The Daughter of Damon Salvatore
Chapter Fifteen
Jessica walked through the corridors, trying to get to her last class of the day before the tardy bell rang. Jessica had spent the last couple of days at Tyler's place and the pair had spent the time learning more about each other. Jessica knew that Tyler acted like a douchebag at school but privately, he was actually a really nice guy, and she planned on keeping him close. Whether that was as a friend or a lover.
Tyler had stuck to his word; he hadn't made a move on her and was all for leaving the ball in her court.
Jeremy had approached her and apologised again and, of course, she had forgiven him again instantly. The two of them caught up with each other and Jeremy had explained that Anna was going to be moving away from town with her mother and hasn't seen her since. He seemed upset but Jessica couldn't help feeling the slight wave of relief that washed over her with that knowledge. That was one less vampire in Jeremy's life to worry about.
After classes had finished for the day, Jessica made her way to Tyler's car. She was intercepted by Stefan.
"Hey Jessica, how have you been?" Stefan asked her.
Jessica shrugged.
"Fine thank you" she replied.
"Is er…Tyler treating you ok?" he asked.
Jessica nodded.
"I've not felt this relaxed in a while, I have enjoyed staying with him" Jessica stated.
Stefan tried not to grimace at all the scenarios that were flying through his head regarding all the ways Tyler could get Jessica to relax and enjoy her stay with him.
Stefan shook his head to rid himself of the images and intense desire to attack Tyler.
"Look, I don't know when you're planning on coming home but, Elena and I are having a double date night with Caroline and Matt tonight. You and Tyler are welcome to join us if you want" Stefan said.
Jessica stared at him.
"I don't think that's a good idea. Matt and Tyler have got a love-hate bromance thing going on which is shaky at best. Also, Tyler and I aren't actually dating" Jessica said.
This surprised Stefan.
"Really?!" he asked in shock.
Jessica nodded.
"I really like Tyler but, I'm bound to mess something up. I've told him to take it slow with me" Jessica shrugged.
Stefan chuckled.
"I think you guys are beyond taking it slow, don't you think?" Stefan smiled at her.
Jessica went to reply with a witty remark but, before she could, Tyler approached them.
"Hey, are you ready to go home?" Tyler asked, looking between Jessica and Stefan.
Jessica nodded.
"I'll see you later Stefan" Jessica said as she climbed into the passenger seat of Tyler's car.
"Do you feel like going to The Grille?" Tyler asked when they started driving.
"Sure, let me change and shower first and then we can do whatever you want" she replied.
Tyler grinned at her as they headed back to his house.
Once they had got changed, and Jessica had showered, they headed for The Grille.
Once there, they sat with some of Tyler's friends. Jessica looked around and noticed Stefan and Elena meeting Matt and Caroline. They all looked happy, and Jessica was glad to see that Stefan and Elena were finally getting to enjoy a normal evening with friends on a date night.
Then Jessica looked over towards the bar and noticed Damon doing shots with Jenna and another woman.
"That's Matt's mom" Tyler told her when he noticed the direction she was staring.
Jessica nodded and continued to join in the conversations being had around her.
Eventually, Jessica got hungry, and she made her way over to the bar to order drinks and some food. She almost got bulldozed over by Caroline who was storming out from the direction of the bathrooms.
"Woah! You ok there Caroline?" Jessica asked as the two girls found their balance again.
"Sorry Jessica. I don't want to talk about it" Caroline gritted out as she stormed back towards where Matt and Stefan were stood.
Jessica watched the other girl walk away.
A few moments later, Elena walked out of the bathroom looking equally as rattled as Caroline had.
"Hey Elena, are you ok?" Jessica asked.
"Hey Jessica, I'm fine. Just some Caroline drama again" Elena replied.
Jessica smiled sympathetically at her and was about to ask Elena how she was since the whole tomb and Sheila dying situation but…
"Katherine?" an unknown man said as he approached the two girls.
Elena was in shock and Jessica tried to think quickly to avoid raising any suspicion.
"Hi! I'm Jessica, and this is Elena. Are you sure you have the right person?" Jessica stated smoothly.
The man looked like he was assessing both girls with interest.
Jessica and Elena both tried to keep up their confused faces.
