After the date stalk and ditch, Cali swore an oath to abstain from talking to men in bars, except for when it was her job. So naturally she broke it the next day, and the one after that, and the one after that, until finally she locked herself in the back room of the Immortel and made Kat deal with the customers.
"Kiran can you go order another case of Sam Adams, I have to stay up front and answer the phone." Kat asked her friend as they opened up for the night.
"Sure, have fun with the customers, it's a full moon so tonight should be interesting." Kiran replied as she walked off towards the bar.
The double doors to the entrance burst open as the Friday night crowd rushed in. Throngs of people both mortal and immortal filled the bar and the back rooms. The night have started with 30 girls and at 1:30 they were down five and the work load had doubled.
"Cali can you please come help on the floor. We are swamped and there are too many customers." Kat had popped her head in the office where Cali was hiding.
"You are kidding me right? There isn't anyone else who can cover?" Cali was really hoping that she wasn't actually needed.
"No, Cal I know you aren't feeling up to working but please we are slammed." Kat begged her friend.
"Yeah gimme like 20 I need to shower really quick" Cali said digging through the wardrobe in the office for a towel and outfit for her first shift of the night.
Fifteen minutes after Cali had left the office, she was showered and had made her way to the makeup room with the other girls and quickly did a smokey eye and red lips. Cali dressed in a red bandage dress and had curled her hair so it was falling in ringlets down her back.
"Oh thank god you're ready. There is a client who is willing to spend money out the wazoo. Take him to whatever room he wants. I love you Cali, thank you for doing this. I promise I will make it up to you." Kat said as her and Cali walked out to the main floor.
"So who's the guy I'm fucking? Cali looked around the bar to find her "date."
"See that young lookin kid over talking up Sunshine?"
"Yeah"
"It's that older guy in his fifties with the ducky tie. Have fun with that, he keeps saying things like Awesome and Wait for it." Kat replied as she twisted around and walked back towards the front counter, barely reaching the phone in time as it kept up it's incessant ringing.
"Fuck you two Kat" Cali muttered as she headed off to her customer.
Around two when the crowd would usually begin to die down, it picked back up. Cursing under her breath, Kat ran from the bar to the counter as she and Kiran managed the front. Nightwalkers and humans mixed in a neverending flow of booze and sex until finally, Kat lost it.
"Alright, everybody get the fuck out! If you're not out of this establishment in the next five minutes, I'll start blasting you all to hell."
"Yeah you and who's army bitch?" a nightwalker called out, earning a snapped neck from Klaus who was lounging against the bar.
"Oh I'll help her take out the trash but you all should know by now that miss Katerina can take care of herself."
"Thanks. . . I think." Kat muttered to Klaus as he walked out with the rest of the bar.
Turning back to the counter, Kat began to wipe off the spilled beer and salvage some documents when she heard a cool British voice behind her say: "I must say that was quite a show of power there, miss?"
"Malfoy. My name's Kat Malfoy." she replied turning around to meet the dark eyes of a handsome new man.
"Katerina, what a beautiful name." he said as he reached over and took her hand to his lips.
"Thanks, I think. Listen I don't mean to be rude but I need to close out and you're kind of in the way. No offense or anything, I'm just really tired and I need to get this done so I can go home and crash."
"No offense taken, perhaps we can continue this conversation under better pretenses the next time we meet."
"Uh… sure." Kat replied, watching him disappear before her eyes. Shuddering slightly she went back to her work when she remembered. Oh shit, Damon's going to be pissed I agreed to date another guy. Oh well, he has no claim on me, yet.
Meanwhile, Cali had just finished up with her client and was cleaning the room when Klaus arrived.
"So how was it tonight? Busy?"
"No Klaus it was as slow as molasses, what the hell do you think, of course it was busy!" Cali snarled waving the Clorox wipes in his face.
"You don't need to be so cross, Love. I am simply asking about your business ventures. After you finish cleaning in here, do you need to do anything else here? There is this new restaurant in the quarter and I hate eating alone." Klaus said grabbing one of the wipes and starting aimlessly wiping down surfaces.
