"Who gets attacked by a freaking wolf. I mean, seriously?" Caroline said as they drove to the hospital. "And it was like huge and now my arm is all messed up and my mom!" she ended suddenly. "I can't believe she's just going to stay there and get it or something."

"Calm down, Caroline. She already shot it anyways. She's prepared and she'll be fine," Matt said glancing at her. "I'm just glad that you are alright."

She reached over and placed a kiss on his cheek. "Thanks for looking out for me."

"It's kind of what boyfriend's do," he said smiling.

Shortly after they pulled into the parking lot of the hospital and signed it at the desk. After being told to take a seat and wait to be seen, Matt got out his phone.

"Who are you calling?" Caroline asked as he put the phone to his ear.

"Tyler. I want to find out where he is and if he's ok. This is just what he needs to have something happen to his mom…"

She probably passed out from the alcohol and shock of seeing a giant wolf. She's fine," Caroline said, poking at her arm.

"Yeah," Matt said, hearing Tyler's voicemail come up. "Hey, man. I just wanted to check up and see how you are doing. I came by your house and there was some giant wolf in your yard. Sheriff Forbes is all over it though and making sure your mom is alright. Just call me when you get a chance." Matt shut the phone and leaned his head back on the chair.


"Your place is….nice," Elena said, looking around at what could only be described as a bachelor pad.

"Yeah. It's a work in progress," Alaric said, noting Elena's gaze as she looked at the pile of books and boxes scattered on the living room table.

Elena sat down on the loveseat and closed her eyes.

"Are you sure you don't want to go to the hospital?" Jeremy asked her as he put their bags down on the floor.

"Yeah, Jer. I'm fine. I'm just worried. I can't stand just sitting here and doing nothing while the people I care about are out with a crazy vampire," Elena said, shaking her head.

"I know it feels like you're not helping, but just staying out of danger is enough to not make them worried. They'll be fine," Alaric said, heading to the fridge and grabbing three water bottles.

They sat there in silence for a while before Jeremy jumped up. "Jenna. I completely forgot!" he said rummaging in his bag for his phone.

"What about Jenna? What's wrong?" Elena asked, leaning forward in her seat.

"Katherine mentioned her earlier, that's all, and I just want to make sure she's alright. I mean, I don't think I did anything for Katherine to do something, but still," he said, scrolling through his recent call list to find the hospital number.

"Do you think she still believes you are under compulsion?" Alaric asked, furrowing his brow.

"I really do. At least I hope so. She believed me enough to leave me her under her instructions…Hi, this is Jeremy Gilbert," he said, as the operator picked up the line. "I was calling to check up on my Aunt, Jenna in room 3103? Yes, I'll wait…."

Elena mentally crossed her fingers as she waited to see Jeremy's reaction to the news on the other end.

"Alright. Thank you so much. Have a good night, too," Jeremy said, shutting his phone. "She's still safe, but in better news, they expect her awake in the morning. The swelling has gone down and she's stable."

"At least something's gone right," Elena said giving a small grin and seeing Alaric nod in agreement.

"So now what do we do?" Jeremy asked, looking around the room.

"I guess we have to wait," Elena said frustrated, "and just hope…" but she was interrupted by the chirp of her cell phone.

"Please be Stefan," she thought to herself as she got out her phone. But the caller i.d. showed that it was Bonnie.

"Hey, Bonnie," Elena said, nodding at Jeremy to let him know who it was, "What's up?"

"You are going to love me," Bonnie said happily.

"Bonnie. Does this mean that…"

"I found the spell you were looking for and it's totally do-able," Bonnie said excited.

"You are amazing, Bonnie. When do we do this? Can you do this soon? I don't want to rush anything or…"

"Well, it's a morning kind of spell if you can wait that long. It requires sunlight since vampires really are supposed to be stopped by the sun and such," Bonnie told her.

"That's perfect. Thank you so much," Elena said smiling.

"Any time, Elena. Hey are you alright? You sound off."

