Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews and also thank you to everyone who's reading this story for being so patient for this update. Unfortunately real life has been hectic recently and I've had no time to update but I have the next few chapters ready to be posted so updates should be faster. Also, just a little heads up that the next few chapters contain violence, angst and some adult content.

Okay...on with the story! :) Enjoy. x

Chapter 14

There were very few things that could strike genuine fear into the stony heart of Niklaus Mikaelson. He prided himself on his detached ruthlessness, being smoothly calculating, and never thinking twice about wreaking destruction.

But the instant that Caroline's terrified scream reached his ears, he'd leaped off the couch and stormed toward her bedroom. He hadn't even stopped to consider the threat that might await inside. Only when he was at the door did he pause for thought. Recently he hadn't been acting with the cold rationality that had always preserved him.

Because of Caroline.

Rushing in there would possibly be the downfall of the both of them.

But in that moment he didn't care.

Whatever had happened, he needed to be there for her.

Without hesitating again, he grabbed his gun and burst inside. However, he screeched to a halt when he realized exactly what was going on. His gaze landed on a man he'd never wanted to see again.

He flipped the light on, hoping that the darkness of the room had deceived his eyes, but unfortunately the illumination only clarified the living nightmare that he knew he couldn't wake up from.

"Klaus Mikaelson, as I live and breathe!" the intruder smirked, the corner of his mouth turning upward in mocking contempt.

Klaus' wild eyes drank in the sight unfolding in front of him. His gaze drifted from the dark haired man holding Caroline by the throat to Caroline's defiant but terrified expression. A little frisson of pride ran through him as he looked at the blonde. In spite of the obvious fear, there was also an audaciousness that gleamed in her eyes. She refused to give in and be a victim. There was a fight bubbling below the surface of her skin.

Klaus' stormy cerulean gaze crashed back to the brunet man who had the feisty blonde in a chokehold.

"Damon Salvatore," growled Klaus, his own expression mirroring the other man's hatred.

"I'll wager you didn't expect to see me," gloated Damon, smugness oozing from every one of his pores.

"You know him?" gasped Caroline, desperately trying to wriggle away from the sharp blade that was still poised at her neck.

"Oh, we're old acquaintances," Klaus told her, his eyes purposefully avoiding hers. "But the last I heard, he'd gotten lost at the bottom of a very deep whiskey bottle."

"Luckily your sweet little doc gave a map to find my way out. And it led me right here to you," said Damon smugly.

"Meredith!" spat Klaus. "That treacherous bitch!"

"Oh don't be mad at her," chuckled Damon. "It's your own fault that she hates you. I'm not the only one whose life you ruined. You're on a lot of people's naughty lists. It's coal for you in your stocking this year."

"I should have known better than to enlist her help," Klaus grumbled, not acknowledging Damon's jibe.

"Maybe you're slipping in your old age. So..is this the part where we do the pleasantries? I'll start. It's been a long time," Damon commented, false joviality seeping from him.

"Not long enough," replied Klaus dryly.

"Don't be like that!" Damon exclaimed. "The wounded puppy act doesn't suit you. I'm much more used to the cocky douche act that seems to be your trademark."

"You're the one who's about to be wounded, Salvatore," Klaus threatened, leveling his gun at Damon menacingly.

Unfortunately, the weapon didn't faze the intruder. Damon chuckled at the sight of it, hunkering down behind the blonde girl. "Oh, come on, Mikaelson! Drop the damn gun or your princess will be missing her vocal chords in less than a second. Maybe you'd prefer that. You never liked a girl who talked back, did you?"

"I'm not so fond of men who talk back either, Damon. And I'm even less fond of men who barge into my home and threaten me." Klaus lowered the gun in his hands, but refused to drop it. He didn't want Damon to slit Caroline's throat and he knew that the other man would do it with the least provocation. Right now, diffusing the situation was paramount.

"I'm not making threats, Klausy. I'm just keeping you up to date with the program of how events are gonna go. It's pretty simple, actually. I kill the girl and then I kill you. It's only a two act play but it's still pretty satisfying, wouldn't you say?"

"You seem to be forgetting your place. Do I need to remind you of it?"

