The Balance

Chapter 23

The gym is full of the entire student body. Elena and Bonnie are sitting a row in front for me and Tyler. It's a memorial service for Carol Lockwood. The boy next to me tilts his cup full of candle towards mine, to use his flame to light my candle.

Sheriff Forbes is standing at a podium in the front of the stands. "Carol Lockwood always said that togetherness in times of tragedy leads to healing, that one community is stronger than a thousand of its members. But how does a community stay strong after losing its leader? And Carol was so much more than a leader; she was an open-minded friend and a concerned mother, taken from us too soon by a terrible accident."

I squeeze Tyler's hand, he is looking on edge and his jaw is tight. "Screw this."

"What? Tyler? Tyler?" I reach for him but he is already standing and moving down the row.

Sheriff Forbes pauses as she watches Tyler exit the gym, "Please join me in observing a minute silence in her memory."

Everyone puts their heads down for the minute of silence. I use this time to quickly run after Tyler. I'm in an empty hallway looking around. I turn the corner to see April standing there, she is wiping her tears away.

"April, what's wrong?" I ask her.

April turns towards me, "Nothing. I'm fine."

"But you're crying?" I point out.

"It's just the whole mayor thing, you know. It's bringing stuff up about my dad." I nod understanding what she is going through. "And I know you're a like 150 years old and your brothers are vampires"

My mouth drops off, "wait, what?"

"Don't be surprised darling," Rebekah's voice comes from behind me, I feel a sharp object pressing into my spine, "miss me?"

***

I'm sitting at a table in the library with Elena, who is rubbing her head from Rebekah slamming it into the book shelves.

April is standing in front of us, her arms crossed. "How many times did you compel me?" She asks Elena.

Elena opens her mouth to respond but is interrupted by Rebekah few who walks into the library with Stefan.

"Stefan..." Elena gets up.

"Did I say you could move?" Rebekah tilts her head. Elena sits back down. "Class is in session. You've all been compelled; you know the rules. Answer my questions honestly, no disobedience, no one leaves. April, my sweet, take notes. This is how you get answers in this town. Let's start with a little quiz. In the year 1114, my brother learnt, thanks to yours truly, about a brotherhood of vampire hunters with tattoos that grew with each kill. These tattoos revealed what, Elena?"

"A map." Elena answers.

"Which led to...? Allison?" Rebekah looks at me

"A cure for vampirism." I mumble.

Rebekah smiles, "Perfect, so we're all caught up. Stefan Salvatore, the last time we saw each other, you had a vampire hunter, but in order to decode the map, you needed the location of the hunter's sword, which you got out of me using some very dirty tricks. Assuming you found the sword, you also found the cure, and yet, you're all still vampires, which means something went wrong."
Rebekah looks at April. "What are you doing?"

April is startled, "Oh, you asked me to take notes."

Rebekah rolls her eye, "I  wasn't being literal, darling. But now that you mention it...a flow chart would be nice, which means index cards and push-pins. Go, fetch."

April leaves the room.

Stefan sighs, "You're wasting your time. We don't know anything."

Rebekah stares at him for a moment and shakes her head, "So, you just gave up? I thought you would do anything to save Elena? Even if it meant taking the cure yourself, so you could grow old and die with her?"