Chapter 12

If I Believe You

His lower lip protruded in thought as he eyed her.

"Sheila Bennett was working on a case to take to the Sheriff Forbes, it's about all the strange deaths happening in Mystic Falls. Lucy, somehow believes there's a connection between my old high school burning down to all the other weird shit happening in town." He informs her. "Your Grams had a case file on my family."

He paused, as if he wanted to continue. Despite her wrenching heart, he knew he had more to tell her. "Lucy doesn't believe Damon was working alone in Elena's murder. There's someone else. We don't know who yet. But this person is connected between Whitmore and Grove Hill."

"You and Lucy have been keeping this from me," she began slowly. "Grams, my mom and dad…"

"No, Abby and Rudy don't know. Grams only told Lucy, and hired Maggie James to work the Whitmore angle, Greta and I are the only ones who know about Founding Family stuff."

Bonnie's eyes darted over his face, her confusion apparent. "Greta knows?"

Kai nodded. "Lucy couldn't do this alone. That's why she brought me in. She said I reminded her of Damon. He was Sheila's subordinate before he went off to college."

"O— oh, I didn't even—" Bonnie stammered then paused, taking a breath. "… I need to go." She turned and began walking towards the door.

His eyes narrowed before widening. Bonnie was filled with hurt and anger.

"I'm sorry, they told me not to say anything. But I couldn't risk losing you." Kai pushed out. "I guess it doesn't matter anyways, I lost you. Didn't I?"

Bonnie shook her head, holding up hands to her chest. "Maybe not. I just need to see Lucy first." She responded, her tone light despite the conversation they'd been having. "I need to understand why Grams was doing this. I need to know the truth."

Kai shivered, watching Bonnie leave with a troubled gaze.

Her heart was broken. But she didn't have time to wallow in pity. After school Monday, she followed Kai to the Founder's Library, ready to speak to Lucy. Kai hadn't told them that Bonnie knew, or that she was even coming.

Bonnie thought they deserved to be shook by her presence.

When Bonnie and Kai found their way into the Founder's Library, she tried not to focus on him too intently. It was hard not to, however. His face was losing its color and his eyes were beginning to droop from exhaustion. She was betting he hadn't slept since his little confession. She didn't want to be mad at him, she knew he was just doing what was asked of him. But Bonnie couldn't help but be mildly pissed off. Kai knew more about her family than she did, Lucy confided in a total stranger instead of her own cousin.

Bonnie headed directly to Lucy's office, thankful she didn't run into Greta on the way. When she got into the office, the older woman looked up from her laptop, her red lips curved into a smirk.

"Cuz, how are you? I hope you didn't come over to distract Parker." She countered lightly, amused.

Bonnie's lips twisted into a frown at the sight of her cousin. "What do you know about Elena's death?" She hissed, eyes desperately searching the other woman's face.

"Excuse me—" Lucy started, but Bonnie hastily approached her.

"Kai told me everything."

When Lucy stepped away from her desk — her face lacked emotion and there was a pink tint high in her cheeks.

"Bonnie, what you have to understand is – your Grams was only trying to protect us. Our bloodline and our history, the Gilberts have always been the reason for so much of our struggles. Rudy being Mayor was the first good thing that's ever happened to us." Lucy explained.

Bonnie drew in a breath. "What do you know about Elena and Damon?" She exclaimed.

"I –" Suddenly she was lost for words. "I know as much as you. Elena had an affair with Damon, leading to her getting pregnant. Stefan said Elena wanted to wait until marriage, that they were virgins so he clearly wasn't the father. Damon wanted to cover his tracks, he'd lose everything if people knew he got a seventeen year old girl pregnant." Lucy concluded matter-of-factly.

"Is that all, what about Grams, why was she keeping this from the rest of us." She snapped irritably, "What does any of this have to do with Whitmore, the Parkers, and the Founding Families." Bonnie roared, fists clenched into fierce balls of temper.

"Use your head Bonnie, the last five years have been strange. Miranda and Grayson's death weren't an accident, Richard Lockwood didn't commit suicide like Carol said, Jenna wasn't killed by an animal attack in the woods, John Gilbert and Bill Forbes weren't just brutally murdered out of nowhere."

There was a long silence where only the fireplace crackled ferociously. No one knew what to say.

Her heart pounded fiercely within her breast. "What about Kai? What did Grams have on the Parkers?"

Lucy looked at Bonnie with guiltless innocence, surprised by the wrath that burned red on her face.

"Grams was keeping track of Joshua Parker, all his whereabouts from France, Bulgaria, New York and Portland." She paused. "I have dates, addresses, and a name but nothing concrete."

"Basically you have nothing tangible." Bonnie snorted contemptuously, "What's the name you have?"

Lucy hesitated. "Nadia Petrova."

Bonnie sighed, so what, Joshua having an affair with some Eurobitch. This didn't tell Bonnie anything, except Olivia Parker could do so much better than her husband.

Lucy swallowed audibly, "Bonnie, you can't speak a word of this to your father. Rudy cannot know any of this." She said sharply – a little too sharply.

She looked up at her cousin suddenly; tracing the familiar flash of guilt and wariness as it crossed Lucy's eyes.

"What, why?"

"Grams didn't trust Rudy. She believed he'd do anything to be a successor to Richard Lockwood. That's the reason Abby can't know either, she'll never turn on Rudy, she'll never go back to that life of squalor."

Bonnie knew Abby had a rough childhood, the Bennett had never been wealthy or even middle class. Like the Donovans, they had to work very hard to get what little they had. While the Founding Families lived a more superior life. Rudy becoming Mayor changed everything for them and many of the families that weren't Founding Families members. But what was the cost for their town being more diverse and fair.

