A/N Hey guys! I wrote this for Klarosummer Bingo 2019. The prompt was "vineyard." It got so popular that I decided to turn it into a multichap! Let me know what you think!
Warning: This story has some dark themes in the events that took place before Caroline entered the picture, although they didn't happen to her. There are mentions of multiple types of abuse, and in this first chapter, Mikael attempts to have his way with Caroline. Does not end well for him. Don't read it if that bothers you!
The Vineyard
Caroline Forbes sat on a hill covered in soft green grass surrounded by more grapes than she had ever seen in her life. She took a tip of her chianti and closed her eyes to feel the Tuscan sunset on her face. She looked down at her sketch of the Italian countryside and smiled. She deserved this moment. She had just graduated from Whitmore University in Virginia with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing a month prior. Last week she got on a plane for the first time and arrived in Italy to celebrate passing the National Council Licensure Examination with flying colors. At 21, she was a Registered Nurse.
Caroline was blonde with blue eyes and porcelain skin. Her manicured hands flew across the page as she memorialized her view in charcoal. Her career as an artist was at an end as soon as she boarded that plane in Richmond and watched Mystic Falls, Virginia shrink smaller and smaller until it finally disappeared. Since turning 18, she had been employed by the MFPD as a sketch artist… when they needed such a thing in their sleepy little town. When her father passed just after her 5th birthday, he left a small inheritance for her to go to college, but it didn't cover living expenses. Sketching made up the difference. It was the end of an era. She was out of school and on her own, the whole world at her feet.
During moments such as these, she seriously contemplated what life would be like if she left an ocean between herself and the past. Her life hadn't always been a happy one. Her mother, Liz, was the town sheriff and almost never home. By nine, she could cook both of them an entire meal with groceries she carried home from the local market. She did all the cleaning, laundry, dishes… all the housework, really. However, no matter difficult life was, she always managed to find a way to see the beauty in everything she touched.
Caroline's bright energy and joyful spirit were quickly recognized by the boys in her town. She grew up young, losing her virginity at 14 to a local loser, Tyler Lockwood. He got what he wanted and moved on, but she was left with a broken heart. She had friends throughout high school, but once they went their separate ways after graduation, their bond began to fade. She had a boyfriend, Matt, all throughout college. Just before her nursing finals began, she found him in bed with a fellow student in his law enforcement program. That was the end of that. She didn't need him anyway. She'd never needed anyone. She had herself and that was enough.
Caroline could go anywhere in the world. She didn't have a lot of money saved up, but she had enough to rent a bedroom somewhere in a new town in a new country and begin her new life. Her next step was to get her master's in nursing and go into private practice as a psychiatric nurse practitioner. She loved helping people and never wanted to do anything else. After Tyler, she started volunteering at the local hospital and fell in love with medicine. As a nurse, she could go wherever felt the most like home. Why not Tuscany?
Caroline jumped when a man she had never seen before sat down next to her in the grass as though they were the best of friends. He had dirty blonde hair, cerulean blue eyes and a devilish smirk. "Hello, love. Enjoying the view?" he asked casually, sipping a glass of Moscato.
The young graduate stared at him incredulously. Is this how men behaved in Italy? If it was, she was seriously not falling for it. Then again, his accent sure didn't sound Italian. He sounded British, probably of the London variety. "Do I know you?" she asked skeptically.
"Now you do. Nik," he said, taking her hand and kissing the back of it before she could object. "And you are?" he asked smoothly, smirking at the way her pupils dilated when he pressed his warm lips to her soft skin.
Caroline pulled her hand away and scoffed. "So not interested. Feel free to leave."
Klaus Mikaelson smiled at her candor. She had no idea who he was nor did she have a clue how dangerous he could be. He idly wondered if she would still give him such sass if she did. He hoped so. "Why would I leave my own backyard?" he asked, arching his brow.
Suddenly it clicked in her mind that he must be the owner of the vineyard she had been sketching. She glared at him, crossing her arms over her lowcut sky blue tank top that gave him a generous view of her ample cleavage. "Hmph. You're kind of young to be the owner of a massive vineyard," she commented, unimpressed.
"I'm 31," he said, shrugging. She eyed him up and down, pursing her lips as she returned to her sketch. "Overachiever, I guess. Bought the place a few years back and fixed it up. I designed most of it myself, actually."
