Chapter 4
Disclaimer: I don't own the Vampire Diaries. I'm just borrowing.
Note: Thank you to everyone who sent me feedback on Chapter 3. You guys rock! Since I'm in a mood to update, I'm going to go ahead with Chapter 4 of "Cat and Mouse." When we last left everyone, Elena investigates the scene of yet another murder and in the process, she gets kidnapped by Damon, who tells her that he has been watching her for the past three weeks. No spoilers, except the action takes place that evening at Elena's apartment.
Elena's Apartment – That Evening
By the time Elena opened her eyes again, she was back in her apartment again. Strange, wasn't she in Damon's hideout not too long ago? How the hell did she get back here? She didn't leave on her own accord, because Damon had her wrist in a vice grip behind her back. Did he let her go? It seemed that way. Bringing her hand to her neck, she closed on felt like a chain. Gasping, she got up off the bed and rushed to the mirror on her dresser. How the hell did that necklace get there? She didn't remember wearing one when she left the apartment this morning. Unless...
"Damon."
Of course! Damon must've placed the necklace around her neck earlier and she wasn't aware of it. But, why? What purpose did that serve? Turning the charm over, she saw a tracking device. So, that's it, he wanted to keep tabs on her, the bastard. He didn't let her go after all, she was still a prisoner, only not locked up.
Just then, she heard a knock at her bedroom door. Thinking that it was Damon, Elena gulped and then carefully approached the door and said, "Who is it?"
"It's Caroline."
Elena let out a sigh of relief and opened the door to reveal Caroline standing in the doorway. Grateful to see her friend, she hugged her before she could utter so much as a syllable. Caroline was confused but hugged her back. After a few minutes, Caroline stepped back and cocked her head curiously at Elena.
"Are you okay? The way you hugged me, it was almost as though you were gone for ages."
Elena nodded. "Yeah, I just had a really weird day, that's all."
As she spoke, Elena knew she wasn't being entirely truthful with her friend, but if she told her the real reason she hugged her, she would get scared and that was the last thing she wanted to do.
"Whatever you say, Elena," said Caroline. "Oh, and you got a phone call while you were asleep."
Elena felt her heart hammer. Oh, shit, what if Damon had somehow gotten her number? "Who was it?"
"Dr. Char from the medical examiner's office," said Caroline. "She wants you to come to the morgue so that she can tell you about what she found while performing the autopsy on the new body that you found downtown today."
Oh good, it was only Anna. "Great," said Elena. "I'll head there right there."
Caroline raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure you're okay? You're acting weird all of a sudden."
"It's nothing, I'm fine," said Elena. "I'm just a little jumpy because of all this shit associated with the murders." She shook her head. "I know you're concerned about me, Caroline, and I appreciate it, but really, I'm okay."
Somehow, Caroline didn't believe her, but took her at her word anyway. After all, she knew that Elena had been under a lot of stress lately because of the work load she had taken on when she had temporarily transferred to Homicide from the Special Victims Unit and stress could do weird shit to people. She only hoped Elena didn't burn herself out.
Office of Dr. Anna Char – 1 Hour Later...
Elena sighed as she walked into the morgue. All the way here, she looked around to make sure that Damon wasn't following her and was relieved when she found that he wasn't. Still, the idea that he had placed a necklace with a tracking device on it around her neck was disturbing. To make things worse, she could still hear his words in her head:
"I started this game because I want to make you mine."
Elena shivered at that, as well as the memory of him kissing her neck. Did he think that she would willingly give herself to him? She was cop, and he was a bloodthirsty serial killer. Cop and serial killer didn't go together, it just wasn't natural. Still, he was kind of sexy, in a dangerous sort of a way. Those gorgeous blue eyes seemed to burn into her soul, and his body looked like it was ideal for hours of hot, steamy sex, and that shiny black hair of his was...
Elena shook her head, discouraging herself from having fantasies about the man who had kidnapped her hours ago. Besides, she hadn't been there long enough to develop Stockholm syndrome.
Sighing, she walked into the autopsy room to find Anna waiting for her, the body of the girl she found earlier on the table in front of her, bearing the Y-shaped incision that Erika had.
Clearing her throat, Elena said, "Caroline told me you wanted to tell me about the new body."
"Yes, I did," said Anna. "Turns out she was raped before she was strangled, just like Erika had been. I found semen on her and, just like with Erika, I ran tests on the semen and got the same results. Damon's accomplice raped her."
"I still find it odd that Damon would have an accomplice," said Elena. "I mean, there are serial killers who do most of their work alone."
"True, but maybe Damon hired him because he needed someone who took pleasure in a woman's pain," said Anna. "And this guy definitely knew how to make their victims suffer." She shook her head. "It makes me sick knowing that he's still out there, looking for his next victim."
Elena said nothing, just nodded. She felt just as sick, maybe a little sicker because she had actually been in Damon's presence and shuddered to know that with the tracking device, he could know where she was at any given moment.
"I agree," she said finally. "Those girls didn't deserve to die or be tortured." I certainly did feel like I was being tortured when I was in Damon's presence earlier, her thoughts added. "So, were you able to ID the vic, like you did earlier?"
"Her name was Bethany Henderson, and she was about the same age as Erika," said Anna. "Such a shame. Dying at that young an age. It's not fair, especially when we have to tell these girls' parents that their daughters wound up in the morgue. No parent should endure such pain."
Again, Elena said nothing. She had barely heard Anna, since her mind was still focusing on her time with Damon. While he didn't tell her to keep quiet about what had happened, Elena was hesitant. It wasn't that she didn't trust her friends, she just didn't think it was necessary to tell them anything, no matter how great the temptation.
Note: Chapter 4 of "Cat and Mouse" is complete. Don't ask how the whole locket with the tracking device on it came about, but I thought it would make an interesting twist, considering how Elena wore a vervain necklace on the show.
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