Chapter 11
Elena had stepped into the kitchen a few minutes after Elijah disappeared. She was pulling deep breaths with all of her might. Her hands were spread wide apart on the kitchen counter while she struggled not to drown in the fear. It was a dark, familiar place that she refused to go to again. Everyone she loved needed for her not to fall to pieces.
Two arms hauled her back, wrapping her up and spinning her roughly into an embrace. Klaus. When he was upset, he forgot how strong he was. She gave a weak smile he didn't see because he'd folded both arms around her and was now leaned down, his chin resting on the crown of her head.
"We will get him back." He growled.
"I don't see how. If he chose this…" She whispered against him.
"He lied." Klaus announced firmly.
She leaned back and met his eyes. "How do you know that?"
"It was too smooth, too mocking." His lips jerked to a half smile. "I have lied enough to recognize the signs. He is not as good at it as I was. Very little practice. It was a show to steal your hope. So you would never even consider helping him."
Elena leaned her forehead to his chest again and drew in deep, grateful, cleansing breaths. Klaus' arms drew tighter around her.
"I guess you and Milla will be leaving?" She hated the thought, but couldn't blame him for wanting to get Milla away from here. And it should have been their wedding night, after all.
Klaus was the one to lean back as he forced her chin up to look at him.
"My wife…" A slow smile lit his face as he said those words and he paused, seeming to savor their taste for half a second, before he went on. "has already flayed me alive for even suggesting it. You also get a turn, if you want one."
Elena laughed. In the middle of the worst thing she'd faced in a very long time, Klaus was the one to make her laugh. A decade ago she would've never believed it was possible.
"Thank you." She whispered and went back to hugging him again.
"We are family, Elena."
"He wasn't at all what I expected, you know? I thought he'd hate us all. Want to kill us all." She admitted as she pulled away and went to sit on a stool at the kitchen bar.
Klaus shook his head, taking the seat next to her. "I did not hate you. Or Elijah either. When I was without mine."
Elena shrugged. "I was only without my humanity for about a week. But I hated everyone. Would've ripped everyone to shreds given the chance."
Klaus leaned back on his stool, thinking hard. "Losing humanity strips away all but the most base things. Food. Shelter. Sex. Vengeance fits in there somewhere as well, or at least it did for me. For him, I would say anyone who has ever wronged or offended him would be a target. I would be included in that number. Bonnie. The Salvatore brothers. Possibly the redhead giant. And, as we saw already, the Nightmare. At least. And anyone else any of those people care about would become easy leverage."
"When it was you in that condition," Klaus went on, "Elijah and your friends stood between you and feeding. Of course you hated them."
Elena pondered that for a second. "That barrier offended him."
But Klaus shook his head. "The barrier stops him from vengeance and...well...sex."
Elena gasped. "Me?" Klaus' only answer was the raising of one blonde eyebrow. "But that doesn't make sense. He could have anybody."
"He could have had anybody for centuries. He only wanted you. Looking back I can see that he chased your face across Europe more times than I can count. I think you are a need at this point."
"So he's gone to bring down that barrier?" Elena gasped, realizing what Klaus was carefully implying, so as not to alarm her.
He nodded slowly, his face grim. "It is what I would do."
"Then we have to get out of here. All of us. Now."
Klaus nodded again.
Upstairs, Damon watched with relief as Mara's breathing became stronger and deeper. There was still some of his blood smudged on her lip and he reached to gently wipe it away.
Her eyes narrowed on him as she moved away, as strong now as ever, to stand and glare at him as dark smoke swirled around her for a second. Then she was wearing black jeans and a simple t-shirt.
"Why would you do that?' She demanded, her voice high and loud. Her eyes were bright and a flush had moved over her cheeks. She was healthy again, and was somehow…..offended by that?
"Um...to help you?" He offered, thinking the answer was pretty obvious.
"I would have been fine." She argued.
The smooth confidence in her voice was a sham and she knew it. Under normal circumstances it took fire to wound her that much, causing that level of damage. Damon was probably right. She might have flashed out if he hadn't given her his blood.
It was her foolishness that made her choose a hawk that was defenseless against bullets. A choice that she was reaping a harvest for now.
Taking that form, she was caught in the hawk's limitations. There was no way she could've guessed that Elijah would turn a handful of stones into a hunting rifle, but she should have considered more carefully, been ready for anything. A dead warrior is one who failed to prepare.
Next time I fly, it'll be a damned dragon. They, at least, have scales for protection. Idiot.
This, all of this, was on her and she knew it. She had walked a careless path and the end of those pathways were always strewn in blood.
