Chapter 10

I love you

Elena stared at all the things her father was hiding. All the things he lied about her entire life. And now he was going to kill her boyfriend.

He disappointed her. Her father had always been the one she turned to if something was wrong. She had always been daddy's little girl.

And now that was gone. He had taken it away from her.

Tears continued to stream freely down her face, as she remembered the times he played with her when she was a little girl. The times he comforted her. The times he told her he loved her..

It was all being replaced now, by the times he lied to her. She didn't know who he was anymore. And now she couldn't ask him, because if she did, he would know that she knew about vampires. He would find out about Damon. That couldn't happen.

She couldn't risk it.

Somewhere in the house a door slammed shut. The front door.

Elena immediately jumped up and closed off the secret room again.

"Elena?" she heard her father ask. O god! He was right outside the door of the reading room! She had to hurry!

She put back everything in place again, grabbed a random book from the bookcase and flew over to the couch, just as her father was opening the door. When he had it completely opened, she was lying in a relaxed position on the couch, as if nothing had ever happened.

"Elena? What are you doing in the reading room?" Grayson asked confused. His head immediately flew over to the bookcase. Elena could tell he was really worried that she had found something. She was just going to play it cool.

She shrugged her shoulders and held up the book she was supposedly reading.

"I'm reading, dad. I thought that was what reading rooms are for," she bitched.

Her father relaxed visibly, but then focused on her face.

"Have you been crying?" he asked her worriedly.

O damn! Now, how was she going to solve that one!

She then saw what book she had grabbed in her hurry. It couldn't be a more perfect excuse! She held it out in front of her, so her father could see it.

"This damn book always gets to me!"

Grayson studied the book cover and smiled.

"The Horse Whisperer.. Yeah, you always loved that book. And I would always have to comfort you after," her father said nostalgically.

Elena smiled too.

Her father leaned over to tuck a strand of her behind her ear, affection written all over his face.

"You're growing up so fast. It still seems like yesterday, that I gave you a piggy back ride. Or I taught you how to ride your bike. And now you're such a beautiful young woman. I'm so proud of you," he warmly said.

His words hit Elena hard. A few moments ago, she hated him with a fiery vengeance. He had destroyed all there was between them. And now he was her father again. The wall she had put up for him, started to crumble a little.

"You made the move here a little easier for me. Where Jeremy just complained and gave me grief, you tried to see things my way. I know I don't say this enough, but I love you Elena. You will always be my little girl," Grayson said emotionally.

Elena felt the wall break and the dam burst. Tears wrung their way from her eyes.

She had missed these moments so much!

"I love you too, daddy," she cried and wrapped herself in his arms. She breathed in his scent. The one that always soothed her as a little girl. She would bury her nose in his shirt and all of her fears automatically went away.

Unfortunately, that wasn't the case this time. They were still keeping things from each other. She was still afraid he would kill the man she loved.

Her father let go of her and tapped her nose.

"Come on. Let's go find ourselves something to eat before we turn ourselves into a blubbering mess."

Elena smiled up at him, and followed him out of the reading room. She paused in the doorway, to look at the now closed bookcase one last time….

Dinner was great. It had been just her and her father. Apparently her mother and Jeremy had other plans. Jeremy was hanging out with friends, and her mother was at a social gathering for the women of Mystic Falls.

So Elena had fun with her father. Which was something they hadn't had in a long time. Something always came up. Either he had to work, or her mother and Jeremy would be home. But now they had time for each other.

Elena relaxed a little. They ate together and then sat down on the couch for a movie. About halfway through, she cuddled closer towards Grayson. She laid her head on his chest, while he put his arms around her. Elena loved this, but felt like a hypocrite at the very same time.

Because she was in love with the very thing he hated. She was going to warn the demon he wanted to kill. He was going to be disappointed in her. Just as she had been with him earlier this evening. But right now she wanted to forget. Right now she wanted to be a little girl again, comforted by her father's arms…

Branches hit her face, as she ran as fast as she could through the dark woods. Her legs carrying her as fast as they could go. Her lungs were burning with the effort of trying to keep up with her fast rhythm.

