Elena:
By the time I woke up this morning, Damon was already gone. Sighing heavily, I know it must've felt like a kick to the gut for him when I said that I can't uproot myself just because we're sleeping together. I don't know how he can expect me just to drop everything I know? I mean, we haven't even been together very long and how much do I really know about the whirlwind that is Damon Salvatore? What if we crash and burn? I do love him, I really do but I'm afraid. Everything I've ever loved has been tragically snatched away from me. After having morning coffee with Henry and Damon's grandfather, I grab my bag to run downtown to get a few things. I wanted to take Caroline along so we could talk but she went home with Enzo last night.
When I get to the drugstore, I walk to the aisle of feminine products. As I reach for a box of tampons, it suddenly dawns on me that I'm late. I've been so ensnared in this case and with Damon that I completely forgot about it. I have been late before so I decide not to worry about the reason just yet...
Deciding that a 'very berry hibiscus refresher' would really hit the spot, I walk down the street to the 'Starbucks'. Once I have my drink in hand, I walk out to their tables to have a seat then grab my phone out of my purse to start texting Caroline. Suddenly I hear the legs of one of the chairs at my table being pulled out. Raising my eyes, I gasp when I see the man who accosted me at the police station. Kol is sitting right in front of me.
"Did you need something?" I ask, my voice on edge.
"Not a thing, Miss Gilbert. And how are you this fine morning?" he asks, dropping his chin onto his clasped hands.
"Then why are you here?" I ask him, curiosity getting the best of me.
"You're a beautiful woman. What normal red-blooded male wouldn't want to mingle with you?" he replies, raising his eyebrows seductively.
When I turned to look around, I feel his hand on top of my forearm. I turn to him raising my eyes a little fearfully then reel back as if I'd been stung. His eyebrows knit together showing obvious displeasure at my revulsion.
"Don't ever do that again," I demand, the pitch of my voice rising but not loud enough to be overheard.
"Tsk, tsk, Miss Gilbert," he scoffs, then grabs onto my arm again. This time I pull back harshly, sliding my chair away from the table. I glare at him for a long moment before grabbing my bag and my drink and walking off. Once I reach the car, I slip inside, locking the doors. Closing my eyes I take a deep breath but my eyes startle open when I hear a rap on the passenger side window. My mouth drops and I shake my head back and forth when he points to the door lock. His voice raised urging me to open it. Feeling my body alight with fear, I struggle to put the key in the ignition as my hand is trembling. Finally, I get it, twist it to ignite the engine and I pull away from the curb almost hitting another car. After taking a deep, shuddering breath, I press on the gas peddle and speed away.
Damon:
"Mikael, Kol, come in," I tell them, gesturing with my hand for them to come into my office. After they have a seat and I drop into my desk chair, I turn my attention back to them.
"When are you going to release my son? You can't hold him forever," Mikael demands, his voice rising.
"Mikael, please understand. He was found with a weapon and a dead girl. What would you have me do?"
"I want him freed on bail. I will make sure he doesn't take off."
"Yeah and that worked so well for you in the past," I utter under my breath.
"I heard that," he thunders back at me.
"I'm sorry Mikael. But as long as he's locked up, he's not using," I point out in no uncertain terms.
Huffing aloud, he looks at Kol and then back at me, "I will make sure that someone is in the house with him at all times. He won't be able to get his hands on that junk again. Contrary to popular belief, I do love my son."
Exhaling heavily, I look at him for several moments. "What if he refuses to go home with you, Mikael?"
"He won't. Can I talk to him again?"
"Of course, if Nik wants to talk to you, I won't stop you from seeing him. But given all the evidence we have against him, I really don't believe a judge will allow him to be released on bail," I tell him truthfully. Just as I'm about to stand up, Kol lunges at me, again fisting my shirt with his hands.
"Nik had nothing to do with those murders anyway. You know that," he seethes.
"If you had found his fingerprints on that sledge hammer, he already would have been indicted."
"Kol you let him go. You're not helping," Mikael yells, pulling him off of me.
Shaking off the chill I feel when Kol named the murder weapon, I straighten my shirt out.
"I think it's time for you two to leave," I demand, pointing to the door.
"And Mikael, don't bring him with you the next time you want to talk to me."
Once they're out of my office, I pick up the phone. "Ric, get in here, NOW."
"What is it Damon?" Ric asks when he steps into my office.
"I just had Kol and Mikael in here again...," I reply with my mouth hanging open.
"What has you so spooked?" he asks.
"Kol flew at me again. Only this time, he said and I quote, "If you had found his fingerprints on that sledge hammer, he already would have been indicted."