"Well then I guess you know where to go to get lost," she snarked, eyes focused on the page. He smiled in amusement, dimples emerging at her wit. He sat and watched the way her hand moved with such finesse. When she felt him staring, she looked over and narrowed her eyes at him. "See something you like?" she scoffed.
Klaus sipped his wine before setting it down next to him in the fluffy grass. The sun was almost hidden now, its last rays painting the pair in bright pink and orange. "You," he said confidently, meeting her gaze. "I enjoy you."
Caroline made finger quotes as she mocked him. "You 'enjoy me'? What kind of a lame ass thing is that to say to a girl?"
Klaus laughed, smiling at her with those dimples she couldn't stop glancing at. "Well I was hoping it would sound genuine, love," he teased.
Caroline rolled her eyes. "If I tell you my name, will you stop calling me 'love?'" Klaus' gaze roamed over her curves before returning to her exasperated face. He nodded his head at her in agreement. "Fine. It's Caroline," she conceded, uncrossing her arms and sipping her chianti.
"Caroline. I like it. Hello, Caroline," he greeted her. "It's a pleasure to meet you, sweetheart," he teased. She huffed at the epithet before rolling her eyes and returning to her sketch, intent on ignoring him. Much to her dismay, he stayed with her and watched the sunset over the Tuscan hills. "You're quite the artist, Miss Forbes," he complimented, growing tired of the silence.
Caroline dropped her charcoal pencil and gaped at him. "How do you know my last name?" she asked, both shocked and annoyed in equal measure. He picked up a lanyard that had fallen from her pink leather mini backpack and dangled it in the small space between them. At the end of the lanyard hung her MFPD ID card. She reached for it, but he held it just out of her reach. She grabbed at it again, her fingers barely touching it. He held it back so far that he began to topple sideways, and she used the opportunity to jump for her ID.
Unfortunately for the blonde nurse, Klaus had an abnormally rapid reaction time and pulled her down on top of him as he landed on his back in the grass, laughing. Caroline was splayed on top of him, her breasts pressing into his muscular chest. He smirked up at her, his expression mischievous. His arm still held her dangling ID card. "Is this how you tackle your prisoners, officer? Because if it is, remind me to pay a visit to your jurisdiction," he teased.
Caroline reached for it again and finally snatched it back. Sitting up, she looked over at his stunned expression and her face lit up with the brightest smile Klaus had ever seen. "Mission accomplished!" he joked as he sat up next to her so closely that his olive drab Henley rubbed against her bare shoulder. She raised her eyebrows at him, prompting him to explain. "I made you smile, Caroline," he pointed out, letting the r in her name roll off his tongue.
Caroline narrowed her eyes at him again, but this time it was in amusement. He was definitely obnoxious, but he had a certain charm about him, too. She rolled her eyes and picked up her sketchpad to show him her drawing. "I'm not a cop, NIK," she clarified, emphasizing the last syllable of his name with a click. "I'm a sketch artist." She paused. "Well, I WAS a sketch artist, anyway," she said, her tone maudlin. "This is nothing," she added, waving her hand dismissively. "It's just a simple drawing."
Klaus stared at her profile as she looked down at her sketch. She was stunning. "Why would you give it up? I'm an artist myself and I can see that you're a very good one if that's your idea of a simple drawing," he complimented.
Caroline smiled and tucked a blonde tendril behind her ear before draining the last few drops of the wine from her class. "I just passed my boards. I'm officially a nurse," she informed him, pride evident in her voice. "All I have to do now is find a job… whenever I get back to America, that is."
"Congratulations, Caroline. That's quite the accomplishment," he praised, taking note of the way she used the term "whenever" instead of when. If she wasn't sure when, or better yet IF, she was leaving, perhaps he could persuade her to stay and get to know him. She nodded her head in thanks and the two fell into a comfortable silence as she finished her drawing.
Klaus looked around at the vineyard as dusk settled over the trees, casting the grapes in shades of black and grey, just like her sketch. He stood up and wiped the grass off his jeans before offering her his hand. She looked at him skeptically. He showed her his dimples again as he smiled down at her. "Come on sweetheart," he said, suppressing a smirk when her eyes narrowed at the pet name. "You've come all this way from across the ocean. The least I can do is buy you a celebratory dinner."
Caroline gave him a bored expression. "I don't even know you. Why would I have dinner with you?"
