Chapter 31

"We don't want him thinking that there was anything underhanded," Kol said. "He has got to hear it with his own ears to know it for the truth that it is. Otherwise he might think Elijah and I engineered it to stack something against him. I love Nik but he's very paranoid when it comes to his own siblings."

"With the numerous times he's daggered each and every one of you." Elena nodded. "He needs to hear this from her mouth."

"Hopefully he won't end up daggering her and compelling Stefan." Elijah said as he rubbed Elena's lower back. When Klaus and Caroline returned they were kissing and cuddling. Bonnie smiled. Everyone went in to check on Rebekah, Stefan and the baby. Rebekah had her daughter settled against her bent legs and she had unwrapped her to look at her little fingers and toes as well as the rest of her. In that moment she was a completely loving mother as she cooed softly to her newborn child.

"How's the new mommy doing?" Elena asked as she walked into the room. Rebekah looked completely enthralled with her daughter and ignored everyone else around her. Stefan looked at Elena and nodded.

"They're both doing well." He stated proudly. "Both are healthy as can be." He kissed his daughter's little button nose she inherited from her mother.

"She's beautiful," Bonnie smiled as she moved to get a better look at the baby. Stefan was obviously on cloud nine. The girls had never seen him so happy. He was obviously a proud father.

"Can I hold my niece, sister?" Kol asked and Rebekah held her daughter out for Kol to hold.

"Be gentle with her! She's extremely fragile." Rebekah cautioned. Kol held her correctly, once Stefan helped him out, and the psychotic Original grinned at her.

"Such a little thing." He said as he nuzzled her nose with his. "So little and sweet."

"And mine; mine and Stefan's," Rebekah smiled.

"How are you feeling?" Kol asked.

"Completely back to my normal self," Rebekah said. Kol was enthralled by the baby in his arms. He looked to his brothers wondering if they were going to question her now.

As Elijah inclined his head, as if to say yes, Kol cleared his throat.

"Sister...as we're all still worried about what happened to Elena, do you think that you could tell us what happened?" he asked.

She furrowed her brows. "What I know of that was when I went up there to check on Caroline, Elena wasn't around. I hadn't seen her at all. I assumed that she was downstairs with all of you so I went to see how Caroline was doing. I left and went to bed as I was exhausted." She plastered on the fake sincerity and confusion on her face, hoping that her brothers would believe her.

Something inside Klaus made him stare at her. "You didn't see her or anyone else? Didn't sense them?" He knew that if a strange vampire, human or witch-hell, even a werewolf-Rebekah would have sensed them.

Even while pregnant. Something about her story didn't make sense and it annoyed him to no end.

"That's not what you told me," Kol reminded her pointedly. "You admitted to snapping her neck and dragging her into the vervain room because we were too interested in the girls."

"I don't remember saying that." The blonde lied. "I think that your memories are getting much foggier than I had originally thought." She gave him a pointed look. "You gave me a hypothetical question and I gave you a hypothetical reason. Why in the world would I really hurt you and our brothers?"

"You've daggered me four times." Elijah noted. She shook her head.

"It was for your own good. Nik would have done it if I hadn't intervened and calmed him down." She sniffed.

"You put his coffin in the pool Rebekah!" Kol said glaring at her.

"To hide him from Nik and whoever else would have tried to use him for his own good." She sniffed again. Kol carefully passed Rebekah's daughter to Elena so that she and Elijah could see the infant. Rebekah's façade began to slip.

Caroline noticed it and said, "are you okay?" Rebekah must have realized and slipped back into a different mask and gave her a fake smile.

"I'm doing better." She looked at her daughter and mentally decided against killing Elena now. No, she'd have to wait until her brat popped out. "I'm just really sleepy now-midnight feedings and all-and would like to sleep." She gave her brothers a pointed stare. "I'm sure that my Lilly wants to sleep as well." The baby, in fact, was enthralled with being held by her father once Elijah passed her over to him.

"Sleep well sister," Elijah kissed her on the forehead and the other brothers followed him.

"Don't hesitate to wake us if you need anything," Bonnie offered. Again she received the fake smile.

"She's definitely up to something," Klaus said when they were safely in Kol's suite where a charm brought them complete privacy.

"I'm afraid she's not going to give up Elijah," Kol worried as he settled his pregnant fiancée on his lap.

"That puts all three of them in danger," Klaus said and he guided a sleepy Caroline onto his lap.

"This was also one of the things we needed to know where your loyalties lie." Elijah explained as Elena fell asleep on his lap. "Elena showed me her memory of the day she was attacked and it was Rebekah who did it." He sighed as he carded his fingers through Elena's hair with a sad smile.

A knock on the door made Klaus stand up with a sleepy Caroline in his arms and as he opened it, he saw Jeremy and Davina there.

"Have a seat," Kol offered with Bonnie on his lap.

"This looks like a meeting if ever I saw one," Jeremy said.

"It is a meeting about Rebekah." Kol said to them.

"Is this about getting her to talk about what she did to Elena?" Davina asked.

"Yes, we need to make sure that all of you women are safe," Elijah replied.

"Rebekah isn't going to make this easy," Kol said. "She's had a thousand years to learn all our tricks."

"Then we need to teach you some new tricks that no one knows." Davina said with a smile that looked a bit menacing.

"Sweetheart you're welcome to try but we've either seen it or invented it," Klaus smiled.

"I'm open to anything that will keep the girls safe," Kol said.

"Have you ever invented the reverse psychology trick?" Jeremy asked, quite intrigued about it.

"What kind of reverse would you like us to pull on her? Would you have us cast Elena, Bonnie and Caroline out? See if that set of circumstances is to her liking?" Elijah asked.

"Something like that..." Davina looked at them and grinned. "Say that Katherine called each of you and told you all that the girls are cheating on you and Damon called the girls to say that same thing. Huge blow out fight and the girls left, not wanting you all in the children's lives."

"That's not really reverse psychology." Kol amended.

"It's not but it's a great plan." Klaus said. "Ladies... I want you to leave New Orleans for a few days and I'll send Jeremy to bring you back here."

Elena, who was now waking up, was not thrilled with leaving New Orleans.

"Good plan but I'm not leaving here." She said stubbornly.

Bonnie looked deep in Kol's eyes. She was more than a little afraid of this plan.

"We can do this, BonBon. All you have to remember is that it's not real. Remember that I want always and forever."

"I'm going to go to Lucy's in Florida," Bonnie said.

"Take Caroline with you please," Klaus asked. "I just got her back..." He looked heartbroken as he gazed down at the angel asleep in his arms.

Bonnie nodded and as Elena looked at Elijah, he kissed her.

"Please my love...just for a bit then you can come back here." Elijah pleaded.

Her eyes hardened and moved out of his lap. She didn't say anything to anyone and went into her room.

"It's not forever." Elijah told her as he was at the doorway to their room. "Just for a few days and then you can come back here when it's safe." He moved over to her and wrapped his arms around her.

"What about-" she couldn't finish the sentence as Elijah kissed her deeply.

"I'll take care of the birds."

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