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Bonnie spent the first hour trying to decapitate Klaus with her imaginary laser eyes. Given how fast he drove, it was probably just as well that that genius plan didn't work out.

After that she was just plain bored. With Klaus listening in, she couldn't talk to Stefan, and there wasn't a whole lot to look at beyond endless fields and the occasional house. She supposed she could have studied her grimoire, but she didn't think Klaus would be too happy if she was car sick all over the leather seats.

By the time they were driving through the outer suburbs of Alexandria, Bonnie was almost bouncing in her eagerness to get out of the car and she needed no prompting when they pulled into the train station. Clutching her grimoire, she and Stefan trailed Klaus through the station and onto a platform where an Amtrak train was waiting.

"Stay here," Klaus said. Faster than an eyeblink, he plucked the grimoire from her arms and strode off down the bustling platform.

"Hey!" Bonnie said, but he didn't look back. She couldn't believe she'd let him take it so easily. "Stefan, what-"

He shook his head and, tugging his ear, nodded towards Klaus. "Later," he muttered.

She watched Klaus weave amongst the crowd before she lost sight of him. When she spotted him again he was talking to two men down by the cargo carriage, one of whom was holding her grimoire, and pointing to a stack of long wooden crates that were being loaded onto the train. She wondered if he'd somehow found time in between the murders and the mayhem to go antiquing.

After a few minutes Klaus left the men and came back down the platform. Watching him stride towards them, Bonnie's mouth went dry. Her heart began to race and it felt as if every nerve in her body was on fire. Getting on the train felt like a final act of surrender, and she wasn't sure she was ready for that.

She knew, with absolute certainty, that she wouldn't get two paces if she tried to run, but that didn't stop the voice in her head from screaming at her to just go. Except that she couldn't go anywhere without her grimoire. Biting her lip, she planted her feet and waited for Klaus to reach them.

"Shall we?" he said, indicating the carriage steps. He handed the tickets to Stefan and waited.

Stefan hesitated, then accepted the tickets and climbed into the carriage. Without looking at Klaus, Bonnie followed, navigating her way along the narrow corridor in Stefan's wake. She heard nothing to indicate Klaus's presence behind her - damn that vampire stealth! - but just knowing he was there was bad enough. After passing several closed compartments, Stefan opened the door to exactly what she'd feared: a private sleeper. Two, in fact, that had been opened up to form one larger suite.

A bottle green sofa lined one wall to the left of the wide, picture window, while an armchair sat opposite on the right side. Immediately next to the door was an even tinier closed off space, which Bonnie guessed was the washroom. From what she could see, the other room had the same layout, but reversed. The sofa in that compartment lay against the far wall.

Klaus brushed past, making her shiver, and sat down next to the window. Smiling up at her, he patted the sofa beside him. She was mightily tempted to give him the finger and march off into the other compartment, but she couldn't quite get up the nerve. Instead she took a seat on the sofa, as far away from him as possible. At least this way she didn't have to look at him.

Stefan sank into the armchair directly across from Klaus. The vampires exchanged a look that she couldn't interpret before Stefan turned his head to stare out the window. They waited in silence, listening to shouted goodbyes and clattering doors, until finally the train lurched forward and began to leave the station.

After a few minutes Klaus said, "Stefan, why don't you take Bonnie to the lounge? Get her something to eat."

She glanced at him, suspecting some kind of trick. But if it was a trick, she couldn't for the life of her figure it out. Klaus gave her a bland smile. She nodded and rose slowly, half-expecting him to change his mind, but he said nothing.

Stefan opened the door and nodded for her to precede him. Squeezing past several passengers, they made their way along the swaying car to the lounge, which was already half-full. Bonnie slid into an empty booth, exhaling a sigh of relief. She hadn't realised how tense she felt around Klaus.

While Stefan went up to the bar, she stared out the window, watching the houses and backyards fly by as they travelled through the suburbs. She was acutely aware that every passing second took her further and further away from home, and her stomach tightened accordingly.

Stefan returned with two cups of coffee and a turkey club which he handed her. Not particularly hungry, she set the paper plate on the laminated tabletop.

"You should eat that," he said. "You need to keep up your strength."

She grimaced, and was struck by a sudden and overwhelming desire to escape. "Stefan, let's get out of here. Now."

He looked at her with dull eyes. "Where would we go? Back to Mystic Falls? So we can watch everyone we love be slaughtered?"

Her shoulders slumped. "Well, aren't you just a ray of sunshine," she grumped, annoyed that he'd destroyed her hopes with such devastating efficiency.

The corner of his mouth curved up in a fleeting smile. "Sorry. It's just...we need to be careful."

Bonnie nodded and took a sip of her coffee. She made a face. It was too sweet for her liking, but it was hot and warmed her insides. She nibbled on a potato chip as she watched Stefan fidget opposite her. He was unusually twitchy, picking at the lip of his coffee cup rather than drinking from it and tapping his fingers on the table. His gaze darted around the carriage, never settling for more than a second.

"Stefan, what happened? Why are you with him?"

