Hey people!
So first of all I want to say a HUGE, ENORMOUS, AMAZING, GLITTERING, MUSICAL, WONDERFUL, SINGING-IN-THE-RAIN, DANCING-IN-MY-PJS THANK YOU to all the people who reviewed and said how great this story is. I honestly did not know how many people read this story, and some of the comments...they really touched me guys, seriously. If I wasn't inspired to write this story before, I am now. It's going to ROCK! All for my FANTASTIC, KISS ASS readers!
The next thing I wanted to say is that thanks to all of you I now know that this story shows up on the list of TVD fanfics. At least for you lot anyway, which is the main thing. Since you guys can see it (shrugs) I don't see any point in deleting it and putting you all through the hassle of having to favourite it/story alert it again etc. It's annoying that I can't see it (I always like seeing it up there – lame I know, but still...) but it doesn't matter, as long as other people can. So don't worry guys, it's staying as it is. Once again thank you!
So I won't make you wait any longer! Whole lot of drama and action in this chapter, even for me. Hope you can take it ;-)
DISCLAIMER: I do not own One Tree Hill or the Vampire Diaries or any of the characters; exceptions include Tari, Liam, Allen, Rebecca and Caleb
xXx
Chapter Thirteen
The Tangled Webs We Weave
Something was wrong.
Tari couldn't understand it, but she didn't feel right. At first she felt a little out of it, but not enough to make her leave. As the minutes ticked past though, she began to feel...wrong: she felt hot, too hot for what she was wearing, and a little dizzy. She tried to ignore it, telling herself that it was the fear, but it was difficult for her to concentrate.
"Hey." She jerked back when Caleb touched her. It was like lighter fluid, stinging her skin. He looked hurt, and for an instance Tari felt bad. "Are you okay?"
The plan. Stick with the plan. "Yeah, I'm fine."
"Are you sure? You look a little flushed."
She felt flushed. No, she felt as if she was burning from the stomach up. "I just need a moment." Tari turned, heading towards her friends, but Caleb's strong arm stopped her. She turned to him, a little surprised. If she had been in her right mind, she would have noticed her instincts screaming at her, but her mind was fuzzy, as if it had been wrapped in cotton wool. It was like she couldn't think.
"Why don't you go outside? You'll cool yourself down."
She shouldn't have, sure knew that. But she honestly felt as if she was going to faint, and going outside seemed like a good idea. Tari tried to give him a weak smile, but it didn't seem to work. Instead she allowed herself to push past him and rushed outside. She could feel the others' looks from behind her, but she assured herself that she would text them once she was outside, out of Caleb's prying eyes.
When she got outside, she took a deep breath of air, for once pleased that she could see it in front of her face. She didn't exactly feel better, but she felt much cooler. She took a deep breath, running her fingers through her hair. Then she took her phone out and started to text the others.
Meanwhile, back inside The Grill, Sawyer, Allen and Liam were all watching the pool table. "What's going on?" hissed Sawyer. She tapped her nails nervously on the counter. She'd been doing that for the past hour, even though Liam kept snapping at her to stop.
"I don't know," Allen answered, very much aware that Caleb might be able to hear them. He didn't like the fact Tari hadn't looked good. He didn't feel right himself; things felt...off, and though he couldn't put his finger on it. I knew this was a mistake, he told himself, cursing.
Caleb turned his head, making eye contact with them. All three of them tensed, and Allen's senses went into overdrive.
Caleb smirked at them, and that was when the three of them simultaneously realised that this had been a big mistake.
A split second later he disappeared.
"Shit," Sawyer cursed and Liam leapt up, followed half a second later by the others. They charged towards the doors, not caring how other people noticed them. How was that people saw them but didn't happen to see Caleb magically evaporate? Then again, it helped that people could blink and he would be gone.
The trio burst out the doors, but the street was completely deserted.
"Oh my God." Sawyer rotated in a slow circle, her eyes still searching the scenery even though she knew very well that neither of them were around. "Oh my God."
Liam jerked his head round. "Fuck it!" he yelled, his voice echoing through the street. Unable to control his anger, he kicked the huge dustbin. The metal gave a loud ring, groaning from the pressure. He kicked it again and again, his face screwed up in fury – and guilt.
"Calm down!" snapped Allen, even though his tone was a contradiction. "Maybe she's just...I don't know – try her cell."
"Already on it," Sawyer replied, typing in her friend's phone number. She pressed it to her ear, praying to God and whoever was up there that Tari would answer. She even closed her eyes, picturing her friend as clearly as she could, as if it would somehow help. But she guessed God didn't exist, or maybe he just wasn't answering her, because Tari didn't either. She slapped the top of the phone down. "Damn it! She's not picking up."
"He took her phone." Liam's face was pale. He began pacing. "Shit. What do we do? Think!"
"Allen, you're a warlock – there must be something!" Sawyer stared at him, her green eyes wide and pleading, and he knew she was counting on him. He couldn't her down – her couldn't let Liam down either, and he certainly could not let Tari down.
"A locator spell," the warlock whispered, wondering why it hadn't occurred to him sooner. "We can find Tari using that – we need a map, and – it won't work, we need part Tari's blood, or – Damon! She's Damon's blood, if we get him we can use it-"
"Are you kidding?" Sawyer shrieked. Even in their panicked state the boys winced as Sawyer's voice reached new levels. "We cannot go to Damon Salvatore and tell him that Tari has been kidnapped by a vampire. She wasn't even meant to be out – it doesn't matter how hot Damon Salvatore is, he will kill us, bring us back to clean up the mess and kill us again!"
"It'll take too long," Liam added. "Unless either of you have Tari's home number or Damon's cell phone then we'd have to get to his house, and who knows how long that'll take, and by that point-" Liam's throat closed up, and he was unable to continue.
Allen paced up and down the street, his mind going at a hundred miles a minute. You can do this! he told himself. Remember what Mom says – keep calm, it focuses you. He closed his eyes briefly, picturing ocean waves and waving grass, and Tari's sweet smile as it lingered over her face...
"We can improvise," he said, opening his eyes. Both of the Scotts were staring at him, as if he was their saviour.
He didn't need to be theirs; just Tari's.
"Okay, I need water and something of Tari's."
"Something of Tari's?" Liam repeated. "But we don't have anything-"
"Yes we do!" cried Sawyer, once again causing the boys to flinch, but nonetheless they remained focussed on the task. She pulled her sleeve down and tugged at the bracelet, almost tearing it. She shoved it in Allen's hands as if was burning her. "It's a bracelet she leant me earlier tonight."
"Now the water," Allen said, but the words hadn't left his mouth before Liam burst back through the doors into The Grill, leaving Allen and Sawyer racing after him.
They tried to remain calm, act like it was an ordinary night – but more than a few people glanced at them strangely and the bar tender asked Liam if he was alright when he got a glass of water. But they couldn't act, not properly – too much was on the line to even think about trying hard.
Sitting at the table they had occupied previously, they hunched over the glass of water. Facing him, Liam and Sawyer watched him, almost in awe as they had when he had first throw a pencil at Liam without even touching it. Allen had panicked, agonised over what to tell them when he was told he was a warlock. He hadn't known how they would react. Afterward he felt ashamed for doubting them; they had been brilliant. Sure, Liam had gone as pale as the face of the moon and Sawyer had to put her head between her legs because she almost fainted – but after the initial shock they had asked him questions and talked it over with him, and helped him in any way he needed. They were true friends, as was Tari – which was why they needed to do whatever they could to help her.
