Extending her legs to rest on the end table, Elena yawns and raises her arms, stretching them above her head. She and Kai are kicking back on the couch watching his favorite movie, 'Die Hard'.
She laughs when at Kai when he dramatically mimics Bruce Willis, "Yip ki-ay, mother fucker."
Some time later, their quiet evening is interrupted when Elijah storms into her house with a dark expression on his face. Furious for having her privacy taken for granted yet again, it seems to be a thing with them, Elena is ready to give them both a piece of her mind. Do they think of her home has a revolving door on it?
Just as she's about to spew a string of colorful metaphors, she pauses when Elijah raises his hand. The man is really one of a thousand faces as it were, sometimes he's the serious one, the threatening one if the situation calls for it, the funny one on rare occasions but he's never really the concerned one...and she can see exactly that in his eyes.
"What happened?" she breathes out, quirking an eyebrow at him. Elijah immediately relaxes his posture as soon as he realizes what Elena is reacting to.
"Nothing. Well, not yet anyway... but that doesn't mean that I didn't have ample reason for coming here."
Kai pauses the movie then stands up to get himself a drink. His eyes dart from Elijah to Elena. Although he knows her attorney wouldn't be there if he didn't feel it necessary, he can't help but roll his eyes. He pours himself one and then offers a drink to Elijah who nods, settling for his usual bourbon.
"Thanks," he raises the glass in both of their directions and takes a sip.
Kai throws his back, refills it and then sits back down beside Elena, both now looking at Elijah expectantly. "Well?" Kai finally asks.
"I received a phone call from my father. It seems Reno's finest paid him a visit."
"Can you be any more cryptic?" Elena loses her patience, her lack of it getting the better of her.
"I could," Elijah utters with a hint of a smile on his lips and suddenly Elena feels relaxed. "Your friend, Detective Salvatore and his young steed paid a visit to the mansion. They wanted to know about your parents' will."
"Did he tell them...?" Elena asks, downing what's left of her drink.
Elijah shakes his head. "No, but dad said Damon didn't seem at all convinced. He doubts that the good detective is going to give up on the idea that Jeremy's murder is somehow related to activities at the club or just the place itself."
"And would you?" Elena snaps and jumps up from her seat to start pacing.
"This needs to stop," she repeats a few times. "I just don't want to have to look over my shoulders for the rest of my life!" she huffs. "Nor do I want to play a twisted version of cat and mouse with that smart ass cop."
"I understand," Elijah nods. And I don't want that for you either, Elena. Just give me a little time... I'll come up with something to make them shift their focus elsewhere."
Elena doesn't like it, but she knows listening to Elijah is usually her best course of action, at least for now. He hasn't failed her yet. "Alright, I'll keep a low profile. But if he's waiting for me somewhere, I'm not going to run through back door to disappear. I'm not a coward and you very well know it."
"No one thinks you are, Elena. Stupidly brave I'd call it," Kai cuts in and Elena gives him a nasty look.
"Okay, okay, children," Elijah scolds using his parental tone that Elena detests. "I'm going to do some digging to see if I can find out what they have. I have my own sources within the department. And Kai, you need to give her some space... and you," he points at Elena, "get some rest and I'll see you at the Jungle later. Or better yet, take an evening off, they wouldn't dare show up here and frankly, you look like you need a long winter's nap."
Elijah sets his tumbler down and after brushing a kiss to her forehead, Elena watches the two of them leave without another word. Blowing out a frustrated puff of air, she walks over to the bar to pour herself a glass of bourbon. After throwing it back with one gulp, she fingers the glass for a few second. And when his face pops into her mind, she launches it into the fireplace...
"Can we stay there the whole day, Damon, please?"
"Probably? I don't exactly know when it ends but we'll stay till then."
Stefan turns to look out of the window and Damon can see it takes a lot for him not to ask 'when we'll be there' every other minute. He's excited and Damon feels guilty that he doesn't have more free time to spend with his little brother. Now he's taking him along just because he's his ticket to the event.
Sometimes you suck at being a big brother, Salvatore.
It's been a few days since Luka found a way for them to get close to miss businesswoman Gilbert. Lady luck must have been smiling at them because with a little more digging, Luka found out that her event is taking place this weekend at a place called "Jump Man Jump". The location if very popular venue for young kids, it has giant inflatable amusements in a 14,000 square foot climate controlled building with private rooms to rent.
He suspects that Elena simply rented out the entire place for several hours. Kids and adults too are able to kick back and enjoy themselves in a clean, fun environment. Damon did a little online research when they found out where it is being held. Since he's taking Stefan, he was happy to see that the business takes safety seriously, they have professional gymnastics padded flooring, age appropriate amusements, and trained staff who enjoy what they are doing.
