The Vampire Diaries: Trust In Betrayal (Kindle Worlds) (In Time We Trust Trilogy Book 3) (39 page)

Stefan’s watching her as she bends down to check the damage, lines of strain forming at the edges of his eyes.

“Look,” Jeremy says, squaring his shoulders and ignoring Caroline, “we can stall. We’ll pretend we’re going to trade Silas, tell them what he is and that it’s his blood that makes the cure they can separate from the vampirism virus or whatever it is. They won’t hurt Damon if they need him for a bargaining chip.”

“And just leave him there?” Stefan asks, his voice going a little hoarse. He crosses his arms, but not before I see the fine shaking of his hands. “No. The last time he was at the mercy of the Augustines, Damon waited for me and I never came. I couldn’t save him then, but this time, I will. No matter what it takes.”

Caroline takes a tentative step closer to him, her brow creased in confusion and one hand lifting to touch his arm, but she doesn’t connect before he continues.

“I just waited long enough to warn you to get out of the country. I want you all far away before they wake up Silas.” He swallows once, looking at Jeremy instead of me. “As soon as I have Damon, the two of us will head down to New Orleans and warn the Originals. With Klaus’s resources at our back, we’ll be able to figure out how to take out Silas and the Augustines, and if they no longer have a hostage, we’ll have the time we need to do it.”

“Yeah, or Klaus will kill you,” Jeremy scoffs.

“Wait, we’re talking about trading
Silas?”
Caroline asks, going pale.

At the same time, Ric says strongly, “I can’t let you do that, Stefan.”

“You don’t have to let me,” Stefan says. “It’s already done. I rented a car yesterday night after I dropped Caroline off here. I loaded Silas into it early this morning, and I compelled a driver to take the coffin to a location that only I know about. I’ve already made the initial call to Professor Maxfield telling him I have something to trade with the Augustines. It is too late to stop me.”

Relief sweeps through me so thickly at his words that for a second I can’t respond. It’s done. We’ll get Damon back. And secretly, selfishly, I’m so glad it’s out of my hands.

“I’m sorry,” Caroline snaps, “but what exactly makes you think that you and Damon can get away before they use Silas’s mind control on you? All it takes is a little blood to wake him up and I doubt they’re going to swap you their oldest enemy for a block of concrete until you show them that Silas can be healed enough to produce the blood they need.” She widens her eyes at Stefan. “You can’t be taking yourself seriously right now.”

“I have a plan,” he says. “It’s all under control.”

“They’re
vampire-hating crazy people
!” Caroline squeaks. “You
so
do not have them under control!”

He looks at her and his jaw flexes, green eyes shining with the first hint of tears that I know he’ll never let fall. “He’s my brother.”

Pain ricochets cuttingly through my chest and my hand rises shakily to my throat. I should grab Stefan and run before anyone can stop us.

Or I should stop
Stefan.

I can all but feel Damon glaring at me, I’m so certain this isn’t what he would want. He’ll raise holy hell when he hears how we got him free, break things and bellow at us until the rafters of this place are shaking. It’ll take us hours to calm him down enough to get him on a plane and safely across the ocean, if he’ll go at all. But there’s no way I’m leaving him behind to try to barter an alliance with
Klaus
, no matter what the circumstances are.

“No!” Caroline explodes, throwing her arms out and letting them slap down to her thighs. “No, no,
no.
It’s too dangerous, it probably won’t even work and
hello,
do you remember when you traded all our white oak stakes to Klaus to get Damon back? It’s not like he signed a freaking peace treaty, Stefan! He was still threatening to kill all of us even as you walked out the door!”

Their eyes connect and she falls silent, going stiff like he just answered a question I didn’t even know she was asking. His fingers flex as he grips his own biceps a little tighter.

“I’m sorry,” he says, just to her this time.

Ric takes a reluctant step forward, and I can tell he’s trying to decide if he can force Stefan to give up the location of Silas’s coffin.

“Pack fast,” Stefan says, looking past Ric to Jeremy. “And get them all out of here before this afternoon. The new credit card is on the kitchen table.”

He turns his back on us and heads for the front door with stiff, determined strides.

“Stefan!” Caroline’s voice breaks before the last syllable and I turn to her, registering the tears swimming in her eyes as her shoulders sag.

He stops. “Caroline, please don’t–”

“Don’t
what?
Tell you the truth? I’m your friend, Stefan, and you told me you needed me to be honest with you.” She takes a step forward. “You’re doing this because you’re still trying to make up for the past. You’re going to get them to let Damon go and you’ll volunteer to be the one that stays while they make sure they can wake Silas, aren’t you? Because you think Damon is the only one left who loves you.”

Jeremy tosses a glance my way, looking uncomfortable, but I don’t know what to tell him. Caroline stops so close to Stefan’s rigid back that he must be able to feel her breath expanding across the fabric of his shirt.

“That’s not true anymore and you know it,” she accuses. “
I
care, Stefan Salvatore, and I’m not going to let you just throw your life away because you’re afraid—”

Her voice trembles and when he turns, it cracks apart altogether and she chokes on a gasp and falls silent.

Their eyes lock together and my mouth falls open in surprise at the tension that shimmers between them, the bare
want
I’ve never seen them acknowledge so clearly.