Allen lifted the bracelet and dropped it in the water glass. "Lee, place your hands round the glass," he instructed, and the boy opposite did what he asked. Allen then muttered something, low and in a foreign language which Liam and Sawyer had no hope of understanding. No one else could see because of Liam's hands, but looking down the two Scotts could see the bracelet glowing in a golden light. Their eyes widened, but neither of them dared say anything if they tried; it was best of leave Allen to work.
The warlock fished the bracelet out the water, placing it on the side. "We need a map," he murmured.
Liam pulled his phone out of his pocket. "Here.
"Why are you giving me your phone?"
"It's an iPhone you idiot," snapped Liam. "You can get a map on it." He tapped the screen and a map of Mystic Falls appeared.
"I don't know whether it'll work-"
"Try it," pressed Sawyer. She reached out and squeezed his hand. "It's Tari."
Allen stared down at the phone, and then carefully tipped a drop of water on the screen, muttering words as he went. Liam adored that phone, and Allen knew he must have been praying that he didn't cover the thing in water. But he didn't show an inch of it on his face; instead he stared down at the phone. The drop of water began to move as Allen continued to mutter the words, before it finally rested on a spot a second later. Liam tapped the screen and it focussed on the area the water had hovered over, but the water only moved the tiniest amount before stopping again.
"We can't get it any more specific than that," Allen informed them. "The water only has a slight essence of Tari, it's not going to get any better than that-"
Sawyer leant forward, tucking her hair behind her ear. "What's in this area?"
Liam shook his head, frowning. "Not much – industrial grounds, offices and-"
"Warehouses," they all said at once.
xXx
If she hadn't felt ill before, Tari felt ill now. She couldn't even explain what had happened. The next second a hand came round her throat and the phone was knocked out of her hands. The world seemed to whirl round of her before it went completely black. She wasn't sure whether she was in a dream when she saw bright colours dance in front of her eyes or when two pairs of eyes that looked remarkably like her father's and her mother's stared down at her with concern. – but she knew she was asleep when the man, the man with no face smiled at her and lunged, knocking her down, and she was falling again, faster and faster until –
When Tari woke up she threw herself upwards, her body remembering the fear. Her head ached, particularly from behind. As she rubbed the sore point, she couldn't help but take in her surroundings: it was a dreary place, as if a shoe company would use it to store stock. She didn't take a long time to observe it, however, because she saw another person in the room.
Caleb smiled – a wolfish grin that Tari had never seen before. Her heart seized in her chest, this pain made her want to go back to sleep again. "I'm surprised," he said. His voice was soft, with an almost velvety quality to it. "I hadn't expected you to wake for – at the very least – another four or five hours. The drug usually knocks a person out for at least double that amount. How strange."
"You – you drugged me?" It made sense suddenly, the reason she felt so ill and why it felt her head was blocked.
He was three metres away, but Tari knew how quickly he could move. He inched slightly closer to her and she flinched, pushing herself away from him. He laughed aloud, though it didn't have any attractive quality at all; in fact it sounded like the laugh of a tiger before it was about to pounce. "Relax, little girl. I'm not going to hurt you, not yet."
"Little girl?" Even through all the pain and fear she was in, Tari still had enough pride to scoff. "You're not much older-" She caught herself before she continued. She glanced at him and saw that he was smirking, seeing that she had understood. "How old are you?"
"Ah!" he cried, clicking his finger and pointing at her. "She gets it! You see it now, see that I'm older than I look."
Tari said nothing, staring at him.
"I'm thirty three this spring. Long enough to understand the new world that I was thrown into when I was a stupid human boy at seventeen. And while it is tedious to be stuck at this age, being a vampire has improved my life."
"Oh yeah?" Tari asked. She kept her face carefully indifferent, stuck on his face while she felt for the vervain dart in her jean's pocket.
"You don't understand it," he continued. "Being a vampire opens your eyes. You control the world with one simple snap of your fingers. I can make people do anything I want: dance down the street in their underwear, have a threesome with me – I can even make people kill themselves. I don't even have to kill them."
Oh Jesus she felt ill. "Stop it," she whispered.
The smile curved on his lips, but Tari could only see it for a second before he disappeared and reappeared right in front of her. She didn't pull herself away – even if she wanted to she couldn't – but she flinched, terrified of him. He was right, after all. He may not be able to compel her, but he could snap her bones as if they were twigs. She forced herself not to think about that, because it was making her even more scared of him – and damn him, she didn't want to be scared of him.
He chuckled, and with his index finger he traced her jaw line. With all the strength she had, she forced herself to look him in the face. If he was impressed he did not show it. "What?" he whispered, smirking. "Can't you take it? Because it's the truth. You have no idea how many vampires do it. Hundreds find girls and have them..." He gestured with his hand, attempting to think of the right word. "For an innocent girl such as yourself, let's say...dance for them, drinking their blood all the time." He moved closer to her, his lips on her neck. For a horrifying moment she believed that he was going to bite her right then, but instead he pressed his lips against it and whispered, "Would you dance for me, little girl?"
At that suggestion Tari couldn't hold it back any longer; she lunged at him with her arm, trying to stab him with the dart. At an almost impossible speed he had her pinned to the floor, the dart spinning in a circle on floor away from them.
"Nice try," he said, his nose touching hers. In her mind, when she pictured being this close to someone, she did not think he would be threatening her, though at least she had known her heart would be attempting to leap out of her chest. He reached in her other jean's pocket and pulled the stake out, despite Tari struggling. She tried to kick at him, but she could barely lift her feet – and anyway, she doubted she would have done anything more than break her foot. He threw the stake away, so fast that Tari's eyes couldn't even follow it.
Smirking, he said, "I'll give you points for effort. But really, did you honestly think that it would work?" He laughed again; every time he laughed Tari hated him even more. "You're even more naive that I thought."
"Get off me," hissed Tari.
"Are you threatening me?" he teased, but he moved off her. Tari instantly tried to stand up, but he placed his hands on her shoulders and shoved her back down. She winced when she fell, her head crying out in pain at the sudden movement. His eyes flashed when he said, "I'd sit down if I were you."
Tari tensed, and Caleb shook his head. "I didn't want this Tari. Things could have been different. They still could."
Tari was trying to think, but she couldn't help being mesmerized by his words. "What are you talking about?"
"I wasn't going to hurt you. If you hadn't blown it, none of this would have happened. We could have been like a normal couple of teenagers." He bent down, his face once again close to hers. "We could have had fun."
All the blood running through her body froze, like ice.
"Now if you want to make it up to me – and save your life, by the way – then I have a few ideas on how you can make it up to me." He moved closer, his lips getting close to hers.
Tari knew exactly what he wanted her to do. Hell no. Before she could even think of what she was doing, she lifted her hand and slapped his face as hard as she could.
To her surprise it actually jerked his head to the side, catching him completely off-guard. Time seemed to freeze. He didn't move, as if he too was in shock. Tari hadn't believed that she would have had the courage to do that – or maybe it was stupidity. But it was better than what he wanted her to do.
He moved his hand over to his face, rubbing the spot where she had hit him. "That hurt."
"Good."
"No, I mean that really hurt." He stared at her, but this time it was out of curiosity – and maybe even a little amazement. "What... I mean... You're different."
"What," snorted Tari, "that I'm not falling over you?"
"No," snapped Caleb. She could feel his frustration. "That drug should have knocked you out, but you're awake! That slap – I shouldn't have even felt that slap, but I did!" He glowered at her, his blue eyes now dark as the deepest part of the ocean, the part that no one could swim in. "Who are you? What do you know?"