Blood. Oh, god. Damon's blood. The thought brought a flood of mortification that threatened to overwhelm her and she fought down a shudder.
Damon moved toward her and she took a step back, confusing him more. What have I done that's so offensive? The question tore through him and his eyes were wide with confusion.
"It looked to me like you were bleeding out." He bit out. "I thought you were dying."
"I just needed time." She insisted, speaking to him slowly, like he was mentally challenged. He had to stop and close his eyes to keep his frustration tamped down.
"Time I thought we didn't have. You said yourself that the Old Man was right behind you. If you think for one second I was going to just leave you here to deal with that…" He ran out of words, horrified at the prospect. He was still expecting Elijah to bust down the place any second, even now.
Mara's chest expanded and she blinked rapidly for a moment.
"I did say that, didn't I?" She asked quietly, her anger gone.
He only nodded, speechless. Pain had overtaken him as he thought he understood her outrage.
"Listen. I didn't mean to….I don't know….contaminate you, or whatever….." His throat closed as he swallowed hard and turned blinded eyes to the floor.
Mara moved fast into his line of sight, taking his hand.
"I don't think that." Her other hand laid carefully at his throat.
"I get that you don't like being part human. I guess you probably think what I am is worse." The hurtful idea rolled through his head, so naturally, it came out of his mouth. Anguish had driven a truck through the filter between his lips and his brain.
Both her hands came to either side of his face as she met his eyes. "No." She shook her head forcefully. "Just no."
"Then….?" He could hear conviction in her voice. She was being honest. So now he really was confused.
"You bled for me. Where I come from that means…" She swallowed. "I know it means something else here."
Damon thought he was beginning to understand, this was a cultural thing. His lips twisted to a small smile, hoping this had an easy answer.
"Here it only means that you needed help and I could help you." He explained slowly. "I've done it either for or because of nearly everyone in our little group. Hell, I've probably done it a half dozen times or more for E…" He stopped himself before he could finish saying the name.
Her eyes were bright as they met his. "For Elena." She finished for him. "It's okay for you to talk about her. It's not going to bother me." She sounded so freaking reasonable.
That sweetly understanding tone of hers tore at him like she'd gone after him with teeth and claws. He would have preferred it if she had. At least that he could fight.
He knew he should've been satisfied that she was unconcerned. But what he actually felt was just the opposite. The last thing he ever wanted to hear her say again was that other damnable name. Cole. That was why he'd stopped himself. But, when it came to Elena, Mara didn't care. That simple fact stole the wind from his sails, leaving him feeling deflated. Damon swung away abruptly, reaching for the door.
She watched him turn away, trying to understand what she just saw cross his face. Was that pain? Her kind only bled for one another once in a lifetime. During the bonding ceremony between mates. Each slashed their wrist and the two were bound together with a silver cord. The shared blood closed the circle of the magic that bound them, so that they were tied together forever. In her weakened confusion, seeing his bloody wrist come at her made her heart sing in her chest. Ridiculously, her mistaken joy was followed swiftly by fury.
But she was healed, which was his actual goal. Her wounds were closed. And she yelled at him. Because it hurt, knowing an exchange of blood would never mean what she'd thought in those first few seconds. That was something they could never have.
To make matters worse, he'd done this for Elena many times. She was proud of sounding like an adult about that, even though the blatant lie still made her tongue sting. What she'd really wanted to do was launch into a jealous rant.
Her anger wasn't really with him, she realized. It was pain. Like she'd said before. Because she loved him and couldn't actually have him. Not really. So she was spreading her pain around like a child with finger paints. Staining Damon with it. Her heart constricted in her chest.
Mara appeared in a blink between Damon and the door as he was headed for a hasty retreat. He stared, wondering how she'd just done that. Her mercury eyes were wide with contrition.
"You saved me." She noted quietly.
"And got my ass chewed for it. Yeah. Pretty much." He mumbled grimly.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sound ungrateful." She leaned up and pressed her lips lightly to his, hoping to take away the sting with truth and gentleness. It would embarrass her, but she'd rather let her pride take a hit than see him injured.
"Sharing blood…" She swallowed. "at home it means...commitment and sharing."
That was definitely pain blinking back at her from behind his eyes before they narrowed on her. "And you don't want that with me." He concluded tightly, turning his eyes to the door behind her.
He was wishing he was already through it.
She gently took his beloved face in her hands and forced him to look at her. "I didn't say that." She swallowed hard again, thinking of the ceremony she'd just witnessed. A way to make him understand. "Imagine if you opened your eyes and we were standing together at an altar about to take vows. Right now."
