Warning: violence
MY HEAD SNAPPED BACK and my awareness of the warehouse faded as I slid into William's memories. Ordinarily, I would search only for what I needed to spare myself some effort and pain. But that took time. And specific knowledge of what I was looking for. Neither of which I had. I shuffled through the man's memories as if I were frantically searching a filing cabinet, tossing aside what I didn't need.
There. A flash of triumph. He'd found something. I delved deeper. An address? I followed his memories from that point forward, speeding them along as necessary. He sat in a car, wiping sweating palms on his jeans. He'd found her, he'd finally found the bitch after all this time. He'd been patient and this was his reward.
A young Hispanic woman with long dark hair like silk got out of a car in a driveway down the street. She bent down into the back seat and came up with a toddler balanced on her hip. They were beautiful, beautiful and his. How dare they think they could leave him? How dare she? Her life was his. She promised, said her vows. Then she ran. From him.
He exited the car and shut the door quietly. There was no sense in warning her now. Not when he was so close. He slid up behind her like a snake ready to strike. As she unlocked the door, he pressed the point of his knife into her back. When she tried to scream, he clamped a large hand over her mouth and pushed her into the house.
He shoved her again and she stumbled forward, falling against the couch. Her feet slid underneath her as she scrambled, trying to escape. He gripped her arm and spun her back to face him so he could enjoy her wide eyes and trembling lips. Her arms wrapped around the now screaming toddler as if she could protect it from him. Pathetic.
He sliced his knife through the air, cutting through the delicate skin of her cheek. She screamed and tears rolled down her face to mix with the blood. "Please." She begged him, pleading for her life.
"You left me, Sofia. Till death do us part. Don't you remember?"
I cried out and fell to my knees as he plunged the knife forward again and again, killing both his wife and his child. He stared down at their bodies, remorseless and unfeeling. Only satisfied that they'd finally gotten what they deserved for leaving him. I stayed with him as he cleaned up in a small bathroom before returning to his car and driving. He checked into a hotel in the small town I'd found earlier and waited for death to come.
And come it did, in the form of Klaus Mikaelson and his witch. But he told them nothing. He erased all evidence of her from their records. They wouldn't know where to find her, where to even begin to look. She was just one in the midst of so many they kept track of. Let her and the boy rot.
The witch subdued him with magic. Painful magic that ran through me as I experienced the memory. Then they tied him to a chair and the vampire approached him with a knife and a smile. With a grunt of effort, I stopped the forward progression of the memories. Only then did I realize blood and tears both poured down my face. I ignored it and spun backward through his memories. Back, back, until I reached the moment he killed the terrified woman and her son.
I climbed to my feet, and placed my hands on either side of the bastard's head. I twisted and warped his memories until he was the victim. I planted feelings of terror and desperation along with a sense of betrayal that he would die at the hands of one who had been hunting him for so long. Memories of being unable to protect his child from the threat, of failing to stop the inevitable end.
He felt the pain of a blade slicing through tender flesh and organs. Only he didn't die. No, he had to watch the child in his arms die as he too was stabbed again and again. Another twist of my magic and the memories started to play in an endless loop. It was dark magic, black magic, and it hurt. It was agonizing, but it was worth every moment of pain. He couldn't be allowed to just die. Not after that.
Finally, I pried my hands away and stumbled a few steps before dropping back to my knees. The impact shot through me though I barely noticed. I trembled violently and my hands were locked into claws. Pressing them against my chest, I bent over until my head touched the floor and screamed. I had known the pain would come, had known the price, anticipated it. Now I just wanted it to go away. Streams of hot tears ran down my face and blood still leaked from my nose. Make it stop. Oh God, please let it stop.
A warm hand settled on my back and tremors rolled through my overly sensitive nerves. "Cassidy?" Elijah's frantic voice told me the hand belonged to him. I wanted to respond but it hurt. God, it hurt so much. I sucked in a sharp breath and rocked back on my legs, pulling my head up from the floor. I managed to stutter out the address. Another hand cupped my chin and lifted my head. Klaus crouched in front of me and I looked at him through blurry eyes.
"They're dead. He killed them both."
He started to move away and I grasped his wrist to stop him. "Wait."
