Tyler's father was a raging asshole and if he'd been on the other side of the door, Mayor or not, nothing could have made Elena open it at 8 AM, a bare three hours after she and her friends finally fell asleep. Tyler's mother was kind of uptight and a little too into the Founders' heritage, but she wasn't a horrible person so Elena forced her perfect founder's daughter smile on her face and opened the door.
"Good morning, Mrs. Lockwood."
"Good morning, Elena," the woman greeted her with an equally bright and presumably equally false smile. "I'm so glad I caught you at home, I'm hoping you can help me with the Founder's Council heritage display for the ball."
"Of course!" Elena enthused, brightening her smile. No time like the present to get started on her and Caroline's promise to Bonnie. "I'm so excited to see how we can maintain traditions and respect our history while showing the growth of Mystic Falls into a town where reminders of the more shameful parts of our past, such as our unfortunate support for the confederates, are relegated to teaching moments instead of celebratory displays."
Mrs. Lockwood's smile faltered for a moment, her mouth opening as if to speak twice before she managed to assume a bright smile of her own. "Well, I'm happy to hear that the newest generation of Founder's families has such passion for our town."
Elena bit down on a laugh at the shock and discomfort hidden by Carol's polite response. "We do! Caroline, Bonnie, and I were just talking last night about our interest in the history of the town and our hopes for future town events."
"That's wonderful," Mrs. Lockwood replied, somewhere between sincerity and wary caution that Elena might continue to poke at uncomfortable subjects. "I would love to discuss this more with you girls, but I actually stopped by to see if we could collect some heirlooms, particularly a lovely watch that belonged to Jonathan Gilbert?"
Pulse jumping, Elena conjured her most innocent look. There was definitely still a council and Carol Lockwood was on it, Elena would bet a good chunk of her trust fund on that fact. "I'm so sorry, Mrs. Lockwood, when my parents' died a lot of their things were put in storage. I'm not sure where any of our old Gilbert items are, but I'll see what I can find before the ball."
The faintest flicker of disappointment and frustration flashed in Carol Lockwood's blue eyes before drowning in the southern charm baked into them since birth. "Do let me know if I can be of any help in locating them, we would really love to have that watch to go with all the other heirlooms on display."
"Oh I couldn't put you out like that, not when you have so much to do for the ball!" Elena said, weaponizing that same charm back at the older woman. "But let me know if Bonnie, Caroline, and I can help in any way."
Mrs. Lockwood nodded, apparently out of words to respond to the unexpected turns in their conversation, before managing one last sweet smile. "Thank you, dear. I'll let you know. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to meet with the caterers."
Elena waved her off, then slumped against the door after closing it behind her, severe lack of sleep balancing the enjoyment of having won that little exchange. When she looked up, Jeremy was staring at her, forehead wrinkled in a frown. "You're a really good liar."
A noise somewhere between a hysterical laugh and a furious sob caught in Elena's throat, more influenced by sleep deprivation and the stress of last night's events than her brother's words, however true they were. Maybe the truest fact about her.
"It's the family legacy," she told him, once she could speak without letting any other emotions out, then nodded at him. "I wasn't going to let her take it, I know dad wanted you to have it."
It burned a little, to call him dad, but whatever secrets lay in her bloodline, Grayson Gilbert had been the only father she'd ever known and she wasn't going to take that title from him just because of a magical DNA test.
Jeremy managed a smile at that. "Going to tell me all about your vampire secrets now?"
His tone was hard to read, she hadn't been wrong about lying being a Gilbert trait, and she couldn't tell if now, after a night of sleep, however short, he believed whatever he had overheard her telling Bonnie and Caroline. "Do you believe me? That vampires are real? That magic is real?"
"I mean, I kind of think you're crazy. But it explains a lot about our lives and what happened to Vicky and her mom," he told her, genuine humor in his voice as she made a face. "And I've seen the journals," he continued, tone going blank again. "So sure. Vampires. Does Jenna know?"
