Breaking The Bond
Chapter 4- Monroe, North Carolina
Surprisingly, it took until sundown to get to Monroe. The weird little town was the result of a thousand twisting roads, a couple of fork in the roads and a bunch of confusing looking mountain roads. We'd gotten lost a couple of times and Damon was slowly growing irritable. We hadn't found any blood banks on the way, to make things worse.
Monroe was an even quieter town than Durham had been and that was really saying something. Damon glared at the dashboard as he made the car through another tiny road and past the sign that said 'Greetings from Monroe, North Carolina'.
"Stupid hidden town," Damon grumbled, causing a tiny smile to form across my lips.
We made our way to the center of the town which was a couple of streets of tiny little shops. A few groups of teenagers were hanging out, looking drunk and happy and I remembered when that was me, Elena, Tyler, Matt, Caroline and sometimes Jeremy. Back before the Salvatore's came to Mystic Falls. Everything was easier then. We'd become such different people because of them. I didn't know if that was for the better but they'd changed us for good.
"Oooh, a hospital," I called, pointing in the direction of the quaint white medium building. It was a quiet town but everything in it was beautiful. There was ivy creeping up most of the buildings and there was a picturesque sort of feel to the town. A cozy, beautiful sort of ambience to the place.
Damon pulled into the parking lot before I could say a word. "Do you want to wait in the car?" He asked, once the car had stopped moving. His tone of voice was monotonous and tired at the same time.
"I'll wait in the parking lot," I stretched, getting up out of my seat and unfastening my seatbelt. I got out of the car and leaned against it, liking the feel of the cold air against my skin. I shivered a little however as a slightly chilly breeze made its way over to me.
Damon tossed me his trademark leather jacket and I was surprised at that gesture. He usually held that jacket close to him and wouldn't let anyone wear it. "Stay warm, and watch your back. I'll be back in a few minutes," He informed me, before he slipped into the building.
I rubbed my hands together to keep warm and then decided to put on Damon's jacket. It was a bit big on me to say the least, but it kept me snug and warm. I walked around the lot, watching what was probably the busiest street in Monroe, the street with a pizzeria and a couple of stores that sold clothes. I would have to force Damon to let me check them out. Especially the pizzeria; I was starving.
I felt a hand on my shoulder, and turned, shivering but there was no one there. The fact that Klaus had been here, along with Stefan, just a day ago, made me feel sick to the core. I wasn't ready to meet him in the flesh again. Through my bond dreams was bad enough. I saw a flash of blonde hair and blue eyes on a guy walking by but then he disappeared. I was going insane, having hallucinations about the devil himself.
I closed my eyes, pressing my fingers on my eyelids and trying to shake the images from my mind. I opened them again and the Klaus-like images were gone. I sighed, glad that I'd gotten them to disappear. My hand brushed against the piece of note paper in my pocket and I yanked it out, my eyes brushing quickly over the words that had freaked me out so much. The note that Klaus had left me in Durham. I slipped it back into my pocket just as Damon exited the hospital, a black bag in his hand.
"All set?" I asked Damon, who nodded. He was licking his lips already.
"I already had some in the bathroom. Do you want to grab something to eat?" Damon asked.
I nodded, "Sure, I saw a pizzeria over there. It looks good," I felt my stomach rumble and I was reminded of the fact that I hadn't eaten anything since my breakfast in the motel. Damon had eaten even less than me so he must be even hungrier.
Damon nodded, stopping only to slip his bag of blood into the boot of the car and closing it, securely.
"Don't get any blood on my car," I warned, and Damon just rolled his eyes and followed me across the street and towards the pizzeria.
The sign read 'Mia's Pizzeria' and it looked like a snug little place. We entered, and I realized immediately that this was a popular date venue. Couples were everywhere, hanging out and sharing bits of pizza. Damon realized this at the same time as I did and smirked.
"Do you want to go somewhere else?" I asked him, feeling slightly uncomfortable.
"I don't have a problem with this place, do you?" Damon asked, just as a server approached us, shooting a particularly seductive smile at Damon.
I shook my head, not wanting to appear picky. I hugged my body close and I remembered I was still wearing Damon's jacket.
"Table for 2?" The red haired server asked.
I nodded, and she grabbed 2 menus and led us over to a table by the window. The pizzeria had an awesome sort of ambience; I wouldn't mind going on a real date here. It was cute and everything was in shades of red and yellow kind of like a mozzarella pizza.
