Chapter Eleven: Wisdom Comes By
A/N: Alrighty, as promised.
Enjoy!
Perspective: Elena
-x-x-x-
"Wisdom comes by disillusionment."
-George Santayana
"So, I've asked around."
Katherine looks up from behind the glow of a computer screen, to Kol as he enters the study.
"About what?"
You sit at a couch, a book in your lap, having found Katherine in the lake house study looking over something behind the fancy office desk. The study is small, but you'd found a book that piqued your interest.
You'd barely sat five minutes before Kol came in, files in hand.
"Your uncle, of course."
He has her full attention and half of yours as you continue to glance down at the paragraph you'd been on.
"It seems he's out of the country. A business trip to the Maldives, not a week ago."
"And the tabs?"
"Simultaneously, he's still on the look out, waiting for your reappearance. I reckon he'll up your bounty. Makes me reconsider turning you in. Who knows when I might need some fast cash?"
He taps her forehead and she swats his hand away.
"Either way," she says, "if he's not here, it's safe to stop by my house."
"Safe doesn't quite fit the bill."
She rolls her eyes, looking back to the computer screen.
"What could be so important you'd risk capture again? I'll have you know, I only promised Rebekah to get you safe. I'm not risking life nor limb chasing your arse."
"I wouldn't ask you to."
Kol makes a face. "Alright, you tell Bex I warned you. She won't believe me if I did."
Katherine merely shrugged.
"You're ruthless, you know that?" He shakes his head and sighs, placing the files he's been holding onto the table. There are two manila folders, one much fatter than the other. "I suppose this will change your mind?"
Katherine pulls aside the laptop and a third manila folder you hadn't noticed earlier, and leans forward as she opens the biggest file.
Curiously, you get up and move to the table.
"I suppose," she imitates Kol's accent, but she actually looks pleased with what he's brought.
"What is that?" you ask.
The folder is opened and Katherine skims through it, organizing papers in piles. Your eyes scan the papers with most of your attention being caught by the pictures. Gruesome pictures.
"Viktor's case file."
You raise a brow at Kol, and he replies with his smirk.
Connections, sure whatever, but still, this shouldn't be as easy to get as he makes it look. You haven't even been here for long.
You reach over, looking at some police reports and spreading out the pictures.
From their angles, these are definitely official police shots. It's in a study, if that big oak desk is anything to go by, and a gun rests on the edge of it. On the other side is a man, slumped back in his chair. Another picture features a closer look at the victim; he sits in his big office chair, eyes wide open with blood all over his white shirt, his hands, his face and the wall behind him. From what you can tell, his chest sports far more than just a few bullet holes.
You blink, ineffectively trying not to sear the images into your brain.
"This is everything?" Katherine asks.
"Part two, yes. As far as I know," he replies,
You skim through the papers closest to you as they talk.
Katherine had ended up in Port Hill for supposedly murdering her grandfather: the wealthy, fearsome, business mogul, Viktor Pierce. Bonnie had told you about her the first week you'd gotten to Port Hill and you remember seeing the case on the news prior to Jeremy's death. If you recall, the reason why it took them so long to close it was because Katherine hadn't been the first suspect in the case.
Several photocopied prints of something that looks like pages from a police notepad catches your eye.
Tobias Pierce, it reads in a scrawled but neat little cursive. Suspect. Possible on location at time of murder, 45 Esterlene Gate.Reason: visit victim. Relation: son. Motive?
"Your uncle," you begin, asking Katherine. "He was the first suspect?"
"Yes," she replies.
"I remember hearing initially that your grandfather had committed suicide."
She nods, "That was quickly ruled out by the nine bullet holes to his chest and the gun across the table."
"Pretty damning evidence for a murder, so it's baffling how they even came up with suicide," Kol adds.
"How did they end up with you?"
"I had no alibi."
Katherine shakes her head at your questioning look. She glances at Kol and he shrugs, no doubt having heard this already.
"I'd gone to a club the night of his murder. Fortunately for Tobias, no one could place me there."
"But that doesn't mean anything," you dispute, even though she had ended up in prison anyways. "Not without a motive or evidence that you were there."
She chuckles cynically, "Definitely. My dear gramps' butler—I thought I could trust him. He told me that my uncle had been there that night to see Viktor. Told me he'd testify to that fact. He never showed up to court and when he did, he pointed his finger at me."
"You trusted this person?" you ask sympathetically. You only have Tony as a reference but if Kol can keep two fugitives in this place and expect his butler to keep that information hidden, then there's a level of trust in this type of relationship for one to tell the truth when it really counts. "Do you know why he did it?"
Or did that matter to her?
"Well, he disappeared after, I didn't get the chance. But I'm working on it."
"You're not mad?" She trusted the man, why wouldn't she be?
"I've been mad, Elena. There's no point in being angry right now," she shakes her head, "Besides, who would I yell at? You?"
"Oh, that's not something you want," Kol says, but he sounds like he's only half joking.
Not that you'd want to provoke it or anything, but Katherine is pretty slow to anger.
"So," you steer back to the topic, "we're going to your house, and then find this butler guy?"
"No."
You tilt your head.
"We aren't going to my house. I am."
"What?"
"I'm—"
"How many times have we gone over you trying to exclude me from things, and me still going with you anyways?" you interject.
She narrows her eyes.
She doesn't say anything, and you raise your brows and smile, challenging.
Kol eyes the two of you. He grins, directing a question to Katherine. "By the way, how do you know Damon?"
"Who?"
Apparently, this is the best time to ask this.
Kol had told you he would ask her, and though you aren't too sure the significance of one guy on the look out for Katherine is, you're also curious.
"Damon. Damon Salvatore."
