Part 2 of Holding On and Letting Go.

I sunk down against the chair I was still cuffed to as my free hand cupped the back of her head and ran my fingers through the wet strands of her hair. I felt her shivering almost right away even being so close to me.

"Hey Beauty," I waited till her eyes were focused on mine. "We need to get you out of those wet clothes. I saw her nod and lift her arms up from around my neck. She had no way to get out of anything with her hands still cuffed together.

Stefan passed me a blanket that he draped around both of us as he knelt down on the floor behind me to undo her cuffs first. They fell away and she whimpered out more as I saw the deep red gashes on her wrists.

My brother was on top of it before I even said anything and motioned someone over that immediately gave her something for the pain and passed me a water bottle as he drank deeply from his own. I took huge gulps as well not realizing how long it had been since I had anything to eat or drink. I offered Elena some too as I held it to her lips.

She sat right in my lap too, her head against mine as we sat on the floor of the helicopter as the man gently tended to and bandaged both her wrists. Stefan released my cuff from the chair and started putting the key in the lock on the one still on my arm.

"Its fine Stef. That one wants to be buried with me. I have tried everything to get it off since we have been here." My brother nodded and tried a few more times till I gave him an I told you so look.

"We can get a saw to take that off once we get you guys to the aircraft carrier," Stefan replied.

I nodded barely listening as I heard Elena whispering something to me as her fingers curled tight around my shoulders. I tilted my ear closer to her and then kissed her neck and whistled to Stefan.

"Hey, where can we go that she doesn't need to see that piece of trash?" I indicated of Kai still kneeling held up by another marine near the helicopter. He had looked back over at us a few times already and I just wanted him gone. I would have killed him myself if I wasn't more concerned for her back in the helicopter.

But he had said he knew who killed Lexi and I couldn't just not tell Stefan something like that. I knew as well as anyone that my brother had lived and breathed finding her killer all these months.

I cringed as she shifted her very little weight on my lap as I felt sharp shooting pains race through my leg.

Stefan nodded to me as soon as he had gotten the agent to take Kai further away and I knew he had seen me cringe.

"Looks like you need some medical attention too, Damon. I saw you, all hero hair like you claim I have, racing across the beach with your leg bleeding a trail behind you brother...to fucking jump on that helicopter while it took off. I would not have believed it if I hadn't seen you do it!"

Stefan looked impressed and I saw Elena gazing up at me, the awe so bright in her eyes as I smiled down at her before pressing a kiss to her forehead. I shrugged casually. She sat up more in my lap, her hand stroking across my cheek, wiping the blood off where Julian had cut a gash in my skin. I smiled down at her.

I was fine. Everything was fine now.

"What?" I looked deeply in her eyes, meaning every word. "I wasn't thinking about anything but you Elena. I wasn't going to let him get away with you. I made you a promise I would never leave you again and I damn well meant it."

I ran my thumb down across her bottom lip. She moaned and for a moment everything else fell away again; all the pain, the shivering, the people around us. Hearing that little sound from my Beauty's lips and all I could think of was that I could finally bring her home with me.

She smiled up at me, looking like she too was thinking similar thoughts and pulled my lips down to hers. I opened to her, cradling her close as I melted into the soothing feeling of her kiss. I could lose all sense of time and space when I kissed her, it felt that amazing. I pulled back from her lips slowly, dropping my head to hers and nuzzled her nose.

I had not even realized that Stefan had still been standing there the whole time till I saw him actually smiling at us. My brother, smiling…

Stefan's grin looked so goofy and I was in awe of his grace at seeing me like this.

"I gotta say Damon, love looks good on you. You two are so cute I feel like I'm getting a cavity."

Baby bro was happy for me. Wow. I could not stop the grin from spreading on my face too.

"I warned him about the whole whipped factor too. Someone had to eventually soften this guy up..."

And I turned to see my buddy walking up the beach from what looked like a boat that had just docked close by.

"Enzo!" I was so happy to see that he was okay.

It felt like forever when we had said goodbye at the cave and I went to give myself over to the rest of the cons to be with Elena. He had begged me not to go and wanted to go with me. He always had my back these last few months and on any mission we ever got paired on.

Elena had slid off my lap enough for me to shakily stand up even as Enzo was motioning me to stay put but I would have none of it and opened my arms more to embrace my best friend. I clapped him on the back and grabbed his shoulder tight.

"You saved my life you know that right Enz?" He smiled and nodded to me.