We sat down, and the server left us to look at the menus, smiling at Damon who was looking out of the window. I picked up a menu and started reading the different pizza types. I decided on a 'Bella Donna' pizza which had pieces of chicken and salami along with double cheese. I was starving to say the least. I picked a root beer along with it.
"Damon, what are you going to order?" I asked, as a black haired waitress started towards us, ready to take our order.
"Umm, whatever you're having," He muttered, looking particularly confused as he gazed onto the street.
"What's going on?" I asked, ignoring the girl who was standing by our table with a notebook, ready to take our order.
Damon shook his head, shooting me a meaningful look. "Nothing," He muttered, and he turned back to look at me.
"Umm, we'll have 2 Bella Donna's and 2 root beers," I told the waitress who nodded and scribbled it down.
"Anything else?" She asked, in a calm voice.
I shook my head. "Not now," I replied, and she nodded and backed away with our menus. "What the heck is going on?" I demanded, once she was gone.
"I don't know… I thought I saw something… I guess I'm just tired," Damon muttered, sounding bored out of his mind.
"Mmmm," I muttered, but I knew what he was talking about. This town reeked of Klaus. I wouldn't be surprised if he was still hanging around, waiting to pounce. "Where were the killings in this town, anyway?"
Damon closed his eyes as if trying to remember what he had read. "Er, I think they were at some sort of sorority that housed 50 or something girls for 'North Carolina State University'," He explained.
"Next stop then," I put in, looking out of the window at the quiet town streets.
"Yes, we might find a lead or something," He explained.
"I hope so," I replied, and I wondered if Klaus had left some sort of message for me like last time. I wondered how long Klaus would go on with his sickly game, dragging Stefan along with him.
The black haired waitress brought our pizza's over after another five minutes of silence. She placed them in front of us and then gently put the root beers down.
"Thank you," I smiled up at her and Damon just nodded his head at her. He didn't seem to be very interested in anything lately. His guilt was too much to carry around.
She nodded back at us and started off to another table, to take their orders. A bunch of teenagers entered; a group of 4 girls, and as I took a bite of my pizza, I tried to listen to what they were saying.
"You guys know Kelly Brenning?" A blonde girl was saying to her friends.
"Yeah, she was from that Sorority that the attack happened a few days ago. She died along with the rest of her friends and all the girls that lived in Graham House." A brunette with short hair replied as she flipped through the menu.
I took another bite of pizza and tried not to make it obvious that I was eavesdropping. I knew Damon was listening to; he was silent, and still trying to absorb as much useful information as possible.
"You know, most of them. Mischa Taylor survived. She's majorly traumatized though. She can hardly speak now. She just told me that she was reading some sort of stupid Chemistry book and then the lights went out and everyone started freaking out. Then there was screaming and weird noises. She jumped from the window, and got a broken leg but the animals that attacked didn't reach her. Apparently some wolves from the surrounding fields smelt the humans in Graham and decided to attack," Another girl with light brown hair put in, with wide eyes.
"Guys, I'm scared. They couldn't find the wolves. They apparently escaped," The brunette with short hair put in.
The fourth girl, a dark haired girl with wavy hair, smirked up at them. "You know what I think happened?" She asked.
The other three girls turned to look at her expectantly.
"I think that some vampires attacked Graham house," She put in, in a serious tone of voice and I felt my breath catch in my throat. I shared a wide-eyed look with Damon who was frozen.
The other three girls laughed. "Nice one, Areej," The blonde said to her friend.
"You need to get your head out of those Twilight books you're reading," The light haired brunette suggested.
"Yeah," The rest of them agreed then they went on to discuss their pizza order so I tuned them out.
"So I assume Graham House is the sorority that…" I trailed off, and Damon nodded.
"We need to get there as soon as possible. And how could Klaus and Stefan leave that girl, Mischa whatever?" Damon murmured, in a quiet voice so the girls couldn't hear what we were saying. Not that they were paying any attention.
Damon shrugged. "It's a messy move, but hey, nobody is perfect in these things, not even Klaus," He explained, as we started to eat our pizza again. We needed our full strength if we were going to make it through the day. I had a feeling it was going to be a hard one.
"We need to get a move on to Graham House, do you know where it is?" I asked.
Damon nodded, "Yes, I heard the nurses talking about it. Its a few streets away on the border between this town and the next," He murmured.
"And after that, I say we stop to talk to a certain girl called Mischa Taylor," I put in.
Damon smirked, "I like the way you think," He responded, as he took a big gulp of Root Beer.
I nodded, suddenly as euphoria flooded through me. I felt like I was walking on sunshine. Considering the fact that this emotion was coming from Klaus, I knew it was no good thing. Klaus's happiness most definitely included someone else's misery.
