Chapter 07
It was nice to wake up with Klaus still in bed with her, he was watching her she woke, but she felt safe and comfortable in his arms and they ended up having morning sex before moving it to the bathroom to clean themselves up. His plan for the morning was to go to the club and gather the remainder of her things. She had no need for her furniture, but the rest of her possessions he’d take care of. Including the bulk of her recent splurging on books.
Klaus told her she was free to explore the compound by herself, but not to leave it, which she was fine with. In every room that she visited there were old pieces of furniture, a lot of art, everything properly decorated and despite it all being antique, it felt cozy, warm.
As she calmly walked through the building, her mind was shooting off rockets in all directions. Now that she and Klaus were what they were, and she wasn’t at the club anymore, she wanted to find something else to do because she got bored easily. Sure, she had her quiet days but she didn’t want to feel like she was useless. That she was alright with doing nothing. She wanted to do something, but it seemed like the Mikaelsons had everything in order.
There were maids to clean, servers to make sure that the tables were immaculately set up, people for the laundry. Freya was taking care of Hope in Klaus’ absence and Bella stayed clear of them. Mainly because she was afraid that she’d drop the baby on her head and, if she had to be honest, she hated babies. They were loud and smelly. In a way she was grateful that she had stumbled into the undead part of the supernatural world; at least it meant that her boyfriends couldn’t knock her up.
She eventually found her way into the kitchen were a handful of people were working on lunch for them and Elijah was calmly talking to another person as he was preparing something that looked like finger food. The gigantic, professional kitchen was singing to her and she knew she’d found her keeping busy place. This was heaven.
“Bella…” he said as he looked over his shoulder, surprised to see her downstairs.
“Little known fact; I’m actually a decent cook and I want to help out, with whatever they or you are doing.”
“As long as you’re a guest in our house; a resident, there is nothing that you’ll have to do. You’ll be well taken care of—”
“I want to do something,” she said, looking up to Elijah with her eyes narrowed. “Klaus doesn’t want me to leave the building and Freya is with Hope, so please, let me do something.”
Amused, Elijah shrugged. “What about knitting? Embroidery?”
“Baking?” She tried, but the look on Elijah’s face she knew that he wasn’t going for it. She was going to have to talk to Klaus about this. She wouldn’t cause any trouble in the kitchen, so why wasn’t she allowed to help out or at least bake something? “Oh come on, you’re obviously doing something, with your hands and food. I want in.”
“We’re alright, here.”
She sighed as she shoved her hands in her pocket and leaned against the doorway. “Isn’t tonight a full moon? You’re making food for the wolves, aren’t you? Please, let me bake something for them. I feel bad, I mean, nobody should go through what they’re going through and cakes make people happy.”
“Very well, perhaps we could take the opportunity to get to know each other a little better,” he said as he motioned for her to come in. “It’s unlike Niklaus to bring someone to the compound like he has, especially now that Hope is here.”
“Do you honestly believe he’d do anything that could harm his daughter?” Bella questioned as she moved around the kitchen trying to find what she needed. Unsurprisingly, the kitchen had a logical system where they kept everything and even a whole cupboard dedicated to baking goods. “Believe me, Elijah, if Klaus thought he couldn’t trust me, he wouldn’t have brought me here.”
“Yes, well, forgive me for doubting my brother’s intentions. He’s not known for his impulse control and you are – exquisite. My brother can easily be fooled by a pretty face. It wouldn’t be the first time.”
“I know and I understand that you have your reservations. Now, how many cupcakes do you need?” Bella asked as she put the mixing bowl on the counter and started to gather the ingredients. She opened the door to the fridge and stared in wonder. “Nutella. I’ll make Nutella cakes.”
“I think thirty should be fine,” Elijah said, as he continued with what he was doing. “I’m merely curious because on the surface, you’re not his type.”
“What do you know about his type? I mean, Caroline was this preppy school girl, wasn’t she? Hayley was only a fling, but she’s the mother of his child. Katerina was well off… ohhh,” she smiled at him. “It’s because of my troubles with the Cold Ones and because I decided to work for Myriam, isn’t it? I’m the uncleanest of them all, aren’t I? Wow. And here I thought you had the capability to look beyond the surface of people.” She grabbed the eggs and milk and then looked at him. “And last time I checked, you asked Klaus to set you up with Myriam, so aren’t you being a hypocrite right now?”
