Unstoppable | The Vampire Diaries

124. It Follows

Being back in the house that she had once shared with nobody but her parents, back when she knew practically nothing of the supernatural world, made Riley feel a strong sense of nostalgia every time she walked through the front door.

Okay, so the twins were now sleeping in the room that she and Caroline used to share, every piece of ground was cluttered with children's toys rather than teenage mess, and she was living there with Ric since Caroline had moved in with Stefan, but it was still her home.

"I'm late," she said, rushing through the house. "I'm so late."

In the kitchen, the twins were having breakfast. She kissed them on the tops of their heads, grabbing her keys from the countertop.

"Coffee?" Seline offered, holding out a mug.

"No thanks," Riley said, shaking her head. Watching her friend cut the twins' sandwiches into crust-less hearts and stars, she couldn't help but smile. "Hey, thanks for all of this," she said, gesturing around. "You coming here to help out means a lot to Ric and Caroline."

Seline shrugged. "I should be thanking you. I couldn't even afford to pay my rent back in Portland, remember? Now I have a job that I actually like, and I get to live in this cute little town." Seline frowned. "Speaking of which, remind me again why you guys didn't just hire a local nanny?"

Riley struggled to think of a way to phrase her next sentence. "My family has... trust issues," she finally settled on. "I've known you for ages, and I trust you."

At this, Seline smiled. "Well, I appreciate it." She checked her watch. "Shouldn't you be gone already?"

Riley's eyes widened, and again, she started rushing through the house. Ordinarily she'd be going to the Armory, where she and Ric had been working together for months, trying to find out as much as they could about the mysterious artefacts that Alex St. John and her team had managed to collect over the years. They took the work so seriously that they'd even hired history-loving interns to work alongside them. Today, though, her mission was different.

"So..." Seline started. "You and Ric work together a lot, and you live together. Is there anything... going on there?"

This caused Riley to stop and laugh out loud.

"You're asking if I'm secretly dating my sister's ex-fiancé? Aka the father of my nieces?" When Seline shrugged, Riley laughed again. "You're insane," she commented. But then she remembered, and her smile faded. "Actually, I already have a boyfriend."

"Seriously?" Seline asked, looking around as if the mystery guy was about to materialize out of thin air. "Where is he?"

Riley hesitated for a second before answering. "He's... away. But he'll be back soon."

She had no idea if her words were true, but she had to believe them. She had to have hope.

***

Riley met Bonnie and Caroline at the news station. After searching for Enzo and Damon a few days previously with Stefan, Bonnie discovered that Enzo had been leaving her clues.

"What kind of clues?"

Bonnie shrugged, her face completely passive. "Nothing that tells me where they are. Just that he's on our side, and right now, that's enough."

There was a shuffle on the other end of Caroline's phone.

"So, where are we searching?" Stefan asked

Bonnie frowned, glaring at the computer screen determinedly. "We need to be looking for crimes farther away from Tennessee. They might have been traveling these past few days."