Chapter 10
Marcel lowered his sunglasses and looked around the winery. He had to agree the place looked amazing. He just hoped the wine would be as good as promised. Usually he would have preferred getting one of the men to go fetch one for him but this time, the event was special. It was the time to celebrate. He was this close to finding Stefan Salvatore and bringing him back to Klaus. Of course, he couldn't do that without something to drink. Especially after his friend had started drinking like he was inhaling oxygen.
Ever since Caroline had left, Klaus had not been the same. He could still remember the day when he had gotten particularly drunk and started hurting himself. When he had stopped his friend, Klaus had revealed that if Caroline hadn't miscarried, it would've been the due date of her pregnancy.
He truly felt bad for his friend. All his life, he had seen Klaus hating himself when the truth was that Klaus was a good man. Sure he wasn't a saint but he was better than many others. He had saved Marcel from poverty and starvation and turned him into a man of great power. Everything Marcel was today, it was because of Niklaus Mikaelson and he would spend every day of his life making sure that he returned the favor to his guru.
Marcel walked to the entrance of a huge house. He was surprised. He thought that this winery was run by professionals not a family. He rang the bell several times but no one answered. Shrugging, he simply let himself in. He looked around. "Hello?" he asked. Surprisingly his voice didn't echo in the building.
He walked closer and entered an office type room. Okay. He was definitely in the right place. He got his phone out and texted the owner to come. The reply was almost instant. Give me five minutes, I'll be there.
He tucked his phone back into his pocket. He looked around the office. It was not very grand but it had a homely vibe about it. He walked around the desk and saw a couple of photo frames sitting on the table. One, however, had been placed face down on the table.
He ignored that and looked at the others. One was of two blonde kids. A girl who was laughing and the boy with a mischievous glint in his eyes. The rest of the pictures were all of those kids. Hmm the guy was a 'family person'.
Just as he was about to turn over the picture placed on the desk, he heard someone whispering. He frowned, placing the picture back on the table without seeing it and strained his hearing but couldn't hear properly. He focused harder and heard the whispering coming from under the table. He bent down and placed one hand behind his back on the gun underneath his shirt. Just in case.
When he bent down and looked he was completely surprised. The same two kids were hiding under the desk. The girl was giggling while the boy was frowning and giving her the signal to shut up. After watching them for a minute, they both turned to him and stopped. They both looked like a deer caught in front of the headlights.
He gave them an easy smile and they relaxed only a bit. The girl took charge. "Hi" she whispered.
"Hey there" Marcel replied bending on his knees to talk with them more easily. "What are you both doing here?" he asked. The kids chuckled softly with an innocent mirth in their eyes. They looked exactly like the naughty kids.
"We're going to scare Damon" the girl answered giggling as she blew her blonde curls from her face and gave him a smile. She had dimples.
The boy nudged her lightly. "We don't talk to strangers Ella" he scolded her. "Mommy is going to be angry when I tell her" he added and Marcel was impressed. There weren't a lot of kids who told everything to their parents like this.
The girl frowned and looked down at her hands. Marcel held out his hand for them to shake. "I'm Marcel" he introduced himself.
The boy looked at his hand skeptically but the girl easily grabbed his hand and shook it. "I'm Ella F- she was cut off as her brother instantly gave her a glare and turned to Marcel. "She's Eleanor my baby sister and I'm Nicholas" he said somewhat over protectively.
Ella huffed. "I'm not his baby sister. He's only a minute older" she complained crossing her tiny arms over her chest in the confined space under the desk causing her brother to bump into the side of the table.
"Ella!" he groaned as he rubbed his elbow.
She ignored him and turned to Marcel. "He's not Nicholas. You can call him Nick" she said sweetly with a toothy grin. "We all call him that and I'm Ella" she replied poking her tongue in her brother's direction.
"You can call me Marcel. Even though my name is Marcellus" he introduced himself again. "See? Now we're not strangers" he pointed out but the boy still looked skeptical before he flashed Marcel an amusing, cunning smile.