"Oh I know," he smirked at me. "You have no idea how fun it was after being nearly killed by these assholes to blast the hole in that guys skull for you D. Julian never should have been a guard here. He was worse than some of the damn cons. The other cons too had no clue when I started picking them off like sitting ducks."

Enzo gently pushed me back down. "Now sit down D and let them fix you up. You look like hell."

"I do?" I looked to my side where Elena had already latched onto my arm. Her brown eyes were dark and a frown curled on her lips as she stared up at me and nodded slowly. She rubbed my cut which I knew would become a scar on my cheek again, wiping off more blood.

Yeah they were probably right. Even though I hadn't felt much yet in the way of pain I knew that was coming yet too. Elena pulled the blanket more around her as she snuggled into my side as I let the medical officer check me out.

Stefan nodded to me as I saw where they had moved Kai to. "Oh and don't worry brother, we will secure him against the back wall and you guys can ride up front when we are ready to go. We will be back at the air craft carrier before you know it.

I saw Ric then too. He was moving closer and gave I him a smile as well.

"So glad you guys are okay." He smiled back at me and Elena. "Have you heard anything more about Caroline?" he said and looked around at all of us. I could see he was still worried. He obviously hadn't left with the others when Stefan found them at the cave either.

Stefan put his hand on Ric's shoulder and passed him and Enzo water bottles too that they opened right away. "She's fine Mr. Saltzman. My colleagues arranged transport to the closest but best hospital in the area. She went with Mr. Mikaelson who needed emergency surgery. She is already on the mainland. I have some of my agents with her. She is well protected." My brother had the phone to his ear and then nodded smiling more.

He turned to Enzo. "I have a call for you. Someone has been waiting to speak to you." I saw my buddy's eyes light up and he grabbed the phone that Stefan held out to him and nodded with a twinkle in his eye.

"Bon? Baby is that you?" Relief flooded his face as I saw him clutch the phone tighter and turn away speaking quietly. I turned back down to the my girl laying against my side as they worked on my leg.

"Ahh, be careful that fucking hurts!" I cried out as the med worker poured antiseptic on my stab wound. I glared down at him as he kept working. I turned to Elena and she was smiling at me.

"What?" I snapped teasingly at her. "If I remember correctly you called me a baby when you were checking my wounds when first got here." I stuck out my bottom lip to her, my blue eyes soft on hers.

"I would never say that again Damon. You and Stefan saved my life." She stuck out her own lip and pouted back at me. "I love you; pouty or not more than ever now." She nipped at my lip, pulling it between her teeth as I moaned. I didn't care what anyone thought of me. All that mattered was that she was alive.

Soon I was all patched up and they redressed the wound on my shoulder too and gave me more pain killers. My adrenaline levels were so high but the waves of pain had been getting worse.

Elena curled herself around my one arm again, her head leaned up against my shoulder. I saw she was still in her soaking wet clothes and I gently slipped the blanket from her and helped her out of the torn button down. She groaned as her arms lowered to let me slip it off.

"It's okay baby. I just want to help." She nodded at me and let me slip the bloody tank top up over her head and I wrapped the blanket back around her. She had cried out as the material passed her cuts and I knew they needed to be redressed too.

I motioned to the man finishing up on my injuries and had her lay on my lap, her back to me. The medical officer could not hide his own shock at her wounds as he looked back and forth at both of us, offering us a sympathetic smile.

Stefan was still leaning on the helicopter after barking more orders to get things cleaned up and make sure to sweep the area for any more cons before he looked back at us. I saw the sadness in his eyes as he saw her cringing as the med officer put cream on her gashes before bandaging them up too.

I was rubbing her arms up and down as my lips were in her hair, kissing her, whispering to her that nothing changed how I felt about her. She nodded numbly and I saw more tears slip down her cheeks. I needed her to believe me.

Enzo turned then and I saw him just staring ahead.

"Hey buddy, is Bon okay?"

I watched him swallow hard before he replied. "She's okay. She said how much she missed me and was glad we were okay. But she's on bed rest D. She said the labor started already last night really strong but the contractions slowed down again in the morning."

"Well, that's good right? That they stopped it?" I asked him.

"I need to go..." he said looking around. "I can't miss my son's birth."

Stefan came back up to him, gripping his shoulders. "Then take the boat Agent St. John, with Ric some agents to protect you. We have a few more things to wrap up here. You'll get back faster and I will have the fastest plane fueled and ready for you to get back to the States. You will make it," my brother assured him. Elena was finishing up the last of our water bottle as I called out to Enzo.

"Enz?" He had already turned to leave and he spun back around, Ric still helping him walk. "Give your wife a hug from us. We will be there as soon as we can." He nodded and with one more hug he enveloped both Elena and I in his arms then he turned and Ric helped him back down to the boat.