"Do I need to remind you that you should show me a little respect right now? Maybe you could tattoo a reminder of the fact that I finally warrant your respect onto your arm with this girl's blood. There's plenty of it and it's about to flow."

"And yet, she's still alive. What's wrong, Salvatore? Scared to actually murder a woman?"

"Klaus!" Caroline exclaimed. "Are you insane? Provoke much? What the hell are you saying?"

"Don't worry," Klaus told Caroline, exuding faux confidence. "Damon isn't as bad as he'd like us to believe. He's just a pathetic heap of nothing."

Damon chuckled. "I'm not scared of anything, Mikaelson. I just thought it'd be more fun to draw this out. Foreplay is always the best part, right? Don't you agree, Caroline? Oh wait, you're fucking a Mikaelson so you probably just get the wham bam part. I hope you've gotten some good lovin' in the past 'cause it's a pity to think you'll die with only the mundane experience of parting your legs for a selfish dick like Klausy here. Maybe you'd like me to show you what a real man feels like. I'm so much more fun that your boyfriend."

"Don't talk to her that way!" warned a livid Klaus, but Damon ignored him.

The blonde girl smiled at Klaus rabid defense of her honor but she didn't bother to correct Damon's assertions that she was sleeping with Klaus. Damon probably wouldn't believe her that it wasn't true anyway, but she didn't care what he thought. In all honesty, at that moment she wished that she had been sleeping with Klaus. At least that way she would have been curled up in bed beside him instead of alone for Damon to pounce on.

Sneering, she rolled her eyes. "I'll pass on that," Caroline bit out, torn between an urge to vent her rage and not wanting to provoke the sociopathic intruder into actually ending her.

"Bummer," hissed Damon, running his fingers through Caroline's hair. "I could have used a good roll in the hay. I guess I'll have to settle for just the killing buzz instead of the killing buzz and the sex buzz. Shame that I'll miss out though. What do you think, Mikaelson? You've enjoyed a little sex and murder together before. Is it really as good as they say?"

"Shut your gob, Salvatore!"

"No, I don't think I will."

"Right, of course not. You like the sound of your own voice too much!"

Damon chuckled. "Maybe you're right, Obi Wan. I guess the apprentice has become the master."

"I'd never take a loser like you under my wing. Unlike your brother, I don't see a lot of potential."

Stefan's loyal face and puppy dog eyes flashed through his mind.

"Really? Are you trying to tell me I'm not doing a good job of hurting you right now? I'm hurt…truly. You know, I never thought I'd be the one to show you just how torture is done."

"I get it," Klaus scowled, gritting his teeth. "You're trying to be the big man. You're trying to prove that you're not some nobody who's all alone in the world. But I'm going to stop you."

"Doubtful! You know, I always figured we'd meet again but I never could have dreamed it would be so sweet. Is that a bead of sweat I see on your forehead? Meredith mentioned you weren't at your best. Or are you just sore because this time I'm the one holding all the cards. I mean, you do remember our last meeting, don't you? As pleasant as it was not, it definitely stuck in my mind. But I'm not the begging kind now. These days I like to take the helm and be the one in charge. Welcome to Damageddon. "

Klaus sighed, vividly recalling their last encounter. Although four years had passed, he could still remember it as if it had only occurred moments ago. The scent of every kill always lingered in Klaus' memory, and that one was no different. It was heightened even more thanks to the fact that it all took place in the very same room as they stood in now.

His mind drifted back to that fateful day.

Katherine's defiant eyes burned into him, her fiery gaze painfully licking at him like the flames of hell's inferno.

Klaus blinked, trying to wipe his mind clear of the intrusive memory.

So many things were different now than they'd been back then. More than anything there'd been no Caroline in his life when he'd killed Katherine. He'd been able to act with impunity, without weakness or fear. Until now he'd never truly realized the jeopardy of caring about someone else.

And he did care about Caroline. If he hadn't completely recognized that before, the pounding of his heart at the thought of anything bad happening to her confirmed that his feelings for her stretched far beyond simple lust.

But he couldn't let Damon know that. The barest sniff of emotion would act as a beacon to Damon. The man had clearly become savage and ruthless since they last met.

The Damon who'd begged him to spare Katherine Petrova's life and the Damon who was threatening Caroline now were like two different people.