"Well, Marcel" Nick started tauntingly. "If you're truly our friend then how about you prove it" he suggested diplomatically. The boy was really smart. He reminded him a lot of Kol and his theatrics.
The dark skinned man nodded.
"The man you're here to meet is Damon" he told him as if he didn't know. "You're going to go sit in your chair and wait quietly till he comes. When he does come, we're going to scare him" he ordered him and Marcel nodded bemused. It was the first time he was being bossed around by a little boy. "If he's not scared, we'll know you tipped him off and well then it's your funeral" the boy threatened casually as he pouted dramatically. This boy truly was a piece of work.
"Okay friend but you might want to keep it down if you don't want to get caught" Marcel advised and stood up before walking to his chair across the table and sitting.
They all had to wait only a couple of minutes before Damon came into the room, grumbling under his breath. He extended a hand towards Marcel. "Hey. Sorry I'm late. Got a little caught up in something" he excused.
Marcel nodded accepting it.
Damon went and just as he dragged his chair back, the kids jumped from underneath the table screaming. Damon flinched and groaned loudly before pointing to the door of his office. "Out. Both of you" he told them, annoyed that he fell for their pranks again. "Now. Or I'm telling your mom" he warned and watched as the boy poked his tongue in his direction and ran off laughing while the girl flipped her hair over her shoulder dramatically.
"If you tell mommy about this, I'll tell her about how you and Enzo 'accidently' smashed her pumpkin last week" she told him grinning. Marcel raised his eyebrows, impressed by both siblings. Clearly, the boy wasn't the only smart one.
Damon opened the drawer of his desk and pulled out a chocolate bar and handed it to her. "There. Happy?" he asked annoyed.
"Very" she replied sweetly. "Bye" she added hugging the chocolate to her chest. She then turned to Marcel. "It was nice meeting you" she answered with her sweet voice and hopped off.
"Sorry about that" Damon mumbled opening his drawer and pulling out a package. "These kids are devil's little spawns" he commented before handing him the package. He read a list. "Delivery for… Henry George?" he asked reading his name off the list.
Marcel nodded with a fake smile. Of course, he wouldn't use his real name. The police was after him for so many crimes. He couldn't let even the slightest thing slip. That was what Klaus had taught him. "Yeah that's me" he answered pulling out an envelope and handing it to Damon. "The money" he elaborated.
"Okay. Well it's been a pleasure" he said standing up and extending his hand towards the dark skinned man.
Marcel stood up. "They're your kids?" he asked curiously. There was something about them that seemed so familiar.
Damon shrugged. "Relatives" he answered vaguely.
Marcel nodded and gave him a smile before heading off. As soon as he was in his car, he dialed the last number on his contact book. The call was answered on the third ring. "Marcel" the voice sang.
"Diego, my man" he answered with a bright smile. "I need a little info"
"Sure. But why didn't you get tech to do it for you? Just asking"
Marcel sighed. "Because it's important and I don't want it to get leaked" he told him seriously. "The address you gave me for the vineyard in Milan. Who does it belong to?" he asked as he pulled out of the driveway and started driving away.
"Just give me a second"
There was silence on the line for about a minute before Diego's uncertain voice came through. "It belongs to a Damon" he answered. "Damon Salvatore" he particularized.
Marcel nodded. "Salvatore huh?" he mused. "Okay. Thanks" he said and cancelled the call. He typed the address of the vineyard on his phone and sent it out to a couple of men, ordering them to keep an eye on all the members living there or guests. He had to return back to New York to his friend but that didn't mean he'd let go of this new lead.
Caroline settled Ella and Nick into the backseat of the black SUV before shutting the door and climbing into the driver seat. She rolled down the window. "Get the housekeeper to clean the guest room again and make sure everything is in there" she instructed Damon who rolled his eyes and waved her.
"Go Barbie or the bitch is going to blame me again" he shooed her away.
"DAMON!" She exclaimed pointing towards the kids. His bad language was going to affect her kids so much.
"Witch bitch it's all the same to them" he whispered shrugging.