Klaus smiled his most charming smile. "To get better acquainted. I'll tell you about the vineyard and you can show me more of your drawings."
The blonde looked down at her sketch book and then back up to his hand, squinting her eyes. "What if I don't WANT to get better acquainted?" she sassed, her bossy tone returning.
To her surprise, Klaus chuckled, not discouraged in the least by her "inner bitch" expression. "Take a chance! Talk to me. Get to know me. I dare you," he challenged, his voice teasing.
Caroline bit the inside of her cheek as she considered his offer. She wasn't looking for a relationship so soon after getting her heart shattered yet again, but where the harm in letting a hot guy take her to dinner in Italy? "Oh, what the hell," she said, taking his hand and tossing her mini backpack over her shoulder. He immediately locked her arm in his and began walking them to the vineyard's restaurant. "Isn't it kind of cheating if you buy me dinner at your own restaurant?" she teased.
Klaus smiled as he pushed open the heavy wooden door, the smells of Italy floating all around as he led her to a table by the window. He pulled out her seat for her before taking his own. "Tell me where you would prefer to eat instead. I'll take you," he offered, his tone teasing but his words serious. "Wherever you want: Rome, Paris… Tokyo?" he asked, throwing in the last one as a joke. She rolled her eyes, smiling in spite of herself as she opened the menu. Klaus smirked, amused, as her face screwed up trying to translate the Italian words.
After looking over everything and having no idea what any of it was beyond various names of pastas, she set the menu down. "You pick," she ordered him. He raised his eyebrow at her bossy tone, impressed. If she only knew…
"As you wish, love," he replied. He snapped his fingers and a waiter came rushing over. Klaus ordered something for them in Italian, the words falling off his tongue in a way that made Caroline's lower belly tighten. If he could do that to the letter r… She shook her head to clear away the naughty images dancing in her mind and found him smirking at her, clearly sharing her line of thought. "So," he began conversationally, opening up the floor for her to speak.
"So?" Caroline waited for him expectantly. She looked side to side as she tried to figure out what he was staring at before she realized it was her. A pink blush spread across her pale cheeks as she asked, "What do you want to talk about?"
"I want to talk about you," he replied immediately, stumbling over his words. "Your hopes, your dreams, everything you want in life." She eyed him suspiciously, but his expression seemed genuine… and… bashful? Caroline took her glass of merlot from the waiter, thanking him. She tasted it, closing her eyes for a moment as she licked the wine off her lips. When Klaus saw her pink little tongue dart out of her cherry lips, he almost dropped his glass as he wondered what else she could do with it. When she opened her eyes, she saw the lust in his own and felt a small jolt go through her. Neither of them said a word as they felt the fire between them starting to ignite…
Their electric bubble was suddenly popped into a million pieces as the room itself ignited in flames. Broken glass flew everywhere, and the air was filled with cries. Before she knew what was happening, Caroline was pinned beneath the table as Klaus instinctively threw himself on top of her just in time as a giant piece of windowpane landed right where she had been sitting. She covered her face with her hands and felt the impact as little shards sliced into her delicate skin.
Bullets whizzed through the air and blood oozed across the floor as bodies dropped all around. Men were screaming in both English and Italian. Guns emerged from more people than Caroline could count. She found herself in the middle of a warzone. Klaus reached down to his boot and pulled out a .22 and shoved it in her hand. "You know how to use that?" he asked, his voice eerily calm. She peeked out from between two fingers and nodded her head. She was an expert when it came to firearms because of her mom. The shooting range was just about the only place they ever spent time together. "Good girl. Keep your head covered and don't fucking move until I come for you."
Before Caroline could respond, Klaus pulled a Glock 19 out of the back of his jeans and poked his head out. She couldn't see anything as she sheltered behind the chair legs, praying no one looked beneath the bloody tablecloth. She heard a gun fire from less than a foot away and knew that had to be Klaus. What the hell had she gotten herself into? Her eyes burned as she choked on the smoke growing thicker by the minute. She could feel the heat from the flames and knew it wouldn't be long before they reached her hiding place.
Caroline heard another explosion rip through the building and half of the screams suddenly stopped. She frantically dumped out her bag and found her cell phone, several random items clattering to the floor. She sent a text to her mom telling her how much she loved her. Just after she hit send, a strong hand wrapped around her wrist and yanked her so hard from beneath the table that she screamed bloody murder and dropped the small gun to the slippery floor, shattering the screen on her Galaxy.
