The Return: Nightfall Chapter 23

Acoldfrisson went down Elena's back, the most fragile of shudders. Damon didn'task for kisses. This wasn'tright . â€Å"No,† she murmured. â€Å"Just one.† â€Å"I'm not going to kiss you, Damon.† â€Å"Not me. Him.† Damon indicated â€Å"him† with a tilt of his head toward Matt. â€Å"A kiss among you and your previous knight.† â€Å"You wantwhat ?† Matt's eyes snapped open and he got the words out dangerously before Elena could open her mouth. â€Å"You'd like it,† Damon's voice had dropped to its gentlest, most intimating tones. â€Å"You'd prefer to kiss her. What's more, there's nobody to stop you.† â€Å"Damon.† Matt battled up out of Elena's arms. He appeared, if not so much recouped, maybe 80% of the path there, yet Elena could hear his heart working. Elena thought about to what extent he'd lain pretending obviousness to get his quality back. â€Å"The last thing I realized you were attempting to murder me. That doesn't actually get you on my great side. Second, individuals simply don't circumvent kissing young ladies since they're pretty or their beau takes a day off.† â€Å"Don't they?† Damon climbed an eyebrow in shock. â€Å"I do.† Matt just shook his head, bewildered. He was by all accounts attempting to keep one thought fixed in his psyche. â€Å"Will you move your vehicle so we can leave?† he said. Elena felt as though she were watching Matt from far away; and as though he was confined some place with a tiger and didn't have any acquaintance with it. The clearing had gotten an extremely excellent, wild, and hazardous spot, and Matt didn't realize that either. Additionally, she thought with concern, he'smaking himself hold up. Weneed to leave †and rapidly, before Damon does whatever else to him. In any case, what was the genuine way out? What was Damon's genuine plan? â€Å"You can go,† Damon said. â€Å"As soon as she kisses you. Or then again you kiss her,† he included, as though making a concession. Gradually, as though he understood what it was going to mean, Matt took a gander at Elena and afterward back at Damon. Elena attempted to discuss quietly with him, however Matt wasn't in the mind-set. He glanced Damon in the face and stated, â€Å"No way.† Shrugging, as though to say,I did all that I could , Damon lifted the shaggy pine bar †â€Å"No,† cried Elena. â€Å"Damon, I'll do it.† Damon smiledthe grin and held it for a second, until Elena turned away and went to Matt. His face was as yet pale, cool. Elena inclined her cheek against his and said soundlessly into his ear, â€Å"Matt, I've managed Damon previously. Furthermore, you can't simply resist him. We should play along †for the time being. At that point perhaps we can get away.† And then she made herself state, â€Å"For me? Please?† The fact of the matter was that she knew a lot about difficult guys. A lot about how to control them. It was a characteristic she'd come to abhor, however right now she was excessively bustling attempting to consider approaches to spare Matt's life to discuss the morals of forcing him. She wished it were Meredith or Bonnie rather than Matt. Not that she would wish such agony on anybody, yet Meredith would be concocting Plans C and D even as Elena thought of An and B. Also, Bonnie would as of now have lifted tear-filled, heart-liquefying earthy colored eyes to Damon†¦. Unexpectedly Elena thought of the single red blaze she'd seen under the Ray-Bans, and she adjusted her perspective. She didn't know she needed Bonnie around Damon now. Of the entirety of the folks she'd known, Damon had been the only one Elena couldn't break. Goodness, Matt was difficult, and Stefan could be outlandish here and there. Be that as it may, the two of them had splendidly shaded fastens some place inside them, labeledPUSH ME , and you simply needed to mess with the component a little †alright, at times all around †and in the long run even the most testing male could be aced. But one†¦ â€Å"All right, kiddies, enough time out.† Elena felt Matt pulled from her arms and held up †she didn't know by what, however he was standing. Something held him set up, upstanding, and she realized it wasn't his muscles. â€Å"So where were we?† Damon was strolling to and fro, with the Virginia pine branch in his correct hand, tapping it to his left side palm. â€Å"Oh, that'sright † †as though making an incredible disclosure †â€Å"the young lady and the robust knight are going to kiss.† In Stefan's room, Bonnie stated, â€Å"For the last time, Meredith, did you discover a reinforcement record for Stefan's note or not?† â€Å"No,† Meredith said in a level voice. In any case, similarly as Bonnie was going to fall once more, Meredith stated, â€Å"I found an alternate note totally. A letter, really.† â€Å"Adifferent note? What does it say?† â€Å"Can you stand up by any means? Since I think you would do well to examine this.† Bonnie, who had just barely gotten back her breath, figured out how to stumble over to the PC. She read the report on the screen †complete aside from what appeared to be its last words, and wheezed. â€Å"Damon planned something for Stefan!