"Elena, I'm going to the store." Enzo poked his head into the master suite where Elena sat waiting for Bonnie to model her next design. "That front door locks behind me and it doesn't open again until I get back. Understood?"

"Yep."

"If you need anything call me, okay? If I don't answer, call Damon."

"Got it." Elena thought he was going way overboard. Here in Damon's apartment, she was perfectly safe. No one could get onto this floor without one of the key cards and the two keys were currently in Enzo and Damon's wallets. "We will be fine."

"I will be back in less than an hour."

"All right. Bye."

"So what do you think about this one?" Bonnie announced as she paraded out of the master bathroom and modelled one of her designs. She walked the length of the bedroom and circled back. The camisole style of the top and the feminine flounce suited her thin frame. "I was a little worried about the length but I think I'm sold on this mid-thigh hem."

"It looks really good," Elena agreed. "That fabric is amazing." She touched the shiny metallic dots printed on the black background. "It reminds me of fireworks."

"It is fun, right?" Bonnie gave a whirl and laughed. "Speaking of fireworks, I want the whole story about you and Damon. Now that your bodyguard is gone, you can tell me all the juicy details."

Elena sat down on the bed and leaned back against the mountain of pillows. "There are no juicy details."

"Bullshit." Bonnie flopped down next to her and wiggled into place. "The guy came to your rescue, brought you to this million dollar apartment and nothing happened? Come on, Elena. I know you are, like, a Super Virgin, but you expect me to believe you weren't the teeniest, tiniest bit tempted by that hot Italian?"

"I was tempted, but after what Kai tried to do to me?" Elena touched her neck and felt the bruises there. "I really wasn't in that kind of mood, you know? Damon is always so respectful toward me and gentle. He was careful with me last night."

"If I ever see Kai, I'm going to run over him with my truck." Bonnie made a sad face and cautiously traced one of the ugly bruises. "He is such a piece of shit. It is too bad I broke it off with Jamie. He and the rest of his MC brothers would have put the hurt on Kai for this."

"Are you kidding me? Kai has a hundred heavily-armed drug dealers and gang members on his team. I don't want anyone to get hurt because of me. It is bad enough that I put Damon in this position."

"Honey, that man would have come running if you had stubbed your toe. I know I have teased you about the way he watches you, but I'm being serious now. It is clear to anyone who has ever seen you two together that h i's head over heels for you. After last night, what other proof do you need?"

Elena didn't dare believe Bonnie. It would hurt too much if she was wrong. "I kissed him last night," Elena finally admitted. "And then he kissed me this morning. Like really kissed me."

"I knew it!" Bonnie exclaimed triumphantly. "And then?"

"And then nothing," Elena said with a shrug. "He went to work."

"Well, maybe that is for the best after this," Bonnie said, gesturing to Elena's neck and cheek. "Slow and steady has always been your preferred mode. It has always steered you right in school and money so it is probably the best choice for a relationship." She hesitated before asking, "I mean, that is what this is, right? You two are dating now?"

"I don't know," Elena confessed with a rush of emotion. "I don't know what he wants or expects. He said this apartment was for his mistress, right? You know, like his kept woman or lover or whatever. But then he told me that it has been vacant since February so I thought he was trying to tell me that he has been waiting for me or maybe he wants something different this time."

"But?"

"But then last night, before we fell asleep, he made it pretty clear that he sees me as just his next mistress." Elena bit her lower lip and tried to ignore the ball of disappointment clogging her throat. "I told him I didn't know the first thing about being a mistress. He gave his list of ground rules, kissed me and left."

Bonnie winced with sympathy. "That is pretty cold."

"Right? It is like there is this wall," Elena said while drawing one in the air, "between him and everyone else. Last night, he asked me what I wanted. I swear it was as if he was afraid to ask for what he really wanted."

"What? Like it might make him too vulnerable? Because I could totally see that from him," Bonnie commented knowingly. "That man is driven by some powerful need to be successful and wealthy. He is all battle-hardened from his family background. Can you imagine how hard it must be for a man like that to let his guard down? To let someone like you inside? To put his heart at risk?"