"Klaus do you have any idea of how much paperwork I have to file to keep this place from being raided by every single branch of law enforcement? I don't have time to go out with you so you aren't lonely. Ask your sister, she normally likes you." Cali retorted pulling the wipe out of Klaus' hand.
"I will just have to go terrorize the village instead. There's some witchy business that's been bothering me." Klaus walked away leaving Cali alone with her thoughts.
Cali walked back to her office turned on the coffee maker, sat down at her desk, then began to take on the never ending stack of papers that had accumulated throughout the night. The forms consumed Cali and her attention until the sun had already ascended far into the sky. It was not until Kat and Sunshine had returned from the compound looking for Hayley that Cali realized how long she had been working.
"Have you seen Hayley? She isn't anywhere in the compound and Klaus is starting to do that thing where he get irrationally crazy. Not the normal kind of crazy where he gets plans for world domination and what not. He's at the we are going to burn down the whole world if he doesn't get what he wants, kind of crazy." Kat said collapsing on to the couch.
"The last time I saw Hayley was yesterday when we left for work, she was on the phone with someone talking about some wolf. I vaguely remember her saying something about heading out to the bayou. I think." Cali turned away from the papers as she answered.
"Oh he is gonna be over the moon a that. Are we gonna tell him or do you think he will figure it out for himself." Sunshine said from next to Kat on the couch.
All three of the girls phones went off at the same time. They shared a knowing look. The alert was from Nik who had sent them a text message.
Looking down Sunshine read aloud, "Marcel. He took her and my child. The peace we discussed is over."
"Oh great. Come on let's go talk him off the ledge." Cali scooped up her belongings and headed out the door with the other two close behind her.
The three climbed into Kat's car and rode to the compound.
"Hello there three lovely women who best have something very interesting to say otherwise I may kill you. Oh and the interesting fact best be where the mother of my child is located." Klaus downed the last of the bottle of whisky he had been holding.
"We don't know where she is but there is this magical thing that I can do to find her. Klaus you forget I'm a witch." Kat said taking the empty bottle from Nik.
"Katerina, if you can do the spell then do the spell and stop wasting my time." Klaus broke the seal on the next bottle of booze.
"Well unless you have her blood on hand, I suggest you bust a vein so I can find the baby." Kat walked out of the room heading to her room to grab one of her many grimoires.
Klaus sat on down on the couch in his study, resting the bottle on his lap waiting for something to happen. Cali and Sunshine sat down next to Klaus unsure how to help the situation. Kat came back into the room with Ghost, Grim, and Night following closely behind her.
"See even the animals know you need their comforting right now." Sunshine said trying to pick up Grim who scampered under her hand on to Klaus' lap.
"Need blood, if you want baby mama found." Kat laid out a map of Louisiana on the small coffee table in front of where the others were sitting.
Biting into his wrist Klaus supplied Kat with the blood needed for the spell. Looking down at the puncture marks on his wrists Klaus glanced between the small trickle of blood and the three women around him. Kat spoke the incantation sending the blood to focus on the area of where Hayley was.
"There she's in the bayou. Now will you stop throwing your temper tantrum?" Kat asked petting ghost.
"Yes now we need to go get her. ELIJAH! DAMON!" Klaus called for the rest of the motley crew of friends he had assembled in the past few months.
"You rang?" Damon sauntered in with his signature smirk.
"You know that thing we discussed the other day about safe keeping the compound?" Klaus said referencing a conversation the men had shared without the girls.
"Brother, not now. Like we said then they must agree to it before we take any action."
"Yes, blah blah, life choices. We need to keep them safe." Damon sat behind Kat so that she was between his outstretched legs.
"What the hell are you three idiots talking about?" Sunshine's normal smile had been replaced with a look of a cornered animal.
"Nothing that you need to concern yourself with right now Kiran." Elijah said as he came to be seated next to her with an arm casually draped around her shoulder.
