Chapter Ten- Negotiations
Damon was wearing the same apprehensive look on his face that I was, and as we drove down the dusty driveway to the secluded farm house; an impending fear of doom overcame me. We had no idea what we were walking into, and I began to panic that we hadn't thought this plan all the way through. Wing it: that was what we were to do if something went wrong, and that did not sit very well in my stomach. I trusted Damon, I trusted him even though I possibly shouldn't. I just prayed that we weren't about to make a huge mistake. His car came to a stop a few steps away from an unnervingly decayed barn and as the moonlight seeped in through the windows, we both sat in preparatory silence. The air in the car was thick, and although I needed him to calm my nerves and reassure me that everything was going to be alright; I knew that was far beyond his emotional range at the moment. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes; mustering up every ounce of courage I had access to, and decided I was as ready as I was ever going to be.
"Elena" Damon said in an almost whisper, breaking me out of my meditation. I looked over to him and was a little surprised to see how vulnerable and nervous he looked. I knew him, and even in his current form, he didn't like to go into any situation blind…this must be killing him more than it was killing me. "If things….don't go our way in there. If things go bad…"
"Wing it. I know" I smiled
"Well yeah, but I was going to say. If it does, I want you to know….I'm not like…going to throw you under the bus or anything. I haven't exactly given you much reason to trust me lately…" I laughed lightly at the statement, but I knew what he was trying to convey to me.
"True. But I've got your back in there, and I know you have mine" He nodded in understanding and after a few more seconds, he gave me the look that told me he was ready. We exited the vehicle and made our way over to the dimly lit front door, and I noticed the quiet patter of footsteps inside. The corroded front door was whisked opened revealing a brawny looking vampire with an angry look on his face. This already smelt trouble. Although, if Klaus was as old and powerful as Bree had portrayed him to be, it would make sense that his associate would travel with a security detail.
"Who are you" I immediately despised the sound of his gruff and accusing voice, and the fact that it was a demand and not a question sent a shiver of distain across my skin.
"Damon. I'm looking for Elijah" With one simple sentence I could tell just by the sound of his voice how much this guy was annoying him. I hadn't been around many vampires other than the Salvatore brothers, but now that I was one, I could see how a competition for dominance could quickly get out of hand.
"Who is the girl? According to my information his meeting is with 1; there was no mention of a tag along"
"Why don't you run along to your boss and tell him that I'm here, The girl is none of your concern" Damon spat at him through gritted teeth. I could sense purely from their body language that this may just come to blows before we even got past the threshold
"Listen you little prick, I don't follow your orders. Watch your tongue before I rip it out through you eye socket…" I began bracing myself to tear them apart, regardless of where we were or who we were meeting, Damon Salvatore was not spoken to like that by anybody. And he was likely to rip his heart out just to prove a point. Thankfully, before the need to interfere occurred, a deep sing long English voice bellowed out to us from behind the brawn.
"Now Connor…is that anyway to speak to our guests?" The man, Connor I guess his name was, instinctively bowed his head in embarrassment at the words and I wondered what sort of person could intimidate him that much. He turned his body slightly and revealed a very distinguished and dapper looking man approaching us from the hallway. He was in his early 30s when he was turned, but he wore it well. His dark smooth hair was matched by deeply brown and kind eyes and the three piece suit he wore cut around his attractive physique well. He greeted me with a warm smile, sensing my nerves, and I was instantly comforted by his presence. "My apologies for Connor, he sometimes forgets his manners. But he is correct in the assumption that we were only expecting one of you this evening"
"Please forgive the intrusion, I insisted on coming with Damon. It was a long drive and it is getting quite late" I responded with a genuine smile. He narrowed his eyes at me, drinking every inch of me in, before seemingly accepting my answer
"Of course my dear. Perfectly understandable. Besides, I'd hardly expect you'd allow your love to come to such a meeting alone. You are absolutely beautiful but you do not strike me as foolish" There was a tinge of patronising innuendo in his words but I didn't dare rebuff him. "I'd love to begin our introductions inside but first, if you wouldn't mind, allowing Connor to perform a brief security check"
"A what…" Damon growled
"You understand as trustworthy as you may seem, you are strangers to me, and a man in my position has not gotten to where he is by taking a chance on personal safety. If you will please…it will only take a moment" I smiled politely at Elijah to let him know that we would be obedience, and quickly gave Damon a 'behave´ look to ensure he complied. Connor patted me down first, under the watchful eye of Elijah, before moving onto Damon. The look on his face was filled with such anger that I thought for a split second he may just snap Connor's neck as he bent down to finish his search of Damon's legs. Once Elijah's guard dog was satisfied that we were not carrying any weapons, Elijah gave us a welcoming smile and asked us to follow him into the house. The house wasn't large, but the peeling wallpaper and dust filled interior gave it the appearance of being much vaster than it was. After passing a few rooms, I noticed a warmness and light coming from the one we entered and was greeted by a roaring fire and two sofa's facing one another in an otherwise empty room. Elijah motioned for me to sit down first, instilling the opinion that he held his old world manners at a high importance, and once Damon had sat closely next to be, he lowered himself onto the sofa opposite us.
"Well Damon, I thank you for making the trip out here on such short notice. I do not believe I heard your name mentioned young lady…" Elijah asked softly
"Elena. I'm..a friend" I responded. He furrowed his brow somewhat before apparently accepting my response
"Wonderful. Well, I'm sure you both will appreciate directness, the hour is late after all" He had taken a pocket watch out of his pocket to glare at the time before returning his attention to us "From what I understand, you possess information which may lead to the location of one Katerina Petrova"
"Let's say for a moment that we do, what do we get in return?" My head immediately flew to look at Damon, shocked at such a rude question. Elijah looked a little insulted by it, but indulged him just the same
"You will get to walk out of this house with your head still attached to your body" He didn't flinch or blink as he delivered his statement and although he was polite and well mannered; it was clear he was not someone to be messed with.
"Before we go on Elijah, I would just like to ensure that we are discussing the same person. Our information is useless to you if the woman in our lives is not the one that you are seeking" I felt Damon tense from beside me, obviously frustrated that I was engaging in this conversation, but it was clear that Elijah was not the type of man who could be intimidated into submission. He was a mediator, and I was much better at dealing with that type of person than Damon had the ability to in his current situation. "You are looking for a woman named Katerina Petrova. Now this very well may be the same woman but the name we know her by is Katherine Pierce.."
"It has changed many times over the years, the sentimental side often outweighs her logic and keeps her choosing names with the same letters as her birth name. It makes her somewhat easier to track"
"Let's say for a moment that it is the same woman, and we help you find her. What will happen once you do? What will you do to her?" Elijah eyed me curiously for a moment, and I couldn't help but feel like he was trying to get inside my head.
"Why is that a concern of yours?"
"Because I want to make sure if we do this. If we help each other. That you're going to kill her" The room fell silent, and a part of me wondered if I should have kept my mouth shut. But it was true. The only reason I was here, the only reason either of us were here, was to find a way to make sure Katherine was gone….for good.
"I can't imagine a pure soul like yours Elena would wish death upon another vampire unless that vampire has truly ill-treated her" He waited patiently for my answer and seemed thoroughly engaged in the conversation he was having with me. I don't think anyone had listened so intently to me in quite some time, and it was a little unnerving.
"She has single handily destroyed not only my life, but the lives of those who I hold the closest to my heart. And she has done so in the most callous and cruellest of manners. I am not a hateful person Elijah; but I only wish upon her the exact pain and suffering that she has inflicted on those around me" Elijah and Damon both stared openly at me with surprise and I didn't understand what had caused me to speak so frankly to him. For all I knew he was one of Katherine's operatives, and the words I had just spoken could have signed my death warrant.
"May I say you are so composed and, well, striking, for a vampire so young. You couldn't be more than a few months old"
"How can you tell?" I asked
"A mixture of old age and intuition" He smiled earnestly. He paused for a moment, letting his eyes flicker into the fire before speaking again "To answer your question Elena, I am unsure of what Katerina's fate will be should we be successful in locating her. I cannot promise you her death when her life is not mine to take. Those decisions are left to.."
"Klaus" I nodded. He turned his head sideways to observe me curiously again
"You speak his name without fear child; it is clear you have either not met him or are more foolish than I thought"
"Why should I be fearful of someone who has the same interest as I do. If Klaus's goal is to rid the world of Katherine then he is my ally, not my enemy" A small smile crept across his features and he seemed delighted by my answer
"It is quite a young woman you have found for yourself Damon. We should all be as lucky as you are to have found such an exquisite creature to spend our immortality with" The defensive rebuff I expected from Damon never came, and he seemed to be content with sitting back and letting Elijah and I share the conversation. It seemed to be working, there weren't any indications of impending danger. "How did Katerina…or….Katherine, come to be in your life?" The question appeared to be directed at Damon, and a sudden surge of nervousness crept into my stomach.
"She is my maker" Damon stated flatly. "She is also the person responsible for the death of my father and the immortality of my brother and his girlfriend"
"I am confused. Elaborate if you will"
"She desired both my brother and myself and turned us into vampires. After our transition, her affections were not returned and she has vowed to make our lives a living misery ever since. She began with the murder of my father, followed that up with turning Stefan's girlfriend into a vampire for no other reason than to enjoy her misery, and finished with the attempted murder of Elena. If she did not have vampire blood in her system she would have succeeded"
"I see. And what of her now? Your transition could only have been a few months ago Elena, was this the last you saw of her?"
"Yes. Damon left town the night I was turned and she disappeared at the same time. We haven't seen or heard of her since"
"Curious" Elijah muttered to himself "And proceeding the murder of your father Damon, she did not return to your lives until both your brother and yourself had found a new mate?"
"No"
"So it seems as if she has a particular attachment to you both. As unfortunate as that has been for your sake, I do believe we may be able to use it to our advantage" He promptly pulled his pocket watch out to glare at it again before standing to his feet "I have another engagement in which I must not be late for, but I do believe our meeting tonight will be beneficial for both parties involved. I will speak with Klaus, and discuss our partnership moving forward. In the meantime, if you do come into contact with Katerina before you hear from me, call the number given to you by your friend and update me immediately"
"I can do that" Damon said with a nod. He wasn't often intimidated by people, but I sensed he had a quiet respect for Elijah.
"Thank you again for making the trip" And with that, he swiftly exited the room. I listened to the sound of footsteps, and by my count there were more than just 2 people walking to the vehicle parked at the rear of the house. Elijah, not wanting to take any chances, had obviously had a much larger security detail with him then just Connor at the front door. Damon and I sat in silence for a few moments, absorbing the significance of the moment we had just encountered. We had been prepared for the worst; well at least I had been, and what had transpired instead what a civil discussion and possibly successful partnership that would ultimately result in the total and utter destruction of Katherine Pierce. It was both liberating and terrifying at the same time. We sat, inches apart for what felt like hours, basking in the ambiance of the possibility of freedom, and as I listened to the loud crackles of the fire a few feet away, I couldn't help but smile at the prospect of freedom.
"We should go" Damon finally said, snapping us both out of the moment.
"Yeah" I agreed, lifting myself to my feet and following him out of the room. As we reached the car, Damon looked over the top of his Chevy with a sombre look on his face that I couldn't quite read.
"Hey" He called, locking eyes with me "You did good in there" I smiled in response, partly because I didn't know what to say in return. I hadn't 'done' anything other than tell Elijah the truth, but it seemed that was something he highly valued. Damon and I continued staring at each other, and the flurry of words that rested on the precipice of my tongue begged to be unleashed, but something inside of me couldn't bring myself to say any of them. His eyes were begging me to say something, and just as they had softened enough to lure a response out of me, his pupils widened in shock and a painful gasp erupted from his chest
"Damon?" Something was wrong, his face has turned a ghostly white and he looked like he was about to be sick all over the top of the car. Suddenly, something smashed through the back driver's window, shattering the glass, and I instinctively knew we were under attack. I flew around to the driver's side where Damon was now slumped against the door clutching his chest and as I opened the back door and pushed him onto the back seat, I was hit in the shoulder by something small, sharp and incredibly painful. It slowed me down, but not enough to prevent me tearing the keys out of his hand and jumping into the driver's seat. With the flick of my wrist the engine began roaring and I slammed my foot on the pedal to get us out of here as quickly as possible. Another shot came through the window, missing my head by half an inch, and I manage to tear the steering wheel around to get me out of reverse and into drive. Headlights came into view behind me, our attacker giving chase, and even though I had my foot completely to the floor in Damon's Chevy, the lights were getting closer and closer. I turned my head to judge just how far away they were from us, and noticed the small wound on my shoulder. It felt like I had been shot with liquid hot lava, and the pain that was continuing to surge through my body told me whatever I had been shot with must be made of wood.
"Elena" I heard Damon croak, and as I turned my head to look at him I saw what he was warning me about. The car was gaining on us, but there was now a large SUV up ahead that was in the middle of the road, creating a sort of roadblock. Before I had time to react, the vehicle behind slammed hard into us, causing me to lose control of the car. It was like an out of control roller coaster, we were spinning around and around and around until the car flipped up on its side down the embankment. I hit my head hard on the side of the steering wheel, causing my conscious to flutter in and out of recognition. I couldn't tell where Damon was, and as the car finally came to a screeching halt, I fought with my brain to stay awake. I was hurt, pretty badly, that much I could tell, and my eyes suddenly squinted at the sight of a flickering flame at the hood of the car. I could hear footsteps from the road, the attacker coming down to see if they needed to finish off the job, and I knew we needed to get out of here. I attempted to open the driver's door but it was mangled into oblivion, instead, forcing me to crawl through the window which had been smashed to pieces only moment earlier. I used my limited strength to rip open the back passenger door and grabbed the bloody body resembling Damon that was now resting unconscious on the floor. The shadows from the road were getting closer, and we only had seconds before they reached us. I tried picking him up in my arms but the broken bones and open wound prevented it. Somehow, I managed to pull him onto my back, and used the strength in my spine as support for his mangled body. I could barely walk, and every step I took sent the pain of a thousand deaths over my body; but we had to move. It was stay here and die or work through the pain and get us out of here, and I didn't particularly feel like dying today. Although I was too weak to reach my peak speed, I was thankfully still moving much quicker than the average human, and the draining sounds of footsteps behind me told me our attackers were just that. Human. It was flat farm land I was trudging across, and although the terrain was easier on my broken body, it was also harder to conceal ourselves in. I kept going, shutting out the pain and knowing that I had to continue putting one foot in front of the other, but also growing very aware of the fact that I was close to passing out. I needed to find shelter, I needed to find somewhere to regain my strength, but I wasn't so lucky. I continued, mile after mile across the baron field, and it wasn't until I thought I was about to drop right there and then that structure came into view. It may have well been a house many years ago, but all that was left now were a few wooden panels and a collapsed tin roof. It wasn't the Hilton, but it would do for a few hours. I crawled under the lodging, flicking Damon off my back onto the ground and collapsing on the floor before the darkness took over my vision.
X X X
My eyes flickered open and as they adjusted to the early morning light, it took me a few moments to remember where I was. I could tell from the looming sunlight over the horizon that I had been unconscious for a few hours, and even though I didn't feel like I was going to pass out again, I was still extremely weak. I had various broken bones all over my body that still hadn't healed, and I didn't imagine they would completely until I replenished myself with blood, but that wasn't the main source of my concern. The still burning wound in my shoulder was as painful as when it had first happened, and I realised I needed to get the wood out of me as quickly as possible. I took my belt from around my waist and placed the leather firmly between my teeth, biting down in preparation for the unhygienic surgery I was about to perform on myself. This would hurt. Without hesitation, I pushed my index finger into the open wound, digging around desperately for the splinter that was sending death like pains through me. After a few seconds I managed to locate it, and after various muffled screams, dislodged it from right next to my collar bone. As soon as it was out I felt an instant relief, and upon inspection I saw that it was an intricate bullet carved out of oak. What kind of humans were armed with wooden bullets? The answer was screaming me in the face, but I didn't have time to deal with it right now, if that's what I had been shot with, Damon had been hit with the same, which means he would be in just as much pain as I was right now. I crept over to where I had dropped him hours before, shocked to see that he was still in the same position. He was bloodied up beyond belief, the shattering glass from his car severely wounding his face and exposed skin, with god knows what other injuries. I couldn't be concerned with bones and cuts that I couldn't fix now, I had to find the bullet that had hit him. The longer the wood continued to remain inside of the, the longer it would not only make him weak, but keep him weak. My fingers moved to the bottom of his black shirt, and after raising it up above his belly button I couldn't see an entry point. Foolishly remembering he had had his back turned to our attacker, I rolled him onto his side as gently as I could and managed to find the wound just below his shoulder blade. Although I didn't hold back while tending to my own injury, it made me squeamish to think of sticking my fingers inside his back in search of a wooden bullet. But I knew it needed to be done. I swallowed deeply as I held my thumb and forefinger together and pushed hard inside the opening, nearly vomiting at the sensation of his nerves and muscles around my finger. I hoped he wouldn't gain consciousness in this moment, he was likely to flip out and attack me. I pushed past several organs until I was just around the rim of his still heart and just on the edge, sat the small bullet. A wave of shock overcame me when I realised just how close to his heart it was, and in turn, just how close he had been to death. My fingers began shaking with emotion, and as they started overwhelming me, the bullet kept slipping out of reach. Finally, after coming dangerously close to pushing it through the outer skin of his heart, I managed to curl my fingers around it and extract it.
I threw the bullet on the floor of the shelter we were under and fell back onto my spine, shivering and quivering with uncontrollable emotion. All the adrenaline had gone from me and all that was left was the paralysing realisation of just how close I had come to losing him forever. He wasn't the man I had fallen in love with, and some of the things he had said and done to me in the last few weeks were almost unforgivable; but the thought of him being gone, the thought of him being wiped from the earth completely and us never getting the chance to have our bliss was too much. I continued to sit on the floor, openly weeping for longer than I could remember. I knew we weren't safe out in the open like this, especially with the both of us being so weak, and thanks to my phone being back in the car I couldn't call for help. But I couldn't leave him to find one. I wouldn't leave him until he woke up and I could look into those icy blues again.
X X
The sun had begun rising when I fell back asleep, and although I knew that I shouldn't, I had curled up next to Damon to get some shut eye. I selfishly ran my thumb along his bloodied cheek bone a few times and pretended for just a minute that nothing was as it truly was. I yearned for the days when I could touch him freely. When I could talk to him freely. But they were gone. I knew we could get back there someday, but the longer I went without it, the further away it seemed.
I was awoken to the sounds of birds in the not too distant farm land and the sun in the sky told me it was late morning. The likelihood of stumbling upon a blood bank in rural Alabama was slim to none, and I knew the only shot I had of regaining enough energy to get to either a phone or a vehicle was to leave the unconscious Damon and get some animal blood. There had to be at least a cow or sheep around here, and although it was taste like warm dirt, it would give me the little energy boost I needed to get us out of here. I lifted my hand to my sternum and neck and noticed that I still had some glass from the accident lodged in the various cuts so I busied myself in removing them. I swiftly turned my head toward Damon when I heard a jagged cough coming from him and saw that his eyes were open. I unconsciously flew over to his side to assess the state he was in, but stopped myself from getting uncomfortably close considering our current lack of relationship.
"Damon?" I couldn't hide the worry in my voice "Are you alright?" A small nod was all he could manage in response as he attempted to lift himself up from the slump his body was in "Don't do that, you're too weak!"
"I'll be okay" He croaked, his hand beginning to roam his still bloodied and cut body
"Do you think you will be alright for about a half hour? I need to find us some blood and hopefully a way out of here" He nodded his head again but my stomach still felt unsettled. He was in bad shape, and to be honest, so was I, but I fared way better than him so it was up to me to step up to the plate and pull us through this. "I didn't want to go until you woke up….I….alright….I'll be as quick as I can" With one last look back at him, I crawled from underneath and decrepit house and set out across the field.