"Ian and Aiden will be here tomorrow," Isabelle reminded him.
"We may need even more help than them. Neither of them has reached maturity yet. They're strong, but if this group is feeding on humans then they're also strong, and there may be even more of them than what Ethan saw tonight. We're going to have to figure out how to take them down. The humans can't be left alone though."
"Those vampires also have human help," Ethan said.
Isabelle did a double take. "What makes you think that?"
"Judging by the smell of those vamps, they're not moving around in the daytime, yet things were left behind for Emma during the day. There's a human helping them, most likely under their control, or they have a vampire with them who hasn't killed as many people as the others have," Ethan explained. "If it's a human then they can go in that house. I'm going to go back, she probably won't let me in, but I can keep an eye on the place and make sure she stays safe."
"You should go with him," Isabelle said to Stefan.
"I'm not leaving you alone," Stefan told her.
"I can take care of a human or another vampire," she retorted. "You should go with him."
"I'll be just fine on my own," Ethan informed her.
Isabelle's expression was resolute as she folded her arms across her chest. "No, you're not going to be out there all alone."
"They can't move about in the daytime, Isabelle."
"Then we're all going." He knew there was no arguing with her when she spun on her heel and disappeared down the hall.
"This could get ugly," Stefan muttered.
Ethan tore his attention away from where his sister had vanished to meet Stefan's gaze. "It already has."
Chapter Eighteen
"I still don't know how to wrap my head around any of this," Jill muttered as Emma put a cup of coffee before her. "I mean, what the hell just happened?"
"I don't know," Emma said. "Nothing good."
"I feel like we just walked into a bad sci-fi movie or a hidden camera show. I keep waiting for someone to jump out and shout, 'Gotcha!' at us," Mandy said as she sipped at her coffee. "And Tristan, wow Tristan. I bet this is why he disappeared all of a sudden."
"I suppose dying would put a damper on his stalking habits," Emma muttered.
"Do you think they're dead? Do you think Tristan died?" Jill asked.
"Isn't that how it's supposed to happen? Or at least that's the way it's always worked in the books and movies, right?"
"Who knew books and movies were right about this. There was no way we ever would expect this to be true, ever. What are you going to do, Emma?"
"I don't know," she admitted as she sat on a stool across from them. Her eyes drifted to the broken door. They’d propped it closed. "What do I do?"
"I can't begin to answer that question. This is complete insanity," Mandy said. "I would say you should run and catch the first flight off this island, we all should, but Ethan saved our lives last night, and the way he looks at you with so much caring; you can't fake that look."
Emma sipped at her coffee as she continued to study the ruined door. "You saw what happened between Tristan and me in the end. Ethan lied to me; he started all this knowing it was built on a lie. What kind of a relationship could we even have? What would become of me, of him? His freaking eyes were red, Mandy."
"Yeah, that's an image I won't be forgetting, ever."
"You're going to need Ethan's help to get through this Emma; we don't know how to handle Tristan, not like he does. I understand you feel betrayed, more than a little frightened by this whole thing, but he may be the only one who can protect you right now—protect all of us," Jill said.
"That's just it though," Emma said as she placed her cup of coffee down. "I don't want anyone to protect me. I was finally free of Tristan; I thought I was finally free, and yet I'm once again trapped by circumstances completely beyond my control. I don't want to rely on anyone; I want to have control over my life and not be trapped again."
Mandy took her hand and squeezed it tenderly. "It's not fair, but you're not trapped. You have choices here. Just let us know what you want to do, and we'll stand beside you. Would you like to leave?"
"And if Tristan follows?" she murmured.
"I don't know," Mandy said with a sigh. "I don't know anything anymore. We'll have to get more answers from Ethan when you're ready, but for now we'll stay inside, and we'll try to get this straightened out the best we can."
Emma lifted her cup again and blew on the steaming coffee before taking another sip. "Yeah, I guess."
A shadow fell over the window, alerting her to the presence of someone outside before a knock sounded on the door. "Hopefully, that's the guy who’s going to fix the door," Jill said as she rose to her feet.
Mandy and Emma moved with her, but when Emma spotted Ethan and Stefan on the other side of the door, she stepped back. Jill cast her an apologetic look before lifting the door a little and pushing it out of the way. Ethan's eyes found her instantly; her traitorous heart did a strange little flip-flop that almost made her melt, but she straightened her shoulders and met his gaze head-on.
"How are you doing?" he asked.
"Fine," she lied.
He glanced at Stefan and then behind him to Isabelle. "I wanted to let you know we'll be outside if you need us for anything."
She opened her mouth to tell him to come inside, to hold her and make the horrible events of the night better but her tongue stuck