"I'll tell you about it tomorrow. It's kind of a long story," Elena said, glancing around the room. "I'm fine though. Thanks."

"Alright. But if you tell me you're fine one more time, I may have to hurt you," Bonnie said jokingly.

"Thanks Bonnie. See you tomorrow at….my place? Or yours?" Elena asked.

"We'll have to do it at yours since it's the place you want to do. So see you bright and early. Have coffee," Bonnie ended.

"Well, two for three on good news," Elena said, talking to Alaric and Jeremy. "Bonnie can rid our house of Katherine. Now all I'm waiting on is to hear from Stefan …"

Alaric nodded his head and joined them on the couch. He turned on the TV to the news and was about to change it when Elena stopped him.

"Wait. Stop. Isn't that the Lockwood's?" she said, seeing a large familiar house on the screen with cop cars and an ambulance. Sherriff Forbes was saying something, but the TV was on mute. "Turn it up," Elena said. But she didn't need volume to see what was happening behind the scene: a gurney with a body bag was being carted away to the ambulance.

"What the hell happened?" Jeremy said, moving closer to the screen.


"Well obviously he couldn't have just run away from the house," Damon said to Katherine as they pondered John's disappearance. "He seemed like he was dead when I left…"

"Ugh!" Katherine groaned out as a thought occurred to her. "Little worm probably had enough energy in him to slither over to his ring. I should have taken it as soon as I chopped off his pathetic fingers."

Damon stood there thinking of the other options, but he didn't voice them aloud. There was no reason to problem solve with Katherine. But as much as he hated to admit it, there was something almost comforting about being around her again. Like his past years of searching and hoping weren't in vain when the end goal was to find Katherine. Damon shook his head in anger for even thinking he would be together with her.

"So angry…wanna talk about it or, do something else to relieve the tension?" Katherine hinted suggestively.

"Let's not and say that we did," Damon replied. "So you brought me here for what? A stroll down memory lane? It's not exactly paved with sunshine and roses."

"Well, I did want to reminisce and talk it out eventually but with John's whereabouts unknown and what with your wolf problem, I think we can put that chat on the back-burner," Katherine said with a sad look in her eye.

"Fido? He's not a problem. But if you're worried enough to end our little convo, I'll be leaving now," Damon said, turning his back and strolling away from the gravestones.

"We're done when I say we're done," Katherine said, coming from behind and placing an arm around his shoulder.

"But you know what…I think we should have our important chat now after all," she said, looking around the graveyard and almost admiring the atmosphere. "After all, we have Stefan here now; the family completed," she said glaring into the tree Stefan was perched in.


Will this leave a scar?" Caroline asked as she was getting stitched up. "Because that will be a major let down."

The doctor looked like he was about to roll his eyes, but thought better of it. "You might have some small scars, but if you take care of it, it should heal up pretty well. For now, no heavy lifting or strenuous activity or you will pull them out."

"Well good thing cheerleading season is over then," Caroline mumbled as she watched the final stitch being put in.

The doctor wrapped the wound and gave her instructions, and showed her out the door. Caroline spotted Matt down the hall, who was looking pale.

"What's wrong? You weren't worried about me, were you? I mean, it was just stiches," she said, getting closer to him and examining his face.

"The uh, news was on the television, " he said nodding toward the screen in the upper corner of the waiting room, " and your mom was talking and discussing what happened tonight with the wolf and the break in…"

"Matt. You're freaking me out right now. Is my mom hurt? What?" she said, sitting down next to him.

"You're mom's fine, Caroline. It's Tyler's mom….she's dead," Matt ended, hanging his head.

"What! You said she was just passed out or something? I don't understand."

"Neither do I," Matt said, returning his attention back to the rest of the newscast.


A low growl came from the bushes behind the Lockwood house, but there was too much hustle and bustle of sirens and footfall mixed in with conversation that no one could hear it. Tyler sniffed the air catching the slightest hint of blood and sweat that carried from the house. He was in and out of remembering the events that had happened so far. He had tried phasing back to human form, but couldn't get it right yet. In those moments that he tried, he could remember himself more. Once he dropped such efforts, the wolf took over, and right now, it said to follow a scent on a trail behind him. His ears drew back as he made a small trek through the woods.