She had told her father that she was going to bed. And then she had made sure her bed looked like someone was lying in it. She had then turned off the lights and crept her way out of the front door.

She knew where to go. She had memorized the address from the encircled point on her father's map. She knew where it was. Where he was. She had to get to him. She had to warn him.

There was a reason she hadn't taken her car. It would have been so much faster if she drove there. But her father would have noticed it missing on the drive way. So on foot was her only option.

A hue of sweat covered her skin now. Her hair had pasted its way around her neck and her face felt as if it was going to explode. But she didn't care if he saw her like this. There were more important things at hand.

Finally, the trees cleared and she spotted the house. A smile graced Elena's features as she took in the appearance. It was just as big and beautiful as the house she lived in now, his old house. Wow, he did have a thing for nice houses, didn't he?

Why would he live so out in the open like this? Like a normal person? If certain people spotted him… Well, people already had spotted him. That's why she was here.

Elena shook her head and walked up to the front door. She just hoped he was there.

She took a deep breath and knocked.

The front door opened to reveal a very surprised looking Damon. His eyes went wide as he saw her and took in her appearance.

"Elena? What are you doing here? What's going on? How did you know where I lived?" he rambled.

Elena bit her lip.

"Can I come in?" she asked.

Damon snapped out of his daze and stepped aside to let her in.

Elena's mouth fell open at the gorgeousness of this house. It was even more beautiful on the inside, with a grand parlour, a huge living room to her right and a massive staircase in front of her. This certainly wasn't how she imagined a vampire to live!

Damon placed a hand on her shoulder to get her attention.

"What's going on, baby?" he whispered.

Elena turned around and looked into his eyes.

"My father knows where you live. That's how I know where you live. I found a secret hiding space of his. He had a complete army of weapons against vampires. And a map, with your house encircled. He had written down that he was coming here to kill you tomorrow," she told him.

Damon took in the information and thought about it for a second.

"Damon, you have to leave this place! Just until it's safe and people think you are gone," Elena begged.

Damon shook his head.

"I'm not leaving you." He stepped closer to her and put his arms around her. He kissed the top of her head.

"Whatever war we are facing here, we face this together. I can't leave you. I love you," Damon confessed.

Elena's head snapped up at this. Her heart started pounding as she looked into his gorgeous cerulean eyes.

He loved her?

Damon started stroking her cheek, palming it as he repeated his words in awe.

"I love you, Elena."

Elena's face erupted into a beautiful grin. She kissed his lips for a second before requiting what he just said.

"I love you too."

Damon leaned forward to kiss her again, as a menacing voice resounded from somewhere behind them.

"Well, isn't this nice and cosy!"

Elena frowned as she realised the voice sounded an awful lot like her own. She felt Damon tense in her arms, so she pulled away from him and slowly turned around.

What she saw then, baffled her to her core. Her eyes almost fell out of her sockets at the sight in front of her.

Before her, stood a woman with long, brown tresses, just like her own. She had brown eyes, just like her own. Her face… Her face looked exactly the same.

Her heart dropped when she realised she knew exactly who this was.

"Katherine," she whispered….

Finally, an update! I just needed some time to think about where I wanted to take this story to keep things exciting. Since all the letters have been read and the BLEEP has hit the fan about Elena's father, I needed to come up with something new. I hope you like this turn of events. Katherine is here! How will Elena react? Did Damon know that Katherine was still alive? And is the war between Elena's father and Damon still coming?

Please hit that review button, and you'll find out soon. Reviews are what keep stories going ;)

Sorry, no more updates on my stories till it is the new year. So I am going to wish everyone a happy new year. I will be back in 2012 with an update to Forbidden fruit!

X

Sandy1983.

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