline had not said a word to him edgewise since they had left the dance. They had gone back into the dance playing it cool but everyone was much too on edge to have any fun. And his girl had kept up appearances but he could feel the rage towards him and he didn't need the mind link to tell him that - though he had been met with a litany not fit for a sailor when he had tried to establish contact. When the dance had finally finished and the cleanup crew had left they had searched the entire school for clues but came up empty. After that they had branched off for the night, determined to resume their search in the morning. Caroline had barely looked at him even then and he knew he had screwed up big time.
Tyler finally turned off the engine. Sighing he began, "Care, I'm sorry…"
She interrupted him accusation in her voice, "So when you told me there was a power shift, what you meant was you became a god among werewolves."
"Not a god Caroline. I protect them, fight for them, I don't rule them!"
"Don't you? You're their alpha! And who is this protection from? Us big bad vampires?"
"Caroline! Us? As if you are just any other vampire!" Now he could feel his own rage building.
"According to Eira I am."
"Damn it Care. You are my mate! The most important person in my life. I would give it all back before I leave you. Pack, Alpha, Supreme. Everything!"
"The most important thing, you say! That's why you kept me in the dark about this. Something that affects us both!" They were getting loud but Tyler couldn't bring himself to care.
"It wasn't about keeping you in the dark. Care, I've been a werewolf or a few months. I killed a girl, found out my uncle was dead. Then after that messed up everything with you by not fighting for you when you were attacked, almost lost you… got mated to you. As if that wasn't more than I ever expected in my life, I got a pack and found out I'm a Supreme. Can I just get a moment to breathe? I didn't tell you because I barely wanted to deal with it! Can't you understand that?!" He could feel the tears building behind his eyes and turned away then, not sure why he was getting emotional other than he was overwhelmed. He was seventeen for crying out loud and already he was married and responsible for the lives of four people. It sometimes felt as crushing as a vortex.
Taking a deep breath he turned to see that her eyes were on him now. He was going to apologize, beg, plead or something but before he could say anything she slipped her fingers between his and whispered the three words he would never ever get tired of hearing, "I love you."
Letting out a big breath he smiled. Sometimes he still felt himself stuck dumb with how amazing Caroline could be, how selfless she was. Squeezing her fingers back he responded in kind, "I love you too."
Reaching over he kissed her quickly before drawing back and Caroline finally reached for the handle to the door and exited the car. Watching as she entered the house he saw her hand waving for a final goodbye. As he started the car he felt the urge to honestly say the hell with everything and follow her upstairs and remain within the comfort of her arms. But he still had a pack to meet before the morning and he needed to know what they could tell him because he had a feeling, this would get a lot bloodier before it was over.