Elena shivered more now that she was literally only in her lacy bra and underwear as I pulled her back onto my lap after she got all fixed up. I cringed as her bare legs brushed against my wound but ignored the pain to be able to hold her close to warm her.

"Here, take this." Stefan was holding out the khaki green long sleeved shirt that I knew was Lexi's and he draped it over my Elena's bare shoulders. I helped her arms into it as I looked up at my brother. No words were spoken but we both knew how much that shirt meant to him. I had not even known he had brought it along till I saw it now...and here he was offering the one reminder of his own love...to mine.

Elena left it open as she lay against my bare chest skin to skin as I pulled the blanket more around us. He offered us both CIA embossed hoodies as well but she just curled closer to me and I felt her shivering subside as my body heat helped warm her. I shook my head at Stefan's offer for a hoodie for me too seeing how much she wanted me like this and my brother nodded and tossed them on a nearby seat in the chopper.

Then I saw Stefan talking more into his headset and then nodding sadly.

"What?" I questioned. More bad news?

"They found another body. Someone young. He bled out from being shot."

"Kol?" I gave Stefan a physical description of him and he repeated it to the officer on his headset. It was most likely him. The descriptions matched. Damn. Klaus just lost his brother and he was fighting for his life.

"Stefan, there is someone else out there. Another con...alive. Mason Lockwood was the one that shot Kol. He slipped away from us on the beach when Kai took me prisoner." Where the hell was he?

Stefan took all that in and relayed it to more men before turning back to me. "I think that was who was shooting at us when we attacked. There was someone in the forest past the beach that almost killed me as I went to help the officer that snuck up from the water as part of our ambush. We were trapped behind a rock for too long."

So that was why my brother hadn't stopped Kai as he raced after Elena. He was pinned down by Mason?

"If he's still alive we will find him." Stefan assured me, running his hand through his hair and pinching the bridge of his nose. I wondered when the last time was that he had slept.

"One more thing Stef. Parker...he said he knew who killed Lex."

Stefan froze as he was still rubbing her nose and I saw his eyes bulge.

"He could be lying. Shit he probably is I but I knew you needed to know. You deserve closure brother after everything, so if there is even the slightest chance he knows..."

Stefan nodded slowly. "Just relax brother. I've got this. You have been through hell and its over now. Just let me handle him and take care of her."

"Are you sure? I can help interrogate him with you?" I replied. I wanted nothing more than to hold her but I also would love to inflict more pain on that bastard.

"Yes Damon, just stay with her, sleep even. She needs you. She needed you so badly when I couldn't get her to you before. You are right where you need to be. You have no idea how happy I am for you. Don't think you are hurting me by being close to her just because of Lex. I'm okay really."

I studied him and hoped he really was. I wished he had someone too. I could see the pain in his eyes and the strength it must have taken to say that. I nodded to him offering a weak smile.

Stefan turned around and I saw him headed around to the other side of the chopper where they were holding Kai. I heard within seconds the sound of Kai's grunted cries as I could not imagine his thoughts right then that Kai knew more about his fiance and was somehow involved in this too.

If anyone could get him to talk it was Stefan. He was one of the best interrogators the CIA ever had. He had done that job for years before being promoted to run our division.

Things had settled down around us and I saw there were only 4 marines left nearby and one was passing out water bottles to the others and they gulped down the cool liquid greedily right away. It had been a hell of a morning for everyone.

I bent then to nuzzle my head to my Beauty's as she looked almost asleep against my chest. One of the officers motioned to me that it was time to go. I stood up with her in arms, cradling her body against my chest, my hand under her knees.

The officer helped me up and held the blanket over us as I carried her up and into the helicopter to the very front seats just behind the pilot. I strapped us in the best I could with her laying across my lap, her legs on the other seat as she was curled against me, her arms loosely around me, her head in the crook of my neck. I knew it was against protocol to have two to a seat like that but right then all I wanted was her in my arms and unless someone made us move I was going to hold her.

Looking around I saw the pilot has been patched up too as he cycled up the engines to get us going. Stefan I saw had dragged Kai up and onto the floor and secured him to the back wall with Y cuffs and had then 4 men standing around him as we readied for takeoff.

I knew I promised Enzo I'd be there as soon as I could but I had no idea what would actually happen to me now. Stefan and I needed to talk about Bulgaria and my wanted status. But that could wait.

I kissed my sleeping fiance on the top of her head not even wanting to think of having to leave her again if I was forced to go to prison still for the assassination plot. She had been through enough and I could not let her lose me too.