“I possess excellent judgement,” Elijah retorted.
“Yeah, that’s your opinion,” she pointed out. “Look, I get it. Myriam built this amazing club and she helps people who need help with their supernatural problems, but she’s not an innocent, Elijah. She has clients of her own. Or used to have them in the absence of Klaus. She’s not afraid to play dirty, either. Compared to her, I’m a saint! And if you’re trying to insult me, it won’t work.”
“I’m not trying to insult you, I’m merely trying to—”
“Get the facts. I know that and I don’t mind. But don’t talk about your brother as if he’s incapable of making decisions of his own. As if his judgement isn’t as good as yours. Sure, he’s easily distracted and makes stupid decisions, but don’t deny that you all rely on him to do the dirty work,” she said as she weighed the flour. “Because he’s the ‘monster’ of the family. Please. You’re all monsters,” she huffed. “Neither one of you has clean hands. At least I can say that despite my history – which could have been far more colorful, by the way – I have never killed someone.”
When Elijah wanted to speak again, she interrupted him as she started to beat together the eggs and butter. “I am not living out some Pretty Woman fantasy nor did I wish for a White Knight to whisk me away from my miserable existence. Despite being in hiding, I was quite content where I was until that asshole of a brother of yours decided to lie to me. And frankly, I’m glad he’s not my White Knight because I didn’t need rescuing.”
“How would you describe him then?”
She beat the eggs and butter a little faster before adding a splash of vanilla extract and the flour. “As my equal. Despite all the wealth, all the strength and his longevity, we’re equals. Nothing more, nothing less.”
Elijah slowly nodded as he wrapped the platter with sandwiches in plastic wrap. “I do have to admit that when Freya took me to see what Niklaus had been up to—”
“We weren’t going to discuss that.”
“Please let me finish,” he said kindly before starting a new platter. “It surprised me how open he was with you, how remorseful, telling you how his actions affected him and how it affected his life. Now, I’m not sure it was your influence or Camille’s, but I was quite surprised.”
“I like to think that it’s a side you and your siblings often don’t get to see because you all keep thinking he’s a monster.”
“His recent actions caused the deaths of many vampires, the wolf pack were cursed, again, and he betrayed us by siding with a very powerful witch.”
Bella let out a snort. “Klaus had a plan that could have worked if you hadn’t thrown the first stone and daggered him, things would have turned out differently so if you feel betrayed, you must imagine how he must have felt. Still feels. Hayley wanted to take his daughter away from him and despite everything, she still went along with it, even though Hope would have been safe here. You facilitated her leaving with Hope because you were afraid and did not trust Klaus to do what was best.” she turned around to face him. “You know how much Hope means to Klaus, and I don’t condone what he did, having Dahlia placing that curse upon Hope’s mother, but at that point, it was the only way he could stop Hayley from taking his daughter away from him and teach her a lesson. I am sure that soon enough, someone will be able to reverse the curse or whatever, but you can’t blame Klaus for going to extremes to protect what’s his. He’d do the same for you. Hell, he was even willing to sacrifice himself to buy you the time you needed to finish what he started.”
“He was foolish!”
“Klaus was backed into a corner because you didn’t trust him. You betrayed him. And I told him that he’d been right in doing what he did, but that he was an idiot for sacrificing himself, but you know what? I think he’d do it all over again if he had to save you. Or Rebekah. Or Hope. You’re his family and you often forget how much he loves all of you. He won’t say it, but his actions speak for themselves. And you really need to stop holding a grudge because even though you’re hurt, you’re not the only one hurting.”
“Perhaps you were right,” he spoke softly as he moved over to her to relieve her from mixing the cake ingredients together. Elijah was surprised that despite they had only just met, she seemed to know his family quite well, she seemed to understand his brother’s actions far better than anyone else could, perhaps even more than Camille. “It seems that I was wrong not to look further beyond the surface. You have given me a lot to think about, and I want to thank you for your insight and your offer to bake something for the wolves, but I think I’d rather spend the rest of my time preparing on my own.”
