The final chapter is here! Once again, thank you to EVERYONE that has read, reviewed, commented, favorite and followed this story, especially those who have read from the very beginning! It's been a long road with a couple bumps and glitches but I'm proud that I've finished this story. It's been amazing to research this topic and I've learned about it! And I love that you all came on this journey with me :) So thank you again! I hope this chapter meets your expectations! It's the longest chapter of the story (over 15,000 words!) so I hope that makes up for me taking a month to post it! Read, review and enjoy!

WARNINGS: usuals

Disclaimers: I don't own The Vampire Diaries or the characters associated with it. I just own the city of Nivea, the country of Atteca, the minor characters and other cities I made up and this plot.

Tyler frowned as he stood outside his house, frowning at how he couldn't recognize it. He knew he hadn't been home in nearly three months but this house looked too different to be his.

"It is rather impressive," his father said next to him. "I would love to see the inside."

"You should," he smiled at him. "Where's Mom?"

"Worrying about you," he chuckled. "You never did this much when you were a child. All we had to deal with was the occasional classroom outburst."

"I'm sorry," he laughed. "I know I haven't been the easiest person to deal with."

"Don't apologize. It's who you are Tyler. Life wouldn't be what it was if you weren't doing anything crazy or stupid," his father smirked. He laughed but didn't deny it.

"So…now what?" he asked.

"You tell me," he laughed. "You're the one that just defeated one of the world's greatest villains."

"You make it sound like a TV show."

"I feel like I've been watching one. Between you and Jeremy and Mason I've gotten my share of drama."

Tyler rolled his eyes when he laughed, "That is not a funny situation."

"It will be in a few years. Could be now if you weren't so sensitive," Richard chuckled. "I don't even know why you freaked out over Mason. Jeremy clearly still loves you."

"But it's the fact that he did it," Tyler stressed. "If I had done something like this to him I'd never hear the end of it from him and you know it. And he knew—he knew—how I felt about Jeremy and he just—"

Tyler stopped when his father started laughing again.

"What's funny now?" he grumbled.

"You sound like a teenage girl holding a grudge. I thought we taught you better," he sighed with a hint of laughter. "Let it go Ty. It happened and it's over. There's a lot more bullshit that you're all going to have to deal with and you're going to need your uncle."

"What bullshit?"

"Mikael and everything he's done," his father said solemnly. "It's not over."

Tyler blinked, "What do you mean?"

He frowned when he was no longer there; what the hell did he mean it wasn't over?

"Dad?"

Tyler jerked awake, his eyes shooting wide open. One look around the room told him he was in the hospital, again. He sighed as he tried to sit up and winced when a dull pain went through his chest and his shoulder. He looked down and saw that his bullet wounds were covered with thick gauze that was taped to his skin and right shoulder was also wrapped. He touched the back of his head and winced when he pressed against the stitches covered by his hair.

"Tyler?"

He turned his head and saw his mother and Mason sitting in chairs by his bed. Mason had on a neck brace, his back rigidly straight against his chair and his entire arm stuck in a thick white cast. His mouth looked pinched and his lower jaw was noticeably swollen. He could see the metal around his jaw, indicating that it was wired shut. He felt genuinely bad for nearly disfiguring his uncle.

"How do you feel hun?" his mother kept her voice low. "How's your head?"

"It's fine. What happened?"

"A lot," Carol sighed, "you've been in and out for a day and a half."

"What?" Tyler blurted as he sat up straighter. "What happened to Mikael? And Jeremy?"

Carol looked down towards Mason. When he squeezed her shoulder with his good hand Tyler felt panic and dread overtake him.

"He's not…" he couldn't even force the words past his throat. "Is he…is he…?"

Mason shook his head frantically, as much as he could with his brace.

"He's still in surgery," Carol said softly, as if she would scare him. His eyes widened comically.

"What do you mean still?"

"Tyler, I need you to stay calm," Carol cupped his face. She could feel the terror radiating off of him and it made her more determined to check her emotions.

"What happened to him?" he demanded. "I need to know what happened Mom!"

"You need to rest Tyler. You're going to stress yourself out too much."

"Please," he begged as he gripped her arm. "I have to know if…just tell me Mom. I have to know if he's going to be okay."

Carol couldn't deny her son that, especially with the way his voice cracked. She glanced over her shoulder at Mason and he nodded once.

"Mikael stabbed him and ruptured his spleen. Between that and his head he lost a lot of blood. By the time the paramedics reached him…he wasn't breathing."

Tyler was glad he was sitting already because his entire body sagged with the weight of the news. He stared at his mother with terrified eyes.

"They got him here just in time for an emergency blood transfusion. We were notified beforehand and we were able to get blood from his friend Bonnie and Damon. They're all the same blood type," she smoothed his hair back. "They had to do the blood transfusion before they did the surgeries."

"H-How many?"

"He had to have one for his spleen and another for his head."

He felt as if he would throw up. His vision went hazy and he felt light-headed.

"How long has he been…?"

"Five hours," she said softly. He let out a noise from the back of his throat.

"I have to see him," he pushed her away as he started to get up. Mason made a noise of protest and Carol pushed him back by his shoulders.

"You can't go in there."

"I have to see him Mom!" he cried. "What if he dies?"

"He won't," she snapped. "You can't think the worst. You need to lay back and rest. Let Pearl and her team take care of him."

"How the fuck do you expect me to lay here while he's—!"

He stopped when she slapped his cheek a little harder than he was expecting.

"Get back into bed and rest," she narrowed her eyes when he tried to protest. "You had another open heart surgery Tyler, do you understand that? You were shot and the bullet nearly hit your heart. Do you have any idea how close you came to dying?"

"I'm fine!" he snapped. "Jeremy's the one having his head cut open! There's a fifty-fifty chance he won't make it!"

"And a fifty-fifty chance he will," she retorted. "You're not allowed to leave this bed for a week and I'm going to make sure you don't."

Tyler swallowed painfully, the lump in his throat threatening to cut off his air supply. He didn't even realize he'd started gasping and that his heart was pounding so hard that it was making him shake and he could feel his eyes stinging fiercely.

"Tyler," she took his hand. "He's not going to die. I promise you that Jeremy will get through this."

"You can't promise that."

"Have I ever broken a promise I made you?"

He squeezed his eyes shut as his tears brimmed, "No."

"That's right. And I won't start today," she kissed his forehead. "You have to trust me on this. He won't die."

She pulled him into a tight hug and did her best to keep her tears in as he shook in her arms. She looked over at Mason again for some kind of reassurance that her promise would be kept but she was only met with sad hazel eyes.

Slowly, she guided Tyler back into bed and pressed the button for his medication to drip into his IV. Tyler protested and made to turn it off but she slapped his hand.

"Rest," she said sternly. "He'll be here when you wake."

Tyler stared at her sleepily as the medicine started to enter his system.

"You promise?"

"I promise," she kissed his forehead. "When you wake up, he'll be right here."

Mason made another noise but they both ignored him. Tyler lay back against the pillows and let sleep claim him a few moments later.

"We'll keep him under until we know Jeremy is going to live," Carol told her brother-in-law.

Mason grabbed the notepad and pen from his lap and scribbled something quickly.

'We can't keep him under forever.'

"Just until we know Jeremy is alive," she soothed.

'And if he isn't? You promised him he'd be here.'

Carol ran a hand over her exhausted face.

"I've never broken a promise to my son. I won't start with Jeremy."

The look Mason gave her told her she better not.

"I'm fine," Rebekah swatted Matt's hand away from a nasty bruise on her neck. "It'll heal Matt."

"I'm just making sure—shouldn't we put more of that cream on?" he looked around the hospital room.

"Matt," she grabbed his hand in both of hers. "I'll be fine. I promise. It's not life threatening."

Matt took a deep breath and nodded, "Sorry."

She shook her head with a smile and pulled him closer. She scooted over to make room for him and leaned into his chest as they cuddled in her small hospital bed. His hand rested on her stomach and rubbed in circles gently.

"When do you think it will be safe to leave?" she asked softly.

"I don't know. It's pretty crazy out there right now," he murmured. "I think if we stay here for a couple days it should die down by the end of the week."

"Hopefully. I miss sleeping in a comfortable bed," she whined. He chuckled.

"Well the house is now a crime scene so we'll have to find another place to live."

Her smile disappeared, "Yes we will."

He tipped her chin up with his finger and pressed their lips together.

"I'm so sorry about Henrik," he murmured. She shook her head.

"How is Kol dealing with it?"

"He's not," he snorted. "He's throwing himself into his work so he doesn't have to think about him or Klaus."

Rebekah nodded, feeling tears come at the thought of her brother that had been alive only to die by Mikael as he'd planned.

"At least…at least he didn't suffer," she wiped her eyes. "And at least he was with someone who cared about him."