The blades started spinning and I leaned my head back on the wall beside the seats. I saw the men hold onto the metal bars hanging from the roof as we took off. Two of them were still holding water bottles and now wished I had asked for more. Elena finished most of ours and I let her have whatever she wanted. But I figured now I would wait till we landed and not bother them now.

Looking down and out the window beside me I saw the island getting smaller as we lifted up and turned to head out to sea.

I had actually done it and gotten her off the island. She was alive. Beaten and bruised, but alive and in my arms. I cradled her closer, hearing a slight groan from her lips as her knees tucked up to my side. The helicopter shook slightly and I felt her nails along my chest right away.

"Damon?" she whispered tensely.

"Shh, its okay baby. Nothing's crashing, we are just taking off," I soothed her as I saw the hint of a smile as her eyes stayed closed. I smiled down at her, kissing her hair again and then leaned back against the wall and closed my eyes…

I nuzzled in closer against his bare chest as I felt Damon shift his body lower in the seat. His arms were still wrapped tight around me as I lay still, listening to his deep breathing. I kept my eyes closed as my fingers curled more around his sides. His head was rested against mine as I pulled the blanket more around us.

The next second I felt all of Damon's muscles tense and my eyes flew open in time to see one, two and then three marines falling to the floor, the water bottles slipping from their hands and rolling away!

Damon sat up fast, unbuckling us and was on his feet the next instant as he stood in front of me.

I strained to look around him as I sat up more, still crouched down in the seat. His arms were around behind him keeping me against his back as I saw the fourth marine turn and stare at us. He had a gun to Stefan's head with his hands up. What the hell was happening?!

I saw the marine toss Kai something he caught in his hand as he slammed Stefan with the butt of his gun and then cuffed him against the wall on a metal handle as Damon shielded me behind him. My mouth fell open as the next second the rogue marine pushed all three of his comrades out the open doors, weapons and all! I buried my head against Damon's shoulder. This had to be a dream, a horrible nightmare right?

He searched Stefan and pulled out his gun from his ankle holster and grabbed his phone from his pocket and it looked like another set of handcuff keys from the top pocket. Then he pulled off his helmet and the dark haired man looked back at me, bruises all over his face as he smiled at us, aiming his gun at Damon.

Mason...oh my God. Mason was dressed as a marine?!

I felt like I was back in hell. I had just closed my eyes for a few minutes! At Stefan's assurance that everything was fine.

Mason fucking Lockwood was here!

And I watched as Kai undid each of his padlocks and cuffs before pushing them off of him with a loud clang to the floor and tossed the keys out the open door.

He looked inhuman as he stalked toward us, bloody and beaten, his mouth curling up in a smirk, blood dripping from his bruised face. He was holding up one of the chains and a pair of cuffs in his bloody hands like he was right out of a horror movie!

"Slow down the damn chopper!" I heard Mason yell. "We are not going back to your base Agent Salvatore." He uncuffed Stefan and dragged him along the wall on the other side of the interior till they were standing just beside the co pilot seat. The pilot was shaking with fear as he had brought us to a near stop as we hovered over the ocean.

"Your trips over," Mason hissed out.

Keeping Elena behind me away from the pilot but also as far away from Kai standing just a few steps from the back wall, I cringed at the gun rang out and I saw the pilot slump down on the controls!

Alarms started whining and lights were flashing on the control panel as Mason pushed Stefan toward the now dead pilot. "Get rid of him and get in the damn seat Agent!"

Stefan cast me a near panicked glance as he walked slowly over and I saw him open the front door and push the body out before closing it again. The body fell all the way down to a small splash below. Mason shoved Stefan in the seat and Kai stepped forward and slapped the cuff around my brother's wrist to the bar on the seat. Then god, he wrapped the chain around his neck, keeping his head tied to the back of the seat!

"Start heading north Agent, now!" Mason ordered pointing his gun to us too. He casually waved the keys in front of Stefan's face before tossing them out the open door behind him...

Stefan was trapped, and I saw him gulp slowly before adjusting the controls to head north.

Then Mason turned back to us. Kai had turned as well and I saw him holding up a parachute and then another one and toss them out the open door till there was only two left. He shrugged the one on as he tossed the other to Mason. What the hell were they doing?

I was still shielding Elena as I saw them buckle up their chutes and tug on all the straps. Kai walked back over toward Mason and leveled his gun at us as Mason dug out of Stefan's bag what looked like a company laptop.

