A cool breeze ruffles the curls against his forehead as Klaus stands on a balcony in the pale moon's dark shadows. The street below is deserted, signaling New Orleans' tourists and locals have stumbled back to their hotels and homes after a long night of reveling in the pleasures of the Quarter. Stragglers speak in loud voices and stumble around corners in search of cabs, but he pays them no attention. His eyes focus on Cami as she steps out of Roseau's and starts the process of locking the door for the night.
She's laughing and her smile looks brighter than ever under the glow of the lone light over the bar's door. Her companion laughs too and Klaus scowls at the man who once carried his brother's dull, lunatic soul inside him. Freya might be the one carting Finn around for safekeeping now, but Klaus remains distrustful of Vincent. He gave away the gifts of his ancestors with ease and Klaus doubts any man capable of turning his back on power for too long.
Cami finishes with the lock and the two turn to walk down the street. Klaus notices the comfort between them and it concerns him how trusting she remains in spite of everything. Vincent continues to tell a long-winded story and Klaus wonders how Cami doesn't fall over of sheer boredom. He tunes out the other man's words and just watches to make sure he keeps a respectable distance. After everything Cami's been through, the last thing he wants for her is to be taken in by another person with dark intentions.
They round a corner out of sight and Klaus tunes back into the conversation. Cami is laughing again and something cold and sharp pierces his chest. Elijah would call it petty jealousy because he cannot risk Cami's safety by flaunting their companionship in public. But Klaus doesn't recall asking for his brother's bloody useless opinions. He's fed up with Elijah's one word conversations and scowls across the dinner table. Even when Klaus supplies his favorite foods from all over the world, Elijah still refuses to give him the smallest hint of gratitude.
He is pulled back to the night when Cami lets out a stunned noise and then raises her voice to speak one word. "Klaus!"
Klaus leaps down from the balcony and his vampire speed carries him onto the next block in a matter of seconds. He comes to a stop between Cami and Vincent and his eyes search her from head to toe for any sign that Vincent has hurt her. He will rip out his heart, feed it to him and then tear off his head for good measure. But Cami looks unharmed other than her wide eyes and the color drained from her face.
"Camille, what is it?" Klaus takes a step closer, boxing Vincent out of the conversation. The other man mumbles surprise at his quick appearance, but Klaus pays him no mind.
Cami sends him a strange look and then nods her head toward the street in front of him. That's when Klaus picks up on the familiar scent of blood and death lingering all around them. He knows what he'll see even as he shifts his gaze from Cami to the pavement littered with dead bodies. Blood runs from open wounds in necks, dead eyes stare unseeing at the sky above and torn limbs and decapitated heads lay among the carnage.
"Vampires did this," Vincent says and Klaus rolls his eyes at his apparent need to state the obvious.
"Marcel wouldn't let his guys make this kind of mess," Cami says. Klaus meets her gaze and he knows they are both thinking the same thing. If Marcel has lost control of his new kingdom, this won't be the only mess they need to clean up and the risk of their secrets being exposed grows by the minute.
As if reading his mind, sirens pierce the air in the distance. Klaus wonders when the police started being so on top of things, but he still has a chance to get Cami to away from the scene.
"You need to go," Klaus tells her. "There's not enough time to move the bodies before the police arrive." He reaches for his cell to alert Marcel as Cami gives him another look that he knows too well – the one that says she has no intention of leaving. He forgets about the phone, takes her arm instead and gives her a look that he knows she can read. He doesn't have time for her stubbornness and he will carry her out of there himself. "Camille…"
"No." Cami moves even closer to him and Klaus catches the familiar scent of her shampoo and the light perfume she wears. "We're both staying. You need to compel the cops and I need to make sure you don't murder them." She gives him a smile filled with the smugness of a person expecting to get her way.
He rolls his eyes toward the dark sky above. Blue and red lights flash through the dark as the police cars race closer to the scene and he knows he could easily sprint them both away and leave Vincent to deal with the mess. But he stays beside her, his hand still on her arm as a smirk crosses his face.
"I make no promises, love."
A touch of color returns to her cheeks and she's smiling when the first police car screeches to a halt.