"Yeah," he murmured. "There's something else you need to know."

"What?"

"Jeremy killed Mikael."

She blinked, "He's dead?"

"Yes."

"Good," she spat. "He deserved to die. It's poetic Jeremy killed him. I'm only sorry I missed it."

"Same," he gave her a small smile. "He did deserve it. I just wish he suffered a little more the way you guys did."

"The world is simply better off without him," she turned to him with wide eyes. "Sometimes I fear that our child will grow to be like him."

"Why would they? We would never allow him to do the things he's done."

"He wasn't always like this," she sighed. "At one point, he loved us."

"He won't be like him," Matt promised. "If our child has both of us there to guide him, he can't go wrong. He's going to be fine."

"You mean…they will be fine," she bit her lip coyly as both his eyebrows rose.

"Are—are you saying that you want more?"

"I do," she murmured. "I want us to have a large family."

Matt grinned, "Good. But maybe we should get married first."

"Are you proposing?" her heart pounded. He cupped her face.

"Not quite. I'm just seeing if you would say yes when I did."

She laughed, "Of course I would. I love you."

"I love you," he murmured before catching her lips with his. A knock on the door made them pull apart slightly. They frowned at Kol's disbelieving look when he walked in.

"What?"

He took a deep breath, "Mate…I don't even know how to tell you this."

Matt sat up. "What happened?"

The police officer stepped further into the room with a younger woman wearing teddy bear scrubs and crème colored slippers. Rebekah sat up when the door closed with a frown.

"What's going on?"

"We were taking fingerprints and getting the DNA from every captive Mikael had to try to locate their family members…and there was a hit to your name," he said softly to his stunned best friend. Rebekah's eyes widened to the size of saucers when the young woman raised her head.

Matt stared at Kol unseeingly before turning to her. He had memorized the only picture he had of his mother in the hopes that she would come back for him someday, but looking at the woman in front of him was like looking at the teenage version of her. His hands shook and his breathing came in short pants as he approached her slowly.

"Vicki?" he whispered in disbelief. Her eyes sheened over and he felt his own water.

"Matty," she gave a small laugh as a tear fell. He grabbed her small body into his arms and she held him back just as fiercely, sobbing into his shoulder as she gripped him for dear life. After years of convincing himself that he would never find any of his family, he was given back the chance when he least expected it. It felt as if a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders as he squeezed her to his chest, determined to never let her go again.

"I can't believe you're here," he laughed through his own tears. "Holy shit Vicki. I don't know what to say."

"I don't either," she wiped away her tears with a chuckle of her own before throwing her arms around him again. Rebekah and Kol watched the two siblings reunite with huge smiles.

"I can't believe you found her," she whispered as her own tears fell.

"It was luck," he laughed in disbelief. "I just happened to be the one to take her information."

"That was fate," she squeezed his arm. "This was all fate."

"Babe," Matt turned to her and she could still see the tears on his face and in his eyes. "This is my sister Vicki. Vicki, this is Rebekah and that's her brother Kol."

"I've heard a lot about you," Rebekah smiled widely as she embraced the startled girl. Her arms wrapped around her after another moment.

"Good things I hope," she laughed as she turned back to her brother. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and kissed her forehead.

"Always."

"Is there any word on Jeremy's condition?" Rebekah asked Kol. He shook his head.

"Still in surgery. Damon told me he was bleeding from his head pretty bad and they had to give him a blood transfusion."

Vicki made a noise that had everyone turning to her.

"Is Jer-bear going to live?" she asked with wide eyes.

"How do you know him?" Matt frowned.

"We were adopted by the same woman a long time ago," her worried eyes turned to Kol. "He's going to be okay, right?"

"I…I don't know," Kol said honestly. "He had some pretty serious wounds."

"Wait, Jeremy is your adoptive brother?" Matt gaped.

"Yeah," she laughed tearfully. "Small world, right?"

"He has to make it," Rebekah whispered. "We didn't go through all of that just for my fa—Mikael to kill him. He can't let him win."

"He's not going to give up. Not now," Kol squeezed her shoulder. "I don't know him well but I know he's a tough kid. He'll get through this."

"Surgery was successful. We managed to stop the internal bleeding and we gave her medication for the chlamydia. The only thing to watch out for now is how she reacts to the drug they gave her," Caroline's surgeon told Damon, Katherine and Jenna in the waiting room.

The brunette sighed heavily in relief and her knees buckled. Damon caught her, dropping one of his crutches to do so, and steadied her against the wall as she cried into his shoulder. Caroline was rushed into surgery when she arrived due to internal bleeding that was making her blood pressure drop drastically and Katherine could do nothing but wait and worry over her lover. After he got his leg in a cast and crutches to walk on for the next six weeks, Damon sat with her in the waiting room all night as they waited for news of her, Tyler and Jeremy.

"She's alright Kat. She made it," Damon soothed into her hair as she gripped him. "She's alive."

"She's alive," she whimpered while sobbing heavily. "Dieu merci."

"What kind of drug?" Jenna asked.

"Some kind of sedative. We've never seen one quite this potent," the surgeon sighed. "We don't think it's anything life-threatening but we aren't sure if anything's changed since she's not awake."

"How long until she does wake?"

"A few moments to a few hours. But I can tell you she should wake up some time today."

"Is there any word on Jeremy?" Katherine asked. She shook her head sadly.

"He's still in surgery."

"Is—is Tyler alright?"

"He's fine. He finally woke up but Carol had him sedated again."

Damon frowned, "Why?"

"He was panicking over Jeremy. He even tried to get out of bed to get to him," Jenna sighed. "She thought the only way to keep him from hurting himself would be to keep him under."

"Will he need counseling?"

"Maybe. If it was up to me, you all would receive counselling," she gave them pointed looks. They remained silent. Jenna squeezed their arms simultaneously before excusing herself for coffee. Katherine covered her face with her hands.

"If Jeremy does not survive—"

"No," Damon snapped. "He got enough blood for his transfusion from me and Bonnie. He's going to make it."

"I hope you are right."

They looked inside Caroline's room. It was bare like the others with purple blinds that allowed for a view of the wooded area in the very back of the hospital. Pearl had them as well as the victims of Mikael's trafficking ring put in this back ward that was usually sealed off in order to avoid paparazzi and curious patients. From what they had seen on the news, the past two days had been chaos. Outside the walls of the hospital there were riots, mobs and violence that erupted as soon as it was clarified that police officers and even government officials were all in on Mikael's scheme.

"Do you think that…she will remember what happened?"

"Yes," he said softly. "She didn't have brain damage."

"Is it terrible that I wish she did not remember anything?" Katherine said sadly as she stared at her. "This should not have happened to her. We should have taken better care with hers and Jeremy's lives."

"Mikael as always three steps ahead. There was no way we could've known that…there was no way," he looked away, heart squeezing in pain as he thought about his brother. Katherine's hand slid around his neck and gently pulled her to look at him.

"You are right. There is no way we could have known that he would have found them or killed Stefan," she murmured as she hugged him. He returned it with one arm as he balanced on his crutch with the other.

"We should go in," he said softly.

She pushed the door open for him and held it as he hobbled through. The cool breeze of the air conditioner hit them immediately but neither of them noticed as they watched the sleeping blonde. Her face was bruised, especially around the eyes, and her skin looked pale and sickly. Her lips were cracked and dry and her nose was swollen, indicating a break. Katherine let out a breathless sob when she saw her. She sank into the chair next to her bed and took her hand in both of hers.

"I am so sorry my love. I am so horribly sorry."

She brought her hand to her forehead as her tears resumed. Damon sat beside her and wrapped his arms around her waist as he buried his face into her shoulder.

Two hours later, Caroline opened her eyes in confusion. She sat up slowly as she looked around, wondering how she got to the hospital. The memories of her attack assaulted her and she fell back onto her pillows with a soft whimper.

"Caroline?"

She turned her head slowly and flinched when she saw Katherine and Damon gazing at her. Her hand recoiled from Katherine's and she nearly whimpered at the pain it sent through her shoulder.

"Caroline it is us," Katherine's eyes were huge with fear and relief. "Do not be afraid darling. You are in the hospital and you are safe."

She blinked as she looked around and took in the plain room. Damon slowly hopped to the edge of her bed.

"How do you feel?" he asked gently as he took her hand in his. Caroline yelped and shifted to the opposite corner, pulling her knees to her chest. They watched her in alarm as she panted.

"G-Get away," she stuttered. "Go away, go away please."

Damon felt as if he'd been slapped. Both of Katherine's hands were covering her mouth as she stared at her terrified lover. Damon tried to reach out for her but she just moved further out of his reach.

"Care it's me," his voice cracked. "I would never hurt you."

She shook her head frantically as tears built up.

"Go away," she whispered as they fell. "Please go away."