"So are you planning to talk me to death?" Klaus jibed. "Because you're so bloody boring that's an actual possibility."

"That's an inventive idea," smirked Damon, running his fingertips down Caroline's smooth cheek. "But I don't think it's quite ruthless enough. And I'm all about ruthless these days."

"What exactly are you trying to achieve here, Salvatore?" Klaus demanded.

The moment that Caroline was out of danger, he could tear this man limb from limb, and he would relish it.

"It's called vengeance," Damon smirked. "Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, girl for a girl."

The tinkle of Katherine's laughter tortured Klaus' ears, assaulting him relentlessly.

"Caroline has nothing to do with this. It's between us. So be a man and stop threatening her."

Damon sighed. "Like you did with Katherine?"

The specter of Katherine's mocking, bloodied face smirked at him. Her ghost silently hurled recriminations at him, reminding him that he was only getting what he deserved now.

Shaking Katherine's image from his thoughts, Klaus sucked in his cheeks. "Stop with the whiny child act, Salvatore. Katherine betrayed me but Caroline never hurt a fly."

"She doesn't seem so innocent to me," commented the dark haired man conversationally. "Not sure what she sees in you though. Unless you're renting her by the hour, of course. That would make more sense. I mean, the prospect of spending time with you makes hell look like Disneyland so I doubt she's with you for your sparkling personality. You make Edward Cullen look like the fun bunny."

"Hmm, well, I'm going to make you look like a footnote in history!"

"There you go again, threatening me when you're in no position to make such empty threats. I'm about to make your little slut into Morgue Barbie, extra blood not included, and then we can have our final showdown."

"I don't think so, Salvatore. We both know that you're not getting out of here alive."

Damon tsked. "I would've thought this would be up your alley, Mikaelson. Torture and murder always make you happier than a sex addict with a lifetime's free subscription to a brothel. Although, all things considered, that might be a good Christmas gift for you considering your lack of game. I'd put it on my gift list, but you won't live long enough to see another Christmas."

"Stop with the pissing contest!" Caroline suddenly piped up. As terrified as she was, she really didn't want to spend her last moments listening to the two of them facing off like spoiled children. "No one has to get hurt here."

"You got some guts, girlie," Damon laughed. "Is that what Klaus sees in you? Is he a sucker for a brave little girl? The question is, what do you see in him?"

She clenched her teeth. "A real man, unlike you!"

"Ooh feisty! I guess I made the right choice in coming for you first."

"How did you even get in?" Klaus growled menacingly.

Damon chuckled, nodding toward the open window. "Fire escape. Not like you not to take precautions, Mikaelson. You get a little bit of pussy and you're all distracted."

A deep scowl furrowed Klaus' brow. "Shut your gob! Now you'd better tell me what the bloody hell you think you're doing in my apartment, hurting my girl."

"I doubt Blondie is actually your girl any more than this is your apartment, unless the local brothel's running a special right now. This is still Kol's place, isn't it?"

"You know it is, Salvatore. We shared enough memories here that you should remember that."

The haunting scent of the rug drenched with Katherine's blood hit Klaus' nostrils, flinging his mind back in time.

Damon swallowed, the reminder of what he'd experienced in that place burning a pain trail through his psyche. "How is Kol, by the way?" he asked, swiftly evading the recollections. "Still ignoring you like the rest of your family? It's gotta suck to be shunned."

"You should know," Klaus jibed. "Oh wait…your whole family is dead. My condolences again for Stefan…and Katherine."

Stefan's face floated into the foreground of his memory. The sound of his old friend's laughter reverberated in his ears but it was quickly usurped by the echo of Katherine's pained screams.

Rage flooded Damon's face, his mouth twisting maliciously. The knife at her throat seemed to cut deeper into her skin, drawing a tiny drop of blood that ran down the milky column of her neck like a solitary teardrop. "Say their names again and Barbie bites it."

"Don't provoke him!" Caroline hissed at Klaus as a new wave of terror slammed into her. Somehow she managed to suppress the whimper of pain that welled up in her throat as the blade pushed against her tender flesh.

Damon nodded smugly. "Listen to your bitch, Mikaelson. You don't want to make me do something you'll both regret."