Elena was still cowering behind me and so far it looked like neither of them were even interested in us. Stefan had taken control of the plane and got it on a steady path north as I saw his hands shaking on the controls. I had no idea what was happening. Was this the plan all along?

Kai met my gaze and I stared hard at him.

"You had me running before Salvatore. And now you just gave me a second chance at getting my money...We were all supposed to get on the helicopter nice and calm, getting me to my freedom. But your damn brother and his sneak attack almost ruined everything!"

I saw Mason leaning on the seat beside Stefan. "Your pass-code Agent...or we kill one of them. We'll even let you pick..." Kai ordered Stefan as Mason opened the laptop and waited, his gun pointed at me. Elena was still back behind my body and out of range to shoot but I saw Stefan already passing me a desperate look.

I nodded my head at him, not wanting to give these creeps anything they wanted, but knew whatever they wanted, Elena was worth more. It wasn't even a choice.

Stefan nodded in agreement. "I know Damon. I know." And he turned back to Mason. "PrisimAlexia, last I is a 1" my brother relented.

The laptop chimed to life and Mason was typing away and in no time I heard more dings as Kai turned his attention back to us.

"Just cleaning out the CIA Black-site budget. There are millions in untraceable accounts in there. All funneled down for your little missions. I told you I needed your brother so I could live well enough to disappear. Mason here was all I needed to hack those accounts and get everything transferred."

I swallowed thickly wondering why he was telling us all this. He wasn't going to leave us alive was he? If this was all just for money then maybe that was all they wanted. I looked outside and could see nothing but ocean for miles. What could we do?

"You just killed those agents...with their water?" I said simply. I could have asked for a bottle too. Would I be dead too then?

Kai laughed "No we didn't kill them. Simply knocked them out with a heavy dose of sleeping pills I got from your girls bag. Drowning killed them Damon, not me."

I cringed at him not even flinching at that. "How are you involved in this Kai? So you are more than just a sociopath that was in jail for murder?" I prodded him to reveal more, hoping he would be willing to let me stall things by getting him talking. He sunk down in a seat behind him. I was sure he was in a lot of pain and maybe his reflexes were not the fastest but it was a huge risk to find out.

"Oh I am much more than that Damon. But you won't be alive to find out how much." He leaned back and cocked and uncocked the gun leveled at my head. I was surprised he could still walk after the beating I gave him and was damn sure Stefan's team had not given him any painkillers.

I felt Elena grip onto my waist as I knew she had heard him. I found her arms and ran my hands along her fingers behind me, lacing her fingers in mine, trying to sooth her. My eyes widened just slightly as she passed me something behind my back. I felt around it realizing it was the empty syringe! If only I could get close enough.

Kai did seem to wanna share the plan and kept talking. "I will give you this...They contacted me through that guard Julian and they paid me handsomely to come after you, to torture you in prison. They didn't want you dead, at least not right away...but they wanted you to suffer for what you did." He raised his eyebrows at me quizzically like he didn't know why they wanted me to suffer. Hell I didn't know who he was even talking about... "And they did crash our damn plane to kill your whole team here. They just weren't counting on the pilot being so quick thinking and saving so many of you. But they contacted me again and promised me more money if I could get you off the island alive."

My head hurt more from all the confusing information. "So you do need me?" Things were not making sense.

Kai laughed again and stared back at me through his one good eye again. "No I said they wanted you alive Pretty. That didn't mean I was going to do what they wanted... They tried to kill me too when they crashed us here! And I called a buddy of mine and found out the payments they had for me for my services had already been transferred from my accounts! They were going to screw me over too. So I thought I'd rather screw them too..."

I saw Stefan looking back even with the gun on him as he kept us in the air. They still had not said where they were going, just north. To what?

Kai stood up and sauntered closer. "Well maybe that was a bit too much information...but you won't be around to tell anyone else. I decided that when they decided to stiff me I would do the same. So I told them I would deliver you Damon. Right to the big boss and hand you over so they could, and I quote… 'finish what they started'. But I don't trust them anymore and they don't know I knew they emptied my accounts they paid me. Cheap bastards."

He paced back and forth, still keeping the gun on us. "SO I am going to drop your hot ass right down on the ground from us being up in the clouds and you get to land right where they want you...dead so they can't 'finish what they started'"

My jaw fell slack at that...oh god.

He used air quotes and laughed again… "And all I have to do is call them right now and they will tell us where they are waiting..." He turned back to Mason who looked to practically be lounging in the seat beside Stefan. "Slow down and just hold us here," he ordered and Stefan slowed down right away.