Damon swallowed heavily as he took a few steps back from her. He left after another moment despite Katherine calling his name. He hopped as fast as he could to the elevator, not bothering to turn around even when he went inside.

"Damon would never hurt you darling. You must know that," Katherine tried to take her hand back and was wounded when she recoiled further. "We would never do anything to hurt you."

She rocked back and forth, sobbing into her knees. Katherine tried once more to touch her and had to fight back tears when she was rejected again.

"Caroline—"

"Just leave me alone!" she wailed. "I can't—I just can't okay!"

"What can't you do darling?"

She shook her head and looked away, "I want to be alone."

The Bulgarian beauty opened her mouth to say something but no words came out past the tears in her throat. The Caroline in front of her was not the bright, bubbly yet seductive blonde she fell in love with. This woman in front of her was a destroyed shell of her former self. She wondered in that moment if she would ever see her Caroline again.

"Caroline, let me help you," Katherine pleaded. "Please darling just let me—"

Caroline squeezed her eyes shut as a silent sob forced itself past her throat. She couldn't even look at Katherine with everything that happened. Between the attack and knowing about Elena, it was too much to deal with at once.

"Go away!" she screamed as she sank into her pillow. Katherine let out a sob of her own as she ran from the room. When the door closed she sobbed openly.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Damon took a walk around the second floor of the hospital, not allowing himself to think. It was wishful thinking on his part that Caroline would bounce back from the same. He was so desperate not to lose anyone else that he held onto that belief with a tightly closed fist. But the girl they knew was gone. She was possibly gone forever.

Don't think, he told himself as he walked through the double doors to the cafeteria. He sighed as he looked around at the selection of food. There was hot food being made and there was a separate section for drinks, sandwiches, premade salads and other cold foods. He walked to the frozen section and picked up one of the sandwiches. When he saw it expired two weeks ago he rolled his eyes.

"Figures," he grumbled as he put it back. A woman came next to him and grabbed one.

"It's two weeks old. I wouldn't if I were you," he snorted. She laughed lightly.

"After what I've eaten for the past few months, a two week old sandwich doesn't scare me in the least."

Damon turned to her with a sarcastic remark but it died when he recognized the woman as one of the prisoners Mikael kept. He remembered seeing her being rushed into emergency past his room where he was waiting for his discharge papers, though he barely recognized her with how clean she looked now. Brown wavy hair sat on her shoulders, the ends dripping with water, and she was clothed in white scrubs with teddy bears printed all over them. She grabbed another sandwich and salad and turned to him with a slightly sheepish grin.

"You've got other options, you know."

"Yeah well, the hospital doesn't see it that way," she shrugged with a smile. He laughed.

"What's your name?"

"Tori—er, Vicki Donovan," she gazed at him through long lashes, "and you are?"

"Damon Salvatore. I'm surprised you never heard of me," he flashed his charming smile. She raised an eyebrow in response.

"Should I?"

"Everyone does. If not for my billion dollar coffee company than for my charming good looks and bedroom demeanor," he winked. She rolled her eyes.

"You would be a player," she chuckled bitterly. "Not to ruin your game, but I'm really not in the mood for knowing why you have amazing bedroom skills. I just got rescued from some crazy asshole's underground prostitution ring so sex is the farthest thing from my mind. Try your shit with someone else ass-wipe, because I'm not having it."

She started walking away but Damon caught her arm. He backed off with the way she flinched and whirled around protectively.

"I'm sorry," he said genuinely. "Really, I didn't mean it to sound…well I did but I didn't think about you being…I have this habit of being flirty even when I'm not trying, which sounds terrible but…it's true."

She raised an eyebrow.

"I promise I'm not trying to run game on you," he put both his hands up. "I've got a brain-filter problem and it tends to get me in trouble. A lot."

"I believe it," she relaxed slightly.

"Look, let me buy you a decent meal to make it up to you," he smiled hesitantly. "The hospital might not care that you survived Mikael Mikaelson's circle of hell but I do. You deserve better than a two week old sandwich."

Instead of walking away like he expected, she laughed.

"Alright."

She smiled and handed the pre-packaged food to him. He set it on the counter and led her to the buffet styled side of the cafeteria. He laughed as she loaded her plate with just about every dish she could fit on it from the salad bar.

"You're allowed to have more than one plate, you know," he chuckled as they found a nearby booth.

"I've never seen so much food in one place," she said as she grabbed her fork. "How do people not go crazy over this?"

"They do. That's why there are overweight people everywhere," he smirked. She looked as if she wanted to be offended but laughed instead.

"Are you always this blunt?"

"When the occasion calls for it," he grinned. She smiled back and continued eating silently.

"So Vicki Donovan," he leaned on his elbow as he dug into his own salad. "I'm going to take a wild guess and say that you're related to Matt Donovan."

"You know Matty?" she asked through a mouthful of salad.

"I know that his mother ran off with his sister when he was only seven and he's been looking for her ever since. My brother and I offered to help him but he always said it was something he needed to do on his own," he smirked. "What a way to be reunited."

She snorted as she kept eating.

"I'm surprised he let you out of his sight."

"I was hungry and they weren't. They were going to come with me but I told them to stay. His girlfriend Rebekah is three months pregnant," she paused. "She's the daughter of the man that took me."

"Yeah."

"But he took her too."

"Yeah. Mikael didn't discriminate among his victims," it was his turn to snort.

"He took my other brother Jeremy. We were in the same truck together," she said quietly. "Now he's in surgery and they don't know if he'll make it."

"He will," he forced a reassuring smile to his face. "Pearl and her team are the best at what they do. And Jeremy is strong enough to survive this."

"How do you know?"

"I've known Jeremy for about a year now. He's tougher than I ever would've thought," he said softly as he looked away. "He survives no matter what. This will be no different."

Vicki stared at him in confusion before it dawned on her.

"You're the one that saved him from the street thugs," she breathed. "He told me about you. You saved his life and took care of him."

"Tyler actually saved him, but we did take care of him."

"He thought he'd never see you again," she said quietly. "He was terrified but he kept fighting, even when he didn't have any hope left."

Damon looked down at his plate.

"What's he like?" she blurted, surprising him.

"What do you mean?"

"Is he happy? Does he have any hobbies or is he taking classes in college? Does he still do art or…anything?" she gave him a pleading look. "I haven't seen him in years. I just want to know if he was happy before this happened to him."

Damon wasn't sure what Vicki was looking for, but he knew she wouldn't take a bullshit answer. From looking at her, there was more to her than was on the surface and he was intrigued. Sure, he thought she was pretty hot, but his curiosity wasn't peaked by her sexual appeal. He genuinely wanted to know more about her.

"I think he was," he said softly. "We practically adopted him the moment Tyler brought him home. I'd like to think he was happy with us because we were happy with him. He means a lot to all of us."

She gave him a watery smile, "I'm glad to hear that."

Silence overtook them as they ate their meals. Damon ate his at a much slower rate than Vicki, watching her eat with just as little enthusiasm. His thoughts traveled to Stefan once more. He could picture his baby brother reprimanding him over hitting on a rape survivor the day she was rescued. He could see his furrowed brow and stern glare and couldn't help but wish he was really there.

"You okay?"

"Yeah…just thinking," he shook his head. He smirked when he saw her empty plate and her scraping up the last bit of dressing. "There's more food you know."

"I know," she sighed. "I'm full."

"Bullshit," he chuckled. "Go get more food."

"I don't think the hospital is going to want to—"

"Forget the hospital. You're hungry so you're going to eat," he smirked. "If someone has a problem with it then send them my way."

Vicki laughed as she went back to the food court. By the time they were ready to leave she had eaten two more plates of food and had two ice cream cones.

"I guess you were hungry," Damon chuckled as he hobbled on his crutches next to her.

"Ten months of captivity does that," she laughed lightly. "Is it too soon for me to be making jokes?"

"Nah. Sometimes laughing about it is the only way to deal."

They passed by a waiting room and Stefan's picture was on the TV screen in the corner with Damon's picture next to it. Vicki stopped when she saw it and he stopped with her. He had to grit his teeth to keep his emotions in check when they showed what was left of his brother's house.

So far the body that has been found and identified is that of 26-year-old Trevor Porter from Italy. The house was so destroyed by the blast that officials doubt they will find entire bodies of anyone that was inside at the time the bomb went off. Stefan Salvatore was the younger brother of Damon Salvatore, the current owner and CEO of The Brown Bean Company. Back in 2000 Damon accused his father, Giuseppe Salvatore of violently assaulting his brother, who was only eleven at the time. None of the Salvatore family could be reached for comment.

