Whatever It Takes {Two | Alaric Saltzman}

Total Eclipse of the Heart

Up the boarding house driveway, Abigail noticed everything that was out of place. Furniture on the lawn, paintings on the roof, and Damon's car crashed into a potted plant. The list went on, but ended the moment she met the bloody trunk of the Camaro.

"Hey. Sorry about the mess. I let Enzo drive last night. He's a little out of practice. Almost ended up in the damn foyer." Damon stood up from the couch, swaying slightly. "Oh, Aaron's out there too."

She sounded more like Alaric than herself when she asked, "What happened?"

"Well, last night, we hunted him down, and I ripped his throat out. I just figured it's time to shove the last branch of the Whitmore family tree into the..." He picked up one of the only unbroken bottles in the room and tilted it toward her. "Woodchipper."

"So, Elena breaks up with you, and your first instinct is to go on a killing spree?"

Enzo walked up behind her. "It was my idea if it makes you feel any better."

"Aaron cut off Augustine's funding. He was trying to make up for... everything." She turned back to Damon. "Guess you've finally found yourself a murder buddy."

"Oh, you know how it goes. I left him for dead, he tried to kill me, we worked things out." He shrugged. "You spend 5 years with someone in a dungeon, you have a pretty unbreakable bond."

Enzo walked around her, looking her up and down. "I hear Dr. Wes Maxfield fancies you. You haven't heard from him by any chance, have you? Bloke's next on the Augustine hit list, and he's a slippery little devil."

"No, I haven't." She looked down at the glass and liquor covered rug. "So, you're just going to kill off Augustine and then go back to your sadistic, psychotic old self?"

He smiled at her, just like he used to. "I happen to like my old sadistic self, Abigail. In fact, I miss that guy. That guy was dumb enough to try and change himself to get a girl."

"Damon-"

"Turn that savior complex onto someone else."

Enzo draped his arm around her. "What do you say? Shall we get you a new hobby?"

"Get off of me." She pushed him away. "Come on, Damon. You're better than this."

He pushed past her. "On the contrary, I'm better like this."

Abigail slammed the door that connected her and Elena's dorm room to Bonnie and Caroline's. "Where is Elena? She's not answering any of my calls."

Caroline didn't look up at her. "With Stefan. Something about Enzo."

"Oh, I know all about that!" Her voice was several pitches higher, soaked in sarcasm, and digging at the way Caroline had greeted her. "Which you would know if you would look at me, if you would answer the phone, or if anyone, you know, cared to ask why I haven't been here."

"What is going on?"

"Enzo convinced Damon to kill Aaron and every member of Augustine," she explained. "The only one left is Wes."

"So much for our fresh start."

"Fresh start? What are you talking about?"

"Whitmore's Annual Bitter Ball, a night to celebrate broken hearts, jilted lovers, and bitter singles." She walked to the door. "I'm late to pick up my dress; yours is on your bed. If you cared to ask why it was there."

The first voice Abigail picked up on as she approached the crowd belonged to Damon. "I'm here for you, not her, you idiot. I have a hit list. I can't find my last target, so I need a witch."