A/N: Big huge thanks to Miranda for betaing and Nicole for the amazing cover. Also thank you to everyone who read, followed, reviewed, etc that first part. Was definitely not expecting that many people to read this.
I feel like I should warn that I said this was going to be a dark story and this next part is kind of dark. So enjoy!
"There are no bargains between lions and men. I will kill you and eat you raw."—Madeline Miller
The urge to fling the phone across the room, to watch it shatter into pieces, was hard to push down, to force away. Klaus knew he couldn't do that. He had no idea what Kol's actual number was, had never bothered to put it to memory and he would need to remain in contact with his younger brother if he was ever going to get Caroline back.
Though maybe this was what needed to happen. Maybe he should step back and let Kol break the blonde, destroy her in ways that Klaus couldn't seem to do, no matter how much he had contemplated doing so. Caroline had somehow wormed her way into the heart he had thought long dead and wouldn't leave it. No matter what she seemed to do, no matter the betrayal that she doled out to him, she steadfastly remained there and he couldn't seem to extract her from it.
As quickly as the thought entered his head it was banished, pulled from the dark recesses and flung out of reach. Kol wasn't allowed to sully her light. If his brother tarnished one hair on her head, Klaus knew that he would dagger the boy. He despised the intense reaction she drove inside of him, the desire for her loyalty, for her love, for all of her to be his and only his. He didn't like the distraction she caused to his thoughts, to his plans, and yet he savored every single moment she acted as distraction for him, taking what he could get from their meetings.
Klaus had meant it when he called her collateral damage. That was all she was ever supposed to be, a means to get the Sheriff on his side and to teach the upstart Lockwood a lesson. He had noticed her before; that fierce loyalty she displayed to Tyler when he was forcing the boy to transform, had overheard countless conversations between the two whenever Tyler was listening to her on the phone around the mansion. She was beautiful, there was no discounting that, but her loyalty to Tyler, a werewolf turned hybrid, that she shouldn't have wanted to be around in the first place because of the distaste each race had for one another coupled with the fact she did not beg him for her life when he entered her room had been what truly drew him to her at first. Then to top it all off she hadn't feared him in that moment, had told him that she thought he was there to kill her, how little she thought of him, how she threw back his words of freedom and told him that she wasn't free that she was dying…that had been his undoing.
He spoke of things that he knew would entice her, small town girl who probably hadn't seen the world considering what he knew of her at that point, and saw that light in her eyes, that need to see what he spoke of and still she didn't ask, didn't beg as so many others had. She simply told him the simple truth that she didn't want to die; such strength in one so young. He could have delivered a vile of the blood as he had done so for Damon, for others who had needed the cure only his blood could give. Could have sliced his hand even then and let his blood fill some cup for her to drink from.
But he had wanted her lips on his wrist; he'd wanted to feel her small body curled up against his own. At first as a punishment for Tyler, the boy would know he could get into his girl's house, as a way to show the Sheriff that he truly did hold her daughter's life in his bare hands. But then it was pure need to hold her, chin brushing her hair as he rested his head on top of her own, cradling her to him with one arm as she took what she needed from the other.
He left that night feeling accomplished, having gotten what he set out for, and yet, still feeling dissatisfied. It wasn't until he returned home that he even realized what had him in a mood. He didn't want that bracelet branding her, that worthless trinket that was wasted hanging on her wrist. She deserved more than some useless bauble and so he had delivered the bracelet, a nice little gesture that also let her know he could come and go as he pleased.
Everything he gave she shot down, rebuked his advances, spurned his mentions of things she'd like, and it drove him to her more. That loyalty that never wavered even when he could smell her arousal, could see the way her pupils dilated, the little hints that she didn't even realize told him she wasn't as immune as she tried to play it. It would have been so easy to compel her to do as he wanted, to give herself to him, but he wouldn't do that. It wouldn't be real and he wanted whatever Caroline Forbes gave him to be real—the attitude, the sarcasm, the wit, the smiles at the pageant. A compelled Caroline would be nothing but a puppet and he'd had enough forced loyalty, enough people frightened into following him, that he wanted her to come to him because she desired to do so. Nothing else would quite suffice.
He couldn't let Kol destroy her, wouldn't let him, but he needed to know that knowledge Shane had cooped up in his head. He couldn't let the chance for a cure go to waste; he needed Elena back as a human, needed to be able to create more hybrids, ones who would never falter in their needs to please him, to obey him. His own personal army to use as he saw fit. He would make certain that it worked this time, compel the lot of them after they were hybrids, doubly ensuring their continued loyalty.
His phone rang and Klaus glared at the offending object, not at all surprised to see Stefan's name on display. He had a feeling he knew why the vampire was calling, but he had no desire to answer and let it continue to ring. He'd deal with Stefan's worries later.
Klaus rounded on the professor who had been sitting on the steps of the house that was under construction. He could smell the man's excitement, heard the constant yammering on about this being a dream come true, and wanted it all to end. Excitement would get him nowhere. He needed information and he needed it now. The sun would be rising soon and it was only a matter of time once that happened for someone to realize that Professor Shane wasn't where he was supposed to be.
"You have no interest in the cure," Klaus started, smiling as he looked down at the man.
"None. You can have it, do what you want with it. All I want is Silas," Shane assured him, rocking his feet up and down on the step. He was a ball of nervous energy, but still no fear. "I want to awaken him."
