The next day
When Elena got to school, Rick was there. I guess that means he decided to stay for a while. I think it's best we give him some space though. School was boring—nothing too exciting—but something did happen. A dead body was found, completely drained of blood.
I know it wasn't Damon. He's the one who gave us that information. He finally made it into the council—not fully, but at least he's got a foot in the door. That means one thing… there's another vampire in town.
I told Elena to text Damon and tell him to meet us at his place. Same with Stefan. Bonnie wanted to go too—I said it was fine, plus she had a car.
After school, Bonnie drove Elena to the Salvatore house. They waited in the living room. Stefan was already there.
I appeared on Elena's cheek.
"Hey Stefan, any word from Lexi?" I asked.
"She texted me a couple days ago. Her and her boyfriend are still discussing it. He's hesitant to work with you," Stefan said.
"Understandable," I said. "I wouldn't trust me either if I only knew the stories. My past isn't exactly squeaky clean."
"Do you really think it's not Damon? He might just be feeding you information to throw you off his scent," Bonnie said, arms crossed as she leaned against the back of the couch.
"I know for a fact it's not Damon," I said. "I've got one of my birds watching him at all times. If he had killed that woman, I would've known the second it happened."
"Then that means there's another vampire in town," Elena said.
"Most likely a new one," I replied. "Leaving a dead body out in the open like that? That's sloppy. Reckless."
"So what are we gonna do with them once we find them?" Bonnie asked.
"That depends on the vampire's character," I said. "Some have a hard time controlling their bloodlust. Others? They lean into it. We'll see which one they are—and deal with them accordingly."
After a few more minutes, Damon finally showed up.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, but you wouldn't believe the traffic I hit," he said with a smirk.
"No time for jokes," I cut in. "Do you have any more information about the vampire?"
"No, I don't. I know as much as the council does."
"Well, we can probably assume this vampire doesn't have a daylight ring, since the killing happen at night. And it seems like a new one, probably freshly turned. So here's the plan: Damon, you're going to give us the compass that tracks vampires. Me and Elena will handle it."
He opened his mouth. "How do you know I h—"
"I know everything," I said flatly, cutting him off. "Just give us the compass and stay out of it."
"Can I come?" Bonnie asked.
"Not this time," I said. "Think of it as training for Elena. I want to see if she can handle a newbie vamp on her own without my help. Next time, you're in."
She nodded reluctantly, and Damon handed over the compass. Then me and Elena set out vampire hunting.
It took a few hours. Elena still didn't have a car, so we had to walk, and we needed to get far enough away from the Salvatore house to keep their presence from interfering with the compass's signal.
Eventually, it led us to a run-down warehouse. The place was locked, but Elena didn't hesitate—she channeled her curse energy into her body, enhanced her strength, and ripped the doorknob clean off. She stepped inside carefully, scanning the dim interior.
"I smell something rotting," she said, her voice low.
"That means there are more bodies. Stay alert. It's daytime, so the vampire's probably still here," I said inside her mind.
Suddenly—BANG BANG BANG! Gunshots rang out. Elena moved fast, dodging instinctively. She spotted the shooter.
It was Logan. Jenna's ex.
Of course, forgot he got turned after Damon killed him.
"Elena? Huh… I was expecting someone else," Logan said, eyes narrowing.
"I'm guessing he was expecting Damon," I said.
"Were you expecting Damon?" Elena asked, stepping forward.
Logan's face shifted in surprise at the mention of the name.
"Well, color me surprised. Didn't expect you to know about the vampire situation," he said, pulling out a gun. "Which means I can't let you leave. Can't have any witnesses who know what I really am now."
He fired a few more shots. Elena ducked behind cover again, waiting until he had to reload. The second he did, she bolted out from behind the crate like a bullet.
Judging by the look on Logan's face, he was not ready for how fast she was.
Elena closed the distance in a blink and slammed her fist into his chest, sending him flying backward. But it didn't keep him down for long. He growled and charged at her, fangs bared. He went for her neck, but Elena sidestepped, grabbed his wrist, and unleashed a flurry of rapid, brutal strikes—each one powered with curse energy.
Logan stumbled back, dazed and bleeding, dropping to the floor with a groan.
"What the hell... how are you doing this?" he wheezed.
"That's not important," Elena said coldly. "But this—is for my aunt."
Elena clenched her fist, channeling a surge of curse energy into it. With one final punch to his face, she shattered his skull. His head exploded, and the ground cracked beneath what was left of him.
"Good," I said, my voice low in her mind. "You didn't hesitate to take his life."
"If I had…" Elena took a breath, steady but cold, "he would've used that hesitation to kill me. So no—I don't think I'm going to feel guilty for ending a monster."
I could feel the weight of her words. Not anger. Not fear. Just resolve.
"That's exactly how you need to think when it comes to vampires like him," I told her. "You're not ready for the old ones yet, not by a long shot. But today proved something important."
She looked down at Logan's ruined body, the warehouse silent but for her breathing.
"You can handle yourself around newborns," I said. "You did good, Elena."
A faint smile touched her lips—not pride, just acknowledgment. She turned and walked out of the warehouse into the fading afternoon light. She pulled out her phone and sent Damon a short message with the location, along with a note to handle the cleanup and craft an alibi. He was good at that.
Then she texted Bonnie: Vamp problem handled.
Before leaving, she glanced down at the compass. It still hummed with faint energy in her hand.
She slipped it into her jacket.
As she should, it will be more useful to us than Damon, and it did belong to her family.
And with that, she headed home. No drama. No tears. Just one less threat in Mystic Falls—and one more step toward becoming something stronger.