He hesitated, then explained the deal he'd made with Klaus to save Damon's life: his service in exchange for the blood that would cure his brother.

She bit back her first response, which was that Damon's life wasn't worth Stefan's sacrifice. For all his faults, and there were plenty to choose from, she knew that Damon loved his brother and would have done the same in return. Probably.

Stefan's face bore a glimmer of a smile and she wondered if he somehow knew what she was thinking.

"It was my choice, Bonnie."

"Some choice."

"Well, I didn't say it was a good one."

They shared a wry smile, and, just for a second, Bonnie felt like everything was going to be okay.

"So what do we do?" she said.

"For the time being: nothing."

She shot him a disbelieving look. "So we just fall in line like good little soldiers? Do whatever he wants?"

His green eyes darkened as he studied her. After a long silence he said, "Can you kill him?"

"I...I don't know." She stared down at her turkey sandwich. "I still have access to their power, but the witches are getting stingy on me."

"Stingy?"

She explained about the witches' refusal to save Jeremy's life. Just thinking about him made her throat ache, but she shook it off. Now wasn't the time to feel sorry for herself. She picked up another chip. "Anyway, if it hadn't been for Emily, I don't know what I would've done."

"But they were willing to help you kill Klaus the first time, so in theory..."

"Yeah. In theory," she said, feeling as grim as Stefan looked. "But that's not the only problem."

Stefan nodded. "He's not weak anymore."

"Not even close. Just pounding him with magic isn't going to kill him. We have to find another way."

He averted his gaze. "Whatever it is, you're going to have to find it without me."

The chip fell from her numb fingers. "What are you talking about? Stefan, I can't do this alone."

"Well, you're going to have to. At least until Damon finds us."

"But-"

"Look, I just think it's best if you don't tell me anything I don't need to know...for both our sakes."

She would've pressed him, but the fear in his eyes stopped her. Though her intuition told her it wasn't Klaus that had him so scared. She'd seen that look on his face before, in the woods when he was crazed on human blood, and she thought that maybe the thing he was most afraid of...was himself.

"Stefan, what did he do to you?" she said gently.

"It's not what Klaus did to me. It's what I did to myself."

"I don't understand."

His head swung from side to side. She reached out and touched his hand, ignoring the chill that spread through her fingers.

"Hey, I know I'm not Elena, but you can still talk to me, you know."

Stefan stilled. He looked conflicted, and for a second she thought he might actually confide in her. But all he said was, "Eat your sandwich. We have to get back."

Not sure if she was more disappointed or relieved, Bonnie nodded and picked up half her turkey club. While Stefan sat staring out the window, she ate automatically, not really tasting her food. As soon as she'd swallowed the last of her coffee, he glanced at her.

"Done?"

She nodded. He slid out of the booth and stood waiting for her. Reluctantly, she followed his lead, wishing now that she'd eaten more slowly. She'd sooner walk into a cage of lions than go back to that compartment. Of course, there was never a cage of lions around when you needed one. They left the lounge and headed back.

When they reached the room, Stefan opened the door and nodded for her to enter. She was halfway into the compartment before she registered that Klaus wasn't alone. He held a young woman close to his side, her head resting on his shoulder in what, to anyone who didn't know better, appeared to be a loving embrace.

Bonnie froze as she saw the bloody wound on the woman's neck. Klaus smiled up at her, his fangs stained red, and the compartment seemed to spin. She stumbled and felt Stefan grab her arm to steady her.

"Oh good," Klaus said, "you're just in time."

"What...what are you doing?" she said faintly.

He shrugged. "Since you were out getting a bite to eat, I thought I'd do the same."

Her half-digested turkey sandwich tried to make a rapid exit and she had to swallow hard to keep it down. Shaking off Stefan's hand, she took a deliberate step forward.

"Let her go."

Klaus gazed at her. "Or what?"

She gathered her power and popped as many blood vessels in his head as she could.

He didn't even flinch.

Gritting her teeth, she raised her hand and snapped his spine. He grunted and clutched his chest. She barely had a few seconds to feel satisfied before he straightened and laughed. His amusement only fuelled her rage.

"Bonnie," Stefan said.

She heard the warning in his voice, but she ignored it. She had spent too long feeling frightened and exhausted, not just today, but during the last few weeks. This was the last straw. Lifting both hands, Bonnie amassed as much power as she could, preparing to launch a furious assault. She probably couldn't kill him, but maybe she could distract him long enough for Stefan to get the woman out of there.

A gust of wind materialised out of nowhere, swirling around the cabin and whipping her hair into a frenzy.

Unfazed, Klaus said, "Careful, Bonnie. That's not the way to save her life."

Something about his wording captured her attention. Eyeing him, she lowered her hands and let the wind die down. "Are you saying...there's a way to save her life?"

He motioned to the armchair opposite him. She hesitated, then took a couple of steps and sat down. The woman's head jerked up and, to her horror, Bonnie saw that Klaus's victim was still conscious. Her terrified brown eyes fixed on Bonnie, but she didn't make a sound, not even a whimper. Bonnie took a deep breath as she realised that Klaus must have compelled her silence.

