I stared down at the picture of...well myself. Kind of. This woman was an exact replica of me in every sense. If I didn't know any better, I would have thought it was a historically themed picture of me.
I did know better, though, and I knew that she wasn't me. This was Elizabeth.
My eyes switched over to the other, equally aged photograph of Katherine who even I could have mistaken for Elena. The only physical difference between all of us was that Katherine and Elizabeth had curly hair while Elena's was pin straight and mine was loosely wavy.
"You okay?"
I looked over at Stefan, who was standing at the entrance of my room. He came over to talk to Elena and brought over some extra vervain and vervain jewelry for us to give to Jenna, Jeremy, and our other friends. He also brought over the pictures of Katherine and Elizabeth at my insistence. I just had to see for myself how much of a resemblance there was between us all.
Needless to say, Elena was right. They were replicas of us. Or we were replicas of them.
"I'm fine," I answered Stefan's question.
I held the pictures out to him with a sigh.
"You can take these back," I told him. "I just...needed to see with my own eyes."
He stepped forward and took the pictures gently from my fingers, watching me with concerned eyes.
"You know whatever you're feeling, whatever you're thinking...you can talk to me about it, right?"
I nodded right away.
"I know," I said. "Guess I just...need to figure out what it is I'm feeling and thinking first."
"That's understandable," he said. "Well when you do figure it out, you can come to me."
"Thanks."
~~~~~
"Elena, I need the money!" Jeremy called up the stairs.
"Will you take him the money for me, Sam?!" Elena asked from the bathroom.
I set my book down on my bed and grabbed the money Elena had set out in her room for the pizza. I came downstairs, greeting the pizza guy just as he set the pizza down on the table by the front door.
"Here you are," I said holding the cash out to him. "Keep the change."
He smiled as he took the money from me.
"Thanks a lot," he said. "You have yourself a good night."
"You too," I returned with a smile.
He backed out of the house with a smile and though I tried not to think anything of it, it sent a bit of a chill down my spine. I closed the door and shook it off. I was probably just being paranoid.
~~~~~
"This has to be the most beautiful thing ever!" Olivia sang as she admired the bracelet I gave her. "I don't know why you're giving it to me, but thanks!"
"It's a just because you're an awesome person, Liv," Chastity said dryly. "Even though you really don't need it."
I gave her a weird look, to which she just nodded at Olivia.
"You can never have too many accessories," Olivia stated. "Thanks a lot Sam."
She gave me a one-armed hug before bouncing away to a group of girls, immediately showing off the silver charmed bracelet full of vervain I had given her.
"She really doesn't need it," Chastity said. "And I don't need mine."
"You don't need them?" I questioned.
"No, witches can't be compelled," she told me.
I nodded.
"Right," I said. "The witch thing. Good. That's good, especially with the new guy in town."
"Hey, he won't get to you," she assured me. "You're safe."
"It's not me I'm worried about," I sighed. "I just don't want him hurting anyone else. That's why I'm glad Stefan gave us the vervain."
"Part of the perks of being a witch: there's no need to take up vervain. We're naturally un-compellable."
"Well, Jeremy has one, Caroline has one, and we've got Jenna covered. There was extra so now you and Olivia have one too," I said thoughtfully. Maybe we should get some to Matt and Tyler too...and Adam...
As if she read my mind when his name came up, Chastity started talking.
"So I saw Adam talking to a girl the other day," she said. "I think he's finally getting the hint that he's not getting another chance with you."
"That's good. It's good he's moving on," I said sincerely.
Chastity stopped walking and gave me a look.
"Are you kidding me? He cheats on you and you're happy he's moving on to someone else before you?"
"I didn't say that," I defended.
"You may as well have," she groaned. "What about Damon? No never mind, stay away from him. We'll hook you up with someone good-"
"Chas, you don't have to do that," I said. "Seriously, I'm okay with not being anyone right now. In fact, I'm actually kind of glad. With everything that I've found out, I really need some time to...get my thoughts together."
"Right, you just found out you were freaking adopted," she said. "What did Jeremy say?"
I shook my head.
"Nothing," I said. "Elena didn't want to say anything to him about our adoptions until we found out a little more. Besides, as it is it's not exactly safe to tell Jeremy that we're related to vampires."
"You have point," Chastity agreed. "Well, remember whatever you need, I'm here for ya."
"Thanks Chas," I smiled.
