Damon could hear Elena pleading with him, but it did little good. Over and over again, he had told her he would devise a punishment later, and it had never come. If she hadn't wondered when the hammer would fall, that wasn't his problem. He walked over to the door, running his hand along the inside of the frame, until he caught the little makeshift device that was keeping the lock from working.
"Clever," he muttered under his breath, pulling it free and making sure the door latched behind him. He stepped back toward Stefan's bed.
"She's too clever. And I'm hardly cruel. She came without permission, and she purposefully messed with the security of this house."
He tossed the arrangement of paper and tape onto the bedside table, before sitting back on the edge of the bed.