When they park the car and join the crowd, he can almost feel Stefan's excitement and suggests they take a look around. He can't help but smile when he sees his little brother's eyes widen at the sight of the giant inflatable playground, slides, tunnels to crawl through, rope ladders to climb and trapeze bars to hang on. The atmosphere is filled with the sounds of laughter, Stefan surprises him when he grabs his arm and drags him along.
They're both enjoying themselves so much that Damon doesn't realize that over an hour has already passed. When Damon catches a glimpse of Elena hobnobbing with the guests, he checks on Stefan who's crawling into the fort again. He taps on his shoulder and points towards Elena to tell him he's going to be just over there. The boy doesn't even look up and nods mindlessly.
Damon walks closer to the knot of people surrounding Elena and when he sees an opening, he slips through to stand right next to her.
"Good afternoon, Miss Gilbert."
Elena does a double take when she turns to look at him. Is he serious? What the hell is he doing here?
She turns her attention back to the child she'd been talking to while uttering a curt, "Good afternoon Detective." She finishes talking with the boy and gives him a glance. "I didn't take you as the type to attend charity events."
"Well, you're not wrong. I don't do this type of thing. I donate what I can, cops don't make that much money. But this is for the children and I do have a little brother," he nods in Stefan's direction, he's tumbling down the slide head first, laughing wildly when he reaches the floor. He jumps up to do it all over again.
Elena slowly nods and the curve of her lips turns up in amusement. "I have to admit that you're creative, detective Salvatore."
"Is that a compliment?"
"Take it anyway you want... I have duties to attend to... have a good time."
Damon quickly interrupts her goodbye, "I hoped we could talk for a bit?"
Elena considers him for a few moments then nods ever so subtly. "Alright, you have ten minutes. I have a check to present."
Damon gestures with his forearm and they step aside.
"We probably shouldn't go too far away from your brother, I rather doubt your parents would appreciate it if you lose him here?"
Here they are, her witty yet pointy rejoinders. He kicks himself mentally. "We can sit here for a little while," he heads for the seat nearby and Elena follows.
"I had some interesting conversations this week," he starts before they can sit, he has no doubt her ever present 'bodyguards' are around here somewhere ready to swoop in if the need arises.
"I'm aware," Elena acknowledges, her eyes meeting his.
Of course she is.
"What I really would like to know is why your parents left Jeremy with only a stipend while everything of value went to you?"
"Why are you so sure that their stipulations had anything to do with my brother's murder?" she answers his question with one of her own.
"Honestly, I don't know if they are related. I just don't want to leave any stone unturned so I have to ask uncomfortable ones sometimes. What may seem trivial or meaningless to you may be very significant to the investigation. Sometimes the smallest detail may turn out to be that missing puzzle piece. I can assure you that this is just routine questioning."
It sounds arrogant even to his own ears.
"In that case... I may or may not decide to answer your routine questions," she retorts, emphasizing the word routine.
Damon's taken aback, he expected lies but not open refusal. He remains stoic, not willing to let her take control of the conversation. "Do you realize that if you refuse, I may be forced to get a subpoena. I can't force you to talk to me of course but I would think you'd want to see your brother's killer brought to justice... at least as much if not more than I do?"
"And what's your angle here? Why are you so fixated on this one case? And justice, Detective Salvatore, there are many different kinds..."
It sounds so scornful that Damon's not sure if he heard her right. "Yes, Mrs. Gilbert, justice. The defendant goes to trial before a jury of his peers. You're very savvy so let's not play this game okay?"
"Detective Salvatore, I'm not answering these very personal questions. My parents did what they did with clear minds. They were under no duress, they had their reasons and that's all I'm prepared to tell you. You think about that. I'm an American citizen, you cannot make me incriminate myself... I'm not talking to you about this. If you're going to have me arrested, if that helps you sleep at night, go right ahead," she adds, extending her wrists, half expecting that he will put the cuffs on her.
Her calm demeanor is astounding. It's quite clear that she learned a thing or two from her smarmy attorney's playbook.
"Is there anything else you'd like to ask?"
Before he can throw another one at her, to his surprise she gets up and heads towards his brother. She stoops down and starts to chat with him. He hears Stefan ask, "Do you know Damon?"
"Yep. Do you like him?" She asks, smirking at Damon when she looks over her shoulder.
"Yeah, he's my big brother but I don't get to see him very often."
Damon can't help but feel the kick to the gut. He swallows thickly and then steps in beside Elena.
"I suppose he's busy with his work?"
"He's a policeman," Stefan squeals, his smile ear to ear.
