Disclaimer: Only plot and Original characters belong to me!

A/N- In this story, the relationship between Gregory and Katherine will be about domination. It will be violent at times and take awhile (maybe even multiple stories) before the two characters are on equal footing in their relationship. There will also be other references to rape and torture as well. Therefore, if you are triggered by violence and rape in relationships, I advise you not to read this story. I don't intend to offend, but when you write, you can never be sure that people are going to interpret events the way you intend them or take them a different way and I would rather be safe than sorry.

Panting heavily, the young woman ran down the street, occasionally looking over her shoulder to see if the thug was still after her. She'd met him when he'd stopped by her little shanty near the grocery store and offered her a home with him. She'd accepted right away, thinking that maybe, just maybe, things would finally turn around for her. She could get back on her feet and start over. Maybe even pull herself together enough that her parents would let her move back in with them.

But it became all too apparent that that was not what the young man had intended by his invitation after all. The second she'd stepped over their threshold, the boy and his buddy had looked her over as if she were a piece of meat. Then they'd grinned at each other and the one who'd invited her said, "I thought she'd do." Then, he'd picked her up, put her over his shoulder, and taken her down to the basement of the house, where the two of them had kept her alive for days, but only so they could do what they liked with her body. And she couldn't have objected if she'd wanted to. They'd tied her up and told her that they'd kill her if she even thought about running away.

So she hadn't. She'd just stayed in the basement, awaiting the same fate, day after day. But then, she'd found out that she was pregnant. She hadn't told either of the boys about it. She wasn't even sure which one of them was the father of her child. But they'd figured it out, and one night, she heard them talking. One said that they couldn't keep her now. That she'd have to be disposed of. They couldn't let her get away and tell other people what they'd done. Straining against the ropes that bound her, she'd been able to see through a crack in the door to the room where the boys were talking. It made up the other half of the basement where she was being kept. She saw a glint of a knife, and then the glint was gone. The door opened and the boy stepped out, and toward her.

"And how are we today?" He asked, stroking her hair and then her cheek. It sickened her to have him touch her. She'd been docile before, since she had nowhere else to go and at the very least, they gave her a roof over her head in spite of all they put her through, but now, knowing now what they planned to do with her, she knew it was time to fight back. She had nothing left to lose.

She said nothing to the boy. She didn't even smile. She just watched him and swished spit around in her mouth until she got a large amount and she spat it right in his face. As he yelled and put his hand to his cheek, he produced the knife with his other hand and slashed at her face. It didn't do much damage cause he wasn't aiming properly, just a few shallow cuts on her face. She deftly untied herself and punched him under the chin. He fell to the ground, out cold, and she made a run for it, knowing that since the other boy was out, she'd have a better chance of getting away. But just as she'd gotten out of the house, the other boy had driven up. He'd ran after her and that's what they'd been doing ever since.

At first, he'd tried to talk to her, to try and convince her to come back. "What do you think you're doing, you bitch?" He'd yelled. "You have nowhere to live, no belongings. No one gives a fuck about you in this world! We're doing you a favor, so don't you dare run from us!"

But she'd continued to run. She figured that if they caught her, they'd kill her, and although she wouldn't have minded that on her own, she had a child to think of now. She wasn't just gonna let it die. She was gonna have it, and then give it to a hospital so it could have a good home and hopefully parents who treated it better than hers ever did.

When she saw a building up ahead, she ducked into it. It was a small cafe and the few scattered customers and chubby redheaded waitress at the counter stared at her.

"Sorry," she whispered. She then ran behind the counter and hid.

"Are you all right?" The waitress asked.

"My boyfriend," the girl whispered. "He-he hits me. Ever since I got pregnant, things have gotten worse, and he got upset when I told him that I wanted to leave. He's been chasing after me all day and if he catches me, he'll hurt me. If he comes in here and asks for me, tell him that you haven't seen me. Please?"

"Of course," The waitress replied. "You stay there for as long as you need."

"Thank you," she whispered.

"What's your name, sweetie?" The waitress asked.

"Amanda," the girl replied.

A few seconds later, the boy stormed into the cafe. "Have any of you seen a girl around here? Dirty blonde hair, green eyes, pregnant? She's my girlfriend and she just ran off on me. I'm worried sick about her."

"Bull shit," the waitress replied. She picked up a heavy rolling pin and smacked the boy on the head with it. He dropped to the ground and lay still. "All right," she said, looking around at the other customers. "Someone watch him and if he dares open his eyes, you hit him again. You understand me? I'm gonna call the police. He committed the most horrible crime that can be committed against a woman and I'm sure no one wants to see him get away with it."

The customers began to mutter agreement amongst themselves and several stood over the boy's prone body. As the waitress dialed the police, she asked the girl, "Is he the only one, or are there others?"

Amanda brushed her blonde hair out of her eyes and nodded. "There's one other," she whispered. She gave the woman the address and when the police came to take the boy away, they promised they would go and get other boy too, and throw them both in jail. When they were gone, Amanda breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank you," she said to the waitress. "You can never know how grateful me and my baby are to you. I don't know how to repay you."