She linked our arms with a smile and we walked off to class together.
~~~~~
Third POV
When Sam wasn't looking, Chastity glared over her shoulder at the figure at the end of the parking lot. She knew it must have been the vampire she was told about. She also knew he wouldn't dare attack in broad daylight, even he wasn't that stupid.
In her pocket, her phone buzzed. With a quick glance at Sam to make sure she wasn't looking, Chastity pulled phone from her pocket to read the message.
Status check.
Chastity replied quickly.
Safe.
She put her phone away as soon as the message was sent, smiling the rest of the way to class with Sam.
~~~~~
Sam's POV
Bonnie, Chastity, Elena, and I all sat together at the Grill. We discussed the recent adoption discovery Elena and I made and Bonnie, like Chastity had earlier, asked if we planned on telling Jeremy.
"I think we should tell him soon," I said to Elena after she explained why we didn't tell him. "Especially since there's a new vampire in town."
"Soon. Just...it's safer if he doesn't know for now," Elena said. "And I want all the details about our adoptions before I tell him. I want to be able to give him all the answers. It just doesn't make sense. Our birth certificates say our birth parents are Miranda and Grayson Gilbert."
"Maybe you should ask Jenna," Bonnie suggested.
Elena groaned and rolled her eyes.
"Look, the Elena I know would always want the truth, good or bad," Bonnie said.
"She's right. Besides, you just found out your boyfriend is a...vampire," Chastity added quietly. "So unless your birthparents are aliens, how bad could it be?"
Elena and I cracked smiles. She had a point.
"Look, we have to go to the store. My outfit is severely lacking accessories and Sam could use one or two herself."
"I almost forgot about the decades dance tonight," I said rising from my seat. "Thanks for the reminder."
"Okay, we'll pay the bill," Bonnie said.
"Okay. We've got it next time," I promised her and Chastity.
"Bye guys," Elena waved.
"See ya later."
~~~~~
Outside, Elena went around Jenna's car to the driver's seat while I headed for the passenger's. I was just about to open the door when my phone started ringing. I frowned when I failed to recognize the number.
"Hello?" I answered.
"Hello Samantha."
"Hey," I said confused. "Who is this?"
"You don't remember."
"I think it'd be hard to remember someone I've never met," I chuckled nervously.
"Let me refresh your memory, your sister hit me with her car."
I froze and my eyes widened. Elena rolled the passenger window down when she saw I wasn't in the car still.
"Sam? What's wrong?" she asked.
"Is that a new one?" the man on the phone asked.
I looked around the area, knowing I wouldn't recognize him but hopefully I would be able to pinpoint him by seeing who was on the phone.
When I turned around, I saw a man approaching with a phone pressed to his ear and a dark hoodie on. A dark hoodie like Elena said the vampire she hit was wearing...
Elena looked out the back of the car and gasped.
"Sam, get in the car," she panicked.
"You got away from me. You won't next time," the man promised as he started approaching me.
I gained control of my body back and quickly got in the car in time for Elena to peel away from the curb.
~~~~~
Later, Elena and I went to the boarding house where Elena told Stefan about the vampire finding us and calling me and I told them both what he said to me on the phone. After I while, I let out a shaky sigh.
"What does he want?" I asked. "If he wants to kill me or Elena or both of us, why call me first? How'd he even get my number?"
"That's because we're predators, Sam. We hunt. We stalk. It's often as exciting as the kill," Stefan explained.
He held up a familiar looking object and handed it to Elena.
"I want you two to take this," he said.
"This is Jeremy's pocket watch," she said.
I furrowed my eyebrows.
"How'd you get that?" I asked him.
"I took it from Damon, who took it from Logan, who must have taken it from you," Stefan answered.
Elena flipped it in her hands as we both observed the changes to it.
"What happened to it?" she asked.
"Well, it's not just a watch," Stefan started.
I watched as the spinning arrow in the middle where the clock hands used to be spun around, almost as if it was confused where North was.
"It's a compass?" I asked.
"Sort of," Stefan said. "It points to vampires."
Almost as if to prove his point, the arrow stopped spinning and pointed to Stefan. Elena closed the watch.
"Why did our father have it?" she asked.
"Gilberts were one of the founding families and back in 1864, they were among those who sought to eradicate the vampires. The compass was used to find us."
"Oh," I sighed. "So our ancestors...killed vampires. You knew them...didn't you?"