The death of Stefan Salvatore is said to have been in connection with the kidnapping of Jeremy Gilbert, the supposed lover of famous billionaire Tyler Lockwood and Caroline Forbes, the supposed lover of famous designer Katherine Pierce, with whom Damon Salvatore has also been linked to romantically. Pictures of the billionaires and their lovers engaging in bondage related sexual activities were released just one day before the explosion of Stefan's home, where it is rumored the lovers ran to hide. We have confirmed from multiple sources that Mikael Mikaelson, the father of Lockwood's ex-fiancée Rebekah Mikaelson was the one to leak the pictures, to send a city-wide search for Gilbert and Forbes and is the supposed leader of the underground prostitution ring that has enslaved thousands of women, children and men over the past decade.

We have learned in the past hour that Rebekah Mikaelson was also a victim of her own father's crimes against humanity and that dozens were rescued from abandoned warehouses in Nivea, New Haven and Harpely. The FBI is working closely with police all over Atteca to locate more possible suspects and we will be giving more information as we receive it throughout the day.

Damon shook his head and took off down the hall faster than before. Vicki caught up to him seconds later and they walked in silence all the way to the elevator.

"I didn't know he was your brother," she said softly. "I'm so sorry."

"Why? You didn't kill him," he snapped.

"I know. But I know what it's like to lose a sibling."

He sighed, feeling guilty for his tone. The elevator arrived and opened but neither of them moved to get in it.

"I'm not ready to go up there yet," Vicki said softly. "I'm scared that they're going to tell me Jeremy didn't make it."

"Then let's take a walk outside," he suggested. "But you're going to have to push me because I'm tired of balancing on one leg and these damn crutches hurt."

Laughing, she pulled a wheelchair from a holding station near the elevator and helped him sit before placing his crutches on either side of it and wheeling him to the double doors that led outside.

"I brought lunch," Carol handed Bonnie and her mother sandwiches and salad trays. "They won't allow any cooked food up here."

"Thank you," Abbey gave her a tired smile. Bonnie mumbled one in reply as she unwrapped it mechanically, careful not to bend her bandaged arm too much.

"Have they said anything?"

"No," she shook her head. "I just went to check on him but they haven't come out yet."

"It's going on almost eight hours," Abbey sighed worriedly. "Is it healthy for someone's head to be open that long?"

"Pearl and her team of surgeons are the best in the country," Carol sat next to her. "Tyler's life was in her hands twice and he's still alive. There's no one I would trust more than her."

Abbey nodded fretfully.

"How long have you known Jeremy?" Carol asked Bonnie gently.

"Sixth grade," she murmured. "It was my first day and it was terrible. I saw him sitting alone with his lunch under a tree and I sat with him. He liked me because…I was the only one that didn't think he was a freak."

She turned watering eyes to her mother, "Why is it always Jeremy?"

"I don't know sweetheart," Abbey pulled her sniffling daughter into her arms. "All we can do is pray for him to make it through this surgery."

Bonnie wrapped her arms around her mother tightly and buried her face into her shoulder. Truthfully, she was angry with Tyler, Carol and the rest for not protecting him better. It was irrational but it didn't stop her from resenting the people that took her best friend away. In her opinion, they were the reason he was in here.

"He will make it Bonnie," Carol said softly. "I haven't known Jeremy as long as you and your mother, but I know he's a strong young man. He will get through this because he knows you, your mother and all of us are here waiting for him."

She nodded as she wiped her tears away with her manicured nails.

"Is Tyler okay?" Abbey asked gently.

"He's…stable," Carol sighed. "He was awake earlier but I had him sedated again."

"Why?"

"I don't want him to worry about Jeremy. And I know that he'd drive himself insane thinking about it," she sighed. "He's already gone through so much with trying to find him…I only wanted him to rest. I worry over him so much."

"A good mother always worries about her child," Abbey smiled at her. "I worry about Bonnie and Jeremy all the time. I nearly had a heart attack when I saw his pictures on television."

"I have a team working to get rid of all the photos and videos of them," the auburn-haired woman said quickly. "It might take a while but we will find a way to get rid of them."

"I know he'll appreciate that," she murmured. "Did you know that they were…doing that?"

Carol shook her head.

"When I first saw it…I didn't think it was Tyler," she said honestly. "I didn't want to believe that that was my son doing…those things. I've had time to think about it while he was out searching for Jeremy and while he was in surgery, and I realize that that is his way of coping with things. It's how he coped with his father's death. And to me, this is better than his…other coping mechanisms. At least this isn't deadly."

"I still can't process that Jeremy would do something like that. It's not in his nature at all," Abbey's voice became slightly desperate. "That whole thing…it seems wrong to me somehow."

Bonnie made a noise in the back of her throat.

"It's not wrong. A lot of people are into kink. It's just how they prefer to live," she said defensively. "We shouldn't judge Jeremy because he wants to live that way. That's not fair."

"But this is Jeremy we're talking about. He wouldn't even let us hug him until he was fourteen!" Abbey cried. "I just don't understand how he could go from being so shy and humble to…this! What they're doing is practically porn!"

"Those pictures and videos were taken without them knowing! They never meant for any of that to be seen by us!" she snapped. "Tyler's butler Elijah put cameras all over their house and none of them knew! It's not fair to judge their private moments when someone else put them up for people to see!"

Abbey's mouth dropped, "That's awful!"

"He's going to be additionally charged for that," Carol said softly. "The prosecution is aiming to charge everyone under the Criminal Enterprises Law so that each person involved in this scheme will be charged with each kidnapping, murder, rape, assault and anything else that they did as an organization or for the organization."

"That's good," Bonnie sighed. "That way they can all be put away for life."

"I'm still processing this too Abbey," Carol said softly. "But at the end of the day, Tyler is my son. I can't change what he does or how he lives and in the end, I'll still love him the same. Jeremy too. I've accepted that I don't need to understand how they live for me to love them."

Bonnie nodded firmly and grabbed her mother's hand, "We have to support them Mom. Jeremy is family. Now Tyler is too. And if he can't be himself with us then what's the point? He is who he is, and regardless of the life he chooses to live or who he chooses to love, I'm always going to love him."

"I am too," she sighed. "I'm sorry Bonnie. Of course I'm going to still love him. Carol said it right; we might not understand it, but it shouldn't stop us from loving them anyways."

The door opened and Pearl stepped through with her entire team of surgeons and nurses. Most looked disheveled and were still wearing their clothing they had worn into surgery that was stained with blood. The three women stood immediately.

"How is he?" Carol asked desperately. "He survived?"

"He did," Pearl gave her a tired smile. "We fixed his spleen instead of completely removing it and we stopped the bleeding from his head. He's unconscious right now and we aren't sure when he'll wake up but were pretty sure he will."

It felt as if a weight had been lifted off each of their shoulders. Bonnie hugged her mother hard as she started sobbing all over again and she buried her face into her hair.

"Thank you," she croaked with watery eyes. Pearl nodded.

"Of course," she turned to Carol. "I need to talk to you."

They left the other surgeons to give a rundown of Jeremy's condition to Abbey and Bonnie as they slipped through the door to a private room.

"We had to do a CT scan of his entire body to see if there was anything else," she pulled out a thick folder of X-rays and pictures of Jeremy's brain. "The cut on his head and spleen weren't his only injuries."

"What do you mean?"

"Jeremy had a lot of bruises and cuts in other places and he's had more than one concussion. With all the broken bones that didn't heal right, the fractures and bruises on his skin, we know he's been abused for a long time. That, coupled with the surgery we just did, could have lasting effects on his personality and his overall behavior."

"Wow," Carol breathed. "How long was he abused?"

"We believe since childhood, as early as 10 or 11. I'd seen them before when Tyler brought him to me after he was attacked by street thugs," Pearl explained. "Concussions alter people's behavior and personality and I believe it's altered Jeremy's. It could explain why he stabbed Mikael over twenty times even though he was already dead."

Carol nodded, still in disbelief that Jeremy would be capable of that level of violence. She learned from the medical examiner that Mikael was shot twice in the head and stabbed 23 times in the chest and stomach. Jeremy was found covered in blood and slumped next to Mikael's body.

"Jeremy hasn't ever been violent from what I know," she said softly.

"That doesn't mean he's not capable of it," Pearl sighed. "Jeremy has experienced a lot of trauma and a lot of abuse, probably by multiple assailants. I'm really surprised that he's as normal as he is for someone in his situation."

"What do you mean?"

"Kids who are abused are most likely to become abusers themselves by the time they're his age. I'm not saying that he will become an abuser but it is something we should watch for. The number of concussions he's had, all the damage that's been done to his brain and his body, his mental state…keep a very close eye on him and tell the others to do the same."

"Of course," she murmured. "So the blood that you found on him was Mikael's."

"Most of it was his but we did find Mikael's on him too."

"Will he need counseling?"

"That's another thing," Pearl looked down briefly. "One of the areas we had to fix controls memory. Jeremy might not remember the attack…or anything before it."

