Book One: Panacea (A. Saltzman)

Chapter Fourteen

Diana climbs out of her jeep followed by Stefan, the ride to this road was silent, neither talking, she doesn't particularly want to talk to him, she doesn't like him. At all. Even before the whole vampire reveal, she didn't like him. The way he played around with Elena. Will they? Won't they? It wasn't right.

"You can't tell anyone what I show you" Diana states, Stefan frowns at her. "Especially Elena"

"Diana" he starts to argue with her.

"Do you understand?" she stops him. "I'm not helping if you don't understand that no one finds out" he stares at her.

"So I say no, and you walk away and leave Elena with my brother....who is very dangerous by the way?"

"Yes," She counters. He lets out a breath.

"Fine, I won't tell her" he promises her, she searches his eyes then nods. 

"Okay," she reaches up and picks up her crystal from her chest. She takes a deep breath and closes her eyes. An eagle seems to burst from the crystal and takes off into the sky. Stefan's eyes are wide with his surprise. Diana smirks a little "Icarus" she tells Stefan who stares at the eagle above them. "He's special" Diana adds with a smirk.

"Yeah, he came out of your necklace" Stefan points out.

"Okay, buddy" She looks at the bird and nods, the bird then takes off through the sky. She then turns her attention back to Stefan. "He was something I picked up in Greece" She admits setting her hands in her pockets as they track Icarus through the trees. "From some old shaman woman at a market" She looks at Stefan and shrugs. "I liked the necklace....the bird just came with it" he stares at her, she notes the look. "What?" she asks him.

"Was that a lie?"

"Does it matter?" she counters with a smirk before laughing and heading through the trees, Stefan shakes his head and follows after her.

....................

Diana and Stefan follow Icarus till they reach the main road, the eagle is sat in the center of the road waiting for them.

"Good boy," She tells the bird who then takes to the sky again.

"There's blood on the road" Stefan points out as he crouches over the small patch of blood on the road.

"And glass" Diana adds. "But no car" she whispers as Icarus lets out a cry above them, Diana blinks, her eyes suddenly taking on a very golden hue and Icarus flies out towards the trees. "This way" Diana walks away from Stefan and into the trees, Stefan frowns and follows her. Not far off the road, Elena's car has been pulled into the bushes, a very poor attempt at covering it up. Diana rushes to the car her eyes returning to normal. Stefan right behind her. "Oh my god," She states seeing the state the wreck is in.

................

Diana and Stefan walk back towards Diana's jeep, both lost in thought. Diana touches her necklace and Icarus disappears from above them. Diana takes a deep breath and nods.

"So Elena left yours last night" Diana muses. "The crash happened whilst it was still dark, probably not long after, she was likely on her way home, the second set of tire tracks lead south. Damon called you this morning. That's 8 hours..." She pulls up the maps app on her phone "8 hours south gives us...." she looks over the map. "Tennessee or Georgia" she offers. Stefan looks slightly impressed. "Assuming they went straight and didn't drive around and double back and stuff, and that they stopped there" he nods in agreement.

"So let's go," He tells her already moving towards her jeep, Diana frowns.

"What?" she asks him, he stops and turns to her. "I'm not driving to Georgia or Tennessee" She scolds. "If your brother is so bad, then maybe you should have kept her away from him better, he's your responsibility"