It was an early morning, but the air was getting warmer under the clear sky with the sun spilling its splendor over the still sleeping town of Mystic Falls. Alaric found it hard to bear so much light and brightness, the warmth and overall welcoming spirit of the starting day when he had to live through it knowing Jo would never enjoy such day again. His head was buzzing from the liquor he had consumed the day before, but he welcomed it. He deserved the hurt, deserved the constant reminders of his misery that had his heart in a painful vice. He could have prevented it, could have done what she wanted, could have taken her away where no one knew to be looking, could have… could have…
'Leave town,' Matt had said on his bachelor party. 'That's my advice. Take your happy fiancé, your unborn baby and your miracle life, and get out. Before it's too late.'
His eyes had a sheen of tears on them, Alaric recalled. Good old Matt, he knew it best. Unfortunately, Alaric had believed he knew it even better. He wanted their friends (killer friends, as Matt had put it) have a celebration, he wanted Jo to experience it as this big amazing moment to start off their life together.
What a tool he had been!
They already had everything they needed to feel amazing. All he had to do was pack their bags and do as Matt said. As he had promised Jo he would do.
What wouldn't he give now to get back to that bachelor party moment — to get up, thank Matt, and do just that. Immediately, no goodbyes, no explanations.
What wouldn't he give.
Only, there was nothing he could give, anymore. Nothing to lose. Nothing to live for. He felt like a ghost that could go right through objects. He felt numb, even though he hadn't drunk anything since he woke up in a start with his face puffy and wet from tears. He trudged through the streets, not caring where his feet carried him. He just wanted to be away from his stale dark hole of an apartment. He had barely gotten rid of the nurse Stefan had probably compelled to bug him, and now he just wanted to walk until he fell dead. Was that possible? He wanted to trust it was.
After a while, he had to stop to catch a break — his side developed a pretty bad stitch. As he took an idle glance around, taking careful breaths (funny how your body wanted to take it easy on itself even when you felt nothing for being alive, anymore), he glimpsed the dark and ominous silhouette of the Boarding House amidst the trees. His skin turned cold at the idea of seeing it, at the memory of the damned barn…
And then, his feet still carried him there, to the damn porch and under the arc of the entrance. The door was unlocked, of course. And he let himself in before his sluggish brain realized what he was doing.
It was quiet inside, as though the air and time here stood as still as Alaric had felt inside cradling his dead wife in his lap on that wooden stage, and her blood was soaking his pants.
He shook his head, winced at the painful twinge that was the harbinger of a migraine, and walked towards the basement. Bonnie had been keeping that bastard in the basement, hadn't she. Ric didn't really believe he would see Kai there, nor Bonnie, but somehow it was where his body carried his tortured mind for whatever reason unknown to him. He walked along the cells, stopped in front of one that had a huge dark stain on the floor. It was dried blood, he could tell. Something white was spilt all over the threshold. Salt? Yes, that cell had to be it. Had Bonnie been trying to desiccate Kai here? Alaric thought she wouldn't have left if that were the case. But she took off with the freak in the end. Deep down, Alaric thought Damon — or his attitude — had something to do with it. It all came to Damon again. First, that damned coven family home, then the damned ascendant, and now Bonnie took Kai away before Ric could attempt to set things right or have the bastard finally finish him off to be with Jo.
Alaric shook his head again, winced. He didn't want to think about Bonnie now. Whether she actually had a plan or went off the rocker as Damon assumed, it was none of Ric's business. He didn't want to have anything to do with anyone here anymore. He probably needed to pack and leave. Or just leave, without packing. He didn't care either way.
He made a few more steps further into the basement, and froze. A small gasp, more like a whimper, escaped him. He stared down at the lying figure wrapped in the white of her dress like the Sleeping Beauty, or Snow White sans the crystal coffin. Ric stumbled into the cell and fell on his knees beside her. Two spears of jagged pain thrust through his legs at impact, but he barely noticed. Tears were hot on his cheeks, trickling down, blurring his vision just enough to fool himself that she was merely sleeping.
God, how beautiful she was. Impossibly beautiful.
Maybe it's my fault, he thought suddenly, as though some foreign, unpleasant voice whispered it from the darkest recess of his mind. Maybe it's you, it whispered. Isobel, then Jenna… They all made a fatal mistake of choosing you, and you killed them. You couldn't keep a woman alive if your life depended on it. The ugly voice cackled, and cackled.
Alaric hung his head, and wept.
Caroline heard the weeping as she stepped into the basement to get some blood bags, following the sound until she found Ric on the floor beside his dead wife. Her heart broke at the sight and tears filled her eyes. She knew what he was going through. The grief. What he'd witnessed, though, how he'd lost her — that had been something else entirely. There was no way to make that better. Seeing him this broken, she wished she'd taken the time to bury Jo, to make a memorial for her where he didn't have to look at her blood-soaked wedding dress and remember everything that had happened in stark clarity. Guilt swam through her as she moved to his side, easing onto the floor beside him, her hand coming to rest on his back gently. She didn't say anything, didn't greet him, merely letting him know that he wasn't alone anymore.
Ric recoiled from the touch, but when he saw it was her, his body relaxed a bit. He wiped his face, still eyeing Jo, unable to look away. "You found Bonnie?" he asked, remembering their visit the other day.
"Briefly," Caroline said, continuing to rub his back. She didn't want to push or pull him away from his wife's side. "She's okay though. Better than she was. A lot happened. You don't need to worry about that now."
"Kai with her?" Ric turned to spear her with a keen look of his red-rimmed eyes.
Caroline wondered who'd told her that? Damon? When did he even find the time. The jerk. Bonnie had said she'd purposely made an illusion to give Alaric a sense of peace for awhile and somehow it had been snatched. She nodded. "He saved her," Caroline said, lowering her voice slowly. "He took her away again. Lily— Lily was torturing her."
Ric kept still, eyeballing her in silence for a long moment, then squinted as though thinking he heard it all wrong. "Excuse me, what? What the hell happened?"
"Bonnie decided to leave. Damon chased her. Got his mother involved and everything just went completely wrong. It's been a nightmare," Caroline said, the last word stretched out a bit apologetically. She could only imagine how he was feeling now. It had to be much worse for him. "Lets… let's go upstairs. We can have some tea."
He made no attempt to move, his eyes boring into hers. "What is she doing with Kai?"
