Issues ↠ Damon Salvatore [2]

34

HOURS LATER, the two vampires, sisters, and Jack arrived back in Mystic Falls.

Caroline was scrubbing the floor when the door opened and Elena walked in with a neutral expression, Echo holding her hand. Jack followed shortly behind, and then Stefan walked in behind her carrying Jeremy's body.

The blonde heard them and stood up. "Hey, you're home. I was trying to clean the burn mark where Kol— " She noticed that Stefan was carrying Jeremy's body wrapped in a blanket. "—I couldn't get the spot out."

Stefan shook his head a little at Caroline.

"Come on. Let's get him upstairs," Elena said, walking up the stairs and he quickly followed while Caroline stood there completely immobile from shock.

Echo watched her sister go up the stairs and then glanced at Jack. "Go up there with her. Please." Once he was gone, she turned to Caroline and her lips began trembling. "Care, I—" She ran towards her best friend and into her arms, sobbing. "He's gone. My little brother is gone."

Caroline bit her lip, trying to not cry as she rubbed her best friends back. "I'm so sorry, Echo."

And like that, Echo stopped sobbing, and stepped back, clenching her jaw. "Katherine did this. Snuck in right underneath us and killed Jeremy before taking the cure." Her dark eyes pooled with tears as she scowled. "I'm going to kill her if it's the last thing I do. She doesn't deserve to live after that."

LATER ON, Caroline was dumping a bucket of water into the sink and talking to Stefan as Echo sat at the table, staring blankly at the wall.

"How long has she been like that?" The blonde questioned in concern, talking about Elena. She was worried about Echo too, but at least she came to terms that Jeremy wasn't going to wake up.

Stefan sighed heavily. "Ever since we found his body. She hasn't said anything except that she's waiting for him to wake up."

"But he's not going to wake up. She knows that, right?" Caroline asked, worried for her friend.

Stefan held a finger up to his lips to silence her then walked over to the sink and r-' the tap, using the noise to cover their conversation. "Look. Deep down, I think she has to, but we're talking about Elena here. She feels grief more powerfully than anyone else. I think her denial is the one thing protecting her from letting it all in."

The blonde shook her head quickly. "But she can't stay like that forever."

"I know, but I don't want to be the one to break her out of it, not until we know that Bonnie is safe, not until we get Damon over here to help Echo." Stefan gestured to Echo who was now twirling a knife as she thought about the many ways to torture Katherine.

Elena appeared in the kitchen. "I'm not in denial," she stated, swallowing thickly. "I know that he was supernatural, but did you see?" She asked them in hope and denial. "His tattoo is gone. The tattoo had the spell that opened Silas' chamber. Maybe it being gone means that he's fulfilled his supernatural destiny. Maybe he's back to normal. It's possible, right?"

Caroline looked at her in sympathy. "Elena—"

Elena held up her hand, tears shining in her eyes, but she wouldn't let them fall. "It's possible, Caroline. There's a chance. It may be miniscule, but it's hope and I'm gonna hold on to that hope with everything that I've got because there's no way that my—" She paused for a moment. "There's absolutely no way that my brother is dead." She nodded then quickly shook her head a bit. "I'm not in denial."