"This all came out of nowhere," Sherriff Forbes was telling the reporter. "I came on the scene merely coming to share condolences with Mrs. Lockwood about the mayor, and came across my daughter being mauled by a large wolf."

"Is this the same kind of creature related to the recent animal attacks Mystic Falls has seen?" the reporter asked.

"I won't know more until our investigation is over, but I believe it is."

"Didn't you and your fellow officers already take down the animal responsible for the attacks?" the reporter pressed.

"Yes. But it appears there is more than one," the sheriff ended, looking out into the woods.

Sherriff Forbes wanted to leave and discuss the events with the council, but she knew she couldn't let the media think that anything was out of control.

"What can you tell us about Mrs. Lockwood?" the reporter asked, averting her gaze to the body bag being brought to the ambulance.

Shaking her head, Sheriff Forbes told her of the scene she walked in on. "I circled round back and saw shattered glass on the lawn where the wolf must have broken through and…."

"What do you think would make a wolf enter a house like that?" the reporter interrupted."

"I have no idea….but I entered the house, saw Mrs. Lockwood unconscious and bleeding. I immediately called for the ambulance and they did their best to save her, but it was too late," she ended. "That's all I'm going to say for now. If you'll excuse me, I have to go."

The reporter looked disappointed in the sudden end to the interview, but resolved to wrap it up there and let the Sherriff go on her way.

What Sherriff Forbes didn't tell her was the state Mrs. Lockwood was in: there was no saving her. She had walked in to see her with her eyes wide open in fear and shock, her neck torn to ribbons by what seemed like razor sharp nails. Similar claw marks were on her body near her arms and chest where the wolf must have leaped. A large bite mark was also visible near her shoulder. She was lying in a large pile of blood and shattered glass. But what was the most disturbing was the fact that she was still alive. Sherriff Forbes let the final moments play out in her head and hated herself for what she had done. What she had to do.


"There's no word on the whereabouts of her son, Tyler. Authorities now are trying to get in touch with family to make arrangements," the reporter ended on the television.

"Oh my God. I can't believe something like that happened," Elena said, shutting off the TV.

"I hate the guy, but I wouldn't wish something like that to happen to his mom," Jeremy said. "It's terrible to lose both parents."

Elena and Jeremy sat there in silence for a while, letting the last comment pass through for a moment before Elena spoke up.

"Actually….and I don't want to just jump to this conclusion and," Elena said rambling on, "I promised to keep you in the loop, Jer, so I'm going to just say it. Tyler's dad was a werewolf and so is he."

"What?" Jeremy said, looking at Elena and an unsurprised Alaric. "I didn't even think such things existed! And now you're telling me Tyler is one? Explains why he's an asshole…"

"You didn't think vampires existed, so it shouldn't be too much of a stretch," Alaric said. "I didn't know Tyler was one, I just knew there were werewolves out there."

"Yeah. It was weird for me when I found out too. But…" Elena said, hesitating. "We're pretty sure there's only one werewolf in town and…"

"Wait. Are you saying you think Tyler killed his mom," Jeremy said surprised. "He may be a major douche, but I couldn't imagine him attacking her."

"Well being a werewolf, it was probably those instincts that took over. Something made him snap enough to shift," Alaric said speculating.

"What all do you know about werewolves, Mr. Saltzman?" Elena asked, walking to the kitchen to fill up her empty water bottle. Jeremy followed suit and soon they were all in the kitchen and Alaric started to get some chips out of the cabinet.

"Unfortunately, not much. Sorry. I just know that they exist; they are dangerous, and very rarely controllable. I only know one person who knows a lot about them, but…," he said, shrugging his shoulders and turning back to the cabinet.

"But what?" Jeremy said, not understanding the silence. Elena looked at him and sighed. "It's something you don't really know about yet. But he's referring to Isobel."