"She's trying to fix her mistakes," Caroline said, choosing her words carefully.
"What mistakes?" Those short, confusing answers were beginning to annoy him. He felt like channeling his grief into anger.
"Choices she made," Caroline added. She and Bonnie had spoken about it, but it didn't feel right to throw it out there as though she was speaking for her. It was something that Bonnie needed to explain herself. "Things she did in the past."
"What does it have to do with that maniac?"
"The prisoner world. Nineteen-o-three. There's a sort of domino effect that happened," Caroline continued, using her hands as she spoke, not wanting to gesture on the floor beside them. "She feels responsible. She's trying to do something differently."
He grimaced with disbelief. "Like what? Reverse it all and bring Jo back? Nothing else would fix anything. That bastard needs to die for what he's done."
"I don't know. I wish reversing it was that easy… she would have done that already," Caroline said, her eyes fixing on Jo. There wasn't even a doubt in her mind. But not every death could be fixed. "What would it solve if he dies?"
His lips pulled in a bitter, humorless sneer. "You really saying that now?"
"It's not going to bring Jo back," Caroline stated softly.
"She wouldn't want him to remain in this world," he played back. "He destroyed her family, her— our children." His throat contracted in a bout of grief that rolled up, refreshing the sheen of tears in his eyes. He squeezed them shut, turning away to contain them.
"I'm so sorry," Caroline offered. It was the only thing that she could say. Anything else would have sounded condescending. She slid an arm around his shoulders, squeezing him gently. "I—I wish it was different."
He shook his head. "All those words are useless now. You can stop saying that. What was that with Lily and torture? What actually happened? What did Damon do?"
"He kidnapped Bonnie. Chained her up. Lily intervened and it got ugly," Caroline explained. She didn't bother to mention that they still had him tied up and on time-out. That Stefan had gone so far as to take away his daylight ring. Not that he felt good about it. The more time passed, the more restless he was becoming. Ric would only make that worse.
Alaric frowned, struggling to take it in. Damon compelling him to take advantage of Jo for his personal gain was one thing. But chaining Bonnie was something from the earlier version of Damon Alaric used to hate. Feeling more confused by the second, he tried to clarify: "You said Bonnie was with Kai. How did Damon kidnap her?"
"She was running. Trying to put distance between herself and Mystic Falls. He was hunting her. Using locators, the cops and his mother to force her into a corner. She went to talk to him, and, as far as I understand, he ended up drugging her," Caroline said. When she listened to her own explanation, it sounded ridiculous. Like something you'd read in a book.
Alaric chuckled; there was amazement and sarcasm in it and not a drop of humor. "Sounds like Damon we used to know. Guess nothing really changed, then." He ran a hand through his hair, emitting a sigh. Then glanced back at Caroline. "What happened then? Just tell me as it is, don't make me pull it out of you."
"Then? You mean after he kidnapped her and brought her back to the Boarding House?" Caroline asked, arching an eyebrow. She'd been telling him in bits and pieces and trying to decide where to go with the next bit of information. She didn't want to repeat herself. "He tied her up. I tried to set her free, and Lily appeared. With Enzo." Caroline went into detail about what happened afterwards. How they'd been trapped, forced to listen to her cries and how at the last minute Kai appeared to come from nowhere and helped Bonnie. She even told him about Kai setting her free as well, allowing her to help Stefan and take care of Enzo and Lily.
Alaric nodded. "Damon's idea exploded in everyone's faces. What's new." A shadow of concern passed through his face. "Why you think Kai didn't kill anyone? He could've killed all of you, or at least Damon — unless controlling Bonnie is what he wanted all along."
"No idea," Caroline said, shrugging lightly. "I didn't have a chance to talk to him. He was here and the next second he was gone. I wish I understood it, but I hope, pray that at least it means Bonnie is safe."
"How can you think that? It's Kai. You were at the wedding." Visibly aggravated, he got off the floor.
"Call it instinct. If he wanted to hurt her, to kill her, he has plenty opportunity and he has yet to do it. I can't be so sure about the rest of us though," Caroline said, watching as he rose to his feet.
"He could've killed Jo when he came to us to ask her for her magic," Ric reasoned, peering at her with keen certainty. "When he found out about the pregnancy. But he chose to pull a bloody show at her wedding instead. He doesn't always go for quick solutions, Caroline. He cares about his own twisted pleasure he draws from how his plans and schemes fall into place. Bonnie's just his second revenge project. He's biding his time to make it more painful for her. And for all those who love her."
Caroline blinked, stunned, unable to object with anything as she watched him readying to leave. She waited a beat, her eyes falling to Jo and then she took stood. "How'd you know she was here?"
He cast a glance at Jo, his mouth tightening. He shook his head. "I didn't."
"Then why did you come here?" Caroline asked, meeting his eyes. Was he looking for something in particular?
It took a major effort to tear his eyes from his dead wife. He shook his head again, "I don't know." And staggered out of the cell, rubbing his eyes.
Caroline followed him slowly. "Alaric. Please… I— what is it you'd like to do with her? We should start making plans to bury her. A funeral."
"I can't think about it right now," he muttered, staggering towards the stairs like a drunk man. "I can't."
Caroline sped up, wanting to reach out to steady him but fighting herself on the instinct. "She's… we have to do something soon. I know it's hard. I'll help you…"
"Don't touch me," he warned in a weary voice, and began to ascend the stairs. "I'll take her from here. By tonight." Having her stay here didn't sit with him. Salvatores and their land were cursed. They caused it all somehow. Mainly, Damon and his ideas. First the ascendant, then dragging Jo to save Elena, and so on. Always chasing his agendas. Even though his Elena was locked away in her own coffin, at least she wasn't dead. Alaric wondered if he would have preferred something like that for Jo. At least there would be hope. He would kill for a drop of hope.
"Take her where?" Caroline asked. She was beginning to worry. "Have you eaten?"
"Don't worry about me. Worry about Bonnie and your friends that are still alive." He stepped over the last stair with effort, then glanced at her. "Where's Damon?"
"You are my friend," Caroline reminded, pausing when he seemed to slow and almost trip over the top step. Her hands automatically moved to brace him should he fall. When he didn't she balled them into fists and lowered them to her side. "He is on a time-out."
Alaric seemed surprised. "You locked him up? And Stefan is fine with it?"