A ghost of a smile crossed his lips. She relaxed as she saw that the smile had reached his eyes this time. "That would freak me out."
She nodded, smiling now too. "Exactly." Mara leaned up and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips before she leaned back again. "That is what bleeding for someone means where I come from. I freaked out for a minute. I'm sorry. And I am better. You helped and I'm grateful. Really."
He pulled her suddenly close and held her for a second before she mumbled against his chest. "You're wracking up martyr points right now. You did a huge thing for me and I yelled at you for it. You've made a haul. Remind me of those when we're alone." She started counting points when he gave her the last piece of cake a week ago, one he'd clearly wanted. They got him anything he wanted, later. They'd made a game of it. Relief eased the weight on her shoulders as her words made him laugh.
"If I have to remind you, even that'll add points, you know." He grumbled warmly as he leaned down and pressed his nose to her throat. His eyes closed as he breathed in her scent, letting peace flow through him.
Playful arguments with her were one thing, in Damon's mind. Her outrage was something else. He decided that he'd need to be careful about using his blood for healing because it held a significance he still didn't entirely understand. There was no way he would let her suffer or die if he could stop it. But, for Mara, he could be cautious.
He had been so distracted that he was surprised to hear Elena's voice whispering to someone just outside the door. He'd not even smelled that anyone was close. Damn. He grimaced as he heard Elena whisper, "Martyr points. She's really got him pegged."
Damon opened the door to the sound of Klaus' quiet chuckle at his expense. But one look at Klaus' expression told him that the laugh didn't hold malice, just humor.
"Sorry to interrupt..." Elena began, but trailed off quickly. Klaus shouldered his way past Elena and into the room to meet Mara's gaze.
"I misjudged you about Elijah." He said simply, his hands going to fill the pockets of the wedding clothes he still wore. "Forgive me."
Damon saw that Mara had stiffened and rose to her meager height, like she was expecting the worst when she saw Klaus. She studied him a second before she relaxed and her features settled to a small smile.
"Forgiven." Mara whispered with a tiny nod and stretched out a hand for him to shake. Silently offering a truce between them.
Klaus kept his hands in his pockets and only looked at her for a second before he smiled too. "You will not try to take my head if I shake that will you?"
Damon had to grin at Klaus' caution. Mara had promised Klaus she'd take his head if he touched her ever again. He'd clearly taken that warning to heart. So now the Original was eyeing her outstretched hand like it might be a trap.
Mara laughed. "Not today."
While they were cautiously eyeing one another over a stiff handshake, Elena stepped up again.
"Elijah was here. We have a barrier that's keeping him out. So we're safe for now. But he'll be determined to bring it down. He's gone to do that, or that's what Klaus thinks. So...we need to get out of here. All of us. But we can't leave a scent trail for him to follow. That would be like a neon sign for him." She explained to Mara quickly.
"We've all seen you travel in shadows. And I don't even know if it's possible…but...is it possible to take passengers?" Elena stared at Mara, looking hopeful.
Mara seemed to think hard for a minute. "I've carried others before. But only one at a time. I might be able to do two, considering I'm back to full strength now." She turned a smile on Damon that made his chest expand before she turned and went on.
"But I'll need to know first where we're going. It can't be random."
Klaus nodded like this was no surprise. "I have asked around. John, Milla's boss, is downstairs. He and his wife Stephanie were caught up in the confusion. Elijah knows his face, his workplace. Knowing that, I am convinced he and his wife are not safe. They would be tempting leverage, if I were in Elijah's shoes. They agreed. Stephanie inherited a skiing chalet in Colorado. The deed is in her name, but concealed for years in layers of shell corporations for tax purposes. So it will be difficult for Elijah to trace on paper. High in the mountains and abandoned for the summer. It is well stocked year-round and there are eight bedrooms, four bathrooms. Ideal, I would say."
"Bonnie and Neyla could probably shield us, once we're there, from any location spells." Elena pointed out, her voice tight.
Mara nodded. "I'll just need the address. To scope it out before we begin."
Klaus smiled, pulling a slip of paper from his pocket, handing it to Mara. A few seconds later she disappeared.
When Mara reappeared, it only took a few minutes for everyone to gather in the living room. She explained what would happen next. She was calm and careful with her words as everyone listened. When they all agreed she reached out and took Stephanie's hand. The small redheaded woman looked surprised and Damon smiled, seeing Mara's easy warmth with the human woman.