"Mommy let's go. Aunt Kat must be waiting" Ella whined bouncing in her seat.
Caroline turned to look at her. "In your seat Ella Mikaelson" she rebuked.
Damon shook his head before turning to Ella who had her arms crossed in front of her chest. "Get your seatbelt on. Wouldn't want you to get hurt right Princess?" he asked looking at her with wide eyed, knowing she'd listen to him. As expected she cracked a smile and clicked her seatbelt before blowing Damon a kiss.
Caroline laughed before she started the engine and started driving away. "Good bye Damon" Ella called out loudly from her window and waved him.
"Okay Ella. Head inside. Mommy's gonna roll the window up" Caroline said softly before she pulled out of the vineyard and drove to the airport.
They stood there, waiting for Katherine to arrive for fifteen minutes, before the brunette showed up with a huge grin on her face. Caroline ran forward and hugged her best friend. "Katherine!" she exclaimed happily.
"Care bear" she responded cheekily. "Where are my lovely kids?" she asked teasingly as they walked towards the kids.
"We're here Auntie Kat!" Ella exclaimed excitedly bouncing up and down. Katherine made a shocked face.
"Really?" she asked exaggerating. "I'm not sure. I'm looking for Ella and Nick" she stated. "They are these cute little babies and have the most adorable dimples" she explained and cupped Ella's chubby cheeks, squishing them together.
"We're not babies anymore. We're about to be five" Ella responded nudging her brother and showing up her five little fingers.
"You grow up so fast" Katherine said in a childlike tone and twirled Ella before kissing her cheek. She turned to Nick who was grinning at her. "And look at you, young man" she said fanning herself. "You are so hot!" she exclaimed.
Nicholas smiled and hugged Katherine. "I missed you too Aunt Katherine" he greeted. "I hope you brought me a good gift" he added.
"Nicholas!" Caroline rebuked holding Katherine luggage.
He shrugged guiltily in response. She was staying for their fifth birthday after all. "Let's go. Who are we waiting for?" Katherine asked holding the kids' hands as they bounced enthusiastically.
Caroline bit her lip and looked around. "Just a minute. I asked Enzo to come help with your luggage. I don't know why he's not here yet…" Caroline complained making Katherine roll her eyes.
"Looking for someone gorgeous?" a British accent came from behind. Caroline turned and smiled at him. There stood Lorenzo Augustine with a smirk on his face. He walked towards Caroline and pecked her lightly on her lips at which the kids groaned and made puking faces.
Katherine rolled her eyes. "Come on kids. Aunt Kat will drive you guys home today" she announced and snatched the keys from Caroline and ran towards the car before the blonde had a chance to protest. "I trust that you can come home with my luggage?" she asked, settling the kids into the backseat.
"Yes we'll follow you" Enzo said grumpily. He never was a fan of Katherine. The girl had too much sass. He grabbed Caroline's hand and steered Katherine's luggage trolley with his other hand.
He settled it into the trunk of his car before opening the door for Caroline and then getting in himself. "You're staying for dinner right?" Caroline asked after he started driving.
"Depends. What's for dessert?" he asked suggestively, wriggling his eyebrows at her.
Caroline gave him her own smirk. "Nothing you haven't had before" she retorted. "Can we stop at the superstore? I need to buy some stuff for dinner" she said pointing to the closest shop.
"Sure" he said and pulled over.
After an hour and twenty minutes, Caroline and Enzo made it home where they found Damon pacing as soon as they entered through the front door. Caroline's smile dropped at seeing him so frustrated. "What's wrong Damon?" She asked softly.
He turned to look at her. "Please tell me the kids were with you" he pleaded desperately.
Caroline shook her head. "No. They're with Kat" she told him. "Aren't they here yet?" she asked a little worried. They should have been back by now.
"I just got a call that Katherine had an accident. She's in a hospital. Her car was wrecked" he told her worriedly and grabbed his own car keys. "I thought the kids were with you" he said running a hand through his hair. "We have to go now" he urged her more forcefully.
