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"I don’t know " Vickie lifted a tear-stained face to the sky "Dick and I-ere alone We were and then suddenly it was all around us I couldn’t run Elena said the tomb had opened Maybe that here it came from It was horrible"

"They were in the cemetery, in the ruined church," Meredith interpreted "And Elena ith theht, they could all see the deep fresh scratches running down Vickie’s neck to the lace bodice of her slip

"They look like animal marks," said Bonnie "Like the ot that old e," said Matt His face was pale, and aze down the road and then shook her head

"Matt, we have to take her back first We have to," she said "Listen to me, I’m as worried about Elena as you are But Vickie needs a doctor, and we need to call the police We don’t have any choice We have to go back"

Matt stared down the road for another longthe door shut, he put the car into gear and turned it around, each motion violent

All the way back to town, Vickie moaned about the eyes

Elena felt Stefan’s lips meet hers

And it was as simple as that All questions answered, all fears put to rest, all doubts re tenderness and a love so strong itin its intensity, except that while she ith hi

She had coed, and she had found it at last With Stefan, she was hohtly, and she could feel that he was treainst her lips We can’t-

"We already have," she whispered, and drew hiain

It was als Pleasure and desire raced between the the of deeper emotions within him He wanted to hold her forever, to protect her from all harm He wanted to defend her from any evil that threatened her He wanted to join his life with hers

She felt the tender pressure of his lips on hers, and she could hardly bear the sweetness of it Yes , she thought Sensation rippled through her like waves on a still, clear pond She was drowning in it, both the joy she sensed in Stefan and the delicious answering surge in herself Stefan’s love bathed her, shone through her, lighting every dark place in her soul like the sun She tre

He drew back slowly, as if he could not bear to part from her, and they looked into each other’s eyes ondering joy

They did not speak There was no need for words He stroked her hair, with a touch so light that she could scarcely feel it, as if he was afraid she ht break in his hands She knew, then, that it had not been hatred that hadNo, it had not been hatred at all

Elena had no idea how much later it was that they quietly went down the stairs of the boarding house At any other tiet into Stefan’s sleek black car, but tonight she scarcely noticed it He held her hand as they drove through the deserted streets

The first thing Elena saw as they approached her house was the lights

"It’s the police," she said, finding her voice with so "And that’s Robert’s car in the driveway, and there’s Matt’s," she said She looked at Stefan, and the peace that had filled her suddenly seeile "I wonder what happened You don’t suppose Tyler’s already told them ?"

"Even Tyler wouldn’t be that stupid," said Stefan

He pulled up behind one of the police cars, and reluctantly Elena unclasped her hand from his She wished with all her heart that she and Stefan could just be alone together, that they would never need to face the world

But there was no help for it They walked up the pathway to the door, which was open Inside, the house was a blaze of lights

Entering, Elena sahat seemed like dozens of faces turned toward her She had a sudden vision of what sheblack velvet cloak, with Stefan Salvatore at her side And then Aunt Judith gave a cry and was holding her in her ar her all at once

"Elena! Oh, thank God you’re safe But where have you been? And why didn’t you call? Do you realize what you’ve put everyone through?"

Elena stared around the roo

"We’re just glad to see you back," said Robert

"I’ve been at the boarding house, with Stefan," she said slowly "Aunt Judith, this is Stefan Salvatore; he rents a rooht me back"

"Thank you," said Aunt Judith to Stefan over Elena’s head Then, pulling back to look at Elena, she said, "But your dress, your hair-what happened?"

"You don’t know? Then Tyler didn’t tell you But then why are the police here?" Elena edged toward Stefan instinctively, and she felt him move closer to her in protection

"They’re here because Vickie Bennett was attacked in the ceht," said Matt He and Bonnie and Meredith were standing behind Aunt Judith and Robert, looking relieved and a little aard and more than a little tired "We found herfor you ever since"

"Attacked?" said Elena, stunned "Attacked by what?"

"Nobody knows," said Meredith

"Well, now, it ly "The doctor said she’d had a bad scare, and that she’d been drinking The whole thing ination"

"Those scratches weren’t iinary," said Matt, polite but stubborn

"What scratches? What are you talking about?" Elena de from one face to another

"I’ll tell you," said Meredith, and she explained, succinctly, how she and the others had found Vickie "She kept saying she didn’t knohere you were, that she was alone with Dick when it happened And e got her back here, the doctor said he couldn’t find anything conclusive She wasn’t really hurt except for the scratches, and they could have been from a cat"

"There were no other marks on her?" said Stefan sharply It was the first ti the house, and Elena looked at him, surprised by his tone

"No," said Meredith "Of course, a cat didn’t tear her clothes off-but Dick ue was bitten"

"What?" said Elena

"Badly bitten, I mean It must have bled a lot, and it hurts her to talk now"

Beside Elena, Stefan had gone very still "Did she have any explanation for what happened?"

"She was hysterical," Matt said "Really hysterical; she wasn’tabout eyes and darkable to run-which is why the doctor thinks maybe it was some sort of hallucination But as far as anyone can make out, the facts are that she and Dick Carter were in the ruined church by the ce came in and attacked her there"

Bonnie added, "It didn’t attack Dick, which at least shows it had, some taste The police found him passed out on the church floor, and he doesn’t re"

But Elena scarcely heard the last words So with Stefan She couldn’t tell how she knew it, but she knew He had stiffened as Matt finished speaking, and now, though he hadn’tthe, cracking floe of ice

He said, in the terribly controlled voice she had heard before in his room, "In the church, Matt?"

"Yes, in the ruined church," Matt said

"And you’re sure she said it was ht?"

"She couldn’t be positive, but itafter Why?"

Stefan said nothing Elena could feel the gulf between the "Stefan," she whispered Then, aloud, she said desperately, "Stefan, what is it?"

He shook his head Don’t shut ht, but he wouldn’t even look at her "Will she live?" he asked abruptly

"The doctor said there was nothing ested she ht die"

Stefan’s nod was abrupt; then he turned to Elena "I’ve got to go," he said "You’re safe now"

She caught his hand as he turned away "Of course I’m safe," she said "Because of you"

"Yes," he said But there was no response in his eyes They were shielded, dull

"Callto convey what she felt under the scrutiny of all those watching eyes She willed him to understand

He looked down at their hands with no expression at all, then, slowly, back up at her And then, at last, he returned the pressure of her fingers "Yes, Elena," he whispered, his eyes clinging to hers The next one

She took a deep breath and turned back to the crowded rooaze fixed on what could be seen of Elena’s torn dress underneath the cloak

"Elena," she said, "whathappened ?" And her eyes went to the door through which Stefan had just left

A sort of hysterical laughter surged up in Elena’s throat, and she choked it back "Stefan didn’t do it," she said "Stefan saved me" She felt her face harden, and she looked at the police officer behind Aunt Judith "It was Tyler, Tyler Smallwood"