"She studied the supernatural for a long time, and not only vampires. She would be the one to ask about such things, but I doubt she would ever help and I wouldn't recommend finding her," he said, shutting the door.

"Wait. Isobel?" Jeremy said confused. "Not the same Isobel you found out that was your birth mother, right?

"The same one, only she took her research a bit further," Elena said uncomfortable. "Jeremy, she's a vampire too."

Jeremy stood there stunned for a moment. "Wow. I guess it's no wonder you kept me out so long. It all sounds pretty messed up."

"Tell me about it," Elena said shaking her head. "She gave birth to me when she was like, sixteen, and years after she was married she turned," she ended with a sad glance to Alaric.

"Hold on," he said, noticing the glance between Alaric and Elena. "Was Isobel married to you?"

"Yeah…but it's over now. Death to us part and all," Alaric said, grabbing a handful of pretzels and shoving them in his mouth.

"I guess…" Jeremy said.

"Hey. Not to be a party killer or anything, "Elena said jokingly, "but I'm exhausted and could really use some sleep."

"Yeah. No problem," Alaric said. "Umm, Elena, you take my bed for now. Me and Jeremy can rough it on the couches for now," he said, bumping Jeremy's arm.

"You sure? I don't want to steal your bed!" Elena protested.

"What kind of man would I be if I made you sleep on the couch. There are fresh or maybe at least cleaner sheets in the hall closet right there," he said pointing. "Let me make the bed for you."

"Nope. You gave me your bed, the least I can do is make it. Good night everyone," she said, grabbing her bag and heading to the hall closet.

"Night, Elena," Jeremy replied.

Elena shut the door and locked it. Taking her cell phone out of her jeans, she noticed there was still no word from Stefan.

"Ugh. Screw this," she said, throwing her bag down on the floor. She spied a window in the corner of the room and opened it up. Looking out she saw that this side led out to the street on the other side. Saying a quick thanks that Alaric had a place with only one floor, she took a deep breath and climbed out the window.


Elena was about to close the window behind her when she heard a knock coming from the bedroom door. She waited to see if they would knock again and she was greeted by another knock and Jeremy's voice on the other side. "Elena? You still up? I need to talk to you."

Making up her mind, Elena reluctantly climbed back in and shut the window. "Yeah, Jer. Just a sec."

She opened the door and let Jeremy in the room. "What's up?" she asked as she shut the door.

"It's just..." Jeremy started as he sat down on her bed. "You kind of threw everything at me all at once and I'm a bit overwhelmed at it all and still have questions."

Elena shook her head and sat down next to him. "I know. I'm sorry Jeremy. It's just that I've kept so much for you and now it was just really important to let you know everything you've missed."

"It's pretty crazy, Elena. I kinda feel bad for being so hard on you. You had a lot on your plate and I was selfish," he said.

'Like you didn't have enough going on your own life. It's understandable," she told him, giving him a quick hug.

"Fair enough...So I guess first off I want to know about the whole Isobel thing. I mean, it's one thing for you to tell me you wer adopted, but what, she's a vampire? And werewolves? Tyler? What do you know?"

Elena closed her eyes. She really wanted to find Stefan, but she knew she really needed to be there for Jeremy. "Alright. I'll start from the beginning Jeremy, it's a long story, but you asked for it."

Jeremy scooted back in the bed to lean against the post. "I'm ready to hear it all."

"Alright. But first I need you to keep an open mind and not judge anyone without hearing the whole story, ok?" Elena asked, scooting back next to him.

"Ok," jeremy said sounding confused.

"You asked about Isobel, so I'll tell you everything I know about her first," she started. "I guess I should start with who turned her," she said reluctantly, knowing what his reaction would be.

Taking a deep breath, she started to tell Jeremy everything.


Isobel paced the wooden floors impatient for her phone to ring. She had sent out her two assistants to keep a look out in town for Katherine and was anxious for some word back from them.

"She's probably with the Salvatores by now," a voice said from the couch.

She glared and walked into the living room. "You're probably right, but if that's the case, then I would have heard from them by now what's going on."

