In Damon's line of work, being in the presence of murderers was commonplace. His own body count was impressive for his relatively young age. Damon started doing wet work for the family straight out of high school. Either Alaric or Zach accompanied him on every hit in the beginning. They were there to watch Damon's back and to offer instruction. However, the kill was up to him. Giuseppe had been adamant that his heir should know how to defend the business that he would one day inherit. From a young age, Damon learned what it took to be the boss. His father never sheltered him from the ugliness of their business. Damon witnessed his father throwing brutal beatings to unlucky souls that drew his ire. He wasn't more than 13 years old when he watched his father kill someone for the first time.

Damon killed out of necessity. The same was true for most of the men that worked for the Salvatore organization. Generally, they were good men with families that did bad things for a living. It was a fine line but most of them found a way to walk it successfully. However, a few men on their payroll took entirely too much pleasure from doing their jobs. Those types of people had their uses even if he didn't want to invite them over for Sunday night dinner. Malachi Parker was one of those people. He had been a head case since he was a kid. The poor bastard showed all the signs of being a textbook psychopath. Instead of institutionalizing him, Joshua Parker decided to mold his son into the perfect weapon for the Salvatore organization. Kai and his younger brother, Luke, worked together as a team. Kai was brute force and Luke was the brains. The brothers were a successful tandem for that reason.

Luke had been listening to Damon explain their predicament for the last ten minutes. However, he could feel his older brother fidgeting beside him. Kai didn't enjoy the minutia of the business. Sometimes he thought of his brother as an attack dog snarling and straining against the leash holding him in place. However, Kai could play the part of mastermind if the job called for it.

Kai asked, "So you don't want us to kill her?"

Luke resisted the urge to slap his brother. Not that he thought Damon would mind judging by the look on the older man's face. However, it would just start a fight with Kai. His brother wasn't above stabbing Luke during a fight to prove a point. He always made sure it was a nonlethal strike but still Luke wasn't looking to get stabbed today.

Damon lifted an eyebrow at the pair in front of him. "No, I don't want you to kill Sabine. In fact, I hope that it doesn't come to that at all. I only want the two of you to keep an eye on her without revealing yourselves. In recent years, Giuseppe has vacationed at Sabine's home in Saint-Malo. I need to know if he is there or if he shows up there."

Zach stood off to the side with a glass of water in his hand. He didn't like sending Kai after Sabine. She was an innocent woman whose only crime was garnering Giuseppe's affection. However, his brother had few weak points and Damon needed to exploit all of them. He added, "And in an extreme case we might need to use her as bait to draw him out of hiding. Either way, we need to make sure that Giuseppe doesn't spirit her away in anticipation of our move."

Luke nodded in understanding. He looked at Damon and said, "We'll be on the first flight out tomorrow, Boss."

Damon had to admit that he liked the sound of that title. He said, "You'll be taking the jet. Zach has already made the arrangements for your travel and accommodations. I am sorry that this will interrupt your holiday plans."

Kai scoffed at the idea of spending the holiday with his family. He was the third youngest child in a family of eight. During the Thanksgiving holiday, the Parker house overflowed with his siblings, nieces, and nephews. They ate dinner early in the afternoon to accommodate his oldest sister's family. Giuseppe required his family to spend the holidays with him. This meant that Jo had to be at the manor for dinner at 7 o'clock sharp.

"We'll manage somehow," he quipped.

The two younger men stood up when Damon did. He shook their hands and said, "Thank you. I will let Zach fill you in about the arrangements."

Damon walked out of the study and headed toward the kitchen. One of the guards had texted him when Bonnie made it back from the grocery market. He was hoping to spend a little time with her before his next meeting.

He stopped short of walking into the kitchen when he heard Bonnie laughing boisterously as Lucy sang at the top of her lungs. Somehow, he had gotten used to Bonnie not drawing attention to herself. She was demure and prim in social situations. Damon enjoyed those qualities but he also missed the girl that used to snort when she laughed too much.