"Yes," Stefan nodded.
I stared at him for a moment. He almost seemed guilty when he answered my question, but he obviously didn't want to talk about it so I let it go.
"I want you two to keep this. That way, you'll know if you're ever in danger."
I smiled at him, as did Elena.
"Thanks for looking out for us, Stefan," I said sincerely.
He smiled back at me. "You're welcome."
~~~~~
"So are you taking this girl Anna you've been telling me about?" I asked Jeremy as I got ready for the dance.
"I'm stuck on punch duty," he replied. "Not exactly a good setting to have someone hanging around in."
"Not a date?"
"Well, I don't really want a date for a while," he said.
"Right," I sighed. "How are you doing anyway with Vicki being gone?"
A pang went through me after I said it. Gone. Just gone. Not dead. Gone.
"I'm getting better," he said. "Honestly, talking to you has really helped a lot. I really wanted to thank you for being there for me."
"You're my big brother, it's sort of my job," I smiled modestly.
"It's my job to be there for you," he corrected. "And I've been doing a pretty crappy job. I'm really sorry about that, Sam."
I looked at him with soft eyes. He looked so guilty and so sorry, like a puppy. I wrapped my arms around him.
"It's okay," I assured him. "I'm okay."
He returned my hug and planted a quick kiss at the top of my head.
"And I saw the outfit on my bed- I'm not wearing it."
"Party pooper."
~~~~~
Third POV
Meanwhile, downstairs, Jenna had just told Elena what she knew about Elena's adoption and her birth mother. All she could really tell her about the girl was that she was 16 years old when she had Elena and that her name was Isobel.
Elena glanced at the stairs before looking back at Jenna.
"Do you know anything about Sam's mother and father?" she asked. "Because I don't remember ever seeing either of them."
"I only know as much as you do, Elena," Jenna told her honestly. "When I asked about her birth parents, Miranda and Grayson clammed up. They said they didn't know anything about them, but that Sam their daughter now too and that was just that."
Elena nodded, accepting the answer and Jenna looked at her curiously.
"Did you tell her you and Jeremy already knew she was adopted?" she asked.
Elena shook her head.
"I guess I didn't know how to," she said, feeling guilty for the way she reacted to hearing about her own adoption. "I'm sorry for blowing up at you. Guess I know how it feels to be in the position you were in."
Jenna nodded understandingly.
"Has she asked any questions?"
"Not yet, but she will," Elena said. "And I don't know what to tell her."
"Maybe we should tell her the truth," Jenna suggested. "She'll understand."
"I hope so."
~~~~~
Sam's POV
I tightened the white bow keeping the high ponytail I put my hair in up and smoothed out the navy blue white polka-dot halter dress. I put in my pearl earrings, similar to Elena's, and rolled on my matching bracelet. I turned over my locket, which fell just above my cleavage.
"Sam?" I heard Elena call. "Jenna? Jeremy?"
"They're gone," I informed her as I walked in her room. "What's wrong?"
"The compass is moving," she panicked.
She snatched up her phone while I picked up the compass. Elena took my hand in hers and led me downstairs while she talked in to the phone.
"Where is he?" she said.
I could only guess by her tone that Damon answered Stefan's phone. Whatever he said brought her great relief since she sighed.
"Thank God. This compass was spinning. Stefan must be here, thank you," she said.
"You ready?" I asked her after she hung up.
"Yeah," she said.
Suddenly her eyes widened at something behind me.
"Sam, look out!"
She shoved me out of the way just as a figure reached out. I caught a glimpse of fangs before I recognized who they belonged to. The pizza guy- the man who called me!
"Elena!" I screamed, scared for my sister's life.
Elena squeezed her eyes shut and before I knew it, a blur passed her and threw the other vampire across the room. Elena fell to the ground and I quickly crawled to her side, checking her neck to make sure he didn't bite her.
"Are you okay?" I asked concerned, feeling relieved when I saw no blood.
I heard and felt a gush of air behind me as the other vampire dashed out of the house before he was attacked by Stefan again. When he was gone, Stefan joined me by Elena and helped us both up.
"Are you alright?" he asked Elena first since she was the one who almost died.
She just barely nodded, trying to get her breath back. I threw my arms around her, tightening my hold when I felt her shaking.
I looked over Elena's shoulder at Stefan, who asked me the same question.
