The Struggle (12 page)

“Much as I hate to agree with her, she’s right,” Meredith said. “This smells like someone sneaky. Someone who has a grudge against you personally and who really wants to make you suffer.”

Saliva had collected in Elena’s mouth, and she swallowed. “Also somebody who’s familiar with the school. They had to fill out a form for a personals message in one of the journalism classes,” she said.

“And somebody who knew you kept a diary, assuming they stole it on purpose. Maybe they were in one of your classes that day you took it to school. Remember? When Mr. Tanner almost caught you,” Bonnie added.

“Ms. Halpern
did
catch me; she even read some of it aloud, a bit about Stefan. That was right after Stefan and I got together. Wait a
minute, Bonnie. That night at your house when the diary was stolen, how long were you two out of the living room?”

“Just a few minutes. Yangtze had stopped barking, and I went to the door to let him in, and …” Bonnie pressed her lips together and shrugged.

“So the thief had to be familiar with your house,” said Meredith swiftly, “or he or she wouldn’t have been able to get in, get the diary, and get out again before we saw them. All right, then, we’re looking for someone sneaky and cruel, probably in one of your classes, Elena, and most likely familiar with Bonnie’s house. Someone who has a personal grudge and will stoop to anything to get you … Oh, my God.”

The three of them stared at one another.

“It has to be,” whispered Bonnie. “It has to.”

“We’re so stupid; we should have seen it right away,” said Meredith.

For Elena, it meant the sudden realization that all the anger she’d felt about this before was nothing to the anger she was capable of feeling. A candle flame to the sun.

“Caroline,” she said, and clenched her teeth
so hard her jaw hurt.

Caroline. Elena actually felt she could kill the green-eyed girl right now. And she might have rushed out to try if Bonnie and Meredith hadn’t stopped her.

“After school,” said Meredith firmly, “when we can take her somewhere private. Just wait that long, Elena.”

But as they headed for the cafeteria, Elena noticed an auburn head disappearing down the art and music corridor. And she remembered something Stefan had said earlier this year, about Caroline taking him into the photography room at lunchtime. For privacy, Caroline had told him.

“You two go on; I forgot something,” she said as soon as Bonnie and Meredith both had food on their cafeteria trays. Then she pretended to be deaf as she walked rapidly out and backtracked to the art wing.

All the rooms were dark, but the photography room’s door was unlocked. Something made Elena turn the knob cautiously, and move quietly once she was inside, rather than marching in to start a confrontation as she’d planned. Was Caroline in here? If so, what was
she doing alone in the dark?

The room appeared at first to be deserted. Then Elena heard the murmur of voices from a small alcove at the back, and she saw that the darkroom door was ajar.

Silently, stealthily, she made her way until she stood just outside the doorway, and the murmur of sound resolved itself into words.

“But how can we be sure she’ll be the one they pick?” That was Caroline.

“My father’s on the school board. They’ll pick her, all right.” And
that
was Tyler Smallwood. His father was a lawyer, and on every board there was. “Besides, who else would it be?” he continued. “‘The Spirit of Fell’s Church’ is supposed to be brainy as well as built.”

“And
I
don’t have brains, I suppose?”

“Did I say that? Look, if you want to be the one to parade in a white dress on Founders’ Day, fine. But if you want to see Stefan Salvatore run out of town on the evidence of his own girlfriend’s diary …”

“But why wait so long?”

Tyler sounded impatient. “Because this way it’ll ruin the celebration, too. The Fells’ celebration.
Why should they get the credit for founding this town? The Small woods were here first.”

“Oh, who cares about who founded the town? All I want is to see Elena humiliated in front of the entire school.”

“And Salvatore.” The pure hatred and malice in Tyler’s voice made Elena’s flesh crawl. “He’ll be lucky if he doesn’t end up hanging from a tree. You’re sure the evidence is there?”

“How many times do I have to tell you? First, it says she lost the ribbon on September second in the cemetery. Then, it says Stefan picked it up that day and kept it. Wickery Bridge is right beside the cemetery. That means Stefan was near the bridge on September second, the night the old man was attacked there. Everybody already knows he was on hand for the attacks on Vickie and Tanner. What more do you want?”

“It would never stand up in court. Maybe I should get some corroborating evidence. Like ask old Mrs. Flowers what time he got home that night.”