"How could he know about the sledge hammer? No one knew," Ric asks incredulously.
"Exactly! Why do you think I called you in here?"
"We have no other evidence linking Kol to any of these murders, Damon. But since he knows what our murder weapon is, that in and of itself makes him our prime suspect as of now."
"Yep, we'll need to set up surveillance on him. If his blood lust is such, he will kill again," I stop short when I feel a shiver surging up my spine.
"I'm going to go to talk to Nik...," I reply, my voice trailing. Suddenly I feel my eyes widening when I remember something.
"Damon, what is it?" Ric asks.
"Rose."
"What about her?"
"Don't you remember? After she and I broke up and before she took up with Nik, she went out with Kol a few times.."
"Barely?" Ric answers, looking perplexed.
"After she stopped dabbling with Kol and started dating Nik, she told me once that Kol was practically stalking her. He only quit after she threatened to report him to the police."
"Do you think he killed her?"
"I don't know but it's certainly within the realm of possibility."
"Okay then," Ric says, standing up. "I'm going to go get surveillance set up on him."
"Twenty four-seven, buddy," I reply, still in shock.
Nodding, he gets up and walks to my door before turning around. "If he's the one, we'll get him," he utters then steps out of my office.
Elena:
Since I don't want to upset Damon, I decide to keep my encounter with that man to myself. Once I arrive at the police station, I go directly to my office. Grabbing my kohl pencil and paper, I begin to work. However, I'm still shaken from the run in with that guy so I decide to step out of my office to get something to drink. My stomach is a bit upset so I settle for a bottle of 'Sprite'.
After opening the bottle, I take a big swig from it, closing my eyes as I swallow it down.
"Hey Elena," I hear Bonnie greet me.
"Hi Bonnie," I reply, forcing a smile on my face. "Damon told me that you're going to Virginia with your grandfather."
"Yeah, I'm taking a couple of weeks off so I can help him get packed and make arrangements with a moving company. He lives in an apartment so at least we don't have to worry about putting a house up for sale or anything like that. We'll move what furniture he wants to keep but probably donate what he doesn't want."
"You'll have a lot of work to do but at least you get some time off from here."
"I'm actually looking forward to it," she chuckles. "But in all seriousness, I hate to leave Damon with this case too."
"He understands. Your family should take precedence," I remind her.
"You're right. He just has so much on his shoulders right now. We've never had a series of murders like this before. I know he worries about me and you too. He's very taken with you, Elena," she says, raising her eyes suggestively.
"I'm quite taken with him too."
"Is something the matter?" she asks.
"No, not really. It's just that Caroline brought up moving out here so she could be with Enzo. I don't know if I'm ready to make such a big move. I know I hurt his feelings when I pretty much dismissed the idea of moving out here," I admit shakily.
"I care about Damon so much, Bonnie, I really do but my life is in Mystic Falls," I tell her, my voice strained with emotion.
"Oh Elena. I know it's a monumental decision but please do give it some thought. I think he loves you. He's never been in love before, not that I'm aware of anyway. He spent all of his free time taking care of me and Stefan after dad was shot. I mean, sure he did date but he never had anyone special, not like you. Katherine is here too. Damon told me you two sort of reconnected?"
Smiling, I take Bonnie's hands in mine, squeezing them. "You're right. I'm completely in love with Damon too. It's just such an upheaval though you know? I will give it careful consideration. In all honesty, Katherine didn't even enter my train of thought when Damon brought that up last night. She is my family."
"What about your mother?"
"I'm afraid she's a lost cause. She doesn't like me very much," I tell her softly, turning away.
"I'm sorry, Elena. If there's any way I can help, I'm always here," she reassures me.
"Thank you Bonnie. Listen, I need to get back to work. I'll see you at home later."
After giving me a curt hug, she tells me goodbye then walks towards Damon's office. Once I see her step inside, I take another swallow of my soda then walk back to my office.
Talking with Bonnie has given me new perspective. She and her grandfather are going to take Henry out to eat at a restaurant. After confirming that Caroline is again spending the night with Enzo, I decide to surprise Damon and make him a home cooked meal.
After I leave the station, I get in Henry's car and drive to a grocery store. After selecting the items I need, I get in the check out lane. Once everything is bagged up, I put it back in my cart and push it outside to my car. Once I get the tailgate open, I start setting my groceries inside when suddenly, I feel something poking me in the back.
"Turn around miss Gilbert," I hear in a threatening voice.
My shaky hands, drop the bag of groceries I was carrying shattering the jar of pickles when it hits the pavement. As I turn around, I'm stunned to see that weird guy in front of me.
