Chapter 14
Note to self: It’s not surprising that the Cold Ones have their version of the white oak, it’s just incredibly silly of them to have it wrapped into a fairy tale. One human to kill them all. It’s too ridiculous for words.
Note to self: Remember, you were too intrigued by their silliness.
Note: Oh god, what if the stories are true and that one day there’ll be another weapon of mass destruction for the Cold Ones? Remind me not to tell Elijah or Niklaus. I want to swoop in and be the hero when they get into trouble with them. Or laugh at them after another daggering and hearing the stories.
I traveled to Greece. Yes, the main area is in Italy, Volterra, but I believed that the Volturi forgot about most of their history. I met with an old witch, a traveler, who told me that everything in this book is true. And that there was more. While the witch wasn’t particularly fond of vampires, she’d heard about my reputation with witches and knew of me being a member of the Original family. She gave me a prophecy that was told for generations, in the hope that one day, it’d come true. Scarily enough, it seems that it ties in with my family.
When fidelity gets born, the elements shall fall into place.
The first of hot ones will fall. Fidelity will turn and aid the officer.
Fidelity will find strength in the officer and will give strength to the officer and merriment.
Fidelity will set fire to the ice and will find its place among the first.
You see, this is interesting. I figured it out; we’re the hot ones. Now, I don’t like it that we will fall – or might fall because we can’t fall. Not without a lot of trouble. And I like trouble. Nik likes trouble and don’t get me started on Rebekah; she’s trouble incarnate. I have no clue about fidelity, officer, and merriment. The witch showed me the corresponding tarot cards, but I’m torn. The officer could be either Nik or Elijah. It’s usually Nik, though. Merriment? Well, I don’t see Finn being merry, is that me? Rebekah?
It is exciting to know, though, that we will be in the presence of someone as magnificent as Carmen the original singer, slaughterer of thousands of Cold Ones before the Volturi finally were able to kill her. Or turn her.
If we do come across a singer who’s survived the presence of Cold Ones, we need to do everything in our power to protect him/her. Perhaps enlist Rebekah’s help when it’s a man. I hope it’s a girl. I can’t wait to woo so much power.
What I know for certain is that Nik has to be the one to turn it. Great. Another chance for him to be the big bully that he is, to showboat his power.
Best to keep this a secret, knowing Elijah he will worry about everything.
~o.O.o~
Once she had transcribed what Kol had written all those centuries ago, her mind went into overdrive. Granted, if this was truly about her, she was going to be kickass, and all she needed was Klaus. Taking into account the last part of the prophecy that was tied to the Mikaelsons in this current time, Klaus first had to lose it all before he could turn her.
She had to stay alive for that, until his return and his part of his prophecy had played out. After that, everything was going to be okay. More than okay, it would mean that she could finally take her revenge, and then some.
A huge burden had fallen off her shoulders, and she could feel how sleep overtook her mind and body, drifting off to a light sleep the moment she laid down.
When she eventually woke up, she could smell the freshly made bread that someone had gotten her. Coffee. Freshly squeezed orange juice. Was someone bribing her? Sitting up, she looked around to see Myriam sit in a lounge chair on the balcony drinking from a blood bag. Bella shuddered and got up to have something of her breakfast. She was hungry, not having taken the time to eat properly in the last two days other than junk and she needed to eat something proper. “Morning.”
“Oh, good, you’re awake. Klaus was worried that Freya had put too big of a spell on you.”
“Klaus? Was he back? How long was I out for? Freya spelled me? The bitch!” She popped a piece of bread in her mouth. “Why didn’t you wake me when Klaus came back?”
“They were busy anyway,” Myriam said as she discarded her empty blood bag. “You didn’t miss much, trust me.”
“I don’t care! I would have liked to see Klaus well with my own eyes! Where is he now?”
“Tristan took Freya, so he and Elijah are after him.”
“Why the fuck is everyone taking everyone? Is that something you like to do for fun?” Bella said annoyed. “Oh, we have a disagreement with that person. Let’s kidnap it, torture it, poke it with a stick and release it again. Have them escape!” She added mockingly. “Geez, what are you people? Small children?”
“Bella!” Myriam said shocked and watched as Peter turned the corner and halted immediately after seeing Bella’s face. He wasn’t going anywhere near her. Smart vampire.
“What? It’s that easy, isn’t it? You’re more powerful; you can easily take your captors and kill them and get it over with.”
The vampire didn’t know what to say; she wasn’t quite sure what Bella was getting at, that maybe Freya’s sleep spell had somehow corrupted Bella a little. “It’s not that easy in theory; I’m sure Klaus has explained that to you.”
“Oh, he did,” Bella nodded as she popped another piece of bread in her mouth and took a sip of the orange juice. “But you know what that sounds to me? Sentimentality. I mean… you know that on the one hand, this other person, vampire, whatever, is a part of your history. You have a history with them and despite them being a pain in the ass, you can’t just get rid of them without getting rid of a part of your past. On the other hand, that person is a fucking pain in your ass. Rip them apart and get it over with. Jeez.”