Part vampire. Tari hadn't even thought – did that really make her stronger? No, it couldn't, what other signs had there been? Besides, Tari was not going to reveal that to him. She wasn't even going to bring up that part of her, wasn't going to mention Stefan or Allen or Elena or her father.
Perhaps Caleb knew that, because a second later his hand was round her throat and squeezing it. Her own hands instantly lifted, nails digging in to his hand, but the vampire didn't even flinch. His eyes glowed with anger, and Tari felt another wave of fear hit her. "I don't think you understand. This can be done the easy way or the hard way. I could make your torture very long and agonising. Or you could tell me how you know about vampires."
She could barely speak, but she managed to choke out a few words. "Fuck you."
Those eyes flashed again, and he squeezed harder. She couldn't even draw a breath, and her chest cried out in pain. Air!
Tari heard a groan, and his grip loosen. She glanced up at him and saw his face was screwed up in pain. She didn't understand what was happening, but she knew she should take a chance when it came along. She shoved him down to the floor and began to run, not even knowing where she was running to, just away from him.
"Tari!" The girl whirled round on her heel, almost breaking her ankle in the process. There was a staircase (how had she not noticed it?) and at the top were Sawyer, Liam and Allen. The warlock didn't even look at her; he focused on Caleb.
"Get up here now," Liam called. To her amazement she saw him clamber down the stairs as if to get her himself.
She ran towards the stairs. "Go Liam, now! Get out of here!" She grabbed his hand when she got close enough, intending to go up the stairs with him – but instead he shoved he up and went down towards Caleb.
"Liam!" Sawyer and Tari's voices tangled together into one, but the boy ignored him. Pulling one of the stakes he had given to her, he ran towards Caleb.
Allen broke off with a huge gasp, his own faced screwed up in pain. He leant on the metal bar in exhaustion, but Caleb recovered much quicker. Before Liam could stab the vampire, Caleb grabbed his wrist. Liam's other hand went up in a reflex, but Caleb blocked it easily.
Tari couldn't help herself; she raced towards them, intending to tackle him or do something, but he flung Liam backwards so he landed on her. They fell to the floor, crying out in pain and surprise.
"Idiots," he drawled. He was smirking; in fact his expression was perfectly serious, and Tari wondered whether he was taking them seriously. "I'm a vampire. I can destroy you all in what, four seconds? A second for each of you."
"Then do it," Tari heard Liam say. She gripped his arms tightly. Please Lee, let's get out of here. But she knew it was impossible. Even if Liam hadn't tried to end it, if they had all tried to escape, Caleb would still have chased after them. They had known their plan was dangerous; they had all known that being injured – or being killed – was a risk.
Caleb focussed on Liam, and to their surprise he smiled. "A brave one. I must say, I am impressed. I never expected you lot were this courageous. But you know what they say: the bravest people are the stupidest."
"Better stupid than a murderer," Liam shot out bitterly. Tari wished he would stop talking, even though she wanted to say the same things to him. She wrapped her arms round him tightly, and could see that Caleb glanced at her. She didn't want to let go though, didn't dare in case Liam did something reckless.
"Caleb." Tari and Liam whipped their heads round, seeing Sawyer at the bottom of the stairs. Tari felt Liam lift up slightly, his face creased in concern. She knew him and, more than anything, he didn't want his cousin to get hurt. "Please, don't hurt them."
He raised an eyebrow, and Tari could see that he was amused. "Oh? Why not? I don't appreciate being attacked."
"I know, and we're sorry." The other three watched Sawyer as she stepped forward. Tari could see that her friend was scared; her usual confidence had evaporated, yet she took another step forward, closing the gap between Liam and Tari – and Caleb. "You have to understand though: we had to fight back. You killed innocent people; do you expect us to take it lying down?
"You don't want to do this. Killing people is wrong, and you know it. There are other ways, like using blood bags or drinking animal blood. You don't have to hurt other people. It's wrong, and you know it. It makes you feel rotten inside. You don't want to be like this: you don't want to hurt other people. You don't have to, don't you see that? There's more to life than killing: there's friendship and love. I know I sound sappy and naive, but it's true. Stop killing. Stop and we'll help you. We'll forgive you."
Like hell I will. Tari remembered the terror she had felt when he had his body pressed against hers, and a banging headache and marks round her neck showed that. She wasn't going to trust him for a split second.
Caleb stared at Sawyer for a few moments. Tari could feel Liam and Allen holding their breath, as well as her. Caleb burst out laughing. Not a chuckle, a hilarious, tears-in-his-eyes laughter. It was a terrifying laugh, and it only added to her fear. She quickly turned to look at Sawyer, and could see her friend was deflated. She realised that Sawyer had hoped that he would take her offer; that this could all end happily – like a fairytale.
Tari had learnt that, just like God, they didn't exist either.
"Hilarious." Caleb wiped his eyes, a grin still on his face. "My God, you don't actually believe in that crap do you?"
Liam leant forward and Tari had to let go of him. She glanced at Allen, but his eyes were on Caleb, flittering back to Sawyer. His hands were on the metal bar, gripping it so tightly that it looked painful. Tari knew that if Caleb attacked Sawyer, then Allen would hurt him. She knew enough to know he didn't want to use fire, simply because he was afraid he wouldn't be able to control it. But he would do that...head thing to injure him, but again Tari knew he wouldn't be able to keep it up. Allen had explained adolescent was a time of change ("No kidding") and until he became more of an adult he wouldn't be able to control his power, at least not fully. What was the chance of them being able to take Caleb down with Allen using his powers? Not great, considering Allen wouldn't be able to hold him for very long. He'd already used his power, and it had weakened him. Tari also knew that Liam would lung for Caleb again if he went for Sawyer. Somehow she had a feeling neither attacks would be a success. You live with three vampires for Christ sake. What are their weaknesses?
"Wow," the vampire said, walking towards her. Tari felt Liam steady himself, ready to get to Sawyer if he needed. "You're more naive than she is." Sawyer didn't move, but she leant backwards, trying to put as much distance as she could between them without losing face. "You don't get it, do you?" he hissed. "I like the killing. That's the best part: seeing the fear in their eyes before you bite into their neck; giving them a little bit of hope, letting them run before you catch them again and kill them. I don't know whether it's because I'm male, but it's always more fun..." He reached forward and pushed a stray strand of hair behind Sawyer's ear, the girl trembling when he touched her. "...with girls."
"Leave her alone," said Liam, standing. Tari stood up, keeping her body behind Liam's. She felt for something in her pocket – where were her damn keys?
Caleb smirked, turning his head slightly. "Which one are you dating again? Or is this a threesome?"
"They're my friends," Liam growled. "You don't get to hurt them."
The vampire turned round, facing Liam head-on – the usual positions for a fight. "I don't think you have much of choice in that matter."
"I'll stop you," Liam vowed.
"Is that a challenge?"
"Liam, don't," Sawyer said from behind Caleb. She had her hand in her pocket, and Tari remembered with hope that she had the vervain dart and stake. Third time's the charm.
"It's a promise," Liam answered.
His smirk grew wider. "Oh really?" In a flash he was gone, and both Liam and Tari made a move to go to Sawyer. But the blonde was unharmed, though she did flinch when he disappeared. The three of them lifted their heads upwards.
