The Compelled (The Vampire Diaries 19)
Aunt Judith was fussing, of course. She couldn’t keep still; her hands were twisting together, smoothing her hair, or fiddling with her earrings. “Elena,” she said, “are you sure you’ve packed everything you need? There’s so much to remember.” She frowned.
Her aunt’s obvious anxiety made it easier for Elena to smile reassuringly and hug her. Aunt Judith held her tight, relaxing for a moment, and sniffed. “I’m going to miss you, sweetheart.”
“I’ll miss you, too,” Elena said, and squeezed Aunt Judith closer, feeling her own lips tremble. She gave a shaky laugh. “But I’ll be back. If I forgot anything, or if I get homesick, I’ll run right back for a weekend. I don’t have to wait for Thanksgiving.”
Next to them, Robert shifted from one foot to the other and cleared his throat. Elena let go of Aunt Judith and turned to him.
“Now, I know college students have a lot of expenses,” he said. “And we don’t want you to have to worry about money, so you’ve got an account at the student store, but…” He opened his wallet and handed Elena a fistful of bills. “Just in case.”
“Oh,” said Elena, touched and a little flustered. “Thank you so much, Robert, but you really don’t have to.”
He patted her awkwardly on the shoulder. “We want you to have everything you need,” he said firmly. Elena smiled at him gratefully, folded the money, and put it in her pocket.
Next to Robert, Margaret glared down obstinately at her shoes. Elena knelt before her and took her little sister’s hands. “Margaret?” she prompted.
Large blue eyes stared into her own. Margaret frowned and shook her head, her mouth a tight line.
“I’m going to miss you so much, Meggie,” Elena said, pulling her close, her eyes filling with tears again. Her little sister’s dandelion-soft hair brushed against Elena’s cheek. “But I’ll be back for Thanksgiving, and maybe you can come visit me on campus. I’d love to show off my little sister to all my new friends.”
Margaret swallowed. “I don’t want you to go,” she said in a small, miserable voice. “You’re always leaving.”
“Oh, sweetie,” Elena said helplessly, cuddling her sister closer. “I always come back, don’t I?”
Elena shivered. Once again, she wondered how much Margaret remembered of what had really happened in Fell’s Church over the last year. The Guardians promised to change everyone’s memories of those dark months when vampires, werewolves, and kitsune had nearly destroyed the town—and when Elena herself had died and risen again—but there seemed to be exceptions. Caleb Smallwood remembered, and sometimes Margaret’s innocent face looked strangely knowing.
“Elena,” Aunt Judith said again, her voice thick and weepy, “you’d better get going.”
Elena hugged her sister one more time before letting her go. “Okay,” she said, standing and picking up her bag. “I’ll call you tonight and let you know how I’m settling in.”
Aunt Judith nodded, and Elena gave her another quick kiss before wiping her eyes and opening the front door.
Outside, the sunlight was so bright she had to blink. Damon and Stefan were leaning against the truck Stefan had rented, her stuff packed into the back. As she stepped forward, they both glanced up and, at the same time, smiled at her.
Oh. They were so beautiful, the two of them, that seeing them could still leave her shaken after all this time. Stefan, her love Stefan, his leaf-green eyes shining at the sight of her, was gorgeous with his classical profile and that sweet little kissable curve to his bottom lip.
And Damon—all luminescent pale skin, black velvety eyes, and silken hair—was graceful and deadly all at once. Damon’s brilliant smile made something inside her stretch and purr like a panther recognizing its mate.
Both pairs of eyes watched her lovingly, possessively.
The Salvatore brothers were hers now. What was she going to do about it? The thought made her frown and made her shoulders hunch nervously. Then she consciously smoothed the wrinkles in her forehead away, relaxed, and smiled back at them. What would come, would come.
“Time to go,” she said, and tilted her face up toward the sun.
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CHAPTER 1
Adam’s car windows were foggy with the heat of their breath. It was a balmy night at dusk, and the air was scented with early signs of spring—a perfect night to roll down the windows and enjoy the breeze while they kissed. But Cassie insisted the windows stay closed, for privacy. Besides, she liked the feeling of being cocooned in such close quarters with Adam, insulated from the outside world by the steamy glass. They were going to be late for their meeting, but inside this cloud, she didn’t care.
“We should go in,” she said halfheartedly.