"I'm sorry, but you and your husband will have to be first, so you can invite the others as we come through. Or some won't be able to enter." Her words were smooth, her smile warm. "This will be as easy as taking a midnight walk in the dark to the bathroom."
She reached for John's hand as she spoke, taking slow steps toward the corner.
"You'll want to keep your eyes tightly shut. Not because there's any danger, but you'll feel dizzy if you don't. Abraxis only travelled with me once this way and he opened his eyes half way through. He spewed like a firehose. It was beautiful to behold, but you don't want to follow his example." She was chattering happily to the couple, walking between them, their hands linked. John's booming laugh and Mara's voice faded out as they disappeared together.
He could see the effort she was making to keep them distracted, so they wouldn't be afraid. The now familiar rush of warmth filled his chest again. A hand spread over it as he listened, smiling to himself.
Abraxis came to stand next to Damon and stood there, silent for a minute.
"Be warned. Slip up in front of that one, just once, and you'll be hearing about it for ages." He grumbled as green eyes rolled, but Damon could see that Mara telling the story didn't actually anger the giant.
Elena had been speaking with someone on her phone in the next room and came back, her expression pinched, her eyes pained.
Damon gave her a look, one brow up and she shrugged.
"That was my head of security. We moved the deed to his name with specifics about who would be allowed on the property. That's how we got the barrier. After that, he immediately hopped a plane headed for parts unknown. But a few minutes ago one of the plane's engines started to fail. Fortunately his wife was there and is a witch. She was able to protect them. So everyone's okay. But somehow Elijah guessed who was responsible for the barrier and tried to kill him." Elena's eyes were glassy as she spoke.
"He's going to tear up the papers in fifteen minutes, switching ownership back to me. That's the best plan I have for keeping Sam from being a target again. Elijah will assume he's dead. But we need to hurry. I figure he'll be here any minute. I've set a timer on my phone for when the barrier disappears and he'll be able to enter again." By the time she'd finished speaking Klaus and Milla were standing close and one of Klaus' arms came around Elena's shoulders to support her.
Damon thought she was taking the change in Elijah remarkably well. Now he could see that this was harder on her than he'd first understood. Without another thought he reached to take one of her hands.
"We'll fix this, Elena. We just have to have time to plan. We all know it can be done." He nodded once in Klaus' direction, meeting the Original's eyes for a second.
Klaus' arm around her shoulders tightened and Elena let out a shaky breath as she agreed.
A couple of moments later Mara swept back through the shadows and Damon gave her the low down on the time crunch. She nodded and smiled, unconcerned and everyone seemed to relax. When she asked who wanted to go next Milla immediately stepped up and Klaus joined her. He reached to take Milla's hand and Mara shook her head.
"I'm not entirely sure that will work." She held out her hand for him to take, clearly intending that she would be touching each of them. "And I wouldn't want for you to get lost." She sounded sincere, but Klaus narrowed his eyes at her and Mara only shrugged, acknowledging his caution.
"Ok. To be clear, Milla might be annoyed with me if you did. And I like her." She clarified, straight faced and Milla laughed. Klaus begrudgingly took her hand and the three of them disappeared into the darkness.
Damon stayed back, keeping a watch for Elijah as Mara walked each of the others through the shadows and to safety. Bonnie, Elena, Stefan, Neyla, Jeremy, Suzette, Finally, all that was left was Brax and him.
Mara smiled up at Brax and extended a hand, one that he looked deeply offended by. His green eyes rolled.
"You know better." His eyes flashed and flames flickered there right before he disappeared.
Damon was jarred by her friend's irritably abrupt departure. "What the heck was that?"
"Elemental. Fire spirit. He can pretty much move anywhere in most realms at will. And he's a thorny one."
"Scary guy." He noted with a grin as Mara stepped into his arms. He smiled to himself as she let out a quiet, happy sigh.
"Alone at last." He breathed as he leaned down, folding her into his body.
She sighed again, "I like it when you do this."
"Hold you?" He asked, his chest fluttering strangely.
She gave a nod against his chest. "You're so big that you block out everything but you and me. I like that."
"I'm not that big, honey." He was thinking of her massive friend and pulled a confused smile as she leaned back.
"You are to me." She pointed out as she had to cock her head all the way back to look up at him. Considering she was probably five feet tall and he was a little over six, he supposed she had a point.
He felt his chest expand again as he leaned down to press his lips to hers. She made him feel ten feet tall.
I really am so screwed, he thought. He knew from his conversation with Milla days ago that Mara planned to leave. He had no idea how he was going to face that.