It had happened to fast to really see what had happened; Caleb must have pushed Allen hard. The warlock, though skilled, had no time to react. They heard and painful groan when his hip went into the bar. Caleb gripped further down, snapping it. Allen, who had obviously been leaning against the bar, fell forward. He gripped it tightly, but lost his footing and ended up hanging off it.
"Leave him alone!" cried Tari. Liam had stepped forward, unsure what the best course of action was.
"I'm sorry," Caleb answered, not sounding sorry at all. "But you're the most dangerous of them all. Without you, they're just a bunch of children." He smiled wide, and gave the metal bar a strong kick. It collapsed, sending Allen tumbling down to the ground. Liam raced forward, and he managed to break Allen's fall. Thankfully there wasn't much of a distance between the ground and the balcony, so it wasn't that big of a drop. Still, Tari heard a sharp click and the two of them moaned in pain.
Relieved that they weren't hurt, she looked back to where Caleb had been, only to see that he'd gone. She heard a sharp gasp and looked to Sawyer – an arm was round her neck, pinning her head against his chest.
"Now," Caleb said calmly as Liam and Allen stumbled upwards. "How would you like her to die? If I break her neck, it's very quick and clean. There is absolutely no chance of survival, however."
"Let her go," Liam commanded.
"I wouldn't come closer," informed the vampire. "Or I'll hurt her. And," he said, going to Sawyer's hand, "I'll take this." The blonde did attempt to hold onto the dart, but Caleb was too strong. He tossed it aside as he did with the others. "At least you came prepared. Pity really, that it failed completely. Still..." He smirked at Liam, whose eyes were narrowed and body tensed. "At least there's comfort in knowing the two of you won't be separated for long-"
"No!" Liam and Allen raced forward. What they would have done if they'd been able to get there Tari would never know, for Caleb suddenly froze. Liam and Allen halted hastily when they realised his veins had appeared by his eyes and they had gone red.
His eyes went to Tari, and the other three instantly looked to her. She stood there, perfectly still. The only movement was the red blood trickling down her arm.
There was a moment of pure stillness. Caleb suddenly shoved Sawyer forward so she crashed into Liam and Allen, who hurriedly caught her. He appeared at Tari's side, gazing at her. "I see which option of death you've chosen."
Tari said nothing. What could she say?
He lifted her arm. The wound wasn't deep but there was still an impressive amount of blood. Eyes closed he sniffed it, like a little child taking an enormous whiff of his favourite meal. A second later he sank his fangs into her arm.
It was more painful than she thought it would be. Tari had known the fangs would go deep, but she didn't quite understand it until then. She didn't scream, but gasped when he sank his teeth into her. The draining of the blood simply felt strange, sending a tingle down her arm.
Allen stood up, his eyes on them. "Tari," he murmured. The other two simply stared, eyes wide. None of them were sure how to react.
Tari closed her eyes, waiting. Sure enough she heard a choking sound. Opening her eyes, she saw and felt Caleb pull away. Coughing violently, he collapsed to the floor. "Vervain," he whispered between coughs.
"I don't just wear it," Tari said, "I drink it too." She had never been more relieved that Damon had forced that herbal tea with vervain mix down her throat. Never again would she complain about it.
Sawyer and Allen seemed to be stunned; they couldn't help but stare at Caleb, as if waiting for him to leap up and attack again. Liam however, moved towards the vampire. He knelt down beside him. Caleb's eyes – for once – actually looked fearful.
"This is for all the people you tortured and killed." With those parting words, he lifted the stake he had taken from Sawyer's pocket and plunged it into his chest. Caleb choked again as it sank in, before he turned a dark shade of grey. Though his eyes were open, he was unmoving. He was dead.
None of them said anything for a long time. Maybe it was the shock, or perhaps they were all too exhausted. Tari's arm was sore and aching, and both Liam and Allen had been thoroughly knocked down and bruised. There were marks on Sawyer's neck, but other than that she was unharmed. All of them, however, were shaken to the core.
"Oh my God," Sawyer said, for the thousandth time that night. "We did it."
"I can't believe it," murmured Allen. He squared his shoulders. "I'm sorry I wasn't much help you guys."
"You were," Tari said quietly. "You got him away from me."
Liam wrapped his arm round Tari. "You okay?" he whispered.
She nodded, though her pale face contradicted it. "Yeah, I'm fine."
"That was brave," he commented.
Sawyer came forward. Her eyes were filled with tears. "You saved my life," she whispered, almost in amazement. "I can't believe you did that for me."
"You did it for me," Tari reminded her. She looked at Sawyer, then at Liam, and then landed her gaze onto Allen. "You all came after me. How did you find me?"
"It's a long story," Allen said, stepping forward. "We'll explain when we've all calmed down." He put his arm round Sawyer, who leant against him gratefully, and Liam and Allen put their arms on each other's shoulders, and Sawyer put her arm round Tari's waist. They stood in the circle, joined together as if it was a protective shield.
"I can't believe with did that," Sawyer said, breaking the silence. "We killed a vampire."
"We'll have to call Buffy and tell her she's been replaced," Liam joked. It wasn't very funny, but the other three chuckled, needing it.
Tari glanced at Caleb. Looking at his dead body, it was hard to believe she was ever attracted to him. God, I know how to pick 'em. "What do we do with the body?"
Allen shrugged. "Leave it?"
"Yeah, someone'll find it eventually," Liam said. "I mean, surely the police officers search this buildings, right?"
"And we don't have a car," Sawyer added. "How we will look carrying a body down the street? It won't exactly scream innocent."
Tari winced at the word innocent, remembering how Caleb had used it. Seeing this, Allen reached forward and squeezed her hand. "You okay?" he asked, his brown eyes staring deep into hers.
She gave him a weak smile, nodding. "Yeah. My head hurts a little." Now that she wasn't running on adrenalin, the effects of the drug were coming back. "He spiked my drink."
"That's why you felt ill?" Liam asked.
"I thought that might have been the reason you rushed outside," Sawyer said. "After all, it wasn't part of the plan."
Tari covered her eyes with her hand. "I was so stupid," she groaned.
"We all fell for it," Allen said comfortingly. "There wasn't much you could have done. If he wanted to kidnap you, he would have. I mean, let's face it, if you hadn't managed to get him to drink your blood, who knows what would have happened."
"There would have been four bodies in this warehouse," Sawyer remarked. She shook her head. "I think I'm still in shock," she confessed. "Look how close we came to being killed."
"How about next time we be responsible and let the adults deal with this?" Allen offered.
"Agreed," Sawyer and Tari said in unison.
Liam laughed, the sound echoing in the empty building. "I'll agree to it, but really, it's us. How long do you think it'll last?"
"Until we leave the building," Sawyer said, smiling a little.
"Shit." Three heads turned to Tari, who had gone pale again. "What time is it?" She fumbled in her pocket, remembering too late that Caleb had knocked the phone out of her hand.
Allen glanced at his watch. "Ten to eleven." Tari groaned again, beginning to pace. She looked more panicked than she had when Caleb had being attacking her. "What?"
"Damon was picking me up at ten thirty," Tari said. "I'm twenty minutes late."
Everyone was quiet, realising the dawn of a new crisis. Hanging out with Tari, they had noticed how much of a stickler Damon Salvatore was for punctuality. According to Tari, he hated it if she was even a minute late. What would he be like now?
xXx
I am going to kill her. No, scratch that: I'm going to chain her to her bed so she can never leave without my permission again. Which, after this stunt, she'll never have again.
