Chapter 5: Death's Door
A/N: Finally figured out who Sophie looks like. In my mind, she's Jessica Sula AKA Grace from Skins. Continue with your own picture but in my mind Jessica has kind of taken over.
"What is this?" Elijah said thrusting the paper in Klaus' face. Klaus looked up from his drawing at a measured pace and glanced at what Elijah was holding.
"It looks like a newspaper."
"There are reports of animal attacks all around the city. Are you trying to draw attention to our presence? You know Mikael is still out there. That's why we split up with Rebekah."
"Rebekah left because she fell in love with that ridiculous French artist," Klaus corrected him. "Talk to Kol," he said returning to his drawing. "If I don't want to be caught, I have ways of making sure I'm not."
"You attacked that boy out at Belle Rouge," Elijah said.
"That was personal," Klaus reminded him. "Besides, Sophie's grandmother knows what we are. I haven't been back there since."
"What do you mean, she knows who we are? Are they witches?" Klaus was mad at himself for letting so much slip out. Elijah was pretty shrewd when it came to putting the pieces of any mystery together and he still hadn't confided in his brothers about Sophie's inability to be compelled. Although it'd been over a month since they'd first been together, Klaus had stopped trying to figure out that little quirk about the girl. He knew that Kol had fed from and compelled Corinne but he hadn't tried to compel Sophie since that first night they'd met, mainly because he didn't need to. They saw each other almost every night and each time was better than the last. During the day or evening he would call on her like a gentleman and then at night they'd meet in the quarters behind her home where he'd do unspeakable things to her body. Afterwards, they would lay together for hours talking and each morning, he'd slip away before her mother and sisters woke, regretfully leaving her bed.
"They're not witches. They're nothing special," Klaus lied. "I'm assuming the old woman has seen one of our kind before. Apparently, who ever it was couldn't be bothered to erase her memory."
"Or they couldn't be bothered to kill her," Kol said striding into the room. "At least that's what I would've done."
"Yes we know how you enjoy the hunt, Kol," Elijah said with a beleaguered sigh. "You both need to be careful. I don't know what you're up to with these Benoix girls but you need to keep a low profile."
"Cross my heart, brother," Kol said with his smarmy smile.
"Since I'm not responsible for these deaths," Klaus emphasized again, "I have no problem agreeing to that. Now if you'll excuse me." He gathered his things.
"Going to see the lovely Sophie?" Kol asked. Klaus ignored him. "Tell the little bird I said hello," he called after him.
Sophie was distraught by the time Klaus showed up at their house. "Nic," she said throwing herself into his arms.
"What's wrong, darling?" he asked tilting her head up. There were tears falling from her eyes.
"There have been too many attacks," she said. "Papa wants to leave Belle Rouge and New Orleans. He's taking us with him."
"You can't," Klaus said with some shock. "I won't let them take you."
"Papa wants to leave within the next week." Klaus pulled back grabbing her by the shoulders.
"Sophie listen to me," he said. "Meet me tonight. I need to talk to you, to ... tell you some things."
"Ok," Sophie said wiping her eyes. "I'll be there."
"Don't cry, love," he said, pulling her close. His voice was fierce as he held her. "No one is going to take you anywhere."
"You were right," Klaus said to Elijah when he returned to the flat. "New Orleans is done. We should leave."
"What brought on the sudden change Niklaus?" Elijah asked. He knew nothing his brother did was without reason.
"I need to take Sophie away from here," he replied. "Her father wants to take their family away. I won't let that happen."
"Niklaus you cannot drag that girl into this. What about finding Katerina? What about father? What about breaking the curse?"
"I don't care about that. If you want to stay you're welcome to."
"So what you turn her into one of us?," Elijah asked.
"Not against her will," Klaus replied.
"Does she even know what we are?"
"Why all the questions?" Klaus asked with irritation.
"Because you're acting impulsively, like you always do." Elijah placed his hand on Klaus' chest. "Slow down, brother."