"What?"

"He might not remember anything. A blank slate," she said softly. "We aren't certain but that's always a possibility with brain surgery."

Carol covered her mouth with one hand. She walked to the window to hide the tears welling in her eyes.

"Tyler will be…devastated if Jeremy doesn't remember him," she said softly. "This could make him spiral Pearl."

"I know. That's why I wanted to tell you first."

"What do we do?"

"We're going to move Jeremy into Tyler's room so he won't panic. Then…we'll just have to tell him and hope for the best."

Tyler felt groggy when his eyes fluttered open. His stomach growled and he wondered when he'd eaten last. He frowned when he didn't recognize the room he was in and sat up gingerly.

He noticed that he wasn't in the same room as before. It was bigger, made for two patient beds and the window was larger, allowing more light into the room. He could see the clouds rolling in the grey December sky.

He looked at the bed next to his and sucked in a breath when he saw Jeremy. The bruises on him were more prominent with how pale he was and he was littered with cuts of various sizes. His left arm was bandaged with white gauze and he could see through his open gown where his ribs were bandaged all the way around. His head was also wrapped thickly with the white material. His mother hadn't lied. She kept her promise.

His lips spread into a wide smile, "Jer."

He reached out to touch him but just fell short of his hand. He grunted in frustration when he tried again and he jerked his bed in his direction using all his strength. Little by little he had moved next to Jeremy's side and used the rail attached to his bed to pull him closer. Through it all, Jeremy never stirred.

"Jeremy," he cupped his cheek, stroking his thumb over a blue bruise. He frowned when he didn't receive a response and he called his name louder. Jeremy still didn't move and he began to panic.

What if something's wrong?

"Jer, c'mon," he shook him gently. "Wake up."

His head lolled unresponsively. Tyler shook him harder.

"Please babe," he pleaded as he tried tapping his face lightly. "Jeremy please don't—please wake up. You have to wake up!"

He felt tears coming when he remained unresponsive. It took everything in him not to grab Jeremy by his shoulders and shake him until he awoke. He put two fingers to his wrist and felt a steady pulse.

Coma. He's in a coma.

He couldn't help but see the irony of it, though the thought of it now filled him with dread. It had taken him a month to wake up, but what if it took Jeremy a year? Two years? Five? What if he never did?

He took a deep, shuddering breath, and then another, and then he was covering his mouth as his fear and panic and sadness and anger and stress and everything overwhelmed him and he was silently screaming into his mouth as water poured from his eyes. After everything they endured for each other…now Jeremy might not ever wake up.

"Jeremy—fuck!" he gasped as he tried to control himself. He gripped his hair tightly as he doubled over. He didn't know what to. He wasn't sure of anything anymore. All he knew was that he didn't want to live without him.

"Baby please j-just look at me. Look at me Jer!" he begged as he shook his arm.

The longer he begged with no responses, the more his emotions consumed him. Eventually he stopped and buried his head in the arm he could move while his shoulders shook. Taking his blanket between his teeth, he used it to muffle the sounds of his cries. He knew from the moment he killed the thugs that attacked him that his feelings for Jeremy would be the one thing to destroy him. They consumed him so wholly and rooted inside his soul so deeply that he couldn't even think of a life without him in it, let alone try to live one. Without Jeremy, he would be empty. And he couldn't be ashamed that he fell so deeply in love that he couldn't let go.

He tried in vain to get himself under control but it only made the tears come harder. There was so much they never got to do. He never told him he loved him enough, nor did he apologize enough for the shit he put him through. He would forever regret not telling him how he felt when he first told him his feelings because of the time he wasted. He spent so much time pretending that marrying Rebekah was what he wanted when he wanted Jeremy to be the one he said his vows to. He could picture them on the beach, maybe somewhere in Italy, having a private ceremony with only their family and friends to watch them. He could imagine his eyes lighting up as he said I do and his heart ached. They still had to travel the world before they settled down and grew their family. He wasn't done giving him the life he deserved. They needed more time.

He lifted his head and stared at the wall in front of him. He could feel the tears on his face but made no move to wipe them away. Instead he focused on taking deep breaths to compose himself. Jeremy was not dead, he reminded himself. It wasn't as if there wasn't the chance for him to open his eyes one day.

But he didn't know what to do until then.

He slowly lay on his stomach, then scooted towards Jeremy as much as he could to wrap his arm around his middle. He strained a little more to press a tender kiss to his temple, taking another deep breath when he thought he would cry more.

"Please—please come back to me," he whispered painfully. "I need you here. I need you to look at me with those beautiful brown eyes and tell me you love me. I need you keep me sane Jer, please. I need you because…because you make everything okay."

His breath caught and a tear slipped down his face and hit Jeremy's cheek.

"We have so much we have to do and see…and I want you to marry me," he sniffed. "I can't see myself with anyone else Jer. I can't even think of being with someone that isn't you. And if you wake up from this and you wanna marry me, that'll be the first thing we do, okay? I promise, that'll be the first thing."

He shifted as close as he could and closed his eyes, keeping his forehead pressed to Jeremy's temple. The soft beep of Jeremy's heart monitor lulled him into a light sleep.

He was woken by Damon and Katherine bringing him food. They told him about Caroline and Matt's sister that was also Jeremy's and that the entire country was in an uproar over Mikael's operation. He learned that all the victims and survivors at Nivea General, including him and his family, were moved to a private ward with a code-locked steel door to keep people from harassing them. They told him that the mayor of Nivea along with a number of judges, doctors, senators and other high-ranking members in society had been arrested and that reporters were camping out in front of the hospital waiting to talk to them. They also gave him news about Elijah's impending trial and that he had to be moved to solitary confinement so he could be kept alive for it. The prosecutors intended to charge each person involved with the same crimes to make their life sentences or the death penalty stick.

"Jesus," he groaned. "Our city is a fucking mess."

"Mess doesn't even start to describe it," Damon snorted. "People don't even want trials for Elijah and the rest. They're talking about hanging them in the streets to teach other criminals a lesson."

"Maybe that's the better option. It would save a lot of time and money," Tyler sighed. He wasn't feeling particularly feeling merciful towards the people who caused this uproar either. "Did they choose a new mayor?"

"You don't know?" he raised his eyebrows. "They asked your mom and she agreed."

"What?" he gaped. "When was this?"

"While you were asleep, apparently. That's why she hasn't been here. It was a quick decision."

"Why her?"

"Why not her? She's an amazing lawyer and she fights for the justice of the people, not just the wealthy."

"She is also your mother, and now that everyone knows the truth they think you are a hero," Katherine said softly. Tyler blinked.

"What?"

"Yeah, you should hear some of the things people are saying about you," Damon laughed. "They think the way you went in to save Jeremy was romantic. They sympathize with you so much that they're completely disregarding that you're into bondage and that you cheated on Rebekah with him."

"They aren't slandering her are they?"

"No. That was a story your mother set straight right away," Katherine murmured. "They now know that she was one of his victims and that she nor Kol had nothing to do with the operation."

"Andie is going to be the lead prosecutor. Carol was asked to step down because of her relationship to you and she agreed," Damon sighed. "Trials will start in two weeks when they get all their evidence together."

"There's someone willing to represent Elijah?"

"Surprisingly yes. I would have thought they would have been afraid to face the wrath of the angry people of Atteca," Katherine giggled. Tyler snorted.

"Probably some lawyer that thinks he's hot shit."

"Probably."

Katherine's eyes flitted to Jeremy's still form, "Have they said when he will wake?"

Tyler shook his head. Silence overtook them for a moment.

"How's everyone else?" he asked quietly.

"Alaric has a broken foot and his arm is in a sling but he's alright so they sent him home. Mason had his jaw wired shut. It's killing him to not talk," Damon chuckled and Tyler couldn't help but crack a smile. "Rebekah just hit three months in her pregnancy and they're looking for a new place to live since their house is a crime scene."

"What about Vicki?"

"She's going to live with them."

"That's good. I'm glad they're all okay. Jeremy will be happy to see his sister," he murmured.

They stayed for another half hour so they could speak to Jeremy. His heart ached at the way Katherine kissed his forehead and begged him to come back to them soon. Tyler was secretly glad when they were gone. It was hard to look at his best friend and not think about Stefan, or talk to Katherine knowing that Caroline was suffering from rape trauma. He wasn't ready to deal with the changes to his family yet, not without Jeremy.

Rebekah came when the sun had nearly set, wearing a set of blue scrubs and hospital slippers. Her blonde hair was thrown in a messy bun and she wore no make-up. She looked completely drained but Tyler thought she looked better this way than she did any other time.

"You look good," he said honestly as she threw her arms around him.

"You flatter me. I look awful," she laughed.

"Must be the pregnancy glow," he grinned when she pulled away. His hand slid to her neck and he rotated it gently as if inspecting it for wounds. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," she smiled. "Are you?"

