Sam's POV

I somehow manage to stumble back to my car and get inside. The soles of my feet are raw and bloody, but I decide they'll survive until tomorrow. I lay in the back seat and try to come up with a plan. I don't know if I should stay or leave. If I stay, I might end up in the same situation as last time but the one advantage is I no longer have anyone I love to lose. If I leave, he might find me but maybe that would be a good thing. Then all of this would be over.

I still haven't come to a decision when the sun rises and the rain finally calms down. I inspect my feet and remove several rocks and other shards in them. I use a water bottle to clean off the dirt and blood and put socks and boots on. It's uncomfortable but it's better than irritating them further.

"Tsk tsk…now look what you've done. All I wanted was to know where he was…but you couldn't give that to me, could you? Bring him in." The memory of Jamie being drug across the floor sears through my heart and I take it as a message to leave. Let him find me. Let him kill me. I can't live with these memories anymore.

After packing up what few clothes and items I have, I sling on my backpack and begin walking towards the highway. Hopefully someone will give me a ride to the bus station, or anywhere other than here. I've just made it to the highway when I spot a truck turning the corner. I wave him down and the truck slows to a halt a few feet past me. Unsure of what to do or say, I simply take the first few steps towards the truck.

"Sam? Hey, are you okay?" A boy with blond hair and blue eyes gets out of the driver side and easily crosses the distance between us.

"Matt?" I'm so confused that's all I can manage to get out.

"Hey, what's going on? Do you need a ride somewhere?" Matt checks out the cuts on my face and arms but doesn't ask me how I got them. I figure I'd rather ask him for a ride than some creepy man I don't know.

"Umm….yeah…"

"Okay, come on let's get out of the rain." Matt walks me to the passenger door and opens in for me. No one has done this for me in a long time and I manage to mumble a thank you while getting in. His truck is old but well-kept. A few empty food packages are scattered but nothing too horrible.

"So, uh, where to?"

"Umm…I guess the bus station. Y'all have one of those right?"

"Bus station? You're not leaving are you?" Matt looks concerned but continues driving in what I hope is the right direction.

"Yeah. Yeah, I think so."

"Why? What happened? Is it your brother?" I had forgotten I had told him that and certainly didn't expect him to remember.

"Yeah sort of. But it's also this guy, Damon. We got into a fight." Again I don't know why but I tell Matt the truth no matter what. Suddenly the car jolts to a halt and if it wasn't for the seat belt I would have flown through the window.

"Damon? What did he do?" I can tell Matt is angry but I have no idea why. He couldn't possibly know he was a vampire, could he?

"Oh…nothing he just didn't like where I was living so he tried to make me stay with him and his brother." Matt doesn't say anything to this but he makes a sharp U-turn and speeds off. I'm about to ask him where we're going when I'm back at Damon's house. Stunned, I can do no more than stare as Matt gets out of the car and pounds on the door. Damon answers after a few minutes and Matt instantly punches him in the face. No, Matt has no idea Damon is a vampire. I bolt out of the truck and up the stairs to the house.

"Matt! Stop! Matt!" Damon has just gotten to his feet and his face contorts into the monster he really is. Matt recoils a few feet and I'm able to slip in between them.

"Damon, please, don't do this. He didn't know what he was doing, please." He doesn't look at me and his face hasn't relaxed, so I place on hand on his chest and the other on his face. "Damon…please."

Damon's POV

Dammit! If only I had gotten there sooner. I leave the now empty car and head back to the house to regroup. Where else could she be? The rain makes it difficult to track her scent. I'm just decided to head to town to see if she's there when I hear a knock at the door. Hoping it's her, I go downstairs to answer it. Unfortunately, it's Mutt. The next thing I know he's thrown a punch and I'm on the ground. What the hell? I've been looking for a reason to get rid of him and it looks like now is my chance. I feel my teeth sharpen and extend. He takes a few steps back. Smart kid.

But then I feel them. Small at first. Not very warm. It's too cold outside. But my chest warms slightly. Then I feel the same sensation on my face. I look down to see Sam staring at me with pleading eyes.

"Damon…please." The sound of my names on her lips causes me to retract my fangs. This isn't the human I want to kill. I place my hand over the one on my chest and the skin to skin contact is almost too much to bear. My fangs ache to caress the soft, white skin on her neck. But they don't lengthen. She knows about vampires. She's afraid of them. She hates them. My other hand reaches for her face. My thumb extending to caress the pink lips that are trembling. Why is she so afraid?

Just when my hand is inches from her cheek, she is ripped away from me and into the arms of some boy. Mutt. Ah, that's what's going on.

"Get away from her! Leave her alone!" Mutt pushes her outside and I charge at him. I can feel my teeth lengthening once again. Yes, there's the right spot…I can see the vein in his neck pulsing. If I can just sever it I can protect Sam.

I cross the rest of the distance and close my eyes letting my instincts take over the hunt. My teeth meet skin and I bite down. Sweet, warm blood rushes into my mouth and some of it rolls out the sides. Frustrated that I'm losing the most delicious blood I've ever tasted, I apply more pressure and most of it stays in my mouth. I wish I would have killed this Mutt sooner…he sure is delicious. Something is hitting my back but I fling it off easily. I'm simply enjoying my meal when it happens.

Everything in my mind turns bright, I smell poppyseeds and lemons. I feel everything ten times stronger. She's everywhere. Suddenly my fingers sense long soft hair and I open my eyes in disbelief. The scene before me is so horrible I can barely stand it after the bright, poppyseed place I was just in.

My hand is wrapped around hair. It's a beautiful shade of light brown and soft and wavy. I'm kneeling on the floor over a small, crumpled body. Her eyes are barely open and several tears slip down her unbelievably pale face. I tear my eyes away and see Matt curled on the floor behind me. That must have been what was hitting my back. He was trying to save Sam. Save her from me. Save her from the monster who just took her life.