My eyes were as wide as saucers and just like that he dialed the sat phone and waited, grinning at me as he spoke quietly. He knew about the mission, the people that hired us? People that we could not even get close to had contacted him and double crossed him just as they had to us?

Elena let out a strangled cry and pressed closer to me as she heard Kai's sick plan. My one hand, not clutching our only weapon curled around Elena's fingers more, squeezing her hand in mine. They were going to kill me? What the hell could we do?

"They're here? This close? The Serbians were arranging for you to hand me over here?"

"Yep," Kai said popping the 'p'. "Too bad you won't get to catch them. They would have to catch you…" he laughed again. "Get going its this way." He shouted out the coordinates and I felt the jolt of the chopper speeding up.

"So the boss was going to be there?" I pushed again. This was as close to them as we ever had been. Were they being sloppy being so accessible? I knew Stefan was listening intently too as he steered us closer and closer to his fiances killers.

Kai moved to sit back down again and I sunk down in the chair behind us as well, with Elena still sitting crouched behind me. There was no way I was letting him near her again. But somehow I needed to get close enough to him.

"No, I doubt the big boss was coming all the way here. I was just told that they would be expecting you. I just don't think they realize that their package will arrive in much more than one piece..."

"We are almost there Parker," Mason piped up. "You better be good for your word. I transferred all the cash and kept the 40 % just like we agreed.

The helicopter came to a stop about 10 minutes later hovering over another island. We were so far up I could hardly tell what was down there just from seeing it from the window. I had held her in my arms the whole time, having no idea how much time we actually had left. There were no words, nothing more I could think of to tell her. It was like we were numb and in shock at all that was happening. I didn't know how to help her anymore than she knew to help me. We just clung to each other, her body melded to mine, her skin against my bare chest as I tried to somehow come to grips with being ripped away from her again and for the last time.

Her head jerked up from where I had buried it in the hollow of her throat as I cradled her shaking and whimpering in my arms.

"Let's go Pretty. Time's up," Kai said stiffly. He seems as numb to as I felt. Everything had just been too much.

Elena cried out instantly and clung tighter to me like I knew she would. She had lost everyone in her life and now I was being forced to walk away from her too and she would watch me fall to my death.

"Stand up now!" Kai ordered and I held up my hands, trying to stay calm while keeping the syringe in my palm hidden.

Damn I needed a plan here, but I had nothing. There was nothing more I could do. I glared up at Kai as my lips brushed her throat again and my fingers untangled from hers as she fought to hold onto me. My heart was pounding as I slowly got to my feet.

"What's with the parachutes for you two?" I asked, still trying to stall him.

"Well when we confirm we have what we want from your brother he will drive us to our own rendezvous before your CIA friends track this chopper. Then we kill him and take Elena just like I said I would do. Parachutes are just a precaution now in case the people I'm leaving you with decide to try to shoot us down. But where Stefan will take us we will jump from there after we kill him. So don't worry. You will see your brother soon enough." Kai chuckled again.

I shut my eyes slowly before opening them again, glaring at Kai, with more hatred than I had ever felt. I started backing up more toward the door as I heard her whimpering against my back, her nails digging in my skin tighter. Maybe I should just take her with me...die together? My mind was racing as we got closer and closer to the empty air.

Kai stepped forward, his gun raised and I saw Mason get up too. What the hell were they going to do? I saw Stefan turn and give me a hard look and then jerk his head to the side as much as the chain around him allowed. I averted my eyes quickly so Kai didn't see me looking at Stefan. It just might work...

Mason strode forward and I quickly past the syringe back to Elena as it looked like he was going for her. I felt the wind whipping around us as we were so close to the one open door and I braced my footing. I kept my arms back to protect Elena and saw him aim his gun at my head, cocking it.

"Let go of the girl Salvatore..." he hissed at me.

I couldn't do it. Not again. I stubbornly held his angry gaze as I saw him aiming it at her next. I didn't care about me. She still had a chance even if I didn't. It wasn't up to me.

"Wait I'll do it! Just wait!" I cried out and spun around holding her in my arms as Kai backed up a bit. She wasn't letting go. I hugged her closer whispering in her ear. Kissing her cheek I tried to smile before pulling her fingers off my waist gently.

She let me push her toward Mason, her eyes wide and yet soothed by my smile as I backed away. He grabbed her around her arms and held her, pulling her back from me.

Kai steps closer with his own gun and leveled it at my chest. I raised my arms more, shifting my weight slightly.

"Say goodbye to your girl, Pretty...She'll be just fine. I'll take good care of her..." Kai licked his lips at me.

I cringed at his words and saw him raise his gun.