The disappointment and fear dissipated as Elena listened to Bonnie. "If I hug you right now, I'm going to squeeze the air right out of your lungs." Elena laughed and let all that pent-up stress escape. "You are seriously the best friend who ever lived."

"I know," Bonnie said and jokingly polished her nails on her dress. "I am pretty amazing."

"You really are."

"You know," Bonnie said, leaning back against the pillows, "this is probably why he is so drawn to you, Elena. You two are exactly alike. You have always been afraid to get involved with a man because you saw the way your mother got knocked around and the way she let her boyfriends hurt you and Katherine. You have always been driven to be something great, to be somebody, to break away from your humble beginnings, and I bet it is the same for Damon. His father used to be a mob boss. God only knows what he has seen. I would be damned afraid of falling in love, too, if I had seen how truly terrible people can be to one another."

Everything Bonnie said made sense. "But how do I get through to him? Because, Bonnie, I really, really care for him, but I can't be just a mistress. I can't be this pretty little thing he dresses up in jewels and parades around town. I need to matter."

"You do matter, Elena. He is just fooling himself if he thinks he can keep you locked away up here like a fairy-tale princess. Deep down inside, he knows you aren't kept woman material." Bonnie sat up suddenly, as if a thought had struck her. "You need to be the best damned mistress he has ever had. You need to show him what he will be missing when you walk away." She climbed off the bed and crossed the room to grab her cell phone. "Because you do have to walk away, Elena. At some point, if he doesn't give you what you deserve, you have to get up and walk out."

"I know," Elena murmured sadly. "I thought about that all morning. It is so tempting to get caught up in this fairy-tale he is offering, but that isn't real life."

"No, it is not." Bonnie tapped away at her phone. "Okay. Seriously, you would not believe how many articles there on how to be a kept woman! This is wild, Elena."

"No." Elena pushed off the bed and shook her head. "I'm not playing by those rules. If I'm going to do this, I'm doing it my way."

"Yeah, but these women are like professional about it, Elena. They have tips and tricks and—"

"No. He told me that he wants me, just as I am, so that is what he is going to get. Me. Simple, quiet, unadorned me."

"That is all well and good," Bonnie said, tossing aside her phone, "but what are you going to do about the sex? Because last time I checked you have only rounded second base and that was when you flipped out on Matt Donovan the night we graduated high school and he stuck his hand in your panties."

"That wasn't the only place he stuck his hand," Elena muttered unhappily. "It hurt."

"He was a jerk. You shouldn't have let that one bad experience put you off sex forever. There were so many great guys you dated in college. They would have been good farm team sex partners, you know? Now you are in the big leagues, and you have never even hit a base run!"

"It is too late for what-ifs, Bonnie. I will just have to figure it out as I go."

"If I had to guess, Damon is one of those one-in-a-million lovers. Let him take the lead."

Elena laughed nervously. "Like I have any other choice!"

"Maybe we should watch some—"

They were interrupted by Elena's ringing cell phone. The sound of her sister's ringtone had Elena flying out of the bedroom and racing through the living area to reach her phone in time. She snatched it off the counter and answered in a breathless rush, "Hello? Katherine?"

"Elena!" Katherine sobbed her name. "Oh my God! Are you okay? Please tell me you are okay!"

Sagging with relief upon hearing her sister's voice, Elena leaned against the counter. "I'm okay."

"I heard about what happened to you last night, about what Kai did to you." Katherine wept. "I'm sorry, Elena. I never meant for any of this to happen. We just thought…We never…It wasn't supposed to go this way."

Elena's earlier anger with her sister vanished. "It is all right. I know you didn't mean for me to get hurt."

"But you did," Katherine sobbed. "You did, and this is all my fault."

"It is too late for that, Katherine. We don't have time for this. Where are you?"

"I'm hiding out in a hotel in Lake Dunham."

"Lake Dunham?" Elena was already calculating how fast she could get there. "Where is Mason?"

"I don't know." Katherine started crying again. "He went out to get some money, but he didn't come back."

