A/N Welcome back to day two of this mini-adventure! Thank you to those of you who reviewed. I really love hearing your guesses, so keep them coming! An immense amount of research went into this, but please keep in mind that it's fiction and don't me if I got a tiny detail wrong. Thanks to Erica (BelleMorte180) for her help and advice as I've struggled to make sure this makes sense. Please let me know what you think! (No concrit, please)

Chapter Two – Epiphany

"Anyone can possess, anyone can profess, but it is an altogether different thing to confess." – Shannon L. Alder

10:13 AM – Thirteen Hours, Forty-Seven Minutes to Execution

Manhattan traffic was a fucking nightmare. Even though Caroline left in the black of night, it had still taken what felt like forever to get out of the city. The twenty minute line at Starbucks didn't help improve her mood either, but at least they didn't try to invert the ingredients. Fortunately, once she hit the highway, she hadn't wanted to shoot too many of her fellow drivers for going too slow in the fast lane. But when they did, she simply turned on the bright red and blue flashing lights in her company issued black SUV and they scurried like roaches when the sun comes up.

Roaches were vermin, and so was Klaus Mikaelson. Caroline kept going over and over their interactions from the last fifteen years in her head. It had been a few years since she'd been forced to talk to him, but he was the kind of man who left an impression. He'd been 25 at the time of his arrest and she'd have been lying if she said he wasn't unfairly handsome for a guy who chopped up a body and tried dumping it in the river. He had magnetic blue eyes that drew her in as a young agent and while she'd wised up over the years, he still had a way of getting to her. Working for the FBI took a toll. She'd given up so many pieces of herself to the job over the last fifteen years, and so many to this case in particular, that all she wanted was for it to be over.

But what if he didn't do it? No matter how hard Caroline tried to ignore the nagging voice of her conscience, she couldn't silence the thought that she may have made a mistake. Playing it out in her head, she started to think about the whats and whys and whos of it all. Why would he confess to a crime he didn't commit? Nothing about any of the Mikaelsons screamed noble, except perhaps the youngest living sibling, Rebekah. The baby of the family had died at a young age from an infection. Since then, they'd rallied around each other and became closer than close until the day of Klaus' arrest.

When Rebekah learned what happened to her boyfriend, she'd been so hysterical that even special investigators they called in from the Crimes Against Children Unit hadn't been able to get a proper statement out of her, not that it mattered after her brother confessed. By that point, Mikael had died in a car accident – a brake failure many attributed to his bastard son – and Esther felt it was best to send her daughter to a psychiatric facility upstate. She returned a month later and never spoke to any of her siblings or mother again, foregoing her inheritance at age 18 in favor of getting a job and attending a local college. They all tried reaching out to her over the years, but they were very much of the opinion that even though Klaus was caught red-handed, family was always and forever and that was that.

Caroline was of the opinion that the Mikaelsons were drinking the crazy kool-aid. She admired Rebekah for standing up to her family and walking away, knowing she'd have done the same. Fortunately, she came from a very good family. Her mother, Liz, was the sheriff in the tiny town of Mystic Falls, Virginia where she'd grown up. When it turned out her father was gay, her parents had divorced, but she remained close to both of them. Bill Forbes moved to Quantico when he got a job with the FBI and she had followed in his footsteps, relocating to Manhattan straight out of the Academy. While neither of her parents were still alive, she knew she honored their memory every day by doing what was right and following the letter of the law.

The letter. The source of the paper with the two photographs on MassDOT letterhead was one of Caroline's biggest questions. If Elijah Mikaelson had even the slightest whiff of anything that might save his brother, she had no doubt that he'd have used it to his advantage years ago. She'd been forced to call and ask if he was the one who sent it. He'd sounded genuinely shocked and demanded a stay of execution be granted immediately. She told him to go iron his suit and hung up. He'd made a name for himself on Wall Street and has used every ounce of his fame and fortunate to try and get his brother off death row, but to no avail. Someone had obviously sent in the second half of that toll violation, but if it wasn't Elijah, who was it?

