Hello, my lovely readers. As promised, this is the corrected version of this chap and if nothing goes wrong in the meantime you will see the next update on Aug. 1, 2019. On with the show…

Chapter 12: What Happens in Vegas… Part I

Light, fluffy clouds flew by as Elijah Mikaelson attempted to relax. However, being trapped in a coach left many things to be desired. A child sprung up from in front of him, waving her doll with the frantic air of a first-year law student being trained by Klaus before slinking back into her seat.

"Are you enjoying the flight?" Hayley Marshall inquired. She smirked as she stood in the aisle.

"Ma'am. I'm going to need you to take your seat." A stewardess smiled politely at Hayley. "The pilot tells me we're about to experience some turbulence."

Hayley slipped into the empty seat beside Elijah. "Sure. Not a problem." She offered the other woman a wide smile. As soon as the woman returned to her duties—where she could no longer see Hayley—Hayley inclined her head around the seat and slipped back into the aisle. "Wasn't there someone here? Like two minutes ago." Hayley's brows rose as she watched Elijah shrug.

When they'd made the reservations they had decided not to book the seats together. This way there would be a slight chance they would not have to sit together. There seemed to be a little too much togetherness Hayley suggested. Elijah had said "Fine." That is why he'd been seated next to a teenager with a fascination with heavy metal.

"Yes. My charming companion had to find the bathroom," Elijah told her with a smile.

"Charming?" Hayley glanced down the aisle. "Sure." She shook her head before dipping her hand into the pocket of her long sweater. "Got you a little gift. Snagged it off the snack cart." She produced a pair of tiny bottles of bourbon. Placing a finger to her lips; she grinned. "Our secret."

"As if we don't have enough of those," Elijah replied, but he accepted the bottle anyhow.

Hayley turned, seemingly ready to return to her seat when the turbulence kicked in. Before she could fall into the aisle—face first—Elijah jumped into his companion's seat, encircling Hayley's waist and they fell backward.

Hayley let out a relieved sigh. "Wow! You have great reflexes, Elijah," she said, patting his arm and leaning her head against his shoulder.

"Seriously!" one of the flight attendants cried. She'd opened the bathroom door and out fell the boy who had been Elijah's companion for the flight. "Someone get the Narcan. Why does this always happen on my flights?"

"Looks like you'll be flying alone for the rest of the ride," Hayley told Elijah, glancing at him, looking quite sober.

"Not if you'll join me," Elijah replied.

Hayley looked thoughtful. "I suppose I can. Let me go get my bag." She'd brought a small, traveling bag. It looked like it had seen better days. Elijah made a mental note to gift her with a tote that did not look like she'd had it since her undergrad years.

Slipping back into the aisle, Hayley made her way past the revived teen who claimed he had a medical condition. Maybe he did. Elijah would like to think that maybe not everyone he'd ever encountered lied.

Making her way back to Elijah, Hayley found the spare inches to stuff her bag and plopped down next to Elijah. "Can I get you two anything?" the poor flight attendant, who seemed to be cursed to spend an eternity with unruly passengers, asked them.

"Could we get some peanuts?" Hayley asked. "And a couple of Cokes?"

"Coke? I don't drink those beverages," Elijah told Hayley. "They contribute to obesity and diabetes."

Hayley rolled her eyes. "Fine. I'll have a Coke and he'll have a cup of ice." She smiled at Elijah who chose to stare out the window. They seemed to be somewhere over Iowa, given all the corn fields.

When they received their salty snacks and Elijah turned down Hayley's offer of a bag of nuts, Hayley decided to bring up why they were on this flight. "Do you think we'll actually find them, in time?" she asked, tearing one of the bags open and beginning to pluck out nuts to pop into her mouth.

"I have no idea," Elijah felt weary. If he did not find Caroline Forbes and Tyler Lockwood in time, his brother might lose what was left of his mind and do something to endanger his ever being part of his daughter, Fiona's, life.

However, Elijah also felt that it was not his place to be telling the mother of his brother's child whom she should, or should not, be with. Caroline seemed to have a sensible mind. She did not simply jump from one disaster to another. Unlike Elijah's ex-wife, Katherine Pierce.

"Penny for your thoughts," Hayley said, waving a hand in front of Elijah's face. "You in there, Elijah." She offered him a teasing smile and Elijah sighed. "Are you okay?" she asked, her expression changing to a serious look. "You look worried. There's this little line. Right here," she traced a line down the middle of his forehead. "It's cute when you're asleep."

"You're also cute when you're asleep," Elijah replied. For a moment, his mind turned to a more pleasant topic than his worries over his ex's new machinations. Turning in his seat, he faced Hayley and brushed her dark waves behind her back. "Perhaps we might find some time to rest, after this little side-adventure commences?"