† she stated, and felt her heart dive and all her inside organs tail it. So Elena had been off-base. Damonwas insidious, completely. At this point, Stefan may even be†¦ â€Å"Dead,† Meredith stated, her brain clearly following a similar track that Bonnie's had taken. She lifted dull eyes to Bonnie's. Bonnie realized that her own eyes were wet. â€Å"How long,† Meredith asked, â€Å"has it been since you called Elena or Matt?† â€Å"I don't have the foggiest idea; I don't have the foggiest idea what time it is. However, I called twice after we went out and once at Isobel's; and when I've attempted from that point forward, I either get a message that their letter drops are full or it won't associate at all.† â€Å"That's about precisely what I've gotten. On the off chance that they went close to the Old Wood †well, you comprehend what it does to telephone reception.† â€Å"And now, regardless of whether they come free and clear, we can't leave them a message since we've topped off their phone message †â€Å" â€Å"E-mail,† Meredith said. â€Å"Good old email; we can utilize that to send Elena a message.† â€Å"Yes!† Bonnie punched the air. At that point she collapsed. She dithered for a moment and afterward nearly murmured, â€Å"No.† Words from Stefan's genuine note continued resounding in her mind:I trust Matt's natural defense for you, Meredith's judgment, and Bonnie's instinct. Instruct them to recollect that. â€Å"You can't mention to her what Damon's done,† she stated, even as Meredith started hectically composing. â€Å"She most likely definitely knows †and in the event that she doesn't, it'll simply raise more hell. She's with Damon.† â€Å"Matt let you know that?† â€Å"No. Be that as it may, Matt was crazy with pain.† â€Å"Couldn't it have been from those †bugs?† Meredith looked down at her lower leg where a few red welts despite everything appeared on the smooth olive tissue. â€Å"It could be, yet it wasn't. It didn't feel like the trees, either. It was just†¦pure torment. What's more, I don't have the foggiest idea, not for certain, how I realize that it's Damon doing it. I just †know.† She saw Meredith's eyes unfocus and realized that she was considering Stefan's words, as well. â€Å"Well, my judgment advises me to trust you,† she said. â€Å"By the way, Stefan spells  ¡Ã¢ ®judgment' the favored American way,† she included. â€Å"Damon spells it with ane . That may have been what was irritating Matt.† â€Å"As if Stefan would truly disregard Elena with everything that has been going on,† Bonnie said angrily. â€Å"Well, Damon tricked we all and made us think so,† Meredith brought up. Meredith would in general point out things like that. Bonnie began out of nowhere. â€Å"I wonder in the event that he took the money?† â€Å"I question it, yet we should see.† Meredith pulled the recliner away, saying, â€Å"Grab me a hanger.† Bonnie snatched one from the storage room and got herself one of Elena's tops to put on simultaneously. It was too large, since it was Meredith's top given to Elena, yet in any event it was warm. Meredith was utilizing the snared finish of the wire holder on all sides of the section of flooring that looked generally encouraging. Similarly as she figured out how to pry it up, there was a thump at the open entryway. The two of them hopped. â€Å"It's just me,† said the voice of Mrs. Blossoms from behind an enormous duffel sack and a plate of gauzes, mugs, sandwiches, and solid smelling cheesecloth packs like the ones she'd utilized on Matt's arm. Bonnie and Meredith traded a look and afterward Meredith stated, â€Å"Come in and let us help you.† Bonnie was at that point taking the plate, and Mrs. Blossoms was dumping the duffel sack on the floor. Meredith kept prying the barricade. â€Å"Food!† Bonnie said thankfully. â€Å"Yes, turkey-and-tomato sandwiches. Help yourselves. I'm sorry I was away so long, yet you can't hustle the poultice for swellings,† Mrs. Blossoms said. â€Å"I recall, quite a while in the past, my more youthful sibling consistently said †gracious, wow gracious!† She was gazing at where the section of flooring had been. A decent estimated empty was loaded up with hundred-dollar notes, flawlessly enveloped by parcels with bank-groups still around them. â€Å"Wow,† Bonnie said. â€Å"I never observed so much money!† â€Å"Yes.† Mrs. Blossoms turned and started circulating cups of cocoa and sandwiches. Bonnie piece into a sandwich ravenously. â€Å"People used to just place things behind the free block in the chimney. In any case, I can see that the youngster required more space.† â€Å"Thank you for the cocoa and sandwiches,† Meredith said following a couple of moments spent wolfing them down while dealing with the PC simultaneously. â€Å"But on the off chance that you need to reward us for wounds and things †well, I'm apprehensive we just can't wait.† â€Å"Oh, come.† Mrs. Blossoms took a little pack that smelled to Bonnie like tea