Katherine shrugs, clueless, "No idea who that—"
"Oh, come on, darling. You bloody well know who I'm talking about. I can guess how you know him. I just want to hear you say it."
"Wait, he's—," Katherine frowns, meeting your eye momentarily, "Okay, I know the guy. What about it? And how do you know him?"
"I asked you first."
"Of course, but I can also guess how you know the guy. I just want to hear you say it."
"Katherine."
"Kol."
"Alright," you interject, "I'm not even part of the conversation and I wanna know. Who's he to both of you?"
They look at each other expectantly before Katherine gives in first with a sigh.
"Alright. The guy visited me in Port Hill," she explains, adding, "Frequently, I might add."
You raise a brow.
"Not like that," she says, seeing your face. "Though, I admit, he is my type. Chiselled jaw, piercing blue eyes."
"Whoa, wait," you suddenly get an epiphany, thinking back to Port Hill. "Frequently? All those times you were gone?"
"Yes." Katherine is mildly surprised you put two together, but she continues with visible irritation, "Said he was from the FBI and that they reopened the case. Promised he could help get me out."
"He's not from the FBI," Kol snorts.
"Gee thanks, I figured that once I found out the case was still close and would apparently remain that way."
Kol tilts his head, obviously pondering on that.
"What?"
"Uhm," he draws out for a moment. "He really thought you wouldn't help him if it wasn't an active case."
"Or if I didn't know he wasn't a federal agent who held any sort of power to clear my name."
Kol frowns, nodding.
"So, how do you know him?" you direct.
"Like I told you," Kol points, "He's a pal. Met him in the Navy."
"You were in the Navy?" you're incredulous.
From what you've gathered, the Mikaelsons equals crime, crime, crime. Right?
"I've got to learn my trade somewhere."
"You like telling people that, don't you?" Katherine interjects. "He was in it for maybe a year. Less."
"Two, for your information."
"Whatever. They kicked you out."
He shrugs, admitting her words.
As prejudice as it makes you feel, that makes sense.
"I've been lending him a hand on several closed cases. I should've figured he'd reach out to you too. That only makes sense," his disappointment is short-lived. "He may have lied to you, but I can promise you, his endeavour to take down Tobias is real."
"Closed cases—?"
"What does he do if he's not FBI, then?" Katherine finishes the thought for you.
"Private Investigator. Tells me he's been working on a few cases that all obscurely lead back to your uncle. But of course, no solid evidence."
"I told him I had some proof."
"For your case?" you ask. Is this why she's so confident? Because she already has it all solved and tied together with a neat bow?
"No," she shakes her head. "On another case. At Port Hill, I told Agent Salv… Damon, that I would give it to him in exchange for evidence of Tobias framing me."
"But then you found out he wasn't FBI," you state.
"And then I got stabbed, and Isobel was a pest, and then you blew up Block D," she deliberately glimpses at you.
"Hold on, I didn't—"
"You got stabbed?" Kol places his chin onto his knuckles. "I could've sworn Fin said you'd fallen off a balcony or something."
Katherine's nose wrinkles in that "Are you serious?" kind of way.
Kol only shrugs again.
"So, this Damon guy's looking for her now in order to get the evidence?" you ask, waving your hand. "Whatever it is."
"Look, darling, I'm not about to tell you his life story, but the bloke is sincere." He meets Katherine's eye, "He's got federal connections. I'm positive you can work something out."
She rolls her eyes in response.
Looking down at the files, you notice that the thinner of the two was still closed. You reach out to it.
"What's this?" you repeat your earlier question.
Katherine places a hand over it, preventing you from opening it and making you look up.
"That's..." she starts, eyes softening slightly. "That's for you actually."
"For me…?"
She nods, "Jeremy's case file."
Before you even think of it, you pull your hand away like you'd been burnt.
"Look," Katherine leans on her hands, meeting your eye. "You're here to help me out, but you should look into this too. I'm not the only one who's wrongfully convicted."
You heave a deep sigh, but nod.
She's right. You can't put this off. As much as you want to, it would be beyond idiotic to just leave this in the air because you didn't feel like dealing with this… trauma.
Jeremy deserves to get justice for his murder.
She flips open the file.
-x-x-x-
"Says here he was texting someone up until around the time of death."
It's a few hours later and you look to Kol, who's sat on the couch.
The three of you had gone over more information on Katherine's case before moving onto yours, much to your dismay.
"Yeah, court said it was me," you say. Adding more context, "Trying to lure him away from the party, but they never even found that phone…"
"Speaking of burners," Kol interjects, coming back to the table and setting two nondescript, black phones onto the table. "These are for you."
"How do you know he was texting a burner?" you ask. The cops had said the same during trial, citing that you'd used one in order to avoid texting from your phone and incriminating yourself.
"Says right here," he points at the report he was looking through. "Plus, I believe the cops, at the very least, intelligent enough to find a service line attached to someone's account if there is one."
Katherine picks one of the phones up, turning it on and pressing a few buttons.
"Thanks," she says.
"A few essential numbers are on there. I reckon it's easier than ringing the police."
You pick yours up as well, not recognizing any of the numbers but figuring you'll ask Katherine later.
"So, this has been fun, but I've got to go. Got to move on."
Katherine looks at him pointedly.
"Yes, yes." He continues without a word from her. "I'll find our blonde friend. Make sure she's safe and sound."
"Caroline?" you ask for clarification.
"Yes," he nods, smirking. "It's been good meeting you, Elle."
You make a face, but wave anyways.
"Don't get into too much trouble," he says to Katherine who only nods in response.
He's gone a second later, and you hope he'll be as successful in finding your friend as he was finding the two of you.