"I'm fine," I replied.
~~~~~
I had lied to Stefan. Truth was...I wasn't fine. My sister was almost attacked, saving me from a vampire who posed as a pizza guy to get in to the house. I was so far from fine it wasn't even on the same spectrum.
Stefan had called Damon while he and I sat on the couch on either side of Elena, trying to sooth her from her near-death experience. It only took Damon a few minutes to get to the house after he was called. As soon as he got inside, his eyes landed on me. I saw them fill with relief instantly.
"Are you okay?" he asked me.
I nodded, giving him the same answer I gave Stefan.
"I'm fine," I repeated. "Elena was the one he almost bit."
"How'd he get in?" he asked as he paced around the living room.
"He was invited in. He posed as a pizza delivery guy last night," Stefan explained for Elena and me.
"Well, he gets points for that," Damon said. "Did he say what he wanted?"
I gave him a look.
"No. He was a little busy trying to kill Elena," I replied sharply.
"He went for Sam first," Elena put in. "I don't think he was after me. I just got in his way."
"And you have no idea who this is?" Stefan asked Damon accusingly.
"No," Damon replied.
I looked at him for a moment before I looked away. He was telling the truth, I could tell.
"Don't look at me like that," Damon said to Stefan when he noticed he wasn't convinced. "I told you we had company."
"Do we know if there's more than one?" I asked them both.
If there was more than one, then chances were that more people could be hurt or killed. Just this one guy could be going after more than Elena and me.
"We don't know," Damon shrugged.
"Damon, he was invited in," Stefan pointed out.
Damon nodded understanding what Stefan was saying. I, however, didn't.
"Then we go get him tonight," Damon said.
I blinked once in surprise. They were actually going to go after a vampire when they didn't even know who he was or what he looked like?
"You up for it?" Damon asked Elena.
"Yes," she answered bravely. "What do I have to do?"
"Let your boyfriend take you to the dance. We'll see who shows up," Damon said. "Coming Sam?"
"No way-"
"That's not-"
"He seems to be after her. If she goes, there's a better chance he'll show up. Besides, none of us will let anything happen to her and she has a witchy best friend determined to keep her safe that'll be there," Damon squished Stefan and Elena's arguments.
"I'm in," I said. "Better me than anyone else."
"That's a bad idea," Stefan said. "Elena shouldn't even be going."
"Till we get him, this house isn't safe. For anyone who lives in it," Damon said.
Elena and Stefan exchanged hesitant glances.
"It's worth a shot," Damon convinced further.
"I'll do it," Elena nodded. "And I won't argue with Sam coming."
She looked at Stefan, who seemed surprised by her words.
"She'll be with all of us, she'll be safe and so will I."
I nodded in agreement, but I still felt a bit nervous. Damon seemed to sense this and set a comforting hand on my shoulder.
"We'll protect you," he promised.
I believed him.
~~~~~
At the dance, Elena and I stood by the punch bowl while Stefan and Damon looked around for any suspicious people. I felt someone touch my arm and I let out a girly shriek.
"It's just me!" Chastity said.
I let out a huff of breath and gave her a look.
"You scared me," I admitted.
"Really? I couldn't tell," she said. "Why so jumpy?"
I was about to tell her when I noticed that she came over with Bonnie and Caroline, so I held back.
"No reason," I said, giving her a look that said I would explain later.
She understood and let it go.
"Having fun?" Elena asked Caroline and Bonnie.
"No, but this took about 2 hours," Caroline answered gesturing to her outfit. "So I'm at least staying half of that."
Bonnie smiled, but it quickly disappeared when she caught sight of something- or someone- behind Elena and I.
"What's Damon doing here?" she demanded.
Elena, Caroline, Chastity and I all looked over at Damon who was standing with Stefan, both of them searching for the vampire.
"He wanted to come," Elena said. "With Sam."
"Don't worry, he'll be nice. He promised me he would," I assured Bonnie.
"So, what is this like a family thing now?" Caroline asked with raised eyebrows. "The Gilbert Sisters and the Salvatore brothers?"
Elena gave Caroline a look.
"No, but if I'm with Stefan then I have to learn to tolerate Damon," Elena replied.
"And Damon is here as a friend date. We're just friends," I added.
Especially since he was still in love with Elizabeth, who just happened to be an exact replica of me. Wow...I didn't even really think about that until just now.