"That's an important job," she quips, laughing when Stefan runs off again. After she chats with a little girl, Elena stands up, urging the child to go back and play. Then she turns to face Damon who continues as if they never stopped.
"What was your relationship with your brother?"
"You have repeatedly asked me that question. I'm sure you already know the answer to that too... it was problematic. We didn't get along because my brother was more about fun and games than working. He spent money as if it rained down from the sky and felt himself above hard work, saying it was for losers, present company included. Of course he didn't consider himself one..."
"So did you hire him, did he ever work for you at the club?"
"No. Never. He would show his face now and then to remind me that he can and would make my life difficult if I... Is it really necessary to talk about him all the time? Why don't you ask his friends... if you can find any that is?"
"You are his sister, I would think that you should be able to tell me everything I need to know..."
"Just because I was his sister doesn't mean that I'm the authority on all things Jeremy Gilbert. I told you that we weren't close. I'm sure one of his many girlfriends can help you better than I ever could."
Rather than react to her screed, he adds, "We can finish this conversation some other time if you'll agree to meet with me, perhaps at The Jungle?"
Elena nods and it's clear that she's had enough of him today. Having already known that her relationship with Jeremy was less than stellar, he's still a little surprised by how much hatred he saw reflected in her huge brown eyes... he could almost see the flames shooting every which way.
Is she even aware of the fact that she's adding more fuel to the fire?
"Salvatore again?" Enzo asks with a frown.
Elena nods her head in his direction, pointing him out to Enzo. Seeing him engaged in a game with his little brother, she breathes out in relief, hopefully he's had his fill of annoying her for today. "Yep, the one and only. He brought his little brother to get in here, imagine!" she rolls her eyes.
"I don't like him hanging around the club... Or you," he adds, concern evident on his handsome face.
"Don't worry, Enzo," she squeezes his arm. "Give me a little credit... I'm a big girl and I'm more than capable of handling him."
That's exactly what worries him. He watches her move as she distances herself from him to mingle with the guests.
When he sees her later, she's more herself than she'd been before. Damon Salvatore's getting under her skin. He should probably call Elijah. Or Kai. His face clouds over at the thought. Kai's such an impulsive fool.
Although Enzo can't deny his loyalties belong to Elena there's no doubt in his mind that Kai's presence wouldn't solve anything, he'd only stir up more trouble. He notices Bonnie holding an infant while its mother watches her other child hanging from the monkey bars. She's been distant lately... Since he had to cancel their date due to a meeting Elena abruptly summoned two weeks back, they haven't found any free time for another one yet. She even turned him down flat when he asked her to spend the night last weekend. He considers taking the initiative to have a word with her right now but decides against it, she'll either tell him that she's busy or that this isn't the time or place for such a conversation.
With a sigh, he goes back to the reception area to continue to play his part.
"How is the case going?" his father joins him on the porch, waiting for a delicious dinner that no doubt Jenna is preparing for them. Stefan was told to take a shower and Damon's certain he's going to drop off as soon as he finishes his meal. He was relentless in making sure he got to play on everything before they left.
For some reason, the question catches him unprepared. "Which case?" he's dodging, he knows very well which case. "We have that Davis one going..."
"The Gilbert case, obviously," his father gives him a look.
Damon's trying, and failing, to keep his face impassive, then sighs and glances at his dad. "Not well, so far we have one great big nothing. The case's just full of supposition and circumstantial evidence but nothing I can latch onto, nothing to go after."
Giuseppe frowns, he can easily pick up on Damon's frustration. "Damon..."
"I know what you're going to say... Don't. Please," Damon interrupts him. "I need to do this. I promise you I'll keep my distance and that I am not imagining these things, they're all very real."
Giuseppe shakes his head and pats his son's shoulder. "How can I help? Do you want to talk about it?"
"Not really, but I wanted to ask you. Do you know Mikael Mikaelson?"
"Of course, he's an old friend. Sort of. He retired not all that long ago."
"That'd be him. Do you think he'd deliberately withhold information?"
"About his clients? Definitely. For him, his clients are untouchable. He'd consider it his duty to protect them at all costs. Not only that, Damon, there's such a thing as attorney, client privilege."
Damon's face twists in frustration. "Even if they're long gone and it's about their son's murder?"
"So you do mean the Gilberts... Your barking up the wrong tree if you think you're going to find proof of their daughter's guilt from him if that's what you're asking here. And didn't you tell me his son is the girl's lawyer?"
"Yes, he is. You know, the whole thing.. it's really frustrating. I know I won't get him to talk to me, not when he's already decided that it's not in Elen.. ehm, Miss Gilbert's best interests. But how am I supposed to investigate a homicide when everyone involved is keeping their mouths shut?"