"Oh, I apologise. You look like someone I know" the man answered, quickly backtracking.
"Elena, are you coming back or what?" Caroline hollered out from the pool table.
"It's no worries, hope you find who you're looking for" Elena replied politely.
"I'm coming Care!" Elena shouted back at Caroline as she gave the unknown man one last friendly smile as she walked quickly towards Caroline.
Jessica remained where she was, watching the unknown man with interest. Jessica watched the man and his girlfriend as they watched Elena approach the pool table.
"Stefan Salvatore" the unknown man stated.
Jessica knew the situation was bad the second the man had called Elena 'Katherine'. However, hearing him state Stefan's name, sent chills down her spine.
"Oh! You know Stefan?" Jessica asked, trying to gather information.
The man turned to stare at her, like he had forgotten she was there in the first place.
"Sorry, yes, Stefan and I go way back" the man stated.
"Yo Salvatore! Need help with the drinks?" one of Tyler's friends said as he approached her.
Jessica felt her stomach plummet when the mystery man stared interestedly at her after learning her name.
"Salvatore?" he asked her.
Jessica knew she needed to remove herself from the situation quickly.
"Yeah, Stefan is a distant relative of my uncle apparently. He's recently come to stay with us for a bit. He's a cool guy, bit of a loner though. I'm sure he'd be happy to catch up with an old friend if you went over and said 'hello'" Jessica shrugged.
Jessica was distracted by Tyler's friend who had now reached her. She turned her head back to look at him and smiled in appreciation for him coming to give her a hand with the drinks. However, when she turned her head back to look at the unknown man again, he and his girlfriend had disappeared, leaving an empty space behind. Jessica immediately looked towards the pool table to find Stefan looking at her, Elena had managed to fill him in. Jessica looked back at Stefan with a meaningful glance and nodded her head.
Jessica then grabbed the rest of the drinks from the bar and walked back over to the table Tyler and his friends were sat at.
"What took you so long?" Tyler asked as he slung his arm around her shoulder.
Jessica relaxed into his protective embrace; however, she could not shake the chills that were still tingling down her spine.
"Sorry, got distracted talking to Elena and Caroline" Jessica said.
Tyler nodded and went back to talking with his friends.
Jessica looked around and noticed that Stefan, Elena, Caroline, and Matt were grabbing their jackets and getting ready to leave.
She made eye contact with Stefan who was telling her that she should think about leaving to.
Jessica nodded.
As they left, Jessica's eyes went back to the bar where Damon looked absolutely hammered with Jenna and Matt's mum.
Jessica decided not to interrupt him. If there was a problem, Stefan would let them know.
.
.
.
As Tyler and Jessica left The Grille. Tyler could tell that Jessica was distracted and was worried.
"Hey, what's up with you tonight?" Tyler asked as they got into the car.
"I don't know. I think there is something going on with Stefan and I'm a little worried about it" she admitted.
"Do you want me to drive you home so you can make sure everything is ok there? You can always call me later and I can come and get you if you want to come back to mine tonight?" Tyler offered; he could see that she was really concerned about Stefan.
Jessica thought it over for a few minutes before nodding.
"Would that be ok? I just want to make sure that there is nothing wrong" Jessica replied knowing full well that shit was hitting the fan.
Tyler nodded and drove in the direction of the boarding house.
Once there, Jessica stepped out of the car and thanked Tyler for understanding.
She kissed him sweetly on the cheek and let him know that she would text him later once she had checked in on the situation inside her home.
Tyler nodded and said goodbye as he drove back down the driveway.
Jessica entered the house and found Damon sat on the sofa with his back to her.
"Save the lecture Stefan" Damon complained not turning around.
"For god's sake, are you two fighting again?!" Jessica grumbled.
Damon was clearly surprised to hear Jessica's voice instead of Stefan's and he whirled around to face her.
"You're home?" he asked, a small genuine smile on his face.
Jessica nodded.
"Yeah, have you not spoken to Stefan this evening?" Jessica asked.
Damon frowned sensing something was wrong.
"No, he's just gone to drive Elena home, I thought it was him arriving home not you. Why?" Damon asked.
"A man was at The Grille tonight. He called Elena 'Katherine' and he seemed to know Stefan. He also found out my name and linked me to Stefan" Jessica stated.