"What do you want?" my voice shaking as fear erupts in every cell of my body. When he pokes the gun in my belly, I know he means business. Stepping behind, he prods me with his pistol. "Get in," he orders when we reach a black sedan.
Once I get in, he secures my hands with a pair of zip ties. Once he's done, he also wraps one around my ankles. When I see someone walking close to his car, I start to yell, only to have him plaster his filthy lips to mine, effectively shutting me up. After that person drives away, he slaps me hard across the face.
"Do that again and I'll stick a ball gag in that mouth of yours," he threatens menacingly.
When I nod my acquiescence, he puts the car in gear and drives off.
"Why are you doing this?" I ask tearfully.
"Because I can," he replies with a sickly sweet smile. He starts squeezing my leg, working his way up towards the apex of my thighs. My eyes widen in fear as I watch his hand inching closer to my sex.
"Please don't," I plead. He gives me a quick glance then removes his hand, laughing.
"You better get used to that sweetheart because next time I touch you, you'll be screaming..."
Damon:
I raise my eyes when I hear someone step into my office. "Did you get surveillance set up on Kol?"
"Yeah, but we haven't found him yet."
"But what?" I ask not liking the tone of his voice.
"We just got a 911 call about a woman being kidnapped from the 'Fry's Grocery' parking lot."
"What?" I ask, stunned.
"Was it Kol?"
"I'm not sure. We're still trying to determine his whereabouts. However, there were a couple of witnesses to the kidnapping. They said the guy was wearing a big sunglasses and a hat. Neither of them could describe the guy other than he had a slim build. He forced the woman into a black car and then drove off. One of the witnesses did get a good look at the woman who was taken."
"Do we have anyone on scene yet? Do we have an identity on the woman?"
"Yes, Damon we do...," he replies, his voice trailing.
"What aren't you telling me, Ric?" I ask, standing up.
"Your dad's car is in that parking lot. I'm told the tailgate was left wide open with a bag of groceries scattered on the ground below."
"Are you telling me what I think you're telling me?" I ask, fear seizing my body.
"Yes, Damon. The witness descriptions of the woman match Elena plus no one has been able to reach her," he tells me cautiously.
Stunned into silence, I fall backwards into my chair. Quickly I reach into my pocket, grab my cell and push her number, expelling a heavy breath of air when it goes to voice mail. I repeatedly dial her number without success. Unable to believe what's happened, I drop my face into my hands for several moments. Finally, I raise my eyes to Ric.
"Why would anyone want to take Elena?" I ask, dismayed.
Slowly Ric walks over to me, reaching for my hand.
"We'll get her back," he reassures me while squeezing it gently.
All I can do is stare straight ahead. "Are you sure it's Elena?" I ask, hoping for the impossible.
"We are."
"We have to find her," I yell as I lurch upright and out of my chair. We need to find out who did this and why. Knowing Elena needs me to keep a level head, I swallow thickly and try to put my feelings on the back burner. If we're going to have any hope of finding her, I need to be thorough and methodical.
"Let's go. You're driving," I tell as I toss him my car keys. Nodding, he follows me outside jumping into the car at the same time I do. After sticking the key in the ignition, he turns on the motor and speeds us out of the parking lot, driving towards the grocery store. When we pass the Mikaelson mansion, my eyes widen as the light bulb goes off in my head.
"Stop!" I yell.
"What?" Ric asks, slamming on the brakes.
"It was Kol! It had to have been him."
"How do you know that, Damon?"
"He threatened her in front of me and Liz. I never thought much of it at the time though. No one else would take Elena. No one else knows her."
"How did Kol know who she was?" he asks skeptically.
Shaking my head, my mouth is agape. "He was watching us. He had to have been Ric. There's no other way he could've known who Elena is."
"Okay, let's go talk to Mikael," he says, pulling a u turn so we can go drive back to the Mikaelson home.
Fisting my hands at my sides, I drop my eyes closed for just a moment hoping Ric will wake me up from this nightmare that threatens everything I hold dear.
So Kol...
Thank you Eva. We did manage to keep him under wraps till we were ready to reveal him.. *HIGH FIVES*
Thank you all for your reviews. I appreciate them so much. It's really nice to get some feedback about my stories.
I will be updating 'WIIWN' and 'TU' tomorrow. I've told you many a time that no one writes DE as magically as Florencia7. Although her 'Perchance to Dream' is my favorite, all of her stories are brilliant. 'Let There Be Light' is her current story. Do give it a look.
Thank you all again. Have a safe and wonderful weekend. Until next week.