"It was his idea," Caroline answered. "I just don't know how long he'll keep it up. I don't think he—its complicated."
Alaric knew as much. It was always way too complicated between them. "Now that he saw Bonnie sided with Kai, he'll get her killed next time. There's nothing he wouldn't do to spite Kai for Elena. If Bonnie dies, he gets her back. The sole thing he wants."
He turned to leave.
Caroline wondered if she should follow him home. He still seemed out of it. "Let me take you home, Alaric."
"No." He reached the door and went out.
Stefan appeared beside Caroline who was staring after Alaric. "I'll make sure he gets home safely," Stefan said, stepping outside. He'd been listening from upstairs. If he was honest, he didn't know how to deal with Alaric right now. His heart broke for the man. And there was nothing he could do to make it right.
Caroline nodded, sighing in relief, backtracking back inside to find her phone so she could try to contact Bonnie and then go check on their prisoners. Alaric's take on Bonnie's situation began to gnaw at her nerves.
What if Bonnie was indeed caught in the web of her demise so carefully weaved by Kai?
Bonnie was still buried into the crook of Kai's arm when she opened her eyes and began to stir, picking up on the scent of a freshly cooked breakfast close to her nose. She tilted her head slightly, searching, and found it on the bedside table. Eggs, toast and bacon. "You made me breakfast," Bonnie said unnecessarily, a slow smile spreading on her lips, her voice groggy from sleep. She hadn't thought she'd be able to sleep and yet she had. She'd just passed out.
Kai stirred, made a confirming hem.
She stretched until her hands moved around his neck, dragging herself against him, her lips finding his in a kiss to thank him for the effort. "Thank you," she murmured against his mouth in case it wasn't obvious, and then slowly began to force herself to move. She needed to make use of the bathroom. She didn't want to get up, though. She was warm, he was cozy, and she knew for a fact she wouldn't find the same comfy spot again.
He was watching her lazily, an amused smile curving his mouth. He could read her struggles in her body language.
She clung to him as long as the pressure on her bladder would allow. Which was only a few more seconds before it started stabbing her. "Alright, alriiiight," she moaned dramatically and as if someone was trying to drag her away from him. She eased off the side of the bed, stumbling in the direction of the bathroom, tripping over a shoe, almost seeing her ass on the way. She righted herself, shut the door behind her and made quick use of the toilet. When she emerged, her face had been washed, her hair tied away from her face with a few hair clips and her teeth were freshly brushed. "Don't suppose you decided where you want to go next?"
He shrugged, grinning. "Since you mentioned Vegas, I could go with that."
She moved to the edge of the bed and sat down, picking at the breakfast. It was still warm. Magic. She smiled to herself, broke off a piece of bread, dipped it into the yolk and popped it into her mouth to chew. She probably should have held off brushing her teeth.
"And we're what? Going to spend our days gambling?" she asked, her lips twisting as if the idea amused her. She couldn't imagine it. She never had. Although she had wanted to go there at least once.
"It's surrounded by desert — a perfect place for you to practice some offensive magic."
"Oh," Bonnie said, nodding once, pulling her plate into her lap. "That works."
Kai looked smug. "I know."
She fell silent, watching him, eating her breakfast, her nerves beginning to shift as she thought back to the day before. To Lily. To her limbs breaking. The pain. The fact that the Heretics were out there and would soon be free. She was trying to brush it off, to minimize what was going to come, but even pretending wasn't getting anywhere. She polished off her breakfast as if she'd been starved, and then climbed off the bed, walking over to her cupboard to see what clothes she wanted to take with her. "Will we need any witchy things? Herbs?"
"Take everything you feel you need. I've no idea, I never fought an army of six Heretics before."
Bonnie trembled, made a mental note and went about searching for everything. "What if we desiccate them like you did Lily?"
Kai smirked. "Focus, Bonster. Lily's a vampire. Those are witches. Six very powerful witches capable of all things I can do. They also got numbers."
"They're still part vampire," Bonnie pointed out. She wondered if Kai'd have died had she indeed staked him at some point. Which brought another thought to mind: how was he able to walk in daylight? Was it the magic? He never really mentioned it and she never pried before. Would they be able to do the same? Was their magic siphoning from the vampire part to protect them or visa versa? She'd never really studied up on the Heretics, but maybe she should. If there was a prison world for 1903 that she could assume her ancestors had a part in making, then there had to be information on them somewhere.
She grabbed a handful of clothes, clean underwear, and dumped it all on the foot of the bed to tuck into a bag, then headed out of the room to her grandmother's study.
"Magic reacts quicker than vampire speed," Kai explained. "Imagine dealing with six clones of me and each of them has hundreds years of experience, three times more magic than you, and anticipates your moves."
The house wasn't the mansion so she could still hear him, and it was food for thought. That was scary. When she appeared back at the door, she was staring at him with wide eyes. "I lost my phone."
He frowned. "Wasn't it still in the bag?"
"Bag," Bonnie murmured, nodded as she slipped back into the room. She was all over the place. Just like her head. She dug around in her bag, searching for her phone, grateful when she found it, but annoyed when she saw it needed to be charged. Fucking Damon. She sighed, pulled free her cable, plugged it into the wall and attached her phone. She connected it to the internet, waited a beat as the messages updated, and then began to read through the ones from Caroline. She replied: 'I'm okay. With Kai. Will let you know where else I am.' She hit send, set it down and moved to stuff her clothes into the bad. Kai still hadn't moved. "You hungry yet?"
"I'm always hungry," he retorted, and pointed at the phone. "Hope you won't do anything stupid like telling them where else to kidnap you?"
"I'm just keeping Caroline updated," Bonnie said. "I don't want her worrying again and going crazy on me. I also—I should tell her about the Heretics. They should know. They should be able to be prepared and decide for themselves what to do should something happen. They have Lily. Do they know she's alive?"
He gave her a look. "I don't have their phone number to ask. And whatever Caroline knows her boyfriend will know, and then maybe Damon will catch on, and then the Heretics will easily get it out of any of them. Do you understand? No one's supposed to know. No one. Period. Should I smash your phone or you got the idea?"
"Do you understand that they're worried about me? That I don't need them running all over the country to find me?" Bonnie asked, arching a brow from where she stood hovering over him a little. "I need my phone. You might not understand that, but I'm pretty sure they didn't have cellphones in 1903. They probably wouldn't know what to look out for, and Caroline and Stefan are okay. They'll play it smarter this time." She didn't even have to ask them to know that. They'd all had a hard lesson.