"What have we here?" a sadistic man with horrible breath asked as he laughed in her shocked face. "Aren't you tasty?" The casual manner in which he spoke was a stark contrast to the hell fire erupting all around them. Caroline tried to break out of his iron grip, but he only laughed again, his evil cackles barely discernible in the din. He twisted her arms behind her back with one hand and shoved her face first onto the table. She felt him grind into her white denim short shorts from behind. He reached down her camisole and squeezed her breasts hard. She forced herself to relax every muscle in her body as her training kicked in. He violently ripped off her top as she waited for the right moment.
"MIKAEL!" Klaus screamed at the top of his lungs, his voice filled with more hatred than Caroline had ever heard in her life. The man, who must have been Mikael, ripped her up by her hair and spun her around, using her as a human shield. "Let her go," Klaus growled as he raised his gun and aimed it at the man's head.
Mikael laughed and it resonated with greater evil than a sound made by the devil himself. "Boy!" he barked. He whipped out his own gun and aimed it at Caroline's head. He locked her in place with his hand gripping her breast under her simple white bra, flesh on flesh. "Is this little whore your new toy? Has the bastard finally found his bitch?" he spat.
Klaus' eyes flashed and his fierce gaze looked out of place on such an angelic face. Whoever this guy, Nik, was – he was the devil in disguise. "I swear to whatever Gods of Hell put you on this earth that I will kill you where you stand if You. Do. Not. Let. Her. GO!" Mikael pulled down her cups to reveal her bare breasts to the burning restaurant, flames growing higher by the second. She gritted her teeth as he pinched and pulled her nipples for the younger man to see. He laughed in Klaus' face as he watched his fury grow. He dragged his hand down her belly and slipped it in her panties and squeezed hard. Caroline didn't move a muscle, biding her time. Her eyes locked on Klaus' and she gave him a small nod. She had a plan. Klaus dropped his arm, chest heaving. "Fine. Take her. Kill her. Fuck her. See if I care," he snarled, his tone frozen as the tundra as he turned his back on them and ran down a hallway. He turned back around, padding along as quietly as he could. He stopped and raised his gun, back to the wall, listening and waiting.
Mikael laughed, his breath nearly causing Caroline to gag. "Look at that!" he spat at her. "He ran from me like the coward that he is." He sneered at Caroline before violently throwing her down on the floor. "You're worthless, slut. A useless toy whore," he growled, kicking her in the ribs.
Caroline used the opportunity to flail her arms right in the direction of her fallen .22. She screamed as shrilly as she could manage. "NO! Please, don't!" she begged, inching her way closer to her goal. "Don't hurt me! PLEASE! I haven't DONE anything!"
"You haven't done anything yet, little toy, but you will," he snarled menacingly. "My wife's bastard may be a coward, but he's no fool. Klaus will come for you." Mikael kicked her again and it was the last push that she needed. She closed her hand around the gun as she felt her ribs shatter, but she didn't let go. "And when he does, I'll-"
Klaus never heard what Mikael said he would do because his words were cut short by the sound of a gun firing. He rounded the corner just in time to see Mikael's lifeless body hit the floor, a small hole directly between his dead eyes. Caroline leapt to her feet, bag in hand, gun stuffed in her shorts behind her back. Klaus' eyes widened in shock as she tucked her breasts back into her bra. "How in the bloody hell did you-"
"I'm a psych nurse. I know how to handle myself around crazy assholes," she said as she grabbed his hand. "We need to GO!" she commanded, dragging him behind her. He cut her off when they reached the exit, shielding her with his body.
Klaus' voice was barely a whisper as he struggled to make out what was going on outside. "Listen to me, Caroline," he began. He pulled a set of car keys out of his front pocket and handed them to her. "There is a car just around the side of the building. I need you to run like hell when I open the door and do not stop until you are far, far away." She opened her mouth to protest but he cut her off. "Caroline, you can't BE here! If anyone sees you with me or knows that you know me…" his voice trailed off, unsure of what to say.
Caroline stared at him in disbelief. "Nik, what in the hell is going on? Who was that guy? Who are YOU?"
