Chapter 21

Damon and Elena stood outside the boarding house waiting for the others.

"I can't believe what just happened" She said softly.

"Are you okay?" he asked kissing her forehead.

"No" She said honesty. "but having you near me is helping"

He pulled her into an embrace.

"Elena" Damon said gazing at her "I want to give you this house. Its safer for you here with me. But he can get in here if a human doesn't reside here"

Elena nodded. "Okay"

"You accept this house as your own?" He asked again making sure it was certain.

"Yes" Elena agreed.

"You will need to invite us all in" he said feeling a little better that he could at least keep Caleb out of the boarding house.

"Come in Damon" She said smiling at the absurdity of inviting Damon into his own house despite all the raw emotions she was feeling at the moment.

Ric and Bonnie pulled up next with Tyler he was still passed out. They locked him up in the cellar for the time being and waited for Katherine and Stefan.

Once they arrived and Elena invited them in everyone gathered in the parlor. The weird tension and awkwardness of their last meeting didn't even compare to the strange vibe in the silent room now. Everything seemed to have changed in one solid moment and now they were all rooted together by one common enemy.

Damon pulled Elena into his lap and she didn't care this time that Stefan was there. She needed his touch more then she ever had before.

Stefan nodded at them as if to say it was okay. He frowned slightly as he realized he hadn't even thought of blood since they started fighting the wolves. His need to protect and support were stronger then his need for blood. He felt a sense of empowerment. He glanced at Katherine who was struggling to avoid the various gazes in her direction. Stefan was worried about Elena but he realized today how much Katherine meant to him. He knew he would die to protect either one of them.

"So who was that? Why did he call me Alana? Who is Alana? Why did he kill Isobel?" Elena started firing questions at Katherine unable to hold back any longer.

"To explain him I have to explain my past to you. This isn't a short story and it isn't a pleasant one so prepare yourselves" Katherine began.

"It all started when I was a young girl. Just 16 years old. I was the youngest of my family I had 2 older sisters. We came from money and were an established powerful family. My sisters married men from good stock and started raising families. But me.. well I was a different story. I was the wild child even then. My father couldn't say no to me and I took full advantage. Our mother died when I was young and I reminded him of her. I started running around with a farm boy named Michal. I fell in love with him even though I knew my father would never approve. It didn't take long before I was in trouble"

"You got pregnant?" Elena asked.

"Yes. I told Michael and he wanted to run away together start a farm and raise the child. I agreed but when I got home that evening I started thinking about the things I would miss. I was a spoiled child. I didn't want to give up the luxuries I had in life. I didn't think I could be the wife he wanted me to be. I was scared so I told my father what I had done. He was furious of course. He left for a few days and came back to inform me that he arranged a marriage for me through a business associate."

"I had never even met the man. Neither had my father. I know now the whole thing was set up and my father was compelled. It was Caleb I was married off too. At first he was actually incredibly charming although a bit strange. But I was a curious girl and found myself falling for his charms. He had promised to raise the child as his own and give him or her a solid future. I soon realized he was not a man at all. When I found out what he actually was it was to late to get away. I was 8 months pregnant."

"With Alana?" Elena whispered.

"Yes" Katherine said just as softly "I tried to run away with her. But he found me and almost killed me he turned me at the last moment. I was forced to go through the torture of the change and the new found bloodlust while raising a child. He threatened me with her life to ensure I would behave and do as he said.

He had a basement full of human slaves and did despicable things to them for fun. He was completely evil. There was and never will be any good in him. I tried my best for her to shed her from the awful things. As she grew she looked so much like me but was so different she was soft and sweet a gentle soul.

Caleb noticed it too. He became obsessed with her as she became a teenager. She mistook his attention as fatherly. But she was starting to see what was really happening around her and it killed me to see her spirit start to break. I set it up to look as if she had died drowning. Made sure her clothes were found tattered and bloody. I dropped her off near her father's families farm knowing they would know who she was."