I couldn't stop a grin from forming across my face, and I grinned widely. Damon stared at me, "Why are you smiling like that?" He asked.
"Hmm, I'm just glad we're getting somewhere," I responded, once the happiness had died down. This was getting crazy. I didn't know how long I was going to be able to hide it from Damon. He wasn't stupid; he'd figure something was up sooner or later.
Damon nodded, and I ate another piece of pizza. "I'll take the rest of this to go. It's already dark so we have to set out to Graham house and then the hospital," I explained to him.
"Fine," He said, and then he called the waitress over and got the rest of my pizza to go before stuffing the rest of his in his mouth. I placed some money into her hands before Damon could pay and then smirked at him.
"Beat you!" I exclaimed.
Damon just looked at me like I was insane. "You're weird, Bonnie," He replied, as he stood up.
"Your jacket," I said, getting it off and handing it to him. "I have another one in the car,"
Damon looked at me. "Are you sure?" He asked, as he took my pizza to go and we started out of the pizza shop together.
I nodded. "Yup," I replied, and we crossed the parking lot to the hospital's one. "Hey crazy idea, but how about we talk to Mischa first and then go to the house seeing as we're already here?" I asked.
"Good idea, smart one," Damon smiled, and I smiled back at him as we neared the hospital doors. The hospital's front desk was manned by a couple of old aged nurses, chatting and gossiping with one another. We approached them, and I already had a story as to why we needed to visit Mischa. Damon should save his compulsion for when we needed it most.
"Hello, I'm here to see my boyfriend's sister, Mischa Taylor," I put in, a bright smile on my face. It was a wild guess that she had a brother but it looked like luck was on my side because the nurse's face lit up with recognition.
"He left just 5 minutes ago to pick some things up from the store. He said he'd be back soon," She told me, "What's your name, Dearie?"
"Delilah Greene and this is my friend Ben Torres," I explained to her, and she nodded, scribbling down our names.
"Okay, go on ahead. I'll tell Darius you're in there when he comes," She suggested, and I nodded; hopefully, we would be out of there by the time Darius, who was obviously Mischa's brother, came back.
Damon and I made our way through to the room that the nurse pointed towards and pushed the door open gently. The brunette with tanned skin and straight hair that reminded me of Elena's, lay on the single bed, her eyes flickering open and closed. As I neared her, I saw that her eyes were a light shade of blue-green.
"Mischa," I started, gently, as I approached her.
She looked up at me, confused. "Who are you?" She asked.
"I'm Darius's new girlfriend, Delilah," I explained to her.
She rolled her eyes, "Yes, and why are you here?" She asked, in a tired voice.
"I'm here to talk to you. You were there the day of the attack at Graham house weren't you?" I asked.
Mischa nodded a little tiredly, she winced as she stopped moving, rubbing her neck. "Yes, I was there. I don't want to talk about it anymore," She explained.
Damon stepped forward. "I'll make her talk," He hissed, "We don't have time,"
"Shh, Da-Ben," I muttered, pushing him back. "I just want to know what happened," I said, in a kind tone of voice.
Mischa sighed. "I don't remember much… I was studying for my chem. Exam and then the electricity got switched off and…" She started, and tears started to make their way out of her eyes. She wiped her face and I touched her shoulder to comfort her. I got a weird vibe from her and then I was swallowed into some sort of vision:
"Britney, would you turn that freaking music off? I'm trying to study?" Mischa was complaining as she sat on her bed, the chemistry book and a notebook in her hand.
"I'm listening to the new CD Areej gave me," Someone who I assumed was Britney called back from the adjoining room.
"I don't care if Jesus gave it to you, turn it the hell off!" Mischa yelled back.
"Fine, you nerd," Britney called in an annoyed tone of voice but I could tell she was laughing. She came into the room and I saw that she was a petite red haired girl with big brown eyes.
"How about you study for your Shakespeare class tomorrow, Brit?" Mischa asked her friend who sat down on the end of her bed.
"No thanks. I'm going to go talk to Scott on AIM," She jumped up from her seat and left the room, waving a little at her friend. "Good luck, Meesh,"
Mischa rolled her eyes at her friend looking back down to her book but then the lights started flickering on and off. "Stop messing around, Brit. I promise I'll come hang out with you when I'm done," She called to her friend.
"I didn't do anything," Britney called back.
The lights suddenly closed completely so it was pitch dark. I couldn't see a thing, let alone Mischa.
"What the hell? Really? Power cut now?" Mischa complained, hopping off of her bed.