She looked at him for a moment and sighed as she shook her head. “You’re siblings. According to everyone with siblings, siblings fight. But one would think that after a thousand years together, you’d know each other through and through. I get it, he killed your girlfriend, but out of all the friends he could choose from, she was the most disposable and she died for a greater good. I am sorry.”
“I told you to leave,” he should have been annoyed by this persistent human, but he found himself amused. She wasn’t afraid of anything and unaware that the kitchen crew had already temporarily scattered after hearing his tone of voice.
“Yeah and I’m not listening,” she said as she grabbed the muffin tin and started to fill it with her batter. “Just so you know, I’m 26 years old. I was at Débauche for two years to hide from some Cold Ones who I’ve been running from for five years prior to my arrival in this city. Before them, I had plans to study history and maybe land myself a good job. Solicitation was a way for me to survive and I did it for funsies at the club.” Once the batter was in all tins, she put them in the big oven and set the timer. “I’m an only child, my father was the local police chief and he passed away. I hate the cold and I like books, chocolate and music. I’m pretty boring when you scrape away the layer of shit that’s attached to my skin.” She grabbed the ingredients she’d need for a Nutella buttercream and started to make it.
He could go eye for an eye, of course. Niklaus killed his girlfriend, perhaps Elijah should return the favor. However, seeing as she was also loved by his current interest, it was for the best that he wouldn’t self-sabotage himself. But, if she was truly going to stay with them, they were going to have to need a family meeting so that his brother could explain his intentions by bringing the girl here. “Are you insane?”
“Why? Because I don’t mind stepping on vampire toes?” Bella smiled at him as she beat her mixture. “And why ask me to assess my sanity? Ask Myriam. No doubt she would have told you that you can’t talk about your family or the club, but since I’m neither family or working for her anymore, it shouldn’t be a problem.”
Perhaps killing her now was too much of an impulse. He could easily not kill her. At first he thought she was like Miss Caroline Forbes, a preppy high schooler, but Bella was more mature – being in her mid twenties, Elijah sure hoped she’d be more mature. But in some way Bella reminded him of his sister Rebekah, and perhaps Kol, after waking after being daggered for some time. Hyper. Talkative. No filter. False sense of bravery. Yes, despite her claiming not to be afraid, her heart was pounding fast. “Are you always this… obtuse?”
“Me? No,” she said lightly and shrugged. “But I know that it’s unlike Klaus to take a woman home with him, especially one you’ve never seen or heard of. I wanted to show you that I’m well aware what kind of a man your brother is, that I’m aware of his actions and what I think of them, because that’s what you truly wanted to hear; isn’t it? Whether or not I’m a groupie with no brain or actually have a brain of my own,” she smiled at him. “And I told you a little about myself because it’s rude to seem to know stories about the person you’re talking to while the other person doesn’t have a straw to grasp on to. You’ll find me a lot less obtuse once I don’t feel like I have to prove that you can trust me.”
Did she scare easily? Did he want to put that to the test? It could backfire and cause her to run and then Niklaus would probably be angry with him. Elijah didn’t know the girl’s full story, only that she’d been missing for a few days – it even had affected Myriam. It was a shame that he didn’t have the time to have a sit down with his brother and talk this through. Perhaps he could talk to Myriam on the phone while he continued to prepare the meals and snacks for the pack.
She had cleaned up her workspace and looked at the timer. “The cupcakes need about ten to twelve more minutes, you can pipe them, right?”
“Yes, thank you, Bella. This has been… enlightening,” he acknowledged as he watched her walk out of the kitchen with the jar of Nutella and a spoon.
~o.O.o~
“I still don’t like it,” Myriam said as she leaned against the doorpost to what used to be Bella’s apartment and watched Klaus go through Bella’s stuff. There were compelled vampires waiting just down the hall to carry her life to her new digs and Myriam was still not liking it. “What makes you think you’re going to be better at helping her than I am?”
“I’m not,” he said as he dumped the entirety of Bella’s underwear basket into a bag, seeing some of his favourites tumble in with a smile on his face. “I’m perhaps the most ill-equipped person to help her and I’m not denying it, but I am not going to risk her disappearing again.”
“Yeah, and whose fault was that? Oh, right, yours!” Myriam snapped.