Caroline nodded and she faintly remembered Enzo helping her into his car and then he began trailing after Damon's car. All the way through, she kept wiping the tears that would stream down her cheeks. Her friend and her poor babies. She didn't know what she'd do if anything happened to them.
She knew she'd die if anything ever happened to them. She'd have no one and nothing left for her in this world. The thought scared her so much, she began to sob uncontrollably. Enzo placed a reassuring hand on her knee. "Calm down. It'll all be okay gorgeous" he said softly. "We're going to get the kids and your psycho BFF and then we're going to come back home and you're going to cook some amazing dinner for us" he told her comfortingly.
Caroline smiled weakly, accepting his words temporarily.
After minutes, which felt like hours to Caroline, they reached the hospital. The nurse guided them to the emergency room where Caroline saw Katherine and Nicholas sitting.
"Oh my God! Nick!" she cried and hugged her son, who hugged her back.
Caroline looked at her son from head to toe assuring herself he was okay. "Are you okay?" she asked holding him close to her chest. "Oh baby I'm so sorry" she wept out and more and more tears leaked her eyes. "Where's your sister?" she asked and watched as Nick frowned and looked at his feet ashamed.
"Kat" she turned to her friend who had her right arm in a cast and a bandage on her forehead. "Are you okay?" she asked realizing her friend had been in the accident too.
Katherine nodded. "I'm fine. Caroline I'm so sorry" she said sadly and looked at Caroline with sympathy.
Caroline's eyes widened. "No please" she sobbed out. "Where's Ella?" she asked. Her voice trembling and shaky. "WHERE'S ELLA KAT?!" she shouted at her best friend.
"She's under observation. She had a nose bleed. Doctor said it might be an internal bleeding" Damon answered her question with a grim expression on his face as he held Caroline. "I just checked with the nurse. They took her in a few minutes ago before we came" he elaborated.
"No no! Please" Caroline shook her head and grabbed Damon's arm for support as tears blinded her vision. "My baby" she sniffled out.
Enzo realized that this was turning into something very unpleasant and tense, so he turned to Nick with a smirk. "Do they have a vending machine here cause I just got my wages today and I have a feeling I need to invest it on some serious junk food" he teased the boy and watched as Nick's eyes brightened.
Nicholas nodded and held out his hand for Enzo. "I know the way if you pay" he retorted with his own small grin.
Enzo laughed and shook his hand. "Deal" he agreed. "Now let's go mate" he said and took him away.
Damon guided Caroline to the sitting area and Katherine followed them. "How did this happen? Weren't you looking where you were going?" Damon hissed at the brunette as Caroline kept crying her eyes out. If anything happened the little girl inside, not only would Caroline's life be affected but also his. These kids were his lifeline too. Their liveliness and playfulness had pulled Damon out of his darkest days and Ella was particularly close to Damon's heart. She had been able to fill the hole in his heart that had been caused after Rose's death.
Katherine turned to Caroline and kneeled in front of her. "I'm so sorry Caroline" she said again but somehow her words had a deeper meaning.
Caroline sniffed and wiped the tears from her cheeks. "What happened?" she asked seriously.
"Remember when I came to you guys?" she asked and they both nodded. "I didn't come only because I realized that being with you guys was where I belonged" she told them. "I was running from someone" she admitted.
Caroline's eyes widened. "Who were you running from?" she asked, worried.
"Klaus"
"Why? Why would he want to hurt you and why would you run from him?" Damon asked finding a hard time believing the story.
Katherine sighed. She could exactly remember the day like it was just yesterday. After all that was the day, her perfect life had been burnt to ashes.
Katherine looked at herself in the mirror and wiped the smudged eyeliner from her eyes and soothed any type of ruined makeup from her skin. No one could ever know that Katherine Pierce had cried. Even if it had been because of the birth of her best friend's babies. Eleanor and Nicholas Mikaelson. She smiled at that.
A soft knocked interrupted her from her thoughts. "Come in" she said loudly.
