Soon enough, they pass the "Welcome to Mystic Falls" sign. From there, Elena directs Elijah to her house. In many ways, it is the absolute last place she wants to go. (Was it just the night before, that Katherine slaughtered Aunt Jenna and Ric on her front porch? It feels like Elena found them a moment ago – or has it been years?)

Elena is terrified that their bodies will still be there. That she'll have to see them like again, in person, when she is already haunted by that image every time she closes her eyes. Their bodies, and Jeremy's, and Uncle John's, and…

Death follows her, wherever she goes.

Elena takes a shaky breath as Elijah pulls into her driveway. She's relieved to see that there's yellow caution tape across the front porch. The police have been and gone, and surely taken the bodies with them.

"I have to call Sheriff Forbes," Elena realizes. What did she think, when they found Aunt Jenna's and Ric's bodies?

"Do you know her number?" Elijah asks, handing her a phone.

Handing. Her. A. Phone.

It doesn't quite compute. Elena remembers Rose telling Trevor that she got in contact with someone who got in contact with Elijah. Elena didn't expect him to just – have a phone, and hand it to her like it is nothing. "Can I call Bonnie first?"

Elijah agrees. Elena dials Bonnie's numbers, her fingers shaking. She puts the phone on speaker as it rings, because she knows Elijah will be able to hear everything that Bonnie says anyway, and Elena is afraid that she'll drop the phone if she tries to hold it to her ear.

The phone rings, and rings, and rings. There's no answer. Elena's heart is in her throat. Why isn't Bonnie answering?

Is she hurt? (Is she idead/i?)

Elena takes a deep breath, trying to calm her racing thoughts. She's desperate, she knows she's desperate; she knows that she's going to fall to pieces if Bonnie doesn't answer her call, if she has to add Bonnie to the list of people who… Elena cuts off those thoughts and dials Bonnie's number again. The phone just keeps ringing.

Elena takes another deep breath. She can't panic – she won't do Bonnie any good if she panics.

She realizes that Bonnie won't recognize Elijah's number, and perhaps that's why she didn't answer. (It's a good reason – a isafe/i reason.) Elena hangs up, and then texts Bonnie first.

A second, maybe two – and Elijah's phone starts ringing. Elena picks it up before the first ring even finishes.

"Elena, where are you?" Bonnie demands immediately.

"I'm at my house," Elena tells her. "Where are you?"

"I'm at imy/i house," Bonnie says. "Elena - I'm so sorry about Jenna and Ric."

Elena accepts Bonnie's sympathies, but she can't think about Aunt Jenna and Ric right now. (She can't even imagine planning Aunt Jenna's funeral. She can't survive another one. She can't.) Elena focuses on the most important thing: Bonnie is ialive/i - and somehow, she is not in Katherine's clutches.

"And I'm sorry about Lucy," Bonnie continues.

"Lucy?" Elena asks, because she has no idea who Bonnie is talking about.

"She's my cousin," Bonnie tells her. "She left me a note telling me what she did – what she helped Katherine do. And that she promises that she's not going to help Katherine anymore."

iOh/i, Elena realizes – Lucy is the witch who wore Bonnie's face last night. Elena has more important people to worry about.

"She told me that Stefan killed Matt. Is – is that true?" Elena asks Bonnie. She hopes, so fervently, that Lucy lied. That Matt is fine, working at the Grill right now. That maybe Sheriff Forbes was investigating someone else's murder last night. (Elena doesn't even care if that's a selfish thought to have – to wish that someone else was grieving a loved one right now.)

"I don't know if it was Stefan," Bonnie tells her, and Elena can hear her breathing hitch over the line. "But Matt's dead. I'm so sorry, Elena."

Elena accepts the grief. She lets it wash over her – and then tucks it away for another time. (Bonnie's alive. Another miracle was too much to hope for, anyway.)

"Lucy said that Stefan left with Katherine," Elena tells Bonnie. "We can't trust him anymore. Have you heard from Tyler or Mason?"

Bonnie says that she hasn't. Lucy used magic to knock her out last night, and she woke up this morning in her own bed, desperately calling and texting everyone with no response. Lucy said in her note that she left Elena at her house, but Sheriff Forbes called her this morning to ask if Elena was with her.

"Can I come by your house?" Elena says. "I have so much to tell you, and it'll be easier in person."

"Like where you've been?" Bonnie replies. "If you don't come here, I'll come to you. But you should call Sheriff Forbes first – she issued an Amber Alert for you, when nobody could find you this morning."

"I'll call her on the way," Elena promises, before they say their goodbyes and hang up. "Bonnie's alive," she says, just for the pleasure of hearing the words out loud.

"You were worried," Elijah notes, his gaze trained on her face. And suddenly, Elena is crying and smiling, and sobbing and laughing, all at the same time. She may be a tad bit hysterical, but she can't stop.

Bonnie is ialive/i.

Elena takes another deep breath, and counts to ten (to twenty, to fifty), trying to get her emotions under control. Elijah waits patiently, until she calms down enough to direct him to Bonnie's house. Elena doesn't actually know Sheriff Forbes's cell phone number by heart, so she calls the non-emergency number for the sheriff's station.

