Unstoppable | The Vampire Diaries

7. The Ugly Truth

As he opened it, Riley took the opportunity to run as fast as she could through the house. Luckily, she was running in the path of the back door. Finding it quickly and wrenching it open, she ran. She didn't even care what direction she was running in, she just ran.

The second she reached a main road, she ran into a man, knocking her completely off her feet. She screamed; her mind filled with images of Damon Salvatore with fangs.

"Riley?"

She looked up to see Matt Donovan. Breathing heavily, she stood up, trying to ignore her shaking.

"Are you OK?" he asked her. She looked back the way she came, seeing nothing and no one following her.

"I hate to ask this," she said. "But could you take me home?"

***

The next morning, Riley had tried to convince herself that it was just a really bizarre dream. Vampires weren't real. But as logical as she was, she wasn't stupid. She knew that she went to the Salvatore house last night. She remembered in painful detail every single word that Stefan had said, and she remembered how serious he'd looked when he said it.

She also knew that if she chose not to believe it, then she'd have to let go of everything that she'd found out and pretend that Stefan Salvatore was just a normal guy. And she couldn't do that.

Which is how she found herself at Elena Gilbert's house. Her next stop was Caroline's, she had to warn them about the monsters that they were involved with. No matter what Stefan said.

"Riley?" Elena's eyes widened when she opened the door. She looked shaken up. "Is everything OK?"

"No," Riley said quickly. "Listen Elena, I don't know you. But I know that there's something seriously wrong with your boyfriend and I'm scared."

Elena looked at her carefully, before realization dawned in her eyes.

"You know?"

At that moment, Riley knew just how stupid she'd been. She didn't know who Stefan's allies were in this town. Wasn't it entirely possible that his girlfriend was also a vampire?

"I'm sorry, forget I said anything," she blurted.

"No Riley, wait," Elena urged, shutting the front door. She didn't need Jeremy or her aunt Jenna to hear this conversation. "Please tell me if you know. Because I can't handle this, and I really need someone to talk to."

Riley sighed. "Stefan told me... what he is."

"A vampire," Elena breathed.

"So it's true?" she asked. A part of her was still convinced that he'd been lying to her, concealing his true identity. But if Elena knew, it must be true. "And are you...?"

"A vampire?" Elena asked, perplexed. "You think I'm a vampire?!"

"I don't know what to think, OK. I'm freaking out!" Riley exclaimed, before reminding herself to calm down.

Elena nodded, knowing the feeling very well. "Stefan asked me to meet him, he said he'd explain everything. Why don't you come?"

"I don't want to be anywhere near him," Riley said. She didn't know who she could trust, but she knew for sure that she couldn't trust him.

"Look, you're not the only one freaking out. But Stefan won't hurt us, I know he won't."

"How do you know?" she asked, her tone harsh. "He's a vampire, Elena, he drinks blood. He's not human!"

Elena didn't say anything. Riley was right. She may have been dating him, but she didn't know him. He wasn't the person that she thought he was.

"Please. After today, you don't have to have anything to do with him, but I can't do this alone. Come with me."

After a moment of hesitation, Riley decided to come. Not because she owed Stefan anything, but because she wanted the truth.

***

The girls sat opposite Stefan. Elena just looked mad, while Riley looked scared.

"Thank you for coming," he said, looking more at Riley than Elena. When she'd left the night before, he was worried that she would have told the whole town his secret. But to go after her, he would have had to leave Elena.

"I'm not here for you," Riley told him.

"I know," he said. "But, could I just ask you one question?" he waited for her to respond, and took her slight shoulder shrug as approval. "When we first met in school, you asked me how old I was. You knew that I wasn't aging, how?"

Riley sighed, before taking the picture put of her pocket and handing it to him.

"I found this in a photo album. I don't know who the other two people are, but the woman in the middle is my great-grandmother-"

"Gloria," he cut her off. "I remember her. She used to own a bar in Chicago."

"Well, that picture was taken in the '20s," she continued. "And you're in it. So logic would dictate that you were alive then. And you haven't aged a day."

He nodded, still looking at the picture. He had no idea who the other people were, but he definitely remembered Gloria.

"How much do you know about her?" Stefan asked Riley. "Your great-grandmother?"

"I know she owned a bar, I know she used to sing, and that's about it. I never met her. According to my mom, she lived in Chicago until she died."

Stefan looked at Riley, trying to be sensitive. "Riley, before I tell you about me, you should find out about Gloria. She was a witch."

Riley bit her thumbnail . "No she wasn't," she dismissed. "She couldn't be, someone would have told me."

"It's true," he said. As much as he'd tried to block out all memories of the 20's, he couldn't forget Gloria's bar. "She was a very powerful witch. I knew her, remember?"

"Stefan," Elena said warningly, worried that he was overloading Riley with information. Riley's mind felt like it was moving a million miles an hour.

"I have to go," she said, standing up. "I have to talk to my mom."

"Wait," Stefan said urgently.

"I won't tell anyone your secret," she assured him. "Not yet. But I need answers. And I won't get them from you."

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So there it is, Riley knows Stefan's secret. But now she has to discover the supernatural secret that resides within her own family. Can she handle it?

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