3. Unwanted Alliances
Caroline always prided herself on her ability to find out things. Information, gossip, rumours: you name it, she had it. Now with vampire hearing, she was even better at finding out what other people didn't want her to know. That included tracking down a person who didn't want to be found.
Which was why she was frustrated at her lack of success in finding Luka. She'd tried all her usual sources but they'd been more of a hindrance than a help, distracting her with talk of the next fundraiser, the school committee, Tyler's disappearance and a hundred and one other things that she would have been interested in before she knew that her friend had been kidnapped.
When she finally managed to escape, she slipped into an empty classroom and heaved a sigh of relief. Maybe from here she could listen and pick up Luka's voice if he was anywhere nearby...
The door was open before she could react and suddenly Katherine was standing right in front of her.
"Caroline," she purred, stroking a thumb down Caroline's cheek. "I've missed you."
Katherine had her in an all-too-familiar choke hold at once, slamming her up against the wall. Caroline whimpered, unable to hide her fear. Katherine brought out the most primal of her emotions: pure, raw terror. Every line of her body was cold and merciless – her vice-like grip, the slightest tilt of her head as her pupils dilated, like a snake about to strike.
"You've been avoiding me, Caroline. I'm hurt. Where's my werewolf?"
She felt light-headed. "Your werewolf?"
"Yes. Tyler." Katherine tightened her grip for a moment, eliciting a choked sob from Caroline. "Doesn't he attend this school?"
"He's not here. He... disappeared."
"Dead?"
"No. Look, all I know is that he left a note for his mom. He chose to leave."
"Well, that's inconvenient." Katherine let go and stepped back, placing one hand on her hip. "Tell me more. What have I missed?"
Alaric lifted his hand to knock, but Damon gave him a look and barged straight in there. He had already pinpointed John's exact location, so it was but the work of a moment to appear right in front of John, smile coldly at his startled yelp and back him up against the kitchen counter. He sensed Alaric following, and waited for him to find his way to the kitchen before speaking.
"John," Damon greeted him. "I hear you got your fancy magical ring of not dying back."
John's eyes flicked to Alaric, then back to him again. Damon was itching to bite him; only the knowledge that John ingested vervain prevented him from doing so.
He was an inch from John's nose and yet somehow the other man feigned nonchalance. "What of it?"
"Well, that's good," said Damon. "That's great. Because I have been eagerly awaiting another chance to do this."
The next second, he had snapped John's neck and the body had slumped down at his feet. It was a moment of catharsis. He found that his fists were clenched and took a few deep breaths, uncurling his fingers until the tension left his body. Then he stepped back and turned to regard Alaric, who sighed.
"You realize we're gonna have to wait around for him to wake up, right?"
He shrugged. "It was worth it. Scotch?"
"I'll have a double."
"Where's Elena?"
Luka shook his head. "Why are you asking me? I saw you with her earlier."
They'd cornered him outside, not far from the football field. Bonnie was keeping watch to make sure that no one noticed if it got a little violent.
"Don't lie to me," Stefan growled. "Elijah has her. Where is she?"
"I don't know."
Stefan grabbed him, pulling him up by his jacket so that Luka's feet left the ground for a moment, causing him to gasp for breath. "I don't know, I swear! Do you think Elijah tells me everything? He wouldn't tell me where he's keeping Elena. He knows you guys are looking for her."
He was looking from Stefan to Bonnie, his eyes wide and fearful, and Bonnie couldn't help feeling a twinge of sympathy for him. He was doing this to help his sister. But she was doing this for Elena.
"Please, Luka," Bonnie implored him. "She's my friend."
"You're a witch," said Stefan. "If you don't know where she is, you can do a spell to find her. Or help Bonnie get her powers back so that we can find her ourselves."
Luka shook his head, looking only at Bonnie this time. "I'm sorry. But I won't help you."
All at once, Stefan reeled back, clutching his head. Bonnie stared, realizing with sudden horror that she couldn't feel Luka's magic. She couldn't sense anything, couldn't counteract the spell. But she wasn't entirely helpless.
"Stop it!" Bonnie grabbed his arm. "Stop!"
He shrugged her off. "Just stay away from me."
Luka strode off, leaving Bonnie to crouch down and help Stefan up.