Klaus slapped his hand away. "I'm leaving by sunrise. You and Kol are free to come with me and Sophie but don't forget who's in charge of this operation." His eyes flashed black at Elijah and his brother backed down. Elijah shook his head as he watched Klaus stalk away.
Sophie was waiting for him when he showed up later that night. "I've made arrangements for us to leave in the morning," he said.
"Ma maman would never let us go," Sophie said. "And what about Corinne and Genevieve?"
"I don't care about your mother or your sisters. I want you with me."
"And I want to be with you but my family," Sophie trailed off unsure.
"Sophie, do you love me?" Klaus asked, seriously. He looked at her searchingly, afraid of her reply.
"Of course I do," Sophie said. "Was there un doute?" she asked with a smile.
"Sophie, do you trust me?" he said earnestly.
She paused. From the look on his face she could tell how important her answer was. Sophie knew that how she responded would change everything between them. She was standing on the edge of something deeper and he was asking her if she was ready for it. He'd once told her that nothing that was worth having was free. And she knew the price of his love was her trust. "I trust you with my life," she said honestly.
"I have to show you something." Klaus pulled a dagger from his jacket and without flourish, slashed his palm. Sophie gasped.
"What –". She came to a stop as she saw the wound on his hand start to heal. "Mon Dieu," she whispered. She looked at his face. "What is this? Magic? Voudou?"
"It's my blood," Klaus explained. "It's very powerful. Very old. It can heal and stops me from aging. If you come with me, we could be together forever." Klaus knew he was leaving out some important parts of the story but he didn't plan on turning Sophie yet; at least not until he could get her a daylight ring. He just needed her to come with him.
"Forever?" Sophie whispered.
"Sweetheart, I know it's a lot, but I would never force you. If you don't want to go I understand, but –." Klaus was cut off by Sophie's kiss. She pressed her body against his circling her arms around his hard chest.
"I'll go with you," she said. "I want to be with you. Always and forever." Klaus sighed with relief. "Just give me tonight. I want to leave my family something. So they know I'm okay and they won't come looking for me." She started to pull away but he held her tighter.
"You don't have to leave right now, do you?" he said, kissing her lips. Now that she'd said yes, he was almost giddy. He nipped at her earlobe. "We have a few hours before the sun comes up." He lifted her up carrying her to the bed, kissing her the entire time. He could hear her heart start to race and he placed a soft kiss against her pulse. "You trust me, right Sophie?" he asked again.
"Yes," she breathed and then she was gasping as he bit into her neck. The feeling was not at all unpleasant. They were connected, more fully than they'd ever been when they'd slept together and she could sense his happiness; his pleasure as he fed from her. It was almost soothing. When he pulled away, she was light-headed. She watched in awe as he unbuttoned his shirt. He reached for the dagger he'd used earlier and cut his own chest near the collarbone. The blood welled up bright and red as holly berries and he threaded his fingers through her curls, drawing her to him. She sucked at the wound. The taste of his blood was intoxicating and she was drunk with it. When she'd had enough, they laid together on the small bed, wrapped in each other. He ran his fingers through her curls and she snuggled close to him.
"Will it always be like this?" she asked.
"It can be," Klaus replied.
"I never thought I could feel like this," Sophie whispered.
"Like what?" Klaus asked.
She looked into his eyes and smiled. "Free."
Sophie slipped out of the back house a bit before sunrise. She wanted to tell Genevieve where she was going and write her mother and father a letter saying goodbye. She made her way to the house with excitement. Soon she would be on her way to freedom with the man she loved. She made her way through the kitchen and up the back stairs, careful not to make any noise. Her sister was buried beneath the covers as usual and Sophie made her way over to shake her awake. "Gen," she whispered. "Gen wake up!" She shook her sister a bit harder, trying to wake her. "Gen –," Sophie's words were cut off as her sister's body rolled limply to the side. Genevieve's eyes were lifeless and staring. "Genny?" Sophie said in a quiet voice, but she knew her sister wasn't going to respond. Sophie looked around the room again and now she saw the signs. Immediately, she looked over at Corinne's bed which was empty.
