I'm glad you all enjoyed the last chapter. Some of you are on to me. I'm trying to be a trixy writer, but alas, you may all be too smart for me to seduce. (haha) Okay, not seduce, but deceive. I'll have to try a bit harder in the next few chapters.
Sorry for any spelling or grammatical no-nos, I wrote this pretty quickly.
lastly, I know I've been spoiling you guys with such quick updates. I just wanted to warn you that I probably won't have time to update until this weekend. So hold on to this one. Savor it. Love it. And please please please
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Chapter 3: Lonesome Dove
Mystic Haven 1846
Klaus took his time getting home that night. He knew there would be consequences for his tardiness, but he didn't care. This would be the last day he strolled through these woods, tomorrow his family would leave to start somewhere new. He grabbed a stick off the ground and drew in the dirt as he lazily walked toward his home.
It wasn't fair that they had to leave, and so suddenly. It wasn't fair that he would never get to see Caroline again. She was the brightest spot in an otherwise dark and gloomy existence. No matter how awful his father was to him, the moment he saw her, it made the day bearable.
His siblings were nice enough, always comforting him after Mikael took his anger out on the small boy. Elijah and Kol would pat him on the shoulder and Rebekah would always bring him an extra treat after spending the day baking with their mother. No one understood why he was the center of his anger. Why he singled him out and made him feel like he was the worst thing that had happened to their family.
He grew to hate his father. He was still wary of him and obeyed the rules. There was only so much a small boy could do to defend himself against a grown man. He kept to himself most days, and always did what he was told, for it was far better than cowering in a corner while enduring the sharp slap of Mikael's belt against his bare skin.
If it wouldn't break his mother's heart, Klaus would run away. The nights when Mikael was the worst; when he was lying on the floor broken and bleeding, Esther would come to him. She would fill a hot bath, cradle him in her arms and place him carefully in the steaming water. They never spoke.
Esther had become very acquainted with the natural medicines of the land. They rarely had the doctor come for house calls and kept the medicine cabinet stocked with very few items. She didn't trust Mikael not to become enraged with the idea of spending unnecessary money on medicine to help the poor boy. So she used the herbs and plants in her garden to create healing salves and teas.
The scent of violets would never be a pleasing aroma to Klaus. No, the beautiful plant would always and forever be tarnished with the dark and twisted actions of his father.
"Niklaus!" a voice screamed in the distance.
Klaus froze in place. He may have pushed his disobedience a bit too far tonight. He looked around and realized it was pitch black and his father was most definitely home for the evening. He ran toward his home, trying to come up with an excuse for his tardiness. Anything that would lessen the beating he was going to endure. Perhaps, Mikeal is just worried about him. Perhaps, but not likely.
The last time Klaus came home late was almost the death of him. Mikael had beaten him so badly that Esther sent Elijah to town to fetch Doc Fells. It was the one and only time Doc had been to their home, at least when it came to Klaus. He had a concussion from hitting his head on the fireplace hearth after Mikael snapped his arm and threw him against it. He was bed ridden for a month.
"NIKLAUS!" He heard his father scream again.
The anger in Mikael's voice was none that he had ever heard. It was beyond rage. This was a new demon that Klaus was sure to encounter.
He reached the edge of the sparse woods and remained in the shadows for a moment. He saw Mikael on the front porch, a bottle of liquor in his hands, swaying back and forth. He picked up one of the porch chairs and threw it violently against a window.
Klaus swallowed and closed his eyes, preparing himself for the onslaught. But, instead of taking a step forward, he took a step back. "No," he whispered to himself and took a few more steps back.
He had one fleeting thought of his mother and how he would miss her forever kindness and love, before he turned around and ran. He would rather never see his family again than endure one more moment with that monster.
(***)
Somewhere Further West 1856
"Let me go!" Caroline's hands were bound and she was draped across the bandits lap, the saddle horn jabbing her ribs as they galloped away from the scene of the crime. Her capture was a blur.
"Hah!" he screamed at the horse to pick up its speed.
Damon Salvatore was to her right, pressed almost flush against his horse's withers. He held his reins out to the side, whipping the horse's hind ends, pushing it to go as fast as it can.
The landscape was moving excruciatingly quick, as they made their way across the vast terrain. The ground was clouded in dirt and an occasional pebble would kick up smacking her in the face. She became nauseous from the movement, mixed with the growing pressure in her gut.
It felt like they had been riding for hours when the horse finally slowed to a canter. "Whooooa," he heard the men say, and the they finally came to a full stop.