Damon Salvatore was beginning to worry. Not panic, because it could be nothing. But he was getting close to alarm. Before Tari (and the whole Elena/Klaus/sacrifice thing) Damon hadn't had much to worry about, apart from where he would get his next hot lunch from. It came with the territory though, being a parent. He had even worried when Tari lived with Rebecca, but it had been easier to push it out of his head. Now? Now he was losing his mind.
He had driven up to the Scott house to pick Tari up at ten thirty as usual. He had hoped that she would have sitting outside waiting for him, but he wasn't surprised that she wasn't. He knew that she had probably lost track of time talking with Sawyer. So he picked up his phone to call her, but she hadn't answered.
Peeved, Damon got out the car. He had no intention of going to talk to Sawyer's parents; instead he focussed on the house, listening. He could hear two people, but neither of them were Tari, and they were murmuring gently. There were no other sounds coming from the house.
Thoroughly worried, he used his vampire speed to jump on the windowsill of Sawyer's room. Peering in he could see Tari's bag on the floor, but the room was dark and there was no movement. Praying that they were in another room, he went to all the windows of the house. Even when the curtains were closed he listened, but he could hear nothing.
They weren't inside the house.
Damon had been so furious that he had kicked the mailbox over. Not caring about the noise, he slammed the door of his precious car shut and drove away, cursing himself for letting her go and cursing her for being too wilful and cursing Rebecca for not teaching her better, and cursing God simply because he could.
Now he was heading to The Grill, because that was the only high school hang out that he could think of. He didn't know where else Tari would go except possibly the school, and he had no reason to think she would go there.
He parked his car wonky before throwing the doors of The Grill open. Scanning his eyes round the bar and listening, he could tell Tari wasn't in here. Yet...wasn't that her perfume he smelt? It was faint, but his super-scent picked it up easily.
Damon walked to the bar, catching the attention of the bar tender. He had been about to pour Damon a glass of his favourite scotch, but Damon held up his hand. "I don't suppose you saw my daughter in here did you?" In Mystic Falls, everybody knew everyone, so it was a safe bet that the bar tender would know who he meant.
"Dark hair, blue eyes?" Damon nodded, trying not to look too eager. "Yeah, she was in here."
"Just now?"
"A little while ago."
"Who was she with?" Damon demanded.
"A guy. I'm not sure who he was."
"Allen Bennett? Liam Scott?"
"They were in here too, and Sawyer," the bartender said helpfully.
Damon leant against the bar, his mind whirling. She had lied to him. He shouldn't have been so shocked about it, but he was. He had believed her. He felt like a fool, and that made him even more furious. When he got his hands on Tari... "Did you see where they went?"
"Just out those doors," he said, pointing to the ones he'd just entered.
Damon thanked him and walked outside. He listened intently, trying to determine whether he could hear them. But there were too many cars, too much music blaring and crowds hanging about. Cursing, he attempted to call her again. It was ringing, she just wasn't answering. Is she ignoring me? Damon wondered, feeling his fury increase. Oh yes, he really was going to kill her when he found her.
That's when he noticed that he could hear the ringing wasn't coming through the phone.
He swivelled round, looking down an ally. He could already tell that no one was down there, and he couldn't smell any blood. Yet if he had a heart, he would be sure that it would be pounding in her ears right now. Something was wrong. Slowly he stepped forwards, following the noise of the ringing. Finally he stopped, his blue eyes scanning the ground, landing on something silver. Cautiously he picked it up. He had recognised the second he his eyes had landed on it, but he was still praying, still hoping... He flipped the top open and the name MISSED CALL: DAMON (2) flashed in front of his eyes.
Tari would never go anywhere without her cell phone. It was surgically attached to her hip, and Damon encouraged that, wanting to be able to reach her when he needed to. It was usually in mint condition, but now the screen had a huge crack over it.
Oh God no.
Damon made a call to Stefan, who picked up on the first ring. "Where the hell are you?" his brother asked.
"Shut up and listen: I can't find Tari. She's not at the house and I just found her phone. Something's wrong Stefan."
"What do you need?" Stefan asked, his brother useful for once. He could hear Elena in the background talking, wanting to know what was going on.
"One of you needs to stay at home in case she comes back, the other needs to help me search the area. I'm going to start from The Grill and go outwards; you start from the outskirts and come inwards."
"Okay, I'll call you if I find anything."
"Thanks Stef." He hung up and looked round, the enormity of the search hitting him. But he had to find Tari. For all he knew she could be fine, sneaking back inside the house – but she could be injured, or in hospital, or... And he couldn't bear that thought.
xXx
"Does it hurt?" Allen asked.
"A little," Tari admitted. Her eyes were on her arm. It looked horrific. Previously there had been blood all down her arm – it looked like something out of horror film. No matter what, Allen had pointed out, she couldn't go home like that; after all, it really did look as if she had been mauled by an animal. So they all made their way back to Sawyer's. The girl had gone into his parent's room to inform them that Liam and Allen were with her and they were sleeping over; their response, according to Sawyer, had been a tired whatever.
Now they had all squeezed into the bathroom, Tari sitting on the toilet, Allen pressed up against the cupboards, and Sawyer and Liam sitting on the side of the bath. Tari had washed her arm and was now examining it. It looked better now blood was dripping out of it, but you could the bite mark clearly, not to mention the other big wound that the key had made – after all, she'd had to stab fairly deeply to draw blood.
"Can you pass me the bandage?" Tari asked Allen, and he handed it to her.
"How are you going to hide that from your dad?" asked Liam. He had taken off his shoes and socks, throwing them in the living room. Most people would have found that rude, but Tari liked how Liam treated Sawyer's home like his home – there was perhaps something bold about that.
Tari sighed. "I have no idea. I'm also a little worried about when it comes off. It's not much of a problem now, but in the summer I'm going to be wearing short sleeves, and this will definitely scar. Not that I'm bothered about that – I like scars, they show that you've gone through hardship and survived. But how on earth will I explain this to Damon? He doesn't miss a thing, and he'll definitely question me about it."
"You could always tell him," suggested Allen.
Liam, Sawyer and Tari all stared at him with faces that might as well as been signposts pointing the way to the metal institute.
"Or not."
"He'd kill me if he knew what I'd do. C'mon, wouldn't your mom?" she asked Allen.
He sighed. "Alright, point taken."
"We'll think of something," Sawyer said with a smile. Her hair was pinned in a ponytail, her face wiped clean of any make up. "That bandage should stay on for a while. But you're going to need to tell him something that'll match the wound."
"No," said Liam suddenly. "Don't tell him. Hide it – no, say that you scratched your arm and that's why the bandage is on. When it comes off and he sees the scar, you can say you injured yourself in New York. Say that some little kid stuck a knife in your arm, or something like that. Problem solved."
"You think he'll fall for that?" Tari said doubtfully. "He seems to have every little detail about me memorised."
"Just make sure it's healed completely," Allen said, warming to the idea. "Then he just won't have noticed it."
"It's probably a good thing," added Sawyer. "I bet he's probably seen a hundred of vampire bites. If it's scarred than there's a better chance of him not recognising it."
Tari sighed in relief, glad that they'd solved the problem. It had been one of many tonight, and she couldn't have been more pleased that it was ending. She was praying that she would be able to get her confrontation with Damon out of the way as fast as she could, because right now all she wanted to do was go to bed. Yes, she had to admit she was feeling a little smug now that it was all over, that they had actually succeeded in killing a vampire – and a cruel one at that – but she had also lost blood (albeit a little bit) and had been drugged, not to mention was probably still a little in shock. They all were.