Elena had a bad, bad feeling about that. "Listen, Bonnie and I are going to come get you. Okay?"

Appearing beside her, Bonnie nodded vigorously as she tugged on her boots and slipped into her jacket. She raised her voice, "We will drive all night if we have to, Katherine, but we will get you out of Virginia. We can hop on the interstate and get her to New Orleans."

"I will need money, Elena. I will need to go underground and stay off the radar."

"I will get it. Just hold on and wait for us, okay?"

"Okay. I love you, Elena. Please be careful."

"I will be." After hanging up, Elena glanced at Bonnie. "Where the hell am I going to get cash this late on a Saturday afternoon?"

"Do you have your cheque book in your purse?"

"Yes. Why?"

"We will go see Abby at Kirkwood's Pawn. She will give you a fat chunk of cash. She knows you are good for it." Bonnie grabbed her arm when Elena started to run for the door. "Elena, are you sure you want to do this?"

"What are you talking about? Of course! She is my sister. She is scared. She is alone. She needs me."

"Yes, she does, but you promised Damon you wouldn't leave the apartment."

Elena's heartbeat pounded against her eardrums as she realized she had to choose between her sister, her flesh and blood, and the man who had risked his life to save hers, the man who had offered her protection and security, the man she had been secretly in love with for almost a year.

"If I don't help Katherine get out of Virginia, they will kill her. Giuseppe Salvatore sat right here in this kitchen and told me that last night. Katherine is a dead woman if she stays here." Elena's heart broke as she accepted that she was going to ruin everything with Damon even before it had really begun. "There is no choice here, Bonnie. I have to save my sister."

"Then we need to move," Bonnie urged and thrust Elena's hoodie into her hands. "We need to get out of here before Enzo gets back."

Like a couple of spies trying to escape a covert operation, they took the stairs down eleven floors rather than risk running into Enzo. By the time they reached the parking level, they were breathless and promising each other that they would take up CrossFit because they were so weak. Somehow they managed to avoid seeing anyone in the garage but that didn't stop Bonnie from racing out of there like a bat out of hell in her truck.

"This is one of those times where you really want to thank your lucky stars we have networked so much," Bonnie said as they pulled into the parking lot across the street from Abby Kirkwood's pawn shop. "Bet you never thought all those business major mixers we went to would lead to this."

"No, I sure didn't." Elena hopped out of the front seat of Bonnie's truck and waited for Bonnie to join her before dashing across the street and into the shop.

Thankfully, it wasn't very busy. There were a handful of customers milling around the place, most of them in the electronics section. Elena had hoped to run into Marley, her neighbour and a long-time employee of the pawn shop, but she didn't see her anywhere.

"Elena! Bonnie!" Abby Kirkwood stepped out from behind the jewellery counter to come over and give us big hugs. "It is good to see you! Are you here to pick through my vintage handbags again?"

"Oh, don't tempt me!" Abby had some really fantastic fashion items come into the shop. Elena had been lucky enough to grab a vintage Chanel 2.55 last Christmas for a steal. "But, actually, um, I was hoping you could cash a personal cheque for me." Elena didn't see any reason to beat around the bush. "I recognize it is asking for a big favour but—"

Abby smiled knowingly and slid her arm around my shoulders. "Come over to the window."

Bonnie stayed behind to look through the showcases of jewellery while Elena walked with Abby to the bulletproof windows at the rear of the store. Leaning close, Abby whispered, "I heard about your sister. Whatever you need, it is yours."

"Thank you, Abby," Elena whispered right back and blinked away grateful tears. "I feel bad asking, but all the banks are closed so—"

"It is not a big deal. I know your cheque is good." She squeezed Elena's shoulder. "I will even give you a break on the interest," she teased with a playful wink.

While Abby unlocked a door and entered the reinforced and protected cashier area, Elena walked down to the open window and began filling out a cheque. She hesitated when she got to the amount. How much would Katherine need to survive in a new city? How long would she be unable to work? Elena made a hasty calculation and wrote out the five figure amount. She decided not to think about how long it would take her to earn all of that back. Her sister's life was worth every penny in her bank accounts. Elena would give them all to Katherine if it meant she would stay alive.

