A/N: Hey all! Thank you guys so much for reviewing, favoriting and following this story. This one is actually my first TVD story that's reached 100 followers and I'm completely ecstatic about it. :)

Thank you all for reading and enjoy Ch.28!


Within Temptation-Chapter Twenty-Eight

"Caroline, what happened tonight at the diner? Who were you talking to on the phone outside?" Klaus asked her, leaning against the door frame leading into the bedroom as he watched his wife pack up their things, throwing all of her clothes into a huge pile with tears streaming down her face.

"I betrayed someone that I used to care about, Klaus...I've become someone that I never wanted to be…What else do you want me to say." Her voice broke as Klaus pushed off from the door frame and walked towards his wife, out stretching his arms to her when she shook her head and murmured out. "It was never supposed to be like this, we had promised each other that we'd be best friend for the rest of our lives. She's going to hate me when she finds out what I did, the things I confessed about to them, the things I said about her..."

"What did you do, Caroline?" Klaus asked her, tilting his head to the side as Caroline gazed up at him with water eyes and then she stammered out. "I told the police that Katherine's the prime suspect in Elena Gilbert's shooting. I told them that it was Katherine's car that was seen driving off from the hospital because it was...Klaus, she's involved with this,Katherine's involved and I just turned on her- my own best friend- without even thinking twice about it, just like that! I turned on her and I did it without even thinking about the consequences of it all."

"Caroline, are you sure of what you saw on that television screen?" He asked her, placing both of his hands on to each side of his wife's shoulders as tears ran down her face and she bit down on the inside of her cheek.

"I'm sure of the car. But, I don't know who was driving it….I don't know why I said it was Katherine..I just...I thought it was easy to pin it on her...She doesn't deserve it though, she doesn't deserve to be thrown under the bus like that." Caroline told Klaus, feeling her body being pressed into a tight embrace as he held her in his arms and soothed her cries.

"It's okay, we're going to fix this before she finds out. I'm going to fix it." Klaus told her, kissing her forehead before he stepped away from her and took his cell phone off the end table in their bedroom, heading towards the kitchen.

"Klaus. Who are you going to call?" Caroline asked him in a hushed tone, following him into the kitchen and watching as her husband placed his hands on to the counter top, heavily sighing before dialing a phone number and placing the phone to his ear as Caroline glanced up at him in shock when Klaus announced. "Hello, Stefan...We need to talk, it's important."


"Klaus. Hey, it's been a while." Stefan commented in a surprised tone, as he slide out of the bed that he was laying on with Elena. Stefan leaned down, kissing her cheek before he made his way out of her room, closing the door behind him as he heard his friend and business partner speak with a serious tone.

"Listen, I know that we haven't spoken in a while about personal things and that these last few weeks have been tough for you and everyone. But, that's the reason I'm calling. I wanted to see how Elena was doing and if we have any leads as to who might have done this to her."

Stefan inhaled sharply, leaning his back against the wall as he looked up across the way, at the Television in the waiting room that was reporting about the weather.

" Elena's okay. But, she's going to need a lot of time and surgeries to repair the damage, physical therapy and maybe even counseling..She's alive though, which I'm thankful for. The police officer that I'm working with is an old friend of mine, we grew up together. And, she actually has some leads from a reliable source. If that's why you're calling me-." Klaus cut him off with a brisk huff of a breath when he added. " I know that it's Caroline, the source that gave your friend information. Stefan, that's actually the reason why I'm calling I wanted to tell you that she isn't even sure that it was Katherine. She saw the news report and got a little confused. If you could pass that along to your police friend. that would be very helpful." Klaus told him, hearing a sigh come out of Stefan's mouth.

"She's retracting her statement? Why would she do that...Klaus, Caroline seemed about 100 percent sure that it was Katherine who did this to Elena when she called the police just a few hours ago. Why would she back out from her own words now?" Stefan asked him, listening to Klaus speak through gritted teeth.

"They were best friends, Stefan! For years and thinking what she had said over, Caroline feels as if she was wrong. Now, I suggest that you ask Elena what she remembers about that night. And, leave Caroline out of this. I'm warning you in a friendly way, Stefan..Leave my wife out of this." Klaus warned.

Stefan shook his head in belief. "Well, it's too late for that now, isn't it, Klaus? Because just like the rest of us, your wife is already too involved in this. I'll ask Elena, Klaus. But, if she tells me that it was Katherine, like she's said it before..Then, I'll be expecting for Caroline to testify against her own best friend when that day comes. Because, let's face it- if she doesn't, Katherine will getting away with attempted murder and I'm pretty sure that Caroline would hate to know that she let an almost murderer roam freely around the world." He told him angrily as he made his way back into Elena's room and hung up the phone before Klaus could add anything further to their conversation.