"Later," Katherine cooed, pushing her back into the corridor. It was quieter now as people headed for class, but there were still several students around. Caroline gave her the filthiest look she could manage as Katherine walked off. Her throat still felt sore. She massaged it gingerly and took a few deep breaths, trying to compose herself.
It was then that she noticed one of the guys at the lockers was Matt. He'd seen her too.
"Hey," he said.
"Hey," Caroline managed weakly.
"Are you okay?" he asked, glancing back at Katherine's retreating figure. "What's up with you and Elena?"
Oh God, she didn't need this. "It's... complicated."
She couldn't meet his eyes as she said it, but she heard the disappointment in his voice.
"Complicated, huh."
"Yeah..." She tried to think of an excuse to leave. Late for class would do. She opened her mouth, but he beat her to it.
"Hey, I wanted to ask, have you heard from Tyler?"
"Not a peep."
That much was true. She'd tried calling, texting, but considering the situation right now, maybe it was better that he had gone. At least, that's what her head told her. She still hadn't really processed it.
"Me either. I saw him at the Grill last night, before he left."
She was curious despite herself. Tyler had left without saying a word to her – granted, she'd slammed the door in his face when he came to talk to her, but he totally deserved that.
"What did he say?"
"I think he was saying goodbye without really saying goodbye. Why, is there something you want to tell me, Caroline?"
She couldn't miss the accusing tone in his voice. He was right, she thought miserably. There were so many things she wanted to tell him. About Tyler, about everything.
"No. Look, there's just a lot going on..."
There was a pause, and then Matt shrugged. "Can I help?"
Even now he was reaching out to her. He had no idea what he was offering, no idea what she was keeping from him, but he was still Matt. Still the good guy. And she couldn't tell him.
"It's kind of between me, Bonnie and Elena."
"Well, I'm sorry. I hope you guys can work it out. I could talk to Elena if–"
"No!" She realized at once that she'd said it too forcefully. His eyes widened and he stared at her, baffled. She shook her head. "No, I mean... I really don't think that's a good idea, Matt. She won't appreciate it, trust me."
He sighed. "Elena and I are friends. If this is your jealousy thing again–"
"No. I swear that's not it. I – I can't explain, but promise me you'll stay away from her, please?"
"Seriously? If you're not going to say what it is, I'm not going to make any promises. Look – I'm just – I'm tired of the secrets, okay? I've made my feelings pretty clear, Caroline. So either say something or just leave me alone."
Her mouth trembled as she tried to think of something to say. Tears clustered at her eyes. She'd blown it. But she stayed silent. She only had to wait a couple of seconds before Matt walked away.
Sunlight filtered through the blinds, casting a bright glow over the normally dim apartment. Elijah gazed through the window, considering all the loose ends he needed to tie up. There was the matter of the dagger, which he would question Damon about when he found him, as well as the burial ground. There were the other guests at the dinner party, all of whom had varying degrees of involvement in killing him. The women he considered to be innocent, but the rest... And there was Katerina. The moment he had died, she would have been free to escape and he had no idea of her current whereabouts.
He had Elena, yet his problems seemed to have multiplied tenfold. Even Elena seemed to have made it her goal in life to cause him problems. He smiled slightly. Of course she had. He'd seen how determined she was, but she was also spirited. Klaus would have taken pleasure in breaking her down, he thought. They had been gentle with Katerina only because they were deceiving her. Even then, he had been unable to see Katerina as a toy. He'd spent too much time with her, allowed himself to feel for her; old memories had slipped in, colouring the way he looked at her... They looked the same. And because of that, he had allowed his emotions to override his judgement.
He would not, could not, make that same mistake with Elena.
Jonas brought him coffee, which he accepted with a thank you, and both men sat down to talk. He'd stayed here for a few days before abducting Elena. So Elijah had some things to collect, but more importantly he needed to catch up with Jonas.
Jonas folded his arms, expression stern as Elijah filled him in what had happened since last night. Elijah didn't tell him where Elena was and Jonas didn't ask; he understood the value of discretion. He was also reliable, patient, trustworthy and a powerful warlock, all qualities which made him ideal to work with. His only weakness, if it could be called that, was his son.
Elijah brought the subject up after they had discussed the main points of business. "Where's Luka?"
"School."
