If only | Damon Salvatore

009. ANOTHER VAMPIRE IN TOWN

Chapter nine

"Another vampire in town."

Beatrix and her mother sat at the kitchen table, casually eating breakfast. The quiet morning was cut short when Winnifred marched into the room, her brows tightly furrowed in annoyance.

"Can someone please explain to me how in the hell there is another dead body being claimed as an animal attack in the paper?" she demanded, throwing the morning newspaper down on the table before sliding into a chair next to them. "We just got over this!"

Cassandra paused her fork, looking up in disbelief. "You're kidding."

Beatrix raised her brows, reaching for her coffee. "Maybe Damon went and had a final, 'I will never have Katherine' late-night snack?"

Winnifred shook her head grimly. "No. The Salvatore brothers are keeping a low profile right now. If it's not them, it means we have a completely different vampire lurking around town. And that is a very bad sign." She paused, glancing up at the wall clock before fixing her gaze on her granddaughter. "Speaking of signs, aren't you going to be running late for school if you don't leave this second?"

Beatrix blinked, quickly jumping up from her seat. She blew them both a playful air kiss as she spun around. "Bye!"

Sprinting toward the front entrance, she snatched her backpack off the hook on her way out, bracing herself for whatever high school drama—or supernatural threat—awaited her next.

As the final bell rang and school came to an end, Beatrix began her walk home. Suddenly, Damon blurred directly into her path, making her jump.

"God, what is it with you and doing that?" she gasped, swatting at the air.

Damon smirked, leaning back. "Would it be terrible if I said I genuinely find joy in your reaction?"

"Yes. But coming from you, I'm not exactly surprised," Beatrix countered, crossing her arms. "And what are you still doing here anyway? Aren't you and Stefan supposed to be leaving town?"

"Yes, we were," Damon shared, his playful demeanor shifting slightly. "But I just got a special visit from Sheriff Forbes about that new body. There's a new vampire in town, so Stefan decided we should stay until we figure out who it is."

Beatrix hummed knowingly. "And let me guess? You want to find them as fast as possible, which is why you came to me. For what, a locator spell? Because newsflash—that is not how my magic works."

Damon scoffed. "I know that. You're not exactly the first witch I've ever met, remember?" Reaching into his jacket pocket, he pulled out a heavy metallic object.

Beatrix furrowed her brows as he handed it over. "You brought me an old pocket watch?"

Damon rolled his eyes. "It's not just a watch."

Beatrix popped the latch, opening the casing. Her breath hitched as she instantly recognized the intricate engravings from an old grimoire her grandmother had shown her. "This... this is a compass spelled to track vampires. My grandmother created this back in the day, but she never knew what happened to it. How did you get your hands on it?" As she spoke, the arrow inside began to spin wildly before locking directly onto Damon.

"You know that newscaster guy, Logan Fell? Well, he was using it and actually tracked Stefan down," Damon shared, a smug grin plastered across his face. "So, being the incredibly loving brother that I am, I killed Logan to save Stefan's life."

Beatrix looked up from the tracking device, deadpanning. "Profound."

"Whatever," Damon brushed it off, clapping a hand heavily onto her shoulder. "I had a feeling you'd know exactly how it works. And since you do, I will leave you on your merry way to go find our uninvited guest. When you locate him? Call me."