"You've already done something I will undoubtedly make you regret, Salvatore. Breaking in and attacking a defenseless woman is a little pathetic, don't you think?"

"Now you mention it, it sounds like something you'd do, Klaus. Actually it is something that you did. So yeah I'm on board with pathetic," Damon scowled. "But when I'm using your blood as bubble bath then I'll learn to live with pathetic."

"I'm regretting letting you live, Salvatore. I told you once that you were only still breathing because of the loyalty your brother gave to me. However, that leeway is not infinite and you've crossed a line that cannot be uncrossed. Stefan was a good man and he was a good friend but he'd be ashamed to see the bitter, sad thing you've become."

"He would be here to see it if you hadn't have gotten him killed."

Caroline glanced between to the two men wondering who Stefan was and how he fitted into this whole mess. It was becoming increasingly clear that whatever trauma Damon had endured had rendered him bitter and resentful…not to mention wildly homicidal.

And she was terrified that she was about to bear the brunt of Damon's homicidal rage.

"This again?" sighed Klaus exasperatedly. "Every time I have the misfortune of running into you, it's all you talk about. You're like a broken record. Stefan was a warrior. He knew the risks in our fight and while I acknowledge the fact that he died protecting me, that was his choice. You can't change that and you can't dictate what everyone around you does. You're not even fit to honor his memory, Damon."

"Fuck you, Mikaelson! You twisted Stefan up into what you wanted him to be. Knowing you tore him apart and ultimately it killed him. That's what you do. You're like the Midas of death and destruction. You're only still alive because you've never come up against a real man with enough wits to take you down."

"So come on then," Klaus taunted, ignoring the flash of pain in his side as he squared his shoulders. "Come over here and show me that you're a real man. You failed in that regard last time we met but perhaps you've improved. I hear a daily diet of bourbon is always conducive to such ameliorations."

The dark haired man narrowed his eyes, looking as if he was about to pounce on Klaus. However, he suddenly stilled and tightened his grip on Caroline. "Oh, you almost had me there! Smart, Mikaelson! You're not as dumb as you look. But making me let go of the girl and losing my leverage would be pretty stupid on my part."

"Huh, I thought it would be in character. You've never been famous for your brains."

"Yet I've outsmarted you. What does that say about you?"

"It says I became complacent. That's not a mistake I'll make again. It doesn't change the fact that you're a raging idiot."

"I'm not stupid, Mikaelson. But unlike you, I have nothing left to lose."

Memories of Damon's pleading eyes prickled at him as the brunet begged him not to hold the knife at Katherine's throat.

Klaus was the reason Damon had nothing left to lose. Klaus was the one who Damon blamed for stripping everything away from him.

"A man with nothing left to lose is the most dangerous of all," Klaus observed. "But you do still have one thing left to lose, Damon."

"And what's that?"

"Your life," Klaus replied.

"Oh Wise One, don't you get it? If I live, it means you're not living and if I die I get to be with Katherine again. You took my love and now I get to avenge her. This is win-win for me. I remember you said once that mercy is nothing more than a weakness," Damon laughed gloatingly. "I figured that you're so wise so I should take your advice."

"Perhaps you should take my advice now, Salvatore, when I tell you to put the knife down and step away from Caroline."

"The same way you stepped away from Katherine? I watched the life drain right out of her. I listened as death rattled through her. Now you get the same displeasure."

The memory of the buttery feel of Katherine's neck as the knife sliced through it flooded Klaus' recollections.

"I don't think so," Klaus declared confidently, readying himself to leap forward.

However, Damon anticipated his approach. His arm banded around Caroline's stomach, jerking her to her feet and pulling her back to his front before repositioning the knife against her neck. "Uh uh!" he warned Klaus, smirking as the other man stilled his approach. "One sudden move and your girl becomes a Cabbage Patch doll."

"Let her go, Damon," Klaus growled, despising the tones of pleading that bled into his voice. "She has nothing to do with this. She's an innocent."

Damon scoffed. "Innocent, my perfectly sculpted ass! Being with you means Barbie's picked a side and unfortunately for her, it's the wrong one."

"You have no idea what you're talking about," Klaus spat. "We both know that if you lay one filthy finger on her I'll rip your worthless heart from your chest and eat it for breakfast."