Damon's eyes widened. How had he missed all of that?
"I was at The Grille as well tonight, why didn't you tell me then and there?" he asked.
"You looked like you were enjoying your creepy threesome with Jenna and Matt's mum. Why? What's going on?" Jessica shrugged in reply.
Damon sighed.
"I had a little visit from Anna and Pearl earlier today. It seems like the witches messed up the spell on the tomb and the seal was never raised. All the tomb vampires are now out. That man tonight was probably one of them" Damon confessed.
"What?! Twenty-odd, potentially vengeful, vampires are running loose around Mystic Falls?" Jessica hissed, pissed that Sheila had basically died for nothing.
Damon looked indifferent.
"Not all of them have hung around. Those who have stayed are under Pearl's orders. It would be unwise to let our guards down though" Damon stated.
Jessica nodded.
"Well, what do we do now?" Jessica asked.
"Let's wait for Stefan to get home first, he shouldn't be long" Damon stated.
Jessica nodded and sat down in one of the chairs.
Damon and Jessica sat in awkward silence; they both knew that there was a lot that needed to be discussed but both knew that tonight was not the night to do it.
Damon sighed, hating the silence.
"How have you been the last few days?" Damon asked.
Jessica resisted the urge to glare at him.
"I've been fine" Jessica replied.
"Where have you been staying?" he asked.
"At Tyler's. Is there something wrong with your sense of smell?" Jessica replied bluntly.
Damon tried not to show his anger towards the girl.
"It doesn't work like that. Just because you smell of the guy doesn't mean you are living with him. I saw you at The Grille with the Lockwood kid and all his buddies. You smell of all of them put together because you have been around them all" Damon explained.
Jessica looked confused.
"Then how did you know that I had slept with Tyler that morning I came home when you saw him drop me off?" Jessica asked.
"You don't want to know the answer to that" Damon grimaced.
Jessica just stared at him.
Damon held his hands up in surrender.
"Fine! Just remember you asked. A human's normal scent differs slightly to their 'personal' scent…let's say. That day, we couldn't just smell Tyler on you but, we could also smell Tyler on you. Understand now?" Damon explained awkwardly.
"Gross!" Jessica replied feeling repulsed that vampires could actually differentiate between the scent of a person and the scent of their arousal and personal secretions.
Damon chuckled.
"I know! Which is why I stay as far away from hormonal teenagers as I can" Damon stated.
Jessica grinned back.
"Well, you're doing a great job with that!" she replied sarcastically.
The two chuckled before quietening down again.
Jessica noticed Damon's face turn serious.
"Have I passed?" he asked quietly, a hint of vulnerability in his voice.
Jessica looked at him in confusion.
"Have I successfully got rid of the monster in me?" he whispered.
Realisation hit Jessica. Damon wanted to know if he was back in her good books.
"Time will tell" was Jessica's defensive reply.
Damon just nodded, that would do for now.
"Will you stay home now?" he asked.
"Depends what time has to tell me, doesn't it?" was her clipped reply.
Damon nodded in agreement, he was willing to take whatever it took to prove that he was done being unstable over Katherine, and that he was going to be a better person for Jessica's sake.
Stefan came through the front door a few minutes later and was glad to see Jessica home.
Stefan's face then turned serious as they discussed what had happened at The Grille. Damon and Stefan made plans about how to approach the situation and Jessica soon grew tired.
Upon seeing her yawning, Damon suggested that it had been a long day and that she should head to bed.
Jessica agreed and said goodnight to Stefan and Damon before heading towards the stairs.
As she got halfway up the stairs, she heard a 'woosh' and a 'crash'. Before she could think any more about it, she felt herself flying through the air and backwards down the stairs.
She hit the floor at the bottom of the stairs with a painful thud and definitely heard something snap. White hot pain flashed through her body as she tried not to pass out. She managed to pick herself up and stand weakly on her own two feet.
She could see Stefan and Damon fighting the male and female vampires who had approached Elena at The Grille earlier that evening.
The man and Damon were pretty evenly matched and were challenging for each other.
However, the woman managed to one-up Stefan as he fell to the ground, a piece of wood rammed through his stomach. Stefan groaned in agony.
Jessica could see that the woman was about to shove another piece of wood, most likely through Stefan's heart this time.
