"Just one more," Damon says, holding up three fingers.
"Alright." Enzo nods, holding up a finger of his own. "One more."
"It's good to see you, Enzo. Elena mentioned that you and Bonnie married. Where is she?"
"Bonnie's mom was in a car wreck so she and Sheila flew to Houston to spend some time with her. Abby's going to be fine, she just needs some help until she gets on her feet again. She broke an arm and a leg, no internal injuries."
"That's good news." Damon clinks his glass with Enzo's and brings the glass to his lips.
"How's your dad doing? I heard he's in the hospital."
"Yeah, fell and broke his hip. Elena called me and as easy as it should've been to stay away, I couldn't do it. He and I have had our ups and downs but he's still my dad. I want to know why he walked away."
"I don't have an answer for you." Enzo shakes his head.
"I think Elena knows but she said it's Giuseppe's story to tell," Damon adds, finishing his drink. "I need to run. I'll be here a little longer, maybe we can get together with Elena before I go back?"
"Of course," Enzo empties his glass.
Damon settles their tab and walks through the crowd to the exit. Instead of the normal buzz of nature, the sound of retching greets him after the door closes behind him.
He rolls his eyes and walks in the opposite direction...
Dusk comes sooner than expected, the last of the sun's rays cosset behind soft grey clouds
The trees are crazy silhouettes against a newly silver sky, its blue hue is almost gone. Their branches sway in the wind, creaking into the gusting air. The first sound of the nocturnal animals comes, a hoot of an owl, a rabbit taking cover in the hedgerow.
Damon smiles. Life in the city seems a world away and he can't remember the last time he heard the sounds of nature.
Abruptly he notices someone walking down the gravel road. Curious, he slows down as he catches up with her. "Elena? What are you doing walking alone at this hour?"
"Damon Salvatore? What are you doing alone at this hour?" Elena echoes his words mockingly as she walks over to his window.
"I was having a couple of drinks with Enzo."
"It's good that you two could catch up."
"Yeah, it was. Now get in, I'll take you home."
"If you insist," she grouses at him.
"I do," he adds, leaning over in his seat to open the passenger door for her. "Don't you think it's kind of dangerous to be out like this? A drunk driver could have hit you and who knows what else lurks in the dark?" Damon locks eyes with hers.
"Damon, we're in Mystic Falls, not LA. Besides, I'm submitting a proposal to the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources. It's about data collection and monitoring the overall health of our local deer herds. CWD is a disease of deer and elk that has been confirmed in 10 Virginia counties."
"CWD?"
"Chronic Wasting Disease," Elena clarifies for him. "It's fatal to animals and there are no treatments or vaccines..."
"You're never going to leave this tiny town are you?" Damon remarks, shooting her a glance.
Elena shakes her head. "I love it here, Damon. So unless something unforeseeable occurs, I think I'm destined to melt my way through life in the great State of Virginia because I can't imagine ever leaving."
"That's…"
"So, tell me, Damon. what did 'Mr. Most Likely to Succeed' major in? You were our class president until you had to resign when you moved away. Law maybe? You were always good at charming your way out of trouble. How many times did Liz pull you aside for a chat?"
"She and my dad are buddies. So yeah, there were a few times but Liz only took me to jail once, and we were 12 years old at the time," Damon defends himself. "It was for trespassing on Mrs. Ott's property, old hag that she was."
"You do know that your notoriety is well known in these parts," Elena teases, winking at him.
"Mystic Falls has nothing better to gossip about than my youthful indiscretions?" Damon scoffs.
"I heard you tried to run but Matt Donovan tackled you to get on Mrs. Ott's good side."
"Son of a bitch was fast. He was always a brown-nosing ass kisser."
"He was the Timberwolves quarterback," Elena points out. "And he's still an S.O.B.," she adds under her breath.
Damon runs his tongue over his bottom lip and smiles. "At the time I was thinking about my dad reading me the riot act...or worse!"
"And did he?"
"No, but he took my allowance away for two weeks."
"For trespassing?" Elena laughs. "So, Damon, what was it? College, I mean."
"Pre-med."
"I thought you were afraid of blood? You passed out on the school playground that time Caroline had a bloody nose."
"Christ, Elena! What were we, four when that happened? And it was preschool!" Damon looks at her incredulously.
"I'm just teasing."
"I did one year of college and then I got my music contract...you know the rest," Damon explains.
"Yep, you live in the big city, travel the world in first class, and make a ton of money."
"Yes, but if I was in the city, I couldn't do this!" Damon smiles smugly, jerking the wheel and taking them off the road and into the muddy countryside.
Elena reaches for the window switch but isn't quick enough. Mud splatters across her right arm and into her hair.
"You son of a –"
"Don't finish that sentence. It isn't very ladylike," Damon quips, winking at her.
"Don't do stupid things then." Elena scowls, extending her middle finger toward him.
