Is this guy out of his mind? For him to even suggest that...

"Don't mess around," I said in a nonsense voice as I shook my head. "Do you want me to turn into a bloodthirsty monster?"

Stefan lost his enthusiasm almost immediately. "I just..." He trailed off with his voice. "I want to grow up quicker. So, I can stand by your side as a man."

I wanted to roll my eyes at his naivety. But the words grow up... it struck a chord with me. My mission will only end once Stefan reaches adulthood. And the only way for that to happen is if he drinks lots of...

WHAT AM I THINKING? I can't go along with this! Not only would I be risking my own life, but this will make Stefan think it's okay to drain people of their blood!

As Stefan continued to sulk dejectedly, he flopped turned his back to me and he flopped down on his side to sleep. "One day I swear I'm gonna create a blood bond with you, Vana."

A blood bond? This is the first I'm hearing of that. But rather than further indulge him in his delusions, I decided to drop the subject instead. I hope that when morning comes, he'll have come to his senses.

"Vana, could you please accompany Nicholas into town today?" Mr Grigori asked without looking up from the documents he was signing off on.

I knew this day would come eventually. I just didn't think Mr Grigori would be the one to force me to go with Nick...

"What about Stefan?" I asked, hoping that I could stay at home to look after him instead.

Mr Grigori leaned back into his chair and looked outside his window silently. "The weather is dull today, which means that Stefan would have no problems with waking outside..." Mr Grigori slowly turned away from the window and back to his documents. "But I would like to discuss certain matters with my son today."

Once he was done with his signing he stared at a photo on his desk of Atticus. "I intend to take a personal business trip in a week. If possible, I would like Stefan to accompany me."

A personal business trip... Perhaps it was a ruse so that he could bury Atticus in secret? It would be the only way for him to get closure. Although having Stefan accompany him wouldn't be the best decision in my opinion. But it's not my place to concern myself with the Grigori's personal affairs...

"Alright then, I shall get ready immediately then." I hesitantly obliged.

As I walked through the grey stone town with shopping bags in hand, I felt stress building up, the longer I was by Nick's side. "I'm glad we got the opportunity to be alone today," Nick said cheerily.

I can't say the same. I looked around for any potential escape routes. But what good what does that do anyway? I can't just up and abandon Nick. We work in the same household after all...

"Are you thirsty?" Nick asked as he pointed towards a local tavern. Had I got the chance I would've said no, but Nick was practically marching towards the tavern regardless of my input on the matter.

Just as I started to catch up with him, I noticed something in the corner of my eye. Is that... Stefan? Has he been following me this entire time?

I rubbed my eyes in disbelief. How could Stefan possibly be here? As I dropped my shopping, I made my way towards the boy hiding behind the corner to confirm my suspicions.

As Stefan watched me approach him, his face lit up like a Christmas tree. Had it been a second later I'm almost positive that he would've called my name in glee. But before either one of us could properly react, a man dressed in black pulled a sack over Stefan's head.

"STEFAN!" I roared in horror. As I tried to make my way through the crowd, I was pushed further away from Stefan.

Eventually, Nick must've noticed my disappearance as he ran to my side in concern. "Vana, what's wrong?" He asked in a loud voice to speak over the bustling outdoor crowd.

"S-S-Someone has just kidnapped Stefan!" I cried in fear. As Nick eased his hold on me, he attempted to search for Stefan himself in the sea of unfamiliar faces. Unfortunately, his findings ended in zilch.

Not wanting to waste a second longer, I bullied my way through the crowd. Not caring for who I may have accidentally elbowed in the face. Once I had successfully reached the other side, I was at a loss. No matter where I looked, Stefan was nowhere to be found.

I felt my world start to cave in on me as I started to stumble around. I grabbed a hold of a nearby wall as I tried to make sense of everything.

"VANA!" Nick yelled as he chased after me. I felt my stomach turn as I watched him make his way towards me.

Just as I was about to straighten myself up a sack was suddenly placed over my head. I couldn't believe this... I was being kidnapped too???

As I slowly regained my consciousness, I awoke to the sound of slow dripping. It would appear that I was in some kind of underground bunker. But to my relief, Stefan was merely inches away from me. Albeit he was tied up and still unconscious.

"Stefan?" I said in a hushed voice. There was no response.

"Vana? Are you okay?" A voice spoke up from behind. I slowly craned my neck around to see Nick tied up in a similar fashion to myself. I was almost surprised that Nick managed to get entangled in this mess too.

But before I could even ask him if he knew what was going on, the door to the room opened with a loud bang. And in strolled a man I was somewhat familiar with.

"I see you're finally awake now." Count Borovsky said as he crouched down to face me.

"You..." I said in a crocked voice. "What do you want?" I asked as I couldn't stop trembling.

"What do I want?" He remarked to himself as he batted his eyelashes. With a mischievous smile, he then proceeded to reach for the side of my face. "You, Vicky."