Stefan slowly slide back into the bed with her and pulled her close to him, as he closed his eyes and waited for morning to come until he asked her more about Katherine and what she remembered.


"Stefan." Her voice was raw and sleep filled when the sun shined through the blinds and he opened his eyes to feel Elena's thumb rubbing up and down his cheek.

"Stefan..Wake up." She whispered softly, leaning into him and kissing his soft cheeks, her fingertip softly caressing his jaw line as he opened his eyes and smiled.

"How long have we been asleep?" He asked her, gazing over to see Elena backing away from him just a bit as he turned on his side and reached out to place his hands against her stomach.

"Don't...I don't want you to see it." Elena replied, swallowing down the fear that she held as to what he would think of her if he saw the scars and stitches that were helping her gunshot wound heal.

"Elena, you don't need to hide from me. You're safe with me, I promise. I'm going to protect you." He commented, his hand lifting so that his thumb could stroke her cheek. As he looked closer at her, he could see the fear and disappointment in her eyes.

"Tell me, how bad is it?" She asked him, tears filling her eyes and just about to spill on to her cheeks as he leaned into her, kissing her forehead. Elena could feel Stefan's arms gently pull her closer. He said nothing as he wrapped her into his embrace, his fingers massaging her scalp when she laid her head against his chest, exhaling deeply.

He could feel her body stiffen when she inhaled deeply and he knew that it must have hurt her to do so. " I can't do that Elena...Do you want me to get a nurse or a doctor to recheck your bandages?" He asked her. Stefan leaned them back against the bed when he felt Elena's hand tighten around his own and she intertwined their fingers together, examining his hand and realizing that he had taken off his wedding ring.

"No. I just want to stay here, like this with you for awhile, for as long as we can." She commented softly, lifting up his hand into the air as he watched her do so, he cleared his throat- knowing exactly what she was thinking. "I took it off a few weeks ago. It doesn't feel right anymore. Having it on my hand. I'm not in love with her, Elena."

Elena swallowed the lump in throat that formed at the thought of everything that had happened since she had met him. "I'm sorry for the things I did to cause you to be here. If you hadn't found me at that shelter and if I hadn't-." She began to ramble. But, Stefan's hand grazing her cheek made her stop talking and listen to him.

"This has nothing to do with you. My marriage to Katherine was falling apart long before you ever came into my life. It was bound to end up like this. So, stop blaming yourself for something that couldn't be controlled. Katherine and I have been on a self destructive path for a while now and there was nothing that anyone could do to stop it. But, I found a solution to it. I got a lawyer and he's drawn up divorce papers. Katherine wants Dasells. But, I'm not going to give it to her, she'll be offered a nice lump sum of money from my lawyers. But, as far as my business, it's not hers to own or to work at any longer." Stefan explained, feeling Elena shift against him as she got closer, pulling the blankets that covered them over her body a little more.

"Stefan, what if she tries to do something to strike back at you? What she did to me could just be the beginning of it all. She's dangerous and-." He interrupted her quickly when he leaned down and kissed the top of her head, softly speaking when he glanced up at the white painted ceiling.

"After this is all over and you're healed up. I want you to take Katherine's place in my company. Damon, Klaus and I can teach you the ropes and we'll keep you safe. But, I want Katherine gone and away from this city before that all happens. After this is over, I want my life to start with you, Elena. I want us to be together and I want you to be happy with me. I don't want anything to come between us anymore, nothing. Especially Katherine or anyone else from our pasts."

Elena could feel a small smile tug across her lips as she held on to his hand and felt him bright her hand up to his lips, kissing her knuckles. "What do you say? You don't need to answer now. But, I want you think about it. Because, I'm in love with you, Elena Gilbert and I want you to know that I'm here and it's where I intend to stay. With you, for as long as you'll keep me around."

Elena buried her head into his shirt and inhaled deeply, feeling a sensation of calm come over her body when she was near him. But, just as she opened her mouth to reply back to him, Elena's doctor walked in with a chart in his hands.

"Miss Gilbert. Time for us to change your bandages and check on your incisions." The doctor stated, giving Stefan an awkward look as he placed his hands into his pockets and glanced over at Elena, pivoting on his heels. He could tell that she was nervous when he gazed over at her and just when the doctor asked if he could step out of the room, Stefan replied hastily. "Can I stay with her instead?"

The doctor smiled politely, shaking his head when a nurse came in and glanced up at Stefan too. "I'll be right outside the door, okay?" He told Elena, staring directly into her eyes, getting up slowly and watching as she nodded back at him when he left the room. "Okay." She whispered softly.