"You're almost talking like a man in love. We both know that can't be true because your heart is dead and cold but if I didn't know better I'd think you have feelings for this girl. So let me be the one to give you a little advice, Klausy. Love is painful. It takes everything you have and twists it into something that you can't control. I never had a choice when I fell for Katherine but you had a choice when you took my love away from me. You destroyed that girl and then you deprived me of the one thing I needed to survive." Damon's eyes glazed over as he lost himself in his ranting tirade. "There's no cure for that except revenge. And finally, I get to have my revenge. I want to watch your eyes as I extinguish her light. Don't you think there's a sweet irony in making you watch it? It's a perfect mirror image, Mikaelson, and I do love such awesome symmetry."

His fist tightened around the knife handle.

Klaus knew that Damon was deadly serious and that if he didn't act now he would lose Caroline forever.

He couldn't allow that to happen.

Klaus' gaze locked with the blonde's, silent desperation flooding him. Without words he begged her to take matters into her own hands, to fight back, to refuse to go gentle into that good night.

The blonde stared back, her face schooled into an impassive mask. If there was one thing she'd learned from being with Klaus, it was that there was no such thing as a hopeless situation. Any thread of possibility could be woven into a golden tapestry of hope. She wasn't a defenseless little girl.

She wouldn't be a victim.

She wouldn't let Damon win.

She wasn't about to let him kill her.

Her eyes widened, as if she was trying to convey something to Klaus. Behind the trepidation that danced in her azure gaze, he saw a steely determination and what looked like threads of a plan. Klaus frowned but moments later realization flooded him as he watched the feisty little blonde unexpectedly drive an elbow into Damon's stomach.

"Fuck!" yelled Damon, both from shock at Caroline's audacious actions and the sharp jab of pain.

The dark haired man doubled over and let the knife slip from his fist, giving her a glimpse of an opening to leap out of his hold.

The moment she was free of Damon, Klaus sprung into action, ignoring the sharp pain that wracked his gut. Hurling himself toward the other man, Klaus sent the both of them flying to the ground. Klaus desperately tried to aim the gun at Damon, but the brunet sent the weapon soaring from his grip with a sharp whip of his arm.

Caroline scrambled toward the wall, fear enveloping her like a second skin as she watched the unfolding battle. The fighter part of her wanted to jump right into the fray and help Klaus but she feared she'd actually be more of a hindrance to him. Her fighting skills were only rudimentary and she didn't think that biting or scratching would really stop Damon. Maybe it she could have gotten in a good crotch kick, that might have helped but the two men were scrapping so violently they were virtually a blur in front of her.

For what seemed like an eternity, they wrestled on the floor, neither managing to gain the upper hand. They punched and scratched at each other, like two growling, vicious dogs locked in combat. Although Klaus was the better fighter, his injury was an extreme handicap and he couldn't seem to best Damon.

With a roar, the dark haired man finally tossed Klaus off of him and stumbled to his feet, wiping at the cut on his mouth from where one of Klaus' punches had successfully landed. Klaus also smugly noted that the side of Damon's eye was red and starting to blacken where another one of his hits had caught him.

"You can't beat me," taunted Damon.

Panting, Klaus sneered at his opponent, concealing the wince of pain as he surreptitiously clasped his side.

"Wanna bet, Mikaelson. I can give you pretty good odds on a victory…for me."

"I wouldn't take those odds, Salvatore. You're not quite the fighter you seem to believe you are. Arrogance has been the downfall of many a better man than you."

"Really?" Damon laughed wryly. "Do you have some kind of secret weapon I don't know about?"

"Yes, he does!" Caroline piped up, drawing the two men's attention.

In the struggle, both males had almost forgotten that she was even in the room, but as their eyes landed on her, neither of them could have been more shocked.

Like an avenging angel, silhouetted under the lamp she stood ramrod straight, the gun she'd retrieved from the ground in her hands.

And it was aimed firmly at Damon.

"I'm his secret weapon," she said coldly, barely recognizing the rasp of her own voice.

As terrified as she was at that second, she knew that she had no choice but to take control. After all, being in control was her default setting and it felt good to have a little power over her own destiny again.

Klaus smirked.

She was truly magnificent.

He'd never been more proud.

Thanks for reading! :) Let me know what you think. x