"Time to drop in and see the boss..."

My heart was pounding and I saw Kai's sick grin and I heard Elena struggling in Mason's arms. I wanted to shut my eyes as he cocked his gun.

The gun went off as I heard her scream…

I watched Damon and saw him lose his footing, as the chopper shifted slightly. I was fighting hard to get out of Mason's grip as I heard the bullet whiz through the air. I screamed and shut my eyes, my heart pounding so loud in my ears.

Opening my eyes a second later I saw Damon, still standing by the door of the chopper, his arms up. His bare chest was untouched...I saw blood dripping down the side of his one shoulder in the thinnest line, where it looked like a bullet grazed him.

I heard stumbling and saw Kai fall back against the seat behind him, and he started to aim his gun back at us!

Time seemed frozen before I was moving as I heard more gun shots and saw sparks on the helicopter controls beside me. Lights started flashing and I felt us falling and going into a spin out back over the cliffs at the edge of the island!

Damon dove onto Kai as he fired at him and they wrestled for the gun, the bullets shattering on the controls behind him and almost hitting Stefan!

I slammed my elbow back into Mason stomach and felt him double over as I spun around and plunged the syringe down as I screamed, feeling his hand wrenching my other wrist, the already bad one back hard as I pull the needle back out.

He yelled out as I barely realized that I stabbed the syringe right in his eye!

Mason fell back against the wall by the door, screaming in pain and I stumbled away from him. I stabbed it into his hand next and the gun fell from his grip and away out the open door as his hands went frantically to his face.

I heard Stefan calling to me above the alarms ringing as we kept spinning.

"Elena, hang on!" And I don't know what was happening but I grabbed for the nearest handle on the wall as I felt the helicopter jerk hard the opposite way it was going and Mason nearly flew from the wall and fell out the open door as he grabbed for me…

Just like that he's gone and fell down into the surf below.

I turned and saw Damon fighting Kai, the psycho slammed Damon's head hard against the wall of the helicopter and saw him look stunned as blood was left on the wall! Then Damon spun him, pushing him against the wall with the same force closer to the door, and his gun fell from his hand as Damon slammed his wrist against the door and the weapon fell down and was out the door too, falling to the ground.

Kai had blood soaking though his shirt and he lifted it up stunned at the wound as I saw the red pooling thicker around his belly. He fell to the floor by the seats and I watched him lay still on his stomach.

I had no idea how he got shot when he was aiming at Damon...everything had just happened so fast.

Damon pulled me behind him right away as he stepped closer to Kai. The blood was pooling more on the floor and spreading out from under him. I saw Damon looking around for any weapons. Mason had Stefan's and his own and Kai's too fell out the door.

He motioned me to help Stefan and I raced over to him and untangled the chain from his neck and then saw he was still cuffed to the chair. I didn't have any keys! Mason threw them out the door...

The controls were sparking more as I held onto the co pilots chair as we were still falling in a stall and Stefan kept fighting to stay in control.

I saw Damon crouched down beside Kai and I froze as I saw Damon's hands slowly went up... I peered around the seat to see my love waving me away and I looked to see Kai is aiming a gun at Damon's chest! Damn the gun from before was still under the seat!

Kai laughed and choked on blood dripping from his mouth as I heard him cock the gun. "Checkmate!" he hissed out.

I didn't even know I was moving and couldn't see anything but the shock and fear in Damon's eyes. I slammed the syringe down hard in Kai's neck as I snuck around the back of the chair and pushed the plunger. Kai started gasping, his mouth open wide as he grabbed my wrist and twisted it and I screamed as I fell down beside him.

I cried out at the excruciating pain radiating through my wrist that was likely sprained or broken for sure now as I saw Damon tried to leap over Kai toward me. Kai kicked out and Damon fell back as I saw him still holding tight to my wrist as he took the needle from his neck and with it shaking in his bloody hand he moved it up, ready to stab it in my neck as I tried frantically to pull away!

There was a billowing out from behind me and Kai was yanked back fast and hard as I saw his parachute opened and was being whipped by the wind up into the sky out the door! Damon had pulled his ripcord!

I reached for Damon as Kai still held onto my wrist as I felt us both pulled up. I couldn't grab Damon's hand as my body was slammed against the side of the door! I grabbed wildly for any handles or hand holds as Damon dove forward toward me as I was pulled out of the helicopter. I held on tight with one hand on a bar near the floor as I looked up and saw Kai screaming, kicking and fighting. As the parachute got higher and higher, his feet were ripped up from the floor and he was pulled up and into...