Jessica couldn't think as she felt her magic surge through her body. Before she knew what was happening, the woman had fallen to the floor screaming and clutching her head.
This gave Jessica the opening to grab the piece of wood from Stefan's stomach as Damon fought harder against the determined male vampire.
Jessica didn't think twice before taking the piece of wood she held in her hand and driving it in the place she knew she would find the woman's heart.
The woman was still screaming from the head pain Jessica was causing, and Jessica found that she wasn't strong enough to get the piece of wood all the way through the woman's body. As she tried with all her might, she felt another set of hands cover hers and force the piece of wood forward, successfully stabbing the woman's heart.
As the woman slumped completely to the floor, greying as she did so, Jessica looked up and noticed Stefan smiling proudly at her.
"Good job kid" he smiled at her.
Stefan, Jessica, and Damon now turned their focus back to the devastated male vampire who had just watched Stefan deliver the fatal blow which killed his girlfriend.
He assessed all three of them and realised that he was not going to win this fight if he tried. He gave one last devastated glance at his girlfriend before fleeing the house via the window he had shattered upon attacking.
Damon, Stefan, and Jessica looked at one another and then at the dead vampire on the living room carpet.
"We'd better get this cleaned up" Stefan sighed as he started to roll the dead woman up in the rug.
Damon turned and looked at Jessica in concern. She was extremely pale, and Damon remembered the heart stopping sound of Jessica's body hitting the bottom of the stairs. He had thought that the landing had killed her instantly.
"Are you ok?" he asked her.
"I feel really weird" Jessica whispered, now feeling dizzy.
"That would be the adrenaline and the pain you are currently in" Damon stated as he noticed Jessica's shoulder and arm looked twisted at an unfortunate angle.
"Also, you're bleeding heavily from the back of your head" Stefan remarked, now standing next to Damon, equally concerned.
Jessica looked confused for a moment before reaching a shaking hand to the back of her head. The touch to the back of her head caused nauseating pain to ricochet through her body.
She threw up over the floor instantly and started swaying dangerously.
Damon got to her first and caught her before she could hit the floor.
Without hesitation, he bit his wrist and forced it into her mouth.
"Drink" he ordered as Jessica was fading fast.
She managed to take a few gulps of Damon's blood on her own accord before she passed out completely.
"She definitely has concussion, and I'm going to have to re-set her arm and shoulder" Damon stated more to himself than to Stefan.
Stefan nodded as he gently stroked his niece's cheek.
"I'll deal with the body and putting the living room to rights. You deal with our kid" Stefan instructed as he went back over to the rolled-up body.
He wanted to deal with this as quickly as possible now so that he could help with whatever Jessica needed.
With new determination, he hauled the dead body over his shoulder and headed for his car. He told Damon he would bury it and be back as soon as possible.
Damon was left alone with Jessica's unconscious body in his arms. He kissed her forehead lightly and gently lifted her featherlight body securely into his arms.
Once in her bedroom, he lay her on her bed and focused his attention on her broken arm and shoulder. He quickly re-set her bones, with a sickening crack, and held her arm in place until the sickening heat radiating from the injury started to abate.
Damon sat down in the chair next to Jessica's bed and pulled it as closely as he could to her bedside.
As he kept replaying Jessica's fall over and over in his head, he got angrier and angrier. It was lucky that Stefan was the one who had taken the dead body to be buried. If it had been Damon, he would have kept the body and happily chopped it up into thousands of little bits and then posted it back to Pearl and the merry band of vampire's piece by piece.
His dark thoughts were broken by Stefan entering the room.
Stefan had quickly buried the body somewhere in the woods and quickly returned to the house. He had put the living room to rights and cleaned the floor of glass, vomit, and blood. Once finished, he headed straight for Jessica's room.
Upon entering, Stefan noted the pure anger on Damon's face and then looked at his frail niece. He was pleased to note that Damon's blood had seemed to bring a bit of colour back to her cheeks.
"Is there anything I can do?" Stefan asked gently.
"No" Damon replied without taking his eyes off Jessica.
Stefan grabbed Jessica's vanity stool and pulled it to the foot of the bed. He sat down alongside Damon as they watched over Jessica for the rest of the night.