He glanced at Jeremy briefly.

"I'm dealing."

She nodded in understanding and squeezed herself between him and the railing. He scooted over to make more room.

"When is he supposed to wake?" she asked as she took Jeremy's limp hand.

"I don't know. When I was in a coma…it took me a month," he sighed. "Mom said talking helped me so maybe it'll help him."

"When you were in your coma, I had just found out I was pregnant," she said softly. "You were the first person I told."

"Really?"

"Really," she laughed. "Strange, isn't it? But it helped."

He grinned, "It's funny I'm the first one considering our history."

"I know," she giggled. "Who knew we'd be sitting in a hospital bed talking about it?"

They lapsed into silence, each getting lost in their own thoughts.

"He kept me composed while we were in that warehouse," she said after a period of silence. "I had been in there for so long I couldn't tell what day or time it was. I was starting to go mad and then I heard his voice. When I found out who he was…I had never dreamed of meeting him that way. But I'm glad I did. I'm glad Jeremy was the one to endure that with me."

"I'm glad he had you there with him," he said as he laced their fingers together. "The first thing he asked me when I found him was if you were okay."

She laughed lightly, "He's a selfless one."

"Yeah, he is."

"I can see why you're in love with him."

She brought Jeremy's limp hand to her lips and kissed it tenderly before leaning over to kiss his forehead.

"You'll wake up soon," she murmured. "I told you we would make it out of there and that you would see Tyler again. And now you get to enjoy a full life with him. A life you deserve."

Her words comforted him. The door opened again and then he was staring at Bonnie and her mother.

"Are we interrupting?" her mother asked gently.

"No," Tyler smiled reassuringly as he beckoned them inside with is good arm.

"How are you feeling?"

"I'm alright," he gave her a small smile that she tentatively returned.

"We can talk more later," Rebekah murmured. She kissed Jeremy's forehead again and then Tyler's cheek before leaving, shutting the door behind her on the way. The awkward silence that followed had Tyler wishing she would come back.

"We haven't met. I'm Abbey Bennett," she came to his bedside. "I wish this was under better circumstances."

"I agree," he laughed. "But it's still nice to meet you."

"And you know my daughter Bonnie?"

"Yeah. She actually works for me," he sent the brunette a smile and she gave him a helpless one in return.

"She told me. I was honestly stunned when I saw what you looked like for the first time. You look awfully young to be running a billion dollar corporation."

"Mom!" Bonnie hissed in embarrassment. Tyler merely laughed.

"She's right. Most of the people I work with say the same thing."

They moved from his bedside to Jeremy's. Tyler wanted to be able to give them privacy but he knew his mother would strap him to the bed indefinitely if he tried to leave it again.

"Do you mind if we…?" Abbey gestured to Jeremy's sleeping form.

He shook his head, "Of course not."

They sat in chairs next to Jeremy's bedside. Bonnie took his limp hand in hers, her eyes filled with grief and pain as she stared at his sleeping face. Abbey sniffed as she pressed a kiss to his cheek.

"Please wake up," Bonnie's voice wavered. "I need my best friend Jer. I need you to be okay."

Tyler took deep breaths to keep his emotions in check. The words they spoke to him made his heart hurt more than he felt horribly guilty for keeping him separated from Bonnie all these months. He was so selfish when it came to the people he loved that he never wanted to be without them. It was so much worse with Jeremy because he loved him fiercely. Yet the younger man endured it because he was strong. Jeremy was stronger than he would ever be.

"I'm sorry," he blurted when they stood to leave. They turned to him in confusion.

"For what?"

"I'm the reason you haven't seen him as much over these past few months," he said softly. "I never meant to keep him away from you…I just…."

"I know," Bonnie smiled as she squeezed his hand. "I had the feeling when I left that night that you two would be something more."

He blinked, "Really?"

"It wasn't hard to guess," she shrugged with a smile. "The way you looked at him that first time that gave you away."

"How did I look?"

She grinned more, "Like he was everything you ever wanted."

She threw her arms around him and he returned the surprise hug with his own fierce one. When she pulled back she gave her mother a look and they communicated silently before she headed out the door. Tyler mentally prepared himself for Abbey's speech that was sure to be far less kind than her daughter's.

"I saw the pictures of you and him. I saw the videos too. They've stopped playing them now that all this has happened but for a while that was all I saw," she laughed lightly. "When I first saw them…I was stunned that you of all people would be involved in something like that with all the charity work you do and the money you put into creating your shelters that goes against that kind of behavior. And then I recognized Jeremy and I just…I was heartbroken. As a mother, as someone that has always tried to do the best for him even when I wasn't allowed to, I could not understand why he would do something so insane. Then I convinced myself that it was your fault, that you had coerced him into doing it. It made it easier for me to hate you."

Tyler swallowed at her words.

"They slandered you for a good day and a half before everything started happening…and for once I agreed with them. And then he was taken and it just…it turned into something beyond anything I could've ever imagined. When you watch your children grow into adults…you wonder why they don't understand that the choices they make are bad or good, or why they choose to do things that are crazy to you. You wonder and you question yourself as a parent about what you could've done better. But I know Jeremy never felt like he belonged anywhere until he met you. He never felt safe or wanted o-or loved until he met you. You've given him things Bonnie and I couldn't…and for that I could never hate you."

She took his hand between both of her and squeezed gently.

"I wanted to think you were a bad person when I saw the pictures, but you are the best thing to ever happen to him," she gave him a tearful smile. "You saved his life more than once. You never gave up on him, even when it seemed like Mikael would win. I can't think that someone who loves him so much could be a bad person regardless of the life they lead. I'm still trying to understand it. Don't get me wrong," she laughed as she wiped away a fallen tear. "But I know in my heart that Jeremy will be safe with you and he'll be happy. That's all I've ever wanted for him and I'm happy he'll get it with you."

She bent to give him a hug and he returned it with his good arm. He was surprised by her words, but he was happy she told him the truth.

"Thank you Mrs. Bennett," he murmured softly.

"Just Abbey," she smiled as she wiped away her tears. She squeezed his shoulder, "Your father would be really proud of the man you are."

She turned the light off as she left, casting the room into darkness now that the sun had set. Heart still pounding from Abbey's words, Tyler scooted closer to Jeremy and wrapped his arm around him once more and pressing his forehead back to his temple. He couldn't help but smile in spite of everything.

"I think I just passed the parent test with Bonnie's mother. I thought she would cuss me out for corrupting you," he chuckled as he kissed his cheek. "Now I won't feel weird about inviting her to our wedding."

"Shhh," Damon chuckled as Katherine released another loud groan. "Don't let them hear us."

"They will not—oh," he head fell back against the wall, her mouth open in a silent scream as Damon's tongue ran over her clit again. Her legs were starting to shake on his shoulders as she gripped his hair and guided is head. She dug her nails into the table she was sitting on as she felt another orgasm coming.

"Damon!" she gasped. He stuck one slick finger inside of her as he played with her and she flew over the edge after another moment, pure pleasure coursing through her. Her stomach muscles clenched and unclenched as she tried to catch her breath and stop from shaking. Damon made a show of licking his finger and smacking loudly with a smirk.

Without a word she slid to her knees and pushed his crutches away from him. She unbuckled his pants faster than he could blink and then he was disappearing into her mouth and he had to bite his lip from groaning out loud. She swirled her tongue over the head of his cock teasingly and he pushed her away.

"I don't want to come in your mouth," he panted as he pulled her up. She straddled him, mindful of his broken leg, and kissed him hard. Her body rolled down on his as he tried to remove her pants. She stood to take them off and went back to grinding on him, waiting until they could both barely stand it before she was sinking onto him.

"Shit!" he cursed when she raised herself up and down on him. She groaned by his ear, her nails digging into his shoulders. The chair groaned and squeaked with the movements but neither of them cared. Nor did they care that anyone could walk in at any moment and catch them together. The room looked abandoned enough to where no one would need anything, but it was still risky.

Damon gripped her hips as she started slamming down on his thighs. Their lips met in a passion-fueled kiss as she moved faster. He was barely able to thrust back, his mind in a haze a pleasure and focus only on the beauty on top of him.

"You feel so fucking good," he groaned before she was thrusting her tongue into his mouth again, and they were moving faster and faster until she was clenching around him and he was groaning as he came and she was whimpering as her orgasm hit her like a speeding truck. She dropped her head onto his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around her, not even bothering with his state of undress.

When Katherine recovered she climbed off of him and found her pants silently before righting her shirt. Damon tucked himself back into his pants and watched her, noticing how the atmosphere suddenly became tense like it was before.

"We cannot keep doing this," she whispered painfully as she faced away from him.

"Why?"

"It feels like cheating without her," she murmured, wiping away a tear that fell. "She needs us to be there for her."