"It's not like we can kill him," Elena sighed.
"There's a thought," Bonnie mused.
"Mm, I'll help," Caroline said and the two bumped cups.
Elena and I smiled and shook our heads.
"Erm, Sam, come dance with me," Chastity said as she pulled me off.
When we were far enough away, she whispered to me.
"Tell me what's going on now."
~~~~~
I explained the situation to Chastity. By the time I finished, Damon had swooped over with a large smile.
"I just want you to know, I was perfectly polite to Caroline and Bonnie," he said. "They don't seem to keen on giving me a chance."
"I'll go find them. Make sure they don't plan his death," Chastity said. "And I'll keep my eyes open."
I nodded at her with a smile and she walked away, leaving me with Damon. I let out a sigh and held my hand out to him. Her furrowed his eyebrows.
"What?" he asked.
"Well, we are at a dance," I said. "It's my understanding that people actually dance at these things."
He smirked and took my hand, kissing my knuckles before twirling me in place and pulling me in his arms.
"They absolutely do," he agreed with my earlier statement.
We began swaying together to the music.
"Did I tell you earlier that you look absolutely breathtaking?" he asked charmingly.
"You actually did. Before we left the house," I reminded him. "Thank you again."
I looked around at all the costumes before looking back at him.
"I wonder what you looked like in the 50's."
He chuckled.
"About the same," he said. "Maybe with slightly less better hair."
"Did you have Elvis hair?"
"Psh, please. My hair in the 50's would have made Elvis wish he had my hair."
I laughed.
"Did you like the 50's?"
His smile faded, but he was quick to bring it back.
"They were alright," he replied.
I frowned a little as he dipped me. Something happened in the 50's.
"Damon..."
"Another story for another time," he excused.
I frowned again, but accepted that he just didn't want to talk about it. Maybe one day he would tell me. Just not now.
~~~~~
Damon went to get a drink, so he allowed Stefan to take over "dancing babysitting" with me while Elena and Chastity stood by the punch bowl with Olivia.
"So how are you doing tonight?" he asked me as we danced. "Nervous?"
"Not at all," I played it cool. "Can I ask you a question?"
"Go for it."
"Do you have any special 50's moves locked away in that ancient vampire head of yours?" I teased. He laughed. "Because if so, I would very much love to see some."
"Ah, didn't work for Elena," he shook his head. "Won't work for you."
"Please," I asked. "Humor me a bit?"
"Absolutely not."
"Now what would Lexi say?" I mused out loud. "Maybe...live a little? Loosen up?"
He smiled at the mention of her name and I knew I got him. He twirled me around, picked me up, and dipped me back from one side before switching to the other and doing the same thing. He held me back a moment as I smiled up at him, genuinely surprised.
He lifted me back up effortlessly as I let out a breathless laugh.
"Now remember that, because it's never gonna happen again," he promised me with a smile.
"Thank you," I said to him. "You and Damon...just thanks."
"For what?"
"For making this night as normal and as fun as possible," I said.
Stefan smiled.
"No problem."
"And another thing? Show Elena that move."
He laughed again.
~~~~~
Third POV
Anna approached a dark, empty hall, still annoyed that her stupid veins popped out at the worst moment when she was just getting closer to Jeremy. She stopped when she saw the figure at the other end of the hall and sped the rest of the way down to him.
He looked down at her, momentarily confused when he recognized her.
"What are you doing here?" he asked her.
"Trying to get the journal," she answered. "As in sticking to the plan, something you're not doing. Leave the girl alone."
"I like her," he defended. "She looks like Elizabeth."
"She's not Elizabeth," Anna immediately snapped. "And the other one isn't Katherine, so don't think about going after her next. Katherine and Elizabeth are in the tomb."
"I know, but until we open that tomb, I got her to play with," he smirked.
"Don't be stupid. That girl is with the Salvatore brothers."
"They don't scare me. They never have," he scoffed.
"Please don't do this. You're going to ruin everything."
"You got nothin' to worry about," he insisted. "I'm not gonna let anything happen to you. You will get what you came for. Just let me have my fun."
"Fine," Anna gave in. "But just so you know, her best friend is a witch and she knows all about vampires. I've watched her, she's like the girl's guard dog. She isn't going to let you near her."
"An even bigger challenge," he smirked. "Fine by me."
Anna rolled her eyes as he walked past her.