Damon peered into the kitchen and smiled as he watched Bonnie dancing barefoot to a song he didn't recognize. He noticed that grocery bags covered every available surface in the massive chef's kitchen. Damon supposed that he never truly considered what went into making a holiday meal for a family of their size. Normally, he just turned up at dinnertime with a half bottle of bourbon already in his system. He initially objected to Bonnie working so hard in light of her injuries. However, she brushed off his concerns, as Jo gave her the all clear to cook until her heart was content. Bonnie was ready to move on and enjoy the holiday with their family. Damon wouldn't get in the way of that.

Bonnie had gone to the market with Lucy, Caroline, and Tyler after dinner. They spent nearly two hours shopping for the ingredients she would need to cook Thanksgiving dinner. Bonnie intended to recreate the same dishes her grandmother had cooked every year for as long as she could remember. While in Shadow Hills, she had dug out her family's weathered recipe book. Some of the pages were yellowed from age because it first belonged to her great-grandmother. Emily had feverishly recorded her own mother's recipes before Hannah died. Then she had added a few of her own recipes to the book before passing it on to Sheila. In turn, Sheila had made a few entries before she died. Sometimes Bonnie wondered if Abby resented her. The girl had inherited everything that her mother should have when Sheila died.

Lucy let out a whoop. "That's right! You better sing it, girl."

Tyler smiled watching as Bonnie tried to imitate Patti LaBelle's signature dance moves. Her green eyes were shining bright with amusement and happiness.

Lucy shook her head. "You gotta put your shoulders into it more. Let me show you!"

Bonnie giggled. "You look like a fool, Luce. But this is a good playlist. Grams used to love Patti LaBelle."

Lucy stuck out her tongue. "I made it for Nana. She wanted all of her old school jams on her phone like Miss Patti, Stephanie Mills, and The Spinners. After I made the playlist, I decided I wanted it for myself, too. It brings back all the good memories, you know."

"Yeah. Grams couldn't cook a big meal without playing music for motivation. Your playlist is going to get a work out the next couple of days. Oh, this is my favorite part!" Bonnie sang along with Patti LaBelle, "Ten long years and if you don't know me I'm not going to try to prove myself no more. You will never, never, never know me. You'll go on. You'll go on find yourself some else. Because if you think you're lonely now wait til tonight comes."

Lucy wistfully said, "If you don't sound just like my aunt Sheila. You got her voice that's for sure, baby girl."

Bonnie smiled sadly as the song ended. She missed her grams so much it hurt sometimes. She stood in front of the massive marble slab island as she looked through a cloth grocery bag. She frowned. "Did we get fresh garlic? I need fresh garlic for half the dishes I am cooking."

Lucy opened a bottle of cabernet that was older than she was. She said, "Yes, the insane amount of garlic you bought is over here with the flat leaf parsley and rosemary. We didn't forget anything, Bon. I promise. Caroline and I doubled checked the receipt against your list before we left the store."

Tyler knew how important this meal was to Bonnie. They had talked about it that afternoon before he drove her home. He interjected, "You can always send me out for anything you might have forgotten. I'll be here during the day all week. As you saw tonight, I know my way around a grocery store."

"That's because your mother raised you right," Bonnie said with a grateful smile.

Caroline kicked off her shoes after she walked out of the pantry. She said, "Oh! I'll take a glass of that, Lucy. Fill it to the brim please."

Lucy poured a glass of wine for Caroline and slid it across the counter. She tilted the bottle in Tyler's direction in a silent offer.

Tyler reluctantly shook his head. He could use a drink after being stranded in the Salvatore Manor for the better part of the evening. Tyler could barely stomach being in the same house where Bonnie was attacked. He didn't understand how she could stand it. However, being there to protect her was better than the alternative.

"No, thank you. I'm still on duty for another couple hours. What year is it?"

"It's a '80 cab. Bon brought it home from Shadow Hills," Lucy replied.

"That's a good year for a cabernet. I might be a little jealous," he replied.

Lucy said, "I should take a trip up there to spend time in the old house. I miss it."

Bonnie laughed. "I think you mean that you want to go visit the house and then raid the wine cellar."

"That, too," Lucy agreed. She looked at Tyler and asked, "Since when are you a wine connoisseur?"

"Since Elena has dragged me to a half dozen wine tastings this year. Her med school friends love going to Sonoma on the weekends."