Just then Elijah appeared and gave the barrier at the open door a hard slam. Damon watched him eye the scene as he scowled. He seemed to be taking note of who was present and turned a frustrated look on Mara, clearly surprised that she was still alive.
Oh, right. I'm going to kill you for that, he thought in Elijah's direction, his eyes hard as protective anger swept over him.
Damon checked the timer he'd synced with Elena's and saw they had three minutes left before the barrier dissolved. Silently he showed it to Mara and her eyes flickered over it before taking in Elijah's furious face while he slammed against the barrier for a third time in the span of a few seconds. The old man in question let out a roar of helpless fury.
Mara reached to take his hand and the two of them moved toward the dark. Damon raised a hand behind him and sent Elijah a middle finger salute as the two of them disappeared. A louder, howling roar echoed as the foundations of the house shook with Elijah slamming the barrier over and over again.
The two of them stepped into a spacious room as Stephanie invited Damon in. Wide polished wood railings lining the ceilings, thick rugs stretched out over a polished wooden floor. The whole feel of the place was comfortable and welcoming.
"We just left behind a seriously pissed off senior citizen." Damon announced to the room.
Elena nodded from her seat in a small wooden chair. "Elijah's very determined by nature."
"Obsessive." Klaus slotted in from across the room with an eye roll and Elena grimaced in his direction for a second before continuing her thought.
"So he'll focus now on finding us." Elena said.
"Finding Elena." Klaus interrupted again in a stage whisper.
That earned him a hard scowl from Elena and Damon laughed.
"Either way, hopefully he'll be less prone to mass murder if he's focused on a task." Elena finished, looking frustrated with both of them. "We won't be able to completely stop any damage he could do because he's so strong. All we can hope for is distracting him from it."
"So how long does that give us?" Stephanie asked, carrying a tray of drinks from the kitchen for everyone.
Elena looked to Klaus for a guess on that and he seemed to think for a minute.
"If the shields that Bonnie and Neyla are constructing hold, we might have a week. But that will be pushing it. And you," He turned to address Elena, "need to stay inside at all times. The strong winds this high up will carry your scent for miles. He will know it like it's his own. So we can't risk it."
She nodded grimly, but didn't seem surprised.
"All of our business locations worldwide have been shut down for the next two weeks. A surprise paid holiday for every employee, to celebrate Klaus' marriage. Or that's the story Sam went with. We've moved our product as donations to every hospital close to our customers and advised them they will need to pilfer it for a few days. We might lose customers over this, but it would be worse to lose lives if Elijah was to wander into one of our facilities. Even our security will be offsite, monitoring electronically."
Mara sat on the arm of the couch next to where Damon had made a seat for himself.
"You were prepared for this." Mara told Elena, the statement sounding like a question.
"Elijah was. He gave me everything I would need for this day and walked away from any planning. He didn't want to know." Elena's voice broke at the memory.
"But the one thing Elijah didn't know about…" Elena reached into a bag she'd carried with her through the shadows with Mara. She pulled out a long twisted dagger with a razor sharp point and a vial of what looked like white dust. "is that I have this."
Klaus almost vaulted to his feet and turned, stalking from the room. After a blink, Milla stood and followed him.
"And what is that?" Mara whispered, her eyes turning to the doorway Klaus had disappeared through.
Damon smiled. "One of the daggers Klaus used years ago to control his family and the white oak ash to seal it. Sink it into his heart and it can kill Elijah. Sort of. He'll be mostly dead and stay that way as long as it isn't moved." He explained, feeling real hope for their situation for the first time.
Elena nodded, her eyes sad. "We just have to get a human close enough to him to use it. Because Klaus never will. No matter what Elijah's done. He already laid down the law about that. And it will kill anyone who's not human, if they use it."
"But it wouldn't kill Klaus?" John asked from his seat on the hearth.
Elena shook her head. "Klaus is half vampire, half werewolf. So this won't have any power over him either way."
John's eyes went wide. "Milla told me once that pretty much everyone was afraid of Klaus. I guess I see why, now."
"Once everyone did fear him. They were right to. But Klaus' actions made him a monster. Not his origins." Mara spoke with quiet conviction and the whole room went still. "He is a good man now. I can see why he wouldn't want to turn that on Elijah again. The one person who has sacrificed so much for him. We will just have to find another way, if it comes to that."
Damon was as surprised as everyone else by her defense of Klaus and his decision. He guessed when she forgave someone, she did it completely. The warmth spread through his chest again even while he disagreed with her. Screwed. I. Am. Completely. Screwed.
Elena sent Mara a grateful look as she agreed.