Bonnie looked at the house they had just arrived in, feeling completely intrigued. It was a multi-storey building, seemingly built at the beginning of the last century. Chicago, windy city. Now at least she knew where they were. Bonnie continued to consider where they were deployed, while Elijah went around the car and opened the door for her. The girl stepped on the asphalt still wet from rain; her tiny feet wrapped in an elegant pump with a high heel and stood in indecision, looking at the vampire's outstretched hand. In the end, not seeing anything malicious in the gesture, Bonnie placed her hand in his and left the car, holding up the hem of her long backless black dress.

Throwing her head back she looked at the windows of the top floor of the building. For some reason she immediately assumed they were going exactly on that floor. Maybe it was the sound of live music from the outdoor terrace, or rather the fact that there was not much light in the other windows of the old building.

Bonnie shivered when she felt Elijah's hand on her bare back under the shawl. He nodded slightly, raising an eyebrow, and slightly propelled her toward the front door as his hand casually dropped a little lower than decent. It was not a purposeful gesture, but the witch still felt uneasy. Bonnie's face flushed immediately, as the memories of a nightmare with this ancient vampire arose in her mind. She barely restrained herself from jumping away from the man and his touch, knowing how silly it would look.

The doorman, a smiley young man, opened the door to them, letting them into the luxurious front hall. Bonnie had never seen such an interior before. Given the fact that it was a residential apartment building, everything here looked so expensive that she suddenly remembered Mrs. Lockwood. The woman probably would have died of envy if she saw such furnishings. Bonnie reacted to everything with very little enthusiasm on her part. In the long run she had never been interested in housing issues, and unlike Caroline wasn't into fashion magazines, dreaming of luxurious penthouses and mansions.

They entered the elevator, one of the walls of which has been covered in full length mirrors. Bonnie was trying not to look at Elijah, as if it could protect her from any contact with him. But her eyes kept betraying her resolve and as if against her will, she kept glancing at the vampire standing a little closer to the door than the witch. He was wearing a dark elegant suit yet again today. Bonnie suddenly caught herself thinking that it would be interesting to see this man outside of his carefully crafted image. She examined the vampire's profile without even realizing that her stare attracted his attention. Reflecting on Elijah's carefully coiffed hair, her mind was so caught in a fascinating debate on whether he always was so manic ideal that bumping into his gaze in the mirror image took her by surprise and she almost let out a startled gasp.

Elijah turned to her, his look full of mockery.

"How did I deserve such close attention?" He asked, throwing Bonnie in even greater confusion.

Luckily, the elevator doors opened just then, presenting a beautifully lit hall with grand chandeliers to the witch's eyes. The spacious room was crowded and she suddenly understood why Elijah chose such dress for her. The women were dressed quite pretentiously for Bonnie's taste. The girl looked with scepticism on their outfits and the brilliance of their jewels.

"Theme party?" She asked, standing in a few steps from the elevator, not following her companion.

Elijah turned and looked at her with intensity in his dark eyes before walking around her and taking her shawl, giving it to a man remotely similar to the butler.

"You don't like it?"

Bonnie shrugged casually, eyeing the crowd with not a particularly interested gaze.

"Who cares what I like?" she asked. "Although, if you asked me for reasons other than politeness, I never understood the desire of some women to apply an "evening hunt look", gut treasure chest and go look for fresh prey..."

Elijah's eyes flashed with interest. Adjusting the cuffs on his shirt, he asked:

"How would you find a man, Bonnie?"

She was confused, knowing that even though unwittingly she has expressed her true thoughts to him, as if they were friends or at least acquaintances. Bonnie immediately wished she hadn't violated the emotional distance between them, but there was nowhere to retreat.

"Well... At least, not like that," she said reluctantly, pretending to examine the paintings. "None of the glamour is true or real. How do you know what is hidden underneath these diamonds and dresses from famous designers? Although, if you men are happy to drag one gold digger after another in your bed..." she trailed off.

Elijah looked at her strangely for a moment and smiled.

"Do you think men are so stupid they cannot figure out how to categorize a particular woman?"

Bonnie raised an eyebrow, looking at the vampire challengingly. After all, it was he who started the frank game of 20 questions.

"In general – yes," she said honestly. "And what type of women do you prefer?"

This question literally rolled off her tongue without her consent, after which the girl immediately wished for the ground to swallow her whole. "What is wrong with you?! What do you care about Elijah and his women?" She thought angrily, trying not to think about the fact that she was still standing there, and continued to face Elijah, whose eyes instantly changed their colour. Bonnie didn't know what this change meant, but figured that it didn't promise anything good for her. In the end, she was the one to break their eye contact, cursing the prolonged pause and her intemperate tongue.

"So, Elijah? Aren't you going to answer your charming companion's fascinating question?" Bonnie heard a voice right next to her.

Without seeing the person who uttered the question, a picture of the Cheshire cat popped into her head. Smarmy, a little lazy, the voice belonged to a tall man, whose age Bonnie couldn't really determine. He was perhaps in his early thirties, maybe a little older, but he looked somewhat younger than Elijah and he was dressed less sombrely. Although the stranger had a black jacket with an upright collar at the top, underneath he was wearing a T-shirt. His neck was adorned with different wooden and sting necklaces that Bonnie described as "hello, hippie". At the bottom he was wearing tight black jeans and a pair of heavy boots.

