"Okay," Stefan replied and immediately chased after Sarah.
"Kevin, where's my necklace?" Damon asked, not seeming to care that Stefan had left, but rather impatient about the necklace's whereabouts.
"The necklace? After all the crap you've pulled, provoking me so many times, you think I'd just hand the necklace back to you that easily?" Kevin retorted.
"State your demands. Otherwise, you wouldn't be keeping the necklace," Damon said, thinking it over and then speaking directly to Kevin.
"Demands? How about I demand you just drop dead? Why don't you come find me right now? It just so happens I learned today how to take out a vampire; you can come let me test it on you?" Kevin said to Damon with contempt.
"Kevin, cut the useless talk. You know me. If I don't get what I want, I'm capable of anything. Look how obedient my little brother is. Aren't you afraid I'll go after Caroline?" Damon threatened.
"You think with Caroline by my side every day, if you showed your face in front of me, you'd still be able to get away?" Kevin countered, taking Caroline's hand to reassure her.
"So, there's no room for negotiation then?" Damon's voice carried a hint of anger.
"Damon, I've given you many warnings. Time and time again, you've ignored them, even repeatedly compelling Sarah to provoke me. This time, you directly turned Sarah just to get back at me. What makes you think I can just let go of all this hatred and give you what you want?" Kevin vented at Damon.
"Why did we control Sarah, aren't you clear? The first time we met, you wanted to kill me! Besides, given Sarah's identity, I needed to control her. What's wrong with that?" Damon said, his tone clearly flustered and exasperated.
"The first time we met, have you forgotten what you were doing? You were mentally torturing Vicki right in front of me just to intimidate Stefan! You've lost all your humanity. But I'm still human. My only regret from back then is not knowing how to kill you and not hitting you hard enough!" Kevin said with disgust.
"So I controlled them a bit, what's the big deal? I didn't control your Caroline. I think I've been restrained enough, okay? You and Stefan were planning to desiccate me! If it weren't for that, would I have turned Sarah to get back at you? If you give me the necklace now, we can still talk. Otherwise, I really will go after Caroline. I don't believe you can stay with her all the time," Damon continued his threats.
"Stop making excuses. What about Tanner's death? Did he offend you? If you want the necklace, it's simple. First, tell me what the necklace is used for. I don't believe you'd go to such great lengths for something useless. Second, if the necklace doesn't pose a threat to the safety of Mystic Falls, then once you get it, you get the hell out of town," Kevin said. He knew he couldn't push Damon too hard right now. Otherwise, given Damon's speed, if he decided to act recklessly and catch them off guard, Kevin couldn't guarantee Caroline's safety one hundred percent.
"Since Stefan gave you the necklace, you should also know it belonged to Katherine, right? Stefan should have mentioned how important Katherine is to me. How could I possibly leave her things with Stefan?" Damon said, half-truthfully, half-deceptively.
"Let's say your reasons are valid. But the necklace isn't on me. Let's set a time and place to meet, and I'll bring it to you," Kevin said. He knew Damon wouldn't tell him the whole truth directly, and he also knew Damon wouldn't dare meet him alone. So, even if the necklace was right there in Kevin's pocket, he wouldn't just hand it over to Damon. Right now, he was just afraid Damon would act like a cornered beast and do something reckless. Kevin planned to stall for some time to show the necklace to Bonnie.
"Kevin, you should just arrange a time with Stefan and give the necklace to him. I'll get it from him then," Damon suggested, clearly unwilling to appear before Kevin alone.
"Why so cowardly? When I give it to Stefan, you can have Stefan bring it to you. Once you get the necklace, get out of Mystic Falls. Alright, that's it then," Kevin taunted Damon and then hung up the phone.
"Okay, Stefan's phone is with Damon. We can only wait here for Stefan to bring Sarah back," Kevin said to Caroline and Elena after hanging up.
Fortunately, Stefan didn't make Kevin and the others wait too long before returning with Sarah.
"You're bleeding," Elena said, standing up from the sofa and rushing over to Stefan the moment he returned, noticing the bloodstain on his chest.
"It's okay, I'm alright. The wound has already healed," Stefan said, taking Elena's hands to comfort her.
"Sarah, how are you feeling now?" Kevin and Caroline also walked over to Sarah.
"I'm so scared. I feel like... I can't control myself right now," Sarah said, lifting her head as she heard Kevin and Caroline's concerned voices.
"Stefan, is Sarah's current condition normal?" Kevin asked, looking at Sarah, who seemed like an addict going through withdrawal.