Then there was the sound of screaming from downstairs. Mischa looked bored, "Guys, it's just for a few minutes! Chill, Marianna," She called probably to the girl who had screamed. More girls started to scream and then there was the sound of thuds and the smashing of glass.
"Britney!" Mischa called, but her friend had already started to scream. Mischa ran towards the door that led to her friend's bedroom but the door was closed. She pushed against it, shaking and out of breath as she heard doors slamming and more screaming downstairs.
"Britney, quit fooling around and open this door… it's not April Fools," Mischa complained, and I gathered she was the down to earth sort of girl who was no nonsense at the same time.
Britney screamed some more. "I can't… Leave me alone!" She screamed, "Go away…. Don't kill me….Ahhhhh…" Then there was a thud and the slamming of glass. Mischa heard the door open and then Klaus was standing there, Stefan behind him. The house was silent; all the other girls were dead.
Mischa screamed now, but no one could hear her. I watched in horror as Klaus sent Stefan at her before calling at him to stop. Stefan whirled around to face his boss. "What's going on?" Stefan asked, blood dripping from his face. I backed away from him, standing in the farthest corner of the room.
"Keep her alive. She can give Bonnie a message," Klaus smiled evilly, and then stepped forward to cup Mischa's cheek with his hand. Mischa screamed and tried to push him off but of course her attempts were futile; he was an Original Vampire and she was a human. A poor weak human.
He held her still. "Now, now. Don't scream… Look, dear," He started compelling her. "A girl called Bonnie will come and visit you in Hospital, you tell her that she's going the right way and I will see her soon. Tell her I love her very much and that I do not share with anyone. The house was attacked by wolves, and you jumped from the window and tried to escape. You did not see us" She repeated what he'd said and then he let go of her cheek.
Then he threw her down on the floor. Mischa backed away from him until she was standing behind the window. Klaus fake lunged at her, causing her to hit against the window and smash it, falling through.
My hand came to my cheek as I saw Klaus laugh and then Stefan was standing there, a sad looking gaze on his face but then Klaus ordered him to make the 'usual' preparations and I was pulled out of the vision again.
"Bonnie, are you okay?" Damon was asking, a worried look on his face.
Mischa looked confused. "Wait, you're Bonnie?" She asked, as if she was remembering something.
I nodded. "Yes,"
"Bonnie, you're going the right way," She started and I covered her mouth before she could say anything else. I couldn't let her complete what Klaus had compelled her to say to me. Damon would know too much about us and the bond.
"Damon, we have to leave now…" I exclaimed, and we started out of the hospital and into the street. We made our way to the car and got in, quickly, "Go go go!" I exclaimed, as I saw a blonde girl and a tanned brown-haired guy with blue-green eyes who looked so much like Mischa, I knew in an instant was her brother.
Damon pulled out of the hospital parking lot and sped through the streets of the little town until the hospital was out of view.
"To Graham house," I said, and Damon nodded, and sped in the right direction.
"What the heck is going on?" He demanded, once we were far away from the hospital and town center. We started driving through emptier and less populated areas of Monroe, and I knew we'd soon be at Graham House.
"I had a vision about what happened. It was Klaus and Stefan alright. He compelled Mischa so she could get to me the message that I'm going the right way," I murmured.
"Wait a second, Klaus knows where we're going?" Damon asked, looking at me.
"Kinda, he expects us to come so he's kind of teasing us," I explained, as Damon pulled into a street with small apartment complexes. The one nearest to us was labeled 'Newton House'. We immediately recognized Graham house as the one that was surrounded by police cars and had yellow tape around it, warning people that it was 'dangerous' to be there. Tons of reporters stood with their camera's speaking.
Damon parked a few streets away, near the border to a town called 'Lincolnville'. "So we can get away easier," He explained, as we exited the car.
"You ready?" I asked, and Damon nodded.
"Sure, why wouldn't I be?" He demanded of me, but his voice was weak.
"I don't know," I responded, but I did know. It was because Stefan had been here. It was because we'd missed him. I reached my hand out to give him a little support and Damon took it after hesitating for a few seconds. I squeezed his hand as we approached a lone police officer near the side.
"You will let us in. We are private investigators by the name of Holmes and Watson," Damon compelled and the guy nodded.
"Welcome, Holmes, Watson," He robotically held the tape up so we could pass underneath it and I had to chuckle a little at the names Damon had given us.
"Original names, much?" I asked, as we entered the house grounds. We crept around to the back of the house where the concentration of people was less. No one asked us why we were there so that was good.