Elijah came in and her smile widened. She had never been happier in her life than she had been with Elijah. Her life was a dream come true. The scowl on Elijah's face, however, told a different story. "What's wrong?" she asked softly going to him.
He opened his mouth to say something but stopped before continuing again. "Where is she?" he asked simply.
Katherine frowned. "Who?" she asked.
"Caroline" he told her curtly. "I know that you have knowledge of her whereabouts" he informed her, not falling for her shocked expression. "I won't ask again, where is she Katerina?" he inquired in a more stern manner.
"I don't know what you're talking about" she denied looking away from him.
"I've seen your phone records. You've been receiving text messages and calls from anonymous foreign numbers. Now I can't for the life of it figure out, what reason would you have to delete those numbers from the permanent call log" he assumed. "Give me her location Katerina" he ordered her harshly.
Katherine shook her head. She knew she couldn't lie to Elijah but she could also never betray her friend. "You checked my phone records? Are you spying on me Elijah?" she asked glaring him, trying to turn the tables.
Elijah sighed and cupped her cheek. "Katerina you of all people should understand the importance of a second chance. My brother needs just that. Have you not seen how he is falling apart? He hasn't been sober since the day she felt. He has been killing and causing more havoc than before" he explained and for a minute, he couldn't shake off the image of his incapacitated brother. "He deserves a second chance. He needs it Katerina. Don't take it away from him. You know as well as I that the only one to fix him will be Caroline. His wife. Now I need to know where she is" he demanded again.
Katherine closed her eyes and sighed in the pleasure she enjoyed from his touch, knowing she would never have it again. She stepped back from him. "I'm sorry Elijah. I can't. You have your loyalty that lies with your brother and I have mine. Although I love you and I would do anything for you. I just can't betray her. Besides she's just beginning to be happy again. I can't steal that from her" she reasoned shaking her head.
"Did you know about her plan before she had escaped?" he asked quietly.
Katherine sighed. "Yes. I helped her" she admitted.
Elijah opened his mouth to speak but someone cut him to it. "You traitor!" Klaus screeched from the doorway. Katherine's eyes widened and she took a step back in fear as Klaus fully entered the room. An almost empty bottle of bourbon in his hand, explaining his inebriated state. "Where she is? Tell me or I will kill you" he threatened. "She's my wife. She's mine and she only has the right to be happy with me" he claimed slurring while trying to speak. "Tell me where she is!" he roared as he stumbled towards her.
However, before Klaus could take another step towards her Elijah turned to her and mouthed. 'Run'
And 'Run' she had.
"Katherine… I… I'm so sorry" Caroline mumbled hearing her friend's story. So she was responsible for Elijah and Katherine's breakup. Maybe running away had caused too many hearts to break. Maybe she shouldn't have done it.
"It's okay Caroline. It had to happen someday" Katherine assured her, shrugging, but Caroline could tell that the brunette was still hurt. "Today I was being followed. I didn't want to go to the vineyard because then they'd get the address and obviously it would lead straight to you and the kids. So I turned around and then we lost the car so I slowed down but out of nowhere the car hit us. The kids would've been safe but Ella wasn't wearing her seatbelt. I'm sorry. I should've made sure she was wearing it" she apologized.
Caroline shook her head. "It's okay. Let's just hope Ella's okay" she said in a small voice. "So he's still looking for me?" she asked after a while.
"Yes. He's looking everywhere and anywhere. He's been looking for Stefan because there is no one better than Stefan in tracking someone. He's trying to find me. Well he wants to kill me but he's looking for me to get to you" Katherine explained and then stood up. "Which is why I have to leave" she said.
Caroline frowned. "What? Why? No Kat you can't. You're hurt" she argued.
"I have to. He'll find you if I don't"
Caroline shook her head exasperated. "Then let him" she said. "Let him find me!" she exclaimed annoyed.
"Blondie. Control yourself. You don't know what you're saying" Damon warned her calmly.
Katherine nodded in agreement. "Look, I'll be back before you guys know it" she promised. "Don't worry about me. I'll go disappear with Stefan" she joked.