Determined to get to the truth of it all, Caroline pulled into a Starbucks drive-thru and after placing her order, got on her phone yet again. She'd been trying to get hold of someone from MassDOT Violations Processing System since business hours began, but the lines were always busy and the automated system kept hanging up on her. Josh had been right; she was going to have to knock some heads together if she wanted to get this done today. And she really wanted to get this done today. She had very mixed feelings on capital punishment because she was raised to believe that killing people was generally wrong. If he had to die, she wanted them to just get it done already so she could finally move on. She had a few kills under her belt and while she knew they'd been justified, it still didn't sit well with her. If Klaus' sentence had been commuted to life without parole, she wouldn't have lost any sleep over it, but that wasn't her call. Her job was to turn in the evidence and let the lawyers do the rest.

Caroline silently punched the air inside her SUV when she finally got a live human being to answer the phone. "MassDOT Violations Processing System," a monotone female voice answered down the line. "How may I direct your call?"

"This is Supervisory Special Agent Caroline Forbes calling from the FBI."

"This is Call Specialist Liv Parker from MassDOT Violations Processing System," the voice replied sarcastically. "How may I direct your call?"

Rude! Caroline thought to herself, but she bit her tongue and forced a smile into her professional tone. "I'm calling to get the records of a toll violation. I'm looking at part of a document, but I need the entire record."

"Name of the driver?" Liv asked boredly, the sound of keys tapping in the background grating on the agent's nerves.

"Niklaus Mikaelson."

"Date and time of the infraction?"

"May 26, 2006, 1:39 PM."

The sound of the keyboard tapping in the background vanished. "Are you fucking kidding me?"

"Excuse me, but you're speaking to a federal agent and this is part of an ongoing murder investigation!" Caroline snapped. "Keep the attitude to yourself and just get me the records before I file a complaint. Now."

"Honey, you can threaten me with all the complaints you want," she replied and Caroline just knew this bitch young government phone worker was rolling her eyes, "but I can't help you. Our records only go back ten years."

"Okay, well, we both know that's a lie," the agent sassed right back. "This country saves literally everything. I once needed a marriage record from the 1800s and guess what! Got it."

"From where, the family Bible?"

"Okay, that's besides the point," Caroline deflected, narrowing her eyes because that was exactly where she'd gotten it. "Just because you don't have access to them doesn't mean nobody does. Now, if you don't have what I need, point me in the direction of someone who does, goddammit!"

"What's your problem?" Liv snipped, resuming her typing. "Forget to have your coffee this morning?"

Caroline glared at the phone on the seat beside her as she sipped her latte, the conversation coming through the speakers of her SUV. "Just tell me who I need to talk to."

Audibly releasing a long-suffering sigh as though she really just couldn't be bothered, Liv replied, "There's a warehouse downtown with hard drives of old government documents. Someone down there might be able to help you."

"I'm gonna need that address and the name and number of someone I can speak to."

An amused snort sounded from the car's speakers. "That'd be Luke Parker." Caroline smacked her hand to her forehead and hoped like hell that whoever this relative was, he wasn't as big a bitch as the woman currently rattling off an address and phone number. She gave her thanks and just as she was about to hang up, Liv added in a sarcastically sweet tone, "Have a nice day and thank you for calling MassDOT Violations Processing System." Punching the off button angrily, the agent flashed the screen her middle finger before typing the address into her GPS. Pulling away from Starbucks, she began weaving her way through Boston traffic.

11:05 AM – Twelve Hours, Fifty-Five Minutes to Execution

"Thank fuck you're not as bad as that woman on the phone," Caroline sighed in relief as she shook hands with a very friendly young man in his early twenties with blonde hair, blue eyes and fabulous fashion style for a government employee.

Luke Parker barked out a laugh at that. "That's my twin, Liv. She's such a salty bitch first thing in the morning." The agent raised a questioning brow and he chuckled again. "Okay, fine, she's always a lil saltine cracker, but she's my sister, soooooo…." His voice trailed off in amusement, eyes twinkling in the low wattage of the enormous warehouse he appeared to run singlehandedly. He had a small government-issue desk in a cubicle cluttered with electronics and adorable knick knacks, but it was the only furniture in what was otherwise an enormous storage unit.

Caroline looked around at the high shelves with endless clear plastic containers full of files and digital storage devices warily, gulping. "How well organized are these?" she asked worriedly, anxiously gnawing on her lower lip.

