Wow, are we really at chapter 15 already?! I can't believe it, I just can't. This chapter was a heartbreaker, even to write. I hope you all like it.

I'd like to thank all those who reviewed, they all encourage me to keep writing. So thank you bunnykay, PsychVamp, ilovetvd, seKretshidden, bellislefen, DisappearingHybrid, Guest, and ferrylis!

I do not own The Vampire Diaries, I just own the plot, Prudence and Matthew.

I hope you like it. =)

Chapter 15: The Sad Truth

When I opened my eyes, the sun soon flooded the room. I realized that I slept in late and when I looked at the bed stand I saw a plate of eggs waiting for me. I quickly sat up, pushed the sleep from my eyes and began eating.

As soon as I finished I got up and put on a fresh dress from my bag. I sighed before I exited the room and took a clearer look around the house. I walked into the library, which was the nearest door to mine. When I entered, I saw that most of the dust that was there the night before was gone.

Prudence was walking slowly through the room, dusting. Something was off about her though, well more than usual. When I came near she made no aknowlegment that I was there. Only when I stood in front of her,to block her path, did she look at me. Her eyes were slightly glazed over, like she wasn't completely there. I looked her over, now all the dust that was covering the room now covered her and she had a feather duster in hand. When I reached out to touch her arm she seemed to wake up from her daze.

"Oh, good morning dear. Did you sleep well?" She asked dropping the feather duster.

"Umm, yes. I did." I answered, though I was still very confused by her previous state which seemed to vanish instantly. I wasn't sure what was up with her, but I did know one thing. I needed to get out of this house.

"Thank you for breakfast. I was thinking of going for a walk." I said as she looked up at me.

"Oh, of course. Why don't you go for a ride. Daisy could probably use a run." She replied.

"Daisy?" I asked, utterly confused.

"Your horse sweetie, remember? The one I got you for your birthday. Oh, your face when you first saw her." She sighed, and then exited the room. I looked through the house again. Now that there was sunlight, all the dust that had settled in the rooms was now gone. The kitchen was now squeaky clean, and if I didn't know any better I'd think the floor had been vaccumed. The entry room looked almost brand new, I slipped on my sandles and stepped out the door to the back yard.

The back yard was definitely big enough to house a horse and the area was fenced in, but there was certain lack of animals. The main one missing, the mare. I shook my head.

"This lady is crazy." I said to myself I walked off towards the center of town. Slowly strolling down the street. I saw the people leaving and entering their houses. Those at the market place and those shopping. I walked past the booths and smiled at the vendors.

I honestly had no clue where to start. Where to start looking for Abigail. I was think so deeply that I walked straight into someone. I really needed to stop doing that.

"Oh, gosh! I'm so sorry." I said as I stood, brushing myself off, and offering him a hand up. He took it and stood.

"I feel really bad. I'm Caroline." I said as he looked up to my face. His eyes suddenly widened and he looked quite shocked.

"Oh, yes! Hello. I'm Matthew." He said quickly, dusting himself off.

"Hi." I said back as I looked him over. He was tall, a little thin with tattered clothes, sandy blonde hair and tan skin.

"Wait, your name is Caroline?" He asked, a hesitant look on his face.

"Yes." I nodded.

"I'm sorry, I've got to go." He said, then hurried off the way he came.

"Huh?" I asked myself. His behavior was strange, even to me, so I decided to follow him. He led to what seemed like the town stable.

"Did I say something wrong?" I asked him once he stopped. "You know I'm not Abigail, don't you? Can you tell me where she is?" I asked as he turned to face me.

"I'm sorry. There isn't anything anyone can do now." He told me with a sad expression.

"Why? Were you two close?" I asked him, trying to push for some sort of information.

"We were going to get married. I asked her father before he died. Her parents were so pleased. Abigail's father died two weeks after I asked for permission, so Prudence requested that I wait, give Abigail time to grieve first. About four months ago Prudence told me that she was probably ready. I planned to propose to her after her daily ride, but she never came back." He spilled out, he looked like he was on the verge of tears.

"Do you know what happened on her ride?" I asked him slowly, and he nodded.

"She usually went down passed the river. There are some dangerous cliffs over there. Later that day I went to investigate, because she had never been gone that long before. We had a pretty bad storm the night before and there was mud and wet leaves everywhere." He let out a large breath before he continued. "The signs on the ground implied that she and the horse went off the cliff, into the river. Most of the town worked together, combing the river banks for some sort of clue. Everyone loved Abigail, she was the jewel of the town. The only thing they found though was Abigail's horse, Daisy. It was hundreds of feet from where she fell, and it was dead." He told me sadly.