Abby glanced at the check after she pushed it through the small opening in the bulletproof window. She didn't even blink at the amount. "I will have to do a mix of big and small bills. Is that okay?"

"Yes, it is fine. Whatever works for you, Abby."

"All right. Hang on. I will be right back." She disappeared into a locked room where Elena assumed they kept their safe.

She glanced back to see Bonnie inspecting gold chains. It wasn't the type of jewellery she liked to wear so Elena suspected she was looking for something to use in a clothing design. Feeling anxious and exposed, she looked around the shop, counting and recounting the customers. She didn't recognize any of them, but the paranoia gripping her made her sensitive to every glance.

"Okay," Abby said as she reappeared at the window with a stack of bills still wrapped in their bank yellow, purple and brown bank bands. She counted it out for Elena twice before placing the money inside shopping bags. "Can I see your ID, please?"

"Yes." Elena slipped it through the small window. While shewaited for Abby to record the necessary information, Bonnie wandered over and joined her. "I guess you didn't see anything you wanted?"

"Nah," Bonnie said and then nervously looked over her shoulder. Moving closer, she whispered, "There is some guy watching us. Don't look back!" She hissed when Elena started to turn her head. "Brioni suit? Bruno Magli boots? This guy isn't part of Kai's crew or those backwoods skinheads. I can't see any tattoos on his hands or neck. I don't think he is part of the Italian crew either, but he looks dangerous and familiar."

Mouth dry, Elena smiled at Abby who gestured towards the locked door after pushing her ID back at her. "Let me come around and meet you. I will have one of my security guys walk you out to your vehicle."

"Shit," Bonnie whispered frantically. "That guy is coming towards us. Keep walking. Keep walking."

Just as Abby stepped onto the main floor, she looked behind them and broke into a wide grin. "Logan! I didn't know you were stopping by today!"

"I thought I would come into the store and browse." When he stepped into view, Elena noticed that Bonnie's dangerous description fit the man perfectly. He wasn't as tall as Damon or as muscular, but there was a menacing, intimidating air about him. Her internal alarms went crazy. She needed to get away from this man and quickly. "I never know what might catch my eye."

"Uh-huh," Abby dryly remarked. "Marley is not working this weekend so your eye will just have to keep on wandering." She pressed the bag of money into Elena's hands. "Take care of this."

"I will." Surprised by the weight, Elena held it close to her chest.

"Elena, Bonnie, do you two know Logan? He is, um, a very successful local businessman," Abby said with obvious amusement. "But we won't talk about what type of business he is in because this is a family friendly store."

Logan laughed. "You make it sound so scandalous, Abby. They are just clubs, and it is only dancing." He turned his full attention to Elena. "I haven't had the pleasure of meeting Elena, but I think we have a good friend in common."

"Oh?" Elena asked weakly, already knowing the answer.

"Damon." He studied her closely. "I have to admit I'm rather surprised to see you." His gaze flicked around the store. "Is Enzo waiting for you outside?"

"That is none of your business, Mr Strip Club Owner," Bonnie interjected forcefully, "and we have got somewhere to be." She put her hand between Elena's shoulders and propelled her towards the exit. "See you around, Abby."

"Wait! Let me get a security guard—"

"No need," Bonnie said quickly and pushed Elena forward. "We are fine."

"Thank you, Abby," Elena called over her shoulder as Bonnie hustled her out of the store. When they hit the street, Elena glared at her. "That was rude!"

"Oh hell," Bonnie grunted. "I remembered why he looked so familiar to me. He is a loan shark, Elena. He used to run a book for the Mystic Falls mafia thugs over at the Black Eagle Club. He is one of the bastards who used to own my dad's debt. He took our boat and our car and my horse." She hurried across the street at Elena's side. "He is one of the reasons Daddy put that rope around his neck in our barn."