Hayley bit her bottom lip. Her eyes went to Elijah lips. Moving her head, she pressed her lips to his ear. "Or maybe we can start another adventure right now." Her eyes were gleaming with mischief when she slipped out of her seat and headed back to the bathroom.

Elijah watched the aisle and after an appropriate time lapse, he, too, slipped into the aisle. He rapped his knuckles against the closed door of the bathroom. When the door opened, and a hand snaked out to grab his tie, Elijah allowed himself to be jerked into the tiny room.

"Isn't this much more fun than your plan?" Hayley whispered.

Elijah inhaled deeply. He slid a hand into her hair and found her eyes. "You have no idea what my plans were."

"Why don't you tell me all about them?" Hayley asked, nimble fingers finding his belt buckle and Elijah grinned at her. "Or we can just shut up and leave our worries back in the windy city."

Nodding, Elijah jerked Hayley's legs around his waist. Yes. He would love to leave all of his worries and fears long behind him. But he knew they were a part of him, and they would find their way in, one way or another.

~0~

Disembarking from their enjoyable flight, Elijah resisted the urge to grab Hayley's hand. He knew she would not react well to any sign of coupledom. He would have to distract himself with finding a rental car for the next step in their adventure.

Stepping up to the desk, Elijah met with a young man who kept his eyes on Hayley and heard only a small portion of what Elijah said to him. "Yeah. Okay. And you're going to need to return it in, like, um…"

"A month?" Hayley asked the kid with a slow smile.

The kid nodded, as struck with Hayley's everything as Elijah was. "Yeah. Sounds good. Whenever you're ready to bring it back, miss. Just ask for Ted. I work here mostly during the week. But I could come in on a weekend," Ted returned to the computer screen. "That's credit, Mr. Mikaelson?" he asked Elijah, with a less-than-friendly look.

"Yes," Elijah replied drily. He swiped his card, ready to be done with his transaction and on his way.

"Okay. We've got a Benz." The kid looked at Elijah. "That cool?"

Hayley grinned, grabbing Elijah's arm. "Let's take it. Come on, Elijah. And I you'll let me drive?"

Elijah looked back at Hayley. "Of course." He certainly hoped she did not wreck the car. He felt certain he would have many an out-of-town trip to go on and he did not intend on having to take the public buses.

"Great!" Hayley took the keys and Elijah sighed. Picking up Hayley's bag and following his traveling companion out of the door, he found Hayley hitting the tiny button to alert them to where the Benz was parked. A pair of lights lit up and Hayley half-ran to the car.

Elijah decided to wait by the doors while Hayley drove around to pick him up. "You might want to slow down. Ever so slightly." Elijah watched Hayley eye him as he placed her bag in the back of the car.

"Don't spoil a good out-of-town weekend, Elijah," Hayley retorted as he slipped into the passenger side. "I know how to drive." With that said, she sped out of the parking lot.

Sighing, again, Elijah resigned himself to certain death—due to Hayley's driving—or from Niklaus rage, if Elijah failed to dissuade Caroline from her current plan of action.

"How are we going to find Caroline and Tyler?" Elijah inquired and Hayley shrugged.

"Can't be that hard," Hayley replied. And as she spoke she eased off the gas pedal. Elijah relaxed back into his seat. "She's my best friend. I could find her in a crowd. Which I did. During her twenty-first birthday party. We went to this insane country music festival. And Caroline slipped into this crowd of blondes. You'd think they were selling hair dye at the entrance. But within an hour; I found Care."

"How did you achieve that?" Elijah asked, feeling bewildered. "Care loves food. So, you look for some place with good food, or someplace near a place with good food Caroline Forbes is a foody."

"Really?" Elijah decided to absorb this small factoid. "We also need to find a place near a wedding chapel. Or that has a wedding chapel."

"In Vegas?" Hayley began to laugh.

"Right," Elijah felt absurd. People came to Las Vegas all the time to get married. So, finding a wedding chapel would not be like looking for a needle in a haystack.

"We can always look through their social media," Hayley said. "Maybe there's a clue there."

"Perhaps," Elijah opened the Google App on his phone and typed in Instagram before searching for Caroline Forbes. "Do you happen to have the name under which Caroline is registered with Instagram?"

"Oh, yeah. KlaorlineIsEverything2010," Hayley told him.

"Klaroline?" Elijah felt perplexed.

Hayley glanced at him. "Yes. She didn't change it since she and Klaus broke up."

Elijah felt even more confused. "But she's planning on marrying Lockwood?" Why would a woman who professed to love one man, and plan on marrying said man, keep a name linked to her previous relationship? Elijah felt that odds were in favor of Caroline not having entirely moved on from her ties to Klaus. Perhaps this adventure would run more smoothly than Elijah first believed.