"Lexi, it's Stefan..So, have you heard anything back from your department about where Katherine is hiding?" Stefan asked as he sat down in an empty waiting room that was just a few feet away from Elena.

"Well, yes and no. I found some unusual phone records though. I've been trying to pinpoint the location of them and I finally found out who these calls are coming from . Katherine's called and has been receiving phone calls from a number that's originally from North Carolina from a cell phone registered under a guy named, Matt Donovan. Stefan, do you know him?"

The other line went silent as Lexi exhaled deeply and and continued to write down more notes on the things she found. Stefan leaned back into his chair, trying to think of all the people he had come across throughout his travels and nothing sounded familiar about the man that Lexi was talking about. "No, I've never heard of him before. Why would he be calling Katherine?" He questioned as Lexi sighed out a breath.

"Hang on...I just found something really weird...Katherine's sisters name is Elena Gilbert, right?" Lexi asked him curiously, causing Stefan to rub his temples and stop when the mention of Elena came into their conversation.

"Yeah..Why?" Stefan questioned as Lexi swallowed hard and then she replied. "Stefan, I know her. It took me a few minutes to connect the dots. But, I've come across her before on the streets."

"What?" Stefan asked in a shocked tone as Lexi ran her hands over her face and exhaled deeply, explaining her words.

"I had mistaken Elena for Katherine once when I was out on the streets one night patrolling the downtown area with my partner…" Lexi recalled as she shook her head to erase the memory. But, she could still see it in front of her, all of it- like it had just happened yesterday….

It was cold and snowing. She remembered it well since that night was the first time that she had found herself with nowhere to sleep, in the city that she felt like she barely knew. It was the first night that she wasn't being hunted down by anyone, the first night where she was completely anonymous. The frigid cold snow flakes were hitting her thin and dark red jacket as she leaned against a park bench and scooped up her feet against her body, closing her eyes briefly for a moment of silence.

She was exhausted. With no money to her name and no credit cards, Elena had thought that sleeping in the park out in the open wouldn't have been the most ideal place. However, it was the only place where she felt like she could rest for a bit until she moved on to somewhere warmer for the night, that was until she heard a police car pull up to the side of her and two people stepped out.

"Hey! You can't sleep here, you'll freeze to death!" Someone shouted, the loud echoing voice was coming from the left side of her and she could hear the crunching noise of the snow under their feet when she glanced up and pushed off up from the bench, running as fast as she could.

"Hey! I said you can't sleep here! What the hell..Why is she running?" The police officer asked her partner as the young blonde haired woman shrugged her shoulders back and exhaled deeply.

"I have no idea. Maybe she has a record or something..Ugh, looks like we have to go after her." The blonde commented, picking up speed and cutting off the young brunette who looked like she hadn't slept or eaten anything in days.

"I said. Stop running!" The blonde commented in a harsh tone, tackling Elena down to the ground as she tried to fight her off, feeling her body and face being pushed into the snow and then she was lifted up from the cold and into the air, standing on her two feet with cuffs placed on her hands.

"Please, let me go! Please, I can't go to jail..I didn't do anything. Let me go of me!" Elena shouted, thrashing and trying to get herself loose from the cuffs as she could feel her body being pushed up against the police car and then the blonde frisked her.

"Do you have anything on you that's going to poke me?" She questioned as she turned Elena around and locked her brown eyes on to her in astonishment.

"Mrs. Salvatore?" The blonde questioned as she watched her partner glance up at her and shake her head. "Are you sure about that Police Officer Branson? You don't want to make you a rookie mistake by arresting Mr. Salvatore's missing wife! You know that if you did that, that you'd be all over the news."

"Ma'am, are you this woman?" Lexi asked her as Elena squinted her eyes and glanced at the picture that was being illuminated by the street lights that were shining above them, a missing poster with details of the woman that they were speaking of. Elena felt dizzy as Lexi undid the handcuffs on her and took the poster away, taking a step back and allowing some space in between them.

"If he's hurting you, we can place you in a shelter and they can help you..Listen, if-." Lexi began to say as Elena stared up at her and with quivering lips and chilled hands she said. "I'm sorry. But, I said let me go. I didn't do anything wrong and I don't know who that is..I just want to be away from him!" Elena told her, squirming out of her grasp as she pushed Lexi against the squad car door hard enough until she fell backwards and into the snow. Allowing Elena to take off down the street and disappear into the night.

"What the hell was that! Are you okay?" Lexi's partner asked as she watched her get up and shake her head. "I don't know. But, whoever the hell that was. We need to find her, we need to find her now!" Lexi shouted, telling her partner to get back into the squad car so that they could patrol the streets for the mysterious woman that looked identical to one of the biggest socialites that Chicago had come to know very well.