The sound of water was close by, too quiet to be a river so she assumed it was a stream. There was shade as well most likely from a group of pines, as was indicated from the needles that littered the ground.
"Kol," Damon said. "What the hell were you thinking? Why on earth would you bring her?"
The idea that this Tailor had an actual name made her insides calm a little bit. Kol was a unique name, she had only known one other person by that name in her life. He was the obnoxious little brother of her childhood friend. In an instant the memory of the boy made her ponder the man in front of her. What were the chances that his could be the same Kol? Her brows furrowed as she stared at him taking in his thick eyebrows, and hazel eyes. Were Kol's eyes hazel? Were they brown? Did he have a cleft in his chin? It was no use, her memory of the boy was far too gone for her to really know if this was the same person.
"Well, while you were at the safe, I came to learn that this little lady is none other than Caroline Forbes. As in, Sheriff Forbes' daughter."
The fact that he only addressed her as the Sheriff's daughter seemed to sate her curiosity. Why wouldn't he say something, if he knew her name? Clearly he would've remembered her.
He yanked her from the saddle and tossed her on the ground. Caroline rolled to the side, hitting her face on the hard ground before kicking her feet to sit upright. She didn't make a sound, afraid to say anything that would cause her more harm and scrambled to the base of a nearby tree.
"So what if she's the Sheriff's daughter?" Damon scoffed. He took a step toward Kol a deep set scowl forming between his brows. "She's a liability. The Boss isn't gonna be happy about this."
Kol growled and stepped in to Damon's space, their faces mere inches from each other. "Why don't you let me worry about what the Boss is gonna think, and you just keep doing his bidding like a good dog."
The bandit's crystal blue eyes turned in to steely daggers, as the heated conversation between them began to boil. Caroline was certain this confrontation was going to become a deathly battle, when the clearing of a throat broke through the tension.
"Ahem, if you two are done makin' eyes at each other, we've got a half days ride ahead of us still."
A woman's voice was the last thing Caroline expected to hear. She glanced over her shoulder to match the voice with a face and saw a pretty blonde approach them. She had on a wide brimmed hat and her long, straw colored hair was braided neatly to the side. Beside her pretty face and long blonde hair, the rest of her attire was that of a man's.
"Ah, Lexi, we're just havin' some fun," Kol smiled and took a step away from Damon.
Lexi rolled her eyes, obviously not buying it. She suddenly stiffened when she noticed Caroline sitting quietly against the tree.
"Who the hell is this?" she pointed at Caroline.
"Kol thought it would be a good idea to bring along a hostage."
"What for?" Lexi said perplexed by the turn of events.
"Don't ask me? This was Kol's brilliant idea," Damon said and stormed off to tend to his horse.
"Kol?" she asked. "Please explain to me why she's here."
"Nope," was all he said and turned to take his horse down to the stream for a much needed drink.
Lexi looked at Caroline and gave a half heartened smile. "I'm not sure what Kol's up to, but you better pray this doesn't get you killed."
(***)
After the horses had their fill of water, the four of them set back out on the trail. This time at a much slower pace, and with Caroline riding upright in front of Kol instead of draped across the saddle.
It wasn't her first choice, she would much rather share a saddle with the blonde, but Kol was insistent, making empty promises about keeping his hands to himself. He did nothing of the sort. At every chance his hand would cradle her waist and trace up her torso. He would feign like he was adjusting the reins but then skim the bottom of her breasts with his arm. His lips would graze her ear and he would whisper highly inappropriate things. At one point she figured being dragged behind the horse would've been a more pleasant experience than riding with this cretonne.
Caroline was beginning to think they would never reach their destination. They had been wandering the desert with the blazing sun beating down on them, and all she wanted was a drink of water and a shady tree. At last when the sun went down she embraced the cool air, but as it's always been in the desert, the blazing heat was always replaced with an even colder night. She held back her shivers as much as possible, not wanting to give Kol any further excuse to touch her.
They finally came upon a small house at the bottom of a ridge. If you weren't looking for it, you never would've found it. There were other horses meandering around the house, nibbling at what little grass was available.
"This is where we say goodbye, Sweet Caroline," he whispered in her ear.
"Goodbye?" She didn't understand.
"Yes, you see, the Boss doesn't like to share his playthings," he leered.
"I'm no one's plaything," she hissed.
"Ah, there's that sharp tongue of yours again. You may want to bite it before meeting my brother."
Caroline turned her head sharply to further register what he just said. Kol only smiled before dismounting and dragging her down with him.