"Kevin, I feel so hungry. And this hunger... it just won't go away," Sarah said, then lunged as if to hug Kevin.
"Hey, Sarah, that's not a good idea," Kevin said, taking a step back to avoid her.
"Sarah, are you okay?" Caroline asked, seeing Sarah's helpless state and stepping forward to hug her.
"Caroline, I want it... I'm really so hungry," Sarah said, then her fangs extended, and she lunged towards Caroline's slender neck.
Kevin immediately activated the Rabbit Talisman, swiftly clamping one hand over Sarah's mouth and using his other arm to restrain her, preventing her from moving erratically.
"Ah~!" Caroline screamed, falling backwards in terror. Kevin had to release his hold on Sarah to catch Caroline and prevent her from falling.
Luckily, at that moment, Sarah bit down on Kevin's hand and began to drink his blood, calming down and stopping her struggles. Otherwise, Kevin might not have been able to hold his ground, as Sarah, now a vampire, was definitely much stronger than a normal person.
"Alright, alright, even if I heal quickly, you can't just keep drinking like this," Kevin said, patting Sarah's head comfortingly after ensuring Caroline was steady.
"I'm so sorry. I really can't control myself," Sarah sobbed, her emotions stabilizing somewhat after drinking some blood, and she was able to regain a little control, releasing Kevin's hand. She then clung to Kevin and began to cry uncontrollably.
Kevin didn't dodge this time, mainly because he felt an undeniable responsibility for Sarah becoming a vampire.
"It's okay, it will all pass. If it really comes down to it, I can just be your blood bag from now on. Anyway, I can't die, so you don't have to worry about draining me dry," Kevin said, patting Sarah's back comfortingly.
"Alright, it's getting very late. I'll take you guys home," Elena suggested.
"Elena, can I stay over at your place tonight?" Caroline asked Elena, looking at Sarah and Kevin, who had now separated.
"Of course, you can—" Elena was about to agree.
"Elena, maybe you should stay at Caroline's place instead. Damon has already been inside your house. Because of your relationship with Stefan, Damon might not harm you, but I'm not so sure about Caroline's safety," Kevin interjected, a headache starting whenever he thought about Damon.
"I guess that's okay," Elena and Caroline said, exchanging a look.
"Stefan, I'll take Sarah back to my place. It's not really convenient at your house, especially since we don't know when Damon might suddenly show up," Kevin said to Stefan.
"Besides, with my 'all-you-can-eat blood bank' here, the chances of Sarah losing control are smaller. Tomorrow, during the day, I'll trouble you to come to my place and teach Sarah how to be a vampire," Kevin added quickly, seeing Stefan was about to refuse.
Hearing Kevin put it that way, Stefan could only nod and agree to the suggestion. Afterwards, Elena drove the other three to Caroline's house.
"Elena, you head inside first. I need to talk to Kevin for a couple of minutes," Caroline said to Elena at her doorstep.
"Kevin, come over here for a second," Caroline said, pulling Kevin aside to talk.
"Kevin, I've thought a lot these past few days. But I've realized... I can't do this. I can't continue to be with you. Whether it's Damon using me to threaten you, or the thought of us getting married and spending a lifetime together... I just can't imagine it," Caroline said to Kevin, as if she had made a firm decision.
"No, don't be like this," Kevin said, hugging Caroline, not knowing how to persuade her to stay.
"Originally, I was thinking that after we got married and experienced everything we were supposed to, if things really didn't work out, I would ask Stefan to turn me into a vampire. That way, we could be together forever. But today, seeing Sarah... I admit, I'm scared of becoming a vampire. I'm sorry, Kevin," Caroline said, hugging Kevin back and starting to cry.
"It's okay. I understand, and I respect your choice," Kevin said, wiping away Caroline's tears and comforting her.
"Don't cry anymore. If you keep crying, your eyes will be swollen tomorrow. You know tomorrow is Halloween, and there's that party you love so much," Kevin said, patting Caroline's head and trying to console her.
"Alright, you won't be pretty anymore if you keep crying. Since you've made your decision, don't be sad. We can still be friends, right? Besides, I'm the one being broken up with; shouldn't I be the one crying?" Kevin said, trying to distract Caroline with a teasing tone as her tears continued to flow.
"Okay, it's too late. I should go back now. You go inside and get some rest," Kevin said, kissing Caroline gently on the forehead as her tears slowly subsided, and then said his goodbyes.