"Elena is domesticating you little by little," Lucy teased.

Caroline said, "Everyone is expecting them to get engaged soon. She's going to have him driving a minivan and telling lame dad jokes in no time."

Bonnie tensed when Caroline brought up the topic of marriage. Her sister-in-law didn't know that Tyler's relationship with the medical student was on the rocks. She discreetly looked at her friend to see his reaction.

Tyler merely huffed in amusement. "Bite your tongue, Caroline. I still leave my clothes on the floor for her to pick up. I leave the toilet seat up at night and I put empty milk cartons back in the refrigerator."

The three women made a collective sound of disgust.

"I don't understand how you convinced someone as smart Elena to live with you. She's going to be a doctor. She could do better," Lucy replied.

Caroline added, "Much better."

Bonnie shook her head with an amused smile as she sorted through a bag of fresh vegetables. She started putting them in the refrigerator.

Tyler smugly replied, "Lena knows that I am a catch."

Lucy laughed as she turned up the volume as another song started playing. "No, you're not. Now your uncle Brady is a completely different story. That man makes me tingly in all of the right places."

Caroline's eyes widened because the elder Lockwood always made her nervous. He had a way looking through someone that made her uncomfortable. She didn't need anyone to explain his purpose in the Salvatore's organization. However, Caroline liked to pretend none of it was going on since her husband wasn't involved.

Tyler said, "I can pass on the message for you, Lucy. He isn't seeing anyone right now."

Bonnie said, "I thought that you and Jonah were a thing."

Lucy shrugged as she helped unpack the groceries. "His kids hate me. Besides, there ain't no ring on my finger. And Brady is sexy as hell. He looks really intense like he'd fuck me up against a wall."

Caroline nearly choked on her wine. "Lucy!"

Bonnie giggled. "Brady does look like he would go all aggro on you in the bedroom. The two of you together would be frightening. I'm imaging the recreational use of firearms and handcuffs."

Lucy smirked. "I know you are innocent, little cuz. But if it doesn't hurt just a little then you aren't doing it right."

Tyler looked at Bonnie with a grin. "I bet you fifty bucks that we will have to bail one or both of them out of jail before New Years."

Bonnie giggled. "I'm not taking that bet. They'll definitely be arrested for something. Will it be for some sort of domestic spat or a public indecency charge? That's the real question."

He chuckled. "Both."

Lucy said, "To hell with both of you."

Caroline smirked and asked, "Can I get in on this wager?"

Damon couldn't remember the last time he had heard Bonnie behaving so carefree. It irked him that she was that way with her cousin and Tyler of all people. He knew that Bonnie and Tyler had been friends as children. However, she hadn't mentioned him since she married Damon. He wondered if they were still friends. He could see why Bonnie would keep it from him. He wouldn't approve of her socializing with a man. It could give people the wrong idea. Damon walked over to his wife to make his presence known.

He asked, "Did you leave anything at the store for everyone else?"

Bonnie laughed and said, "I might have left behind a few things. Anyway, we are having close to 30 people here for Thanksgiving dinner. I just want to make sure that we have enough food for everyone."

Damon rested a possessive hand on Bonnie's hip and surveyed the cluttered kitchen. He replied, "It looks as if you have enough food here to feed twice that many people, bunny."

Tyler moved to the other side of the island because being so near Damon wasn't a good idea. Lately, he had the recurring urge to kill the bastard. The Salvatore family had long become more trouble than they were worth. However, Giuseppe's attack on Bonnie had truly taken the cake. He couldn't understand how Damon could want to be a leader of men and yet he was so careless with the most precious things in his life.

Bonnie said, "It will probably end up being too much food but I just want everything to be perfect…like when Grams was alive."

Damon's lips curled into a small smile because he used to love when Sheila would cook during the holidays. It was always this perfect blend of traditional soul food and Italian cuisine. Nobody made chocolate panna cotta quite like Miss Sheila did. He asked, "Are you going to make panna cotta?"

Bonnie nodded with a smile. "Yes, I am. We're going to have chocolate panna cotta and espresso panna cotta."

Damon pecked her lips and said, "I won't even want to eat dinner."