Kai sat up, peering at her sharply, beginning to get annoyed by her dumb streak. "They're vampire witches, Bonnie. They can read thoughts if they want to. They can get in your vampire buddies' heads if they want to. They will know everything Lily will happily tell them about your merry gang of losers, and they will use every ounce of their power to get to you wherever you are. If you tell Caroline or anyone where we are, it's over. Right that moment. Which part of all this gets lost in translation for you?"
"I'm not telling her where I am. I'm letting her know I'm alive," Bonnie stated. She wasn't meaning to update her on everything that they were doing. Even she'd learned that bit. Why wasn't he paying attention? She shook her head, stuffed the last of her clothes into the bag, peered down at herself to double check she was clean and then started to change into a pair of jeans and a another tee-shirt. "It's a long way to Vegas. I guess, if we want to get on the road—we should get going soon."
Kai sighed, getting up from the bed. "Okay. I see it's not really coming through, must be some white noise in your brain… I guess a little demonstration is in order." He made a show of closing his eyes as if to concentrate, exhaling slowly, shaking his hands by his sides, then he looked at her, and in a perfect one-hundred-percent identical imitation of Caroline's voice said, "Oh my God, Bonnie! Are you okay? I was so worried! Where are you? Just tell me, I need to know. I won't tell anyone, I promise! Not even Stefan, I swear." Next came a perfectly imitated Stefan's voice: "Bonnie? I… I'm sorry it came to this, I really am, but… Damon's dead. They got Caroline and they'll rip her heart out if you don't return to Mystic Falls asap." He tipped his head sideways, giving her a See now? look, his arms spreading as though waiting for her to draw the obvious conclusion.
Bonnie frowned, disturbed by the fact that he was able to mess with his voice and sound exactly like Stefan and Caroline. The worst part of all his magic tomfoolery was that it wasn't far off from what she imagined could happen. What had happened in the past. It actually scared Bonnie how much he knew her. How he knew it would be the easiest to get her back to Mystic Falls.
She rubbed at the spot between her eyes, drawing in a ragged breath, trying not to be shaken by what he was saying and the fact that her nerves were on edge again. She couldn't very well leave Caroline on the edge. That didn't work either. "That's what having friends is like."
"I know and I sympathize," he said, rolling his eyes a little as he folded his arms and rocked on his feet flippantly. "But what I just showed you means you can't trust anything you hear on the phone, see on its screen, etcetera etcetera… You gotta call her, ask her to delete your number and make sure everyone else does the same. Then we get you a new number and you get in line with the training program."
"So first you don't want me to have contact with her, now you want me to call her—" Bonnie had to smile at his contradictions. She also knew that it was mostly just to get on his nerves. He was annoyed, she was beginning to get annoyed. "Let's just take one step at a time. You said the spell's still intact, so we still have a little time."
"A teeny-tiny bit of time, which I can't really calculate for your convenience," Kai elaborated, looking prickly and jocular at the same time. "But you better tell her that the contacts stop entirely before we leave. There should be absolutely no way to get to you unless they actually begin to do a locator spell."
"That's not going to work," Bonnie said, her hands on her hips. "There has to be some form of communication. Something I can do for her so that she knows that I'm okay." She didn't want to have to lie about it either. And she might if she has to. She didn't want Caroline to have to worry about her and get stupid.
Kai tried to squelch the vexation by reminding himself that yelling his point at her or knocking her out would not win him any favors with her, nor help her finally grasp what he was trying to explain. He approached her and took her face in his hands, bending slightly to level with her. "I know what and why you wanna do. But it's desperate times, life or death not just for you and me, but for this whole town and beyond. And Caroline will understand if you tell her it's a sacrifice you both have to make. Think she cares enough about you to make it if you ask? I think the idea is she kinda will." He let go of her, straightening, and smiled. "If even I got faith in her, you should, too."
Bonnie met his eyes, taking in the advice he was giving. Now that he was coming at her with a bit more logic and a little less 'you have to' the more sense it made, the more willing she was to play the game. She just didn't like the idea of being out of contact with her friends. She'd already had to deal with that where the prison world was concerned and now she was forced to get into it again. It made her sad. "I'll do my best."
"It's to spare them torture and death — think about that. If there's no way the Heretics can use them to get to you — the less reasons they have to mess with your Blondie and co. They'll just focus on us, and we — hopefully — can deal with it somehow. Anywho," he swatted a hand dismissively, "we'll figure it out when it comes. Now, I will much appreciate it if you make that last call and we move out. Chop-chop." He flashed her a grin and strolled out of the room, and down the stairs, humming a tune.
Bonnie watched him make his not so grand exit, collected her phone from where she'd put it to charge a few minutes ago and started dialing Caroline's number. Caroline answered immediately.
"Bonnie?"
"Yeah, it's me," she said, sounding sad when she heard her friend's voice.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I wanted to hear your voice."
"Is something wrong?" Caroline asked. "You sure you're okay? Where are you?"
"Everything is wrong," Bonnie supplied, smiling into the phone, cushioning something that was awkward and that hurt her quite a bit. How she wanted things to be normal. "It's not going to be getting any better any time soon."
She told Caroline about the Heretics, about the spell Kai had on them and the fact that it was beginning to wear away, and that she would have to take precautions. She didn't know when it would happen, how it would happen, but they needed to be careful with Lily. She would be their only bargaining chip. Bonnie saved the last part about not being able to call her anymore for the end. Messages were out, too. Caroline started crying, and so did Bonnie. When she hung up, it was as if they'd been sentenced to prison time. More prison time.
She tossed the phone aside, collected her bag, and exited her bedroom, heading back to her grandmother's study to get some ingredients. Charms. Anything that might help them stay under the radar and prevent anyone from casting anymore locator spells on her.
When Bonnie's call ended, Kai waited for her to go about her packing, and quietly returned to her room. He picked up her phone and went back, descending the stairs while typing a number into it.
"Ready to go?" Bonnie asked. She'd taken a few more of her grandmother's books. Those she hoped would have more information on the Heretics. She tucked the bag against her side and glanced one last time at the shelf where her grandmother's pictures were. Where Jo was. "I'll drive," she announced, feeling that safety of being in her own space begin to slowly evaporate as she made her way out onto the porch. It was daylight. They would definitely be seen this time if any nosy neighbors were hanging around.