"You should remove him from that school at once. Since the Bennett girl lost her powers, he's certain to become a target."
Jonas frowned. "The Salvatore brothers? Haven't you dealt with them yet?"
"They may know where the burial ground is. For now, I need them alive."
They would not give up such information willingly, of course. But if he threatened one, the other would capitulate. He'd visited the boarding house briefly before coming to the apartment, and found it empty. The remains of their dinner party had been left untouched, plates and cutlery still on the table, dessert left to go warm in the kitchen. They had probably gone into hiding. He would consider other ways to find them later.
Jonas sighed and leaned back, taking off his reading glasses and cleaning them with a soft yellow cloth. He was surrounded by books – or rather, grimoires, the body of knowledge that he had spent his life studying. Yet all that knowledge had failed him when it came to locating the land where the witches had burned.
"Are you sure?" he asked.
"No," said Elijah, "but we have exhausted almost all other sources. They lived here while still human; they have firsthand knowledge of the history of this town." He glanced at his watch. "I have to go. I have a date."
Jonas raised his eyebrows.
"My other potential source," Elijah clarified. "The delectable Miss Sommers."
"Isn't she Elena's aunt?"
Elijah stood, leaving his half-finished coffee on the table. "That won't be a problem." He'd compel her if necessary, but he suspected that the Salvatore brothers would do the job for him to stop her from noticing that Elena was missing. Either that or he was about to have a very interesting conversation with her.
He walked over to the door, then paused to add a final warning: "Get your son out of that school."
Jonas nodded. "I will. Those vampires won't get anything out of us."
Damon was there the moment John awoke. He tried to scrabble backwards, but Damon lifted him up easily and none too gently, not giving him a chance to recover.
John's pupils were dilated; his breath came shallow and fast. "You killed me."
"Mmm-hmm. Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you just try to get me killed? Again?"
John said nothing.
"So now that we're even, why don't you give that ring back to Ric?"
"Why do you care?"
Now there was a loaded question. Loathe as he was to admit that he cared about anything, Damon knew exactly what he wanted to say here. If this didn't make up for lying to Alaric about killing Elijah at the dinner party, he figured nothing would.
"Well, you see – the thing is, John, you're not part of the team. And Ric, for better or worse, is. Since we're all running the risk of death at the hands of a really pissed off Original, I know who I'd rather come back. Hand it over."
He released John and stepped back, watching him with a barely suppressed tension: the predator about to strike. John took the hint. He removed the ring and placed it down on the counter, then watched as Alaric walked over to take it.
Damon relaxed only when the ring was on Alaric's finger. Then he allowed himself a smile. Alaric glanced over at him.
"Thanks, man."
"Those werewolves got you only the other day, Ric. You shouldn't have handed it over in the first place." He turned back to John. "So, you wanted to talk to my baby bro. Katherine, I presume?"
This was possibly the weirdest lunch Caroline had ever had. Here we are, she thought. The freak show table. Three vampires, a witch who had lost her powers, and Jeremy. Stefan and Katherine were sitting opposite her, Katherine insisting on draping herself all over Stefan, nudging his arm, stroking his cheek and generally being very touchy-feely. Caroline was crammed in next to Bonnie and Jeremy. She couldn't help but notice the protective arm he'd placed around her shoulder. So that happened.
And I'm the only one who's single.
"How can she even be here?" Jeremy was saying, late to the party.
They were surrounded by other students in the cafeteria. If Caroline concentrated, she could pick up any conversation at any table. Yet she felt as though they were in a bubble, the five of them. Elena was missing, and nobody else knew it.
Katherine twisted an iron-straight lock of hair around her finger. "So, what's the plan?"
Bonnie was the first to respond. "I'm not discussing anything with you." She gave Stefan a pointed look. "Can you please get her out of here?"
Stefan sighed and shook his head. They all knew that they couldn't cause a scene.
"Oh, I forgot, we've fallen out," said Katherine. "But let's at least call a temporary truce, hmm? Seriously? What are you gonna do?"
"We have to find Elena," said Jeremy.
"Luka's not talking," said Stefan.
"Not to mention, Elijah has her and he'll kill you the second you get anywhere near her," Katherine added.
"We need to go to Jonas," Stefan continued, as if he hadn't been interrupted. "Get him to find Elena."