“Oh, who
cares?
Most people think he’s guilty already. The diary talks about some big secret he’s hiding from everyone. People will get the idea.”

“You’re keeping it in a safe place?”

“No, Tyler, I’m keeping it out on the coffee table. How stupid do you think I am?”

“Stupid enough to send Elena notes tipping her off.” There was a crackle, as of newspaper. “Look at this, this is unbelievable. And it’s got to stop,
now.
What if she figures out who’s doing it?”

“What’s she going to do about it, call the police?”

“I still want you to lay off. Just wait until Founders’ Day, then you’ll get to watch the Ice Princess melt.”

“And to say
ciao
to Stefan. Tyler … nobody’s really going to hurt him, are they?”

“Who
cares?”
Tyler mocked her earlier tone. “You leave that to me and my friends, Caroline. You just do your part, okay?”

Caroline’s voice dropped to a throaty murmur. “Convince me.” After a pause Tyler chuckled.

There was movement, rustling sounds, a sigh. Elena turned and slipped out of the room as quietly as she had come in.

She got into the next hallway, and then she leaned against the lockers there, trying to think.

It was almost too much to absorb at once. Caroline, who had once been her best friend, had betrayed her and wanted to see her humiliated in front of the whole school. Tyler, who’d always seemed more an annoying jerk than a real threat, was planning to get Stefan driven out of town—or killed. And the worst thing was that they were using Elena’s own diary to do it.

Now she understood the beginning of her dream last night. She’d had a dream like it the day before she had discovered that Stefan was missing. In both, Stefan had looked at her with angry, accusing eyes, and then he had thrown a book at her feet and walked away.

Not a book. Her diary. Which had in it evidence that could be deadly to Stefan. Three times people in Fell’s Church had been attacked, and three times Stefan had been on the scene. What would that look like to the town, to the police?

And there was no way to tell the truth. Supposing she said, “Stefan isn’t guilty. It’s his brother Damon who hates him and who knows how much Stefan hates even the thought of hurting and killing. And who followed Stefan around and attacked people to make Stefan think maybe
Stefan had done it, to drive him mad. And who’s here in town
somewhere
—look for him in the cemetery or in the woods. But, oh, by the way, don’t just search for a good-looking guy, because he might be a crow at the moment.

“Incidentally, he’s a vampire.”

She didn’t even believe it herself. It sounded ludicrous.

A twinge from the side of her neck reminded her how serious the ludicrous story really was. She felt odd today, almost as if she were sick. It was more than just tension and lack of sleep. She felt slightly dizzy, and at times the ground seemed to be spongy, giving way under her feet and then springing back. Flu symptoms, except that she was sure they weren’t due to any
virus
in her bloodstream.

Damon’s fault, again. Everything was Damon’s fault except the diary. She had no one to blame for that but herself. If only she hadn’t written about Stefan, if only she hadn’t brought the diary to school. If only she hadn’t left it in Bonnie’s living room. If only, if only.

Right now all that mattered was that she had to get it back.

The bell rang. There was no time to go back to the cafeteria and tell Bonnie and Meredith. Elena set off for her next class, past the averted faces and hostile eyes that were becoming all too familiar these days.

It was hard, in history class, not to stare at Caroline, not to let Caroline know she knew. Alaric asked about Matt and Stefan being absent for the second day in a row, and Elena shrugged, feeling exposed and on display. She didn’t trust this man with the boyish smile and the hazel eyes and the thirst for knowledge about Mr. Tanner’s death. And Bonnie, who simply gazed at Alaric soulfully, was no help at all.

After class she caught a scrap of Sue Carson’s conversation. “… he’s on vacation from college—I forget exactly where …”

Elena had had enough of discreet silence. She spun around and spoke directly to Sue and
the girl Sue was talking to, bursting uninvited into their discussion.

“If I were you,” she said to Sue, “I would keep away from Damon. I mean that.”

There was startled, embarrassed laughter. Sue was one of the few people at school who hadn’t shunned Elena, and now she was looking as if she wished she had.

“You mean,” said the other girl hesitantly, “because he’s yours, too? Or—”

Elena’s own laughter was harsh. “I mean because he’s
dangerous,”
she said. “And I’m not joking.”