His hand stayed on my chin even as he frowned and looked me over. William whimpered then let out an ear-piercing scream which made me jerk in surprise. Klaus's head whipped to the side then back to me. My pain subsided enough I could straighten a little and Klaus moved his hand to my shoulder.
"He will die over and over again in his head as long as his body lives," I said. My voice was hoarse and my throat hurt. "Have someone cast a good stasis spell on him and that could be centuries."
His eyebrows shot up over wide eyes. A flash of pain tore through me again and I lurched forward expecting to hit the concrete. Instead, Klaus pulled me toward him and wrapped an arm around me to keep me pressed to his chest. His hand ran up and down my back as I began to tremble again.
He barked a few orders, never removing his arm from around me. Finally, he stood and lifted me into his arms. I was vaguely aware of him still holding me as he climbed into the car. I laid my head against his chest and passed out. When I woke, I was on a bed in an unfamiliar room. Klaus wiped my face with a warm cloth. I started to drift away again but he put his arm behind me and sat me up. "Come on, love. You need to drink."
He bit into his wrist and held it to my mouth. I held onto his arm with trembling hands and drank. After several swallows, I pulled away and laid back down. "Thank you," I whispered. A hand brushed the hair away from my face as I went back to sleep.
When I woke the next morning, I blinked my eyes open anticipating the remnants of pain to have my muscles and my head aching. Instead, I felt better than I had in a long time and was certain I had Klaus's blood to thank. I sat up to find myself in my own room. I glanced over to check the time only to find an envelope with my name on it sitting in front of the clock.
With a frown, I tore it open to find a check with several zeros and Klaus's signature. Irritation flared through me and my hand clenched around the paper. I hadn't worked the spell to get anything out of him. I sighed and rubbed my hand across the envelope in a feeble attempt to remove some of the creases I'd placed there. Obviously, the hybrid and I needed to have a discussion, but I wanted to get dressed first.
The thought made me realize I was not in the same clothes I wore to the warehouse the night before. My clothes had undoubtedly been dirty and bloody, but I wondered who had changed them. A quick shower, my favorite faded jeans and a worn t-shirt and I was ready to face the Originals. I snatched the envelope from the bed and headed downstairs.
I saw them sitting outside through the large glass doors and went into the kitchen to grab a cup of coffee. I had a feeling I was going to need it. I slid the door open and went out to join them. The morning was brisk but not uncomfortable though the cement of the patio was cold on my bare feet.
"Cassidy," Elijah said sounding happy to see me. "How are you feeling?" Klaus said nothing, just watched me with a blank expression.
They had an empty chair between them and I claimed it, pulling my feet up into the seat to get them off the ground. I took a sip of my coffee before looking at either of them. I handed the envelope to Klaus as I thought about how to phrase what I needed to say. He appeared completely unsurprised that I returned the check to him, making me wonder if it was some sort of test.
"I told you it wasn't enough money, brother," he said, surprising me. I glanced from him to Elijah to find the older Original shrugging his shoulders as he looked off into the distance as if it didn't matter to him.
I leaned forward and sat my cup on the low table in front of us. "Are you serious?" I said quietly, carefully.
"In regards to what?" Elijah said turning to me. "We meant no insult with what was offered if that is the issue."
"You have got to be kidding me." I ran my tongue over my teeth as I contemplated how to tell off two Originals without getting killed in the process. I clenched my teeth together, working the muscle in my jaw then turned back to Klaus who was studying me in confusion. "Did I ask you for money?"
His eyes lit in understanding. "There is something else you desire? That is easily arranged. Just name it. Your help was invaluable last evening."
That brought me to my feet and I ignored the bite of cold against my soles. I turned on the brothers in a fine fury. "You don't have to pay me off to get my cooperation. I helped last night because you needed something that I could provide. Not because I expected any sort of compensation."
I raked a hand through my still damp hair and growled in frustration as they both stared at me with blank expressions. "Do you think that I would do that, that I would put myself through that pain, for money? My God, I tortured a man and told Klaus how to keep it up indefinitely. Yes, please pay me for that, it will make me feel so much better."
I paced away from them then back. "I didn't ask you for anything because I don't want anything. I told you when we first met I want nothing from you. I had intended to politely decline the payment but you two pissed me off, so thanks for that."
A/N: Thank you for all the follows, favorites, reviews. Glad you're liking the story!