"Oh, Bonnie." Elena hated that such awful memories had been dredged up for Bonnie. She had been fifteen when her father had hanged himself in the barn where she had kept her beloved horse—the horse he had been forced to give to Logan only a few days earlier. "I'm so sorry."

"It is not your fault. Nobody made Daddy gamble or embezzle. He did that himself." Bonnie wrenched open her truck door and hopped inside. As she cranked the engine, Elena buckled her belt. "But assholes like that made it too easy. They took advantage of him when he was down. They kept feeding him credit because they knew they could collect on all his collateral, even after he died."

As she hit the gas, Logan stepped out of the pawn shop, a cell phone pressed to his ear, and watched them drive away. Never one to go quietly, Bonnie actually rolled down her window and shot him the finger. "Vulture!"

"Oh my God! Are you crazy?" Elena twisted in her seat to see the gangster's shocked reaction as Bonnie punched the accelerator and tore down the busy road. "You just sat here and told me that guy is affiliated with the mafia. Are you seriously trying to pick a fight with someone like that?"

"I'm not afraid of people like that anymore." Bonnie gripped the steering wheel tightly. "I'm over being pushed around by criminals."

Still aghast at the trouble Bonnie had probably made for herself, Elena pulled her phone out of her purse and called Katherine. She didn't answer so Elena texted her for the name of her hotel and the address.

Hey! We have the cash. We are headed your way. Be ready to leave as soon as we get there. What is the address?

"Why isn't she answering?" Elena asked, worry edging into her voice.

"Maybe she is almost out of battery. Maybe she is in the shower. Maybe she went out to grab something from a vending machine." Bonnie reached over and gave Elena's hand a reassuring squeeze. "Don't panic. I'm sure everything is okay."

"I hope so."

A few seconds later, Elena's cell phone chirped with a message alert.

"What did she say?" Bonnie asked.

"She is at the Dunham Motel." Elena opened a map app on her phone and punched in the name to get directions. "Take the road to Lake Dunham."

"I got it," Bonnie said. "It is nearly five, and it is getting dark. It's going to be a long drive."

"We will trade off behind the wheel."

Elena's phone started to ring. It was Enzo. She ignored the call, but guilt gnawed at her. Staring out the window, she chewed on her thumb. "Damon is going to be so angry with me."

"Yep." Bonnie didn't even bother trying to convince her otherwise. "I would suggest you wait to call him until we cross the state line. By the time we get your sister situated in New Orleans and make it back to Mystic Falls, he will cool down."

"No, he won't." Elena's stomach churned violently as she accepted the truth of the situation. "I said I trusted him. I told him I would stay put and let him protect me."

"Yeah, you did. He swore to protect you. He didn't say anything about your sister. He can't expect you to sit in that apartment, living the high life, while your sister gets her throat slit by some cartel hit man."

Elena ran her thumb up and down the screen on her phone. "What if there is another way? What if he can help her?"

"You need to stop second guessing your decision, Elena." Bonnie glanced away from the windshield and held Elena's gaze. "You told me what happened last night with Giuseppe. As far as Damon's mafia family is concerned, Katherine is as good as dead. If you call Damon, if you tell him where she is, do you really think he is going to choose between the mafia family and you?"

"He won't betray me. He is not like that."

"No, he probably wouldn't, but at what cost?" Bonnie bit her lip and shook her head. "You are his mistress, his girlfriend. Sort of. You are not his wife. The loyalty he owes you doesn't come close to what he owes the mafia family. You are a bright, shiny new thing in his life. That history he has with the mafia family? That shit goes way back, Elena. Can you imagine what the mafia family will do to him if he finds out that Damon knew about your sister? That he helped you get her out of the city?"

A shudder rocked Elena right to the core. "I don't want Damon to get hurt." Thinking of her safety, she added, "I don't want you to get hurt either."

"We will be fine."

She couldn't tell who Bonnie was trying to convince more.

"He will forgive you," she insisted. "He will forgive you for this."

Feeling sick, Elena sadly murmured, "No, he won't."

"Don't say that."