"It's only happened twice."

"It should not have happened at all."

Damon sighed and grabbed one of his crutches to help him stand, "You're the one who initiated it."

"I know."

"But you think it's a mistake."

She flinched at his hardened tone.

"If you thought it was a mistake then why has it happened more than once?"

"She will not even look at me," she whimpered. "When I go in there…she does not even acknowledge anything I say to her or respond to it. I do not know how to get through to her. I do not know how to be there for her Damon and it hurts me to see her like this."

"So you come to me to make you feel better," he snorted bitterly. "That's great."

Katherine whirled around, "Damon—"

"Don't," he snapped as he grabbed his other crutch. "I can't do this."

"Do what?"

"Be your man on the side while you wait for Caroline to stop grieving! I can't fuck you one minute and feel guilty about it the next! You're not the only person she can't look at!"

The brunette gaped at him, "How could you—that is not true Damon! You are more than a fling or a shoulder for me to cry on!"

"Then why is it so hard for you to fuck me without her being here?"

"It is just different with Caroline!"

"Because you love her more than you love me! You're just scared to admit it!"

"That is not true!" she yelled. "I love you both, you know that!"

"If that was true then you wouldn't have just called this a mistake!" he spat. "You're a hypocrite. You can fuck Caroline all the time with no problem but we do it and it's cheating! Well when you guys fuck without me guess what? It's cheating Katherine! I don't get how you can't see the double standard if you're supposed to be with both of us."

Her mouth dropped, "That—that does not mean anything! My feelings for you have never changed!"

"They have Katherine," he gave her a wry smile. "And I understand, I really do. But with everything with…with Stefan, I can't handle any more shit right now."

"Wait!" she pleaded through tears as she grabbed his arms. "That is not true at all! I have always loved you and that will not change no matter who else I am with. You are the one I know I will love for the rest of my life!"

He leaned forward and kissed her forehead tenderly.

"You know I've always loved you too," he murmured. "But I just can't do this right now Katherine. I need time to think and…I just need time."

"But—but we need you! I need you!" she cried. "We need to be there for each other and—and Caroline is frightened now but she will not always be! If you just give her some time—!"

"Katherine," he said tiredly as he shook his head. "Caroline is never going to be the same no matter how much time you give her. She might never feel comfortable around me again and you can't force her to accept me when she's terrified of me. She needs time and I do too."

He squeezed her arm before leaving quietly. She stared after him with tears pouring down her face.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Vicki grinned when she saw Damon enter the nearly empty cafeteria. She called his name and he turned in her direction before immediately hopping to her. She didn't know what it was about this man that had her so interested after he hit on her but she enjoyed talking to him. He made everything easier for some reason.

"We should stop meeting like this," she chuckled as he sat. She frowned when he didn't smile. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," he sighed. "It's just been a shitty week."

"I know how you feel."

"Where's Matt?"

"You just missed him. He had to go to work."

He grunted as he put his elbows on the table and ran a hand through his hair.

"You okay?" she asked hesitantly. He gave a bitter chuckle.

"No," he said honestly. Vicki waited for him to elaborate until she realized he wouldn't.

"Wanna take a walk outside? Fresh air is always good."

"I guess."

They left in silence, not bothering to clean up their food. Vicki wordlessly pulled out a wheelchair for Damon and she wheeled him outside to the gardens. The larger bushes were trimmed into the shapes of animals, hearts and flowers. He was glad that these were restricted to only their section of the hospital. He wasn't in the mood to see anyone else.

They stopped at the fountain and she sat on the bench in front of it after parking him next to it. The fall and rise of the water did little to calm his racing mind.

"I have to plan my little brother's funeral," he finally said out loud. "Stefan is dead and I have to bury my little brother. In pieces. No open casket for him, I guess."

Vicki watched him sadly.

"I used to resent him," he laughed bitterly. "I hated my brother when we were younger. My father always seemed to favor him and I couldn't understand why. Why Stefan? Why not me? What was so fucking special about Stefan that I didn't have? It drove me crazy to the point where I'd start hurting him for no reason. But then I got to high-school and I started noticing weird things about him at school and at home. He was still wetting the bed even though he was 11, and he wouldn't be able to sleep because he had nightmares so he slept in my bed. I was annoyed at first…and then I realized that something was wrong when I saw the calling card my father left on his neck. It was his way of reminding Stefan who had control over him."

Vicki felt tears in her eyes as she watched him run a hand over his exhausted face.

"I felt like the shittest person on the planet," Damon shook his head. "I didn't know whether to turn my father in or to kill him. Sometimes I regret not killing him. He terrorized Stefan for God knows how long and I treated my brother so badly he thought he had no one to turn to. So I packed our bags the next day, took some money from the safe in his closet and we left. He tried to bribe me with money to stay. He thought I would chose money over my own brother," he snorted. "I told him I would rather die on the streets than live with the knowledge that he was using my brother as his mistress. We did nearly starve, but it was the best decision I ever made as a brother and as a man. Stefan will always be my best decision and I never got to tell him that. He blames himself for all misfortune and he's so wrong. He died blaming himself, I know he did. I just wish I could tell him that I don't regret any of it."

"I'm sure he knew," she said softly. "You gave up everything for him Damon. He had to know that you loved him more than any amount of money your father could give you or any amount of suffering you endured."

He bowed his head and his shoulders shook. Vicki heard him trying to suppress his sobs and she wrapped her arms around him. The fountain continued to rise and fall.

Tyler awoke from a nightmare of Jeremy dying in his arms. He sat up sweating, wishing he could remove the nightgown that was now suffocating him. His mother needed to come back so she could get him some comfortable clothes.

It was still dark outside, so he assumed it was early morning. Jeremy still slept next to him and he lowered himself back against him, the metal railing digging into his side. He breathed in his scent of soap as he kissed his cheek.

"You're okay. You're right here and you're alive," he murmured.

When he couldn't fall back asleep he started talking to Jeremy again to pass the time. He talked about everything that wasn't Mikael, Stefan or anything that happened in the past few days. He barely noticed when the sky started to turn purple indicating daybreak he was so lost in his conversation.

"Sunrise looks pretty right now," he mumbled against his ear. "Maybe we should get married on a beach at sunrise. I know Damon would bitch about it because he sucks at getting up early but he's going to have to if he's gonna be my best man. The girls would love it. Mom would be so excited. I just hope everyone can make it you know?"

"Sunrise wedding…sounds…good."

Tyler jerked back when he heard the words. Jeremy's eyes were still closed, but he was moving his mouth as if he was stretching his jaw.

"Jer? Did you just—?" he stopped short. He hummed lowly.

"Could you hear me?"

"I've heard…everything you've been…saying to me," his lips stretched into a smile. "You weren't proposing just so I would…wake up, were you?"

"No," he laughed in sheer relief at the sound of his voice. "I was completely serious."

"Good. That would've been…a terrible bribe," he rasped with a breathy laugh. Tyler laughed too as he climbed over his rail to lie in his bed and was stopped by the IV in his arm. He growled at it before pulling Jeremy's bed closer by the railing. He tried shoving the railing down to no avail.

"I hate these fucking beds," he grumbled. Jeremy chuckled roughly.

"Maybe they can put us in a double bed."

"I doubt it. This is a hospital."

Eventually he got the beds close enough to where Jeremy's rail was slightly underneath his and he could climb over enough to kiss him deeply.

"Don't ever scare me like that again," he muttered between fierce kisses all over his face. "You scared the shit out of me."

"Sorry," he finally opened one eye. "Is there water?"

Tyler looked at the galleon of water in the corner.

"Hang on."

He carefully stood up, wincing at the cold tile of the floor. Moving the IV stand with him, he brought Jeremy three cups of water that he downed instantly. The younger boy tugged at the rails of his bed with a frown.

"Were these really necessary?"

"No," Tyler snorted. "There has to be a way to bring them down."

"I see a button on yours on the side. Maybe that's it."

Tyler pressed the button and felt a wave of triumph when they lowered. He located it on Jeremy's and he pushed their beds together as close as they could before he got back in his. He resumed his position on his stomach because of his IV and wrapped his arm around Jeremy's middle that was now pressed against his side. Jeremy's lips pressed against his temple and skimmed to his cheek and he felt warm all over.

"I missed you so much," he breathed. "I was so scared I'd never see you again."

"I would never let that happen."

"I thought Mikael killed you."

"I wouldn't let that happen either."

Their lips met hungrily as his hand slipped inside Jeremy's gown to squeeze his inner thigh.

"You saved my life," he panted as his hand crept to his half-hard cock. "You took a bullet for me."

"You took two for me," he kissed behind his ear. "You saved my life."