Stefan’s hand lifts toward her face and guilt twists in my belly as I hold my breath, wondering if he’s about to change his mind about trading Silas. I want to be excited for what I think is about to happen between him and Caroline, because she’s just what he needs and Stefan deserves somebody who can make him laugh, but right now I can’t think about anything but how we’ll get Damon free if Stefan
doesn’t
force the issue with Silas.

The intercom buzzer sounds and Ric heads over gratefully to check it. Stefan and Caroline don’t look away from each other, but Jeremy frowns.

“Who could be at the gate? Stefan, are you having another rental car dropped off or something?”

Stefan blinks and clears his throat. “No. No one should even know we’re here.”

Ric pushes the button to activate the security camera on the tiny screen, even as he reaches to slam the heavy front door. But then his shoulders relax. “Unless the Augustines’ fleet includes an old Volkswagen Thing, it’s not an enemy invasion. Probably just a lost pizza deliveryman.”

Jeremy’s head snaps up. “A VW?”

The intercom crackles and then a female voice comes through clearly. “Paging Transylvania. Can Jeremy come out and play?”

“Is that Cali?” Stefan says, looking confused.

Caroline winces and hurries across the room, dodging self-consciously around Ric to push the button to open the gate, then activating the intercom. “Come on in!” she sings cheerfully.

“Wait, don’t!” Jeremy lunges, but he’s too slow to stop her. “Shit! Caroline I didn’t tell Cali where we were. If she’s here, the Augustines might be using her to get in!”

Caroline twists her fingers together in front of her, smiling awkwardly. “Or, maybe she called me and said she needed to see you and
I
told her where we were.”

“Are you kidding?” Ric groans. “She’s human, Caroline. The Augustines could have compelled her to call!”

“My mom’s had Cali on vervain since she got back,” she says defensively, crossing her arms as her eyes dart between Jeremy’s increasingly embarrassed face and Ric’s suspicious one. “What? So I’m a sucker for a romantic reunion!” She rolls her eyes and mutters, “It’s not like I knew she would arrive smack in the middle of Crisis Central.”

The surprisingly loud engine of the Volkswagen cuts out and Jeremy’s eyes jump toward the door. Stefan stuffs his hands in his pockets and I hear the jingle of the spare set of rental car keys as he looks uncomfortable. He takes a small step toward the door.

There’s a loud bang of a knock, and Jeremy scrambles to answer it.

When he pulls the door open, Cali is standing there in ripped jeans and a tight black hoodie with spikey embroidery scrolling up the arms. She takes in all the faces turned her way and claps her hands once, sardonically. “Whoa, standing room only! Awesome.”

I dart a glance at my brother, but instead of looking excited to see her, his eyes are tight with stress.

“Look, I know you are probably not in the mood to talk to everyone,” he says to her, “and I’m really–I mean, I can’t believe you’re here but we’re right in the middle of something and I just…look, if you wanted to wait up in my room I could—”

The corner of her lips tips up. “It’s okay, Jer. That’s why I’m here.”

She ducks around him and strides inside but he turns right along with her like their movements were choreographed together, the tips of her fingers brushing the leather cuff that’s buckled around his wrist.

I tuck my hair behind my ears and try to gather my thoughts. Jeremy can’t look away from her, and this is the most alive he’s looked in days. I meant to go and see her, to try to smooth things over once we got Damon back, and even though this is possibly the worst moment she ever could have picked, I should at least say
something
before Jeremy herds her away because if they fight again and I don’t get the chance before she disappears, then my brother will be crushed and it will be all my fault.

“Cali, I never got the chance to tell you how sorry–”

She snaps up a hand, waving me off. “I don’t believe in apologies,” she says. “They don’t mean shit.”

Jeremy stiffens. “Cali, wait. We haven’t found Damon yet and right now is not–”

“What I believe in,” she interrupts him, “are actions.” Her eyes find me and they’re such an intense, unapologetic blue that they remind me of Damon and I nearly flinch. “Damon saved my ass when he could have tossed me to the Augustines for a distraction while he got Jeremy out of there.” She turns to address Stefan, who stands awkwardly between Caroline and the open front door. “And you gave me my memories back, with no glossing over of anything that happened, including all the chances you had to kill me, and how hard it was for you to hold back.”

She gives a quick shrug of thinly muscled shoulders.

“I was too pissed when I first found out to think it through clearly, but once I went home, I had nothing but time, and I realized you never had to be nice to me. You never
had
to tell me the truth. And you sure didn’t have to protect me from the Augustines.”

Caroline’s chin lifts and Cali snorts, a quick smile crossing her face. “Don’t think this is because of the lecture you gave me, either, Mama Bear.”

Caroline purses her lips ruefully, but doesn’t apologize, and I almost smile until I catch Stefan stealing a glance at the foyer clock and my hands clench tight.

“I’m here because I owe you all an apology, too,” Cali announces.

“Thought you didn’t believe in them,” Ric says, sounding amused.

She twitches a sideways nod of acknowledgement his way. “I don’t. So I brought you something better than a lot of lip biting and shuffling feet and words that would only make us all uncomfortable.”

Cali turns to face Jeremy and Stefan.