Unstoppable | The Vampire Diaries

35. The Death Cure

"What are you doing?"

Stefan had walked into one of the rooms of the Salvatore house to see Riley sitting on the ground, surrounded by piles and piles of books.

"Reading," she said distractedly, turning the page.

Stefan walked towards her and picked up one of the books. "Dracula?"

She didn't look up when she answered. "It's about vampires. I thought it would help."

"Help?" Stefan asked, finally catching up. "Are you looking for a cure?"

This time, she finally looked up and met his eye. "What else would I be doing?"

Stefan sighed. "I've got Bonnie looking for something. I really don't think the cure to a werewolf bite is in one of those books."

Riley put her current book down and picked up the next one in her pile. "Before I came to this town, everything I knew about your world was in the pages of books like these. And now it's all real. Do you really think it's impossible that, maybe, one of these authors was on the right track?" she asked hopefully.

"I think Damon will probably be dead before you find out," Stefan told her bluntly. "He doesn't have a lot of time."

"Well I can't just sit here and let him die," she said, trying not to think about his condition. "He's... he's Damon, Stefan. I have to do everything I can."

Stefan glanced at her sympathetically. "I locked him in the cellar," he told her. Earlier, Damon had been determined to end his life on his own terms, before the bite could take full effect. "Go and sit with him."

"I should be doing something productive," she insisted. "I'm the only one who can. I mean, Bonnie hates Damon. And Elena and Caroline don't even know about the bite. I'm the only one who can do something."

"Ric's mourning Jenna, and I have to go find Bonnie. Right now, you're the only one who can show my brother that he has something to live for."

As well as Jenna dying, John Gilbert had sacrificed his life for Elena's, ensuring that she remained human.

Riley slowly put the book down. "Klaus is running free, Elijah betrayed us, the Gilberts lost both of their parental figures, and Elena will probably never talk to him again after what he did. What reason does he have to live?"

Stefan thought for a second, then he shrugged. "Give him one."

After a second, she nodded, standing and walking towards the cellar. She watched him for a moment, before she spoke.

"Hey," she said softly. He was lying on the ground, looking extremely worse for wear.

"Elena?" he croaked.

Riley rolled her eyes. "Do I sound like a doppelganger to you?"

He groaned without speaking, and she let herself into his cell. "Come on. The Damon that I know would never waste time feeling sorry for himself."

"The Damon that you knew wasn't dying," he said.

"And is this how he'd want to spend his last moments?" she persisted. "Being on 'suicide watch' because he tried to light himself on fire? You could have at least been inventive," she joked.

Damon cracked the hint of a smile. "How would you do it?"

She frowned thoughtfully. "Well, first of all, I'd get really drunk."

She laughed and he joined her. He sat up slowly, allowing her to fit into the space beside him. "Then... I'd write letters to everyone I love, tying up all the loose ends. And then, when I was truly prepared, I'd let someone else do it."