Jeremy let out a moan as he stroked him. His hand trailed up his arm to his bandaged shoulder. Tyler kissed down his neck and then captured his lips again, his own cock hard and digging into the mattress. Jeremy thrust his hips up as much as he could in time with Tyler's thrusts.

"Should we be…doing this?" he gasped when his thumb ran over the swelling head of his cock.

"If you want I can stop—"

"Don't you dare," Jeremy glared at him, though the effect was lost with his moan. Tyler chuckled as his hand sped up and he caught his lips again. Too soon he was crying out and spilling over Tyler's hand as his body shook with pleasure. He twisted his body to thrust into Tyler's hand a little more and groaned in pain when he jostled his wounded side.

"What's wrong?"

"My side," he winced when pain shot up his left shoulder. "My shoulder hurts too. The left one."

"I'll call the nurse."

Tyler pushed the button to alert Pearl. The nurse walked in briskly moments later, grinning when she saw Jeremy.

"How do you feel?"

"Like hell," he huffed out a laugh, "but grateful to be alive."

"Do you remember everything that happened?"

His smile fell, "Yeah. I'm a little hazy on some things but I remember."

"That's normal. I had to ask you because we had to perform brain surgery to stop your head from bleeding and memory loss was one of the possible side effects. We also had to fix your spleen where you were stabbed so you'll be in here for a while like Tyler," she looked at him briefly before shaking her head. "I've never met a couple more prone to danger than the two of you."

They laughed. Pearl checked his vital before checking Tyler's. She removed the IV from Tyler's arm before she pushed their beds back together and hooked them so they stayed. The sun was starting to rise and the light was pouring through the window when she was done.

"No strenuous activities," she warned them as they cuddled under their now shared blankets. "I mean it Tyler. It'll be a few weeks before either of you do anything other than lay in bed, including sex."

"Fine," Tyler grumbled. Jeremy flushed and buried his head into his pillow.

"I'll inform your mom that Jeremy is awake," she gave them a soft smile. "You had everyone really worried there Jeremy. I'm glad you're alright."

"Thanks," he returned her smile. She made sure to part the curtains to their room a little bit and handed Tyler the remote to the television before she left.

"So…what now?" Jeremy murmured as his hand danced along Tyler's arm.

"I guess we lay here for a couple weeks," he laughed. "Doesn't sound bad."

"Until we get bored."

"We have television."

"True," Tyler laughed. "Hopefully it's more than the news channel."

"How's everyone else?"

Tyler sighed, "They're alright…for the most part."

"What do you mean?" he frowned. "How long was I asleep?"

"Almost four days."

"Did they get everyone—my sister!" he gasped when he shot up too fast. "Mikael had my sister Tori!"

"She's okay," Tyler said quickly. "She's here and she's fine."

Jeremy let out a huge sigh of relief.

"Thank God," he mumbled. "What about Caroline and Rebekah?"

Tyler looked away for a moment.

"They're here too," he murmured. "There's some things you need to know."

"Like what?"

Tyler told him everything that had happened when he was asleep. From the news gathering chunks of the story that had taken place to being moved to a private part of the hospital to avoid the press to the riots in the streets and the overthrow of the Nivean government to his mother becoming mayor to Tori being Matt's long-lost sister Vicki Donovan. By the time he was done Jeremy was staring at him like he'd told him the world ended.

"Woah," he said as he leaned back in his bed. "A lot's been happening."

"Yeah."

"My head hurts just from thinking about it," he laughed.

"Mine too," he pulled Jeremy closer and kissed his cheek.

"How's Care?"

"She's…she's not doing good mentally or emotionally. But I wouldn't expect her to bounce back so soon," Tyler murmured sadly.

"I hope she can get past this. She's already been through a lot," Jeremy sighed. They were silent as they held each other and thought about what was happening with their family as well as outside the hospital.

"Elijah's going to trial since Mikael's dead," Tyler murmured. Jeremy flinched.

"Did…did they find his body?"

"Yeah. I haven't heard anything about it though. I think they're trying to keep it under wraps."

"Oh," he relaxed slightly.

"Jer," he squeezed his neck. "You did what you had to do. He would've killed us both."

I did more than that.

"I know," he sighed. "I still wish I didn't have to…you know."

"Yeah," he pressed their lips together gently.

"Will you do something for me?" Jeremy asked when they parted.

"What?"

"Will you ask me again?"

He said it so quietly that he nearly missed it. Tyler's brow furrowed.

"Ask what?"

"To marry you."

His eyes were shining with happiness but also insecurity. Tyler leaned over and kissed his nose.

"Will you marry me Jeremy?" he breathed against his cheek. The smile Jeremy gave him sent his heart soaring.

"Yes."

From outside their room, Pearl stood with Carol and they watched the two with smiles.

"He seems alright," Carol murmured. "They look happy."

"They're grateful to be alive, that the other is alive," she turned to Carol. "Remember what I said Carol. Keep an eye on him."

Her smile faltered as she nodded. The nurse squeezed her shoulder before walking away. Carol wrapped her arms around herself as she watched them through the glass. Jeremy looked fine right now but she wondered how long it would last.

In a large palace on the edge of Saint Petersburg, Russia, a man wearing a silk black suit walked as quickly as he could down the elegant hallway. He pushed past government officials and tourists alike without so much as an apology. Clutching his documents tightly to his chest, he rounded a corner quickly and entered the small door in the corner. He took the stairs to the fifth floor two at a time and threw the door to the exit open without caution.

"Sir," he spoke with a thick accent. "I have received distressing news."

The man sitting in the large black chair didn't turn away from the window he was staring out of. Outside, he could see his subjects running left and right and soldiers patrolling the area to make sure no one was there that shouldn't be.

"Your brother is confirmed dead sir."

"I have heard," he said as he turned slowly. Many people thought he and Adrik were twins when they were growing up, but Alexei Romanov was many things his elder brother was not. He was taller and more handsome in his opinion. He was also smarter.

"I told him not to go fetch the boy himself," he shook his head. "He only had his mind on one thing, that poor bastard."

"The entire world is in an uproar. People are being arrested left and right. Police all over the world are starting to look into their own people, including government!"

"That is unfortunate," Alexei sighed as if he were bored.

"What if they discover that you are one of the people involved?"

"The negotiations were done under Adrik. Mikael Mikaelson never knew my name," he smirked as he swirled the drink in his hand. "Where is Adrik's body now?"

"Being flown here sir."

"Good," he set his drink down. "Get the boy from the lower quarters. Tell them to dispose of him quickly and quietly. I want no mess."

"Yes sir."

"Do you have what I asked for?"

He stepped forward and handed the documents to him. Alexei set them on the desk and opened them, staring at the picture of the boy Adrik was so obsessed with.

"Jeremy Gilbert," he mused as he flipped through his information. His birthday, social security, job history and everything he'd ever done in his life was all there in the folder. From what he could see he was really nothing special. But he could understand why Adrik was so obsessed with him.

He grabbed a picture out of his drawer and set the two side by side. It was an older photo of Adrik with his arm around the shoulders of another male. The resemblance was striking between Jeremy and the one in the picture. Same brown doe eyes, same brown hair, same pale skin, same pouty lips.

"Interesting," he murmured. "Very, very interesting."

"The resemblance is uncanny," his assistant said from his side. "Could it be…?"

"No," Alexei cut him off. "He is dead. It is not possible."

He opened the thicker second folder and stared at Tyler Lockwood's photo. He had heard a lot about the famous billionaire and his lip curled as he looked through every picture his investigators pulled up. He paused on a picture of him, his mother and his father at an event. His mother was a beautiful woman. He would have to find more information on her.

"You say this is the one that killed Adrik?" he pointed to Tyler.

"Yes."

"You are certain?"

"Yes. Matevi pointed to his picture."

"Is he expected to live?"

"No sir. The bullets punctured both of his lungs and his brain. He is to die within the hour."

Alexei clicked his tongue, "That is unfortunate. He will miss all the fun."

"Fun, sir?"

"Yes," he grinned wickedly as he came upon a picture of Tyler and Jeremy kissing. "This Tyler Lockwood thinks that he can get away with the murder of a Russian ambassador. He thinks that he is invincible. He thinks that his money and the people who call him a hero make him untouchable. And we are going to show everyone that he is not."

"What are we to do sir? Lockwood will be well protected."

"Every hero has a weakness," he pointed to the pictures of Jeremy and his parents. "We will destroy him from the inside out. When I am done with him he will beg me for his death."

"And the boy?"

Alexei's smirk turned evil, "If he is anything in bed like the videos we have seen, then I could find a good use for him."

He turned back to his window and leaned back in his chair as he kicked his feet onto his desk. Tyler Lockwood was going to pay for his crimes, of that he would make sure. He smirked; he was going to take everything from the man that murdered his brother and he was going to enjoy every moment of it.

That's it! Thank you so much for reading! See ya on the sequel! :D