"Corinne?" she called, heading towards her parent's bedroom. "Maman? Papa?" She opened the door and choked back a scream. The walls were covered in blood. The metallic scent suffocated her. She took in the gruesome scene on the bed. Her mother and father lay there, their throats ripped out. But she still hadn't found Corinne. She didn't know if she wanted to, if she could take the sight of her little sister dead and lifeless but it was as if her brain had shut down and she was acting simply on autopilot.
She searched the house room by room, calling her sister's name at a whisper in case whatever had done this was still in the house. Eventually, she made her way to the study. "Corinne?" she whispered. There was a muffled sound from the bureau and she opened the doors to find Corinne huddled in the corner. "Corinne, come. We have to go. We have to get to Nic. He'll help us."
Her sister's eyes went wild at the sound of Klaus' name. "No," Corinne whimpered. "He's one of them."
"One of what, Corinne," Sophie asked.
"I think she's referring to me," Kol said behind her. And when she spun around, Sophie could understand why her sister was screaming.
"Corinne, run!" Sophie shouted over her sister's wailing. She turned to face Kol straight on. His mouth was covered in blood and his eyes were black. He was a demon.
Sophie stood her ground, trying to protect her sister who was edging towards the door.
"You're not afraid," Kol stated with a grin. "It doesn't matter. You're not going to remember this anyway." In a flash, he was standing in front of her. His pupils dilated and seemed to fill her vision. "You didn't see anything," Kol said, his voice low and monotonous. "You're going to go meet Nik. Your family was fine when you left them." Kol stepped back and Sophie blinked.
"What did you try to do to me?" she asked.
Kol tilted his head to the side thoughtfully. "You're not wearing vervain or eating it or my brother wouldn't feed on you," he said to himself. He paused. "You can't be compelled." He threw back his head and laughed. "No wonder." He sighed. "It would've been better if I could compel you. Now I guess I'll have to kill you."
"Nic would never forgive you."
"We have a few lifetimes for him to get over it," Kol replied.
"Why?" Sophie asked as he closed in on her.
Kol fingered her throat as he whispered in her ear. "Because love is a vampire's greatest weakness." And that was the last thing she heard before he ripped her throat out.
When Klaus came back to pick up Sophie she wasn't waiting at the back house like she had been every night. He headed towards the house, silent as a ghost. The house was still quiet and he wanted to be far away with Sophie before her parents realized she was missing. As he crept towards the house, he picked up the scent of blood and he hastened his pace. "Sophie?" he whispered. He could detect no movement inside. It was like a tomb. Throwing aside caution, Klaus raced into the manse. The smell of blood and death was overpowering.
"Sophie?" Klaus called panicked. He found her parents and sister dead in their beds and headed back down the stairs to the front room. When he reached the study he found Sophie on the ground, with Kol standing over her lifeless body. "Sophie!" Klaus rushed to her side knocking Kol against the far wall. He cradled her to his chest, holding her close. "What did you do?" Klaus' face had morphed with his anger.
"I'm sorry, brother." Tears shown in Kol's eyes. "I just wanted to help. I thought if I got rid of the family we could leave without any questions. They would think she had died. I assumed you were taking her with you." Kol was openly weeping and Klaus didn't know what to make of it.
"But how?" Klaus asked in disbelief.
"She attacked me. I didn't know what to do. I couldn't compel her. I couldn't make her forget what she'd seen. I'm so sorry, brother." Kol moved towards him. "Please forgive me," he pleaded.
Klaus looked down at her face. He pushed aside her curls and the blood smeared across her brow. "Sophie," he whispered. He placed a soft kiss on her cold lips.
"She's gone, Nik," Kol said. "We have to go. We have to burn the building down or they'll be screaming vampire in the streets." He pulled Klaus to his feet. "We have to go, NOW." That was the last time Klaus saw Sophie Benoix.