"Oh come on, who doesn't like off-roading!?" Damon catches the gravel road and steers back onto the highway. "You do know who I am, right?" he counters, the corners of his eyes crinkling with his shit-eating grin.
"The Damon Salvatore I remember was full of himself, larger than life, and at times untouchable...to most people, I mean."
Damon briefly locks eyes with hers before turning into her driveway. After stopping the truck, he walks around to open the door, helps her to the ground, and walks her to the front door.
"Night, Elena!" he waggles his brows and as soon as she unlocks the front door, he retreats.
She watches as he drives home, finally going inside when his pickup lights go out.
Damon's staring out the window. The wind is blowing wildly and relentlessly, whistling as it makes its way through twigs and leaves. The previous days had been hot and dry and now it's as if all hell is breaking loose in the air.
Thunder seems to battle with lighting. Flash. "One elephant, two ele-" Boom. It's dark and despite the approaching storm, Damon notices flashes in the distance. He smiles as he remembers his childhood and how he used to sneak out to meet his friends.
It's a quiet summer night in July when young Damon tip-toes out of his room. The clock had struck ten, two minutes ago. His parents are behind closed doors. Seizing the opportunity, the blue-eyed, six-year-old opens the door to sneak out into the darkness. Moments later he finds Elena, Enzo, Bonnie, and Caroline waiting for him.
"You made it, finally," Elena remarks, shining her flashlight on him.
"I had to wait until the coast was clear," Damon defends himself, shining his light on her.
"Let's go so we get home before they know we're missing," Bonnie urges.
The others nod and follow her into the thicket of trees. They walk several yards into the darkness when Damon yells, "Scatter."
They all take off in different directions. Damon shines his light around looking for someone to tag when a pair of eyes peer out of the darkness at him. His heart starts to pound and he doesn't move a muscle until a scurrying sound signals the rodent making its escape.
Not wanting his friends to notice he was scared, he starts waving his flashlight again, this time the beam lands on Caroline. "You're it!" Damon yells, clicks his off, and dives to the forest floor to avoid her beam of light.
As soon as the beam moves, Damon crawls into the underbrush and bumps into Elena.
"This is my hiding spot," she whispers.
"Really?" Damon nudges her with his elbow.
"Fine, we can both hide here," she starts when they notice the light slowly moving their way.
"Move," Damon starts slithering backward and grabs Elena's ankle for her to follow him.
"Ouch," she squeals when a thorn pokes into her skin.
"What happened?" Damon asks, concerned.
"Something stuck me," Elena replies, pulling her lower lip between her teeth. Damon turns on his light to remove the barb although it gives away their hiding place.
"You're it, Elena," Caroline screams and ducks behind a tree.
Damon throws the barb over his shoulder and helps Elena to her feet.
The kids continue to play and romp around until Giuseppe's loud voice carries into the trees.
"Gotta go. See ya tomorrow," Damon grins at Elena and runs off using his flashlight to illuminate the way.
The next morning, the sun shines bright even though everything is still soaked through from the storms. The heat is back and Damon sighs in frustration as he steps onto the porch, coffee cup in hand, just as Elena's pulling her car up next to the barn. He watches until she slips into the building and is gone. After emptying his cup, he sets it in the sink and after taking a moment to look in the mirror, he joins her.
"Good morning, Elena," Damon announces his presence with a crooked grin on his face.
"You're up early aren't you?" Elena looks over her shoulder at him.
"Dad mentioned some fencing that needs to be done but it's too wet, hot, and humid..."
"And?" Elena asks as she puts her stethoscope away.
"Why don't we kidnap Enzo and get out the old canoe?"
"I have a job, Damon," she starts to protest but she never could resist the power of his blue eyes... "Well, I guess it wouldn't hurt to play hooky this one time," Elena agrees and calls Caroline.
He can hear the blonde squeal from where he's standing.
"Let's do it then," Damon proclaims when Elena ends the call and follows her outside. Since the drive is muddy, they climb into Giuseppe's truck to make the trip across the highway.
Turning onto the old gravel road now overgrown with weeds and foliage, Damon parks next to the ramshackle old wooden barn that's tucked into the woods a few hundred yards away.
"Oh, no." Elena shakes her head. "I'm not going anywhere near that barn. You and Enzo used to tell ghost stories about this place. You have no idea how many nightmares I've had about that building."
"You used to scoff and say it was bullshit," Damon laughs. "I've never seen any ghosts." He uses his hand to cross his heart. "I swear."
Elena stares at him for a moment before letting him lead her down the well-beaten path to the barn. The smell of cut timber is strong even before Damon opens the door.