At that moment, her phone went off. She opened it eagerly. "What's going on?"

"Elena was about to sneak out of your ex husband's house, but she went back inside and shut the window. She's inside at the moment with that Jeremy kid," Cherie told her.

"Something is up, then," Isobel told her, continuing her pace around the room. "She wouldn't need to sneak out unless Rick was told to keep them there for some reason...any word from Frank?"

"Nothing. He was supposed to be trailing the brothers, No?" Cherie asked.

"Yes, but I have a feeling I may have to go out looking myself...Still keep a look out for Elena and call me if she steps foot out of that house again," Isobel said, snapping her phone shut.

"Why would she try to go look for them with Katherine out there? Is she out of her mind?" Isobel said, hanging her head.

"That's what happens when you are blinded by what you want," Isobel heard from the living room again. "That's what happened with you too, right?"

Isobel seethed a bit at the comment, but shrugged it off. "Perhaps..."

"So are you going to go check it out yourself or leave it to your friendly cowboy?"

She rolled her eyes and thought about it. "As much as I would love to right now, I think I'll wait until dawn. I know Elena's safe, so it's not vital to go running off right now. Besides, I know how much you enjoy my company."

"You mean you don't want me out of your sight."

"Obviously," she said, grabbing a bottle of wine out of the kitchen. She glanced at her phone again, willing it to ring. "I hate waiting," she said as she popped the cork.


Sheriff Forbes arrived at the hospital followed by the ambulance with Mrs. Lockwood's body. She nodded her head as they unloaded the gurney and entered the hospital. She made her way to the emergency room eager to find Caroline. She glanced around and noticed her and Matt sitting in the waiting room.

"Caroline," she called. She turned her head in response and stood up.

"Mom! Are you ok? I saw what happened on the news. Did you get that freakish wolf" she asked.

"I'm fine, Caroline. And no, it got away. How about you? Are you all fixed up?" she said glancing at the bandage on her arm.

"Yep. I got some stitches and the doctor was really kind of rude if you ask me. But he said no heavy lifting and such. I'm just waiting for the paperwork right now," she said, glancing at front desk impatiently.

"Great," she said, giving Caroline a hug. "Matt. Thanks again for everything you've done," she said over Caroline's shoulder.

"I'm glad you are Caroline are safe, but you were the hero tonight, Miss Forbes. No need to thank me," Matt said, standing up.

She didn't feel like much of a hero after what had happened, but she shook her head in appreciation, and reached over to give Matt a hug too.

While they waited for Caroline's paperwork, there was movement behind them as a person was rushed into the emergency room.

"Male, around 17-18 years old. Multiple wounds around the shoulder and abdomen. He was found unconcious by some fisherman near Wickery Bridge," the paramedic said as they came in.

Sheriff Forbes ran over to get a look and was surprised to see Tyler laid out on the gurney covered in blood. Caroline and Matt followed and were equally surprised to see him lying there.

"What happened," she asked the paramedic as they wheeled him away to the emergency room.

"Don't know, Sheriff. We just got a call to pick him up. It looks like he was attacked by some animal. Maybe the same one that was at the Lockwood manor tonight," she said.

"Are there any bullet wounds," she asked questiongly.

The paramedic looked surprised by such a question. "No. Just animal wounds. Why would you think someone shot him?"

But she shook her head. "Nothing. I'm going to have to call this in to the station, though..." she said, thinking of the council. "Who the hell did I shoot," she thought as she took out her phone.

"Is he going to me ok?" Matt asked with concern.

"The gashes are pretty deep, but it looks like the vital organs were unaffected. That's all I can tell you though, hun. Sorry," she said, turning around and heading back out to the ambulance.

"The Lockwoods are cursed or something," Caroline said, burrowing herself in Matt's chest.

"I don't see how things could get any worse," Matt agreed, staring into the hall, trying to get a glimpse of Tyler.

Sheriff Forbes shook her head as she waited for the person to pick up the phone. "If only you knew," she thought as she walked out of the hospital for some privacy.