SWEET KISSES FROM RUSSIA
Fan Fiction – Alternate Universe
Caroline & Klaus
Elijah & Katherine
From: Lovely Vero
Disclaimer: This story is, and will always be, a fiction story, that is coming from the imagination of the author. It is not a bibliography of the author or any of the readers, neither a story that is exploring your own experience in life. It is not meant to be informative or to represent the perception or opinion of the author about the subject at hands in her own private life; it is not an encyclopedia, or a medical reference. It is only a fiction, the characters are fictional, and the story should be taken as such and not be mistaken with the private life of the readers, or any of their personal experiences. Thank you.
Writer's note: Due to the delicate subject, in some parts of this chapter that could seem abusive to some, please read with warning. Thank you.
Previously on Sweet kisses from Russia …
Carolina strolled happily into the corridors of the mansion, barefoot and dressed of a PJ short and a tank top, before directing her walking steps toward the kitchen. She pushed the swinging doors, before passing her head inside to see if the maid had arrived for her morning chores.
"Maria…Maria are you here?" She called, but only the silence responded her call.
She stepped inside the kitchen, while directing her walk toward the pantry. She was eager to meet Maria today, and finally tell Klaus's mother about her reconciliation with her son. But most of all, she was famished! After the night she had passed in her husband's arms, she felt like she had no more energy inside of herself. She blushed at the erotic images coming into her mind, while opening the doors in search of a chocolate spread to put on a slice of bread. She came empty handed, before finally remember that Maria had mentioned to her that there was a food reserve and a cold room in the basement.
She grabbed the key ring attached to a hook, while storming out of the kitchen. She descended the stairs leading her steps to the cellar, before sliding a few keys inside the lock, before finally finding the right one. She pushed the steel door, while turning the light switch and entering the basement.
There were two walls filled with expensive bottles, of what seemed to be a wine cellar. Carolina strolled by it, before finally seeing Maria, her back turned to her sight in front of an opened freezer.
"Here you are, Maria!" She exclaimed, joyfully, while entering the cold room. "I was actually looking for you and a jar of chocolate spread to be honest."
The maid remained motionless, with her head leaning forward.
"Maria, are you ok?" Carolina asked, while suddenly losing her smile.
"Just… Just go, my child, leave, I'll… I'll see you upstairs; I'll be there in a second…" Maria stammered through her sentence.
"What is it? Are you sick?" Carolina asked, while reaching the maid's standing position.
"Please, leave!" Maria begged the young woman to do, while raising her left hand to stop her.
"No, I won't leave if something is wrong with you?" Carolina replied, before grabbing Maria left shoulder to force the maid to face her.
Carolina startled, while rapidly stepping away, before hitting the wall behind her back. In front of her, the horrible sight of Maria standing with what seemed to be a blood bag in her hands, with a trickle of the red elixir streaming down her chin.
A cry echoed in the silence of the morning, loud enough to shack the walls of the manor.
"Carolina?" Katerina yelled her sister's name, while waking up at the loud scream, before strengthening her upper body in a sitting position on the bed.
"Under the attack"
Chapter 18
Short chapter preface
"Everything is in place?" Ludvig asked his right arm man, while standing in front of his hotel room window, his sight lost in the exterior view of downtown London.
"да" Alexay replied affirmatively in Russian. "But, is it really necessary to go to such extreme, Ludvig?"
"What is this? You're getting soft in your old age, Alexay?" Ludvig chuckled, while gulping his glass of Vodka. "Of course, it's not necessary, but … It's setting a theatrical effect that I quite like." Klaus's biological father replied, smirking. "And it will oblige my son and his family to leave London, which is a step closer in the right direction of my plan." He concluded, shrugging.
"In this case, I'll give orders to our men to proceed." Alexay nodded respectfully. "But so many dead bodies will attract the attention of the authorities; we'll need to leave London in the next hour of our assault."
"Salvage what can be salvaged, shoot to wound, and kill the less civilians possible." Ludvic gave his orders. "The authorities are perfectly aware that we are in town already. Therefore, they probably know that we'll create our own welcoming firework." He grinned. "I always hated this city with all I got in me." He winced, disgusted, before turning on his heels to face Alexay.
"And what are your orders for the manor?" Alexay inquired.
"I'll take care of besieging the manor myself; mark my words that I won't leave England without "her"." Ludvig Petrov affirmed; closed fists placed on each side of his tensed body. "We've been apart for too many centuries now."
Katerina ran down the stairs, while reaching the main entrance floor of the manor's entrance. She frantically turned her head in all directions, hearing the second cry of her sister, before rushing toward the stairs leading into the basement.
"No, no, no … Miss Carolina, I beg of you, please there is no reason to be frightening by me, my child." Maria tried to calm the young woman, before raising her opened palms in front of the young woman, while taking a few steps in her direction. "I … I won't hurt you, I couldn't even think about hurting you."
"Please, stay away from me." Carolina begged Maria.
"What is going on?" Katerina exclaimed, breathless, while reaching the basement and finally the entrance of the cold room.
"She's … She's drinking blood from a pouch." Carolina stumbled through her sentence, while raising a hand in direction of the maid. "Look… I… I don't know what is happening?"
"Oh dear…" Katerina stroked her eyelids, while sighing loudly. "It thought I could delay all of this for you."
"Mrs. Katerina, please… It's not what it looks like; I would never hurt your sister." Maria added, nervously, while sweeping with her hand, a trace of blood, left on her bottom lip and cheek.
"It's exactly what it looks like, Maria." Katerina responded, before pushing the door on its arch. "Carolina, look at me?" She forced her sister to raise her sight, while grabbing her chin. "We need to talk, ok sister; I need to explain some "things" to you that … That most certainly will seem unreal at first, but ..."
"What are you saying?" Carolina asked in shock; while shaking her head.
"How… How do you know?" Maria asked Katerina, while holding herself immobile under the surprise.
"I've known for a while … I mean…" Katerina closed her eyes, while trying to remain calm. "I've known about your specie for a while, but I was not up to date with the secrecy of your family before last night." She informed her husband's mother, while nodding discreetly in her direction.
"Oh, I … I don't know what to say." Maria raised her right hand on her forehead.
"What are you saying, Katerina? What is this? What is happening? Is Maria sick? Is that the reason she is drinking that… I mean blood?" Carolina mumbled, nervously, while grabbing both of her sisters' upper arms.
Katerina turned her head and sight toward Maria, while taking a last glimpse in direction of the maid, who seemed in deep turmoil over the present event.
"No, she … She is not sick, Carolina." Katerina confirmed, while shaking her head. "She … She needs blood to stay alive." She stammered through her own confession.
"What? I don't understand … Like, is she mentally ill?" Carolina tried to wrap her head around her sister say.
"Oh, it's all my fault, I should have been more careful about "this"." Maria blamed herself, while raising the pouch of blood in her hand, while taking a sitting position on an empty wooden box of wine, before burying her head in her hands.
"No, she is not sick physically or mentally… She's …" Katerina closed her eyes, while taking a deep breath into her lungs. "She's a vampire, Carolina."
Carolina stood motionless and speechless in front of her sister, her sight lost in Katerina's for a short moment, before bursting into nervous laughter.
"What? Oh my God … You two have put a good one on me, did you?" Carolina pointed in direction of both her sister and the maid, while passing a hand through her short locks. "Don't ever put a stun like this one on me, ever again, it was not funny!"
"It's not a joke, Carolina, this is real, sister." Katerina replied, imperturbable, while keeping her sight locked with her sibling's. "Maria?"
The maid raised her head, perceiving instinctively Katerina's secret request. She raised the pouch to her mouth, before drinking the remaining blood content, her fangs slowly showing under the strong aphrodisiac of the red elixir.
"Oh my God…" Carolina exclaimed, while raising her right hand over her trembling lips, tears filling her eyes. "What is happening?"
Katerina grabbed both of her sister's upper arms, while trying to maintain her immobile.
"I know … It makes no sense, and it must be a shock to you…" Katerina empathized, while shaking her head.
"It makes no sense? This is …. This can't be true! Vampires are a legend … It's a made-up mythology that creates movies in theaters, and series that you watch on television, and books to read." Carolina refused to grasp the reality.
"No, Carolina, well yes … You'll have all kind of stories about them, but they do exist. I saw my share of them, back in Russia." Katerina confessed, humbly.
"It's true, Mrs. Carolina, "we" do exist." Maria attested, while rising on her legs.
The ringing tone of a cellphone made all three women startled under the surprise. Carolina reached for the device in her PJ's pocket, while raising it in her trembling hands.
"It's… It's Klaus." She managed to let the words out of her mouth.
"Answer him… Try to act normal." Katerina ordered her sister, while biting her nails, before pacing back and forth in the room.
"I can't…" Carolina responded, while shaking her head, while biting her bottom lip.
"Mrs. Carolina, make an effort, your husband will worry sick if you're not answering his call." Maria suggested, hopeful.
"Hello…" She finally found the strength within herself to answer, while taking a deep breath into her lungs, before taking a few steps back in the room, to find some privacy in a corner.
"Hi Love, couldn't stop thinking about … About us." Klaus replied, shyly, while straddling his motorcycle, to take a few walking steps in the parking of the Mikaelson's enterprise building.
Carolina closed her eyes, while raising a hand on her chest, over the raising beats of her heart. The softness of his voice, the way he was calling her "Love", the dizziness he was creating in her head, were in complete battle with the new information she had to swallow.
"Carolina, are you there?" He asked, worried. "Tell me, what is happening, sweetheart?"
"Yah … I'm here." She replied, while trying to get a grip over the spiral of mixed emotions.
"Did I do something? You need to tell me if I've hurt you in any way." Klaus asked, while swallowing a lump in his throat, before passing a hand through his tangled hair.
"No, no … I'm just a bit tired, since we have … Well, you know, last night?" She tried to explain under the watchful eyes of both her sister and Maria, while feeling a fire reach her cheeks.
"You mean last night and this morning." He mocked, a smirk raising the corners of his lips. "I miss you, I want to be with you, I want to hold you in my arms … I want to make love to you all day."
"Mm…" She mumbled the sound.
"You want the same, or did you change your mind?" Klaus asked, while losing his smile and colors.
"No … I'm just tired and Katerina is in my bedroom." She replied, nervously.
"Why didn't you say so?" He questioned, relieved. "We'll see each other in a few hours, ok?"
"Ok." She replied, while closing the conversation on him.
"You've reconciled with your husband?" Katerina asked her sister.
"Does it change anything?" Carolina shrugged.
"I think it is marvelous news that you found your way into each other's arms. I couldn't' be happier." Maria expressed her joy.
"Yes, let's all celebrate!" Katerina exploded. "And it's me who put my sister in that situation to start with!"
"Oh my God…How… I mean, how is this even possible?" Carolina shook her head, while taking a deep breath.
"The supernatural world is present on this earth, sister; it's hidden to the majority of its habitants." Katerina tried to explain.
"How did you found out?" Carolina asked, dumbfounded.
"The escort industry, I've been asked, several times, to present myself at secret sorority, meetings." Katerina confirmed. "I was blind-folded most of the time, but during the event I would see them drink blood and share … I mean uncommon practices."
"Did they hurt you? Oh my God, the series of murders back in Moscow with girls left on the side of the route with two distinct marks on their necks, it was them, was it?" Carolina exclaimed, in shock.
"Probably…" Katerina agreed, while nodding discreetly. "But Maria is not …"
"Are you going to hurt us, Maria? Was it in the plan?" Carolina cut her sister sentence short.
"What? Oh no, my child … Oh my dear God, never would I lay a hand on you." Maria replied in shock. "You're both my daughters-in-law, I wouldn't drink from the "source", that is why I'm drinking from blood bags, and not from …" Maria tried to articulate her thoughts.
"You … You are … Therefore …" Carolina stammered her say, while realizing more that her mind could grasp. "Oh my God, is Klaus….Is my husband?" She questioned her sister. "And what about Elijah, is he one also?"
"Yes." Katerina confirmed, while closing her eyes.
"You knew about this and you did not say a word to me?" Caroline exclaimed, angrily, while pointing a finger toward her own chest.
"No … I mean yes, I knew about the existence of vampires, but I had no idea that they were vampires or that they were the Originals." Katerina swore to her sister.
"The "what"… What is that even mean?" Carolina busted in anger.
"They are the first of the line of vampires." Maria explained, while taking a few steps in Carolina's direction. "They are what originated all vampires after their emergence." She added, while nervously rubbing her hands.
"The first… What… I … What does this even mean?" Carolina tried to wrap her head around all the information thrown at her.
"They are over a thousand years old." Katerina confessed to her sibling.
"A thousand years old?" Carolina repeated, with wide opened eyes.
"You can't explain it to my sister, can you? You don't remember?" Katerina tried to seek help from the maid.
"No, I'm so sorry." Maria presented her deepest apologies, while bending her head, shamefully. "After my memory lost, I was in a state of denial and I couldn't understand from where those graving for blood were coming from, it's … It's my son Elijah, who … Who explained to me what I had become." She stammered through her short explanation.
"You have no way of knowing if you were a vampire prior to your memory lost?" Katerina inquired from her.
"No, I can't assure you this is the truth." Maria confirmed, while shaking her head. "They, Mister Klaus and Mister Elijah, took me under their wings, while reassuring me that I would have a place in their home, and will be nourished with these blood bags." She added, while raising the empty bag in her hands. "Then I became their maid, and that is all I can say to you."
"Are you ok?" Katerina asked her sister, while glaring in her direction.
"I can't even …" Carolina shook her head, before raising her right hand to her forehead. "What is this even means for us, for the future?" She questioned more to herself than her sister.
"I don't know." Katerina replied, honestly.
"I… I don't want to put my nose where it doesn't belong, and I can understand that I'd betrayed both of your trust, but "this" new information shouldn't change anything, really." Maria tried to reassure both women. "Both of my sons would never harm you, they are infatuated by both of you…. I … I don't know how to explain, but for what I could guess, I believe they saw in you a part of their past human life."
"How did you know about Elijah?" Carolina asked her sister.
"An empty cup of blood left in his office." Katerina replied, while reprising her pace in the small room, arms crossed over her chest. "He came clean to me during the past night."
"Oh it's my fault!" Maria shook her head in disbelief.
"No, no it's not Maria." Katerina reassured her. "It was "their" obligation to come clean to us. Since we've started our married life, it has been lie after lie." She added, dryly, while clapping both of her hands together
"Try to put yourself in their shoes, my child. I'm not agreeing with their methods of actions, far from it, but they had their hearts in the right place." Maria tried to calm Katerina's temper.
"Why … Why choose human being, if they could be paired with their kind?" Carolina questioned. "What is this even mean … I can't even grasp … I will age, and … I don't understand?" She added, incoherently.
"They wanted to turn us "eventually"." Katerina confessed, while lowering her sight.
"What do you mean by "turn us"?" Carolina asked, dumbfounded.
The unexpected loud sounds of voices and commotion seep into the basement, while cutting their thoughts short. Maria frantically turned her head, while listening more carefully with her vampire hearing abilities.
"What is happening?" Carolina questioned, while grabbing her sister left forearm.
"Maria?" Katerina questioned, alerted.
"We need to get out of the house." Maria warned them, while pushing the two young women in front of her steps.
"Why? What is happening?" Carolina questioned.
"The manor is besieged." The maid responded.
"Am I driving directly toward the office, Mister Mikaelson?" George, the chauffeur, asked his boss, while lowering the limousine interior security glass, before taking a quick glimpse at his employer through the mirror.
Elijah raised his head from the newspaper he was holding in his hands, before meeting George's glance in the mirror.
"Yes, directly to the office." He replied to his chauffeur, while nodding his head discreetly. "Thank you, George."
"As you wish, Mister Mikaelson, we are on our way." George confirmed, while raising the black glass up.
Elijah sighed loudly, while throwing his newspaper on the limousine banquette, before stroking his eyelids. The thought of Katerina couldn't leave his mind, even for a split second. The secret was out, and to this point he had no idea where his marriage to this young human woman would lead him? And it was scarring him more that he would admit to himself. And now, he needed to inform Klaus of the latest development, while knowing that his brother was on shaking reconciliation ground with his own wife.
He grabbed his cellphone in the interior pocket of his jacket. He needed to verify with Maria if Katerina was handling this "situation" calmly. He rethought his gesture, and replaced the device back in his jacket's pocket.
But a dark veil was surrounding the Original thoughts … A bad omen infiltrating his mind … A sixth sense announcing upcoming struggle …
"Go away!" Bonnie warned, dryly, while walking in front of the Original's sight, in direction of the main corridor leading her to class.
"Oh come on Darling, it's a new day, we could start it on good terms, would you like that?" Kol asked all smile and hopeful.
"No, I wouldn't!" She replied, while pushing a door, before slamming it back on his nose.
"Damn it!" Kol growled, while pushing the door to follow the young woman in her path. "You know, Bonnie, your anger can only push me further in your direction?"
"Hoping you'll get lost on your way to hell then?" She responded, dryly, while rolling her eyes to the ceiling.
"Now that is not nice, not nice at all! Where are you going?" He asked.
"Cafeteria, why, do I need your approbation to come and go at my will?" She replied, while entering the large room filled with students.
"You're such a happy rainbow in early morning, aren't you my darling?" Kol winced.
"It's nothing that a strong coffee couldn't cure, even in your presence." She replied, tit for tat.
"Ok, I'll bite sunshine; and when I say I'll bite; I mean it as a figure of speech." He winked at her. "You hate me in another new level today, what's up?" He questioned, while grabbing a paper cup to fill it with coffee.
Bonnie closed her eyes, before turning on her heels to face the hybrid, her fiery sight suddenly drown in his.
"You compelled me, yesterday; how do you want me to feel?" She mumbled, angrily, between her teeth, before taking her place in line, coffee in hands, in front of the cashier.
Kol stood motionless and speechless, while staring at the back of the gorgeous metis girl.
"Hey punk, are you in line or what?" A student startled the Original, who took an extra-step toward the long line.
"What did you just say?" He whispered in Bonnie's right ear, while leaning his head near hers.
"Pretentious, pompous and deaf, what other qualities do you have?" She replied, slyly.
Kol suddenly looked up, all his vampire senses in alert, before noticing a group of men entering suspiciously inside the cafeteria. In the time space of a few seconds, they reached for their weapons underneath their camouflage coats, before opening their fire on the present crowd.
"Get down now!" He yelled, before pushing Bonnie on the floor, with the length of his muscular body lying on hers, under the loud cries of the students and the sound of the firing weapons.
"Kol, pick up, damn it … Pick up!" Elijah mumbled, angrily, between his teeth.
"No answer, boss?" George inquired.
"No, nothing, fuck!" Elijah stroked his eyelids.
George arched both of his eyebrows, in surprise, while staring with opened eyes at the Original in the mirror.
"I have my moment." Elijah sighed and shrugged, impatient. "What about the drive back home?" He inquired, being suddenly projected on the opposite side of his present sitting position on the banquet. The sudden speed of the limousine on the highway should answer his question.
"Considering that we are presently driving on the sidewalk, in the middle of a traffic jam, I'm praying that we won't be shadowed by the police." George replied, while pushing his foot at the maximum of the gas pedal, his right hand on the horn to warn the passerby.
"Where the hell were you?" Elijah exclaimed in the device, after re-dialing Kol's number.
"Oh you know me, brother." Kol responded, hoarsely, over the loud commotion. "I'm always trying to find trouble, though this time trouble found me!" He added, while pulling Bonnie in his arms, both placed behind one of the refrigerator, as safety precaution. "Not a real good time to chit-chat though, considering I am in the middle of a shooting."
"Fuck!" Elijah swore, once more, while passing a hand though his tangled hair. "Ludvig's men I suppose?"
"My guess as well." Kol replied. "He's setting his territory in a theatrical kind of way, I suppose?" He added. "I can recognized a lot of Klaus in his biological father, where are you?"
"On my way back to the manor I have a bad feeling as for Maria and the girl's safety." Elijah's head suddenly hit the front glass in front of his sight.
"Sorry Boss!" George apologized for his speedy drive.
"Oh my God…" Bonnie exclaimed, while seeing a body fall into its death in front of both of their sights, before cowering herself in Kol's arms.
"Listen brother, nice to catch up but I'm kind of in a jam at the moment, and I fear it's time to get out of here." Kol growled; loudly, at the firing sound.
"Go directly to the airport." Elijah closed his device, while nervously passing his right hand over his face.
"We are almost there, boss." George informed the Original. "I've taken a short cut."
"You took a short cut in the middle of the National Park?" Elijah noticed, in shock.
"I've never said it was legal." The chauffeur shrugged, while pushing his foot further on the gas pedal.
"Remind me to give you a raise, George." Elijah let a smile spread on his lips.
"It's duly noted, boss!" The chauffeur replied, sarcastically.
"Oh for God sake, are you going to follow me everywhere?!" Rebekah exclaimed, while taking a glimpse at Stefan's reflection in the store window.
"It's merely a coincidence that I was passing by you, inside this shopping center mall, at this hour, Rebekah, get a grip of yourself, you're not that important to me." Stefan shoved his hands in his jeans' pockets, while rolling his eyes.
"So if this is true, let see what is around here that could be of interest to you, should we?" Rebekah grinned, while taking a glimpse at the few stores at sight. "Oh, wait… There's a lingerie boutique? Do not tell me that your Drag Queen personality is making a comeback again?" She asked; triumphant.
"Go to hell, Rebekah!" Stefan growled, with annoyance.
"Or there's also the nails Saloon, are you due for you manicure, Steffie?" She smiled all teeth.
"What color would you suggest?" Stefan winced.
"Light pink, it will bring your eyes." She responded, playful; while crossing her arms in front of her chest. "Now if you don't mind, whoosh and go away!" She ordered him, before turning on her heels, while facing the closed door of the jewelleries store. She raised the left sleeve of her white leather jacket while taking a quick glimpse at her watch; ten more minutes and the store would open.
"You're stalking the opening hours of the boutiques now, Rebekah, how human of you?" Stefan noticed, while smirking and leaning the left side of his body on the window.
"Not that it is any of your business, but I've ordered a diamond bracelet, and I'm picking it up this morning." She sighed loudly.
"Oh but I knew the superficial "Rebekah" was hiding somewhere, underneath this all: "I'm waiting for the store to open"; your glamorous self finally showed the tip of her nose." He smirked.
"Go screw yourself, Salvatore!" She replied, dryly.
"It will be with pleasure, Rebekah." Stefan smirked, before turning his sight toward the entrance of the mall. A few of passers, where strolling in front of the closed boutiques, some were sipping coffee at a near stand, but what suddenly attract his sight, was the group of men who pushed the swinging doors, dressed with camouflage vests, while slowly pulling weapons from underneath their clothes.
"Get down!" Stefan yelled to the near crowd, while grabbing Rebekah left wrist to pull her into safety, before hearing gun shots everywhere.
"What the hell is happening?" Rebekah exclaimed, while being pushed behind a marble column as a protection measure.
"They are Ludvig Petrov's men." Stefan replied, while grabbing his cellphone in his jacket's pocket. "Don't move; we need to stay put."
"What? Why would he want to attack civilians?" She questioned, dumbfounded, under the loud cries, and shot gun noise.
"He's making a distraction for our benefit." Stefan replied, while pushing the dial button on the device. "Where are you?" He asked his interlocutor.
"I'm on my Harley, in direction of the manor." Klaus mumbled, angrily, in his cellphone.
"Well, I'm with your sister, and we're reliving the last Rambo sequel at the moment." Stefan explained, while covering Rebekah's body of his.
"Fuck! Kol was at the school and the same event happened, Elijah just confirmed it to me." Klaus replied. "Get out of my fucking way!" The Original yelled at the passersby who were trying to avoid the motorcycle on the sidewalk.
"Try to not kill innocents, would you?" Stefan warned the hybrid.
"What do you think? It's my specialty." Klaus replied, cynically. "I was gullible enough to believe that my biological father would not retaliate on us." He added. "Mate, I … I can't… Carolina, her sister, and my mothers are in the mansion."
"I know…" Stefan nodded, while lowering his head and closing his eyes.
"Take care of Bekah, ok? We'll meet at the airport." Klaus cut the conversation short.
"That mad man is going to attack the manor and mother, isn't he?" Rebekah asked, tears filling her eyes.
"We can't think about that now, Rebekah, we need to escape this mall from hell, and heading toward the airport." He explained, before interlacing his fingers with hers. "Are you ready to make a run for it?"
"Yes." She nodded.
"I'm sorry, but you won't get your diamond bracelet today, princess." He added, before racing in his vampire speed, with the blonde vampire by his side, toward the nearest possible exit.
Maria reached the first main level of the manor, while keeping Carolina and Katerina behind her back. She could clearly hear the battle between the guards and the assailants. Her main goal was to find a way to reach an exit to help the girls escape, but she was running out of time.
She pointed, to both women, toward the main corridor leading to the kitchen, and they nodded in agreement of her silent plan.
Unfortunately the moment Maria rushed toward an assailant; another group of men came from the said corridor.
"Go upstairs, now!" She yelled to both women, before pushing one of the men on the wall, while using her vampire strength.
"We can't leave her behind?" Carolina begged her sister, while climbing a few stairs.
"We have to listen to her, come." Katerina pulled her sister; while grabbing her left hand.
Maria managed to battle the assailants for a few more minutes, but their strength was way superior of hers.
"Don't touch her!" She finally heard a voice yell the order to the intruders, before raising her sight toward the imposing man.
He was tall, with a muscular silhouette, dark brown hair and eyes. Maria remained motionless, not able to detach her gaze from his aura of power.
"Ingrid, my love, finally we meet again?" The man exclaimed, amorously, a smile spreading on his lips.
"Get out of this house, whoever you are, you are not welcome!" She warned him, firmly.
"Bring the witch." Ludvig ordered one of his men, with a gesture of his right hand.
A petite woman, with black hair appeared by his side.
"This is for your own good, моя любовь (my love), and it will only last for a few seconds." He presented his apologies to Maria.
Maria found herself lying on the floor a few seconds later, her hands placed on each side of her head, left under the intense pain of a strong aneurism, before losing her consciousness.
"I'm so sorry, Ingrid." Ludvig repeated, while kneeling by her side, before raising the maid in his arms. "Bring one of the cars upfront, now! And find the other ones." He ordered, firmly, with a strong voice.
"Oh my God, what are we supposed to do?" Carolina asked her sister, while running behind her back, before suddenly feeling two strong arms grabbing her waist by behind, with a hand covering her mouth, under her loud cry of surprise.
"Shush, it's me, don't panic." Klaus whispered near his wife right ear.
"Oh my God, are you crazy you almost gave us a heart attack?" Katerina busted, while turning on her heels to face both Klaus and her sister.
"No time to chit chat sister-in-law, quick, in the bedroom!" He ordered, while pushing both women inside one of the upstairs guest bedrooms. "Get under the bed now!" He pushed Katerina, while pulling Carolina in one of the closet, before closing the wooden door behind both of their backs.
'Shush, calm down, Love." He whispered to his wife, while pushing one of his fingers on her trembling lips. "Don't be scare, I'm with you both."
It did not take long for Ludvig's men to enter the bedroom, while scattering rapidly the interior. Katerina stood motionless underneath the bed, with a hand placed over her lips to hold her cries.
"Can I help you with something, gentlemen?" Both men heard a man address himself to them.
"Who are you?" They both asked, simultaneously; while turning their sights toward the intruder.
"Please, forgive my bad manners; the name is Elijah … Elijah Mikaelson." He presented himself, all smile, while reaching their standing positions, before burying both of his closed fists in their thoraxes to pull both of their hearts out.
"Oh my God…" Katerina let the words out of her mouth, while seeing the hearts fall on the white carpet.
"Katerina, get out from underneath the bed, now!" Elijah ordered her to do, while rapidly wiping his bloody hands with a handkerchief, before helping her out.
The door of the closet opened over Klaus and Carolina.
"Oh my God, what happened to my sister?" Katerina exclaimed, in shock.
"Nothing, she lost consciousness." Klaus replied, before raising the young woman in his arms.
"We have to leave, now!" Elijah ordered, while grabbing his wife's right hand in his, before reaching the upstairs' main corridor.
"What happened to Carolina?" Kol asked Klaus, while getting out of his jeep, with Bonnie close on his heels, before directing his walking steeps toward the airplane.
The youngest of the Originals men had raced toward the small private airport, with Bonnie sitting in a state of shock and total silence by his side, before reaching the landing strip, near Elijah's limousine.
"She's ok." Klaus reassured his youngest brother, while carrying his wife in his arms. "She just fainted… Who the hell are you?"
"Bonnie Bennett." She replied, dryly. "It's not like a bit of courtesy could kill you?" She added, while crossing her arms in front of her chest.
"You have to forgive my brother and his bad manners, his nerves are all over the place, Miss Bennett." Elijah intercepted Bonnie, while walking by her side.
"You're one of my sister's friends, aren't you?" Katerina asked, while reaching her husband side. "I'm Katerina, Carolina's sister."
"Yes, I am … We share some art courses at school." Bonnie nodded, respectfully, with a small smile blessing her lips.
"Why did you take her along with you, Kol?" Elijah asked his brother, calmly, to not scare the human girl.
"She was targeted as I was, don't ask me why, but my guess is probably because she was Carolina's friend?" Kol shrugged his shoulders.
"Miss Bennett, do you have family in London?" Elijah asked.
"Why are you asking me that question?" Bonnie wondered.
"Answer me, please?" Elijah pushed the note.
"No, I'm a foreign student; I'm alone in London… I mean, I don't have family." Bonnie stammered, while shaking her head.
"Perfect! You're about to join us on a little trip for your own safety, my dear." Elijah informed her.
"What, no? I have obligations and …" Bonnie tried to object. "Is he joking?" She questioned Kol.
"Doubtful, my oldest brother never jokes." Kol smirked.
"Took you long enough, Salvatore?" Klaus yelled to both his friend and sister, who were rushing toward their walking path.
"Hey! Close your mouth Mikaelson, we were in the middle of an action movie, packed with a lot of Cowboys shooting at us." Stefan replied, mockingly, while reaching the walking group.
"What's the status?" Stefan asked, while glancing rapidly at both of the Russian brides. He could notice two safe over three, but where was Maria?
"Where's mother?" Rebekah asked, frantically.
"I thought she was inside the plane already?" Kol added, dumbfounded.
"No." Elijah shook his head, while frowning.
"What; please tell me this asshole is not retaining our mother against her will?" Rebekah panicked.
"Rebekah, control yourself." Elijah warned his sister.
"He won't touch her, Bekah; he has feelings for our mother." Klaus added.
They reached the ramp, before claiming the stairs and entering the airplane.
Bonnie grabbed Kol's left arm, while retaining him on his climbing.
"I can't follow you in this plane?" She shook her head.
"Not a problem, darling; I can easily carry you in my arms or on my shoulder, as you wish?" Kol replied, uncompromisingly. "This is not a drill, Bonnie, this is real… you're in danger."
"Ok, I'll follow you, but just because I know Carolina; and I don't want to leave her alone in this." She replied, while passing by his side to climb the stairs.
"Don't think I have forgotten about the compulsion thing." He whispered near Bonnie's right ear, while grabbing her upper arm to bring her in close contact, before letting her go.
They all entered the plane, in a row, before raising, with stupefaction, their sights on a man who was sitting in one of the comfortable leather seats.
"Well, it's about time you all arrived; I was bored to death with my lonesome!" Mikael Mikaelson exclaimed, all smile; while throwing the newspaper that he was holding in his hands on the seat by his side. "Is it possible to have a glass of champagne on this plane?"
"What the fuck are you doing on this plane, father?" Elijah demanded an explanation.
"Well, I figure we were travelling toward the same destination, therefore; I could certainly accompany you." Mikael shrugged, a devilish smile blessing his lips. "I have to say that I'm kind of disappointed at the slow pace you figured everything out about Ludvig Petrov… And now I suppose your mother has been kidnapped by her past lover? How romantic and tragic at the same time, would you say?"
"I'll bring Carolina in the bedroom in the back." Klaus informed his brother, while carrying the frail silhouette in his arms. "Get rid of this piece of shit!" He mumbled, angrily, in his teeth, while passing beside Mikael's sitting position.
"It's nice to see you too, illegitimate son." Mikael grinned.
"Get your fucking ass out of this plane!" Kol busted at his father.
"Kol, what you've gained in bravery, you'd lost in intelligence." Mikael replied, while rolling his eyes, before crossing his arms in front of his chest.
"He's not worth it, Kol." Rebekah murmured to her brother.
"Nice to see you too, Rebekah, you are looking more and more like your mother." Mikael noticed.
"I take that as a compliment." She replied, tit for tat, dryly. "I prefer to be her spitting image than yours!"
"I'll go see if my sister is ok?" Katerina whispered near her husband's left ear.
"Ok." Elijah nodded his head to his wife. "We'll talk later, don't worry I'll take care of this."
"Well, don't leave on my behalf, my dear daughter-in-law." Mikael smirked.
"I'll prefer to enter a knife in my chest than endure your sight." Katerina replied, dryly, while directing her walk toward the back of the plane.
"You did not educate your wife to obey you properly, son, I'm kind of disappointed." Mikael added, while rising on his legs.
"It's "my" wife, my business, certainly not yours!" Elijah replied, hoarsely. "Now get out of my plane."
"Is there a problem, boss?" George asked, while coming out of the front cockpit.
"No, I don't believe there will be any." Elijah replied, while narrowing his sight on Mikael.
"Fine, I'll leave." Mikael replied, while strolling through the middle aisle to reach the exit.
"Not a minute too soon." Kol mumbled, angrily between his teeth, while seeing his father passed the arch porthole door of the plane.
"You're going to be ok, you'll be fine." Klaus murmured the words, while gently dropping Caroline's body on the bedspread of the small bedroom located at the far end of the plane.
He delicately placed her head on the pillow, while sliding a few of her short locks behind her ears.
"Oh Carolina what have I done to you?" He confessed, while grabbing her cold hands in his. "I've broken in pieces the best thing that had ever happened to me… You are my life now, love." He stifled through his words, while feeling a single tear rolling on his cheek.
"Is this even remotely true?" He heard Katerina's voice asked him.
Klaus closed his eyes a fraction of second to regain his strength, before turning his sight toward Carolina's sister.
"Contrary to what you could believe, I only want the best for her." He responded, toneless.
"You did not give me any reasons to trust you before, Klaus." She replied, dryly.
"I know." Klaus replied, shameful, while lowering his head. "I just want her safe, and then will come the day that she'll want to be free of me, and I'll offer her that freedom the day she'll ask for it."
"I doubt that." Katerina replied, while reaching his sitting position on the bed.
"I give you my words." Klaus reaffirmed.
"No, you I believe, as for my sister … I doubt she will ever want to leave you." Katerina confessed. "Or she would have done it already, even more after what she learned today."
Klaus raised his sight in Katerina's, while arching one of his eyebrows.
"She knows doesn't she?" He replied, an emptiness filling his eyes and heart.
"Yes, she knows about you and your family being vampires." She nodded.
"And yet, you're still standing by my brother's side, Katerina; after learning the truth yourself?" He asked, surprised.
"Let just say that the past few hours did not gave me the time to think about it." She replied, slyly, while crossing her arms in front of her chest.
"You don't think, Katerina, you're a woman of action." He stipulated the truth.
"Well, we are still married to the both of you for the better or the worst; I guess we've reached the worst." She shrugged, while leading her steps toward the exit of the small room.
"Katerina?" He called the young Russian.
"Yes?" She replied, while turning her head and sight toward his position.
"Thank you." He nodded.
"Don't thank me, I don't know what my sister will decide when she'll wake up, but she is a fighter, as I am." She replied, before stepping out.
The plane took off thirty minutes later, under the death silence of its occupants.
"You're shaking, you're cold?" Elijah noticed, while undressing of his jacket, before covering the shoulders of his wife.
"Thank you." She nodded, thankful, while raising her sight in her husband's brown dark eyes. "I wasn't aware that your chauffeur was a pilot? Is it something vampires have in common, multi-careers?"
Elijah let out a small laugh, redness reaching his cheek.
"You can say that, let just say that I try to have a staff that can protect "us" in all time and all ways." He explained, evasively.
"I see." Katerina replied, toneless.
"I thought …" He started, before cutting his say, left under a range of intense emotions. "The thought of losing you left me empty inside. I should have known better, I should have known that the manor was not secured enough to this point, please forgive me, Katerina?" He begged, while grabbing her left hand in his, before interlacing his fingers with hers.
"You did a lot of wrongs to me, Elijah, but this is not one of them." She replied, while slowly pulling her hand away from his. "But the actions of an enemy are not your fault. Your mother has been kidnapped; and I don't think it's the time for us to discuss our marriage." She added, while turning her head toward the porthole.
"You're ok?" Stefan asked Rebekah.
She turned her head toward the young vampire, while forcing herself to smile.
"Yes, thank you." She replied, while nodding her head. "Well, it has been a hell of a morning, would you say?" She tried to be strong, while joking around on the subject.
"You don't need to be act fearless all the time in my presence, Rebekah, I know you better than this act you're trying to pull." He replied, while raising his right hand to caress her cheeks.
"I was scare, so scare; Stefan … And I'm still scare for Maria, for our mother." She confessed in a low murmur, tears filling her eyes.