"Care said it was because, if she changed it, it would be harder for her friends to find her. And she doesn't use it that much anymore. She's all about Fiona. And being a mommy means less and less "me" time." Hayley leaned her head into the palm of her hand and Elijah stopped himself from asking her to keep both hands on the wheel. "You think we should try The Strip?"

"Is that a club?" Elijah had found Caroline's account. Most of her posts were marked private; so he could not see their contents. This did not bode well for their finding Caroline in time.

Hayley let out a laugh. Elijah looked up to see her grinning at him. "The Las Vegas Strip. You really need to get out more."

"Yes. I do. However, I think that would simply lead us on a much longer goose chase. Do you know how to access Caroline's private posts?" Elijah asked her.

"Yes. Just let me log in," Hayley said. "Take the wheel."

"Hayley!" Elijah shouted when Hayley let go of the wheel and the car began to move to the right at an alarming rate of speed. He grabbed the wheel and moved them back into the proper lane while Hayley began typing away on her phone.

Keeping his eyes on the darkening road before them; Elijah waited for Hayley make some sign that she had found something. "Anything?" he asked her.

Hayley shook her head. "Not yet. But there are a lot of photos that I plan on asking her to remove. These are soooo old. Agh! What was I thinking with that hair cut!"

"Hayley!" Elijah shouted.

"What!" Hayley shouted back, causing Elijah to jump and the car to swerve into the middle lane.

A truck driver blew his horn and flipped Elijah his thoughts, using only one finger. "Right back at you, buddy!" Hayley shouted at the man, raising her own finger.

"Hayley!" Elijah shouted, again.

"What?" Hayley shouted. This time Elijah did not jump but corrected his earlier vehicular mistake. "Seriously, Elijah. Chill!" Shaking her head, Hayley returned to the phone.

"Please, find us something pertinent," Elijah retorted, offering her a quick, much aggrieved look.

Hayley smirked and became quiet for the next five minutes. The traffic on the road they traveled down had slowed to a thin trickle. Elijah might even have taken the time to appreciate the beauty of the setting sun in the desert; if not for the fear of forgetting that he was helping to drive a car.

"Here," Hayley moved the phone into Elijah's face. "I'm taking the wheel back." She gently edged his iron grip of the wheel and relaxed back into her seat, her eyes firmly set on wherever they were going. "If you can find out how to get to the Bellagio Hotel and Casino."

That would be easy enough. The Bellagio being one of the oldest and most well-known casinos in Las Vegas. Finding the official website for Bellagio, Elijah made a mental note of the address: 3600 Las Vegas Blvd. According to Google, a wonderful source of completely accurate information, they would arrive there in the next ten minutes. "Don't forget the turn-off," Elijah pointed at the sign to their right.

Hayley went ahead and made the turn and they made their way toward The Strip. The lights of the city were dazzling and Elijah reminded himself to book a vacation in Sin City. His siblings would be shocked that he knew how to relax and it would please Elijah to see the looks on their faces.

"We're here!" Hayley cried, a big smile on her face.

"How did you know where they were?" Elijah asked, returning to the pics on Instagram. They did not seem to tell Elijah anything specific.

"It's in the little pic. There. In the corner," Hayley pulled the car up to where a bellboy stood with a wide smile. Leaning over, Hayley pointed out the pic to Elijah before unbuckling her seat belt and getting out of the car. Elijah's eyes moved to a tiny pic, in the corner of the screen. Caroline sat at a bar, sipping at a multi-colored drink and Elijah noted the napkin under it which read: Bellagio.

"Hello! Welcome to the Bellagio. Miss! Sir! I am Juan. I will be of service to you this evening." the bell boy greeted them. "May I take your bags? "Fernando!" the bell boy signaled for another young man to come forward.

Fernando joined them. "Good evening," he greeted them with a smile. "I will deliver your car to the parking garage." He held out his hand for the keys in Hayley's hand. Hayley handed the keys off and Fernando gave her a number to pick the car up with.

"Thanks, Fernando," Hayley said before offering Juan her bag. "Shall we?" she asked Elijah, with a wide smile, like they stayed at the Bellagio all the time. Elijah began to smile. This all felt very natural to him.

Fernando nodded and led them to the doors. He stepped aside for Hayley and Elijah to enter through the sliding glass doors and into the wide, elegant lobby. Having done a bit of traveling in his youth, Elijah did not give any outward sign of being impressed with the luxury of the setting.

However, Hayley let out a low whistle. "Damn. Ty must be offering some real money for this place."

"I would say so," Elijah replied.