"This is Elena Gilbert," she says.

"Is this a joke?" the deputy who answers the phone asks. "I'm looking at Elena Gilbert right now."

Elena hangs up. "Change of plans," she tells Elijah. "Katherine is at the sheriff's station." She texts Bonnie to let her know that she's stopping by the sheriff's station first, so it might be a while before she gets to Bonnie's house. Elena doesn't mention Katherine.

Bonnie texts back asking if Elena would like her to meet her there, for support. Elena declines – she wants Bonnie to stay safe at home, far away from Katherine and her machinations.

"I don't know how many people are on vervain," Elena tells Elijah as they get closer. "Zach Salvatore was growing some before he died, but I'm not sure what happened. Stefan and I broke up before it was ready to harvest." She's not sure if Stefan ever supplied vervain to the Founders' Council, although she knows at least part of the harvest was ready, because he gave some to Ric. (She can't think about Ric right now, because she liked him, she did, but more importantly – thinking about Ric makes her think about… She pushes the thought away.)

When they get to the sheriff's station, Elijah opens the passenger door for her and helps her out. "You're not going to tell me to wait in the car?" Elena asks, pleasantly surprised.

Elijah raises a brow. "I don't know where Katerina is, or who may be working with her. It will be easiest to keep you safe if I keep you close," he tells her. It's a refreshing change of pace, that Elijah doesn't try to leave her behind.

They walk into the sheriff's station together. Elena looks around suspiciously, but she doesn't see Katherine anywhere. "Elena!" Sheriff Forbes yells when she sees her. She rushes over to give Elena a hug. "I'm so glad you're okay." Elena blinks back tears, hugging her back. "Where iwere/i you, young lady?" Sheriff Forbes asks. "I've had my people looking everywhere for you." She nods her head to a nearby deputy, and Elena hears him cancel the Amber Alert over the radio and announce that Elena Gilbert has been found alive.

"A vampire kidnapped me. Elijah helped me get away," Elena tells her, keeping her voice low. It is something close to the truth – and hopefully enough to get the Sheriff on Elijah's side while he's in town. Elijah introduces himself, and Sheriff Forbes thanks him. Then she tells Elena that she should call her cousin to let her know she's okay.

"My cousin?" Elena asks. As far as she's aware, she doesn't have any cousins. She's the last of the Gilberts, and Aunt Jenna… she would have been a great mom someday, if Katherine hadn't murdered her. (She was a great mom, already.)

"Katherine," Sheriff Forbes says. "She's been worried sick. You just missed her – she left the station maybe 10 minutes ago."

"Did she say where she was going?" Elena asks, glancing around again. Did Katherine compel Sheriff Forbes? The deputies? (It's a little odd that Sheriff Forbes isn't commenting on the fact that her cousin looks like her identical twin.)

"I think she was going with Stefan Salvatore back to the boarding house," Sheriff Forbes tells her. Elena pushes away the pain – the betrayal – she feels at hearing that Stefan is still with Katherine. Lucy wasn't lying about Stefan leaving with Katherine, then. (Elena pretends that she hadn't hoped otherwise.) She thanks the sheriff and turns to go. "Wait," the Sheriff says. "I need to know what happened last night."

Elena feels sick at the thought of having to talk about what happened – about finding Aunt Jenna and Ric. Elijah steps in front of Elena, looking into the Sheriff's eyes. "You will leave us leave, and you will not ask Elena any further questions about what happened last night," he says, his voice entirely conversational. Sheriff Forbes parrots back what he said, and they leave.

Elena doesn't even feel guilty about the compulsion. She just – she's self-aware enough to realize that the fact that Bonnie is alive and safe is the only thing between her and a total breakdown, at this point.

Elena gives Elijah directions to the Salvatore Boarding House. While en route, she calls Bonnie again.

"Katherine is pretending to be my cousin, and Stefan is with her," Elena tells her.

"Shit," Bonnie pronounces. "What are we going to do?"

"iYou're/i going to stay home. I'm going after them. Stefan – Stefan may be with Katherine, but I have to believe that he won't let her hurt me. And we know she doesn't want me dead," Elena reasons.

"Elena – I'm not going to let you go after them by yourself, while I stay home and do nothing," Bonnie says. "Come to my house, and we'll come up with a plan."

"I'm not by myself," Elena tells her. "That's – um, that's part of what we have to talk about later. But you know how Stefan said that he thought that Katherine was running from someone?"

"Yes?" Bonnie replies – and it's clear from her tone that she knows that she isn't going to like what she hears.

"Well, I'm with that someone now. Elijah and I made a deal," Elena says. "He's going to kill Katherine."

A pause.

"Why do you have to be with him when he does it?" Bonnie asks. "Just have him drop you off here. I'll keep you safe, and he can go kill Katherine by himself."

Elijah pulls into the driveway of the Salvatore Boarding House and puts the car in park. A blink, and he's holding the passenger door open, reaching a hand down to help her out. Elena looks up at him.