"Who made you the boss?" Kai said, snatching her now heavy bag from her grip and replacing it with her phone. "I know where to drive and you don't. Just kick back and enjoy being carried, okay? Okay." He pointed ahead and began to stride. "Don't fall back, or your cloak fails and you're out there naked and vulnerable and crying… and I'm already a mile away… and it's just tragic all round."
"I'll do my best to keep up with you," Bonnie said, taking the phone. He still hadn't fed and he had one spell that was consistent. Part of her was jealous of his capabilities. "I thought you wanted me to leave this behind?"
"You're forgetting something." He tossed her a wily glance over his shoulder. "That's your… Lucinda whatever number. I memorized it from Damon's phone. Yes, yes, I know I'm a genius, thank you. Save the applauds."
"Lucy?" Bonnie asked, scrolling through to the contacts. She hadn't spoken to her since the party a couple years back. She'd tried. She'd wanted to. It just never happened. Bonnie didn't know how to start reaching out to her, and when she did, it was as if her blood had turned cold. What would her cousin think knowing that she'd gotten her into trouble again? That she'd fucked things up for Lucy after everything she'd been through with Katherine? Her nerves kicked in and she pocketed the phone. She knew it was selfish but she needed a few minutes to work up the courage to call her.
"And if you have your mom's number, it'd be really cool," he added. "You got it, don't you?"
"I do— did. I know it out of my head. I didn't use it often but uh... I keep tabs on her through Jaime," Bonnie said, thinking about her number. She removed the phone from her pocket, found her contacts and added the number to her phone as she could remember it. Her only hope was that it was right. She couldn't go asking Caroline for the number when she'd told her they couldn't talk for awhile. "I... I didn't tell her I was alive."
"Think your friends left it out?" Kai reached the car and tossed the bag on the backseat.
"No, of course not. I'm saying I didn't tell her. I didn't call her. Me personally," Bonnie said. She'd never wanted Abby to know. She hadn't thought her mother cared anyway, especially after she'd been turned into a vampire. "The last time we spoke we were dealing with Klaus. With the Originals. And now we have another set to deal with."
"Well, you and I will deal with it. So just tell her she gotta dig a bigger hole and crawl deeper into it so they don't catch a whiff of her vampire perfume." He gestured for Bonnie to get in. "I'll be right back. Call your cousin and don't move from here."
Next instant, he was gone.
Bonnie sank into the passenger seat, her phone in her lap, trying to decide whom to call first. Both would be awkward. One more than the other. She counted backwards in her head, played a brief game of eeny, meeny, miny, moe and ultimately decided to go with Lucy.
"Hello," An unfamiliar voice said in greeting after a few rings. She sounded a bit out of breath. Like she'd been running or doing something else entirely.
"Hi… um… I'm looking to… is this Lucy's phone? Lucy Bennett."
"The one and only," she said after a brief pause. "Who's askin'?"
"Bonnie—"
"Bonnie!" Lucy repeated. "I can't believe you're calling me. It's been such a long time. What's the occasion? Did your friend Damon find you?"
"He did," Bonnie said, unable to push aside the bitterness that swept through her at the mention of his name. What was he thinking today? Was he sorry for what he'd done? What he'd tried to do to her?
"Is everything okay? I—I didn't get you into any trouble, did I?"
"No, no… I'm fine. Just do me a favor and don't deal with him anymore. I… there's a lot going on my side. A lot that's… have you heard of the Heretics?"
"A whisper or two. I never really looked into them. Why?" Lucy asked, assuming that Bonnie was calling her to either ask advice or gain some information. Bonnie explained what had happened, what she'd done to the heretics, how she'd accidentally been the cause of them being set free and that they'd threatened to kill the Bennett bloodline. Lucy was quiet for a minute before she let out a low whistle.
"Sounds like you got yourself into a real pickle, Bonnie."
"Not only me," Bonnie said sounding apologetic and sad. "I don't know what to do. I don't know… if there is anyone else that needs to know about this, please… warn everyone."
"I'll do that," Lucy murmured. She wasn't annoyed, but she was alarmed, a panic that she was unable to hide from Bonnie. She understood it too, and felt the same way. "Well, cousin, I—it's been lovely chatting to you. Hearing from you. I've to go."
"Yeah! Me too. I'm sorry—"
"Don't be," Lucy said, sounding confident. Bonnie was grateful for her understanding.
"If you need me, if you need to make contact with me, then please contact me through my friend Caroline," Bonnie said, quickly giving her the number before hanging up. She waited a beat and then made the call to Abby. Abby didn't answer. Jaime did but the call was no more awkward. They'd spent a bit of time together and they were in contact every so often, but for the most part, their relationship was estranged. Jaime was convinced she only came with bad luck or with some kind of means to hurt their mother. And he told her as much. Bonnie was punishing Abby for abandoning her. She'd denied it, said that a lot had happened and that she had nothing to be sorry for, but that she was sorry for giving them more bad news. She told him that they needed to run, to stop communication with Damon should he try to contact them, and then said her goodbyes.
Afterwards she sat crying quietly, releasing her frustrations with getting her family into trouble and not being able to do anything about it immediately. She was helpless and she hated it.
When Kai returned after about ten minutes, Bonnie tried to hastily wipe the tears away, pretending to look out the side window with her back to him. "Where've you been gone to?" she asked, flipping through her phone again.
He took note of her distress, but didn't address it. "Cutting loose ends," he offered with a quick smile, and pointed at the phone in her hand. "All done?"
She offered him the phone without a word. She didn't want to look at it anymore.
He took the card out and returned the phone to her. "It still works with wi-fi, and you might need it." He held the card to her as well. "Get rid of it. Or, well, don't — for when it's time to come back."
She took the card from him, considering tossing it out the window but then instead shoved it into the cubbyhole of the car. It wasn't as if they could track it now that it was off. Not even magically it would help. There was no real link to her.
"Why so gloomy?" he asked, driving off. "You warned them. You should feel good about it."
"I don't," Bonnie said, glad to finally be moving. "I feel horrible. Like I've doomed my family."
"You'd doom them without a warning, but you did warn them. Means you gave them a chance to stay safe until we deal with it and win. Or, well, lose." He chuckled. "Can't toss that option out just yet."