"Are you sure you don't want to stay here?" Sawyer asked. "It would be nice if we could all be together. My parents wouldn't mind."
"But mine would," Tari replied. She smiled at her friend. "Thanks for the offer, but even if I did decide to stay, I have no way of telling Damon that, not without my mobile."
"Don't you know your home number?"
"Yeah, the one back in New York." What good was that to her now? After they had cleared everything away, Damon had put the apartment up for sale. It was large and in a good area, and a group of students had snapped it up after two weeks. Damon had only told her when he had signed the contracts and the deal was done. He had mentioned it casually, as if it was no big deal. But Tari had been livid. She knew that it was stupid; after all, it would have to be sold at some point. But she had lived in that apartment since she was a baby, and had even daydreamed about going back to New York for college and living there – and he had sold it without even letting her know it was being put up for sale. It was as if he wanted to sweep any memory of her mother under the rug.
She checked the bandage in the mirror. That's about as good as it's going to get. "I should get going," she said. She moved into Sawyer's room, the others following in her wake. "The longer I make Damon worry the more punishment I'm going to get."
"Do you want us to walk with you?" Liam asked, and Tari had to hide a smile. Always the protector.
"I'll be fine," she said. "We killed Caleb – it's safe again." She wasn't sure whether she believed that, but she didn't want the others to be scared.
Sawyer hugged her. "Thanks for saving my life," she whispered.
Tari held her tightly. "Thanks for saving mine."
Liam and Allen hugged her, Allen asking, "Are you sure?" She nodded.
Once she was outside, she walked on the pavement until the house was out of sight, and then stopped. She didn't want to say it to the others, but she had wanted to be alone, to sort out in her head what had happened.
It was in that moment that she realised that she alone. At night. How long had it been since she had been on her own at night? She couldn't remember. Damon was especially protective about her going out at night, and – she grudgingly admitted – with good reason. In consequence she hadn't been out at night for ages, not alone.
Tari felt fear grip her, and wrapped her jacket round her tightly. She was afraid, and she hadn't expected to be. After all, she now knew what the darkness held, what came out to play at night. It was one thing to be comforted by the darkness when she was in the house by the fire with a cup of coco, but this was different: out here she could actually be hurt.
Stop it, she told herself firmly. She couldn't be scared of the dark her entire life. Half the day was taken up by darkness, which meant half the day she would have to be inside. Besides, with vampires around no one could ever be truly safe. There was no point hiding away.
She began to walk, taking herself to the boarding house. Each step felt like a victory for her, and as she continued she began to feel calm again. It felt so good to be truly alone for once, to not have anyone watching her. She craned her neck to the sky, and saw what looked like a thousand twinkling diamonds in the sky. This was perhaps one of the few things Mystic Falls had that New York didn't: in New York there was so much going on, some many bright neon lights and tall building, that it was hard to see the stars; but in Mystic Falls – when the skies were clear – you could see the millions of stars. It was amazing, how you could see another world and by so far away from it.
She couldn't believe what she had done – what they had done. They had killed Caleb. If she was honest, truly honest, she didn't feel sorry. In no way did she feel guilty about his death. For God's sake, she thought he was going to kill her, or forced himself on her. And Sawyer had given him a chance to stop. In that moment he could have redeemed himself. But he had laughed in her face, not to mention tried to kill her. Liam was the only one who hadn't had his life threatened by Caleb, at least not personally (save for being thrown to the ground, and on people – Tari already ached, and she knew it would be worse in the morning); he had almost squeezed her throat closed, broken Sawyer's neck and allowed Allen to fall to his death. It was either their lives or his, and Tari knew which one she would pick.
It had been a stupid idea, Tari realised that now. If she had told Damon it would have been sorted in five minutes, if that. Yet... It had felt good, fighting back. Ever since she had been attacked by that vampire when she had attempted to run away to New York, it had gnawed at her. There was that fear that she was this weak little girl, a girl that couldn't defend herself. But she had. She had fought him, slapped his face when he had tried to kiss her. He even admitted that it hurt. She walked with more confidence, feeling a rush of boldness.
So she couldn't explain why she paused. She had taken the short cut through the park, which admittedly wasn't a good route in the dark, but it took her half the time to get to the boarding house. It was a beautiful night, the green grass a dark blue, and she even thought she heard an owl. And yet she didn't like this feeling that she had. Now there were no sounds, no animals making a noise. Tari tensed, even though her mind was telling it was just her imagination. And yet was it ever her imagination in Mystic Falls? After all it seemed like it was the vampire capital.
Behind him she heard a rustle and she spun round so fast she was almost dizzy. She was brought back to earth when she felt two hands grip her shoulders.
Damon's eyes were smouldering as he looked at her. "Where the fuck have you been?"
Tari had known this was coming, but it didn't make it any easier to bear. "I'm sorry-"
"You're sorry? You're sorry?" He shook her so hard it felt as if her bones were still shaking afterwards. "Do you have any idea how worried I was? I didn't know what the hell happened to you. I've been searching half the town looking for you and Stefan the other half. I was ready to get the sheriff to help me look, it was that serious. So I hope that you have an absolutely brilliant excuse for leaving the house, putting yourself in danger and putting me through hell."
Tari hated the look on his face; she could tell that he was fuming. "We were doing homework when Liam called. He wanted to get something from Sawyer-"
"What?" Damon demanded, his grip like a vice on her shoulders.
Tari had learnt a while ago that, when lying, it was best to be as vague as possible. "A book of some sort, I don't know. He really wanted it and we only meant to stay for a minute, but then..." Stick as close to the truth as you can. People talk, remember? "This guy started flirting with us, and Sawyer wanted to stick around, so we played a few games of pool. But he started getting...I don't know, pushy, so we left in the end. We just lost track of time." Damon wasn't happy, she could tell, but he was beginning to calm down. "I'm really sorry. But I didn't mean to leave the house-"
"And what about your phone?"
"I didn't realise I didn't have it until I got to Sawyer's," Tari said sheepishly, lying again. Why don't they tattoo the word liar on my forehead?
Finally he took his hands off her. "I'm not happy," he said. "You know that you weren't meant to leave Sawyer's house. You had me worried out of my mind. I didn't know what the hell had happened to you."
"I'm sorry-"
"Grounded," Damon cut in. "Two weeks. And since you're in the house I can expect you to help out with the chores."
Tari wanted to protect – for God's sake, the vampires could clean the entire house in three seconds – but she kept her lips pressed shut. She knew it would do no good to argue with him. Besides, she was still lying even now – it was no more than she deserved.
xXx
When Tari got home she went straight to bed. She had never been more exhausted in her entire life. She purposely but on her flannel pyjamas, the ones with the long sleeves so the bandage would be hidden. It still hurt a little, so she took some painkillers to make sure it didn't wake her in the night, even though she wasn't a big fan of drugs right now. She fell into a deep sleep a minute after she hit the pillow.
Downstairs Damon was still annoyed. He was pacing up and down, Elena watching him half in amusement.
"I can't believe she did that," Damon growled. "She knew that she wasn't meant to leave Sawyer's house; I made sure she knew not to. You were there. But she did it anyway. Why can't she just do what she's told?"
"I'm sorry," Elena said, flipping her hair out of her face. "Are you serious?" At this blank look, she couldn't help but smile. "You never do what you're told."