Caroline hugged her friend. "I'm sorry you lost Elijah because of me" she whispered softly.
Katherine pulled back and smirked. "Give the kids my best" she said. "Damon, can you drop me to the airport?" she asked and he nodded.
"I'll be back in. If anything happens, call me" Damon said and kissed Caroline's cheek. "Be strong. Okay? Ella's going to be okay." he promised and walked out of the hospital.
Caroline sighed and sat back in the hospital waiting room chairs. Soon Enzo and Nick joined her. "Hey buddy" Caroline said softly, picking him up and settling him on her lap. "How are you?" she asked.
"I'm fine" he said shrugging. "What's wrong with Ella mommy?" he asked softly.
Caroline shook her head. "Well, she wasn't being a good girl and didn't have her seatbelt on, so she got a little hurt" she replied softly as she poked Nick's nose. It was just like his.
Nick crossed his arms over his chest. "I told her to do it. She doesn't even listen to me" he said annoyed and angry and Caroline had to stifle a laugh because of his grumpy expression. Now his grumpiness was something he had 100% inherited from his father. She sighed. No! There was no way she was allowed to think about him. She had her kids. Her kids, Damon, Stefan, Katherine and Enzo. She'd be just fine without him.
After waiting for hours, Nick fell asleep in Caroline's lap as Enzo went to check up on Ella from the doctor. She rocked him lightly as he snuggled towards her for warmth. Caroline wrapped her arms around him and pulled him closer and placed a kiss on his forehead.
"Let me take him" Enzo said coming up. He gently lifted Nick from his waist and Nick immediately wrapped his tiny arms around his neck, mumbling incoherent things in his sleep.
Caroline stood up and stretched. "How is she?" she asked running a hand through her hair.
Enzo smiled. "She's a brave girl" he admired. Both these kids were truly a piece of art. "She's good. The doctor's just going to keep her under observation for the night. Depending on her progress, we can take her home then" he told her.
Caroline breathed out a sigh of relief and kissed Enzo's cheek. "Thank you" she whispered softly.
"Whatever for gorgeous?" he asked a little perplexed.
Caroline smiled. "For taking care of my kids. For taking care of me" she replied with a grateful smile.
"You know I'd do anything for you" he reassured her and gave her a small smile in return. He loved her. He truly did but he knew that she didn't love him back. Not the way he loved her anyway. He knew that she was still hung up on Klaus. The father of her kids. From what Damon had told him about Klaus, he thought like he was a replacement for Klaus. But he was happy being that as well, as long as he got to be with her. He was happy.
Caroline and Enzo walked closer to the room in which Ella was kept. They could hear her voice long before they entered the room. Caroline smiled at that. Trust her daughter never to keep quiet. Something she had inherited totally from her mother. Enzo lightly nudged Nick who was fast asleep in his arms, head rested on Enzo's shoulder. "Wake up mate. We're going to see your sister. You have a lot of big brother scolding to do" he told him and watched as Nick rubbed his eyes, washing away the remains of his sleep and frowned trying to conjure up his big brother act.
As soon as they entered the room, Ella turned to look at the intruder. "Mommy!" She exclaimed overjoyed.
Caroline smiled and hugged her little baby. "Ella, baby, are you okay?" she asked kissing her daughter's face, everywhere she could. Ella giggled at that.
"I'm alright but this lady is trying to give me this blekh syrup" she whined, making a gagging face.
Caroline smiled at the nurse apologetically. Enzo placed Nicholas on bed as he ruffled Ella's hair. "What happened darling? You scared me today" he teased lightly.
But Ella could not respond before Nick started his own rant. "I cannot believe you did that Ella" he admonished waving his arms dramatically and Caroline and Enzo had to stifle their laughter at his anger. "How can you be so stupid?" he asked and Ella frowned. "You didn't wear your seatbelt" he scowled at her crossing his arms over his chest, looking at her pointedly.
"I did!" she exclaimed crossing her own arms over her chest.
"You didn't!" he argued.
"I did!"
"You didn't!"