“Perhaps this is selfish of me, I admit it, but I want her in my life. I want her to be mine. I want to give her what she wants and she wants me. I denied her, because as long as she was here, I couldn’t risk not being able to protect her despite every security measures taken to make this place into a fortress,” he replied as he went for the next drawer. “Maybe it’s me taking advantage of her, I don’t know, only time will tell.”
“There is no doubt that she shares your feelings, Klaus,” she replied with a sigh. “I’m more concerned about bringing her into a place where everyone is on high alert all the time, what it will do to her. What if the flashbacks come back? What if she won’t be able to sleep? What if she stops eating? What if she detaches herself even further?”
“You need to stop mother henning, love,” he said amused. “I worry, too, but I am certain that she’ll pull through. And if not, than I shall admit defeat. Yes, life might get a little bumpy, rather later than sooner, but I have faith. I think she can handle it. And it’s not as if you won’t ever see her again. There is no doubt in my mind that should things progress between you and my brother, you’ll be over quite often.”
Myriam huffed. “I wouldn’t count on it.”
Once he was done with packing Bella’s clothes, he started on her books, noticing the bag filled with her newest purchases. “Are you going to keep distracting me or can I do this on my own without you hovering? The sooner I get back to her, the better. There’s no doubt that Elijah will find her and start questioning her.”
“You do need to talk to him about her, you know that, right?”
“And for that, he needs to want to talk to me.”
“Uhuh,” she said with a sigh. “Very well, I shall leave you alone. Please do stop by at my office when you leave, I have some papers for Bella that she’ll need, including her bank information where I’ve deposited all of her tips in. Just tell her not to spend it all at once, okay?”
“You’re coddling. Again.”
Myriam let out a frustrated grunt and walked away. On her way to the office, her phone rang and she picked it up after recognizing the number. “Elijah, what a surprise,” she remarked as she pushed through the security door. “McDonald’s is next week, isn’t it?”
Elijah laughed on the other side of the phone. “Yes, yes it is. How are you faring, Myriam? After last night?”
“Still adjusting, but I doubt that’s why you called me,” she pushed the door to her office open and settled down behind her desk as she started to collect the papers that Bella would need. “Klaus has been taking his time with sorting through Bella’s belongings for a few hours now, I’m sure he’ll come home soon.”
“I’m not too worried about that at the moment.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m fairly sure, yes,” he sounded amused. “I just had the lovely experience of having a chat with hurricane Bella.”
Myriam snorted. “I think you mean hurricane Isabella. She’s still coming down from her Isa.”
“Are you saying that she has multiple personalities?”
“No, no, not at all,” she said quickly. “Isa is… hmm… how to say this without having it sound as if she’s crazy? It’s her other persona. Her flight persona. The one she used to run from her Cold One problems for so long. With just the right nudge, such as your brother refusing her, she shifts into her fight or flight mode and flees into her. Give it a day or two, she’ll calm down.”
“Interesting…”
“She’ll be more stable once Klaus gets back. What did she do?”
Elijah sucked in a breath. “Not to worry, she was fair, honest and surprisingly refreshing.”
“That would be Bella, indeed.”
“And she spoke as if she didn’t need breathing, really fast.”
“I told you, she’s coming down from flight mode. The first two days after her arrival here, were spent rambling, really fast, telling me everything I needed to know about her. Klaus was there, too, but he took off a couple of times. On the third day I had a witch just put a spell on her to calm her down. It was then when the nightmares and the flashbacks started. Klaus was the one who helped her through that time and when she balanced out, she was an agreeable young woman. Stubborn, but highly intelligent and observant. You’ll like her.”
“I can’t help but wonder if Niklaus has completely lost his mind by bringing her into our home.”
“You can trust her, Elijah. She’s been my rock for the last two years, I could rely on her to do anything. Jump in for a sick employee at the last minute, double check my administration for the club, fix holes in clothes. This one time, our fridge broke and finding a replacement on short notice was proving to be difficult so she made a glorious meal for all of us and donated the rest of the meal to the homeless shelter. She’s a good person and I’m definitely going to miss having her around.”
“Her problem with the Cold Ones, how bad is it?”
Myriam sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “You’ll have to discuss that with your brother.”
“Myriam, please.”
“No,” she said curtly.
“Give me something, at least.”
“Fine. Right now, it’s moderate. It’s contained, but that was because she was cloaked. I have a sneaky suspicion that Klaus has asked Freya to put a cloaking spell on her now, but she’s been exposed for days.”
“He never cloaked Hope.”
“No, but Hope isn’t a walking, talking target with the tendency to flee. Just talk to your brother about this. I know that today isn’t the best day as you’re going to be busy in the Bayou, but talk to him as soon as you can.”
“Why would he want to cloak Bella? We can easily handle the Cold Ones should they come for her. What did she do what pissed them off?”
“She ran away after realizing they’re dickheads. Talk to Klaus. Talk to Bella. I don’t wish to betray their trust by telling her story for her.”
Elijah sighed. “Very well. I suppose I’ll have to finish up and wait for Niklaus to return to fit him into my tight schedule.”
“Play nice,” she said as her door swung open, revealing Klaus. She then smiled. “The both of you, play nice,” she said before disconnecting the call and handed Klaus a folder. “Elijah’s met Isabella, sounds to me that she gave him quite the verbal asskicking.”
“Brilliant,” he replied with a smile on his face. “I hope he’s impressed.”
“More concerned, which is why you really need to talk to him and Freya about Bella. Go home. Talk,” she said as she made a shooing movement with her hand. “I’ve got a business to run.”
He lead his vampires into the parlour where he found Bella on the floor with Hope, both girls seemingly to have passed out, with Bella a protective arm over his daughter. A nearly empty jar of Nutella was on the table and he took a moment to take in the scene before him. There was no doubt that Bella was in a Nutella-induced slumber while Hope was taking her scheduled nap.
He knew that Bella didn’t like children much, babies in particular, but he was grateful for her at least making an effort. There was also no doubt that Freya had asked Bella to relieve her from babysitting duty to tend to her own life for a couple of hours, and he didn’t mind that. He trusted Bella in taking care of his daughter. She had a big heart, he could always trust her big heart to do the right thing.
And of course, Hope had her own draw to anything supernatural. To power. As his little test the night before, Hope trusted Bella without even knowing her; it was Bella’s energy that did it. Turning around to his vampires, he quietly compelled them to forget what they had been doing and told them to scatter.
Klaus then sat behind Bella and ran his fingers through her hair. “Love, it’s time for some lunch,” he said softly. “Time to wake up.”
“Sleep is good,” Bella replied with a yawn. “I’m tired.”
“Well, then you shouldn’t have eaten most of the jar of Nutella, love,” he said amused. “I’ll take Hope to her crib while you wake up,” he rose and gently pulled Hope up from the floor before moving her into her crib. By the time he returned, Bella was still on the floor. “On your feet,” he said, pulling her up, causing her to sigh and stand in front of him. “There you go.”
“You’re mean,” she pouted.
“That’s not fair, I spent all morning collecting your belongings,” he said as he showed her the bags and boxes. “Everything’s accounted for, even your… toys, although I doubt you’ll be needing them anymore.”
“I could use them on you,” she said with a smirk as she rubbed her eyes to wake up. “Tie you up… hold a vibrator against your cock and balls…Play…”
“Lunch,” he said as he put an arm around her and guided her towards the stairs. “I promised Myriam I’d take care of you, so lunch is what we’re going to have.”
“I’m good.”
“Of course you are,” she was still a bit wobbly on her feet so he held on to her as they walked down the stairs. “A good cup of tea will wake you right up,” he continued, adding the mental reminder in his head to put some of his blood in it. By the time they were at the bottom of the stairs, she was significantly more alert and able to walk without his assistance. Maybe he should have given her more time to wake, but something was nagging in the back of his head. Myriam had questioned his ability to look out for her, and that had stung.
When they walked into the dining room, however, he was surprised to find Elijah and Freya sit at the table, eagerly awaiting his and Bella’s arrival. “What is this? An intervention?” He quipped as he pulled out a chair for Bella and only sat down when she did. “Or an apology, perhaps?”
“For once, Niklaus, this isn’t about you,” Elijah replied as he nodded towards Bella. “This is about your new friend. I’m willing to extend a temporary truce between you and I to discuss your friend.”
