Nine Months
Chapter Five: Taken Hostage
Caroline Forbes
Memories, sometimes we are blessed them and sometimes cursed. We do our best to focus on the good and push past the bad. We focus on the memories of their smile, of the sound of their laughter, the warmth of their skin and the gentle sound of their voice. We hold onto memories for what would we be without them?
My eyes felt heavier with each passing hour, they burned and ache with every blink. I hadn't slept in two days, too scared to chance my luck and escape into the safety and warmth of my dreams. I needed blood desperately, the vervain ropes were draining me my strength and even my vision was starting to blur.
Elena once told me that Katherine once said that as a vampire's body shuts down it feels like your veins rub together like sandpaper. I didn't want think about such things, I couldn't begin to imagine my body giving up and being unable to move or breathe. The idea of giving up meant my mum always wondering what happened to me and blaming herself for whatever she imagined my death to be like.
I didn't want to give up and I especially didn't want to die in this room. I couldn't see anything anymore, just darkness. I couldn't even make out a single sound from the outside, no people, no passing cars, there was nothing.
It was two days but it felt much longer, I prayed my friends were coming up with a way of finding me. I knew I would be doing the same for any of them. I just had to hold on just that little bit longer and focus on what is and not what could possibly be.
"Vampires. You know you all go around thinking you're God's gift. You have no idea the damage you inflict on people's lives. All of you, you have brought me nothing but misery"
"Change the record" I found the strength to say, my voice horse from screaming for help.
"You go around acting like you know everything. That you are everything. There's nothing special about you. You are a joke. You're dead."
"At least I know when to shut up. Keep this up you're gonna give me a hell of a headache"
"You'll be dead soon enough"
I was too weak to keep up, I was so cold and beyond trembling. I was also filthy I had been sitting in my own filth for two days. I couldn't move my fingers anymore and lost the remaining feeling in my feet hours ago. I sometimes wished my hearing would lower in strength and a certain someone's voice wouldn't get to me so much.
I hated myself to praying for my friends found me for it meant more supernatural activity and more spells for Bonnie. She would have been weak enough casting Tyler and Klaus back into their bodies and right now she was probably doing everything she could to help the others track me down. How could I pray for hope when it meant pain for her?
I knew the reason I prayed was to distract myself for my increasing hunger. I had to find some way of distracting myself from it, I felt if I didn't then I might die all the sooner.
I was glad of one thing, I had plans with my friends the same night I was taken. They would have noticed immediately something was up when I was late. By now they must have known something was wrong, I hoped they found my blood outside my house and knew whatever happened began right there.
There were clues to be found they just had to find them. Until then, I just had to hold on.
I hoped Tyler was alright and that he wasn't doing reckless things to find me. He had to stay out of sight the best he could until the rest of the council was compelled and all of this mess was finally straighten out. He was just in as much danger as I was right now. I missed him, the idea of dying here all by myself without kissing him one last time was just awful.
Even worse, we hadn't kissed once since he had returned to his body. Which meant he last person I did kiss and who kissed me back was in fact, Klaus.
"So when exactly are you planning to kill me?" I asked.
"Soon enough. Once I get what I want"
"We didn't bring you any trouble after you did what you did. You don't deserve anything from us or me"
"What makes you think this was all about you?"
I didn't have the strength to shrug my shoulders, so I merely lifted my head, looking in the direction I believed them to be standing.
"This was never about you"
"Then who is it about?" I asked
"Klaus"
Klaus Michelson
I was parked just a few car lengths from Caroline's house out of sight behind tinted windows. I watched from a distance as police photographed the front door of Caroline's house, there were evidence markers around parts of the door and foot path leading to the house.
Earlier this morning I had rolled down my window and listened as Sheriff Elizabeth Forbes spoke with her force. It seemed she had come home late from her shift and Caroline wasn't at home. After contacting her friends she had discovered Caroline hadn't shown up for plans she had with them earlier that evening, they had assumed she had forgotten.
When Caroline hadn't arrived home by the next morning the Sheriff had began checking the house for any signs of forced entry to any doors and windows but found there was nothing, no sign of any struggle. When the Sheriff stepped outside to finally call it in she had found what appeared to be blood stains from cross fire with a gun.
Whenever I could I found ways of listening in on her friends conversations over the past two days. Apparently the witch had tried to perform a locators spell but because Caroline was a vampire it had failed. Now as the witch buried her head in books trying to come up with a new plan the others had been searching across Mystic Falls for her day and night.
"Where are you?" I whispered to myself.
With the police starting to pack up at the house I decided to finally head home. I hadn't been home in two days, practically living in my car. No doubt my siblings would have questions but I didn't care, nor did I plan on informing any of them of what I was actually trying to do.
I was going to find her, I would find some way of finding her and killing whoever stood in my way. I was the oldest vampire in the world and had more cards up my sleeve then any of her sad excuse for friends.
They were merely doing what they always did and not pushing themselves to think bigger and try harder. Try the way Caroline would if any of them were in the same situation she now found herself in.
I didn't know why this had happened to her or could think of anyone who wanted to hurt her.
They made a mistake in taking her away, taking her from me.
I pulled up at my house and cut the engine finding all their cars were parked by the garages, they were all at home and would probably all have questions. Kol might not, he never did see beyond his own nose.
As I stepped out the car my phone began to ring and I quickly retrieved it from my jacket pocket.
"What?" I answered.
"Hello Klaus" Said an unfamiliar voice.
"Who is this?"
"I have something of yours"
My jaw tightens then in realization stopping immediately in my tracks. I looked around at the surrounding windows and found none of my siblings were listening.
"Are you still there?"
"Yes" I answered.
"Good"
"What do you want?" I asked.
"I want your blood"
"Another person who wants me dead"
"I don't care if you live or die all I want is the blood"
"Why?"
"That's none of your concern. Your concern is the girl"
I smirked "And what makes you think I care what happens to her?" I asked.
"I haven't mentioned her name and yet you knew who I was talking about"
My smirk dropped then.
"I've been keeping a close eye for weeks, don't doubt what I know about you and what I know about her"
"Who are you?"
"No more questions. I'll be in touch"
With that the line went dead.
Memories, sometimes we are blessed them and sometimes cursed. We do our best to focus on the good and push past the bad. We focus on the memories of their smile, of the sound of their laughter, the warmth of their skin and the gentle sound of their voice. We hold onto memories for what would we be without them?... Without memories, we would never know love, we would never know the power of forgiveness or the strength of hope.
"Christ" I muttered and clenching the phone in my hand.
I turned in the direction of the door and paused finding Elijah there. He stepped towards me pushing both his hands into the pockets of his trousers. Pausing before me he studied me, reading me the way he had done all our lives, like I was his favourite book.
"Well, I believe we have some catching up to do, Nicklaus"