"I'm over a hundred and fifty years old. I can do what I want. Plus I'm a vampire – it stands to reason that whatever I do I can get out of it easily enough. If she had run into that vampire, who knows what might have happened?"
"I told you Damon, you can't cover her in bubble wrap and not expect her to struggle."
"Where do you find these metaphors?"
"You know what I mean." Elena got a blood bag out the fridge, sipping the straw. "Look, everything worked out fine. Tari's back home and safe. Nothing happened. It was just some childish fun – she's fourteen, she's allowed to have some fun. Do you remember? Before you were a parent you used to do nothing but have fun."
"Before being the operative word," argued Damon. "I am a parent. I have to be strict on this, at least until this vampire is caught. I'll rest easier at night knowing that he or she is dead."
The front door opened and Stefan blurred into the kitchen. "Hey," he said, kissing Elena. He wrapped an arm round her before focussing on Damon. "So she's okay?"
"Yeah," Damon sighed. "She's fine. It was just a stupid adolescent spur-of-the-moment thing. Y'know, like Elena used to do."
"Nah, it was just a thoughtless act. Remember, like Damon used to do?" Elena shot back, a teasing smile on her face. Before he left he threw a pillow at her head, which she dodged.
He listened at Tari's door before quietly opening it. The girl was fast asleep, curled up in bed. Her hair was thrown off her face, showing her peaceful expression. She looked so sweet when she was asleep. It had been better when she was a baby, when she couldn't argue or talk at all; when he knew that she wouldn't wander off.
"And the number for my mother is on the fridge, but please don't call her unless my sister is unavailable or I'll never hear the end of it-"
"I'm a vampire," I say, barely paying any attention to Rebecca (at least at the moment). Rebecca is absolutely stunning, but right now I'm looking at a girl that is perhaps even prettier than her. I lift Tari out of the playpen. Her hair is starting is to grow, a dark colour. I can't tell whether her colour is going to be more like Rebecca's or mine. Her eyes though, they are as light as the moon, like mine. "I think I can handle babysitting for a few hours."
"Please, she's your daughter – she could give you a run for her money." She tucked her hair behind her ear, spinning round to face Damon. "How do I look?"
Stunning as usual, but she's put a special effort into it tonight. She's going on a date (and yes, I'm ready to hunt this guy down a painfully pluck his balls off; they must be big for asking a girl as beautiful as Rebecca) for the first time since she had Tari. Her dark brown hair is cut short, but she's curled it so it frames her face perfectly. She's wearing a short black dress (too short; I want to act like the father I am and tell her to put something longer on) with tall high heels and a cute black shrug. Her breasts are almost bursting out her dress. I shrug. "I would do you."
She smiles sarcastically. "Aren't I a lucky girl?" She picks up her handbag. "So you're all set?"
"I'm fine," I say. "No, scratch that, we're fine." I kiss her noise and she lets out a giggle. "She's beautiful, isn't she? Then again, look at her father."
"Yeah, it's a good thing that she takes after her mother." She doesn't look at me, instead she strokes Tari's head. "Alright sweetie, I'll be home some. Ignore whatever your father says." She turns, for once focussing on me. "Take good care of my daughter, or I swear I will hurt you, vampire or no vampire."
"Have a good time," I say as she kisses me on the cheek. "Don't do anything I wouldn't."
She gives a laugh. "Which means I can do pretty much whatever I want."
The door closes loudly, and I give a sigh. "If only your mother was ugly," I say. I turn to my daughter, and as usual I forget about the rest of the world. I know that she's an ordinary baby, same as every other one, but... I know it must be my love colouring her beauty, but I can't help but feel my dead heart give a twinge when I look at her. Seriously, she must be the most beautiful baby alive. Curious she takes my finger, playing with them (while I watch her impossibly tiny fingers). She sticks one in her mouth. I read somewhere that babies learn through putting things in their mouths (I've read enough baby books that I'm an expert). Once I learnt this I called Rebecca and told her that she had to clean everything; she informed me that it was two in the morning and she barely had enough sleep as it was. I ended up coming down and having to do it myself.
I try to keep my adoration of him to a minimum when Rebecca is around, but when she's not sometimes I just put her in the crib and watch her. She's independent, I can tell. She doesn't reach out for me instantly like some babies do, but lifts her feet and sticks it in her mouth. It's amazing how flexible she is. I lie on the floor and bounce her up and down on my belly. She laughs and by God it is such a wonderful sound. What would the world be like without a child's laughter? I never made it through Children of Men – it was too depressing, which proves my point.
It's amazing, how I'm changing. Years ago I would have been bored out of my mind; but now I am content to spend an evening with my daughter. Rebecca's love, however fleeting, has changed me.
I try not to think about Rebecca's love. If I don't think about it, I can make my heart believe that I'm okay.
Rebecca has left me strict instructions to put her to bed by seven and to not bother her if she whimpers. The second I leave the room she starts to cry. I last two minutes. Yes, a pathetic two minutes before I have to enter the room and comfort my girl. "Shh," I murmur, rocking her. "It's alright baby girl. Daddy's here."
She soothes after a few minutes, but I don't want to leave her again. I sit in a rocking chair that Rebecca has put beside the crib and hold her close to me. I feel so protective of her, I can't even describe it. I've already told Rebecca that she is not allowed to have a boyfriend until she's eighteen; I also said that if a guy hurt her I'd kill him. Rebecca laughed when I said it, but she saw the look on my face and I think she knows I'm serious. Which I am. No one is going to hurt my baby girl.
I must have dozed off, because when I wake up Rebecca is in the bedroom. "Hey," she whispers. She tries to take Tari out of my arms, but I pull her closer to me.
"It's okay," I say, standing. "I'll put her to bed." I put her in the bed, moving my arms away slowly. She's in a deep sleep though, and doesn't stir.
Rebecca and I watch our baby sleep. I am fascinated by the way she moves in her sleep, and I wish I knew what she was dreaming. I find it strangely amazing, looking at a baby – they have their whole lives ahead of them. Right now nothing is wrong with her; she has no regrets, she has no painful memories. I wish I had some baby pictures of myself, just to see whether I looked like Tari does.
"She's beautiful," Rebecca says. Her voice echoes the amazement that I feel.
I move my hand down, stroking her head. She flexes in her sleep, but doesn't cry. I don't look at Rebecca when I ask, "How was your date?" It hurts my throat just to ask that.
"Fine. I had a steak." She begins to walk away and I turn my head. I can hear something in her voice. I know Rebecca better than I know myself, and I know that tone of voice.
"Rebecca," I call softly, not wanting to wake Tari. She turns, half her face hidden in darkness. "What was wrong with him?"
To my surprise I see tears glittering in the one eye I can see. "He was perfect," she whispers. "That was the problem."
As she moves away I see something glitter on her wrist. I can't believe how I didn't notice it: she was wearing my heart on her sleeve the entire time.
xXx
"I'm sorry," she said. He wasn't looking at her but out the window, and this was how she knew that he was angry. She braced herself for the attack, knowing that something was going to happen. "Damon got there too fast. There was no time to have gotten to her-"
Before she knew it he had punched her in the stomach. It felt as if she had torn something inside it. Gasping, she collapsed onto the floor, the breath leaving her body. It felt like flames were burning in her stomach.
"Yes," he said without looking at her. "You should be sorry. You let her slip through your fingers. It's bad enough that Caleb did not hold to his promise, though let's face it, that was a long shot anyway. He was too young to listen. But you... You are experienced. You should have been able to catch her. She's more or less human – she wouldn't be able to stand against you. And yet somehow Damon Salvatore gets there before you do, even though you could have taken her in the blink of an eye."