Lexi exhaled deeply, nodding when she stated. "Yes, I'm 100% percent that I saw Elena that night. We searched for her all night long, I remember her well. She was a dead ringer for Katherine. But, we couldn't find her anywhere and then a few months later, it was reported that Katherine Salvatore was found alive by you. So, Stefan, how much has Elena told you about her past relationships and her life before she met you?"

Lexi rubbed her face over her hands, still holding on to the phone as Stefan leaned back into his chair, closing his eyes and trying to think about how much Elena had told him about her past and who she was before she came into his life. But, all he was drawing was a huge blank in his mind when he replied back to Lexi's question. "She didn't tell me that almost got arrested by you. And, it's never been nothing too much in detail about her being homeless...Lexi, where are you going with this?" He asked her, the silence on the phone line was deafening when Stefan asked again in a demanding tone. "What is she not telling me!"

A good five minutes had gone by when Lexi finally responded in a stressed and saddened tone. "Stefan, Matt Donovan knew Elena well. She had tons of complaints against him and he had even served time for sending her to the hospital once. But, nothing else was able to stick because he was set free on bail. And, that's where the trail runs cold because Elena stopped showing up on the police database anymore. That night I ran into her, was the first time anyone had any contact with her since she had escaped him...Elena's been running from Matt for years, attempting to stay under the radar, that's why she ran off from me. She was afraid that I was going to contact him and send her back. He's terrified her ever since she escaped him."

"Matt and Elena...Lexi...I don't think that-" Stefan began to say, clutching the phone into his hand angrily when he heard Lexi finally admit. "They were romantically involved and living together for a long time, Stefan. He was her boyfriend."

Stefan could feel his jaw tighten, his hands shaking with anger towards Matt and a little towards Elena when he got up and told Lexi that he had to go.

"Stefan, don't you dare tell her that you know about this." Lexi warned as Stefan exhaled and then he replied. "Elena and I, we don't really keep secrets from each other, unless it's to protect one another- at least I thought we didn't. I need to talk to her about it, Lexi. I need to know what happened to her and more about this Matt guy..What if he's still after her? huh?"

Lexi sighed. "Stefan, we'll figure it out without Elena's help. Please, she doesn't need this stress, remember?"

Stefan nodded, she was right. Matt Donovan should have been the least of their worries and making Elena better should have been the primary focus. But, Stefan had felt like he couldn't sit still and he wouldn't be able to rest easy if he didn't know more about him and if he was still a threat to her life.

"I'm going to ask her, Lexi. I need to know..I need to know if he's someone that I need to protect her from too. You understand that right?" He asked her as she inhaled deeply and remarked. "I do, I get it. But, just….just remember that it might bring back memories for her that she doesn't want to remember regarding him." Lexi reminded him as Stefan nodded, making his way towards Elena's room and stepping in front of it with a deep breath before he knocked on the door and heard her soft voice reply for him to come in.

"Yeah, I know. Listen, I'll call you later." Stefan said softly, placing the phone into his hands as Lexi agreed and then they both hung up.

"Hey." She said smiling, adjusting herself in the hospital bed when he pushed the door open completely. Elena watched Stefan approach her slowly as he sat down across from her and cleared his throat nervously.

"Elena, you trust me..right?" He asked, watching as she nodded and smiled at him with a confused facial expression on her face.

"Of course I do..Stefan, what's going on? Is something the matter?" Elena asked him as he bowed down his head and looked at her hand that was now in his lap, his thumb stroking the top of it when his curious eyes finally met hers and his anger subsided as he inhaled sharply and then he asked with a straight face, looking directly into her eyes. "Tell me about Matt Donovan...Tell me about the past that you've been running from."


The mention of Matt's name made her body stiffen as she took her hand away from Stefan and placed it back into her own lap. It was evident that saying his name had stirred something inside of the brunette and Stefan refused to let it go.

"Tell me about him, please." He pushed her, watching as she bit down on her lower lip nervously and shook her head, tears appearing on to the brim of her lashes.

"I can't." Elena said, swallowing the lump that formed in her throat and just when she thought that he'd let it go and stop with trying to figure more about her ex-boyfriend. Stefan urged her, his eyes were pleading with her.

"Please, Elena...Please, you don't need to tell me everything. Just tell me who he was to you and why you're scared of him." Stefan commented, leaning into Elena as she flinched away and wiped away her now falling tears.