Inside, there are cords and more cords of wood stacked up against one wall. On the other side of the building sits a decrepit old tractor, a rusty combine, shovels, rakes, and other hand tools. There's a wheel barrel, an antique push mower, and a couple of old bikes. The canoe is resting upside down adjacent to the cut wood. Against another wall is a canvas paint cloth draped over what looks like boxes. Although most of this stuff is junk, tucked away in the corner is an old wooden rocking chair.
"I love this. It needs work. A good sanding, a fresh coat of varnish, and a pretty seat cushion...it'll look like new," Elena muses, running her hand along the arm of the rocker.
"All this stuff belonged to my grandparents. Dad moved this stuff out here when his dad died. As you can see, he stacks his firewood in here, always has. I remember telling him it's prime nesting space for snakes. He always said he only uses that wood in winter when he doesn't have to worry about them."
"I never knew any of this was in here. Giuseppe never mentioned it."
"Elena," Damon says quietly. "Don't move."
"Huh?" Elena looks around, noticing the Cottonmouth peeking out from beneath the rocker. A second later she feels a sting on her calf. The snake withdraws but immediately coils again. She's in Damon's arms and outside before it can strike a second time.
"Are you okay?" he asks frantically, setting Elena on the ground. "Let me see it."
Elena tries to stay calm as she fights the urge to panic. A steady trickle of blood trails down her calf to her ankle. A wave of dizziness hits, and it's all she can do to stay upright.
"I need you to listen to me." Damon's voice is calm as he lowers her leg carefully to the ground. "That old western movie shtick about carving an X and sucking the venom out...it's bullshit. Doesn't work. I need to get you to the hospital."
"It hurts like a son of a bitch," Elena hisses when a wave of pain rips through her.
Damon scoops her into his arms. She's dizzy so she wraps her arms loosely around his neck, tucks her head against his shoulder, and closes her eyes. He runs and moments later, they're at the truck.
"I'm going to be sick," she groans as the color drains out of her face.
He puts her down, holding her around her middle for support and when the vomiting starts, he uses his other hand to keep her hair out of her face.
"I'm sorry, Elena," Damon says repeatedly.
"You couldn't have known," Elena grits out through the pain.
Damon helps her into the truck and runs around to his side, clicking his cellphone while he starts the pickup. "I'm bringing Dr. Gilbert in, she got bit by a Cottonmouth…"
Between the searing sensation in her leg and unrelenting nausea, Elena feels like death would be a relief. She squeezes her eyes closed when he floors the gas pedal. The dizzying rush of Damon flying down the highway will make her sick again if she opens them.
"Yes, I'm positive it was a Cottonmouth. I know one when I see it plus I saw the white of its mouth," Damon snaps at whoever he's talking to on his cellphone.
Abruptly the truck stops and Elena sags into Damon's arms when he opens the door.
"We're here," he says softly as he carries her into the Emergency Department.
"This way," Dr. Fell calls to Damon, signaling him with a crook of her arm.
"How are you feeling, Elena?" she asks, pointing to an empty bed and drawing the curtains around them after Damon lowers her onto the gurney.
"It hurts!" Elena tries to stay stoic and keep her tears in but she can't. They begin to stream down both sides of her face as she turns onto her side, and draws her knees up, trying to make the cramps in her stomach go away. Within seconds, she feels a sharp sting in the crook of her elbow.
"I know it does," Meredith says calmly. "I'm going to give you something for the pain along with the anti-venom. Is your tetanus booster up to date?"
Elena grimaces. "I got one last year after a cat bite."
"Good. The nurse will clean the wound and I'll prescribe a course of antibio..." Meredith looks up when the RN enters carrying the anti-venom solution.
"She vomited right after it bit her...she's awfully pale don't you think?" Damon asks, jamming his hands in his front pockets.
"It's the venom, Damon," Meredith answers as she begins the Crofab infusion.
There's a momentary burn, followed by a chill creeping through her veins. Everything feels cold. Their voices begin to fade making Elena wonder if this is what dying feels like...
What a strange thought...
There are 3 species of poisonous snakes in Virginia: Timber Rattlesnake, Cottonmouth, and Northern Copperheads. The cottonmouth snake gets its name because when it opens its mouth the interior is white like cotton. A Cottonmouth's venom destroys blood cells and reduces the ability of blood to coagulate or clot.
The antivenom of choice is called CroFab which stands for Crotalidae Polyvalent Immune Fab. The first part of the name refers to the subfamily that the snake belongs to-the pit vipers. The second part of the name means that the antivenom will act against more than one type of venom. I've taken care of many rattlesnake bite patients but the one I took care of with a Black Widow bite was much sicker than any of them.
Chapter title: 'Snakebite' by Alice Cooper
I think I've mentioned I grew up in a town of 1600 people. Mrs. Ott was my neighbor. If she caught my brother or me putting one foot on her lawn, she'd be pounding on her window and pointing at us to get off with a scowl on her face.
Thank you all so much and thank you, Eva. Have a beautiful day.