"She looks like Elizabeth," he said again yearningly.
~~~~~
Sam's POV
Stefan, Elena, and I stood together by the punch bowl talking while Damon danced with a girl Elena's age. He moved dramatically with her, gliding across the dance floor like professionals.
"You really can't take him anywhere, can you?" Elena laughed to Stefan.
"He's having fun," I smiled.
I saw Elena stiffen then and her eyes widened.
"Stefan," she said. "Back corner."
I followed her eyes where a man with a dark hoodie pulled far over his head stood, watching us predatorily. Stefan started toward him.
"Get Damon," he told us before following the guy out.
Elena nodded and he left.
"Let's go," she said to me.
"I need to make sure Jeremy's okay," I said. "You get Damon, I'll go check on Jer."
"Okay," she said reluctantly.
She turned away to get Damon while I looked around for Jeremy until my cell phone buzzed in my dress pocket. The number was restricted, so I had no clue who it was, although I could probably guess and get it right.
"Hello?" I answered hesitantly.
"Hello Samantha," his voice said. "Here's what you're going to do: there's an exit right behind you so go. You have five seconds."
"Yeah, I'm gonna have to say no."
"Then your big brother, Jeremy, dies right by this punch bowl," he threatened.
I whirled in the direction of the punch bowl and saw Jeremy talking to a couple guys with the vampire just a few feet behind him.
"I can snap his neck so fast, I bet there's not even a witness. Unless you want that to happen, I'd start walking."
"Don't touch him," I snapped.
"Then walk. Through the doors."
He hung up and I slowly walked toward the doors. Closing my eyes and taking a deep breath, I pushed them open and bolted down the halls of the school.
I turned corners and ran down the long hallways until I came to another set of doors. I ran toward them and tried pushing them open only to find that they were locked. Of course they were.
I turned and saw him walking closer to me with an excited, malicious grin on his face. This really was a game to him.
I ran through a nearby door and into the room, knocking over a mop and bucket. Cafeteria, great. I attempted to run across the room, but I ended up slipping on the water that had spilled on the floor.
Before I could even blink, he was there in front of me staring at me as if I was a big juicy steak and he hadn't eaten in three years. I snatched up a pencil at a nearby table and stabbed it deep into his side as he ran at me again.
He growled and backed away from me, staring at the pencil before ripping it out of his side. I looked around, grabbed the mop I knocked over, and broke it in half with my knee. As he started storming toward me again, I stuck out the pointy end of one half and stabbed it into his stomach. He screamed and knocked me back into the vending machine right behind me. The glass clattered on the ground as I fell down with it. Blood ran down my arm and his smirk returned, much more malicious than before.
"Your blood," he said, yanking the stake out of his stomach. "It's so hard to resist."
Before I knew it he was right in front of me, ready to lunge and bite when he was thrown back suddenly. Damon stood there in front of me protectively with this glint in his eye that said he was ready to kill. Elena ran to my side and pulled me in her arms as Damon was joined by Stefan when the vampire stood up and glared, specifically at Damon.
"Nobody wants to kill you," Stefan reasoned with his hands up.
The vampire smirked again and tried to get past them at me, but Damon sped toward him and stabbed him in the stomach with my mop stake. He fell to his knees, grasping on to the stake in pain.
"Now you feel like talking?" he asked.
"Screw you," the vampire muttered.
Stefan twisted the stake in his stomach and he groaned.
"Why are you doing this?" Stefan asked. The vampire actually laughed a little and shrugged.
"Because it's fun," he said.
Damon kicked the stake in his stomach further, making him gasp in pain and me hide my face in Elena's shoulder. She stroked my hair in a motherly way and rocked me back and forth.
"What do you want with Sam?" I heard Stefan ask. "Why do you keep going after her?"
"She looks like Elizabeth."
That's when Elena's rocking halted and I froze up too. I looked at the vampire and saw that he was looking straight at me with a shocked Stefan and Damon looking at him. Elena held me closer to her, if that was possible.
"You knew Elizabeth?" Damon asked.
"Oh. You thought you were the only ones?" the vampire chuckled. "You don't even remember me. I knew Katherine too you know."
"Tell me how to get into the tomb," Damon demanded.
"Elizabeth, though," the vampire continued ignoring Damon. "Was the only one for me. No matter how hard Katherine tried to make me think otherwise."
"How do you get into the tomb?" Damon growled.