Klaus gazed at Bonnie, all the while stroking the woman's long auburn hair in a nauseating mockery of affection. And Bonnie finally began to understand that this was some kind of test, a game that he was playing with her.

"What do you want?" Bonnie said.

"What makes you think I want anything?"

"But you just said..." Frustrated, she glanced at Stefan for help, but he wasn't even looking at her. He was staring at the woman's neck, his eyes blood red and fanned by black veins. A chill crept up Bonnie's spine.

Klaus followed her gaze. "Ah, forgive me, Stefan. Where are my manners?" He tugged the girl across his lap and offered her up like an hor d'oeuvre. "Would you like some?"

Bonnie's mouth fell open. Holding her breath, she watched Stefan's face, frozen by equal amounts of fascination and horror. He took a step forward, then stopped and glanced at her. Her heart began to thump as his inhuman gaze settled on her, and she had to remind herself that this was Stefan. After a long moment he shook his head.

"No," he said hoarsely. He looked pained for a few seconds, and then the redness drained from his eyes and the veins disappeared.

She was grateful beyond measure that his self-control wasn't entirely gone, though she couldn't help but wonder what he would have done if she hadn't been here. Her ruminations were interrupted by Klaus.

"Tick tock, Bonnie." He brushed his lips against the woman's temple. "Allison doesn't have all day."

With a jolt, Bonnie noticed that blood was still seeping from the woman's...Allison's neck wound, and worse, her eyes were starting to glaze over. But Bonnie still didn't know what Klaus wanted from her. His expression gave nothing away. He just watched her, waiting for her to do something, or say something, or ask... She caught her breath. It couldn't be that simple, could it?

Bonnie licked her lips. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. "Let her go...please?"

His face broke into a smile that was as close to genuine as anything she'd seen from him yet. "Of course, Bonnie. All you had to do was ask."

"And you'll heal her as well?" she said quickly, remembering that he was wilier than a used car salesman.

Klaus gave her an approving nod. "Naturally."

Bonnie watched with a mixture of revulsion and relief as he bit into his wrist and fed Allison his blood. As the wound in her neck began to close, Bonnie touched her own throat, recalling her near-death experience at Damon's hands.

Klaus removed his wrist and held Allison's face in both hands. "Now, Stefan's going to escort you to the washroom. Once he leaves, you'll be able to speak again, but you'll forget everything that happened in the last hour. Do you understand?"

Allison nodded.

"Good girl." Klaus arranged her hair on her shoulders, concealing most of the blood staining her sweater. He stood and handed her off to Stefan, who held her gingerly by the elbow and tugged her towards the door.

As soon as the door closed behind them, Bonnie said, "What the hell was that?"

Klaus sat down and shrugged. "I want you to understand that I'm not your enemy, Bonnie."

She laughed in disbelief. "You declared war on us."

"But the war's over." He grinned. "And I won."

"Oh, well, when you put it like that," she said, glaring at him, "let's be bffs."

His smile turned unexpectedly mischievous. "You sure you want to use that word around a vampire?"

Bonnie gulped. She'd forgotten that, to a vampire, forever really did mean forever. Klaus was evil enough. She didn't need to put any more ideas in his head.

He laughed. "Relax, Bonnie. You're in no danger from me. I want us to work together...a partnership, if you will. You do something for me and I'll do something for you."

Bonnie narrowed her eyes. "But I didn't do anything for you."

"Not yet."

She felt as if the walls were closing in. "I don't owe you anything," she said, but she didn't sound as certain as she should have.

"Don't you?" He gave her a knowing look. "Bonnie, do you mean to say that you don't feel just the tiniest bit grateful that I spared Allison's life?"

She wasn't an idiot. She knew that Klaus was manipulating her and that he'd used an innocent woman to do it, but she had to admit that, deep down, she did feel grateful. Killing Allison would've been nothing to him, but he'd let her go...because Bonnie had asked him to. It made her feel good, whether she wanted to or not. Though she wasn't foolish enough to say that to his face.

"Whatever you did, it wasn't for my sake, or Allison's."

Klaus shook his head. "Teenagers these days. So cynical."

Bonnie snorted. "Don't think that you can trick me into doing you favours. It's not gonna be that easy."

"Wouldn't be any fun if it were easy."

His tone was light, teasing, but the cold glint in his eyes told a different story. She swallowed. The door opened, saving her from saying something stupid, and she tried not to look too relieved at Stefan's return. He nodded at her and took a seat on the sofa next to Klaus.

Her heart skipped a beat as she spotted what looked like a red smear on the corner of his mouth. Trying not to stare, she told herself that it was just her imagination. But she didn't imagine the strangely intimate look that passed between Stefan and Klaus, a look that completely excluded her. Nor did she imagine the self-satisfied smile that settled on Klaus's face.

Bonnie had never felt more aware that she was confined to a tiny room with two bloodthirsty vampires. She counted Stefan as a friend, but when she looked at him she didn't see her friend. She saw a dangerous animal.

She saw an enemy.

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