"Look, just- just run when I open the door and don't look back." He gripped the doorknob before turning back to her one last time. "No matter what happens, do not stop running until you get to safety. No one can ever know you were here." He felt her hand on his shoulder as she started to turn him to face her and he rounded on her, pressing her up against the wall. Nose to nose, he growled, "I am a bad man, Caroline! A very bad man with enemies and you need to RUN!" He opened the door and pulled her out behind him. "NOW!" he screamed over his shoulder as he fired his gun into a man aiming directly at her head.
Caroline did as he said and ran. She flew around the corner and jumped into his black BMW convertible. The wind flew through her blood streaked hair and pelted her face with burning ash as she turned the key. She slammed her boot down on the clutch and threw it in first as fast as the gear shift would go. Chaos reigned all around her. What she guessed were grenades and Molotov cocktails had been thrown in every side of the wooden building. Half of the structure had erupted in burning hot flames of every color.
The BMW screeched around the corner as she floored it. She snuck a peek in the rearview mirror and saw Klaus fall to the ground, a man towering over him with a gun. Without thinking, Caroline threw the convertible in reverse and rammed right into the shooter. She felt the tire roll over him as she hurtled over the door and ran to Klaus. She immediately pulled up his blood-soaked Henley and assessed his injuries. With his Glock still in one hand, he grabbed her hands in his other as she applied pressure and ground out, "Caroline, get the fucking hell out of here!"
"I can't!" she shouted. "If someone doesn't stay with you, you'll die!"
Klaus groaned and threw his head back onto the gravel, coughing as he breathed in the falling ash. "My brother can patch me up. He trained as a doctor. Now go before someone sees you!"
"You'll never make it to wherever the hell he is. If I don't hold the pressure, you're not gonna make it out of this parking lot," she told him, her voice calm and steady even as her heart was trying to escape her chest. She guessed she had at least three broken ribs herself, maybe more, but her injuries could wait. His couldn't. A bullet flew overhead as another enemy fired towards them. Caroline would never understand how, but Klaus managed to throw himself on his side and get a shot off. The man fell to the floor clutching his stomach. Caroline took one look at the spray pattern and knew he was dead, but that didn't stop him from trying to kill them. She ripped the .22 from her waistband with one bloody hand and shot him in the forehead, dead center.
"Caroline, if you're not going to save yourself then for the love of God let's BOTH go!" Klaus groaned, holding one hand on top of both of hers. "My men can't hold them off for much longer and they won't stop until I'm dead," he told her, eyes locked together. She looked at him and nodded. She knew they were risking paralysis by moving him, but he was right. If he was the target, the attack wouldn't stop, and more people would die.
Caroline helped him up, groaning as the pain from her own injuries flared. He moved surprisingly well considering he'd been shot. She steered him to the driver's side and helped him in. He looked at her incredulously. "You're gonna have to get us out of here, Nik… Klaus… Whoever the fuck you are," she said firmly as she crawled over him, pressing her hands down over his wound. She threw one of his arms around her shoulder so she could curl up next to him. She held the pressure with one hand and grabbed the gear shift with the other. They were going to have to do this together. He opened his mouth, but she cut him off before he could protest. "I'm not from this country. I don't have a clue where the fuck we are, where we need to go or even what side of the road I'm supposed to be driving on. And if I don't hold the pressure, you'll bleed out. Now drive!" she commanded, shifting into first.
Klaus did his best to steady his breathing as they flew down the dirt roads and sped away from the vineyard. He steered and worked the peddles as best he could while Caroline shifted. He knew how serious his injury was and could feel consciousness slipping away. He just had to hang on a little bit longer and they would be at his brother's house. His vision began to blur, and he was getting dizzier by the second. He turned the convertible up a dirt road Caroline wouldn't have even seen, let alone known led to anywhere in particular. The night was black, but she saw a light in the distance and prayed that it was their goal. "When we," he panted, "get there," deep breath, "you need to," chest heave, "get," groan, "Kol," gasp.
Klaus blacked out and his head fell back just before they reached the house. Caroline pulled up the emergency break, shifted gears, and slammed his unconscious foot down on the brake pedal. They came to a screeching halt in front of the house that she hoped was loud enough to get the attention of the occupants. She used her free hand to hold down the horn until people came running outside. "Kol!" she shouted over the commotion. "Which one of you is Kol?"
