SPOILERS: 'The Vampire Diaries' Kills Off Cast Member

The CW’s hit vampire drama The Vampire Diaries aired its midseason finale, "O Come, All Ye Faithful," which marked the end of the road for one cast member.

As part of a twisted scheme, Klaus (Joseph Morgan) was going to be buried in Tyler’s (Michael Trevino) body. Later, Caroline (Candice Accola) convinced Tyler to use Rebekah’s (Claire Holt) body instead of his own, but this all still meant that Klaus would be trapped in someone's body. When Klaus found out about this whole plan from Hayley (Phoebe Tonkin), he went into a fit of rage and just so happened to kill enough of Tyler's hybrid army to meet Hayley's need for 12 unsired bodies. As the episode concluded, Klaus, still on his killing spree, encountered Carol Lockwood (Susan Walters) alone next to a fountain, and, realizing Carol was the most important and only person left for Tyler, Klaus drowned her.

On the less serious side, Damon (Ian Somerhalder) broke his bond with Elena (Nina Dobrev), and she still kissed him afterwards. Also, after struggling at the cabin and wanting to attack Elena, Jeremy (Steven R. McQueen) accepted Elena as his sister.

Ultimately, though, fans were left thinking about the death of Carol Lockwood. Fortunately, with her tenure on The Vampire Diaries now finished, Walters had nothing but kind words for the show.

“I just loved being part of something that’s kind of pop culture,” Walters told EW. “It’s fun that I get recognized as the mayor on Vampire Diaries. I really enjoyed it. And on a show like that, you’re pretty lucky if you can last three or four seasons. So I feel good about that at least."

The Vampire Diaries, now in its fouth season and sans Carol Lockwood, will return to The CW Thursday, Jan. 17, at 8 p.m. EST.

Check out the preview for the return of The Vampire Diaries below: