Chapter 8:

"Kol" Elijah gasped in utter shock. It was not possible that his baby brother was sitting here.

"What kind of trickery is this?" Klaus growled. "Kol is dead!"

"I am actually not dead," Kol grinned.

"How?" Elijah finally asked and the others finally managed to take a seat.

"Well as it turns out Elena Gilbert saved me," Kol said. "Katherine and her little pet Damon Salvatore were trying to get their hands on the cure and I was in the way. Elena took a page out of your playbook Nik and incapacitated them with suburbia's white picket fence dream. However, since everyone was ready to condemn me to death I decided to use that to my advantage and take the cure out of play for good."

"You've been alive all this time and you didn't come see us? Kol I thought you were gone!" Rebekah worried and he could see the genuine anxiety on her face. He knew his siblings had truly mourned for him and it touched him to know that he was truly loved. He enveloped Bekah in a tight hug.

"I realized that I had an opportunity to be really helpful. I got Elena and Caroline out of town like they asked and then when we got word of what you all were up to down here Bonnie and I got to work. Caroline doesn't believe you committed fatherhood…"

"She wouldn't," Hayley growled as she appeared and moved to Klaus' side.

"Well she would be right," Bonnie Bennett said as she appeared in the room and had everyone's attention. "There is a spell that can in fact create a pregnancy overcoming all kinds of obstacles. I could stand in this very room and give myself Klaus' child or Elijah's if I wanted…and that's precisely what a witch did for Hayley."

"No!" Hayley protested and she looked to Klaus and Elijah. "She's lying to you. I did no such thing!"

"There's also a spell to find out whose baby that is…I personally believe there's a very small chance that Mikaelson DNA is even involved…"

"Elena didn't…" Elijah finally managed and Kol smiled at his brother who was in a complete stupor.

"No she didn't and I cannot believe that you did not even consider that Katerina might be at work," Kol frowned. He looked to Klaus as well, "you two need to learn a thing or two about loyalty."

"We were being loyal to you! They admitted to doing it!" Klaus growled.

"They used that story after you had already accused them," Kol said. He stood then and went to Bonnie's side. "are you hungry?" Bonnie nodded.

"Forgive my manners," Elijah said as he stood then, "allow me to whip you up something for dinner Bonnie."

"Great I'm starved!" Jeremy said as he appeared along with Stefan.

"Okay are we going to be invaded by the whole of Mystic Falls?" Rebekah growled.

"Bekah," Kol growled.

Soon everyone was eating a pasta dish that Elijah had whipped up. Bonnie was starving so she devoured hers in between little glances with Kol. They were having a wordless conversation where she voiced her apprehensions at being in a house full of his siblings at a time like this and he vowed to protect her.

Hayley meanwhile pushed her food around on her plate. Elijah had been watching her since the earlier accusation.

"Miss Bennett is it possible for you to perform the spell?" Elijah asked.

"Yes," Bonnie replied, "I could do the spell but I hear there is a moratorium on magic here…"

"Yes there's a witch that can tell if the other witches are performing magic," Hayley spoke up. "The punishment is death so it's really not worth it."

"Actually in this case I think it is," Bonnie said. "Stefan maybe Jeremy wants to go visit his sister." She looked at him and Stefan knew it wasn't an offer.

"Yeah, I'll check on you in a little bit," Stefan smiled and squeezed Bonnie's arm encouraging way.

"Bonnie don't do this," Jeremy worried. "They're not worth it."

"I will be fine Jere, go see your sister," Bonnie said and she waited until she knew their car had driven away.

"Okay Hayley you can get comfortable if you wish," Bonnie offered.

"This won't hurt the baby will it?" Elijah worried.

"No it's a passive spell and completely harmless to Hayley or the baby," Bonnie said. She looked to Kol and hoped that she had enough of his blood in her system to be able to handle the powerful nature magic.

"Then if you please Miss Bennett," Klaus invited. Kol stood with Bonnie and Elijah didn't miss the fact that he was guarding her. Bonnie began to chant as she got into the spell her eyes turned white. A few moments later the word 'mother' appeared on Hayley's arm. Hayley stared at it with shock. Bonnie continued to chant and Klaus waited for the word to appear on his arm but it did not. Finally Bonnie finished the spell and Kol tenderly wiped the blood from her nose with a tissue.

"I'm sorry," Bonnie apologized for though the word had disappeared from Hayley's arm Bonnie knew what the results had been and she truly felt sorry for the Mikaelsons because she understood their desire for family.

"Thank you Miss Bennett," Elijah said while Klaus was glaring at Hayley.

"Are you sure that spell was even right?" Rebekah cried foul. "Maybe the witch is working for Marcel! She's best friends with Elena and Caroline!"