"Why?" He found it rather curious that the man would want anything to do with the immortal that Klaus had thought lost to time. Stories of Silas had been used to scare children when he was young, but nothing of the man had been talked about in nearly a millennium. He could not even recall the last time he'd heard the name spoken.
"He'll make it so I can see my wife again," Shane started, and Klaus rolled his eyes. Of course. Love. Wasn't that always what drew the insane ones to their cause? "He'll lower the veil to the Other Side and make it so all them can come back."
"What?" Klaus froze. Surely he had heard that wrong. It was impossible to bring down the Other Side. Furthermore that was something he could not, would not allow to happen. Doing so would bring back the Hunters, Esther, Mikael, and Finn. Every witch he had killed, every werewolf, every vampire.
"And I have almost everything I need to raise him. And when we get to him, you can have the cure," Shane continued, not seeing the reactions on Klaus' face, too far gone in his own need to explain the benefits of what would happen. Klaus schooled his features, wanting to get more information out of the man, and knew it would be best to let him continue to talk as if there was nothing wrong. It was amazing what a person might reveal when they thought you were on their side.
"What happens when the Other Side is put back into place?" Klaus asked, leaning against a beam. He watched Shane carefully, taking note of every movement, trying to decipher if there was something the man was holding back. But nothing about his body language denoted dishonesty. "You'll lose her all over again."
"That's the beauty of it," Shane clapped his hands together, and Klaus knew that type of smile that spread across the man's lips. It was the smile of one delirious to their cause, one who would never see logic or reason against what they believed to be true, to be what needed to happen. It was the smile of a madman. "It will never be restored. She'll never be able to die again. To leave me again."
And just like that Klaus knew the man in front of him wouldn't be allowed to live. He would take no chances on Esther or Mikael ever being restored, of never being able to die. He'd run already for one millennium, there was no way he would ever run again. "And what is it that we need to make this happen? I'm unsure why the map is needed if you already know the way."
"It's not just a map," Shane replied, finally looking back up at Klaus. "A hunter with the entire mark is needed to complete the spell, to awaken Silas. Without one…" He stopped talking, brow furrowing as he noted the malicious smile on the Hybrid's face.
"So without a hunter's mark you can't awaken him but I could still get my cure?" Klaus asked, amused that Shane didn't answer. Fear was starting to fill the room mixed with worry and he watched the man steal a glance toward a window. No doubt trying to determine how long before the sun rose. "Oh come now, Shane, I can call you that, can't I? We're practically old friends now."
Klaus stepped forward, delighted as the anxiety seemed to peek, sweat starting to bead on the man's head, blood pumping just that bit faster. He wondered exactly how high the professor's blood pressure had spiked. Shane swallowed, but he kept his mouth clamped shut, defiance in his eyes even as his hands began to shake. "No? Then I suppose I'll have to make you. It would have been easier on you if I could compel it out of you, but I find this way to be infinitely more entertaining."
Klaus swiftly reached out, catching the man by his neck, hard enough to leave bruises but still allowing him access to his vocal cords. "Make no mistake, Professor, I am going to kill you," Klaus told him, pausing for a moment to let that register. The realization that hope was dwindling fast, the desperation he could see and smell coming off the man was only fueling his need to make what happened next as painful as possible. "It's up to you how quick a death you get. I personally hope you choose the option to try and hold on as long as possible, keeping secrets from me. You had to go to someone to find out what you know and it'll be easy enough to retrace your steps in the last year or so."
He tossed him away then, letting him hit a nearby wall. Nothing broke, but there would be some nasty bruises forming because of the impact. Klaus glanced around the construction site, looking for anything to use on the man who was trying to push himself up. He hoped he tried to run. He'd always enjoyed the chase, but surely the Professor knew that if he'd really done his homework.
Klaus found a hammer tucked under some plywood and nails and screws littered the floor in places. Turning back to Shane, he grinned, pleased with the terror in the man's hands. "Feel free to scream."
Coming to after a snapped neck was never a fun experience. Being swallowed by darkness and experiencing nothing for who knew how long, the vulnerability that encompassed being almost dead, teetering on that fine edge and waiting to see if she would be thrust over it, unable to defend herself was something Caroline despised. She hated being vulnerable, unable to protect herself from others, and coming to in the back of a car she didn't know was not how she had wanted to spend her evening.
Kol.
She remembered that he had stopped her on her way home before snapping her neck. She didn't even need to glance at the driver's seat to confirm it was him who had her, not with how he was belting out the lyrics to whatever he was listening to. Maybe she could fling the car door off and bolt out of it before he realized she was awake. If she just kept running, put all of her power and strength into getting as much distance between her and him, maybe she would actually have a chance.
"Ah ah ah, darling," Kol started, cutting through her thoughts and Caroline tensed, knowing that he knew she was awake. "I'd hate to go chasing after you only to snap your neck all over again. Nik was always the one who enjoyed the chase. I'm more of a taunter. I like driving them mad."
Who the hell cared if he could snap her neck again? That only mattered if he managed to catch her. So what if he was stronger and faster than her, she was twice as determined. What could it hurt to give it a shot?
"I should warn you that after snapping yours I think I'll need to head back to that quaint little town. Possibly snap your mother's as well. Something tells me she won't recover from it like you will," Kol continued, and Caroline narrowed her eyes at the threat.
Because that was what that had been. There was little doubt her mind that he wouldn't carry out on it either. "What do you want with me anyway? Because I have this big chem exam on Monday and I kinda need to pass it to keep my 4.0 GPA," Caroline bit out as she pushed herself up so that she was sitting. "So whatever wacky scheme is going through your head is not allowed to ruin my grade point average."
"Like I told you before, you're leverage," Kol replied, tapping his fingers against the wheel to the drum solo that started up. "So that my brother actually listens to me for once and doesn't do something foolish. He has a tendency to act rashly at times. Others he's a planner. Bit of a conundrum that one."
"So what do you need him to do exactly? Aside from not acting rashly." Couldn't Kol have simply asked his brother? She was never going to understand the Mikaelson family dynamic. One second it was like they hated one another, the next they were ready to rip to shreds anyone who dared to say anything against one of the siblings.
"I need him to kill some people," Kol replied, switching lanes and Caroline peered out the window, trying to figure out where they were. There weren't any signs aside from the speed limit and that really wasn't giving her any clues. She didn't know which direction they had headed or how long she had been out.
"Did you try and ask him?" she asked, leaning back against the seat as she cracked her neck, trying to get the kinks out of it. "He likes doing that. I'm sure he'd have been more than happy to fulfill your request. He's kind of on a roll with it tonight anyway." She cringed at her own words, remembering that Klaus had not only killed his hybrids but Carol Lockwood as well. She just hoped that Tyler had gotten out, that he hadn't doubled back after she'd seen him off, because she worried if her boyfriend found out that she'd been kidnapped that he would try and stay behind and Caroline knew that Klaus would kill him.
"It'll lose him access to the cure," Kol informed her, and Caroline sighed. Yeah, Klaus wouldn't agree to kill anyone if that were going to happen. The Hybrid might not have wanted it for himself, but to gain himself new hybrids by curing Elena, to keep it out of others hands who might want to use it against him; he'd stop at nothing to get it. She could see why Kol asking Klaus wouldn't work in that instance.
"Okay, so why exactly take me then? Because seriously not seeing how I am any kind of leverage," Caroline muttered, even if she had an idea. She didn't want to give name to it though. Didn't want to believe that she was valuable enough to Klaus for him to alter whatever plans he had about something. "He's not going to care that you have me. Not when it means losing out on what he really wants."
"Oh, darling," Kol started, the amusement back in his voice and Caroline glared at the back of his head. She really didn't like that endearment. "We both know that's not true. Otherwise, you would have had your heart pulled out after being involved in the plot that got me daggered the first time. I wouldn't have gotten orders not to bother you or the annoying little doppelganger."
Caroline frowned, not really in the mood to contemplate anything that Kol was saying, what his words implied. She knew she should have been dead a number of times considering her participation in so many events. The mere fact that she had used Klaus' feelings towards her to gain her friends what they needed should have gotten her a target on her heart. And she wasn't dead. She was perfectly fine, not a scratch on her.
"Denial is an ugly shade on you, Caroline," Kol continued, and she saw him peering at her in the rearview mirror, his smirk nearly identical to his brother's. She hated it. "Not really sure what it is that he sees in you."
"Your sister asked me that once, why don't you go to her for the answer?" Caroline bit out, and for a moment wondered if she shouldn't have tried reeling in her sass. Kol wasn't Klaus. She had no clue how he would react to it, to her, and she had no intentions of dying any time soon.
"Careful, darling. I might like sharp tongues on pretty little things, but I'm just as prone to cut out those tongues," Kol informed her and Caroline glowered at that, trying not to show precisely how fearful she was of her current situation.
She knew she shouldn't provoke him, but she also knew that cowering would get her nowhere fast. She needed to find some kind of middle ground, figure out how to work around Kol. Fear seemed to be a turn on for vampires, something she'd realized along the way that her body drank in and wanted to cause more of, but she forced that need down, just as she did with the one for blood. The Originals didn't do that though and she had a feeling that Kol lived for fear. Maybe he had been able to get the drop on her, to kidnap her, but that was the last time he was going to make her feel like a victim.
"It'd heal," she muttered, crossing her arms as she looked out the window. "Also I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to harm your leverage." She really didn't like that word.
Kol laughed. "I was never one to play by the rules."
Caroline scoffed. Of course not. "Where's my phone?"
"I tossed it out of the car when we left Mystic Falls behind," Kol replied, switching channels on the radio.
"Rude. Not all of us have money just growing on trees to replace things when we're done being used as leverage," Caroline groaned. She had just bought that phone and didn't relish trying to scrounge up enough money for a decent one.
"It's called compulsion, Caroline." He glanced back at her again, his tone one she usually heard reserved for very tiny children. "Or are you one of those goody two shoe vampires?" She glared at him which only made him laugh again. "Now I really don't see what he sees in you. Don't tell me that you feed from animals."
"No, I don't." Except when being a good friend and hunting with Stefan to keep him company, but she'd stopped actually feeding during one of those get togethers ages ago. Fur in teeth was disgusting.
"You bag it, don't you?" Kol inquired. "Nifty little process. Learned more about it during my recent travels. But even that's a poor substitute to the real thing. Lacks the heat of the body, the adrenaline, and the pitter patter of their heart as it starts to fail."
"Why are you so interested in how I feed?" Caroline groused, crossing her arms in annoyance. She hadn't had anything to eat since the night before and all the talk about it was only making her hungry.
"I'm interested in what it is you did to make Nik, self-proclaimed 'love is a vampire's greatest weakness', find you at all enticing," Kol told her. "Enough so that he didn't pull out your heart right away after you distracted him and let the others dagger me. Because we both know, darling, that you walking into the grill dressed up like you were was all about enticing him to follow you back out and separate us."
There was no point in denying it. She'd been used plenty of times to distract Klaus from whatever the rest of the gang was doing, from what Tyler had been doing. "Don't worry. I'll figure it out eventually," Kol continued, and Caroline really didn't like merriment mixed with anger she found in his voice, in his gaze. "We're going to be joined at the hip for a while. Maybe I'll be able to show you how to be a proper vampire."
"Excuse you," Caroline scoffed, glancing back at him and rolled her eyes. "I am a great vampire."
"No, you're a neutered one," Kol replied, and she really wanted to reach across the car and knock the smirk off of his face but refrained from doing so. "When was the last time you compelled someone?"
"Today," she smirked, though April hadn't actually been compelled but she had thought she'd done it, had intended to do so and that counted.
"How about feeding from the vein?" he continued, changing lanes and she looked back out the window, shrugging in response. Just because she didn't feed from the vein didn't make her a bad vampire.
"Killed someone?"
Caroline flicked her attention back to him, narrowing her eyes. "Killing someone doesn't make you a good vampire."
"No? Then what does, darling?" Kol inquired and Caroline really didn't like the way his voice lilted on the endearment. He was mocking her and she knew it.
"Controlling it," she bit out, staring back out at the darkness and watching the endless mass of trees flicker by.
"It?" There was that underlying mocking delight again and she could only imagine the mischievous twinkle in his eye as he asked his question.
"The bloodlust," she muttered, gaze locked on the window.
"Oh, Caroline, how wrong you are in that," Kol laughed, and she decided she really didn't like his laugh. It was nothing like Klaus'. Whereas the Hybrid's laugh had wrapped around her, bringing forth her own and putting a smile on her face, reminding her that he wasn't all horror and death, Kol's made her think of someone who was on the edge and just waiting to fall to one side or the other, not caring who he took down with him.
"Where are we going?" she asked, needing to change the topic of conversation.
"You'll see," Kol replied and reached over to turn the volume up, conversation finished.
Caroline rested her forehead against the window, staring out at the trees that flicked by as they drove. She could see the sun beginning to rise and knew from the direction it was coming from that they were headed west. She didn't know Kol or really understand his motivations. Didn't know where they were headed or why really. Yes, she was leverage and she figured getting her to a place where Klaus couldn't so easily track her down was a smart move but she had a feeling there was more to the current journey than the Original was letting on. He seemed to be heading somewhere, had some sort of destination in mind. There had to be a reason why he didn't want the cure found too, and Caroline didn't think it was simply because it might be used on him.
So she'd keep her eyes and ears open and see if she could figure out exactly what was happening and why Kol didn't want his brother to get the cure.
He had to hand it to the man, Shane had definitely held out far longer than Klaus thought he would, but there was only so much pain a human could endure. He didn't really need any more answers out of the man anyway, but he didn't want Shane's death to be quick. Not when the man had been holding out his true agenda for so long. What would have happened if he'd been allowed to lead the others to the cure without any of them knowing the consequences? What if he had succeeded in awakening the damn immortal and getting the Other Side destroyed?
Klaus had already run for one millennium and he had no intentions of ever running again. "Others besides me will carry this out," Shane muttered, eyes nearly sealed shut because of the bruises on his face. Blood trailed down from his nose, came out in his coughing fit. "Killing me won't change anything."
"Perhaps not, but it'll get me what I want," Klaus replied, dropping the hammer to the floor. Not the cure, no, but disposing of the man and offering proof of his death was one step closer to giving Kol what he needed and freeing Caroline. It was a step toward not allowing the veil to drop, that threat of Esther and Mikael ever returning becoming nothing more than a passing nightmare.
Not to mention it'd stop the man's incessant prattle. It was amazing how much he could speak about nothing even as his bones were being broken, the sheer agony he must have endured during every crack, every blow doing nothing to make it cease.
Klaus' phone rang again and he drew back from the man. What was a few moments before he finished the deed? "Stefan, my friend, to what do I owe this continued harassment?"
"Where the hell is Caroline?" Stefan demanded, and Klaus grinned, watching the Professor's breathing grow increasingly shallow.
It wouldn't be long now before he expired. If he'd actually answered as Klaus had wanted maybe he would allow him this easy death of letting his injuries get the better of him, but he'd sealed his fate by trying to keep secrets.
"I haven't seen hide nor hair of her since I left you two," Klaus replied, amused by the other vampire's annoyance. "Did you lose her in the last few hours? Hopefully she didn't run away. I was quite clear in my warnings."
"I don't know what game you're playing but I swear," Stefan started, and Klaus narrowed his eyes. How dare Stefan even attempt to speak to him in such a way? Had he forgotten how close he had come to death earlier that night? How Klaus had held his heart in his hand and graciously allowed him to keep it?
"Stefan, you're on thin ice as it is. I've found very little reason not to tear out your heart and eat it for dinner in the last few hours. Don't tempt me to do so to you, your brother, and that annoying little doppelganger. I can use the cure on Katerina just as easily as on Elena." Klaus clenched his fist at his side, anger once again starting to weave its way through his body. It seemed his earlier discussion with the vampire hadn't quite gotten the message through to him. He'd need to rectify that later on.
He hung up before Stefan could answer and slipped his phone back into his pocket before turning back to address the dying professor. "Any last words?" Klaus asked, but reached forward before Shane could say anything again, lifting him up, and walked him back toward the stairs.
Klaus had broken one of the railings from its position, creating a lovely jagged edge that pointed at an odd angle into the air, suiting his purposes perfectly. "Considering you seem to know my history particularly well, I think you'd almost find it fascinating, befitting that this is your manner of death," Klaus stated, and then he impaled the man through the through the rod.
It'd been a method of execution he'd enjoyed centuries before, one that the so called 'father' a vampirism was particular to. Vlad Tepes, that prince of Wallachia, who had been tied forever to Dracula by Bram Stoker. Funny how it would never be mentioned in history books precisely who had shown the man his preferred method of torture. Historians always seemed to speculate that the man had learned his methods while in the hands of the Ottomans, but it hadn't been just his time there or their company that had shown him the gruesome manner of death. All the villages and fortresses he plundered and burned to the ground hadn't been truly his own doing—not all of them at least—but it was better to give that reputation to another, a way to throw Mikael off the trail.
Klaus looked over at his handwork and lifted his phone from his pocket, recording a short video of the results. There would be no denying from Kol that the man was dead. The fact he could tell his brother of what the plans to raise Silas truly meant should also have him believing that Klaus had carried the deed. There was more to do to secure Caroline's return and once he accomplished that, Klaus would need to figure out a way to retrieve the cure without awakening the immortal. He at least needed to try and see if there was a way to do so. He couldn't leave it to chance that someone else might stumble upon it and use it against him, but he could take out all hope of the Mystic Falls gang every getting their hands on it in the near future.
Klaus stiffened, hearing the heartbeat a moment before he heard their voices. Damon. Elena. The witch. He wasn't surprised that they had found him, no doubt gotten Bonnie to use a locator spell. He had no intentions of dealing with the trio. If anything, them being there allowed him the perfect opportunity to take out the next obstacle. He flashed out of the building just as they entered it, smile spreading across his face as Bonnie's shriek of despair and disbelief echoed through the night. Her screams followed him as he headed toward his next target, gut-wrenching sounds of someone who had lost something precious, and he laughed. The sound was harsh and spread out through the wilderness as he moved, causing the other creatures who had been going about their nightly routine to freeze and cower until he passed.
He could only imagine the thoughts going through the trio's heads. The plans they would be devising, the threats they would be volleying about. Never quite able to follow through on them or get them to go anywhere really.
If only they realized what they were about to lose next.
This couldn't be happening. Shane wasn't allowed to be dead. He was the only way she could get her magic back, the only way she had a connection to any kind of power. She'd tried living without it, not having contact with the spirits since they had all turned their backs on her after all she had done to protect her family and friends. After she had saved Klaus, something they had been vehemently against, and Bonnie hadn't wanted to do it. The alternative of letting her friends die, her mother, wasn't allowed. She had done what she felt was needed to keep them alive, to help them, and in the process the spirits had turned their back on her.
It had felt like she'd lost part of herself, like the very heart of her was gone and she felt empty. Except it wasn't emptiness that she felt, but a gaping hole that only seemed to grow bigger inside of her with each passing day, each time she'd tried to do anything to reconnect with magic and had nothing happen. It was torture, driving her insane a tiny bit every day and she didn't know what to do.
Bonnie had been so lost in how to help her friends any longer, what her role would be, how she'd continue to protect them. Shane had come along and been like a guardian angel, giving her hope that not all was lost. He'd shown her how to regain control, how to find new power and utilize it as she needed. Bonnie didn't think she could do it without him, didn't know how to access that plane of power that he had her tapping into.
She screamed for the loss of the connection, for the fear that she would go back to feeling that emptiness engulf her again, at being useless to help her friends. Klaus was gone before she could do a thing to stop him—she knew that it had been him. Who else would have taken him? Who else would have killed him in such a gruesome manner? She could only imagine how much the older man had suffered in his last few hours on earth.
Where was the justice then? If she'd been able to use the spirits, maybe she could have found him sooner? Instead relying on her haphazard hold on the power Shane had been tapping her into. She could have saved him then and Bonnie screamed again, cursing the spirits, cursing the unfairness of it all. She was on her knees, palms pressed onto the cool tiled floor and vaguely she could hear Elena trying to soothe her, trying to assure her that they could figure out a way to help. Something about vampire blood, but Damon was already putting that down.
Shane was dead, not on death's doorstep. Shoving vampire blood down his throat wasn't going to bring him back.
"We need to leave, Bonnie," Damon stated, though it was coming out more like an order, and she reeled around at him, eyes flashing in anger. He took a step back, brows furrowing at the energy that was coming off of her.
"No," Bonnie bit out, turning back toward Shane, trying to remember what they had talked about. There had to be a way to bring back the dead. She'd done it for Jeremy, but she'd had the spirits help.
What if she could trade his life for someone else's? What if she could swap their places? That was a possibility, wasn't it? Somehow. She ignored the tiny voice in her head, mimicking her grandmother's voice, telling her to not turn down the road she was precariously teetering on. But her grandmother was dead. Her mother was dead to her…long before she'd become a vampire even. And now Shane.
"Bonnie," Elena called out, reaching for her friend, and it was her voice that caused Bonnie to snap.
Elena, who was now a vampire. Who should never have been a vampire. Just like Caroline shouldn't have become one. She'd fix it for all of them. Turn them back to human, get rid of the Originals and their threat to the world, and they could go back to the way things used to be. They could follow through on their original plans for college, for everything. There would be no more blood bags, no more supernatural beings trying to use them or abuse them.
"Elena, move,"Damon urged, forcing her out of the way of her friend who looked like she might blow at any moment. He could hear people coming toward the house, no doubt the builders who had been working on it, but there was nothing he could do for them. Better they meet their end than him or Elena.
Bonnie turned towards the door, wind picking up again around her and swirling about. She didn't know what she was chanting, the words coming from deep inside, her eyes rolling into the back of her head as the workers entered the house, eyes turning black as the power took hold of her. It was like she no longer had control of her own body, every motion she did felt as though someone else was doing it and all she could do was watch from the inside, screaming at it not to happen. This wasn't what she wanted; this wasn't who she was, but she couldn't seem to make her hands stop their movement, couldn't force her mouth to close or the words to stop spilling forth.
The workers never got a chance to speak, never had a chance to run. Their bodies lifted into the air as her arm raised, necks cracking as she flicked her wrist. She turned toward Shane, trying to harvest the energy of their deaths to bring him back. Grasping onto it with all of her might, but she didn't have the focus, didn't have enough among the dead to channel what was needed to accomplish her fete.
She fell to the ground, gasping for air and spitting up blood as reality came crashing back down around her.
"What the hell did you just do?" Damon demanded, trying to grab onto Elena who was already rushing to her friend's side.
"I don't know," Bonnie sobbed, shaking her head at the dead men littered along the floor and she looked at Elena who was touching her shoulder. "I don't know. I didn't…"
Elena pulled her close, staring in shock at the bodies as well, but trying to offer some comfort to her distraught friend. "We need to get out of this house now," Damon urged again, roughly lifting the two of them to their feet.
"What about Shane?" Bonnie couldn't stand to look at him again, knowing how much he must have suffered at the hands of Klaus. "I can't leave him there."
"I'll deal with him," Damon growled, trying to steer them to the back door. They needed to get out of the house and he needed to destroy any evidence that they had ever been inside of it. "Elena get her to the boarding house and stay there."
Bonnie knew there was no use in arguing about that, not when Elena's grip tightened on her arms, flashing the two of them to the Salvatore place. There would be no convincing her friend to take her anywhere else or letting her leave. Not after Damon had asked it of Elena.
Sire bond.
Bonnie's eyes narrowed, energy dancing through her for a split second as her anger seemed to sweep through her veins. That was another thing she needed to make sure she added to her list. It was unnatural and no matter what Elena might say, it was changing her, and not for the better.
It'll be okay, she thought as Elena brought them into the house, anger seeming only to grow with each passing second. I'll fix everything.
Somehow.
She would just need to carry on in Shane's absence, find out exactly what the next step was supposed to be, what her part was in it. Figure all of that out and then get her friends and her back the lives that had been so carelessly ripped from them when the Salvatore brothers had ventured back into town.
Her Grams. Jenna. Alaric. Her mom. Caroline's dad. Vicki. So many others dead and Bonnie knew that she would stop at nothing to somehow right it all. No matter what the cost.
It was a charming little shop. A family owned grocer and fishing supply store that catered to the lake houses. Never get a lot of business on the off season, only the few locals that bothered to stay year round, but it kept afloat by being the only place to get anything for miles around. Not unless one wanted to head back into Mystic Falls to buy something and the whole point of coming out to the lake houses was to leave the town behind for a period of time.
Perfect setting to find some easily compellable people to do his bidding. A quick taste of the older gentleman, his wife's screams quickly erupting in the air as Klaus bit into the man's neck, making sure they weren't on vervain before easily subduing and then compelling the old couple and four customers that had been loitering inside.
His directions were simple enough: get the occupants of the Gilbert lake house to come outside and after that kill them. By any means necessary. Klaus didn't turn them, doing so would give Jeremy reason to kill them and only add further notches to the tattoo that needed to grow. A tattoo that was never allowed to see the light of day.
Klaus leaned back against a tree at the end of the pathway, watching the group head toward the house, shot guns, knives and gasoline canisters in hand. He kept an ear out in case any of the rest of the Mystic Falls gang came around, noting that only Jeremy and the quarterback were inside. It didn't take long for their heartbeats to begin to race. It almost synched nicely to the front door and porch going up in flames.
He could hear their hurried words to one another, noted which direction they would be coming from to escape the flames that were climbing up the house. In a flash, Klaus was at the backdoor, throwing Matt out of the way and then grabbing Jeremy as he exited. He had to give credit, the boy tried valiantly to fight, even managed to knick him on the arm with the stake, but it did little to falter Klaus from his goal.
In one swift motion he had Jeremy on the ground, sword rising above to strike. "You kill me and you'll go mad," the Gilbert boy reminded, tiny flicker of hope in his eyes that he could come out on top.
Klaus enjoyed watching it die as he brought down the sword, cutting off the hand that held the ring. It was better not to take any chances that it might actually bring him back. Never knew if the humans being compelled would make his death a supernatural one. Klaus doubted that was the case, but better not chance it this time. "I'm not going to kill you," he informed the boy as his screams erupted through the air, Matt's cries of disbelief mingling with them.
Klaus stepped back, picking up the hand and removing the ring for safekeeping. Never knew when such a trinket might come in handy. "I'd rather leave that to my new friends," Klaus continued, motioning to the compelled humans who had made their way around the house, ready to dispose of the two.
He walked backwards away from the group, smirking at Jeremy's cries for Matt to get the hell out, but it was no use. A shot rang out and then another and just like that he heard the heartbeats decrease to nothing. The compelled group headed back to their cars as directed and wouldn't remember a thing of what they had done. No witnesses and two very human deaths.
He hadn't forgotten Finn's death, that older brother that he had abhorred at times but hadn't wanted dead. Would have preferred to keep him locked up in a coffin for another century or let him run free with Sage if it would have kept him from doing anything stupid. Now his death was avenged and the Hunter's mark was no longer in play. At least not until the next potential made an appearance, but really who knew when that would happen or where.
A few pictures recorded later and Klaus heard the snapping of a stick. He arched a brow, noting who had arrived. He could have stuck around so that Damon could spot him, could know that he'd had a hand in their deaths. He wanted to step forward and rip the vampire's heart from his chest and deliver it to Stefan. A nice little gift to go with the tone he'd been on the receiving end of earlier.
Instead he flashed away. He had a phone call to make and he could always make Stefan suffer for his insolence another day.
Caroline had been doing her best to ignore Kol and pretend she was highly interested in the scenery that passed by as they drove. Internally she was trying to figure out a way to either subdue him or get herself out of the mess she was currently in. She just needed to do it without putting her mother at risk because Liz Forbes' death was something not allowed to happen for a good fifty more years. If even then. She had been so engrossed in her own thought process that she didn't realize they were pulling into a gas station until Kol had parked them beside one of the pumps.
"Going to let you do this part," Kol informed her as he glanced over at the attached convenience store. "I need a snack and haven't bothered to learn how to do such a menial task."
"I don't have my credit card on me," Caroline pointed out, having a feeling that he didn't have one of those either.
"I'm sure you can use those vampire abilities of yours to get us what we need to continue on," Kol replied, mirthful tone back in play. "And just to warn you, if you run, I won't bother to chase. I'll simply stroll on back to your little town and kill your mother."
Kol was out of the car before she could reply and she glowered at his vacated space before leaning forward to take the keys from the ignition. At least he'd turned the damn car off correctly. More importantly, at least he knew how to drive. Ugh. How had this become her life?
Caroline slipped out of the car, looking around the small roadside station to try and get a better gauge on where they were at. She knew they had been heading west and after some more traveling had a feeling they were headed south as well, but she hadn't seen any signs to tell her which state they were in yet and she wanted to know at least that much. Any little bit of information had to be helpful.
There were a few cars in the parking lot, one with a tag for Tennessee, the other for North Carolina. She figured that meant her assessment in heading southwest was correct and it narrowed it down to at least two states. Maybe.
But gas, right. Something told her that if she didn't figure out how to fill up their tank that Kol would do it and he wouldn't have a problem with leaving a good deal of bodies in his wake to do so. She didn't have any money or access to a card. Calling her mom wasn't an option. How exactly was she supposed to get the stupid gas?
Caroline glared at the pump, trying to come up with a couple different options and vetoing each one as soon as she thought of it. Another car pulled next to the pump behind her, two young men getting out of it and not so subtly looking her over. One headed into the store as the other went to the pump, sliding in his card and going about the steps before glancing back at her. Caroline spared a glance at the store, making sure no one was paying much attention to them and slid on over to him, smiling as she moved.
She watched the lazy smirk form on the stranger's lips, could smell his arousal as she walked closer. "Hey there," he greeted, southern accent an enjoyable treat after having nothing but Kol to listen to for the last bit. She didn't know where it originated from though and cursed her lack of traveling. Maybe if they had gone on more trips as a family she'd be able to differentiate accents! "You look like you're in need of a hand."
Caroline smiled her best Miss Mystic smile, keeping her stance friendly and engaging as she approached him. She reached out and grazed her fingers against his arm, openly flirting with him and almost felt bad at how happy he seemed to be to be receiving the attention. It's keeping him alive, she reminded herself and got to work.
Gaze locking on his, she let her compulsion start, hopeful that he wasn't on vervain. She had no idea how common its use was across the states and made a mental note to look into that once she was home. "You're going to give me your card and tell me your pin. You won't remember that you gave it to me and think you must have lost it later on today. That's what you'll tell the card company tonight around six when you realize it's missing," she informed him, smiling as he handed over his card and uttered his pin to her. "Sit in your car and wait for your friend to come back out. Then go about the rest of your day as if nothing happened."
Caroline twirled around and headed back to the pump, sliding the card through and easily paying for gas. She set the pump up to distribute gas into the car and headed into the store to pick up some snacks for the rest of the journey. She could feel the dull ache starting in her gums, alerting her that she would need to feed soon. She wanted to get some things to help stave off her bloodlust and the boredom that she could already feel settling in. There was only so much window watching that a girl could do when she couldn't control the music and had no intention of talking to her kidnapper.
Ten minutes later, Caroline tossed the card into the trashcan and carried her bag of goodies to the car. Kol was sitting in the driver's seat, pump already back in its place and tapping his fingers against the wheel. She slid into the back, tossing him the keys. "You missed a spot," she grumbled, noting the flecks of blood on his shirt and rolled her eyes in annoyance that he'd gotten to feed.