"Okay the three of you are up to something and you have about three seconds to tell us what the hell you are going to do with us." Cali said leaning forward.
"We are just concerned with your three's safety and wish to ensure that you are kept safe." Klaus scooted closer to Cali.
The three men shared a glance then in a flash they bit into their forearms. Before any questions could be raised the girls mouths were forcefully pressed to the puncture marks, ingesting the blood. It seems that men had each decide which of the girls they would protect; Klaus choose Cali, Damon selected Kat, and Elijah picked Kiran.
As soon as they were able to process what was occurring the three started fighting back. Cali had gotten enough of a footing to push herself off the couch and on to the floor trying to escape the flow of blood. Klaus had her pinned on her stomach with his weight keeping her from getting away from the blood. Kat had gone with the approach of elbowing Damon in the stomach. Unfortunately for Kat she was trapped between the table and Damon. Then Kiran had it the easiest of the three, all she needed to do was push Elijah's arm away with determined force and Elijah relented.
The two struggles continued until finally the girls stopped struggling against the men. Both Damon and Klaus pulled their arms away and let the girls readjust before even bothering to attempt to mount a defense.
"What the hell was that about," Kat looked between the three immortals in the room. "If we wanted to have your blood in our systems we would have asked. Plus now if we get killed in the bayou, we will be turned into vampires. Do you want that? Do you really want to deal with the three of us for all eternity ?" Kat began to pace back and forth getting progressively more upset the more she talked.
"Kat we just don't want anything to happen to you if for some reason you guys are attacked." Damon said trying to calm her down.
"The fact that you think we need protection, is offensive. You all know that I can take care of myself and these two," Kat gestured at Cali who was still pinned under Klaus and Sunshine who was sitting on the couch. "Also can you two get up so it doesn't look like you guys are fucking?"
Untangling from each other Cali and Klaus returned to their spots on the couch. Klaus returning the bottle of alcohol to his lap, almost like it was a security blanket. Cali began to try to get rid of the blood around her face and in her mouth.
"You two had it easy. There was only two streams of blood leaking into your mouth, I had four. Plus you guys don't have to worry about vampire AIDS." knowing there was a bottle in the lap next her Cali reached and found her self gripping something that wasn't the bottle.
"While I like your initiative Accalia now is not the time or the place for your sexual advances. Of course later is an entirely different story." Klaus said running his fingers through Cali's hair.
"Klaus what are you talking about? I'm grabbing the neck of the bottle," Cali finally turned to see what she had actually grabbed. "EW! Oh my god!" Cali pulled her hand away and moved closer to Sunshine.
"What you didn't like what you felt? That hurts my dear. Elijah did she react this way to you?" Klaus said with his smirk growing.
"It moved. It moved while I was touching it. Why did no one tell me where my hand was?" Cali said curling into Sunshine.
"It? That hurts Acalia. If you continue to talk that way I may begin to think that our witty banter is just that. Does this mean the sexual tension is all a ruse?" Klaus feigned hurt at Cali's reaction.
"Klaus, knock it off. Not only does she need to worry about getting vampire hepatitis from you, she also needs to disinfect her hand because god only knows what diseases you are carrying." Kat said.
"Ew. I need to go shower. You guys go get the knocked up wolf. I need to exfoliate my hand until it bleeds." Cali said leaving the room.
"Well I do believe we should follow Cali's instructions and go get the preggers wolf." Damon said reaching out to offer Katerina assistance getting off the floor.
"Well the let's pack up the wolfsbane grenades and guns." Elijah said standing up as well.
The 5 left to head to the center of werewolf territory and to locate Hayley. While driving down the dirt road they began to see signs of ramshackle housing, blankets propped up on branches and cardboard lean to's. Waving her hands around frantically, Kat managed to stop the car. Whispering she told the others "Get out and be quiet, Tyler is nearby I can feel him."