A handsome man with scruffy brown hair falling just below his eyebrows ran to them. "I am!" he shouted, pulling the door open. "Elijah! Marcel! Help me get Nik inside!" he called out into the night as two more men came rushing out. Kol turned to Caroline and instructed, "We're going to life him up and I need you to come along and hold the pressure. Can you do that for me, darling?" She nodded her head as they all helped get him up. They moved him inside as carefully and quickly as they could. A girl slightly younger than Kol with bright blonde hair shoved plates and cups and silverware off of a large cherry wood dining table to make room for the injured man. The black man handed Kol the nearest knife and Kol used it to slice open Nik's shirt. "What happened?"
Caroline held the pressure while Kol began pulling supplies out of a large black leather bag handed to him by an attractive man who looked slightly older than Nik. "He's got a GSW to the lower right quadrant. It's through and through, but I think it nicked the superior mesenteric artery," she said confidently, her voice steady.
"Are you a doctor?" Kol asked as he began to work on his older brother.
"I'm an RN," she explained.
Kol nodded at her in approval. "Excellent. You can assist. You're right about the artery. We need to cauterize it now or he'll bleed out before we can apply sutures. Insert a cath into his left ACA and start him on a bag of lactated ringers wide open."
The two worked together for hours before finally peeling off their bloody gloves and flopping down on a plush brown suede couch while the others carried Klaus to a bedroom upstairs. Caroline looked around the house for the first time. It was cozy. An older blonde woman had started a fire in the hearth at some point during their emergency surgery. The man from before, Elijah she assumed, offered her a fresh powder blue Henley she suspected belonged to Klaus. She looked down and realized for the first time that she was still dressed in her bloody white bra and shorts. She took the shirt and shot Kol a death glare when she caught him smirking at her just like his idiot brother.
She pulled the shirt over her head and accepted a hot cup of tea from the older blonde. "Thanks… um… what are your names?" she asked as she looked around at the room full of strangers.
"I'm Freya Mikaelson," she introduced herself, shaking Caroline's hand before taking a seat on a smaller brown couch. "We're all Mikaelsons… except for Marcel, obviously," she chucked, nodding her head at the black man. He nodded at her and flashed Caroline a thousand-watt smile. "He's kind of an honorary Mikaelson," she explained. "He's married to our sister, Rebekah, but she kept our name," she said, pointing to the younger blonde woman. "This is Elijah and his wife Hayley," she said, pointing to the man who offered her the shirt standing next to a pretty brunette with almond eyes. "You know Kol already. That's his wife, Davina," she introduced as a young brunette with a sexy pout sat on Kol's lap. "And my wife is Keelin, but she's out of the country. She works for doctors without borders."
Caroline humphed. "Damn. Would have been nice if she'd been here," she commented.
Kol scoffed in mock offense. "You wound me, darling. I thought we made an excellent team!" he pouted. "Ah, well, at least this beauty appreciates my talent," he teased, pecking his wife on the lips. Turning back to the blonde, he asked, "Now that you know who we are, who are you? And how do you know Nik?"
"Caroline Forbes. I don't know him," she explained. "I mean, we just met. I was sketching at his vineyard and he offered to buy me dinner… at his OWN restaurant… which is seriously cheating…" she joked, trying to ease the tension in the room. "But before we even finished our wine the entire place blew up."
"Forgive me, Caroline," Elijah began, his tone calming yet formal. "Would you please explain what you mean by 'blew up?'"
Caroline set down her empty cup before addressing the group. "I mean it literally blew up. Like, somebody threw in a bunch of grenades and Molotov cocktails. The place erupted in flames and men had guns coming out of everywhere and they were all shooting at each other. It was like a warzone. We barely got out, and when we did, he told me to drive and not look back… But then someone shot him, so I ran the guy over with the BMW. I got him up and held the pressure while he drove us here," she finished, gulping down the lump in her throat.
The room sat in shocked silence. Word had already reached them that there had been an attack, prompting all the siblings to gather at Kol's house. They didn't realize the extent of the brutality until that moment. Only one group could have been behind this and they all knew who it was. Elijah spoke again. "I can't imagine you would have any idea who was behind this, but did you happen to catch any names?"
Caroline nodded her head. "Yeah, actually, there was this guy Nik- Klaus?" she asked with a raised brow.
"Niklaus, but if he told you Nik, use that," Rebecca said, her tone soft as she spoke her brother's name.