Oh God, I held on tight, and finally felt Damon's hand find mine. I shut my eyes as blood rained down all over us as Kai's screams stopped. Kai was shredded up in the helicopter blades and there was nothing left of him but blood splattering all over everything!

He was finally gone.

"Hold on Elena!" I heard Damon scream as I felt my grip loosening on the handle. The helicopter was still spinning and making it harder for Damon to hold onto me as he slid back and forth on the floor, bracing his one foot against the side of the door. I couldn't even grab his other hand he was reaching for me because my wrist was so weak. I felt myself slipping out of his grasp…

Fighting like hell to hang onto her, I felt her hand slipping from my grip. "No, Elena!" I yelled down at her. Her small hand was so sweaty and slippery in mine.

"Damon don't let her go. I can't get us back away from land. I can't pull out of the stall!" Stefan yelled over the noise in the cockpit. I could see the ground far below and knew she would die if she fell. "Get us over the water Stef please!" I screamed.

"I'm trying!"

Then I had a thought...and I stretched as far as I could with my other hand, my foot curled around a handle on the door and snap the other cuff on me around her tiny wrist…

A second later her grip slipped and she screamed but I held tight to the chain on my handcuffs!

Oh my God I could have kissed those blasted metal things right now as I just realized they saved my girl's life!

We spun more and I heard my brother grunting and fighting the stall but I couldn't pull her back up. I could barely stay hanging on myself.

I looked down and saw water beneath us finally and we were getting closer to it. She was too weak to reach the skid across the metal bar for me to pull her back up or brace her somehow.

"Jump with her Damon. Do it now!" Stefan called out to me. "We are crashing! GO!"

My head spun back to him as I realized what he was saying...he was cuffed to the seat… with no keys...

"No, Stefan. I just got you back!" A lump was instantly in my throat as my eyes stung with tears.

Stefan looked back at me, so sadly and like he had so much to say. I felt like I didn't get to say nearly what I needed to say to him too. I had missed him so much.

"You have her Damon. Take care of her. Love her. Live for me. Please." A tear rolled down his cheek.

"Lexi's waiting for me." He nodded to me and I knew how much he wanted to be with her. My brother had more tears slide down his cheeks as he pulled hard on the controls. "I'll be okay. Just go before we all die!"

I nodded slowly, knowing he was right. After all this I needed to live, with her.

Turning back to him once more I opened my mouth but I had no idea how to say goodbye. My eyes blurred too and I saw him nod back to me and I forced a smile. Then I focused back to Elena and saw the water below us as I dove down, falling and caught my baby in my arms as we plunged into the ocean.

I shielded her as much as I could as I felt the water hit us hard from how far we've fallen and then I kicked and fought with all my strength to push us both to the surface.

Flipping my hair up out of my eyes I saw the helicopter splash into the water further away, the blades spinning and breaking off in the water as it flooded and went under, disappearing in the ocean...taking my only brother with it!

I choked in my throat as I treaded water and held her in my arms as I watched it go under, screaming Stefan's name.

Then I heard the sound of a boat and turned behind us to see the CIA logo on the side and within seconds Enzo and Ric were pulling us up and out of the water. I laid on my back on the floor of the boat, as I felt Elena curled up beside me.

There was a sniper rifle laying on the seat and I knew without Enzo we wouldn't have been lying here. Him and Stefan saved us both.

"Get us out of here," I yelled at Enzo. "We have enemies far too close." He didn't even need an explanation and floored the engine and we sped across the water.

Elena hugged me tighter. She knew. As out of it as she was as I held her to keep her from falling she was holding me so tight now and I knew she knew. There was no way he could have made it out. Could he? Not cuffed to the chair. My brother was gone. Wasn't he?

"I'm so sorry Damon," I heard her whisper against my neck.

"I know, Elena. I know..." I shut my eyes, feeling more tears.

It was over. For real this time.

In more ways than one...

A/N: I'm on pins and needles like so many of you said you were at the end of the chapter when Damon dove onto the helicopter...

Please take a minute to review. I am so eager to hear what you thought of everything. The calm before the storm, Enzo racing home to get there for his son's birth, Kol's death and what that will mean to Klaus, the conspiracy, Mason's entrance, Stefan, Elena and how she was saved and Enzo being at the right place again, the Serb's so close and what they wanted of Damon and most of all how you like Kai's death!

I'm eager to hear your thoughts. Not everything is as it seems...that is all I will say to conclude this chapter.

More ahead and we go back to the other characters and the aftermath of everything and where to go from here...

I'm so honored to share this story with you. Love you all.

Bonnie