They moved to the front desk. "Hello," a chipper young woman with a name tag reading: Francine, greeted them. "I'm Francine. Welcome to the Bellagio. Will you be staying with us tonight?"

"Maybe," Hayley replied. "We're actually here to meet up with my friend, Caroline Forbes. She and her fiancé are staying here, and we wanted to surprise them. Would you mind calling the room and seeing if Care is in?"

Straight to the point. Elijah gave Hayley an appreciative smile before looking to Francine. The woman's smile never left her face. "Let me see if we have a booking for her party." Francine began to click away at her computer before frowning. "I'm sorry, miss. Are you sure that your friend is staying with us?"

Hayley rolled her eyes. "Sorry. She might be using her fiancé's name. Lockwood. Tyler Lockwood."

Francine checked again. "Nope. Sorry. No Lockwood either."

Hayley sighed. Running a hand through her hair, she bit her lower lip. "How about Scarlet…Butler?"

Francine returned to her computer. "Ah. Yes. There is a Ms. Butler staying with us. Would you like me to ring up and see if she's in?"

"Sure," Hayley nodded.

"How did you know to use that name?" Elijah asked.

Hayley chuckled. "Caroline used to have a Scarlet O'Hara complex. And since Caroline thought that Scarlet's OTP was Rhett Butler, she would use the name Scarlet Butler if she didn't want someone to know who she was."

"Who should I say is calling?" Francine asked, cupping the phone between her chin and shoulder.

"Um…Ruth Bader Ginsburg." Hayley grinned. That did not need an explanation.

"Okay," Francine smiled back at Hayley. Someone on the other line picked up. "Hello, this is Francine at the front desk. There is a Ruth Bader Ginsburg wishing to speak with Ms Butler. May I put her through?"

Whoever picked up the phone said something that made Francine nodded. "Alright. I will let her know." Hanging up, Francine gave them an apologetic look. "I'm sorry. It seems that Ms. Butler is not in her room at the moment. Would you like to book a room?"

"Yes." Hayley nodded.

"Will that be one room? Or two?" Francine looked from Hayley to Elijah.

"One will be fine," Hayley said. "Separate beds."

"Right," Francine smiled and asked them a few more, standard questions before she offered them a pair of plastic keys to unlock the door. "Please, enjoy your stay. And let me know if you'd like to know more about the entertainment that can be found here, at the Bellagio."

"Thank you," Elijah said. He and Hayley found Juan waiting for them. The trio moved to the elevators and Juan punched the button. Hayley entered first and Elijah followed her on. He wondered what Hayley's plan of attack was now that they'd met a road block. He would find out soon.

~0~

"Where are we going?" Elijah asked Hayley. They were back on the elevator and Hayley was checking her watch.

"We're going to the wedding chapel. If Caroline and Tyler are there, we're doomed. If not, we still might have time to stop them." Hayley marched off the elevator the moment the doors opened.

"You can't go in there!" A young man told them as they approached. He wore a Bellagio jacket and offered them a smile that said: "Please, don't get angry at me. I'm just doing my job. "It's a private ceremony. The couple asked not to be disturbed."

"Okay." Hayley drew in a breath. Her look of panic made Elijah feel anxiety coursing through his body. They would just have to wait to find out if this was Caroline.

"Bloody elevator!" someone else cried out. Then Klaus marched out of the elevator they'd just come off.

"Klaus?" Hayley cried, gaping at him. "I thought you said you'd stay behind!"

"Bugger that!" Klaus snarled. He'd been drinking. How good of him.

"Brother! Calm yourself!" Elijah demanded, moving to block Klaus' way.

Klaus swung outward and caught Elijah under the jaw. Elijah ran into the poor man watching the door. "Car-o-line!" Klaus shouted, flinging the doors open. "I love you, darling! Don't marry this small town reject…"

Elijah forced himself to his feet with Hayley's help. They went to peer inside the chapel. A confused looking blonde teenage girl, a multi-pierced, black haired young man and an Elvis impersonator stared back at them.

The elevator doors dinged again. "Klaus, what in the hell are you doing here?" Caroline Forbes cried, exiting the elevator and crossing her arms over her chest. Then she saw Elijah and Hayley. "Seriously, guys! What are you doing here?"

"I love you!" Klaus cried.

"We came to talk to you!" Hayley called.

"This is your decision, Ms. Forbes. We just want to make sure you're making it for the right reasons." Elijah watched Caroline's nose wrinkle up and she rolled her eyes before getting back on the elevator and leaving them behind.

"That went well," Hayley groaned. Elijah rubbed his jaw and Klaus said nothing.

Thank you for reading, faving, following and reviewing.

Peace,

-J