Klaus looked at Freya and sighed before looking at his brother. “I gather you’ve recently had an interesting conversation.”
“Two, actually. One, this morning while I was preparing for the pack picnic. Something you should have been doing, but I suppose you’re still not over your grudge towards Hope’s mother and the second conversation was with our mutual friend, Myriam,” Elijah said evenly as he watched Bella pour herself a glass of tea from the teapot. She looked remarkably calmer than his earlier encounter with her.
“Elijah has informed me about the first talk,” Freya said with a shrug. “Most of it, I already knew, of course.”
“I do not like being kept out of the loop,” Elijah reminded his siblings.
“Well, now you know what that feels like, brother,” Klaus remarked before wincing as Bella kicked his shin underneath the table. “But please continue.”
It hadn’t escaped him what Bella had just done, she had corrected his brother’s behaviour and he took it. It was refreshing. Elijah nodded when his brother prompted him to continue. “Myriam didn’t say much, but what she had to say had me worried for the safety of our family, of Hope. And I know it’s a sore subject, but I really wish to know why you’re on the run from the Cold Ones, and what you’ve done to them.”
“What I’ve done to them?!” Bella shot at him. “Seriously?”
“Why else would you be in moderate danger?”
Klaus put his hand on Bella’s arm. “Easy love,” he soothed her. “How about I tell him and you add whatever you feel comfortable with?”
“How about we don’t discuss it?” Bella said as she gripped her fork tightly, ready to throw it at Elijah. “Those assholes ruined my life and he has the nerve to ask me what I’ve done to them? Me? To them?!”
“Breathe,” he reminded her. “Just breathe and take a sip of your tea, love,” he then looked at his two siblings. “It’s a good thing that I’ve already informed our sister what the Cold Ones are so that this conversation will go a little bit smoother. Nearly nine years ago, a coven of Cold Ones called the Cullens,” he could feel Bella tense up underneath his touch and gently squeezed her arm for reassurance. “Moved back to a little town they had previously lived in and they took a liking to Bella. Now, we all know how charming those rodents can be and young as she was, Bella started to get involved with the only son who was single. Despite mistreating her, mostly in the form of emotional abuse and the secret creepily staring at her while she slept, she stuck with him and his… family. During this time, this son decided to put her through the ultimate test to see if she would rescue him when pretending to want to end his life in a big way, exposing their kind to the human world, at the castle in Volterra, Italy. Bella, the good heart that she is, went, of course.”
Elijah blinked at that, as he listened to his brother’s words. It was unheard of for a human to survive an encounter with the Volturi, and he was anxious to hear more. As his brother spoke, he kept his eyes on Bella. He could see various emotions flash across her face. Anger. Betrayal. Pain. Mostly the same sort of look his brother usually had on his face when he felt as if a great injustice had happened to him.
“During that time, her father was in a car accident and she was unable to attend his funeral as she was in Italy. Upon coming home, the Cullens started to become more controlling, more abusive and tried to make her do things while she was trying to mourn her father’s passing,” Klaus continued, still his hand on her arm, watching her as she took a sip from her tea. “They become more impatient and at one point her life was even put further in danger as two members of that coven lost their patience with her.”
Freya swallowed hard. While Klaus had told her about the other kind of vampire, the Cold Ones, she hadn’t been able to foresee the shit that they put Bella through. Of course, she knew there was a reason for Bella being at Débauche, but for it to be this, it was tough to swallow.
“As if that wasn’t hard enough, there was a threat from the outside from another Cold One. The Cullens had killed her mate while they were protecting Bella, and she was on a rampage.”
“Edward and I went to Florida, to see my mother,” Bella softly said. “My mother and I never got along, and I think they wanted me there only to torture me even further, but once she saw Edward trying to shake me ‘out of it’ quite violently, she told me to run and never to look back. And I did. For all I know, Edward could have killed her out of spite,” she carefully put down her fork, relaxing a little. “The Cullens have gifts. Edward’s gift is the power to read minds. Then there’s another one called Jasper who can influence someone’s emotions, but the one to look out for is Alice. She can hone in to a person and based on the decisions they make, she can see their future. I ran for five years, trying to stay one step ahead, trying not to make decisions and only do last minute. I was so tired. And then I heard of Débauche.”
