"Well, not bad! You must've known I'm a meat lover—you've prepared such a delicious spread," Ron said, his appetite stirred as he looked at the table filled with savory dishes.
"I'm glad you like it," Sarah replied cheerfully, clearly pleased with her employer's praise.
"Oh right, I might bring someone over tonight. Could you prepare an extra serving?" Ron added, thinking it was about time to invite Caroline over—to show her around and give her a spare key so she could visit anytime she wanted.
"A pretty girl, I assume?" Sarah teased, her eyes glinting playfully.
"Yeah, she's my classmate. We just made things official yesterday," Ron admitted straightforwardly.
"Got it, leave it to me," Sarah said with a knowing smile, signaling that dinner would be no problem.
After finishing lunch, Ron didn't even have time for a nap. He texted Caroline, confirmed their meeting spot, and headed out to pick her up.
The two lovebirds spent the entire afternoon together, lost in each other's company. As dusk approached, Ron brought Caroline back to his home.
"Sarah, I'm back. This is Caroline—my girlfriend," Ron said as he led Caroline inside. Sarah was already sitting on the living room sofa, and the dining table was filled with dishes ready for dinner.
"Caroline, this is Sarah—my live-in housekeeper. She's been taking care of everything here for me," Ron explained, in case Caroline was curious about who Sarah was.
Sarah?" Caroline blinked, then ran over excitedly. "Sarah! I didn't expect to see you here!" she exclaimed, grabbing Sarah's hand warmly.
"Caroline? So it's you! I was wondering which poor girl he managed to charm this time," Sarah said with a laugh, clearly familiar with her.
After a few minutes of catching up, the three of them sat down to enjoy dinner together. The meal was lively and cheerful, and before long, the night had fallen. Since Caroline wasn't staying over, Ron offered to drive her home.
"Caroline, you and Sarah seem close. How long have you known each other?" Ron finally asked as they sat in the car.
"Oh, for years! I haven't seen her in a long time though. This house used to be her family's home," Caroline said, glancing out the window as memories came flooding back. "It's been renovated so much that I didn't recognize it at first."
"She and Elena's families were both among the founding families of Mystic Falls," Caroline continued. "But her grandfather and parents got into gambling, and the family ended up selling off everything—including this house. When it was sold, Sarah was still living in the university dorms. I guess she must've just graduated recently."
"No wonder she didn't seem like a typical housekeeper when I interviewed her," Ron replied, keeping his eyes on the road.
Since Mystic Falls was a small town, the drive to Caroline's house didn't take long. Before she left, they agreed to meet the next evening to watch the comet together. Ron also handed her a spare house key, just in case she ever wanted to visit.
As for Sarah, Ron decided not to dwell on her past. No matter who she was before, she was now his employee and that was that.
When Ron returned home, Sarah had already gone to her room, so he didn't disturb her. He went upstairs, washed up, sent a goodnight text to Caroline, and drifted off to sleep.
The next evening arrived quickly. Caroline texted to say she'd go directly to the comet-viewing event, so Ron met her there. When he arrived, she was holding two candles, waiting for him.
"Thanks, sweetheart," Ron said, taking one unlit candle and lighting it from hers. He wasn't entirely sure what the ritual meant, but seeing everyone else doing the same, he followed suit.
"You're here!" Caroline said happily, wrapping her arm around his. If her hands weren't full, she probably would've jumped into his arms.
"Everyone, this is my boyfriend—Ron," she announced proudly, leading him over to where Bonnie, Elena, Matt, and Tyler were seated.
"Hey," Ron greeted them with a polite smile.
"Has anyone seen Vicki?" Jeremy came running up, looking panicked.
"Aren't you the one who's always with her? How do you not know?" Tyler snapped irritably.
"I can't find her," Jeremy replied.
"Maybe she's just off having fun somewhere," Matt suggested.
"Or maybe someone's taken over the dealer's job," Tyler muttered sarcastically.
"Dealer? What's that supposed to mean?" Elena asked, confused.
"You should ask him," Tyler said, nodding toward Jeremy.
"Can we not do this right now?" Jeremy said defensively.
"Are you dealing drugs?" Elena pressed.
"She'll never like you," Tyler sneered.
"We've slept together. Many, many, many times," Jeremy shot back, emphasizing each word.
"Yeah, sure," Tyler scoffed.
"You slept with Vicki Donovan? No wait—it's more like Vicki Donovan slept with you," Caroline said in surprise. Ron, seeing Elena's face darken, tugged at Caroline's hand under the table to stop her.
"That's impossible!" Tyler said, looking shaken.
"She wanted it," Jeremy added firmly.
"What are you saying, Tyler?" Matt demanded, clearly angry and confused.
"Nothing. Ignore this idiot," Tyler muttered.
"Everyone shut up and help me find my sister!" Matt yelled before storming off.
Everyone split up to search for Vicki. Ron and Caroline followed Matt toward the town square.
Ron noticed Matt speaking briefly with Stefan before heading down a side street. Then Stefan disappeared. Ron motioned for Caroline to follow Stefan instead. Moments later, they saw a man dragging Vicki toward a rooftop edge—like he was about to push her off.
Caroline gasped, but when she turned to look for Stefan, he was gone. Ron, however, had seen it clearly—Stefan had used vampire speed to rush up to the rooftop.
"Go get Matt. I'll check upstairs," Ron said quickly, dashing across the street. He invoked the Rabbit Sigil charm for speed and rushed to the rooftop.
"What attacked you that night?" the mysterious man asked Vicki coldly.
"I—I don't know… some kind of animal," Vicki stammered, her memory hazy.
"Think harder. Remember! What was it?" he demanded.
"A vampire," Vicki finally blurted out, panic flooding her face.
"Who was it?" he pressed.
"It was you," she said, horrified.
"No. It was Stefan," the man corrected her, locking eyes with her and compelling her to believe it. "It was Stefan Salvatore—he's a vampire, a murderous monster."
"Are none of you going to notice there's someone else here?" Ron said sharply, stepping out from the shadows. He couldn't just stand by and watch someone be manipulated like this.
"Stefan, aren't you going to introduce me to this guy who knows about vampires and still dares to show himself?" the stranger asked mockingly.
"I'm Damon Salvatore—Stefan's brother. And who might you be, human?" Damon's tone dripped with arrogance.
Ron stood tall, undaunted. Between his Dog and Horse Sigils granting him strength and endurance, the Rabbit Sigil for speed, and the silver dagger, crucifix, holy water, and garlic he carried, he was prepared for anything.
He wasn't sure how the night would end—but he wasn't planning to back down.