"You got a place to live, honey?" The waitress asked. "If you don't, I know a place for girls in your situation. The sweetest man in the world runs it. He'll make sure you're taken care of. Come with me to my car and I'll take you there."

"Thank you," Amanda replied. "Are we going now?"

"After you get a meal in you," the waitress answered. "You look like you haven't had a decent meal in too long."

"Thank you," Amanda said again. She ate and then the waitress took her in her car to a big house, and led her to the front door. They got out of the car and went to the front door, which the older woman knocked on with urgency.

"I'm coming!" A voice called from the other side. "Just a minute!"

The door opened to reveal a very tall man, one of the handsomest Amanda had ever seen. He gave her a wide smile, and then turned his attention to the older woman. "Ruth!" He exclaimed and gave her a hug. "Who have you got for me today?"

"She came by the restaurant, Mr. Mikaelson," Ruth told him. "She run off from a bad relationship. She's pregnant. Can you do something for her?"

"Of course!" The young man replied. "Bring her in!"

Stunned, Amanda followed him and Ruth inside. After awhile, the older woman smiled and gave her a pat on the shoulder. "I gotta be gettin' back to the diner now," she said. "But you'll be safe with Mr. Mikaelson, here. He'll take good care of you."

"Thank you," Amanda got out again. It was really all she could say.

Ruth gave her one last smile and left. Then, Amanda stared awkwardly at the young man in front of her. "I bet you're wondering how I ended up like this," she said to him.

He shrugged. "Not really," he said. "Things happen. It's not your fault. I take it that your parents don't know what happened to you?"

"No," she shook her head. "I've not talked to them in a year, and if I tried, I know they wouldn't answer the phone. I don't have a family anymore."

"Well, now you do," the young man replied, smiling warmly and putting his arm around her. "You can call me Gregory. I promise you you'll be very well taken care of here."

"Thank you," Amanda said again, giving him a hug.

"Eliza!" He called, and a plain-looking older woman came running. "Yes, sir?" She replied.

"This is-" He gave Amanda a look.

"Amanda," Amanda supplied.

"This is Amanda. Take her to an empty room, won't you, and see she's taken care of and comfortable?"

"Yes, sir," Eliza said and ushered Amanda up the stairs to a room. The girl breathed a sigh of relief. She felt safe here, and somehow she knew that from now on, everything was gonna be all right.

Lenora looked out the porthole as dark blue sky and stars floated past.

"What are you looking at?" James asked. "Anything interesting?"

"No," Lenora shrugged. "Just the sky." She turned and strode over to him. "I want to thank you," she told him. "I want to thank you for, you know, just being here. You probably don't want to hear about all the good you've done me in the time that I've known you. I know you probably think that the only person who was helped by our arrangement was you, but I was too, and I realized that I've not told you often enough how much I appreciate you. So, thank you."

"You're welcome," James told her, feeling gratified. "I've not often been thanked for the help I give people. That's probably why I stopped doing it."

"Oh, yeah?" Lenora asked. "I sense a story coming on."

"Not if you don't want to hear it," James told her. "It's really very dull."

"Is it about your life?" Lenora asked.

"Yes," James answered.

She sat on the bed and patted the space beside her. "Then I want to hear it," she replied. "I've told you nearly everything about my life and I want to hear about yours."

James sat beside her. "All right," he replied. "But it's not a fun story. I grew up with my mother and four siblings near the shipyards of the city that is called Belfast, Ireland today, although it wasn't called that then. My father worked in those shipyards, and when he was killed in an accident, my mother was left to care for us herself. As the oldest sibling, I felt it was my duty to support my family, so I went to work, and although I didn't make us rich, at least we lived comfortably."

"How old were you when your father died?" Lenora asked.

"Sixteen," James replied. "The same age you were when you came to me. That's one of the reasons that I began to like you in the first place. You were an old soul for someone so young, Lenora. Just like I had been.

"Anyway, I worked for five years and then an epidemic swept through town and killed what was left of my family. I was only spared because I was away working. I lived aimlessly after that, drinking and gambling and chasing women. Then I caught the eye of an older, wealthy widow and she wanted us to marry. So we did, and although I didn't love her at first, I grew to. I found out too late that she didn't feel the same way. That her only purpose in marrying me was so that she'd have a monopoly on my talents and could lord it over the younger village girls. But as you know, once you have something, if you have it just to have it, it's never as good. She tired of me eventually and took up with an immigrant Englishman, who was much closer to her age."

"Max," Lenora guessed.

"Yes," James cleared his throat. "Exactly. Max. I found them together one day, and that's when I-" He trailed off and Lenora put her arms around him. "You don't have to tell me anymore," she assured him. "That's enough, thank you."

He gave her a smile. "I could tell you about every bad thing I did and it wouldn't matter to you, would it?" He asked.

"No," She shook her head. "All that matters to me now is that you're a good man to me and a good father to our children. That's enough. I don't need more."

Just then, Susanna let out a cry.

"Duty calls," James said, standing up. "It is my turn, right?"

"Yeah," Lenora nodded. "But don't worry. I'll keep the bed warm for you until you get back. I promise."