"We'll find her, I promise." He replied, before softly kissing her forehead.
"Where am I?" Carolina muttered, slowly reopening her eyes, before straightening her upper body to scatter the room for clues, while suddenly noticing her husband's presence at her side.
"In a plane, we had to leave the manor behind." Klaus replied, while softly pushing her back on the pillow. "You need to rest, you fainted, Love."
"I don't remember … Oh yes, the men who attacked the manor, and Maria, where … Where is she?" She stammered, while suddenly sitting on the bed. "Oh my God… I remember now, you came back and …" She pointed a finger toward her husband. "You've lied to me... I mean about your true identity, what you really are, haven't you?" She managed to add, in an incoherent speech. "You're a vampire?"
Klaus nodded his head in affirmative, while avoiding her sight and swallowing a lump in his throat.
"Why?" She busted, in anger, while passing a hand through her hair. "It's not like you and your brother could hide this fact from us forever?"
"Carolina, don't … Don't put the blame on my brother, I'm entirely responsible for this entire situation, for putting your own life and the life of your sister in danger." He raised a hand in front of her sight.
"Why would you want a human by your side, Klaus? Why would you want me of all people? Is it a sick game … Maria thought that you would never hurt me or change who I am." She tried to explain through her confused mind.
"Maria knew about this?" He asked, surprised.
"Yes…" She nodded.
"The phone conversation, she was there with your sister, few minutes before the attack, am I right?" He realized, while pacing back and forth in the small room. "Damn it!" He lashed out, while hitting a wall with his closed right fist.
Carolina startled over the release of her husband emotions, while bringing her knees nearer to her chest.
"No, no … Don't be scare; I wouldn't hurt you, sweetheart." Klaus reassured her, while approaching the bed.
"I don't know what to think anymore? Where are my sister and Maria?" She asked the truth from him.
"Your sister is in the front cabin of the plane with my brother." He reassured her. "We are bringing you both to safety."
"Maria?" She asked, fearful of his answer.
"She's been kidnapped." He replied, openly, while drowning his sight in hers.
"Oh my God… This can't be happening." She shook her head in denial. "I need time to … To cope with all of this." She added, while sweeping the tears that was rolling on her cheeks. "Give me time."
"Ok, I won't push you." Klaus agreed, repentant. "But I won't leave your sight ever again." He confessed, while sitting on a near cabin chair, placed near the bed.
Elijah entered the plane cockpit while reaching the pilot and co-pilot positions.
"What will be the destination, boss?" George inquired the information.
"Italy, Milan." Elijah informed.
"We are on our way then." George nodded, respectfully.
"Thank you." Elijah replied, while turning on his heels to regain his sitting position in the main cabin.
"Where are we heading, brother dearest?" Kol mocked, while throwing peanuts in his mouth.
"Italy, Milan." Elijah replied, under the shocked expression of Bonnie.
"I can't go to Italy!" She whispered, angrily, in Kol's right ear. "I knew the minute I lay my eyes on you that you would bring me nothing but trouble" Bonnie pointed a finger toward his chest.
"Here darling, eat some peanuts that should calm your present tantrum; and hopefully bring peace to my poor ears." He replied to the young woman, before throwing a small bag on her lap. "Now I suggest that you take a nap, it will be a long flight." He closed his eyes, a smile raising both corners of his lips, under her continuous and insistent bubbling of disapprobation.
Thank you, as always, for reading the "Under the attack" chapter, guys!
Take care of yourselves;
Love,
Lovely Vero
Thank you for all the anonymous reviews received, guys!
My answers are below.
Justine: Bonjour ma chérie, j'espère que tu auras passé de belles Fêtes de fin d'année? Merci de m'encourager avec ton enthousiasme envers cette histoire, cela me fait très plaisir. Je suis contente que tu aies remarqué la symétrie entre les deux couples, car c'est ce que je recherchais à créer au début de leurs relations. Caroline va être craintive, oui, c'est normal, mais cela sera bien moins pire qu'au début, et puis Katherine aura à avouer qu'elle connaissait l'existence paranormal des vampires aussi, cela change un peu la note tout compte fait. Je t'embrasse et attend toujours tes idées, pensées avec grande impatience (si tu as la chance va lire mon profile, cela explique un peu pourquoi je prends plus de temps pour écrire mes histoires en ce moment.)
Krysta: Thank you sweetie, it's nice to know that you are enjoying this story, and to have you aboard also.
Forever Fun: lol … Sweetie, yes, I gather that you completely dislike the cliff hangers in general … But, look at it this bright way, you have something to look forward in the future ;)
Myange114: Hi! Yes, it was indeed a huge deal with the discovery of Caroline. As for Klaus happiness … Hold your breath ;) The route ahead is long and bumpy, but … There's always light after the darkness, hold on to that! Thanks for your inputs, sweetie.
Ilovetvd: Esther was/is still a witch, though in this story she is not using her power because of her amnesia. It's Mikael who turned her as a vampire and put the amnesia curse on her. Well, the progress Klaus and Caroline did will not be lost, but, a new challenge is arising, that I can't deny, sweetie. Thanks for your questions and inputs.
Nadia: Thank you, sweetie; I'm happy that you liked this story, and welcome aboard!
Tanja: Sorry sweetheart for the late update, but I had personal issues that needed to be taking care of, I hope this chapter will make you happy?!
If I have forgotten someone in the responses to the anonymous reviews, it was not intentional, and I thank you for it!