[Location: The Abandoned Farmhouse] [Time: 5:30 PM]
The farmhouse smelled of dust and ancient stagnation.
Pearl sat in the lone armchair, looking like a queen in exile. Anna stood by the window, keeping watch.
I placed a heavy duffel bag on the floor.
"Fresh clothes," I listed. "Burner phones with pre-paid SIM cards. And a list of safe houses in Georgia if you need to run."
Pearl looked at the bag, then at me. "You are efficient, Mr. Cross. It is rare to find a human who understands logistics."
"I like to be prepared," I said.
I walked closer. "Now. The payment."
Pearl stood up. She walked to the kitchen counter where a small crystal vial sat. She picked it up. Inside, the liquid was dark crimson, almost black.
"My blood," Pearl said. "500 years of potency. It will heal you faster than a newborn's. It will make you stronger than a typical fledgling."
She held it out, but didn't release it when I reached for it.
"You know what this means," Pearl said, her dark eyes locking onto mine. "Once you die with this in your system... there is no going back. You become a predator. You become us."
"I know," I said.
"Why?" Pearl asked. "You are smart. You are rich. You have a life. Why throw it away to be a monster?"
"Because in this town," I said, "humans are just cattle waiting to be eaten. I'd rather be the butcher."
Pearl smiled. It was a sharp, approving smile. "The butcher. I like that."
She released the vial.
I took it. It felt cold in my hand.
"Good luck, Adrian," Anna said from the window. "Try not to get staked on your first day."
"I'll do my best," I said.
I walked out.
[Location: The Cross Residence – Driveway] [Time: 6:15 PM]
I sat in my Jeep. The vial was in my hand.
I uncorked it.
The smell was metallic, copper-rich, and strangely sweet. It triggered a primal revulsion in my human brain, but a deep curiosity in my lizard brain.
"Bottoms up," I whispered.
I downed it.
It tasted like iron and electricity. It burned going down, settling in my stomach like a heavy stone.
Almost instantly, my senses sharpened. The hum of the engine sounded louder. The colors of the sunset looked more vivid. The bite on my shoulder throbbed, then—a cooling sensation.
I pulled down my collar. The wound was knitting itself shut before my eyes.
System Primed.
I checked my reflection in the rearview mirror. My pupils were dilated.
I looked normal. But I was a loaded gun.
I put the Jeep in gear.
Destination: The Salvatore Boarding House. Objective: Provoke a murder.
[Location: The Salvatore Boarding House – Library] [Time: 7:30 PM]
The house was dark. The mood was darker.
Damon was exactly where I expected him to be: in front of the fireplace, drinking directly from a crystal decanter. He was drunk. Not sloppy drunk—vampire drunk. Which meant he was numb, fast, and incredibly dangerous.
Stefan wasn't there. (I had texted him earlier about a fake lead on Vicki's body in the woods to get him out of the house. I needed to be alone with Damon).
I walked in.
"You again," Damon groaned, not turning around. "Don't you have homework? Or a Girl Scout troop to manage?"
"I came to check on you," I said, walking to the drinks cart. I poured myself a bourbon. My hand was steady.
"I'm fine," Damon lied. "I'm peachy. I'm living the dream."
"You're pathetic," I said.
Damon froze. He turned slowly, the glass lowering. His eyes were flat, dead.
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me," I said, taking a sip. "You spent 145 years obsessing over a girl who didn't care about you. You tortured your brother. You killed people. You made a fool of yourself."
I stepped closer. I needed to hurt him. I needed to trigger the impulse.
"And she wasn't even there," I laughed softly. "She was probably watching you the whole time, Damon. Laughing at you. The pathetic Salvatore brother who couldn't take a hint."
Damon's jaw tightened. A vein under his eye twitched.
"You're treading on thin ice, Adrian," Damon whispered.
"Am I?" I sneered. "Or are you just weak? You can't even face the truth. Stefan was the one she loved. You were just the distraction. The toy."
Flash.
Damon moved.
He slammed me against the wall. His hand was around my throat, lifting me off the floor.
"Shut up," Damon hissed, his face morphing. Veins darkened under his eyes. Fangs descended.
"Strike a nerve?" I choked out, clawing at his hand feebly. "It's true, isn't it? You're nothing to her. You're nothing to anyone."