"Why do you want to know about him so much? To protect me? Stefan, it's too late for that! It's too late for me to be protected by you! I was shot and I've been homeless, I was left to die because of him..I don't-." She began to say as Stefan tilted his head to the side, watching her eyes become even more water and her face fill with anger as the tears fell down her cheeks and she whispered. "I don't want to remember..I don't want to remember….Please, don't make me remember what he did to me..Please, stop it." She begged him. Stefan leaned towards her, getting up from his chair and bringing her face against his chest as he stroked her hair and she sobbed against him, repeating over and over again. "Please, don't make me remember what he did to me.. Please, Stefan..Please, I don't want to remember..."

"Elena, I'll stop. I'll stop, okay? I just, I want to help you be safe." Stefan told her, his fingertips stroking her hair down against her damp cheeks as Elena cried out in a wailing sob. Stefan shushed her crying as he held her in his arms and placed his chin against the top of her head as Elena's crying increased and then she was silent, closing her eyes and unresponsive to Stefan as she felt herself drift back to that night at the paper mill where Matt had left her...

"Elena! Elena!" Katherine ran into the room, bending down towards her sister in the barely lit room as felt her hand being covered in blood.

"Help me..Please, help me." Elena stammered out in a weakened voice, holding her stomach as the blood seeping out of her gunshot wounds covered her shirt and Katherine leaned down in front of her in horror, applying pressure to her wounds.

" Elena, you need to lean back so that I can help you, we need to stop the bleeding... I'm so sorry. This was never supposed to happen. But, you're going to be okay. You're going to be okay, I promise. We just need to get you help." Katherine told her in a hurried tone as she heard a frantic voice on the phone.

"Ma'am...Hello? Elena, I need to know where you are!" The 911 operator exclaimed as Katherine glanced down at the phone that had been near Elena and she closed her eyes, inhaling sharply and grabbing it off the ground as Elena watched Katherine hang up.

"What are you doing, that's my only chance. Please, Katherine, don't leave me to die here!" Elena said in a voice that was hoarse and barely there as Katherine inhaled deeply and locked her tearful gaze on to her sister when she stated. "I'm going to make things right, I'm going to help you. It could take them long to get here. But, I'm going to get you out of here and to the nearest hospital, I promise..This was my fault and I'm sorry..I'm so sorry." Katherine said in an apologetic tone, helping Elena to her feet and applying pressure to her wounds as she helped her out of the building and to the back alley where her car was parked, out of sight from any people passing by and from any street lights.

She used all of her upper body strength to place Elena's fragile battered and bleeding body into the car, blood staining her cream colored jacket and her hands as Katherine closed the car door and briskly walked over to the driver's side, driving towards the hospital at an alarming high speed.

"I'm so tired...Please, just let me go to sleep, I just want to close my eyes." Elena begged, crying and crying out in agony from the pain as she held the shirt against her stomach that Katherine had used to help soak up the blood.

"No...This was all my fault. I did this to you. It was never supposed to happen like this. I'm sorry, Elena...I'm so sorry that I brought him back into your life..That I caused this for you, I didn't know he was going to do this! All I wanted was my old life back. But, I didn't want it be like this…I didn't want him to shoot you." Katherine's voice broke when she glanced over at her sister and turned down the exit that was to the closest hospital, which was only a few short minutes from the paper mill that Elena had been found at.

Katherine wiped her blood stained hands off her jeans and pulled over to the side of the E.R. entrance as she lifted a hoodie that was attached to her jacket over her face and exited the car, quickly yanking Elena out of the passenger side and placing her shaking and nearly unconscious body on to the curb as Katherine inhaled deeply and bowed her head down when whispered into Elena's ear. "You're not going to remember any of this. I'm sorry that I put you through so much. But, I'm getting you help now, I'm going to make sure that they save your life. Because, I'm to blame for this and I need to make things right."

Elena's eyes opened widely as she screamed in agony when Katherine placed her on to the cold ground as Elena's wailing screams of pain, caused a nurse that was a few feet away, walking back towards the hospital from her dinner break to run towards her, just as Katherine got back into her car, speeding off and out of sight without another word or glance back at the hospital.

"I remember now…." Elena rambled on as Stefan sat back down in his chair and grabbed her moistened face in between his hands as he locked his worrisome gaze on to Elena's and asked. "Do you remember Katherine doing this to you?"

She huffed out a quivering warm breath as she locked her tearful eyes on to his intense looking face as she confessed. " It wasn't Katherine, Stefan...Katherine dropped me off at the hospital. But, she wasn't the one who shot me...I remember now, she tried to help me. Katherine didn't shoot me...Matt Donovan, my ex-boyfriend did."

It was like a pin dropped as his eyes blinked at her and he tilted his head to the side, releasing his grasp from Elena's face and backing away from her hesitantly. He looked as if he was going to be sick.

