Unstoppable | The Vampire Diaries

37. Bad Blood

An incessant, repetitive knock on the front door pulled Riley out of her nightmare. It had been about Stefan, only he wasn't Stefan, he was the Ripper. He'd become a murderous, insane bloodaholic, rivaling Klaus in every way. Scarily, after what he'd done to Andie, this didn't seem too far from the truth.

"What?" she asked sleepily when she opened the door, expecting to find either Damon or Caroline on the other side. However, it was Tyler.

"Hey," he said, swaying slightly on the balls of his feet. "Is your dad home?"

"No, he's working," she told him. "Why?"

Tyler frowned. "I think my mom did something to Caroline."

Riley's eyes narrowed and she ushered him inside, shutting the door behind him. "Something like what?"

"She put vervain in my coffee, she knows about vampires," he confirmed. "I can't find the Sheriff, do you think your dad knows where she is?"

Riley nodded. "Probably." Then her tired brain finally caught up with his words. "Wait, how do you know that Caroline has anything to do with this?"

"My mom caught her sneaking out of our house in the middle of the night, and now no one can find her."

Riley thought about his statement, and then grinned. There was only one reason that Caroline would be sneaking out of Tyler's house in the middle of the night.

Tyler saw her face and rolled his eyes. "This is serious, Riley."

"You guys are cute," she told him, the smile still on her face. "I just don't buy that your mom, the mayor, would kidnap a teenage girl that she's known for years. Whether she was a vampire or not."

Tyler raised an eyebrow, challenging her. "OK then... where is she?"

Riley hadn't heard from Caroline, and when she called her, the phone went straight to voicemail.

"OK, now I'm slightly worried. You're sure your mom has something to do with this?"

"I'm sure," Tyler said, nodding defiantly.

Ignoring the fact that she was in her pajamas, Riley grabbed her keys, slipped on some boots and headed for the door.

"You may not be able to ask your mom, but I can ask mine."

Tyler followed her out of the door and to the car with a confused look on his face.

"Your mom? What does she have to do with this?"

Riley sighed. "She hates vampires more than anyone I know. She wanted John Gilbert to kill them all, so maybe she still wants them dead?"

"It's a long shot," Tyler worried.

"Well, we can always go and accuse the mayor of kidnapping? The choice is yours."

He looked over at her, raised an eyebrow and then sighed. He couldn't ask his mom about Caroline because, if she knew that he knew the truth, sooner or later his own secret would be exposed. He wanted to protect her, to keep her away from the supernatural world. He had to.

So they drove to Ciara Fletcher's new single-person apartment. Thanks to the money that she was making as one of the leading physicians at Mystic Falls Hospital, her place was bigger than the house that Riley and her father lived in.

It was strange that Riley felt more welcome in a home that housed two vampires than the home of her own mother.

"Hey," her mother said in surprise when she opened the door. "What are you doing here?"