She didn't say anything. There was no point.
His voice grew soft, and she felt him lift her shirt off her body. "I know how you can make it up to me."
She closed her eyes, forcing herself numb. She felt him lift her up, take her to bed and begin to undress her. He planted kisses on her neck, biting it every now and then. She didn't even allow herself to flinch; instead she took her mind far away, to a happier time, one where she was happy and in love. Her mind was a million miles away when he pulled her legs apart and entered her.
xXx
Damon was woken up by a phone call. A few minutes later he was in the car, driving across town. When he arrived at the warehouse it was already cornered off as a crime scene, with a few of Liz's must trusted deputies. He could see Liz standing in front of police tape, staring down at something. He already knew what she was looking at as he crossed the room towards her.
"Male vampire," Liz said, though it was obvious. "He doesn't have a wallet so there's no chance of ID. He died, being stabbed in the chest with a stake."
Damon studied the face of the vampire. He didn't recognise him, but then why would he? A person didn't usually have a grey face. "Who killed him?"
Liz glanced at him. "You don't know?"
"No, who?"
"No, I thought you had done it. Or maybe Alaric or Stefan, I don't know. I don't know who killed him."
"They would have told me," Damon answered, staring at the body again. This is 2009 all over again. This is wrong; vampires are appearing again, and other people are killing them – people that I don't know. He could feel his frustration growing. This was his town, back in 1864 and since 2009, though really this had always been his home – he couldn't deny it. He didn't like people messing round with his town.
"You're taking care of the body?" Damon asked Liz.
"Of course," Liz replied, looking a little surprised at his briskness. "We're not going to put out a story of course. We're just going to get rid of the body and pretend like nothing ever happened."
"Thanks," he said before turning round, walking outside.
"Where are you going?" she called after him.
"Look around the town," Damon informed her. "I want to see if there's anything that I'm missing."
He went to the square, right in the middle of the town. He sat on a bench, watching as the townspeople went about their business. Most of them were shopping, trying to get up early before the people who slept late came into town. He used his ears, listening. But what was he looking for? There were no damn signs, no suspicious hooded character walking round with a shopping cart of blood bags, no warrior with stakes strapped to his chest. Someone was here, interfering with events. Damon wanted to be in charge, and with someone in the background – even if they were solving problems – set his teeth on edge. He didn't like being kept in the dark.
He heard someone walk up beside him, glancing out the corner of his eye. "What do you want?"
Bonnie sat next to him, albeit on the edge of the seat. "To ask you what happened last night?"
He focussed on her. "Well, I took a bath, watched television and hunted a soccer mom down-"
"But something else happened Damon," Bonnie pressed. "Where was Tari?"
He sent her a dark look; he didn't like Bonnie talking about Tari. "What are you talking about? What does this have to do with Tari?"
"Allen came home this morning after sleeping at Sawyer's house."
Allen was at Sawyer's? Tari didn't mention that.
If Bonnie noticed that he was shocked, she didn't let on she knew. "When he came home, he was stiff, as if he'd been exercising too hard or something. And I was sorting through his clothes, and there was blood on it. I asked Allen what happened last night, but he just said he'd had an ordinary time at Sawyer's – ordering Chinese food, watching a movie, that sort of thing. But..."
"You thought he was lying," finished Damon.
Bonnie nodded. If there was one thing she and Damon could share – and perhaps the only thing – it was the paranoia about their children. Knowing that the supernatural world existed, it changed the way parents looked after their kids. "I did. So I tested the blood, using a spell. And I couldn't identify it. It was like human blood, but a little different. Like a combination."
Damon leant forward on his elbow. "Are you saying Tari's blood isn't human?" At that moment he wasn't thinking about what had happened that night or the possible implications. He was a little ashamed to admit that he was worrying that if Tari injured herself and required a blood transfusion or something like that, where would she get it from? He didn't think he would be able to give her some of his blood, unless he healed her – and who's to say that would even work? One more thing to worry about.
"It doesn't look like it," Bonnie said briefly. "But why was she bleeding?"
Damon bit his lip. "I don't know."
"It was fresh."
He tilted his head to the sky, squinting at the cool sun. "This morning we found a vampire. It had been staked."
Bonnie's brow furrowed. "So? What does this-" She cut off when she realised what she thought he was saying. "No! I know they have abilities and – but they wouldn't do something as stupid as to confront of vampire themselves."
The vampire turned to witch. "You sure about that?"
The answer was clear on her face.
xXx
He was remarkably calm, considering what was going through his mind, when he entered the boarding house. Sounds were coming from the kitchen, so he made his way there. Tari's hair was fastened back in a tight ponytail, her sleeves pulled back as she began washing the dishes. They had no dishwasher considering that, before Tari, they had all either drank animal blood or blood bags. Her iPod in, she was blissfully unaware of him standing at the counter watching her. She looked like she was okay; didn't look like she was injured in any way.
He closed his eyes, trying to silent as he took a deep breath. It was faint, extremely faint, but he thought... Was it dried blood? Or was he just imagining it?
He opened his eyes the same time Tari turned around. She smiled at him, one that was so innocent that he almost felt bad – almost, but until he was sure...
"Hey," she said. "Where were you this morning?"
"I was called into town. They found a body of a vampire." He watched her carefully for signs.
"That's great!" she said with a grin. "At least now I can go out again – that is, when my grounding is finished."
She was being good about this. Too good. It wasn't like her.
"I thought I would clean the dishes..." She stopped, realising that he was looking at her. Her gut twisted; she didn't like the way he was looking at her. "You're not still mad at me, are you?"
Deliberate slow, he walked towards her. Instinctively she tensed, even though she knew it was stupid; Damon wouldn't hurt her. Yet she could see how people could be terrified of him, when he approached her that way. She forced herself to be calm, though it didn't quite work. She didn't understand; why the hell was he looking at her like that?
He raised his hands, moving them down her arms. The way he was doing it... It was like he was taking his time, looking for something. Her chest felt like there was a knot inside it, stopping her heart from beating.
He lifted her sleeves up, the bandage revealing itself. Tari knew not to panic, not to try and stop him. She could still get away with it.
"What's that?" he asked, keeping his voice carefully calm.
"A bandage," Tari answered, playing along. They were both keeping their faces and emotions in check, not willing to be the first to give in.
"Covering?"
"A scratch."
Damon didn't bother to ask when she got it. Instead he ran his hands down it, observing her face. Looking him in the eye, Tari forced herself to betray no pain as him skimmed the sore wound. "Show me."
"Are you serious?"
"As a heart attack."
She jerked herself away from him, freeing her arm. Turning away she said, "You're being ridiculous-"
Before she could finish he appeared in front of her, pushing her against the counter. She cried out slightly as she hit her lower back against it – her body was already a little sore, this would hurt even more. She gazed at Damon, seeing him in a new light; he had never been this rough with her before.
He grabbed her arm, going for the bandage; she jerked it away from him. With another sharp look, he pulled it back. She watched as he tore the bandage from her arm as if it was nothing. The injury didn't look too bad – not like it had last night. Yet she had to admit it didn't look good: there were three holes, two of them obviously different from the first one. The first one was larger, whereas the other two were parallel – a clear sign of a vampire bite.
She heard him draw his breath, cringing as he did so. His face finally began to show his anger, his lips tightening and his grip on her arm increasing. Damon's eyes went black, like the dark side of the moon.
Shit.