"I'm not telling you," the vampire snarled.
Stefan plunged the stake even deeper into his stomach and he groaned in pain.
"The grimoire," he said.
"Where is it?" Damon asked.
When he hesitated, Stefan twisted the stake and he gasped in pain. I clamped my eyes shut and did my best to tune out his pained groans and cries. Vampire or not, I couldn't listen to anyone be in pain.
"Check the journal. Use the journal! Jonathan Gilbert's!"
"Who else is working with you?" Stefan questioned.
"No," the vampire said. "You're gonna have to kill me."
Before anyone could reply, another man entered the cafeteria.
"That's fine by me," he said.
He sped over and thrust his hand in to the vampire's chest, ripping out what I could only assume was his heart. I gasped and covered my mouth, Elena's reaction mirroring mine while Stefan and Damon stared in total shock as the vampire who tried to kill me fell over, veins popped and skin turned gray.
The newcomer dropped the deep red muscle to the ground and looked over at me, frowning when he noticed blood.
"Sorry I'm late," he apologized to me. "Seems it's time for me to be replaced."
"Who are you?" Damon asked.
"No longer important," he dismissed.
"Why did you kill him?" Stefan asked suspiciously. "Are you working with him?"
"Well that's a stupid question," the man chuckled. "Who I am no longer matters. I had a job to do and I failed, but orders were orders. I couldn't allow him to live after he'd harmed Samantha."
His sorrowful eyes met my curious ones.
"I am sorry I was too late to protect you," he said. "Hopefully the next one does better."
With that, he was gone as quickly as he had come, leaving us all in shock.
~~~~~
"Are you two okay?" Stefan asked from the kitchen.
He was making a cup of tea for Elena while she and I sat on the couch in the living room. I stroked my bandages around my wounded arm, hot chocolate in hand. Tea just wasn't...my cup of tea...
"Is it weird if I say yes?" I asked.
"Is it true?" he retorted.
"I should feel more upset or scared or something, but I...I just don't," I said. I looked at Elena. "What about you?"
"Same here," she answered. "I actually feel kind of exhilarated."
"It's the adrenaline," Stefan explained.
He brought Elena her tea and joined us on the couch.
"I guess," she said. "Sam fought back tonight."
"I wish she didn't have to fight at all," Stefan said looking at me.
"Me neither, but I'm still proud of her," Elena smiled at me. She wrapped her arm around me. "I'm happy you're safe."
I smiled, but it disappeared just as quickly when I thought about the vampire who killed the other vampire trying to kill me.
"You didn't know who he was?" I asked Stefan.
He shook his head, knowing who I was talking about.
"Damon didn't either. If he's a threat, we'll keep you safe, but from the looks of tonight...I'm not sure. Either way, we'll keep you safe. Both of you," he assured Elena and me.
I nodded and stood up from the couch.
"Well, as fun as fighting a vampire was today, I'm a little tired. Think I'm gonna turn in now," I excused myself. "Good night guys."
"Good night, Sam," they said in unison.
I headed up the stairs to my room with my hot chocolate, sighing as I plopped myself on my bed. It's been a long night with vampires trying to kill me and another mysterious vampire offing the one trying to kill me. I could only hope that the mysterious vampire who got away wasn't a threat.
~~~~~
Third POV
"You failed?"
"She's alive, but she was harmed. Her blood was spilt."
His sire sighed.
"You had done much better at this job than all the rest had. I was hoping I wouldn't have to replace you."
"I'm sorry I let you down. I'm sorry I let her down."
"I am as well. You know what to do."
The man nodded and hung up, picking up the stake sadly. He was prepared to plunge it in to his chest when a blonde man appeared in front of him.
"Who are you?" he asked.
"I could ask you the same question," the lighter haired man retorted. "Why are you following her?"
The man pressed the stake in his chest lightly.
"I can only assume for the same reason you are," he said. "I failed."
The blonde man nodded.
"I see. Will there be another coming?"
"For my sire, yes. I assume yours is the reason you're here."
"I take it from your surprise your sire had no idea mine sent anyone."
He nodded at the blonde man.
"Protect her. Do better than I did. Make sure my successor does the same."
The blonde man nodded and watched as he plunged the stake through his own heart. He sighed after the body fell and took out his cell phone. He dialed his sire's number and brought the phone to his ear.
"Sir," he said. "I have news."