"Well, aren't you going to introduce me to the lady, brother?" The stranger asked, smiling seductively and unabashedly examining the witch from head to toe. "She's not like your other... ahem... companions..."

The girl looked with interest at the man, trying to see any resemblance to her companion, but didn't find it. Moreover, despite her kidnapper's brother's broad smile, Bonnie sensed a certain ambiguity in his words. She didn't like it, although she didn't pull away her hand when the man took it in his grasp. Suddenly something happened which she hadn't expected. It was but a short moment, but Bonnie saw the true nature of this handsome guy. It took her a great deal of effort to stay in place and not show her fear. Elijah's brother certainly was a bloodthirsty monster, and Bonnie got goose bumps when his lips touched the knuckles of her fingers.

"This is Bonnie," Elijah dryly introduced her, diverting his relative from the girl's face. "Klaus, my brother."

The witch smiled tightly, praying to herself the man to finally release her hand. But it seemed that the prayers were in vain: Klaus continued as if nothing had happened, to hold her hand in his. He stroked his thumb over her skin in a manner Bonnie found utterly insolent. She looked at Elijah, but nothing seemed to bother him about his brother's behaviour. The girl wanted to kill her companion, and his abnormal relative right afterwards.

"I think we need to speak in private, we haven't seen each other for too long," Elijah said, taking a glass of cognac from a trey. "Meanwhile, Bonnie can take a look around..."

Bonnie postponed her plans of cold-blooded murder of the vampire when his brother finally freed her hand. She looked at Elijah gratefully, who disappeared through one of the many double doors. The girl slowly wandered among the party guests, looking at the paintings and trying the snacks. She stopped by the broad transparent doors leading to the terrace, opened it, and stepped into the cold wind. Wishing to know where exactly her shawl was, she looked at the orchestra playing jazz. It seemed like Klaus was a real eccentric to hold a dance night in the open air at this time of the year. The girl looked at the dancing people, already thinking about the possibility of leaving the terrace, when a strange girl appeared next to her. Bonnie immediately knew who she was: a witch could always feel another witch. And she didn't like the stranger, sensing a strange hostility in her eyes.

"You came with Elijah?" Asked the brunette, looking at her a little disdainfully.

Bonnie gave her the same look, instead of answering, she just shrugged. But the stranger didn't seem accustomed to retreat.

"I'm Greta," she introduced herself as if she was doing Bonnie a favour.

Bonnie only briefly looked at the brunette, and took one of champagne glasses from the bar. The girl knew for sure that Greta was Klaus's witch; she ordered the bartender to mix her a cocktail in a manner completely too haughty. But Bonnie didn't like the insincere smile of the new acquaintance and her piercing, a little arrogant look.

"I should probably be flattered by your attention?" The Bennett asked the forward question, smiling angelically and taking a sip from her glass.

Polite smile momentarily slipped from Greta's lips, but then returned in its place full force. Only her look became more icy and angry.

"Take care not to break off your teeth on me, darling," she hissed through clenched teeth, still smiling. "If you're with Elijah, it doesn't mean that you're that special..."

Bonnie's eyebrow shot up before she laughed.

"And you are so special?" She asked sarcastically, looking into Greta's angry dark eyes, and then looked at who appeared in the terrace doorway. Klaus, hugging two beauties by the waist.

The witch's eyes watched Bonnie, and finally the hypocritical smile slipped from the brunette's lips completely. Greta pursed her lips and hissed so that it could be heard only by her current companion.

"You have no idea how close the brothers are. They share everything. Everything, Bonnie Bennett. And the fact that you're sleeping with Elijah, absolutely..."

Bonnie had definitely had enough, so she didn't give the girl an opportunity to finish the sentence.

"The fact that I'm sleeping with Elijah, is absolutely none of your business and non relatable to any agenda of yours." Bonnie hissed with clear emphasis on every single word before draining her glass and banging it on the rack.

Greta wanted to say something, but suddenly stiffened. Bonnie realized without looking that Elijah was behind her. She first caught only his peculiar smell, and then the feel of his hands when the man threw a shawl over her shoulders. The girl didn't even flinch when his lips briefly touched her temple.

"I see, you already met Greta?" The vampire asked, looking over Bonnie's shoulder at his brother's witch.

She was clearly afraid of Elijah because all her former self-confidence was gone. Bonnie was glad to get warm, but she was dying to finally get away from her. So she chose to answer herself:

"Yes. Greta welcomed me and explained some of the features of life in Chicago..."

Elijah, who was standing now facing the two girls, gave Greta such a heavy icy look that even Bonnie got goose bumps. Tension hung in the air, when the girl, scared that something was going to happen, suddenly heard the band playing a slow tune. She didn't know what made her suddenly grab the vampire's hand and look into his quiet, frightening face.

"Shall we dance?"

The man turned to her and squeezed her hand a little.

"Why not?"