"Let me guess. They said there was no way she could have survived." I asked, not really looking for an answer. He nodded.

"After Abigail's father died, Prudence spent every minute and every dime she had on Abigail. She paid almost all of her husbands savings on that horse for her birthday. She was all Prudence had left. When they said that she had died, Prudence refused to accept it. She claimed that her daughter was just missing and would come home soon. Prudence just seemed to lose all sense of reason. She locked herself up in her house for weeks on end." I nodded.

"I visited her the first week, she was like a second mother to me. But after Abigail died, she seemed almost absent from her own mind." He sighed and shook his head. "She couldn't accept the fact that she lost everyone." He finished, and he looked torn.

"But how did I get involved in this?" I asked him.

"That, I don't know. Rumors were going around that Prudence left because she found Abby in a near by village. When she came back with you I was surprised you looked so similar. You have the same hair, same bone structure. But you don't have Abby's eyes." He sighed. "The way her beautiful blue eyes would sparkle when she smiled. I've never seen anything sparkle the same way."

"I'm sorry." I said with a small smile.

"It's not your fault Abigail's gone. I understand Prudence wanting Abigail back, no matter what, but taking you away from your life. She needs help." He said, shaking his head again. I sighed as I sat down.

"You really loved her, didn't you?"

"Yes."

"Can I ask you for a favor?" I looked over at him.

"Hmm?"

"Can you take me to the cliff?" I requested nervously.

"Why would you want to go there?" He asked.

"Just this feeling I have. So will you?" I asked again.

"If you've got a feeling." He shrugged. "Here." He stood and offered me a hand up, and then he led to a horse, already sadled. He mounted the horse and again offered me a hand up. I approched nervously.

"You're afraid of horses, aren't you?" He laughed to himself.

"Maybe a little bit." I responded hesitantly.

"Yep, definitely not Abby. She loved horses." He laughed as I mounted the horse, seating myself behind him. The ride through the woods was nearly painless, as we neared the river quickly.

"We haven't had any rain since the night before . . . The farmers are a little disgruntled about it." Matthew said. "This is the cliff she fell off of." He said, his voice sad and full of lonelyness. I stepped forward and put my hand on his shoulder, trying to comfort him. He stepped forward, closer to the edge. Then he suddenly reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of fabric, a light green color of cotton.

"When I came out to search for her, I found this on the edge." He told me with slight tears in his eyes.

"I'm sorry." I said. What else could I have said? "Let's go back." I offered, and he nodded quickly. Soon we were entering the town again.

"I'd better get back to work. I've been away for too long." Matthew said once we dismounted in front of the stables.

"Thank you."

"Why are you thanking me?" He asked me.

"You shared with me something very painful. I know it was hard, So thank you." He smiled and nodded at me before he walked away. After all of that I knew I need to settle down and think through everything, so I decided I'd go and bathe. I headed back to Prudence's house to get some fresh clothes. It was past noon, so I grabbed a loaf of bread and then headed to "my room" to grab my stuff.

"Oh, Abigail dear. Did you have a nice ride?" Prudence asked as I exited my room.

"Oh, um, yes. I did, thanks." I responded, not really knowing what to say. I quickly left the house and headed towards a mellower part of the river. Once I was in the cool water I let my thoughts flow free.

Abigail was dead. There went my plan to switch myself with Abigail so I could go back to the Mikaelsons. But it was sad when you thought about it. Abigail lost her father, and then when the man she loved was going to proprose she fell off a cliff. It explained why Prudence was so set on finding me, or Abigail. She wanted her family back.

I sighed as I began to scrub the dirt from my arms. Everything would have been so much easier if Abigail was alive. I looked through the odds and ends that I had brought with me and found a small vial. I remembered it was the lavender oil that Rebekah had given me. I opened it and began to wash my hair.

Soon later I was dressed and heading back into town. I must have been gone for a while because sunset was approaching. I watched the people as I passed, and was surprised when I saw two familiar faces exit a house and pass in front of me.

Niklaus and Kol.

a/n: So, what do you think? What's going to happen next? Why is Klaus and Kol there? Who is going to die next? Oh, don't worry, I'm just kidding. Or am I?

So what do you think of Prudence now? And Abigail and Matthew? Curious what you think.

AND I have a VERY special surprise for the next chapter that I think you're going to like. ;) I hope to post again once I'm a few chapters ahead, so wish me inspiration! =)

Please review!

Thanks for reading! =D

DramaticInvisibleGirl