Damon roared. He threw me across the room.
I crashed into a bookshelf. Wood splintered. heavy books rained down on me. Pain exploded in my back, but I forced myself to stand up.
I spat blood onto the carpet.
"Is that all you got?" I taunted, swaying on my feet. "Come on, Damon. Prove me right. Be the monster. It's the only thing you're good at."
Damon looked at me. He was breathing hard. The rage was consuming him. He wanted to silence the voice that was speaking his own insecurities.
He blurred toward me.
He grabbed me by the jacket.
"You want a monster?" Damon snarled. "Fine."
He didn't bite me. He didn't drain me.
He twisted his hands.
CRACK.
My world spun violently sideways. A sharp, blinding white light. And then... silence.
My body hit the floor with a heavy thud.
Damon stood over me, breathing heavily. He looked down at my twisted neck.
The anger drained out of him, replaced by a sudden, cold realization.
"Adrian?"
He nudged me with his foot.
I didn't move.
Damon stared. He had just killed the only human ally he had. The kid who cleaned up his messes.
"Oops," Damon whispered.
He grabbed his bottle of bourbon. He stepped over my body.
He walked out of the room, leaving me lying amidst the broken books.
[Location: The Void] [Time: Unknown]
It wasn't black. It was grey.
I was floating in a cold, silent ocean.
I wasn't breathing. My heart wasn't beating.
But I was thinking.
Did it work? Is the blood active?
Then, a hunger hit me.
It wasn't like being hungry for a burger. It was a vacuum in the center of my being. A black hole opening up in my stomach, demanding to be filled.
It pulled me back.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
My heart restarted. But it beat slower. Stronger.
My eyes snapped open.
[Location: The Salvatore Boarding House – Library] [Time: 9:00 PM]
I gasped, sitting up violently.
My neck cracked as it realigned itself. The sound was sickening, but there was no pain—just a dull ache that vanished in a second.
I touched my throat.
Smooth skin.
I looked around. The library was empty. The fire had burned down to embers.
The world looked... different.
I could see the dust motes floating in the air individually. I could hear a faucet dripping in the kitchen, three rooms away. Drip. Drip. Drip. I could hear a heartbeat. Slow, rhythmic. Damon was upstairs, sleeping.
And I could smell it.
Blood.
Somewhere in the house, there was blood. Maybe a stored bag. Maybe a rat in the walls.
The scent hit me like a physical blow. My gums ached. I felt my teeth lengthening, sharpening.
I stood up.
I felt light. Gravity seemed to have less of a hold on me.
I looked at my hand. I squeezed the edge of the solid oak bookshelf.
Crunch.
The wood splintered under my grip like Styrofoam.
"I made it," I whispered. My voice sounded deeper, resonant.
I was dead. I was alive. I was in transition.
I had 24 hours to feed on human blood to complete the process. If I didn't, I would die permanently.
I picked up my satchel from the floor.
I didn't need to hunt. I was the Salaryman. I had a supply chain.
I opened the bag. I pulled out a thermos.
Inside was O-Negative blood (warmed slightly by a heat pack I had cracked earlier).
I unscrewed the cap.
The smell was intoxicating. It was the best thing I had ever smelled. Better than steak, better than coffee, better than money.
I raised the thermos to my lips.
"To the new management," I toasted the empty room.
I drank.
The liquid hit my tongue and everything exploded. Strength surged through my veins like liquid fire. My vision sharpened into ultra-high definition. The hunger vanished, replaced by a feeling of godlike power.
I wiped my mouth.
I looked in the mirror above the fireplace.
My eyes were bloodshot, the veins pulsing underneath. My fangs were fully extended.
I smiled. The fangs glistened.
I retracted them. I willed the veins to recede. My face returned to normal.
I was a Vampire. Turned by the blood of a 500-year-old.
I checked my watch.
9:15 PM.
Stefan would be home soon. I needed to play the victim.
I lay back down on the floor, amidst the wreckage.
I closed my eyes.
Scene 1: The Resurrection.
When Stefan walked in, he wouldn't find a corpse. He would find a "miracle."
And Damon... Damon was going to be very confused.
[End of Chapter 22]