Katherine raised her eyebrows, staring around at them all. "Have I missed something? You have a witch. Why look for another one who's not going to help you?"
There was a short silence. Everyone except Katherine knew that Bonnie had lost her powers. Bonnie had asked Stefan not to tell Damon; it went without saying that they wouldn't tell Katherine. Caroline ducked her head, sure that her face would give her away if Katherine met her eyes.
"They're blocking me," said Bonnie, gazing back at Katherine evenly. "I tried to find her, but they're hiding Elena's location."
"So we find Jonas," Stefan went on. "There's still a chance to reason with them now that Elijah has the dagger. He wants Klaus dead; so do we. Maybe we can call a truce."
"And Elena doesn't have to die," said Bonnie.
Stefan nodded. "Exactly."
"I'll go," said Jeremy.
He was immediately met by protests from both Stefan and Bonnie. Katherine only smirked, watching Jeremy with a lascivious glint in her eyes that looked so wrong coming from someone with Elena's face. Caroline looked down and stirred her milkshake, which she hadn't touched. It wasn't blood. She didn't feel like drinking it.
"You can't get into the apartment," Jeremy was arguing. "I can. She's my sister. I'm going and you can't stop me."
Eventually, Stefan gave in. "All right, but I'm coming with you. Bonnie, you in?"
Bonnie nodded. Nobody objected to her going, Caroline noticed. But then if Jonas was going to give her back her powers, she kind of had to be there.
"So what about me?" Caroline asked. "Is there anything I can do?"
She studiously avoided looking Katherine in the eye as she said that.
"Just lie low for now," Stefan advised her. "We'll keep you posted."
She nodded. Honestly, she was kind of relieved that he hadn't asked her to watch Katherine. Of course, Stefan knew that was the last thing she'd want. He wouldn't ask her to do that. She smiled at him, glad that at least Stefan always had her back.
"And me?" said Katherine, inching her fingers along the line of Stefan's collarbone. He swatted her away.
"You are not going to do anything."
She shrugged. "Oh, well. Guess I'll just go home after school then. Grab some dinner. Maybe Aunt Jenna's free for a bite."
"Don't you dare." Jeremy leaned forward across the table and had to be restrained by Bonnie. Katherine did not even try to hide her amusement.
Stefan sighed. "I'm calling Damon. He can deal with you. I've had enough."
Katherine's smirk widened; there was a definite glint in her eye that Caroline could tell meant Damon was not going to have an easy time with her. "I look forward to it."
All in all, Caroline reflected, this was definitely the weirdest lunch she'd ever had. As they went their separate ways, she considered telling her mom that Elena had gone missing. But there was no way she could report that with Katherine hanging around. Not without confessing everything. She bit her lip. For now, she'd just have to wait.
If there was one thing Damon didn't like, it was feeling unsafe in his own home. He was a vampire. He hunted down his prey, got himself invited in so that they'd never feel safe in their beds again, and then killed them. He didn't cower in fear of some monster that might rip his head off.
Except, of course, that he'd just tried and failed to kill an Original. Twice. And the Salvatore boarding house had no living owner, so any vampire could get in.
It was therefore with a degree of caution that Damon entered the house. All his senses were on alert, listening for the smallest hint of movement. Everything looked the same: dim and dark. He was annoyed to find that the leftover food in the kitchen had already started to smell, so disposed of it swiftly. Deciding that Elijah would have gotten him by now if he was here, Damon sped up to his bedroom. He had just opened the wardrobe when his phone rang. Stefan.
"Did you find her?"
"No." There was a pause. "Bonnie tried. It didn't work."
"What?" Jesus, all they asked for was a witch to do a simple tracking spell... He rolled his eyes, riffling through his clothes with one hand while he held his phone to his ear with the other. "So try again."
"That's not gonna work. Bonnie thinks it's those other witches, the Martins, concealing Elena's location. We're going to talk to them."
"Talk? Stefan, please tell me you're not planning to negotiate. If those witches are stopping us from finding Elena, we kill them. Simple."
"If we do that, we might never find her. Killing them won't remove the spell – you know how that works."
He didn't, and he suspected that Stefan knew that. All those rules of magic. Damon was convinced half of them were made up. "Witches. Fine, you deal with man witch and son. What about Katherine? What's she up to?"