"I'd rather not lose," Bonnie mused, flashing him the smallest of smile. "Besides... don't you always win?"
He laughed. "Good one. You're learning fast. Let's hope it's same with magic."
"Let's hope," Bonnie agreed, crossing her fingers, her attention shifting to the Mystic Falls board as they left town.
Kai brought them to the airport, reasoning that they had no time to drive across the country when they could just enjoy a business class trip. When Bonnie was back from her brief visit to the airport bathroom (to weep some more all the while trying to get a grip), Kai presented her with two business class tickets for false names and his brilliant grin.
He cloaked them once again to skip the security, and they successfully reached the VIP waiting hall.
"That kind of life I could enjoy," he stated, sprawling in a soft leather chair and reaching for the menu on the round table between them.
"I've never flown business class," Bonnie commented. She didn't mind flying. She wasn't down for the lengthy drive, and she was beginning to worry that Damon might put more cops after them again. What if someone from one of those local stations recognized her? Then again, maybe that wasn't possible.
"Live a little, Banzai. Order some good brandy, get shitfaced, pass out and have us carry you to your seat, then wake up and order champagne, sing your favorite songs, pass out again and greet Vegas with your head spinning until next morning." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, grinning, as though it was the best advice anyone in her shoes could get.
Bonnie wanted to be reckless, to accept his advice and drink it in wholeheartedly. She deserved the time off from her worry, didn't she? And how long before she was dead again? No, no, she wasn't going to let the negativity of yesterday infect her today.
She raised a hand to gain a waitresses attention. "Could we have something with alcohol in it?" The woman smiled brightly, arching an eyebrow as if she expected Bonnie to go into a little more detail with her order. "Surprise me. Maybe a cocktail?" The waitress thought about it for a second, nodded and then glanced at Kai expectantly.
Kai watched them with interest, but kept silent.
Bonnie tapped the table lightly, dragging the waitress's attention away from him. "He wants something with Zima."
She frowned, trying to figure out what that was. "I don't think we have that on the menu."
"Something fruity," Bonnie offered.
Another nod, and off she went to get their drinks.
"I'm surprised you aren't flying us yourself," Bonnie commented when they were alone again.
He squinted with mock reprimand. "You just want me to overwork myself and pass out again so you could cradle me in your arms and enjoy the vulnerable moment that probably makes you a bit more excited than you're ready to admit."
"Actually no, that's not what I'm aiming for, although those moments are nice. I thought that you knew how to fly. That it might be one of the first things you did, you know?"
"And your point being?"
"That's my point. Have you flown since you got back to the present?"
He shrugged, "I didn't have to. Same goes with cooking. See, if you go eighteen years with no living soul around you, learning to fly on your own, cook for yourself, and then you get stuck in another prison where you're the food and yet you still have to cook for yourself unless you're willing to rely on those bastards' flimsy skills in that department and eat that nauseating crap they try to feed you — hardly you get any inspiration for those activities in the world where there are actual people who can do it for you."
"I guess that makes sense," Bonnie said. She hadn't thought about it like that. No wonder he liked to be surrounded by people. Why, so far, every place he selected was loaded with people whereas Bonnie's were a bit more isolated. Not because she wanted to be alone, but because she wanted to hide. Kai was done hiding. Even if he was hiding. The whole thing was a bit complicated. She understood why he did what he did, though. "I just—you seemed to be so proud of yourself. I figured it was something you'd continue to hone."
"If you're so eager to witness my piloting skills and remain conscious at the same time, I'll honor that desire any time you choose. Deal?"
"Deal," Bonnie said, considering. "Maybe you could teach me the basics."
Kai was eyeing her, smiling one of his inscrutable, wistful smiles.
"Or not," Bonnie said, shrugging lightly. The waitress returned with their drinks, cheesy umbrellas and all. Bonnie thanked the waitress, reached for her straw to unwrap it and set it in her glass. She swirled it a bit, eyeing him over the top of it, studying him. "How are you feeling?"
"Peachy." He sipped his drink, finding it was a mojito. It was nice enough. He jerked his chin towards her glass, "Is that good?"
Hers was something with coconut in it. A Piña Colada? Or whatever they were called. She didn't know enough about cocktails to know by taste but perhaps tonight she could make work of it. She sipped at it, nodding lightly. "It's refreshing. I thought that maybe… you know, you were hungry. It's been awhile."
"I'm a vampire, Bonnie. I'm always hungry."
"Always?" Bonnie asked, taking a deep sip of her drink before getting to her feet and walking round to his side of the table. With a sweep of her hand his chair pulled away a bit, leaving her enough space to be able to ease into his lap. "How do you control yourself then?"
"I've been an addict my whole life," he said with a small knowing smile. "I had to learn some control."
"Some?" Bonnie asked, sliding one of her arms around the back of his chair. "Prison world must have made that a little easier, no?"
"Not really," he narrowed his eyes slightly. "Especially not the last one."
"That's not what I mean," Bonnie said. It didn't matter, she didn't want to bring up any bad waves between them. She'd had enough of that the day before. She tilted her head and pressed a kiss to his neck.
His eyes closed at the inward shiver of pleasure stroking through his nerves. His smile grew wider. "Looking to get us reprimanded for indecent exposure? Never thought you were so naughty… Well, no, deep down I had that little nagging hope."
"I don't think anything of what I'm doing would constitute as indecent exposure," Bonnie murmured against his neck, emphasizing each word with a kiss. "I haven't had enough cocktails for that anyway."
He licked his lips, his free hand stroking up her thigh, "The day is young…"
"Very young," Bonnie said, fire igniting beneath his touch. "Would you like to eat while you drink?"
His gaze flicked over the corners of the room, over the ceiling and bar, snatching out the little spying eyes of cameras, distorting their work. If only Bonnie knew the amount of micromanagement he had to do… not that she needed to know any of it. Nor about those two blood packs he had emptied at the Salvatore Boarding House earlier after erasing her number and texts from the gang's phones to make sure they didn't mess it up for her — and him. That meal had been anything but enjoyable, but he'd been already feeling woozy and couldn't rely on Bonnie's few drops here and there.
He took a hearty sip of his drink, then brought his mouth to her neck, suckling at her skin. It was hot against his tongue, and smelled all kinds of tempting with her aroused state and pheromones out to play. He hardened beneath her, his fingers tightening on her thigh the moment his teeth sunk smoothly in her flesh. He couldn't help a soft moan.