"They were the first I could come up with, Delilah," Damon sneered, and I laughed.
"I'd just listened to that song 'Hey There Delilah'," I admitted, and Damon just rolled his eyes.
"Let's get to business," He murmured.
The house was forbidden for anyone to enter, with armed guards everywhere but I could see there was a window open, the curtains blowing out. Damon saw it too and we realized it was the only entrance we had.
"Okay, hold onto my hands," He ordered, taking my other hand. I was reminded of when Klaus had done that. I felt a connection with Damon as well, except for the fact that Damon's was warmer and friendlier.
In a second, we were at the window, and Damon helped me inside. It was an empty dorm room. "Okay, we probably have about 10 minutes before anyone notices," Damon said, "Split up, okay?"
I nodded, "Stay safe!" I whispered and Damon smirked at me as if saying 'do I ever not?' He zipped out of the room, leaving me alone.
I scanned the room quickly but there was nothing suspicious. I tried the one beside it. There was nothing out of the ordinary. The rooms looked merely abandoned, not the scene of a million murders. I saw some blood on the floor and winced a little before continuing out of the room. I tried the rooms to the right because Damon had gone left.
My Lovely.. Klaus's voice murmured in my ear.
I jumped but I'd gotten kind of used to it happening. I waited for him to continue.
604….604…604…
What the hell was he talking about? Then a lightbulb in my head flickered. Room 604! I saw that the rooms here were labeled from 404 to 408 so I headed to the staircase, trying hard not to feel freaked out. I made my way to the sixth floor and looked around for room number 4. I found it easily at the end of the hallway.
I pushed the door open, hearing the eerie creak of the door. I reminded myself that I was a kickass witch and I didn't need to be scared but it was hard when the surroundings were so sinister. This room was dark and when I flicked the light open, I noticed that there were pools of blood on the floor. It seemed that the cleaners or investigators or whoever hadn't reached this floor yet in their search.
Other than the blood, the room looked completely normal. The owner of this room was called Flora, from the millions of letters and photos that were left on the desk and on the bulletin board. I then noted a lighter with the letter 'K' on it. Aha. So this was what might help.
I reached for it, and felt a surge of energy flow through my body like I couldn't let go of it. I kept holding onto the lighter and a message formed in my mind. Klaus had somehow gotten a witch to record it for him:
My Dear Bonnie, you made it to Monroe… Let me tell you a little secret.. Tomorrow morning we strike Newberry, South of where you are… See if you can catch us…I'm adoring our little game… Goodbye for now, my lovely.
I tapped the lighter again but nothing else happened. I slipped it into my pocket and checked my watch. It was 10 PM now, we had to get to Newberry before tomorrow morning; we had to stop Klaus and Stefan. If we didn't, the deaths of the people would be on my conscience because I'd known about them.
I ran down the steps, tripping and scratching my feet but I didn't care. I had to find Damon. "Damon," I called, and he appeared at my side.
"We have to leave, NOW!" I muttered, in an urgent tone of voice. Damon looked at me confused but then nodded.
He wrapped his arms around me, sending a tingle of electricity through my body, then led me towards a window. He forced it open and then we floated gracefully down, as if we were flying. We ran out of the area and towards the car, a frantic look on my face.
"Newberry, South Carolina!" I exclaimed, once we were in the car.
"What?" Damon demanded, sounding perplexed at my sudden outburst.
"That's where the next killing will be tomorrow morning," I explained.
"How do you know?" Damon asked, but he sped the car along and out of the cities borders.
"Because, I just do, okay?" I murmured, before I yawned.
"You look tired, how about you get some sleep?" Damon asked, as he kept his eyes on the road.
"I'm not tired," I said, but I yawned again and Damon laughed.
"Sleep, Judgey. I'll wake you when we get to Newberry… Did you happen to find out where the killings are going to happen exactly?" Damon asked.
I shook my head. "No, just the name of the place. Klaus left some sort of note to me," I explained, leaning my head back and looking at him.
Damon nodded, "He's getting very annoying," He grumbled.
"I'll say.." I murmured, but I trailed off because my eyes were closing. I fell asleep, feeling incredibly safe next to Damon Salvatore.
I guess I was kind of waiting for Klaus to pull me into another bond-induced dream but my dreams remained normal.
Klaus didn't try to contact me through a dream again.
I wondered what the hell he was up to.
A/N: And that's chapter 4! I hope you guys liked this because I LOVED writing this immensely.. (:
Feed the REVIEW meter please ;)
I'll try to post the next one soon….
Lily xx
Disclaimer: I don't own TVD.
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