"Who called me with their doubts about Hayley's pregnancy," Kol said and then his attention was returned to Bonnie as she began to collapse. "Crap" he muttered as he scooped her tenderly into his arms.

"Let me show you where she can room," Elijah offered as he headed towards the stairs and Kol followed. As they reached the top Kol spoke softly.

"Show me to my room brother" Elijah led Kol to a suite that was lavishly decorated. Kol walked inside and settled Bonnie carefully on his bed. "She will be safe in here." It was a statement and not a question.

When Elijah returned downstairs Rebekah was standing in between Klaus and Hayley.

"How dare you protect her Rebekah? She lied to us!" Klaus growled.

"You don't know that for sure; not really," Rebekah said.

"I do not doubt Bonnie's abilities," Elijah said and Hayley paled even further. He gripped her by the arm though his force wasn't excessive. "Come we'll lock you in your room until we decide what is to be done about all of this."

"Elijah you know me," Hayley pleaded.

"I also know Bonnie Bennett and my brother," Elijah said. "Kol may be many things but among them is brutally honest. I trust both of them to tell me the truth."

"This is the same brother who let you think he was dead," Hayley reminded him. Elijah looked at her with cold eyes as he put her into her suite.

"Be grateful for the leniency I am showing you and do not try my patience," he said coldly before he locked her in.

"Hayley is in her suite," Elijah said as he returned to the living room. A moment later Kol rejoined them. "How is Miss Bennett?"

"Resting peacefully," Kol said. "She will be safe here?"

"I should hope so." Klaus sighed, after discovering that he had no heir or heiress. Rebekah sneered at them.

"Not if I have any say." She had her teeth bared at them. This was her best friend and she'll be damned if anyone will ever hurt her; even her own brothers.

Kol's eyes turned cold towards Rebekah. Then he turned to Elijah, "Did you know that Elena tried to call you brother?"

"Yes about your death..." Elijah couldn't finish the sentence because that no longer made sense.

"Ah yes," Kol smiled, "Rebekah is not a very good message taker. Also she may have mentioned to Elena that Hayley was your girlfriend while Hayley carried on in the background. You...dear brother...have been played."

"Bekah?" Elijah asked curtly; daring her to lie to him again.

"How the hell do you know this?" Klaus was staring at him. "How did you know that was happening and why were the girls in his room in the first place?" he directed the last question to Rebekah who looked like a deer in headlights.

"I thought he had my jacket." She lied though the truth was, she was snooping through his phone to call one of the girls and find a way to make them come back to Mystic Falls under false pretenses.

"That doesn't answer our dear older brother's question." Klaus stared at her, also in the same way that Elijah spoke.

"I'm more curious as to why our brother was stalking us while pretending to be dead." She was trying to push herself out of their eyesight and get Kol in it.

"Ah, ah Bekah," Kol grinned, "you're slipping. You'll not make me the sacrificial lamb. I decided to use the advantage of being dead to protect my family. The cure needed to be dealt with and dead I had the anonymity I needed to deal with that. I took care of some business but I always had one eye on my family. I was here the second that you needed me and with answers. Oh and because I did have one eye on my family I know you took the call because Elena and Caroline told me. We are on good terms."

"Bekah did you tell Elena that Hayley and I were involved?" Elijah asked pointedly again.

She ignored him again but that was the wrong move as Klaus got up faster than they thought possible and pushed her against a wall, a hand around her throat.

She remembered him doing this to her back when she discovered that he was alive and had saved Caroline over her.

"Do not ignore us Rebekah or you shall be neutralized. Understand?"

"I may have implied it." Another lie but as Klaus tightened his hand around her throat, she began to pale drastically. "Yes you imbeciles!" She croaked out. "Happy Kol?"

"Why would you do that?" Klaus growled. "Why Rebekah? Do you want us all to fall apart and become weak?"

"Rebekah is not the true matter at hand," Elijah waved his hand in dismissal of that line of conversation and everyone resumed their seats.

"Brother I am sorry but Hayley must be dealt with," Elijah said gently to Klaus. Truly he was sorry about the whole affair. He had been perhaps more desperate than Klaus even at the prospect of an addition to the Mikaelson family. Kol looked to Klaus and wordlessly expressed his sympathy as well.

"Whatever happens to her," he growled out. "Let happen." Rebekah did manage to break free of her brother's hold and slapped him.

"I dare any of you to stop me especially if none of you have the daggers." She was colder and as she looked vindictively at them, she turned on her heel and left to go to Hayley's room.

She was going to get her friend out of here.

"Looks like I showed up just in time," Kol said cocking his head to one side and arching a brow.

"You always seem to show up just in the nick of time." Klaus teased sadly. He had missed his little brother a lot more than he had always thought he would. The sounds of people jumping out of a window were heard and Kol flashed outside to see Hayley in Rebekah's arms while Elena, Stefan and Jeremy were there.