"What's wrong?" Elena asked him, her brown eyes widening when she saw him back away from her with his hands in his pockets and a facial expression that made it clear that he was jolted by her words. "I need to go, I need to call someone. I'll be back!" He exclaimed, pivoting on his heels and exiting Elena's room without another word as he walked down the hallway and fumbled with his cell phone, dialing her number.

Pick up...Come, Pick up! Stefan's mind screamed when her phone went straight to voice mail and that's when he left a panicked message. "Lexi, we have the wrong person! Whatever you do..Don't go after Katherine tonight because it'll tip him off...Katherine's not the shooter, Lexi. Matt Donovan is!"


Lexi stood in front of the house, hands folded over her chest as she smirked to herself and told her partner to back her up. "She's probably going to be violent. So, we'll need to radio for more backup. Just, keep your guard up when we go into the house." She explained, watching her partner nod as Lexi placed her hand onto her gun holster and knocked on the door, getting the go ahead from her partner that was standing right behind her to try and coax Katherine out of the house first.

As the door opened, Lexi's eyes grew wide when she glanced up to see Katherine barely dressed, her hair pinned back into a low ponytail, her robe had one of the sleeves gliding off her shoulder and she had a ice cold smirk on her face that made Lexi's muscles tighten, forcing herself to no arrest her there and then.

"Katherine Salvatore?" Lexi asked in a professional manner, watching Katherine's eyes glistening when she extended out her wrists and sighed out a breath. "Save the whole 'I'm a cop, speech.' You look like one and I already know you are...I remember you, Lexi. It's just pretty damn ironic that you're here and not someone else. So, you must think I put Elena in that hospital bed. Well, I can save you a lot of paperwork by telling you that I didn't do it. Yes, I brought her to the hospital. But, that's it."

"Tell that to a judge when you're in court." Lexi stated, hearing Katherine huff out a breath as Lexi stepped inside the house and pushed Katherine against one of the walls, her face pressed up against it when she stammered out. "I didn't do anything wrong. What the hell are you doing and on what grounds are you arresting me for!"

" On the attempted murder of your sister, Elena Gilbert. And, as of right now. You're my only suspect. So, Katherine Salvatore. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you. Do you understand the rights I have just read to you? With these rights in mind, do you wish to speak to me?" Lexi said in a very calmed and collected tone, tightening the handcuffs around Katherine's wrists and pulling her off the wall as Lexi turned towards her partner and added. "Find her boyfriend and bring him in too. Let's just do this before the media catches wind of it and before they make it into a frenzy."

"The media and news reporters? I can't be arrested looking like this! Do you know what they'll say about me...That I was found in Elijah Mikaelson's house, having an affair with him...I wasn't..I swear, we were just talking." Katherine bickered as Lexi walked her towards the squad car, opening the door when Katherine locked her pleading eyes on to her. "Please, Lexi...Please, let me go back inside and change into something nicer."

" Talking with your clothes off inside of his house? ha,I'm sorry, Katherine. But, are you seriously talking about a change of clothing too. Don't worry, Mrs. Salvatore...We'll, give you a nice orange jump suit at the county jail before we go into talks about having you live in the state penitentiary for the rest of your life." Lexi smirked, placing her hand on top of Katherine's head and placed her into the back of the squad car as she watched her partner drag Elijah out of the house too, in a pair of shorts and a thin cotton t-shirt.

"We're just going to talk to you at the station, Mr. Mikaelson. You have nothing to worry." She stated, smiling up at Lexi and nodding, pulling him along with her as she watched Lexi get into her car and back out of the driveway, taking Katherine straight to the police department.


"It's done. We got them." Lexi said, leaning her against a table in one of the empty interrogation rooms as she listened to Katherine being interrogated and held the cell phone into her other hand, listening to a sigh come out of Stefan's mouth.

"You didn't get any of my messages, did you?" He asked her in a frantic tone, running his fingers through his hair and glancing over at Elena who was watching TV, a smile appearing on her face as she sat and watched reruns of The Bachelor.

"No, I just got back into the station. I didn't have time to check my messages, Stefan. I was too busy arresting Katherine for murder. Now, what's going on?" She asked him in an annoyed tone as he stepped out of Elena's room and closed the door behind him.

"Elena remembered what happened to her, Lexi. Katherine didn't pull the trigger. You were right, Matt Donovan was Elena's boyfriend.. But, he was also the one who shot her, leaving her at the paper mill, hoping that no one would find her. But, we have a problem- a very big one-no one can find Matt anywhere. And, we need to find him, Lexi. He could have left the country undetected and that is a problem." Stefan told her.