"I don't know about that. I am cooking a twenty pound bourbon and honey glazed ham…"

He chuckled and asked, "Are you trying to fatten me up, woman?"

"Maybe…" she replied with a grin. "I thought you were pretty cute when you had that beer gut."

Caroline choked on a mouthful of wine. "When did Damon have a beer gut? Please, tell me there are pictures!"

Bonnie said, "I think it was like his third year of college. When Grams and I came to visit for Thanksgiving he was like a sexier drunker Joaquin Phoenix."

The blonde girl snorted. "A drunker Joaquin Phoenix? How is that even possible?"

"I've always been an overachiever, Blondie. Besides, I lost the weight by the time Bonnie came to stay with us for the summer. I cut back on the drinking and hit the gym."

"Sure you lost the weight because of healthy living and exercise," Lucy smirked and made a not so subtle sniffing noise. She was obviously alluding to Damon's coke problem around that time.

Damon glared at Lucy but there was no heat behind it. His cocaine problem at the time wasn't a secret from anyone—least of all Bonnie. Unfortunately, she had seen more than her share of his bad behavior at the time.

Bonnie tossed a carrot at Lucy and said, "Leave my husband alone. He wasn't the only one that spent their early 20's putting thousands of dollars up their nose."

Lucy caught the carrot and then stuck her tongue out at her cousin. "You're just mad because you missed out on having those awesome youthful indiscretions."

This time Damon's glare was serious. He didn't want anyone reminding Bonnie of everything she gave up to marry him. His conversation with Zach was weighing on him heavily. The thing that had been most damning was the fact that Bonnie wouldn't need him if she was pregnant with at least one boy.

Caroline shook her head. "Being around your families makes me feel like my childhood was normal. The most outrageous thing I ever did was dye my hair purple while my dad was running for governor."

Damon chuckled. "You're just going to skip right over the fact that your dad got outed because he was banging that married state senator?"

"That's why I dyed my hair purple, Ass," Caroline snapped.

Damon smirked but didn't keep pushing. He knew it was still a sore subject with Caroline. Damon often gave his sister-in-law grief for her endless optimism and cheerful disposition. However, they actually had a close relationship because of Sarah. She was a lifesaver during the early months of his daughter's life. Caroline had snapped into action the moment he decided that putting the baby up for adoption wasn't an option. She insisted that Sarah share Bella and Nico's nursery. The twins were only a few months older than she was. Caroline thought it would be good to get the three infants on the same schedule. Caroline handled purchasing all of the things that a baby would need—most of which left Damon perplexed. He was grateful to hand over his card and let Caroline do the heavy lifting. She had even pumped enough breast milk to feed Sarah right along with the twins. Caroline had insisted that breast milk was the best for newborns. She had overwhelmed him with facts and figures but Caroline had really come through for him and Sarah.

Damon asked, "When will you start cooking?"

Bonnie said, "Probably early tomorrow afternoon. My mom is going to help us cook. She promised to tell me the secret ingredient for Grams' sweet potato pies."

Lucy's eyes lit up at that. "You're baking sweet potato pies, too! I didn't realize you were trying to pull off Aunt Sheila's Christmas menu. I am going to eat my weight in food and then die a happy woman."

"I miss Grams this year even more for some reason. This will help me feel closer to her. The taste and smells will take me back to happier times. At least…I hope that is what it will do," she explained.

Caroline looked at her friend with sympathy. "I'm sure that it's harder because you are pregnant this year. I don't know what I would have done without my mom during my first pregnancy. She was there to offer love, support, and advice. She made me feel like I could be a good mother even if I didn't think so at the time."

Damon silently chastised himself for not talking to Bonnie about how she felt about the pregnancy. He had been too busy trying to find Giuseppe and securing his position as head of the family. He just assumed that the girl would handle pregnancy with the same poise as she handled everything else in their life. She had taken to being Sarah's mother easily enough. However, he recognized that wasn't the same thing as carrying twins, giving birth, and caring for them from the outset.

Lucy nudged Damon out of the way so that she could hug Bonnie. She wrapped her arms around her cousin and squeezed. "I know it's not the same but I'm willing to share my grandma with you. Maybe around your birthday I can kidnap you for a couple weeks. You haven't been down to Miami since Aunt Sheila died."