"I don't know. Can you take care of her for a while? I don't know what game she's playing, but if she goes back to the house with Jenna..."
He picked a clean shirt out of the wardrobe before discarding it and choosing another. "I'm on it. Leave Katherine to me."
"Don't provoke her," Stefan warned.
"What, do you think I'm an idiot? Just shut up and go, Stefan."
He hung up, suddenly in a bad mood. He'd learned nothing from the conversation with John earlier except that John was an ass (old news) and that John was very good at demanding answers – on Elena's whereabouts, on their failure to kill Elijah – without offering any himself (also old news). And now Katherine. If he was going to deal with her today, he needed a drink first.
"This is it?" Stefan looked at Bonnie. She nodded in confirmation.
"This is the one."
"Stand back."
They obeyed, Jeremy standing on one side of the corridor and Bonnie on the other, both of them looking around in case anyone came up here and saw them. Stefan took two steps back, then blurred forward and hit the door with his shoulder, sending it flying into the room at once. The crash it made seemed to reverberate in their ears; Bonnie winced.
Stefan gestured for them to go inside. He couldn't enter.
"Be careful," he said.
Bonnie nodded. She took one look at Jeremy, then they both stepped inside. The apartment was just as she remembered. It was the books that had most struck her; the place was full of them. Luka had told her that the Martins collected them. She couldn't help but wonder if they were stolen. What had happened to the witches who used to own them?
"Looks empty," said Jeremy, who had already walked over to check the adjacent rooms.
"They wouldn't leave without taking the grimoires," said Bonnie. She paused at a desk on which a grimoire lay open, its yellowed pages covered in spidery writing. Maybe there was a spell in one of these that would restore her powers – but they'd still need a witch to cast it.
She turned the page and stared at an intricate diagram, aware once more of what she had lost. Witchcraft was more than just a few trinkets and recited words. It was bone-deep, part of who she was; she felt lesser without it. Like her surroundings had been dulled; like she'd had a limb cut off. She was blind.
Jeremy reappeared again, startling her when he touched her arm. "I've checked the whole place. They're not here. So now what?"
Bonnie looked up at Stefan, trapped outside the door. He'd shifted suddenly, on the alert.
"Someone's coming!"
She moved closer to Jeremy instinctively, grasping his hand, and even in the urgency of the moment Jeremy found time to glance at her and smile. She squeezed his hand.
"Is it them?"
Her question was answered by Stefan's cry of pain. For the second time that day, he clutched his head and sank down to the ground, and a few moments later two figures stepped over his prone form. Jonas Martin stared at them, Luka at his shoulder.
"You shouldn't have come here."
"Doctor Martin," said Bonnie, sounding braver than she felt. "I've come to ask for you to give me my powers back."
"Well, you're wasting your time. Leave."
"You can't do this," said Jeremy. "It's not right."
His face darkened. "After what you did to my son? And today at school, you and that vampire threatened Luka again, and you still think you have any right to ask for anything from me?"
"I'm sorry about that," said Bonnie, "truly, I am, but we needed information and we still do – we have to find Elena–"
"Get out," said Jonas, "before I make you."
His tone brooked no argument. Bonnie glanced pleadingly at Luka, but he said nothing, his expression as grim as his father's. She tried one final time.
"We don't have to be enemies. The only reason we were before is because your plan involved killing Elena, but that doesn't need to happen now. We can call a truce, work out a way to use the dagger together..."
Behind the witches, Stefan was recovering. Bonnie saw him stand up; throw himself against the invisible barrier that prevented him from entering. But he was out there. There was little he could do.
"Jonas," Stefan panted. "She's right. We're not your enemies. Let us help you. Just give us Elena, that's all we want, Elena."
Jonas glanced back at Stefan, his expression turning to disgust. Luka looked nervous.
"Out," said Jonas. "Now!"
As he spoke, the broken door lifted up and flew towards them as though it had been thrown like a javelin. Bonnie threw herself out of the way with a cry, taking Jeremy with her. Jonas was advancing upon them, and she didn't need to have her powers to sense the magic surging around him; she tugged at Jeremy's arm and both of them fled. The moment they exited the apartment, the door slammed back into its rightful place, blocking them out.
The three of them stared at each other, breathless.
Negotiating had failed.