Katherine took a shaky breath. "I returned to Caleb he was distraught over the loss and took it out on me every day. But I dealt with it. I behaved myself for many years hoping he would never discover the truth. But then I got stupid. It was 10 years later Caleb was away or so I thought. I was curious so I went to check in on her just observe. She was married and had children of her own she had found her father after all and was so happy. I knew her being happy was all I needed to sustain a miserable life with Caleb. But he had me followed and he found out. He grabbed her and me and brought us both home. He was so furious that I allowed her to grow old and that I had lied to him that he killed her right in front of me"

Katherine felt the tears coming down her face then. She pushed away Stefan's arm as he reached for her.

"My stupidity killed my own daughter"

"I'm so sorry" Stefan said slowly. "I never knew.."

"That wasn't the worst part. The worst part was Caleb had convinced himself that my daughter would be reborn someday. So he watched my bloodline. He would find a Pierce woman and

observe her all her life until she reached young adulthood and then determine if she was Alana. Of course no one ever was. He would wait for the women to have a child to continue the line then kill her. Overtime our blood became scared of him sensed him as a threat. Many of the Pierce women started to seek out vampires. Many craved becoming one herself. I think our blood evolved to know a threat existed."

"I finally manged to escape him. I went from town to town gaining vampire friends. Drawing attention to myself on purpose. I wanted him to be watching me and not my relatives. I caused as much trouble as I could usually with the rich well bred boys in town as that's what gets you gossiped about" She glanced from Stefan to Damon and then back at her lap.

"But.." Stefan said looking hurt.

"But I fell in love with you Stefan. That was real. You reminded me of Michael in many ways. It wasn't part of the plan to get attached" She confessed.

"I manged to get Jonathan Gilbert to help me by trapping all the vampires and making it appear they all died myself included. Stefan's confession to his father made us have to push things up. But It still seemed to work nonetheless. I watched my bloodline from afar over the years but Caleb seemed to leave it alone. Once again I was stupid." She sighed.

"But you were worried about Elena" Damon said "So you weren't sure he was gone or that he wouldn't find her"

"I wasn't sure I never was and when I saw her and saw that she looked just like me. I knew that would draw his attention because my daughter looked just liked me too. I cant explain it." Katherine shook her head. "But Elena I know your not her. You are very much like her. But not her. You are strong willed and she was fragile.

"But he thinks she's Alana" Damon sighed "Why didn't you just tell me this. I could have done something turned Elena and got her out of here"

"I should have" Katherine said meekly.

"It wouldn't have mattered" Stefan agured "He knew about Isobel. He would have found her eventually."

"So what do we do now?" Elena shuddered.

"Kill him" Damon said simply.

"We cant kill him" Katherine said.

"Why not?" Damon grunted.

"Because he is immortal" Katherine said.

"Uh yeah.. so are we..Their are ways to kill vampires" Damon rolled his eyes.

"You don't get it. Caleb was never a human." Katherine said slowly.

"You mean he was born a vampire?" Bonnie asked her eyebrows shooting up.

"Not exactly" Katherine said "He was born or created as an angel and angels can never die"

"Caleb is fallen angel?" Ric said incredulously.

"I'm afraid so" Katherine replied.

"What does that mean?" Elena asked "He can't be killed at all ever?"

"No" Katherine sighed "When the angels were created they were given free will to choose good or evil just as humans were. The difference being once an angel decides its permanent. Their will doesn't change and bend like a humans does. Caleb was one of the angels that chose evil. When he fell from heaven unto the earth with the other fallen angels he was one of the ones that was marked with the vampire curse. Essentially Caleb was one of ..if not the very first vampire. He realized he could transfer the curse unto humans turning them into vampires. But humans turnedare

different then the original vampires, we can be killed first of all, and we still have our own wills that can change. We also retain their souls contrary to popular belief."

"Wow" Elena whispered "So what about the sun can he burn?"

"Yes but he would turn to dust and slowly just reassemble again." Katherine said "He also has a ring to protect himself from it. We wouldn't be strong enough to get it off him anyway. Satan himself is a fallen angel that's the kind of evil and strength we are talking about here"

Elena felt herself shudder Damon held her tightly to him.

"So what are we going to do? He wants to take Elena how are we supposed to stop him?" Damon growled.

"I don't know" Katherine sighed. "I honestly have no idea. But I will find a way. I won't fail Elena like I failed my daughter. I won't"

"Maybe I can help" Bonnie said they all turned to stare at her as she pulled a strange looking book our of her pocket.

AN: Please review!