Quickly but silently the crack team got out of the car and spread out along the perimeter of a solitary house along the water. Klaus and Damon flanked Kat as she motioned for Elijah and the girls to go into the house. A rustle behind them had Klaus nearly ripping a bunnies throat out as they turned away from the house. Shaking with laughter Damon nearly missed the first arrow as Tyler jumped down from one of the overhanging trees.
Whipping his crossbow around, Tyler fired another shot at Damon only to have the bow going flying from his hands as Kat snapped her fingers. Klaus slid in that two second gap to throw Tyler to the ground, his hand digging inside Tyler's ribcage, blood gurgling out as Tyler roared in pain.
"Klaus, take your hand out of his chest he isn't a puppet." Elijah snapped, Klaus begrudgingly complied.
"Well that was anticlimactic, I was expecting more than a crossbow." Damon smirked. "I mean honestly Tyler, didn't your master train you better, to be a good little mutt?"
"Stop antagonizing him Damon, he was just beaten up by his mortal enemy and a little girl." Kat said as Klaus began to chuckle.
"I'm not a mutt."
"Could have fooled me." Klaus and Kat muttered simultaneously.
As the two laughed at their timed humor, Kat began to weave a spell around Tyler, binding him to the ground so he couldn't retaliate. Snickering at the hybrid's prone form the trio went to join Elijah and the girls to check on Haley.
Reclined back against the wall, Haley's hands were smeared with blood, Elijah hovered over her. Kat and Sunshine were propped up on the wall, their eyes mirroring a glazed look that could only be described as complete and utter boredom. Turning his head slightly, Elijah acknowledged Klaus's entrance with a snarl.
"Where is Marcel?" Klaus said ignoring his brothers greeting.
"Why does it matter brother? If he were behind this it would not have been the bayou where she was kept. He would have kept her in the old house or in the church. Obviously its not him." Elijah said not taking his eyes off Hayley.
"Well then Tyler must be working with the witches. Why are those women trying to destroy me and my city?"
"Niklaus will you please for a minute consider someone other than yourself?" Elijah said standing to face his brother.
Grabbing Elijahs shoulders Nik Goes to hug his brother, "You know brother you're right. I should consider others." Once the two were close enough Nik bit into his brother's neck.
"KLAUS!" Kat screamed, "What the hell are you doing?"
"I thought of someone else. I thought of how my brother has obviously betrayed me to those witches. He and Davina must have come up with a plan to destroy me when I had given his daggered body to her to assure Marcel that he was safe." Nik turned and looked out the dust covered window.
Kat and Sunshine rushed over to Elijah trying to find some way to help him. Even when injured Elijah remained stoic, shooing the girls away and moving towards his brother.
"Niklaus I have not betrayed you to anyone. Perhaps its best you and the girls left. I will return to the compound once the poison of your bite have left my system."
"Come girls we are leaving," Niklaus gestured for the three to follow him.
"Um, no I'm staying with Elijah to make sure he doesn't, you know die." Kiran said going to stand by Elijah.
"I'm not leaving either." Kat said joining Kiran.
"Well then, come little wolf we are leaving." Klaus reached out and grabbed Hayley by her arm.
The two walked out and where Damon was standing outside keeping an eye on Tyler who was still tied to the post.
"Come Damon we are leaving. The girls and Elijah are staying to keep an eye to see who returns." Klaus said pausing in front of Tyler. "Oh and mutt, please remember the only reason you are alive is because I allow it. Come here again and I will remove your head from your body." With that the two men walked away.
"Here." Hayley threw a knife to Tyler, intentionally throwing just a bit short of where he could reach it.
"Oops guess you can't get it." Hayley turned on her heel and jogged to catch up with the boys.
The girls sat with Elijah for several hours, watching process the werewolf venom delusions with impeccable grace, that is until Sunshine had to break it. Elijah had been sitting quiet for almost an hour, his murmurings about past loves the only hint of his hallucinations, when Sunshine accidentally knocked over a chair as she stood up.
Elijah jumped to his feet, his fangs flashing out as he reached for the nearest person, which happened to be Kat who promptly shrieked, letting out a burst of magic that sent Elijah flying back into the wall.