"Oh, Niklaus. That makes sense," she said, nodding her head. "Anyway, he got into it with this guy he called Mikael," Caroline broke off midsentence when there was a collective gasp around the room. "I'm guessing you know him?"
"We do," confirmed Marcel. "He's not a good guy, Caroline. You don't wanna get mixed up with a man like him," he warned, his tone ominous.
Caroline scoffed. "Well, no problem there considering I killed him, too."
"What?" Hayley asked, shocked. "Did you just say you… killed… Mikael? He's dead? You killed him? Mikael's dead?"
Caroline looked at her as though she were very slow. "Yes," she confirmed, slowly nodding her head up and down. "Nik and I tricked him, and it gave me a chance to get a shot off. Landed right between the eyes." She sucked in a breath and rubbed her hand over her ribs. "He got in a few good kicks, though, so I'm pretty sure he had it coming."
"Yes. Yes, he did, sweetheart," came an accented voice from the bottom of the staircase. Klaus was holding onto the railing in his bloody jeans and an open black bathrobe, one hand over a giant bandage on his abdomen. Rebecca and Freya ran to his side, but he pushed past them, nodding for Kol and Davina to make room on the couch. They got up and Caroline scooted over to let him sit down. He held up a hand at everyone's sympathetic and concerned expressions. "I'm fine, alright? I'm fine," he said firmly. No one said a word. It was obvious that he was the brother in charge.
"Nik, is Mikael…" Rebecca asked, her voice trailing off as she bit her lower lip. Her next words came out as barely a whisper. "Is it true?"
Klaus nodded his head and sighed with what Caroline was quite sure was relief. Whoever Mikael had been, he had clearly been an enemy. "It's true, sister," he confirmed. As the news resonated throughout the room, Caroline could feel a heavy burden being lifted from all of their metaphorical shoulders. "But there were others," he said darkly. He and Elijah shared a knowing look as the heaviness once again settled upon them.
Caroline looked around the room at all the serious faces. "Okay," she said with sudden cheer in her voice, her Miss Mystic smile firmly in place. "Well, Mikaelsons, this has been so, totally, completely, seriously NOT fun, so I'm going to be going now," she said, clapping her hands together as she got up. Elijah stepped in front of the door, blocking her path. "If you'll just excuse me," she said, trying to push past him. Kol and Marcel came to stand on either side of him. She spun around, hands on hips. "Nik, can you please tell your little minions here to get the hell out of my way so I can go?"
Klaus looked at her and sighed, his expression dark. "You can't, Caroline," he said simply, as though that was the end of the conversation.
Caroline scoffed, her mouth falling open. "Ex-fucking-cuse me?" she sassed angrily.
"You were seen, love," he told her, his voice calm in spite of her growing ire.
"What does that even mean? Who cares if I was seen? I'm on VACATION! I was at a vineyard! There had to have been a hundred people there!" she exclaimed, waving her arms in frustration.
Klaus blinked his eyes and exhaled in an attempt to remain calm. He wasn't used to having to explain himself to anyone ever. He said she couldn't go and that was the end of it. Why was she still talking? Didn't she know who he was? What he could do? To her? He closed his eyes for a moment and took in a deep breath, wincing at the pain. They all noticed, but no one dared to say anything. Klaus was volatile on the best of days… and today was not that day. When he opened his eyes, he locked gazes with her, blue on blue. They stared at each other, each fighting for dominance. A low growl came from the back of his throat before he finally spoke. "Everybody out," he commanded. Caroline tossed her bloody golden curls over her shoulder and headed for the door. "Not you, Caroline." She turned to face him, her eyes narrowed as she shot daggers at him. "Sit," he said firmly.
Caroline walked over to him and stared down at him for a long moment before she eventually sat next to him on the couch. She crossed one bloody knee over the other and crossed her arms over her chest. "So," she said with attitude, "I take it you're some kind of… what? Crime lord? Mafia boss? Evil genius?" Klaus smirked at her, his expression softening. She was brave, he'd give her that. She shook her head and made a face at him that clearly indicated she was not amused. "Look, maybe you can boss your family around, but you're not the boss of me!" she huffed.
"That's exactly what I am," he replied, all traces of amusement gone. She stared at him incredulously, her jaw falling open. "I'm the boss. I AM. Me. There is not a person in this house that will not do exactly as I say, when I say to do it and how I say I want it done." He held up a hand before she could find the words to protest. "If I say you are staying then that means you are STAYING, Caroline. End of discussion."
