Chapter 4

Strange...my parents never did that. Maybe they thought this was a safer town than our last place?

"Yeah...you know what...let me walk you to your door just to be safe." his voice was completely serious now.

We got out of the car and began walking up the steps. Damon's eyes darted all over the place, checking to see if anyone was around or for anything suspicious.

"Honestly...they're probably fine they just forgot to lock it or something after coming back in...I doubt..."

"Be quiet" Damon said as we walked up towards the door. "Listen to me...you stay here, don't move. I'm going to go in and check things out.

"Damon if they're in there..."

"Damn it I'm serious! STAY HERE. Do not go inside the house until I give you the ok...do you hear me?"

"Yeah..ok." he was starting to scare me a little. My parents were fine, right? They had to be.

I waited out on the porch for what seemed like hours. I checked my watch and it had been less than 10 minutes.

'Screw this' I thought 'I'm going in. It's probably nothing anyway.'

I walked in the house and tried to flip on the light switch...dead. That's not a good sign, is it? Ok maybe the power went out. We did just move...maybe something with the electric company got screwed up.

Slowly I walked through the living room and made my way around the furniture as best as I could. I still didn't see anything odd, the house seemed intact and nothing was moved. Moving through the living room I began making my way into the kitchen and was almost tripped up by something on the floor. It was so dark I couldn't see a thing.

I pulled out my phone and lit it up so I could see what I had just walked into...only to wish I hadn't. My father was lying on the ground stiff, his eyes wide open.

I began to panic and couldn't believe what I was seeing. My father couldn't be dead. I mean he could be hurt but not dead, right? He had to be alive! Please be alive please be alive! I bent down to see if I could find a pulse on his neck...nothing. I put my hands on his chest to see if I could feel him breathing...nothing. He was cold.

Oh god he's dead! Where's my mother? Where did Damon go? I collapsed on my knees next to my father's body and started yelling "DAMON! DAMON WHERE ARE YOU?"

I heard him running down the stairs as fast as he could "DAMN IT I TOLD YOU TO STAY ON THE PORCH! WHERE ARE YOU?"

"In the kitchen" I sobbed. "Damon what happened?"

He ran over and picked me up, holding me to him.

"It's ok...come on let's get out of the house. You shouldn't have seen this."

He brought me onto the porch and I collapsed again. "I don't understand..."

"I've already called the cops. They'll be here soon. Violet...I'm so sorry."

"Damon...my mother! Did you see her?"

He hesitated for a minute and averted his eyes from mine.

"Damon! IS SHE ALIVE? TELL ME WHAT YOU SAW!" I was hysterical.

"No...I'm sorry. She was upstairs in her room, dead just like your father."

I couldn't believe what was happening. How could this happen? No one even really knew us here! My father only started his job a little over a week ago! Why would someone kill my parents?

"Violet...are you ok? Come on, talk to me." Damon sat next to me where I had collapsed.

"I don't want to talk Damon." tears were flowing and I didn't know what to do. I couldn't even think straight.

"Please...you have to. Don't go into shock on me, ok? Stay here with me." he held my hand and squeezed it.

"I just don't understand..." I began "Who would do this? Did you see him? He was pale and shriveled...it looked like someone took all of the blood from him, Damon. What the hell happened?"

"I don't know." he replied "But we'll find out, ok?" he was so sweet, such a difference from earlier in the night during the party.

Within minutes the police arrived. Three cop cars, two ambulances, and for some reason Damon's brother Stefan showed up, and he brought Jeremy, Matt, and Bonnie with him.

Jeremy was the first one to run up to me "Oh God Vi I'm so sorry, I can't believe this." he gave me a hug and just held me for a while. I almost forgot what had happened earlier in the night until now, but I was in shock too much to even care at this point. I'd deal with that later.

Damon went over to where Matt, Bonnie, and Stefan were and began speaking with them. He was out of earshot so I couldn't hear what he had told them, but they all had horrified looks on their faces, Bonnie's eyes even began to tear up.

A female police officer came up to me and Jeremy finally let me go.

"Hi...are you Violet?" she asked me.

"Yes." was all I could reply.

"Hi Violet, my name is Carol. I'm actually Caroline's mom. Sweetie...I'm so sorry about what happened. But I need to ask you some questions, ok? I need you to help me on this."

Jeremy looked at me and I just nodded, telling him silently that I was ok.

She asked me a million questions, half of them I couldn't even remember. If I had known anyone that would want to kill my parents, if my parents had recently been in a fight with anyone in the area, what time I left for the party and what time I came back, had I spoken with them at all that night...I know there was more but I was having such a hard time concentrating I could barely even respond to half of the questions.

She finished with me and gave me a hug "We'll figure out who did this, ok? I promise you." and with that she went back to the other police officers and began speaking with them.

This time it was Stefan who came up to me.

"Violet...I'm so sorry. Listen, you shouldn't be here tonight. Come stay with us, okay? Bonnie will go in and pack some things for you, just let her know what you want. You shouldn't be alone right now, and there's plenty of room at the boarding house."

I didn't argue with him. I didn't want to spend the night alone in this house right now. Bonnie came over and asked me what I had wanted. Wracking my brain I told her a few outfits and my pajamas and robe and toothbrush and some other essentials. Honestly I didn't even care if she brought the right things back, I just didn't want to go back in that house.

The EMT's were bringing my parents bodies out of the house in the black bags and I just stared. I didn't even cry at that point, I froze just staring. That was it. Tonight was the last night I would ever see my parents alive. I couldn't believe it was all over that fast.