Hopefully his donor wasn't lying dead somewhere.
"Utilizing your abilities to get what you want," Kol stated as he started the car and pulled out of the station.
"What I needed," Caroline corrected, pulling a magazine out of the plastic bag.
"I didn't realize that reading material on beauty tips was a need," Kol replied, and Caroline didn't even bother to look up, knowing he was smirking at his own wit.
"Shows what you know," she muttered, flipping the page and intent on ignoring him again.
The sound of his cell ringing interrupted whatever comeback Kol had and Caroline glanced up as he sifted the phone out of his pocket. "Hello, Nik," Kol answered and she wondered if Klaus found his brother's cheerfulness as grating as she did in that moment.
Caroline attempted to act nonchalant, flipping through the pages of the magazine as Kol talked to Klaus. She could hear every word though and she knew that the Original would know that she could do so. He probably wanted her to hear. Their conversation didn't reveal much to her though, just that Klaus was sending proof of whatever he had done—she really didn't even want to contemplate that part. She knew Kol wanted some people dead but she didn't want to believe that some of her friends might be dead. Maybe it was just Shane. He seemed to be the one who had any idea what was actually going on and where to really find the cure. Maybe Klaus had only killed him.
Her stomach lurched at how hopeful she was for that man's death, but she didn't know him, and while she would feel bad for Bonnie at least it might mean that the rest of her friends were safe and Caroline couldn't deny that she was more concerned for their wellbeing than a professor that she didn't care about.
"Klaus wants to talk to you, darling," Kol informed her, holding the phone out for her to take.
Caroline glared at the object for a second before turning back to her magazine. "Not interested," she bit out, louder than necessary to ensure that Klaus heard her through the phone.
"Sorry, Nik, but she's not in talkative mood," Kol replied, impish smile on his face and for once Caroline didn't find his amusement with the situation to be grating.
She heard Klaus' insistence, something about daggers and Kol held out the phone again. "He's insisting," Kol told her, waving it around a little.
Caroline sighed, but took it from him. Maybe he would forget she had it on her when the conversation was over? She could definitely use that to her advantage. "What do you want?" she snapped, narrowing her eyes at Klaus' chuckle.
"And a hello to you too, love," Klaus replied, and she could imagine the tiny smirk playing over his features. But there was an undercurrent of danger still running in his voice, the same one he'd had the last time she saw him and she swallowed, keeping her eyes fixed on the window as Kol started to drive. "Has he been treating you well?"
"Aside from the snapped neck and threats against my mother he's been just lovely," she mused, rolling her eyes at the question. "But hey, he didn't nearly pull one of my best friend's hearts from their chest so you know; he's doing a hell of a lot better than you are right now."
"Not yet anyway!" Kol merrily piped up and Caroline pressed her lips tightly together at that.
"If I meant to actually kill Stefan, Caroline, he would already be dead," Klaus told her, and she didn't like the coldness to his tone then. She really didn't like how it wormed its way into her body, sending shivers down her spine when he was miles away.
"So then because you let Tyler go that means you don't mean to kill him?" she asked, trying to understand it all, unsure if she should be hopeful or not even bother attempting for her boyfriend to come out of everything okay.
"No," Klaus replied, and she closed her eyes, not wanting him to continue, knowing what he was going to say. "I'd rather him go a little mad first."
"Nik always did like the chase," Kol reminded from the front and Caroline glared at him, wishing she wasn't having this conversation or at least didn't need to have it with him listening in.
"I hate you," Caroline hissed, unsure which one she was speaking to at that point. Probably both of them and she clenched her eyes shut, emotions getting the better of her as she felt her fangs pushing out of her gums, could feel the veins on her face coming out to play. She took a deep breath, ignoring Klaus and Kol as she got herself under control.
"Such an intense emotion. Hate," Klaus murmured, and she tried to focus on her breathing, not wanting to hear his voice. Especially not with how it was trying to curl inside of her head, enticing the monster to stay out and play. "Those whom we love, we can hate; to others we're indifferent."
"Shut up," Caroline snarled, despising the way he could twist words and circumstances to fit how he wanted them to.
"Give me the phone back," Kol ordered and she shoved it into his waiting hand, not caring that she'd lost the opportunity to keep control over it. She just wanted it as far away as possible, for Klaus to be as far away as possible.
"I'm sure you're raring to meet us, Nik," Kol spoke, and Caroline pressed her forehead to the window, knowing any hope of Klaus remaining away was dwindling by the second. "We'll be at the last place you daggered me. I'm sure you remember the location brother."
Kol cut off the call before Klaus could answer, sliding his cell back into his pocket. "Don't look so glum," he started, and Caroline kept her gaze outside, knowing she probably wouldn't care for whatever Kol said next. "Once you give in he'll tire of you and tear off your pretty little head so you'll never need listen to him speak again."
Caroline glanced up at the ceiling, not at all surprised that Kol had said that and uncertain whether it was supposed to make her feel better or worse. Probably the latter. Whatever. She'd bide her time and learn what the hell the two Originals were apparently up to—which had to be something more since Kol wasn't just letting her go now that he'd gotten what he wanted, or at least she thought he had. Who the hell even knew anymore? All Caroline did know was that she was not about to let Klaus or Kol win anything. Not if she had a say and if they were going to be keeping her around, she'd make certain that she had one.