They just looked at her. Elena saved them the further embarrassment of having to reply or to get tactfully away by turning on her heel and leaving. She collected Bonnie from Alaric’s cluster of after-school groupies and headed for Meredith’s locker.

“Where are we going? I thought we were going to talk to Caroline.”

“Not anymore,” Elena said. “Wait until we get home. Then I’ll tell you why.”

“I can’t believe it,” said Bonnie an hour later. “I mean, I believe it, but I can’t
believe
it. Not even of Caroline.”

“It’s Tyler,” Elena said. “He’s the one with the big plans. So much for men not being interested in diaries.”

“Actually, we should thank him,” said Meredith. “Because of him at least we have until Founders’ Day to do something about it. Why did you say it was supposed to be on Founders’ Day, Elena?”

“Tyler has something against the Fells.”

“But they’re all dead,” said Bonnie.

“Well, that doesn’t seem to matter to Tyler. I remember him talking about it in the graveyard, too, when we were looking at their tomb. He thinks they stole his ancestors’ rightful place as the town’s founders or something.”

“Elena,” Meredith said seriously, “is there anything else in the diary that could hurt Stefan? Besides the thing about the old man, I mean.”

“Isn’t that enough?” With those steady, dark eyes on her, Elena felt discomfort flutter between her ribs. What was Meredith asking?

“Enough to get Stefan run out of town like they said,” agreed Bonnie.

“Enough that we have to get the diary back
from Caroline,” Elena said. “The only question is, how?”

“Caroline said she had it hidden somewhere safe. That probably means her house.” Meredith chewed her lip thoughtfully. “She’s got just the one brother in eighth grade, right? And her mom doesn’t work, but she goes shopping in Roanoke a lot. Do they still have a maid?”

“Why?” said Bonnie. “What difference does it make?”

“Well, we don’t want anybody walking in while we’re burglarizing the house.”

“While we’re
what?”
Bonnie’s voice rose to a squeak. “You can’t be serious!”

“What are we supposed to do, just sit back and wait until Founders’ Day, and let her read Elena’s diary in front of the town?
She
stole it from
your
house. We’ve just got to steal it back,” Meredith said, maddeningly calm.

“We’ll get caught. We’ll get expelled from school—if we don’t end up going to jail.” Bonnie turned to Elena in appeal. “Tell her, Elena.”

“Well …” In all honesty, the prospect made Elena herself a little queasy. It wasn’t so much the idea of expulsion, or even jail, as
just the thought of being caught in the act. Mrs. Forbes’s haughty face floated before her eyes, full of righteous indignation. Then it changed to Caroline’s, laughing spitefully as her mother pointed an accusing finger right at Elena.

Besides, it seemed such a … a
violation,
to go into someone’s house when they were not there, to search their possessions. She would hate it if someone did that to her.

But, of course, someone had. Caroline had violated Bonnie’s house, and right now had Elena’s most private possession in her hands.

“Let’s do it,” Elena said quietly. “But let’s be careful.”

“Can’t we talk about this?” said Bonnie weakly, looking from Meredith’s determined face to Elena’s.

“There’s nothing to talk about. You’re coming,” Meredith told her. “You promised,” she added, as Bonnie took a breath to object afresh. And she held up her index finger.

“The blood oath was only to help Elena
get
Stefan!” Bonnie cried.

“Think again,” said Meredith. “You swore
you would do whatever Elena asked in relation to Stefan. There wasn’t anything about a time limit or about ‘only until Elena gets him.’”

Bonnie’s mouth dropped open. She looked at Elena, who was almost laughing in spite of herself. “It’s true,” Elena said solemnly. “And you said it yourself: ‘Swearing with blood means you have to stick to your oath no matter what happens.’”

Bonnie shut her mouth and thrust her chin out. “Right,” she said grimly. “Now I’m stuck for the rest of my life doing whatever Elena wants me to do about Stefan. Wonderful.”

“This is the last thing I’ll ever ask,” Elena said. “And
I
promise that. I swear—”

“Don’t!” said Meredith, suddenly serious. “Don’t, Elena. You might be sorry later.”

“Now you’re taking up prophecy, too?” Elena said. And then she asked, “So how are we going to get hold of Caroline’s house key for an hour or so?”