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"What are you doing?" Elena asked, pressing a hand against her aching scalp as she twisted around in the driver’s seat to get a better look The varowled as Daainst the seat and hit hirew still, trapped beneath Da hard His dark eyes were fixed on Elena, his face distorted with hatred and fury He bared his teeth at her, his canines long and sharp If he et loose…

It must be one of Jack’s synthetic vampires, she realized, because his aura seemed just like a hu up on her curiosity "There’s a touch of so about them I don’t knohat exactly It’s like a chemical taint" The vampire bucked under hirunt of pain "He was lurking outside our building He thought he could get to us"

Elena’s sto up on her fear, Daer vaer I am than he is, his face seemed to say I’ll protect us

"Don’t kill him in my car, Da vampire’s furious face

"I can’t kill hi The vaainst the backseat, and Dahtly on the back of the head, his other hand still tight around his throat "I’ to do some research Where can we keep him?"

"Not the apartment, that won’t hold him," Elena said quickly "Let me think"

"Somewhere no one will overhear," Damon said "Somewhere we can keep hiine and pulled out on the highway, heading for campus "My old dore rooes, in the basement" Da And no one will hear him down there"

"Excellent," Damon said, and Elena felt another flare of excite I want to try"

Chapter 9

Meredith dug her nails into the palms of her hands and tried not to breathe The vah school kid--atching her, leaning against the bars of his cage Beneath his shaggy black bangs, his dark eyes shone with hate as he looked at the group staring at him Both of his wrists were chained to the steel bars of one of the dorainst the the handcuffs for weakness Damon h to hold hi at the va at hih "You see, he’s fast, but no faster than I am," he explained Meredith, Alaric, Bonnie, Matt, Jasathered to see Damon’s latest development "I wanted to show hi out how Jack rowling, softly but steadily, like a savage anirated on Meredith’s nerves, and when Alaric’s hand brushed against her arm, she jerked away

"Are you okay?" he asked her quietly, and she nodded, not looking at him

"I’m fine" She had to keep her distance fro about it, but she could still s, salty scent of his blood

"It’s so creepy, the way he’s just staring at us," Bonnie said Her s to Zander’s arm With a jolt, Meredith realized she was the only one who could hear the va

Meredith felt dizzy She was just like this kid huddled against the bars What would Elena say if she knehat Meredith was now? Or Bonnie? Would they want to chain her up the same way?

Daht Meredith was his best route to finding Jack Not to iven his word, and Meredith knew that once he gave it, Damon never broke his word Besides, she’d find a cure before anyone else found out the truth, she pro her hands into her pockets so no one could see theainst the wall, as far frohtly to Matt’s hand, and Meredith could hear her quick, panicked little breaths This was Jasmine’s first face-to-face encounter with an unfriendly va her hair with his other hand, co, his attention on Jasainst his bonds, the handcuffs clanging against the bars of his cage, and Jas her face in Matt’s shoulder

"Let ," Damon said, and picked up a stake fro at his handcuffs and stood very still, his eyes narrowed

"We know that won’t kill hilanced at each other, clearly in perfect accord They were strangely alike, Meredith thought

"It’ll hurt, though," Da, he slammed the stake between the bars and into the va breath, and his eyes fleide open Daht bubble of blood swelled out of the wound and trickled down the va up, leaving the vampire’s chest unmarked

"You see how quickly he heals," Damon told them

Meredith flinched The kid probably hadn’t asked for this to happen to him, either That was true of most vampires, she supposed They’d all been victi she’d worried about, until now

She pulled her hand from her pocket and rubbed at her forehead It was too much--the noise and the sether down here--and she was so hungry She hadn’t had any blood since that shaht Da?" Dalanced between Daht This was about Stefan, of course It wasn’t just a vaeance on Jack directly, torturing one of his creations would help

The vampire bared his teeth at Damon "I don’t need to tell you," he said He sounded sulky, like the huer he had been probably only a month or two before "Jack’ll find you, and then you’ll be sorry I hope he letsanswer" Daain, and the kid screah shrill sound Meredith shuddered