Bonnie's eyes tapered and hardened. At that moment the door clicked open, and entered Greta standing closely behind her. The other girl's arms folded tight across her chest.

"We were trying to protect you, Bonnie." Greta's voice trembled and shocked. "I'm sorry we kept this from you, we were scared. I know you must really hate us, but we have bigger fish to fry. Bill Forbes was murdered, the same way John and Elena Gilbert were. We need to finish what she started."

Bonnie still felt betrayed and vehement. "I want no part of this."

"The Gilberts and Bennetts have a long history together." Lucy protested suddenly, unable to swallow the words. "I know about the emotional abuse Elena put you through growing up. Miranda Gilbert was the same with your mother, and Jenna tried to use me and then dogged me out when she found out about me and Logan Fell." So what, the Sommers-Gilbert women were racist bullies who hated colored women who dare date any of the well off men in this town.

"Bonnie, this is bigger than us." Greta stated with authority.

She scoffed, turning her back towards them. "Miranda and Grayson's death was an accidental drowning. John was killed in a home invasion, an animal attack killed Aunt Jenna..." she uttered through clenched teeth. "And Damon murdered Elena because she was pregnant." She said shortly, truthfully.

She wanted to scream at them, tear at them, make them understand.

Bonnie made her choice, she chose to walk away and forget this whole ordeal. She doesn't know how she'll ever forgive them or Kai. She needs time and space, maybe once she can forget this whole conversation. But if she can't, what happens next?

Kai's mood continued to sink, Bonnie refused to speak to him, except when she asked for a ride to the library. He made his way to Greta's office to warn her that Bonnie was going off on Lucy in the other office. After a few minutes of listening to Bonnie chew out Lucy, Greta told him to talk the day off, before she stormed into Lucy's office to do damage control.

He felt like he really screwed up. Kai knew he shouldn't have told Bonnie, but how could he keep lying to her. How was he supposed to keep this to himself. Now she hates all three of them, if only Sheila was here to face her granddaughter's wrath.

Instead of leaving the library, he went downstairs to study for his AP chemistry exam. It was much more quiet than Mystic Grill and his house.

The library was full of people. Kai knew midterms were coming up soon. Seems like everyone had the same idea to study somewhere quiet. Kai went to the back, and found Jeremy alone at a table, scowling at his laptop.

"Can I sit with you?" He shuffled over, keeping a faint smile on his face.

Jeremy was pulling out his notebook, before looking over at Kai by his table. "Sure, man."

Kai dropped down in the seat across from the Gilbert boy. Taking out his own laptop and placing it on the table. Kai looked over at Jeremy to see the irritated look on his face as he was sighing and flipping his notebook.

"You okay over there?"

Without looking up, Jeremy just nods. "Keep running into a deadend."

Jeremy rubbed his neck as Kai leaned over and whispered "Sarah said you and your girl broke up." He'd been meaning to have this little chat with Gilbert for a while now.

Gilbert just clears his throat trying to stall before saying. "Yeah, she thought it was best."

"Did she meet someone else?" he asked, sneering.

Jeremy was frowning miserably. "Yeah, she did."

Kai didn't understand why Jeremy was upset. He kissed Luke, he'd think Jeremy would be pleased that he got dumped without getting caught cheating. Kai also noticed Luke stopped talking about his Van Gogh, so something clearly happened between the two.

"How's Sarah? She said you took her to DC." Kai chastised in a serious tone.

Jeremy shot him a look of confusion at that. "What's happening here. Are you interrogating me?" he asked.

Gilbert's lips twitched — a telltale sign that he was worried.

Kai's voice lowered until it was almost inaudible, but it all but vibrated with intensity. "Luke told me about your little kiss."

Jeremy cleared his throat. "I loved Anna, but…" he paused then said faintly, "Luke, I care about him, he's special. I'm just confused, and I have a lot going on, that I don't want Luke to be involved with."

Kai leaned back in his seat and shook his head. "Fuck, our family doesn't need more problems." He sighed, adding, "You know, Joshua would never allow Liv or Jo to date you, because of your family complications or lack of a family."

Jeremy eyebrows shot up. And he paused for a second before responding. "I'll stay away from him if that's what's best."

"What's best is if you'd never given him hope in the first place." Kai implored.

Jeremy sighed loudly. "I don't want to lose Luke. I've lost so many people already. Now isn't the time for me to get caught up into something, it's not safe for us to be together, not until I get some answers." He started truthfully.

A thought tugged at the strings of his memory. Kai's eyebrows cocked as he recalled the argument Lucy and Bonnie were having about the Gilbert families. Lucy didn't believe any of the deaths had been accidental, she believed someone intentionally killed off each member of the Gilberts, and someone else was behind Elena's death.

"Once I find out the truth, " Jeremy began muttering, "I'll talk to him."

His mind frantically tried to piece together what Jeremy was trying to say. "Are you in trouble?"

At Kai's blank expression, Jeremy looked from his laptop back to him. "Just trying to figure what the fuck happening in this stupid town."

Kai blinked in surprise, Jeremy's face was unreadable. "Gilbert, what's going on, what are you looking for?"

"Damon Salvatore," he managed to mumble. "Didn't kill my sister."

Next Chapter Kai goes searching for answers about the Salvatores, Bonnie and Greta have a sleepover and get an interesting surprise.

Happy New Year, I have the entire fic panned out. I'll be pushing chapters out more regularly now.