He has a brother, she thought. The idea that this might be the same Kol from her childhood resurfaced. But why the games? Why pretend like he doesn't know her?
"Kol?" she said quietly as they made their way to the house.
"Yes, Caroline?" he purred.
She stopped and stared at him. "Are you..."
"Am I what, Ms. Forbes? Going to kill you?" he asked venomously. His actions were that of a sick-minded person. One moment he's calm and seductive and the next he's fierce and violent. His words never matching his current personality.
Once again she remained silent. She was trying to read him but his aloofness was too much. He didn't know her, and she didn't know him. She hung her head and continued toward the house, "Never mind," was all she said. Any hope that she was in the company of friends was no longer present.
A man walked from around the house to greet them, eying Caroline cautiously. The sketch artist was dead on with this one. "The Gentleman" was every bit as regal as they portrayed him in the picture, all the way from his neatly pressed suit to his perfectly combed mustache.
"Hello," he said to her. "And who might this be?"
"Caroline Forbes," Kol said quickly, "she's Sheriff Forbes' daughter."
He only nodded his head in understanding. "Are we certain she still needs the restraints around her hands?"
"One can never be too cautious with hostages," Kol said but took note of the other man's tone and began to loosen the ropes keeping her captive.
Caroline rubbed her wrists. She hadn't realized how sore they were until the bindings were removed. The Gentleman, no matter how heavy of a reward was on his head, seemed to be the most sensible of the bunch. She had only just met him and already knew that he most likely kept the loose cannons, like Kol, under control.
"I thought we should introduce our dear friend Ms. Forbes, to the Boss. Is he here?"
The Gentleman only nodded.
"Fantastic!"
Kol grabbed Caroline by the elbow and trotted her up the stairs and to the house. The rest of the gang followed in tow.
"He's preoccupied at the moment, but I'm sure he'll be delighted to meet our guest." The sensible part of the man was waning and a threatening tone took over, and Caroline shuttered.
They entered the house and the chill in her bones subsided. The fireplace was lit and the flames were high, casting a soft glow in to the dim home. There was sparse furniture in the room. A few chairs and a small table were in the kitchen, or what seemed like a kitchen. There was no stove, just a few pots and pans spread out on the counter. In front of her was two doors, most likely bedrooms, and there was a light glow coming from one of them.
A man's scream shattered through the otherwise peaceful ambiance, and Caroline's eyes grew wide. "Please, please, I don't know anything," he pleaded.
Her heart was nearly in her throat when she thought about what was happening behind the closed door. It was obvious that it was nothing pleasant. She could barely make out the other voice responding to his pleas, just a simple rumble of a deep male voice.
"No! NO! PLEASE?!" was the last thing she heard before the sickening sound of a gurgled scream echoed in the room.
Caroline shut her eyes and a tear streamed down her face. What kind of ruthless monster was behind that door?
She didn't have to wait long for the answer. The door swung open and a man sauntered out, wiping his hands with a blood stained rag. He shook his head and tossed the rag aside. It was as if he were in a trance, a pensive look that Caroline would have taken for as remorse if she hadn't just heard the brutal murder that had taken place.
As if he was waking from a nightmare, his head shot up to take in the room full of people.
"I see our guest was not as cooperative as you would have liked?" The Gentleman asked.
The man just shook his head. He sighed heavily, but then perked up immediately. "Yes, well, we couldn't let him go now could we?"
His eyes found Kol's, "I assume everything went as planned? Did you get what I requested?"
"We did," Kol tipped his head, "and a little more than we bargained for." He pulled Caroline to the forefront of the group.
The Boss leaned back, surprised by the uninvited visitor. He stepped closer, looking her up and down. The light of the fire brought his features more clearly in to view. His sandy blonde hair had a soft wave in it, a few curls lingering around the nape of his neck and over his ears. He had a strong jaw and a full mouth. He had large dark circles under his eyes, and the stubble on his face looked as though it had been a few days since he shaved, giving him a gruff exterior to an otherwise handsome face.
He was taking in her appearance as well, lingering on her eyes and then her mouth before running his gaze down her arms. His eyes stopped their roaming and he lunged forward and grabbed her wrist, pulling it up for a closer view. His eyes flicked back and forth between her face, and what she now realized, the simple bracelet that she wore.
He was close enough now that she could see his eyes clearly. The familiar sadness and a color as bright as the sea rushed out of them like waves crashing on the shore.
"Brother, let me introduce you to..."
"Caroline," he finished.
Her mouth dropped open and her heart began to pound.
"Klaus."
They met! Yay they met! What did you think?
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