Elijah slowly nodded, feeling for the girl. Despite the monstrosities that he and his family had done, it was nowhere near as bad. Well, perhaps the only one would be compelling vampires to pretend to be them while they were on the run from their father but she was human. A human girl. Surviving Cold Ones. She was quite the tenacious creature. He then looked at Klaus and sighed. “You told Myriam the threat was moderate because you didn’t want to worry her, did you?”
“She has enough on her plate as it is.”
“What I don’t understand is, why haven’t they given up?” Freya questioned. “Or have they?”
“They have not,” Klaus replied curtly. “Bella spent the last week in the company of our old friend Lucien and he encountered a Cold One in the Quarter, the same one who had been hunting Bella when she was sent to Florida.”
“Lucien?” Elijah blinked. “Are you serious?”
“Ah, he’s a problem to discuss later, brother,” he said playfully and wagged his finger in warning. “Lucien killed the bitch, but if there’s one, it’s quite certain more will follow.”
“But why? She’s human! I understand that they’re quite the secretive bunch, and they usually kill humans on sight for even seeing them, let alone knowing about them and how they work, so how come is she still alive?”
“Have you tried to compel Bella this morning, brother?” Klaus mused, a big smile on his face. “If not, please make her cluck like a chicken.”
Bella let out a low growl in warning, before stabbing Klaus’ hand with the fork she had only dropped a few moments before.
“Easy, love,” Klaus hissed as he pulled the fork out of his hand. “We’re almost done, just keep it together for a little bit longer.” Handing her the fork back, he looked at his brother. “Does she smell like an ordinary human to you, brother?”
Now that he thought about it, not really. “Her blood does seem to smell a bit stronger than that of others,” he said slowly and then blinked. “Bella’s a singer?”
“A singer who survived the Cold Ones.”
“That is unheard of!”
“What is a singer?” Freya blinked as she looked between her brothers. Elijah looked stumped, Klaus looked smug and Bella looked on the verge of breaking her glass and slicing something open. “I mean, I obviously know what a singer is but what does it mean in your case?”
“Not much is known of the Cold One lore. All their mysteries, mishaps and destruction is kept secret, it’s quite difficult to find any evidence of them anywhere. It’s only that we know of them due to us having lived in Italy for some time and Elijah’s a book hoarder.”
“I am not!”
“Yes, you are,” Freya said, rolling her eyes at her brother. “But we love you for it.”
“In Italian, La Tua Cantante is used to identify a human whose blood appeals to a certain vampire. The human becomes irresistible to him or her and in most cases, singers don’t survive their encounter with their… audience,” Elijah explained. “And if they do, they turn.”
“But Bella didn’t.”
“The Cullens are self-proclaimed vegetarians who possess excellent control over their bloodlust. Well, most of them, anyway,” Bella said wryly.
“So, Elijah, do you remember what your books say about singers who live longer than they’re supposed to?” Klaus asked as he put a beignet onto Bella’s plate. “I have my suspicions but I’m wondering what you come up with.”
He opened his mouth to say something but closed it again before speaking. “It’s been awhile since I’ve brushed up on those books, but I do remember something about the longer singers live, the more powerful they become, but I can’t be sure. There was something else.”
“Well, I know you’re a bit short on time, brother,” Klaus said with a smile. “How about you allow Bella to read through those books? This gives her something to do.”
“They’re in Italian, Niklaus,” Elijah sighed exasperated. “Ancient Italian at that, I highly doubt that she’d be able to read them. I’ll look through them tomorrow after my visit with the wolves, unless you feel inclined?”
“I’m going to help Bella settle in, find a space for her belongings,” Klaus said as he looked at her as she nibbled on her beignet.
“You’re more than capable of doing multiple tasks at once, Niklaus. If she truly is under a threat by the Cold Ones, there is no time to waste and we need to get this over and done with,” Elijah remarked angrily. “You should have killed the Cold Ones that were after her.”
“My apologies, Elijah,” Klaus shot at him. “But if you haven’t noticed, we’ve been quite busy the last two years and she told me not to!”
