The Cost of Redemption

Chapter 2

Damon Salvatore: Age 26

Damon stared at the end of the liquor bottle that he had snagged from the bartender and like most days thought of the biggest mistake of his life. The moment he had killed his own brother. It had been the worst moment of his life and he remembered it as if it was just yesterday and not five years ago.

Five Years ago.

Damon Salvatore: Age 21

The night was filled with life as Damon danced with his gorgeous girlfriend Rebekah. He swore he was living the life as he twirled her around. She laughed as they kept pace with the music and just lived for the moment. Nothing could really stop him from having fun at the moment. Nothing what so ever. Well except his younger brother that is.

A tug caught his sleeve as he turned to face his fourteen year old brother Stefan. His eyes looked up at him with disappointment as he took the scene in. What the hell was Stefan doing here. He should have been at his parents house. Why the hell was he in Damon's frat house?

"Stefan? What are you doing here?"

"I came here to see you."

Damon sighed and turned to Rebekah smiling apologetically at her.

"I'm sorry Rebekah. Can you give us a minute?"

"Anything for you." she said smiling.

As soon as she walked away to go talk to some of her friends, Damon turned to Stefan more than annoyed at him for being there.

"Start talking or I will call mom to come get you."

"She's horrible Damon. I don't want to go back there. Please don't make me go back."

"Stefan, you know there's nothing I can do about that. The courts won't grant me custody of you until I have a stable job and life underway. I'm no where close to that yet."

Stefan frowned at him making him feel instantly guilty, but Stefan never knew how much Damon sacrificed to make sure he was at where he was now. And he would never tell Stefan. He didn't want that on his mind. But he knew that he would get the worst beating of his life if he didn't come back home soon.

"Fine. I knew you wouldn't be able to do anything. You're always worthless when it comes to this."

Before Damon could get a word out, Stefan was gone, but he wouldn't let Stefan get away with what he said. It was finally time to give him a piece of his mind.

Ignoring Rebekah's advances he walked out Stefan was crossing the street when he called out to him.

"If I'm such a fucking disappointment why the fuck do you keep coming to me for help! Do you really think I want to live my life protecting you! No way in hell! You have been an ungrateful bastard since the moment you were a child! You know what I wish you the best Stefan because now you're on your own! I am done!"

It was like time stood still, one moment Stefan was there and he was alright and than the next moment a car was speeding at him full speed. Stefan or Damon hadn't registered it until Stefan was already hit and flipping across the car like you only saw in the movies.

When Stefan hit the ground, Damon stood there in shock. What the hell had just happened?

"Stefan!" he yelled running towards him.

He fell to his knees in front of Stefan and turned Stefan over. He was bleeding all over his face and wasn't waking what had he done?

Damon: Age 26

Damon slammed the glass back down on the bar as he turned in his stool. He had to get out of there before he drunk himself into a drunken slumber. He didn't expect for his life to change completely when he stepped onto that street corner that night. But it did.

One moment he was just walking and than he heard a whimpering coming from the street corner. He looked over to where the girl sat and looked at her in shock. Her clothes barely hung on her body as he saw bruises and cuts all over her. She was placing her hand on her brown hair and he thought she could use someone to talk to.

He walked over to her as her head snapped up at him. Her eyes filled with fear and he could tell she wanted to run away but she was paralyzed with fear.

"I'm sorry if I startled you. I was just wondering if you were okay."

The girl laughed sounding more than a little bit harsh.

"Does it look like I'm fucking okay?"

"I'm sorry I should have known better than to ask that."

"Well maybe you should do yourself a favor and fuck off."

"Listen I know you're going through something hard, but there's no reason for you to talk to me like that. I mean you're not the only person in the world who has problems."

She looked at him dumbfounded that he would say something like that to her.

"You have some fucking nerve. I'm over here crying and you're here being a dick to me."

"To be fair you started it."

"I don't need this." She said getting up.

"listen I'm just trying to be nice. I just thought you needed someone to talk to that's all."

He was about to walk away when he heard her voice behind him.

"Wait." she said catching up to him.

"Yes."

"Look I'm sorry for trying to be a hard ass. It's just that one of my old customers was trying to get a little too rough with me."

"What did he do?"

"Oh you know the usual bullshit that prostitutes face now a days. You refuse to give an aggressive customer a blow job and he beats you senseless. Just my luck right."

"I'm sorry that happened to you."

"Why would you feel sorry for a piece of trash like me?"

"I would never think you were a piece of trash. I grew up better than that. What's your name?"

"Elena."

"Well Elena it's nice to meet you."

"I'm pretty sure you're the first person to ever say that to me."

He smiled at her as he felt a drop of water fall on his forehead. They both looked up as rain seemed to pour down on them. She sighed and looked back down at him.

"Great. Just what I needed." She said

"Are you going to be okay?"

"No clue. My pimp isn't exactly proud of me right now. I'll be surprised if he'll let me sleep in the house tonight."

"You can sleep with me if you want."

Elena gave him a funny look as he thought about what he had just said. Of course she would take that the wrong way. How stupid could he be? He had to make this right before he got a face full of pepper spray.

"I mean just to sleep."

"Okay. Sounds like a plan to me."

He smiled as they walked to his car and he drove to his apartment. It wasn't much but it was still his and he worked hard for it. Removing her coat Elena threw it on the chair as he looked at her wet clothes clinging to her breast and thighs. He had to find some clothes for her before she froze to death.

She followed him to his room as he got an extra shirt for her and pair of shorts. He handed them to her as she grabbed them and smiled at him.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

She threw a sexy glance at him as he watched her walk away he wasn't sure but he was pretty sure that his relationship with her wouldn't end tonight and that she would be sticking around his life for years to come.

Damon Salvatore: Age 45

Damon's hands gripped the wheel as he carefully drove to Elena's house. He knew that she probably wouldn't want to see him after all these years, but there was someone he defiantly wanted to see their daughter. He felt like he had let her down the most and if he wanted to complete his twelve steps he would have to start apologizing to everybody that he had done wrong starting with them.

He took a deep breath as he pulled into the driveway and got out of the car. Elena now lived in a small house that most people would say was at the wrong side of the tracks but some would also say it was better than the apartment Damon had been staying in so they evened each other out. Even after all these years.

Sighing he got out of the car and walked up the walkway to Elena's door. He knocked on the door and waited as he heard the doorknob turn and there was Elena in the flesh. She seemed to have improved over the years. Her clothes were a lot less risque and her hair had grown longer. Even after all these years she was still the prettiest girl he had ever met. And right now she couldn't have looked even more pissed off.

"What are you doing here Damon?"

"Listen Elena I know you don't want me here but-"

"It's been five years Damon."

"I know but I want to see her. Surely you could understand that."

"I'm sorry Damon. I just can't she's in the sensitive teenager faze and the last thing she needs is the father who abandoned her to show back up in her life."

"Please Elena I just want to see her once. Than I'll leave you both alone."

"I'm sorry Damon I can't. It's best if you just go."

"The hell I will. She's our daughter Elena I have a right to see her."

"I want you to listen to me Damon. And you better listen good because I'm only going to say this once. My daughter almost died because of you and than you abandoned us. As far as I know she's my daughter. Not yours and defiantly not ours. Now get off my property before I call the police."

"And if I don't."

"I will make sure you never see your daughter again. Now go away."

She slammed the door as Damon made his way to his car. After all what else could he do without making a scene and he didn't wnt his daughter to see that he looked over at the house and he saw his daughter looking at him through the window. He sent out a wave to her as she shook her head and closed the blinds. He sighed and got in his car not knowing what he was supposed to do now.