"Meticulously," Luke replied proudly, making her sigh in relief. The older blonde was a notorious stickler for organization bordering on obsessional. When she'd been made the Agent in Charge of the Violent Crimes Unit, two of her agents put in for transfers almost immediately when she came at them armed with binders full of brightly colored post-its and introduced them to what she insisted would be their new filing system. If there was anything she could appreciate, it was her fellow control freak. "It was a hot mess when I got here two years ago, but I whipped this bitch into shape. What are you looking for?"

Deciding she liked Luke, the agent pulled a file folder out of her black canvas messenger bag. Flashing him the first smile she'd felt all day, she handed him the copy Josh had made for her of the two photos. He'd kept the original to run tests on the paper to verify age and dust for fingerprints. "I need the second half of this."

Letting out a low whistle, he took it from her hand and shook his head. "Well, this is older than my grandma's goulash. They don't even shell out for the face photos anymore," he commented as he eyed the top photo. "Who is this guy? Looks familiar."

"Niklaus Mikaelson. He's a-"

"Klaus Mikaelson?" he gasped, eyes shooting up to look at her excitedly. "That super hot guy on death row?"

Caroline's jaw dropped as she gaped at him incredulously. "Are you seriously fangirling over a murderer right now?!"

"A hot murderer!" Luke qualified, like that made it alright that'd Klaus shot a man in cold blood and chopped him up into little pieces. "And who is that next to him?" he asked, pointed at a stretch of blonde hair along the shoulder of a woman in a large floppy hat and sunglasses, face partially obstructed from view. "Is that that bougey model, Cami O'Connell?"

"That or his sister," she mused. "If you have the original, I can have it enhanced."

"God, she was one lucky bimbo. You know, she wasn't even famous until it came out that she was dating a murderer." Shaking his head, he commented almost resentfully, "That gorgeous piece of man ass is all she had going for her." As he stared at the photo longingly, Caroline had to resist the urge to gag and didn't even want to think about what Luke was imagining about had it been him in the front seat of that BMW.

Klaus' good looks added to the hype surrounding his case. Ugly criminals didn't sell papers; attractive criminals were front page. She could distinctly remember a tabloid reaching out to various government agencies wanting to do a photo shoot of America's Hottest Inmates and he'd been number one on their list. Finding it personally offensive, she made sure it never came to fruition, but that didn't stop Klaus from bringing it up during their next interview and offering her an autographed copy if she could make it happen. Cami had practically made a career out of what he insisted was barely a fling, never once agreeing to talk to her after he'd been arrested despite her many desperate attempts to keep herself in the spotlight. Elijah finally put his foot down and publicly denounced her when she showed up to the first day of his trial with paparazzi in tow.

"Do you know him?" the young man asked, breaking her from her reverie when he finally stopped staring.

"Unfortunately," Caroline replied begrudgingly.

"What's he like? Is his voice as sexy in person as those YouTube clips from his trial?" he asked with wide eyes, practically drooling. "British accents are the best."

"He's a pain in my ass and that's all I have to say about him," she said firmly, redirecting the conversation to the matter at hand. "This photo was allegedly taken an hour before Stefan Salvatore was shot in cold blood. If it's legit, it puts him in Boston when he confessed to being in New York committing murder." She emphasized the last word, reminding the younger man what they were dealing with.

Undeterred, Luke looked down at the photo again, swooning. "If he gets off, can you get me his number?"

"Seriously?!"

Laughing out loud, he set the paper down on his desk and gestured for her to take a seat. "Okay, okay, fine. Hang on while I dig out the records from that year." He quirked his brow at the way she refused the chair and began pacing back and forth. After a moment, she waved her hand to shoo him off, making him grin bemusedly. Her steel-toed boots thumped heavily against the well polished cement floor for long minutes before he came back with a small rectangular metal box in his hand. "Got the MassDOT records from that year right here. If it's legit, this is where it will be. You sure you don't want to sit? You look beat."

Caroline closed her eyes and inhaled a deep breath, an inch away from snapping at him. She'd been yanked out of bed at three in the morning, thrown on the first clothes she could find, tossed her long, golden curls up in a very messy bun and stomped out the door. "It's been a long day, okay?"

"It's like eleven fifteen," he countered, gesturing at an adorable penguin figurine with an analog clock on its plastic belly.