"Then investigate. Forget about the girl and try to focus on what you do know, surely there are other leads, other avenues of investigation? Go back to where it all started, with his disappearance and work from there. How about the girl who reported him missing?"
"She's dead," Damon strains through his teeth. "And she was a hostess at the club, so now we're back to square one which is... The Jungle."
Giuseppe stays speechless for a moment. "Damon..."
"Yeah, I know. We have an appointment with the girl's family on Monday. I don't expect much but perhaps they'll surprise me? There's always the possibility that she told them something...," the skepticism is evident in his voice.
They both look up when Jenna's voice calls them for dinner.
"I'm sorry dad, I shouldn't carry these things over the threshold with me when I come."
"It's alright son, that's why we have families. So we don't have to carry our troubles and worries alone. I'm always here for you."
He pats Damon on his shoulder and they both walk inside to enjoy family dinner.
Sadly, Damon doesn't get to do this as often as he would like.
Elena stumbles inside of her dark office, almost having a heart attack when the lights go on before she can finger the switch.
"Kai! Are you insane? What are you doing here?" she shrieks, leaning against the doorframe, her hand trying to hold her wildly beating heart in place.
Kai gives her a smirk and sits back on the couch again. "You're sneaking in here like a bilge rat abandoning a sinking ship."
"The charity event ended later than expected, I thought I'd check on my employees," she retorts bitingly. "Enzo isn't here?"
"I told him to go home, he needed to talk with Bonnie."
"Are they alright? I haven't seen them spending much time together lately."
Kai shrugs. "Lovers quarrel, I guess they'll make up overnight," he winks at her, licking his lips salaciously.
"Pig...," Elena mutters, trying to hide the fact that as usual, Kai's inappropriate jokes are amusing. She helps herself to a drink, sits down and leans back her chair, spreading her feet out on the desktop.
"You're not going to offer me one?" he pouts endearingly.
She struggles to keep a straight face. "Nope. You're working. Clearly."
"Be that way," he quips, sticking his tongue out. "Well if you want the rundown, the lights went out unexpectedly in the restaurant before noon but there weren't a lot of people there, most were at a charity event, run by a very beautiful lady, much like you in that respect..." He pauses to gauge her reaction.
Having not gotten the desired response, he rolls his eyes. "Rather than bother you, I told them to reduce the menu prices but no one complained. The club's been running smoothly. Oh, and the new girl, Sonya called in sick. I told her it's alright but not to make a habit of it."
Elena nods automatically. "Detective Salvatore showed up today."
"What? And you talked to him, didn't you?"
"For a few minutes. And no, you don't need to worry, I didn't tell him anything," she adds steeply. "You know, I think Elijah's right. He's dangerous. It may be to my detriment to continue to talk to him but I must say, he's a fun sparring partner. But there won't be a next time."
Kai stares at her for a minute, not sure what to think of her new approach. "Yeah, like that'll happen," he responds sarcastically, not quite believing her declaration.
Her reaction is immediate, her piercing stare is lethal in its intensity. He raises his hands in the surrender posture and hesitantly walks to the door. Without looking back, he pauses to add, "I'll be downstairs if you need me."
Elena nods and throws back her drink, turning her back to the door as soon as he disappears behind it.
When exactly did his dislike for his sister turn into seething hatred? Although he's tried to pick out the one thing that pushed him over the edge, he simply cannot put his finger on it. He feels betrayed and alone. Over time his parents morphed into strangers, he's not sure if he can love them the way he used to, not anymore. His mother tells him she loves him but he doesn't believe it, not now.
Then there's Father... is he even his father at this point? Has he ever really been? The man, his 'father', tries to talk to him but he knows better than to open up. He's onto them, he knows they want him gone. He's heard them talking behind his back about sending him away.
One thing he's certain of... these unwanted feelings and doubts can all be traced to one thing, that little alien with big brown eyes that swim in tears all the time. She lets out a peep and everyone comes running. Even now that she's older - and more annoying than ever - she attracts their attention by screaming like a Siren. She knows what she's doing alright. He's witnessed her watching him searchingly, no doubt plotting and scheming to make him appear guilty. It doesn't even matter to her whether he really is or not. That's what she does. She wants his parents, she wants his room, she wants his toys, maybe she wants his life too? He swallows thickly at the thought.
Could it be that she really wants him dead?
Eva and I want to thank you all so very much. You keep us excited and motivated, without your support, we wouldn't be here.
Thank you Eva. I love you dearly.
Chapter title: 'Let's Have a Party' by Elvis Presley.
Thank you all again, you're the best there is in the DE fandom. Have a wonderful day and we'll see you next week.