Stefan huffed out a breath, taking a moment to think and then he told her in a firm and confident tone. "I'll handle it as long as no one stops me- including you, I will take care of this. I'll have a few different people look after Elena, take turns checking up on her. She'll be safe since you'll be busy detaining Katherine. And, I'll have Klaus take over Dasells for a few days. Just get something to stick to Katherine's charges so that she won't be released before I come back." Stefan explained as Lexi opened her mouth to argue with him. But, she quickly stopped herself when he added. "It's Elena, Lexi. She means more to me than you'll ever know and I'll do anything to keep her safe. So, if it means going after Matt Donovan and finding him myself. I'll do it."

"Stefan. That's insane. You're not a cop! You don't even know where to look for him at!" She tried to say as he scoffed at her words and smirked just a bit. "Yeah, I'm not a police officer. I'm fully aware of that. However, you're wrong about the other thing...You're the one who tipped me off to where he's from..He's running scared and most likely, he won't be hard to find- unless Katherine paid him off and he went overseas. Besides, I'm not going alone. I'm going to call Damon and convince him to come with me. Shouldn't be that hard since my brother feels the same way I do about scumbags like Matt Donovan. Once Matt comes across us. He's going to wish he never got involved with Elena at all. Believe me, he'll never see it coming."

"Stefan! What are going to do to him when you find him? Stefan! I want him alive..You better not-." She began to say as Stefan laughed a little and popped his neck to the side. "Relax, Officer Branson. I'm just going to sit down with him and my brother and the three of us are going to have a friendly little chat about Elena Gilbert. That's it."


"Hey you..Who were you talking to out there?" Elena asked him, watching Stefan come back into her room as he placed his cell phone into the back pocket of his jeans, a relaxed smiled appearing across his face when he pulled up a chair and grabbed a hold of her hand, his face suddenly becoming unusually serious.

"Elena, I want to talk to you about something..." He began to say, grabbing a hold of her hand into his own gently. Elena felt Stefan's thumb stroke the top of her hand as she looked up at him, still smiling but not as much as she was when she first saw him walk through the door.

"What''s going on?" Elena asked him, her eyes filled with curiosity as Stefan leaned back into his chair, right before kissing the top of her hand and locking his forest green eyes on to her. "I need to go away for a few days. Damon and I have this silly conference in New York and it's going to be really boring. I don't want you to worry though. I'm going to be calling and checking in on you, the whole time that I'm there. I promise and you're going to be safe here. I called your brother and asked if he could come down to be with you- until I get back and we'll make plans to leave this city, together."

"Stefan, why didn't you tell me about this before..Does it have anything to do with Katherine?" Elena asked him, her eyes narrowing as he gently lifted up her chin so that her eyes were level with his, he smiled a bit, caressing her cheek when he said. "I don't want you to worry about anything, Elena. All I want is you to be safe and to focus on getting better."

"But, tell me where your going." Elena begged him, as he leaned into her, kissing her forehead and telling her to scoot over. Elena obliged as she watched him push back the covers and just like before, he slide under the sheets beside her, pulling her against his chest and stroking the top of her head as he exhaled heavily with his other hand intertwined with hers when he said. "Close your eyes for a moment."

"Why?" She questioned, resting her chin on his chest as she gazed up at him and saw a small grin form across his lips.

"Just humor me." He told her with a laugh, glancing at her to make sure that she had done as he had asked and when she had both of her eyes closed he took her hand and slipped something that was cool to the touch against her right hand and onto her finger.

Elena swallowed hard, smiling just a little when she felt Stefan kiss her hand that he had placed what she knew was a ring on it. "Open them now." He told her softly, watching as she looked down at the ring and saw exactly what it was.

"It's an infinity ring..." Her voice trailed off as he smiled at her and leaned in to kiss her lips, his thumb rubbing her cheek when he corrected her as he leaned back to look at her. "It's a promise ring that after all of this is over that we'll still be together. I've been waiting to give it to you for awhile now and right now seemed like the perfect timing."

"Stefan, where are you going?" She asked him once more in a pleading tone, hearing him exhale. He hated keeping secrets from her, he hated lying to her. But, he had no choice. He couldn't tell her the truth, he didn't want her to worry about him.

"I told you. It's just a conference in New York with Damon regarding Dasells. It's going to be just for a few days. Then, I'll be back." He tried to say again as she rolled her eyes at him and got up from her position beside him clearly agitated with him when she swung her legs over the bed and slowly tried to stand on her shaky legs.

"Elena. Please-." He began to say as she shook her head, leaning against a chair in her room when she glared up at him. "You're lying to me!" She shouted out into the suddenly quiet room as she watched him get up too, attempting to help her as he watched her slowly lift up her hospital gown, revealing her bruises and her incision that the doctors had made to save her life.