"I did!"
"You didn't!"
"KIDS!" Caroline rebuked them. "Is that any way to speak to each other?" she asked rhetorically.
They both looked at their hands guiltily before mumbling a bored sorry. "Now, behave while Enzo is here with you and Ella listen to the nurse's orders" Caroline instructed. "I'm just going to call Damon and tell him that his little princess is okay" she teased and watched as Ella smiled brightly at the mention of the elder Salvatore. Caroline sighed. Ella and her crush on Damon.
Caroline exited the room and took out her phone. "Damon?"
"Yeah. Is everything okay? Is Ella alright?" his concerned voice came through.
"She's fine. Excited to see you of course. But she's fine" Caroline reassured him. "Doctor said we can take her home tomorrow if the night is good enough"
There was silence on the line for a few moments. "That's good. I'll be there as soon as I can" he said. "Do you need anything for me to bring?" he asked.
"Yeah. If you can bring a blanket, an extra pillow and the book in my room for me. That'll keep me awake for the night" Caroline said.
Exactly twenty minutes later, Damon came handed her the stuff she had requested. He met Ella who was ecstatic to meet him. It was like they had been separated from each other for centuries like they were pretending.
"You know I can stay here with you if you want?" Damon offered as Nick clung to him, fast asleep again.
Caroline shook her head. "No it's okay. I'll be here with Ella. You just take care of Nick" she said. "Besides you need to take care of the vineyard as well. Did you get the tasting done today?" she asked.
"Yeah. Some dick who thinks he fooled me with his name" Damon scoffed. "Henry George. Like I was born yesterday. That's such a cover-up name"
Caroline chuckled. "Well we don't have anything to worry about right? You recognize every one of the Mikaelsons so…." She trailed off.
Damon pecked her cheek. "Don't stress out on this Blondie" he told her. "We've got a family here. We've built a family here" he reassured her, knowing she was thinking about her husband right now.
Caroline nodded and then plastered a fake smile on her face. "You're right. Okay. Enzo will come pick us up in the morning after Ella is discharged" she said.
A COUPLE OF DAYS LATER:
Marcel impatiently tapped his fingers against his chin. After what felt like eternity, the door to the office opened and Diego walked in.
"Finally!" Marcel exclaimed and rubbed his hands together. "Did you get what I asked for?" he asked.
Diego nodded but there was no smile on his face. Only terror. He passed a large envelope inn his hand to Marcel. "We found what you wanted and a lot more" he replied somberly.
Marcel only nodded before ripping open the envelope. Once he took in the contents, his eyes widened and his heart almost skipped a beat. He cracked a smile after a long time. "I'll be damned" he uttered fascinated watching the photographs.
He turned to Elijah who had only been silently gazing out of the window. "We've found her" Marcel announced and handed the pictures to Elijah.
The older Mikaelson swiftly turned and took the photographs in his hand. Flipping each one over to find a new one. Caroline, smiling and laughing. With children. With Damon Salvatore. She looked truly happy. She had fulfilled her promise and moved on. "When were these taken?" Elijah asked calmly.
"A couple of days ago" Diego answered. "In Milan. They own a vineyard there. It's in Damon Salvatore's name" he added.
"So Caroline moved on with Damon Salvatore all of people?" Marcel asked perplexed. His sire was leaps and bounds better than Damon.
Diego shook his head. "No. She's only living with Damon. She's in a relationship with someone named Lorenzo Augustine. He's in three of the pictures but it's just Mrs. Mikaels- I mean her and Damon with the kids" he answered stammering, not knowing if she was still Mrs. Mikaelson.
Marcel frowned. "So assuming they're this Lorenzo's children maybe because Damon said they weren't his" he chimed in. Elijah raised his eyebrow at that. Marcel shrugged. "I met them actually. Cute kids" he commented. "I knew there was something familiar about them when I saw them" he added shaking his head.
Elijah looked at the pictures once more before he fixed his suit. "Get me on a plane to Milan. I think it's time for a family reunion" he announced with a small smile.