"And I've already been at this for eight freaking hours!" she squeaked in frustration. "Can you just look it up and please tell me it's fake?"

"Calm down, sassy pants," he chided playfully, sitting at his desk and plugging the hard drive in to his PC. "Give me like five minutes."

Groaning, Caroline plopped down in the chair across from him and pulled out her phone. She had a next text from Logan.

AD Fell: Anything yet?

AIC Forbes: Working out a lead. I'll let you know.

AD Fell: Ok, but if it turns out to be legit, I'm going to need you on the first plane to Indianapolis.

AIC Forbes: WHAT

AD Fell: If the alibi is corroborated, the next step is to interview the defendant.

AIC Forbes: There are PLENTY of agents in Terre Haute. I'll fax them the information if it pans out.

AD Fell: Spare me the dramatics, Care. My head is already throbbing. We both know that smug bastard responds to you.

AIC Forbes: He FLIRTS with me. It's disgusting. Every time I have to see him, I have to shower for like a week.

AD Fell: You have the best rapport. If it's legit, you're going. Keep me posted.

Resisting the urge to tell Logan what he could do with his postings, Caroline tucked the phone back in her bag without responding. Looking across the desk hopefully, her face fell when she saw undeniable excitement in Luke's eyes as he handed her two pieces of paper from his desk printer. "I found it!" he announced like it was the best news ever.

Shooting him a withering glance, she took the pages and looked them over. Right in her hands was the proof that Klaus Mikaelson was in Boston when Stefan Salvatore was killed. "How is this possible?" she asked, anger coloring her tone. "Shouldn't this have been reported to the New York DMV? We would have been notified if any legal action was taken against his driver's license! How the fuck did you people miss this?"

For the first time, Luke's cheery disposition faded and was replaced with a look of sheer annoyance. "Massachusetts doesn't participate in the Interstate Driver's License Compact, therefore we were under no obligation to inform the state of New York," he informed her blankly, offended by the accusation that he personally missed something when he was the king of Massachusetts organization. "That's not on me, honey."

Throwing her hands up in the air, Caroline let out a loud shriek of frustration. "Seriously?! How was I supposed to know to check every single state for potential toll violations?" she asked herself angrily, unaware she'd said it out loud until he responded.

"Umm, you're not," Like countered like that was obvious. "It's not the government's job to provide alibis. His defense should have turned it in, right? Someone at his address would have gotten a copy of the original letter."

Leaning forward in her chair, the agent massaged her temples to stave off the growing ache behind her eyes. "Yes, but now that I have it, I have to investigate."

"Ooooo!" He clapped his hands together excitedly. "Does this mean you get to go talk to him now?"

The blonde shook her head and didn't answer, refusing to indulge in anymore fangirling over someone who, at the very least, had tried to dump a chopped up body in the Hudson River. But he wasn't the one who pulled the trigger. The voice of her conscience rang loudly in her ears as she felt bile rising in the back of her throat. She had been wrong. Caroline Forbes, decorated federal agent, helped convict a man for a murder he did not commit that was about to lead to his execution. But hadn't he confessed to that murder and never once recanted?

Klaus had obviously never gotten the memo that he'd skipped a toll since the U.S. Postal Service didn't forward mail to prison, but even if he hadn't known his alibi could be proven, why would he say he'd done something when he didn't? Absolutely nothing made sense about the paper she could not stop staring at, eyes wide with horrified disbelief. Caroline didn't know if she wanted to scream or cry… or possibly vomit all over Luke's squeaky clean floor. What she did know was that she needed answers. Unfortunately, she knew there was only one place to find them.

Sighing, she pulled out her phone and texted the Assistant Director. Getting up, she shook Luke's hand and thanked him, providing her email to receive a copy of the document. By the time she got to the car, her boss had responded with instructions to hotfoot it to Logan International Airport and informed her he'd book her a ticket on the drive. Pulling on to the road, she debated the merits of early retirement as she grumbled aloud, "Fuck my life."

If there way anything that upset Caroline more than being wrong, it was how much Klaus Mikaelson was going to enjoy seeing her on his dying day.

A/N Thanks for reading! Any guesses what's going on? What did you think of Luke and Liv? I've been having fun writing characters I don't usually play around with. I hope you liked their banter and bitchiness. Let me know what you think!