Giuseppe didn't think it was proper for her to go to Miami without Damon. Unfortunately, her husband was always too busy to go visit her family. She gave a noncommittal, "Maybe."

Lucy noted the way Bonnie's eyes moved to Damon. She bit back the snide reply on the tip of her tongue. "Don't make me convince Nana to come out here. You know once she gets a chance to baby you that she might never leave."

Bonnie laughed. "I don't know if that is the threat you think it is. I could keep Aunt Geneva here and she can make banana pudding with extra Nilla wafers every day."

The older woman rolled her eyes. "You don't even like banana pudding! You only eat the Nilla wafers off the top of the pudding."

She smiled sheepishly and said, "The cookies taste better with just a little bit of pudding on the back of them."

"You are so weird," Lucy replied with a shake of her head. "Do you want banana pudding? I make it just like Nana does."

"Really?" Bonnie asked.

"Mmmhmm. I'll even make sure that it is more cookies than it is pudding."

"I would love that, Lucy," Bonnie said with a big smile.

John Gilbert walked into the kitchen wearing a fake smile. He didn't appreciate being summoned to the manor by Giuseppe's eldest son. He was the consigliere. He should be the one summoning Damon to his home. However, there were appearances that he needed to keep for the time being. Something was going on and he needed to get ahead of it. "Damon…"

Damon was brought out of his thought by John's voice. He couldn't stand the man. However, as Giuseppe's number two he might actual know where the man was hiding. It was high time he put his cards on the table. "Thank you for coming, John. Let's go to the study so that we can talk."

John nodded. "Of course."

Damon kissed Bonnie's cheek. "I will see you later, bunny."

She nodded. "Okay."

Tyler shared a look with Bonnie as Damon and John walked out of the kitchen together.

Damon led the older man into the study. He closed the door behind him and motioned to the couch. "Please, have a seat. Do you want something to drink?"

John lifted an eyebrow at the younger man's cordial behavior. He shook his head. "No, I had a few drinks while I was at dinner with my brother."

He nodded and then poured a glass of bourbon for himself. He sat down across from John and said, "Do you know where my father is, John?"

The question was simple enough but his inflection suggested that it had a hidden depth. John said, "He's in Milazzo."

Damon asked, "Have you spoken to him lately?"

John's spine straightened as his mind raced. He said, "I haven't spoken to him for about week. Giuseppe said he wanted to take some time to himself. Has something happened?"

"My father is wisely hiding from me," he said.

The older man's eyes narrowed and he huffed out a laugh. "Giuseppe has no reason to hide from you."

Damon moved to the edge of the seat and said, "My father attacked my wife in this house three weeks ago. He beat her black and blue. Giuseppe has every reason to hide from me. He trained me…he knows very well what I will do when I find him."

That statement hung in the silent room like a cloud of foul air. The two men stared unflinchingly at one another for several minutes.

John adjusted his tie as he tried to figure out his next move. He couldn't believe that Giuseppe had put them all in this position. However, now he understood Mason's visit. Only now, he wondered which of his employers Mason was representing at the time. "I don't know where he is, Damon. I haven't spoken to Giuseppe in well over a week. I assumed that he was just spending time with one of his mistresses."

"We're checking into all of his usual haunts. We will find him eventually," Damon promised with an edge to his voice.

"I am sorry for what happened to your wife. She is a sweet girl. She didn't deserve that. However, there may be some who resist what you are planning, Damon. This must be handled with the utmost tact. Let me help you work out a truce with Giuseppe."

"A truce?" he asked.

John nodded quickly. "Giuseppe has been thinking about stepping down for some time. Let me speak with him before you do anything hasty. The best thing for this family is a peaceful transition of power. Don't you think?"

Something in John's voice left Damon feeling unsettled. He never trusted the man. John thought too highly of himself. Damon knew that John envisioned himself as the boss one day. However, letting this play out had its merits. He would learn if John could remain a part of the organization or if he was too firmly in Giuseppe's camp. Giuseppe was dead either way but he would gladly send John with him.

Damon nodded. "We will try this your way…"