“The sooner we figure out what her being alive still means for them, the better,” he said as he got up. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to pack up my things and wait for Hope to wake up so I can take her to the Bayou with me. I shall also find you those books so you can peruse them.”
“Elijah’s right,” Freya agreed. “We have to figure this out now. It’s bad enough that our family has the reputation to get into trouble, we cannot have an extra threat in our house.”
“I could go back to the club,” Bella muttered as she finished her beignet and took a sip of her tea. “Problem sorted.”
“Oh, no, you’re not going anywhere,” Freya shook her head. “This house is filled with men. I am grateful that there’s another female in here that I can talk to instead of wishing a baby could speak, but we do need to figure your problems out. I shall use my magic to see if I can be of any use.”
Klaus watched as his sister followed his brother out and then looked at Bella, who looked as pale as a sheet. “Are you alright, love?”
“I just think this is a very bad idea. Let sleeping dogs lie and all that. If me being here is more dangerous for you then—”
Elijah walked back into the dining room. “Just what exactly did you mean by having to try to compel Bella? Singers aren’t supposed to have any additional gifts than being especially appetizing to some Cold Ones.”
“Her mind is an impenetrable fortress, nobody can read her mind or compel her.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know,” Bella said with a shrug. “It frustrated Edward to no end, but I thought it was great because then he couldn’t hear what I was thinking.”
“Freya?” he called out.
“Oh, on it, this is interesting!” Freya said as she bounced back in. “Can I try something? I promise I won’t hurt you.”
She was shaking her hands as if she was on something and Bella didn’t like it. While she didn’t mind the warlocks and witches at Débauche, she never allowed them to get close with their magic. And if Freya wanted to use her magic on her… She looked at Klaus, anxious. “No?”
“It’s alright, love. If she does anything to hurt you, I shall not hesitate to kill her,” he said with a warning in his voice as he looked at his sister.
“I’d like to see you try, Nik,” Freya said playfully as she put her hands on Bella’s shoulders and gave her a gentle squeeze. “Relax, I’m not going to hurt you. Think of this as… a medical assessment with witchcraft.”
“I don’t like this.”
“Relax, it’s likely I can’t get anything either, but we’ll see,” she squeezed Bella’s shoulders reassuringly before putting her hands on the sides of her head and closed her eyes.
“I don’t want you to do this,” she said, squirming a little in her seat.
“Shhh,” Freya shushed her. “Working here.”
“No, but…”
“Bella,” Freya whined. “Later. I’m sensing old magic…Oh, terribly old. Powerful. Let me see if…” Freya gasped as some force pushed her away from Bella and hit her head against the wall behind her. “Wow! Ow…” she said as she rubbed her head and got to her feet. “That…”
“Was interesting,” Elijah said, his curiosity piqued. Even Klaus was on his feet, looking to Bella and to his sister, confused. “Old magic?”
“Oh yeah,” she said out of breath, her eyes wide of excitement. “Very old, and obviously the magic is protecting Bella from others getting inside her head or removing the spell. Can I try again?”
“No!” Bella quickly rose from her chair, looking at Freya in shock. “Stay the hell away from me, you only want to hurt me!”
“And now we know why she has such a hatred for witches,” Klaus said lightly, slightly concerned by this old magic. Did they really have to concern themselves with Cold Ones, her being a singer and now old magic? What else was he going to have to put Bella through? “I think this is enough experimentation for the day,” he then said as he pulled Bella towards him. “How about we find a place for your trinkets?”
“I want some of Bella’s blood to work with,” Freya said quickly. “I can identify the magic, I know I can.”
“No!” Bella huffed as she pulled her arms closer to her body and shuffled closer to Klaus. “You’re not getting anything!” She then looked up to Klaus and sighed. “Is she mentally ill?”
“I often think that, yes.”
Elijah felt stupefied. Usually, his brother wanted to get to the bottom of things as quickly as possible, no matter the person. So what if the girl was overwhelmed? It never stopped his brother before, he always pushed. Granted, Bella had her issues, but if they’d break her now, they only had to break her once. “Niklaus, I think that we need to get to the bottom of this. A little bit of blood won’t hurt.”
“Freya’s not getting Bella’s blood, end of argument. Find a different means,” he then guided Bella out of the dining room. “Let’s get you settled.”