She moaned, biting her lip, leaning into him a bit more to disguise what he was doing. Every time he bit her seemed to be different. She lost herself in the mere act, in giving herself up to him, making herself vulnerable despite how hard the day before had been. She'd expected her body to resist, to fight against the mere action, and yet, here she was leaning into him, holding him close.
Even though he had been better fed than before while solely relying on her meagre treats, he found it hard to stop. Maybe it was the assaults of her unique fragrance that made his head reel, or it was just how long it had been since the last time his mouth was on her, but it took a painful effort to pull away. His tongue swiped hungrily over his lips as he did, his breath hitching a tad. He smiled as her eyes met his, and offered her a healing kiss.
"Excuse me, sir? Miss? You can't do this here."
They broke apart, looking up at the waitress, Bonnie a bit disheveled and Kai flashing his ever ready disarming smile. "Sorry. Going to Vegas to marry. We'll behave now."
The waitress smiled in a polite You're excused just this once manner, "Congratulations. And thank you." And walked on to deliver an order to another table.
"Married, huh?" Bonnie teased, laughing softly. She didn't know why the idea thrilled and scared her. She'd never thought she'd live long enough to even think about a family of her own. For an instant, she thought of Jo in her beautiful wedding dress, and found herself guilty for even imagining it. "Love how that was the first excuse you could come up with." She bounced from his lap, moved to the other side of the table and reclaimed her drink, taking two large sips. "We've officially become a romantic trope."
He laughed. "You're welcome, by the way, you naughty girl. And how dare you call us a trope, mm?"
"We aren't?" Bonnie asked, allowing herself to push away the guilt so she could have a little fun. "Bad boy, good girl." She crossed her fingers over one another to suggest that they were intertwined. "Or is it bad girl, bad boy… either way, I think we've got the makings of a pretty good story."
"Is that so? Are you considering a writing career? I mean, you're a great writer. A bestseller like that could set you off."
"How do you know what I write like?" Bonnie asked. She did some writing in the prison world but most of it had been in her journal. Other than Damon, she had needed someone to vent to. "But more importantly, where would I find the time?"
"When there's a desire, you find time for it, right?" He finished his drink and sent a stem of mint in his mouth.
"Perhaps. I doubt the Heretics are going to give me the time to think about any future career perspectives." She couldn't remember the last time she'd done something for herself and really enjoyed it. Maybe the museum. That sprang to mind and she had to smile to herself. She brought the straw to her lips, drinking it until halfway, beginning to feel the light touches of a buzz.
"They're not in front of us yet, so don't think about them. Not now."
"Hard not to," Bonnie stated, downing the remainder of her drink. The faster the buzz kicked in, the quicker she could push them from her mind and take a hold of that touch of reckless. She could trust he'd take care of her and make sure they got where they needed to be. She also just wanted to take the edge off, to not see Lily looming over her, wondering just what would happen if the ripper mama was to catch up on her again. She drew in a breath and then continued, "When we get there, where's the first place you want to visit?"
Kai pretended to ponder it as though she had presented him with a tasty philosophical dilemma. "Depends on whether I carry you like the bride-to-be or you're sharp enough to walk." He winked, leering. "The grand views of Venetian is the first place. We check in, then pick the best restaurant to serve you something far fancier than eggs and bacon. Preferably with some magnificent fountains to look at while you eat."
"Would my using my feet make much of a difference to your plans?" Bonnie asked, leaning back in her chair, stretching one of her legs out, one of her feet brushing against the inside of his pants leg playfully. "As nice as that sounds, I can't complain about eggs and bacon. I had a good breakfast. A surprise breakfast. It's been awhile since anyone's done that for me."
His smile twitched wider. He was enjoying her loosening up. "There seems to be a whole world of been-awhile-since and never-befores in your life, Bonnie. But hey, we can fix that. Moreover, I believe we should."
"That sounds positive. A lot more positive than this venture is supposed to be," Bonnie said, saving the words 'more than I deserve' for herself. "Unless you mean it's something to fix in time. Like once we've gotten rid of the Heretics."
His expression turned a bit more serious. "I've spent over six and a half thousand days stuck in the same day. I live in the now. There's no Heretics, no Damon, no Lily, no Mystic Falls. There's here and now, you and me and the plane we're boarding. Whatever comes after it comes when it does. For now, it's this." He waved a hand indicating the two of them.
She wanted to be on board with his thinking, to feel that free. There was something intoxicating about it. A liberation she hadn't experienced ever. She always had to worry. About herself, about her friends, about her next steps. She couldn't and didn't know to wing it. "Guess magic isn't the only thing I need practice in."
"There's nothing you can't do, Bonnie Bennett." He tipped her a wink and raised a finger in attention as a lovely female voice began the announcement. "That be our flight." He stood and held a hand to her, a bewitching smile tugging at his mouth. "Come, babe. Time to fly to that chapel."
"You didn't have to do that," Alaric said when Stefan closed the trunk of his car where Jo was carefully deposited a minute ago, wrapped in her dress and gauze, still looking as beautiful as the day of the wedding.
"Yes, I did," Stefan said. "She was a friend to all of us. I… It's impossible to express how sorry I am — all of us are — about this—"
Alaric winced and raised a halting hand. "Thanks, Stefan, but just… just don't."
Stefan fell silent, feeling that if he uttered a sorry once again, it would feel as stale as the insides of Ric's car was. It still harbored the spirits of the wedding aftermath and the grief accumulated there bonded with lots of booze.
"What are you gonna do?" Stefan asked. "We'd love to help with… well, you know. Caroline—"
"I know you would, and so would Caroline, but I don't need this right now." Ric looked as though he hadn't slept in days, and Stefan felt it might be the case. Nightmares like that didn't just fade away without a trace; they haunted you until your mind turned into its rightful castle with darkness and cobwebs and despair soaking every inch.
"If you need anything," Stefan said, "anything at all, any help — please tell me."
Ric nodded. "Thanks. Appreciate it, but I'd rather not need any help. No offence, Stefan. It's probably not fair towards you and Caroline, but... I just... I need time."
Stefan nodded, "Of course. I understand. Fully. I'm just... I need to know you're okay."
"I'm not," Alaric said bluntly. "And frankly, I'm not sure I will be. I don't have a few centuries to stew and process and get over it all, start anew with the first woman I meet — and I'm glad I don't, actually. So... It's what it is."