"Please, Stefan for once in our relationship. Be honest with me. I was shot, Stefan! I was shot by a man that I thought was never going to find me again because your wife and my sister brought him back to town. He found me because of her and now, because of it..I'll be left with this as a reminder, every single day of what he did to me, for the rest of my life and god knows what else from his actions. Who's going to love me like this, if the doctors tell me that I can't have kids..Who's going to want to be with me, like this?" Elena asked him angrily, her hands shaking as she lowered the gown and watched Stefan slowly approached her now trembling body, pulling her into his arms.

"I will. I always will want you. No matter what happens, Elena. I always will." He told her, kissing the top of her head as he held her and felt her shaking body calm just a bit as she began to cry when he stated abruptly. "I don't want to lie to you anymore. So, here's the truth. I'm going with Damon to find Matt and we're going to stop him from hurting you, Elena. He needs to pay for what he did, he can't just walk free after everything he's done."

She slowly lifted up her face from his chest, her voice stammering as she tried to say something. But, Stefan placed his finger on to her lips when he uttered out. "I'm doing this for you, because of you. I want you to know that before you start to hate me, that I'm doing this so that you don't have to live in fear anymore. Because, I love you more than anything and you mean so much more to me than you'll ever know. You're safe with me, Elena. But, I want Matt gone and-" Stefan began to say as he heard a knock at the door before it was pushed open and Jeremy stepped inside, his hands in his pockets and small smile on his face that quickly turned into a frown as Stefan kissed Elena once more before stepping away from her, shocked looking face.

"Take care of her for me, for the next few days. And make sure that under no circumstances does anyone that I don't authorize come into her room." He told him as he watched Elena lean against the bed, tears streaming down her face when she said in a hoarse and begging voice. "Don't go, Stefan..don't go..Please, Stefan, come back!"

"He'll be back, Elena. I promise, he will." Jeremy told her, helping her back into the bed as he nodded at Stefan who was closing the door behind him. Elena leaned into Jeremy and sobbed when Stefan's footsteps couldn't be heard anymore.

Stefan's cell phone was already in his hands as he texted Damon while walking down the hall.

Just leaving the hospital now. Left Elena with her brother. Called and talked to Klaus and Caroline, they said that they'll keep an eye on her too. So, you ready to plan this little trip?"

He made his way out through one set of the double doors outside of the hospital. But, just as he made it through the second set that lead to the street, he was swarmed with cameras flashing in his face and eager news reporters that were shouting at him. "Mr. Salvatore! Mr. Salvatore, what are your thoughts on your wife, Katherine Salvatore being arrested for the attempted murder of her twin sister, Elena Gilbert? Mr. Salvatore are you going to finally admit that you've been having an intimate relationship with Elena?"

His eyes widened, body stiffened and just when he opened his mouth to speak, he felt himself being shoved into a car by a man that had his hands firmly placed on to his shoulders. It had happened so quickly that Stefan didn't even have time to blink. But, when he heard the door shut from behind him and glanced up to see who had shoved him inside of his yellow Lamborghini Aventador sports car with tinted windows, he smiled.

"I just saved your ass from being eaten alive by those vultures. A thank you would have been nice." Damon smirked, placing the car into drive and peeling out from the parking lot, smirking to himself as dust collected behind them and he made his way on to the freeway.

"Damon?" Stefan questioned, opening his mouth as he lifted his hand and smiled, explaining. "Lexi called me, telling me that you wanted to go on a hunt for Elena's ex-boyfriend by yourself. She called you crazy and then she told me that I should tag along. Don't worry, I finally got your message from Rebekah and she agreed that she and Caroline would try to go and befriend Elena. They don't know her very well, so that should be awkward. But, where are we going?" Damon asked him.

"I thought you wouldn't want to come with me, after everything that's happened." Stefan told him, hearing Damon snort out a laugh.

"Please, you need me, Stefan. So, I'm here. Now, are we taking a private plane or are we riding coach and acting like normal people and not rich business men?" Damon asked him with a smile as he watched Stefan stare out the window when he noticed that they were going towards the airport.

"Normal people, Damon. We're staying low key." He replied flatly, gazing over to see Damon's eyebrow arch when he opened his mouth to ask him another question. But, Stefan replied before he could even say anything. "North Carolina, Damon..We're going to North Carolina to try and find Matt Donovan. " Stefan explained as Damon shook his head and smiled. "Okay then, low key and coach plane tickets it is...Let's go pay old Matty a nice visit, if he hasn't already left town yet."

"I highly doubt that he has. But, trust me..Once we find him. He's going to wish he had." Stefan told Damon, glanced out the window and getting lost in his own thoughts as they drove towards the airport in silence.


A/N: Hope you all found that interesting :) Feel free to leave me a review.

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