"It is the truth. That wall he built around himself? The one I was telling you about earlier? The same things that made him build that wall are the same things that will make it impossible for him to forgive me for this."

Damon was such a complicated man with a dark and complex history. The rules he had given her this morning weren't so much about control as they were about testing her commitment to him. Like Elena, he had spent a lifetime being disappointed and hurt by people. Unlike her, he had chosen to protect his heart by closing it off and only allowing himself to indulge in these romantic arrangements with mistresses, these easily controlled emotional transactions.

Elena was officially the worst mistress in the history of the world. She hadn't even lasted one full day. He would see her decision to go after Katherine as a betrayal of everything he had done for her. She was flinging it all back in his face, and he would punish her by turning his back on her and sending her away.

"Don't get all weepy on me." Bonnie playfully punched Elena's arm. "I'm all out of tissues, and I don't want you getting snot on my new dress."

"I'm not going to cry." Elena blinked rapidly to clear away the wetness threatening to spill onto her cheeks. An hour ago, they were excitedly discussing her blossoming relationship with Damon but now? She was sitting here bereft and silently planning its funeral.

Angry with Katherine, Elena clenched her hands together on her lap. She would get Katherine out of the state and give her a clean start, but then she was on her own. Elena couldn't keep doing this. She couldn't allow her sister to drag her down again. This had to be the final time.

Glancing down at the navigation screen on her phone, Elena motioned to the next exit. "Get off at Centre Street."

Bonnie followed her directions until they found the rundown motel. "Holy hell," she exclaimed as they turned onto the property. "I have seen motels in horror films that looked nicer than this."

Elena couldn't argue with that observation. Only one light worked in the parking lot. From what she could see, the mouldy green paint was peeling and half of the windows didn't have drapes. Her jaw dropped when she saw a hooker walk out of a room still fastening her shirt. Her skirt was hiked up around her thighs so high Elena could see that she wasn't wearing underwear. She combed her fingers through her stringy hair before sliding into the front seat of a car driven by a man Elena could only assume was her pimp.

"Jesus," Bonnie breathed in horror. "This place is a cesspool!"

"Let's just grab Katherine and get out of here."

"Which room is she in?"

Elena looked at her message and then at the numbers on each door. "Fourteen. Over there."

"Hang on." Bonnie swung the truck wide and backed into the closest spot. "We aren't sticking around here any longer than necessary."

"Stay here." Elena flicked off her belt and tossed her phone onto the dashboard. "I will grab her, and we will get the hell out of here."

Bonnie looked around nervously. "Hurry. This place gives me the creeps!"

Elena practically jumped out of the truck and ran to the motel door. She knocked twice. "Katherine! Katherine, it's me. Come on! Let's go."

The rattle of a door chain met her ears. A moment later, the door opened—and a pair of hands grabbed the front of Elena's hoodie and hauled her inside the motel room. Before she could scream, a hand cruelly slapped over her mouth, muffling the sound as she kicked and flailed wildly. With a rough shove, she was thrown face down on a bed. The scent of mildew and much, much worse filled her nose. Elena pushed off the dirty, smelly blanket and lost her balance, rolling off the bed and onto the floor.

As she tried to make out the shapes in the darkened room, she heard a tussle near the door. Bonnie was thrown through the door and fell onto the stained carpet. She scrambled towards Elena on hands and knees. Eyes wide, she latched onto Elena's side and gripped her hand.

And then the very last face Elena ever wanted to see appeared in the open doorway.

With his broken nose and black eyes, Kai looked like he had been in one hell of a fight. The hatred etched into his face warned Elena not to make a sound or any sudden moves. Her heart stuttered when she noticed he held the same paperweight she had used to beat him unconscious. The door slammed closed behind him, and he smiled evilly at them.

Elena thought the fear she had experienced last night had been the worst of her life, but she was wrong. She experienced a whole new level of terror as she realized that Kai and his two henchmen were going to kill them. There was no chance of escape tonight.

They were going to die in this dirty, filthy motel—and Damon would never know how much she cared about him or how sorry she was for disappointing him.