Caroline got up and groaned in frustration, her hands balling into fists as she stamped her feet and paced in a circle. "God, you are completely out of your fucking mind! You can't just KEEP me here like I'm some kind of prisoner!"
"Not only CAN I keep you here. I am GOING to keep you here," he said calmly, his words emphatic as she paced back and forth. He figured at some point exhaustion was going to kick in, so he sat and waited her out while his words sunk in.
Caroline flopped down on the couch and immediately regretted it as she clutched her ribs, hissing at the pain. Klaus frowned and reached for her, but she smacked his hand away. "Don't touch me!" she snarled at him. He sat back against the couch and watched her as she palpated her rib cage. She leaned back gingerly as she slowly inhaled and exhaled through the pain until it subsided enough to continue. She lay back against the plush sofa and turned just her head to face him as he did the same, their eyes locking while their bodies ached. "Why?" she whispered so faintly he barely heard her. "Why?" she asked again, shrugging.
Klaus took her delicate little hand in his. "You have to stay because you are in danger, Caroline." She frowned and wrinkled her nose at him in confusion. "I'm not a good man," he sighed, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles, although why she allowed it, she would never know. "I won't get into the specifics of my various enterprises because you do not need to know. All you do need to know is that you ARE going to stay with me now."
Caroline pulled her hand out of his, scoffing. "Look, I don't know what kind of game you think you're playing here," she began.
"It's not a game," he said softly, exhaustion hitting him, too. "I realize you are angry and have questions."
"You're damn right I have questions!" she exclaimed.
Klaus ignored her as he continued. "However, I can assure you that I am not exactly thrilled at the idea of having to take care of you, either." Caroline's eyes widened at him and he could feel his patience wearing thin. Maybe he should just take her out back and shoot her and be done with it. Or maybe he should take her upstairs and give her a reason to never leave. The latter idea made him smirk for a moment before she shouted at him yet again.
"I do NOT need someone 'taking care' of me!" she yelled, making finger quotes in the air.
"The hell you don't!" he snapped. She shrunk back into the couch, shocked by the sudden mood swing. Hadn't he just been being nice? "Get this straight, Caroline Forbes!" he yelled. "You are here with me and you shall remain with me because if you do not, my enemies will find you and they will kill you." She sucked in a deep breath at his candor, shock written all over her face. "You are MINE now. You BELONG to me. I am RESPONSIBLE for you! I ordered you to LEAVE and you came BACK! That means that I have to TAKE CARE of you because you have been SEEN with me!"
Caroline yelled right back at him, adrenaline flying through her veins. "I killed people tonight, Nik! That guy who grabbed me, Mikael? I killed him. The guy who shot you? Killed him, too. How in the hell can you be so sure that anyone who saw us together is still breathing?!"
"Because they sent me THIS!" he screamed, holding his Galaxy up to her eye level. Her face fell and she clapped a hand over her mouth as tears formed in her eyes. There, on the screen, was her Mystic Falls Police Department ID card, and it was splattered with blood that once belonged to the man she murdered. "Do you see what I see, Caroline, hmm?" She didn't respond, her eyes widening in terror. "I see a card identifying you as a member of a POLICE department! Do you get it yet? Have I gotten through to a brain beneath that pretty little head of yours? My enemies now know your face, your home and your NAME. They will think you an officer working with me against them! Do you have ANY idea how much DANGER you have put yourself in? If you get your way and waltz out that door, there will be a bullet with your name on it waiting just around the corner. I am not keeping you here to IMPRISON you! I am keeping you here to keep you SAFE and I AM doing it whether you LIKE it or NOT!" he finished with a shout.
Once he was finished ranting, he sat back and waited. Long minutes passed, but Caroline still hadn't said a word. Klaus sighed when he saw the look on her face as tears streamed down her cheeks. He had meant to scare her, yes, but he hadn't meant to make her cry. Was spending time with him really that awful? Probably. Nevertheless, he wrapped one arm around her, both of them wincing at the pain as she brought her knees up and curled into him. As annoyed as he was, he couldn't stop himself from gently rubbing her back to comfort her while she cried onto his bare chest. He rested his head back against the couch cushion, rolled his eyes at the ceiling and huffed in exasperation.
What in the hell had he gotten himself into?