Elena shook her head. "No, she doesn't know anything. About the Gilberts or vampires." She stopped for a second, frowning. "She might know one thing I haven't told you, because I just found out myself and I still don't know how or why it happened?"
Her brother raised a skeptical eyebrow and Elena grimaced, then ripped the bandaid off. "Apparently Uncle John is my biological father. Based on how old I am, I'm guessing I was a highschool baby and that's why Dad and Mom claimed me as theirs."
It was Jeremy's turn to make a choking sound of disbelief and he scrubbed a hand through his hair, staring at her with wide eyes. "Wow. I guess lying really is a Gilbert thing."
Elena snorted, then walked past him to drop face down on the couch. If this conversation was going to continue, she needed to be prone. "Lying and killing vampires," she said, voice muffled by the couch. "But at least we have trust funds."
Jeremy sat on her legs, resisting her brief and futile efforts to buck him off the couch. "You think Jenna knows?"
Craning her head to give him a sullen glare, Elena nodded. "We know she dated John in high school. And her and mom were close, she would have known she wasn't pregnant."
"You don't think she's your mom, do you? Cause that would be kind of fucked up. Not incest, but like, weird."
Elena shook her head, her nose brushing against the fabric of the couch in her fervor. "No, it was someone named Isobel. She went to high school with them, but I don't know anything else."
She hadn't had time to find out anything more, not between Matt and Vicky leaving town, school, and now Damon Salvatore. She wanted to find more. Wanted to understand the connection to Katherine, to know if Isobel was still alive. She didn't know how she felt about the idea of another mother, but she hoped she'd have time to figure it out. Just one pesky murderous vampire to deal with and then maybe they could all have some breathing room.
Wiggling her legs out from under Jeremy's, Elena sat up, turning to face him with an empty couch cushion between them. "I don't know how much you heard, but there's a vampire in town. Damon Salvatore. He attacked Vicky, he killed her mom, and last night he killed Coach Tanner. He's extremely dangerous and I need you to be careful. Try not to be out at night and don't invite anyone into the house."
Jeremy's expression had darkened, anger sharpening the lines of his jaw. "I'm not going to hide while you and your friends go on a girl power rampage. I'm a Gilbert too. And I'm not letting him get away with hurting Vicky."
"Girl power?" Elena asked in a warning tone, trying to hide the panic she felt at the idea of Jeremy fighting Damon Salvatore, or any other vampire.
"Whatever, Elena," her brother said, rolling his eyes. "Lecture me about feminism later. You can't keep me out of this."
Biting her lip, Elena stared at his stubborn expression. She could keep him out of it. But she'd have to resort to things that would damage their relationship beyond repair. And she couldn't do it forever. If she said yes, she could keep an eye on him, help him learn and help him stay safe. And, hopefully, still have a brother who might eventually grow out of the teenage, can't say 'I love you' phase.
"Fine. But you have to actually listen to me. You know that because of what I am, I have a lot of experience with vampires. They absolutely can be killed, but that doesn't mean they're not incredibly dangerous. So you can help, but you have to be careful and you have to promise to never go after him alone," she said, her voice low and serious.
His jaw tightened, stubborn frustration clear in his face before he reluctantly gave a half nod. "Only if you promise the same thing. No solo slaying. You're the one he's stalking."
Elena grimaced, at the reminder and the words, but nodded back. "I won't go after him alone." She wouldn't. But that didn't mean that Damon wouldn't find her when she was alone. It could almost be counted on. But if Jeremy hadn't thought of that, she had no intention of pointing it out and risking this fragile agreement.
Standing up from the couch, she stretched, then walk around it toward the stairs. "I'm going back to bed. See you later, Jer."
He let out a half-grunt of acknowledgment and she bit back a sigh. Everything would feel better after she'd had more than three hours of sleep.
Even the idea of attending a fancy town ball while there was a murderous vampire on the loose and three people she loved determined to help end him.