"I need to see it, Bonnie," Elena admits. "Elijah will keep me safe. I'll call you when it's done."

She hangs up before Bonnie can argue further.

The front door is locked, and Elena doesn't have her key. Elijah simply pushes – it doesn't look like he's exerting any effort at all – and the door gives way.

"Stefan?" Elena calls, as they walk into the foyer.

"Elena!" a voice calls.

It isn't Stefan's.

"Tyler!" Elena runs into the living room. Tyler is tied to a chair, blood on his face and all over his white shirt. He's still wearing his clothes from the Ball – all except for his jacket, which she knows is sitting on Elijah's back seat. "Stay still. I'll untie you," she promises.

Except the rope is thick, and the knots are tied too tightly. She looks around for a knife – and then Elijah walks over and tears off the ropes like they're no stronger than tissue paper.

"Thanks," she tells him, taking a moment to spare him a quick smile, before she focuses on Tyler. He stumbles a bit when he stands up, and she goes to help catch him. He's heavier than he looks – Elena almost falls over with him, but Elijah helps steady them both. Tyler shoots Elijah a look, clearly wondering who he is and why he's there, but he doesn't say anything.

"Katherine threatened to kill me unless Uncle Mason went with her and Stefan to get the moonstone. They left for the well, not that long ago – I have to go after them," Tyler tells her, already walking towards the door.

"Elijah and I will go after them," Elena replies, pulling gently on his arm. He stops to face her. "You should go – not home, but somewhere where Katherine and Stefan don't have an invitation. Let your mom know you're okay, and get her somewhere safe too," she tells him. Tyler refuses, saying that he needs to go help Mason.

Elena bites her lower lip, thinking quickly. She turns to Elijah.

"I can probably find the well, but we might have to stumble around for a bit. Tyler is a Lockwood – he knows those woods better than anyone. If he shows you to the well, will you promise to keep him safe from Katherine and Stefan?" she asks.

Elijah seems amused by her boldness.

"Deal." And they shake on it.

Tyler directs Elijah to the Lockwood Mansion, and they run from there. Well – Elijah and Tyler run, and Elijah carries Elena. Elijah lets Tyler lead, and while they're moving faster than Elena could ever run on her own, it isn't so fast as to make the world a blur around her.

Night has truly fallen, and the woods are dark and eerie – the light of the nearly full moon breaks through the canopy of trees in patches. (Elena would be terrified, if she didn't know that the most terrifying monster in these woods was holding her in his arms.)

They reach the well quickly – and Katherine is there, clearly waiting for them. The smirk falls from her face when she sees Elijah, clearly not expecting him.

"Elijah," Katherine whispers his name, as if he's the monster under her bed.

"Katerina," Elijah greets her, setting Elena down gently, and steadying her with a hand to her hip when she sways a little, dizzy from the run. "Thank you for having the good sense to be frightened."

She goes to run away, but Elijah blurs in front of her, blocking her escape. Katherine tries again, and again Elijah gets in her way. He seems to almost be toying with her.

"Uncle Mason!" Tyler calls, looking around the clearing. Mason yells back - from inside the well. Elena knows there's nothing she can do to help Elijah with Katherine – she can barely see them, between how dark it is and how fast they're moving – so she goes with Tyler to look over the edge of the well. She can't see more than a dark shape in the water below, but Tyler curses.

"Can you jump out?" he asks his uncle. Mason must say something back, too low for human ears, because Tyler just says "okay" and turns around to watch the pair of vampires fight.

It is clear, even from what little Elena can see, that Elijah and Katherine are not evenly matched. They are little more than blurs to her – but every time they pause, Katherine looks to be in worse and worse shape.

Elijah seems untouchable.

But then… Stefan materializes out of nowhere behind Katherine, and slips by her just to drive a stake into Elijah's chest, and then dart away.

"No!" Elena yells, watching her hope crumble as Elijah lets out a groan. The light of the moon highlights the smirk crawling across Katherine's lips as she stalks forward, driving the stake deeper into Elijah's chest – into his heart. Elena watches as his body stiffens.

Elijah reaches his hand inside Katherine's chest – but he doesn't pull out her heart before he drops to the ground, still. Elena stares with disbelieving eyes as the light of the moon catches his once handsome face, now grey with eternal death.

(Elena's hopes turn to ash in her mouth.)

Katherine stumbles back, gasping as she presses a hand to her chest. Behind her, Elena hears a loud splash.

"Go after them!" Katherine snarls at Stefan. Stefan looks between Katherine and Elena, clearly unsure about leaving them alone. He turns to Elena, and it's too dark to see, but Elena imagines he must be giving her that pleading, imploring look that he's perfected – the one that asks silently for her forgiveness.

Elena ignores him.

She turns her head slightly, unwilling to take her eyes off Katherine – and Tyler and Mason are gone from the clearing. She realizes that the splash must have been Mason jumping out of the well. Elena has no idea if they took the moonstone with them, or left it on the bottom of the vervain-laced well. She's not sure which option would be better.

"Go!" Katherine snarls again. This time, Stefan goes, disappearing with a blur.

And then Elena is alone.

With Katherine.