He turned to get in the car but Stefan called his name, and Ric raised his eyebrows questioningly.
"I uh... heard a bit of your conversation with Caroline today..."
Ric nodded, "I figured." Vampires, his expression said.
"I'm worried about Bonnie," Stefan said. "I was wondering if Jo told you anything else about their coven, those Heretics and Kai in particular — anything that could help us find a way to protect her."
Alaric's expression gained a tinge of sarcasm. "I think you might be confused about what Bonnie herself wants. You can't save anyone who didn't ask you to save them, Stefan. If she feels she's safe with a homicidal psychopathic vampire-witch who killed his whole family and my wife, but not with you, her friends — it's screwed up. And that's your problem."
He grabbed for the car door again.
"Heretics are out, Ric," Stefan said. "Bonnie called Caroline to warn that Kai actually got them out. They're cloaked someplace and soon the spell will fade…" He spread his arms inviting Ric to draw the obvious conclusions.
Alaric seemed unperturbed. "Yeah, well, aside from what you already know, there's nothing I can add. They're like Kai times six. You figure it out. I gotta go."
Stefan sighed. "Ric."
Alaric opened the door, and looked a question at him.
"If there's anything you find about how to kill them, please—"
"They're vampires, Stefan. Stakes might do it, but they're witches, too, and will see it coming. And Kai might still be in cahoots with them. I'd actually place a good bet on it." Alaric saluted a bye to him and went behind the wheel. He drove off as Stefan watched him go, his arms folded.
"Didn't go well, I take it." Caroline joined him, eyeing the dust settling in the car's wake.
"Nope. We're officially on our own."
Caroline looked at him with a mixture of worry and hope that battled each other. "How screwed are we, do you think?"
Stefan shrugged. "On the scale of ten? I'd think eighty would be a modest appraisal."
Jeremy was jogging down the stairs, his bag hanging over his shoulder, when Caroline and Stefan walked in.
"Hey," Caroline greeted, attempting at a smile but not quite getting there. The day before had been weighing heavily on all their minds, and no amount of pretense would wash away those black clouds. "How you feeling?"
"After helping Damon kidnap my girlfriend, then watching her tortured and then almost having my throat ripped out? Peachy, thanks." He stood before them with an angry daring written all over his face, waiting for them to move aside so he could walk out the door. "Oh, and sure, let's not forget she's probably my ex-girlfriend now after she's ditched me over another call after returning from the dead, hid away in her dorm and then suddenly decided that a magical psychopath who killed his entire coven, Ric's wife, Ty's girl, and linked Bonnie's life to my sister is a more desirable company."
Caroline's expression shifted through sorrow, sympathy, guilt and remorse. "Jer, I know it's a lot to take in—"
"Yes, it fucking is, thank you!" he challenged. "Now if you excuse me, I can't stay here anymore."
Caroline moved as he did, blocking his way, her eyes stern and harder. "Don't be so harsh, it's not Bonnie's fault. It's a hell of a lot to take for her, too! Have you thought about how she felt all this time? Being there all alone after Damon was back? And she was stuck there with this… with a killer she couldn't afford to let out? And then he did get out, and all this happened…" She sucked in an abrupt breath, then tried a softer look she directed at Jeremy. "Look, I know it hurts. You hurt, we hurt. She hurts, too. She's confused, and she's very scared because she believes she's caused a lot of horrible things to happen, but in fact it might not be the case. She's just… she's Bonnie, she always takes more upon herself than any of us realize in time to help her carry that burden. She always wants to shield people she loves, and we—"
"We suck, apparently, I get it." Jeremy glared at her, his jaw set. "She could've thought about us, too, you know? In her fucking noble crusade to carry her fucking burdens, she coulda thought about us, about me… She shoulda told us, shoulda told me— She just… she just chose to do it over a fucking call and leave me with that, with all that all alone, where I couldn't even ask her why, anymore! Couldn't ask her anything anymore!"
Caroline bit her lip, her eyes welling up with tears, and pulled him into a hug. Jeremy struggled, demanding she let go, but her strength was no match for his, and then his body slumped into her, and his shoulders began to shake. He buried his face in the crook of her shoulder and wept, and she held him, her own tears streaming down her face. Stefan's eyes stung too; he tiptoed around them to give them a bit of space.
"Maybe it's better for you to get out of Mystic Falls for now," Stefan suggested when a few minutes later they walked him outside. "We don't know when that new trouble comes, and it's best if you're away from it."
"If they're vampires, you will need my help," Jeremy said.
"They're not just vampires," Caroline reminded. "Before we know how to deal with them, you might wanna stay away…"
"Alaric left today," Stefan said, catching Jeremy's interest.
"Good for him," Jeremy said.
"Yeah, but we have no idea if it really is, given the state he's in," Stefan shrugged. "We thought maybe you're the only person he's actually not opposed to seeing right now. Think you could look after him a bit? For good old times' sake?"
Jeremy's face softened as he pondered. Then he nodded. "Yeah. I guess it's the right thing to do. I'll try. Where you think he went?"
"I would bet on Whitmore," Stefan said. "He can't get too far with a body in his trunk, and he maybe wants to bury her where she's been happy last. She was beloved by all students in that hospital."
"Yeah," Jeremy nodded. "Okay, I'll see if I find him there. Does Matt know? About those Heretics?"
"Not yet," Caroline said. "But we don't really know what to tell him. We know so little and Lily, well, she's not in the mood to talk, especially now. It leaves us with Enzo and Damon." She spread her arms in a helpless gesture.
"We'll try our best to pry as much as we can from them," Stefan promised. "Call us when you get to Whitmore, and we'll keep in touch. As soon as we know more, we'll tell you."
"Okay, fine." He saluted them, and went for his car.
Caroline was biting her nail again, watching him go, and only remembered herself when Stefan's arm hugged her waist. "I'm so worried about him," she said in a low voice, then clucked her tongue in frustration. "I'm worried about everyone, so much I think I'm gonna bust or something. It's so… exhausting. I just wanna get my neck snapped and black out for a year." She twirled around into his ready embrace and buried her face against his neck, sighing.
Stefan smiled. "I feel ya. I really do."
It was an early afternoon, and they watched one more of their closest friends drive away from them.
Felt like losing them all forever. The ominous feeling neither wanted to voice.
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