“Bella!”
“Don’t you Bella me, Myriam!”
“Peter!” Myriam growled at the other vampire, who was grinning from ear to ear. “What did you do?!”
“Nothin’,” Peter grinned, casually leaning against the doorpost with his arms crossed over his chest. “Right now, I’m admiring the lil’ Spitfire, because she’s right. Someone causes you trouble but killing them immediately is out of the question because of sentimental reasons?”
“I don’t care about that, what’s wrong with her?”
“Nothin’,” he repeated with a shrug. “My best guess is that she’s awakening, even without being supercharged as the prophecy foretells. She’s a singer; she’s always been a singer. It’s been that instinct that has kept her alive for those years she was on the run from them and now that they’re back in town, of course those qualities come back. Bella was known for her violent outbursts from time to time. She even punched a werewolf in the face, but regretted it after hurting her hand on him.”
“Jake had it coming. I want to hit him again. I will. Eventually. Asshole.” Bella said as she downed her coffee and went to grab a few clothes. “I’m going to take a shower, and you better call Klaus to tell him I’m awake, and he and I need to have a chat. I’m fucking tired of being shoved to the side and treated as if I’m fragile.”
“You are, cherie,” Myriam said as she watched her friend. “You’re still human, and we all are merely trying to keep you alive.”
Bella eyed Peter. “He tried to wake me, didn’t he?” She had woken up with a metallic taste in her mouth, no doubt Klaus trying to have her take some of his blood in her slumber.
“And he warned them that you’d be upset if you’d wake without him by your side. Again,” Peter agreed. “Take your shower; I’ll go and try to find out how long your man will be.”
~o.O.o~
Bella startled when she suddenly felt Klaus’ hands on her back while she was in the shower. “Why not take a bath, love?” He said sweetly. She turned around to face him and took him in. Klaus was naked, dirty and hurt. His hair a mess and his eyes looked sad.
She put her arms around his waist and pulled him closer as she looked up at him with a small smile on her lips. “Rough couple of days, huh?”
“I feel quite guilty for taking a few moments to relax,” he admitted truthfully, his lips brushing the top of her head. “We still need to give Camille a proper send-off, but I feel that if we get complacent just for one second… we’ll lose everything.”
She gently guided him to the bath tub; he even moved as if he was tired of it all. She helped him sit down and started to rinse off the dirt and blood out of his hair, off his body, lightly touching his spots with her fingertips, making circular motions to make him relax. “It’s going to be alright,” she cooed, reaching for the shampoo to start putting it in his hair.
“The witches dug up Jackson’s heart,” he said, his voice filled with hate. “They want to break the sire link.”
“Can they do that?”
“With the right spell, the right ingredients… nothing is impossible. I certainly wouldn’t put it passed Davina to…”
Was that worry in his voice? “But you don’t get your power, your strength, from your sirelings, do you?”
“Not physical strength, no,” a small smile danced across his lips as he enjoyed feeling her hands all over him. “However, they are obliged to me. For instance, should I want to pick a fight with your Cold Ones, my progeny will have to fight for me if they want a shot at surviving my fight. If I die, they die. Then there’s of course those in high places that I’ve turned, those who aid us with for example legal documents. Should I want for something, all I need to do is ask.”
Bella huffed as she massaged the shampoo into his hair. While she could see the benefit of knowing people in high places, did he actually have to turn them? “What’s the worst thing that could happen should Davina manage to break your sireline?”
“Not everyone was happy about me turning them, even though I saved them from unsavory and unwanted situations. For example, there are countless of women I rescued from their abusive home or from their relatives who were ill.”
“Not everyone wants to be saved,” she gently rinsed the shampoo out of his hair. “I can understand that would tick people off.”
“Others were happy; I’m not too worried about them.”
“Others? Like Myriam?” She stopped doing what she did and moved to face him. “Just how many people did you turn, Klaus?”
“I’m a thousand years old, love,” he said with a slight chuckle, a sparkle in his eye. “And I have to admit, that in the beginning, neither myself or my siblings were especially picky on who we turned. We found it easier to compel vampires we turned than to compel humans.”
“Why is that?”
“Because humans are magnificent beings who should be protected at all cost.”
“But vampires were humans before they turned.”
“You’re overcomplicating things, love,” he softly kissed her. “As long as those vampires stay sired to myself, Elijah or Rebekah, they’ll feel obligated to protect us, because even though they might be angry with us for turning them, now that they have the eternal life, they’d want to keep it that way.”
“So if your line gets broken?”
“There’s no doubt that every enemy that I’ve acquired over the last thousand years will come out of the woodwork and will want to kill me. They’d kill me and live on as if nothing happened.”
“Well, that’s not going to happen,” she said, shifting again to continue cleaning him up. “If someone’s going to kill you, it’ll be me.”
Klaus let out a chuckle. “Are you keeping the trinket safe?”
“Of course.”
“Good,” he mused. “Now all we can hope for is that we’ll find the new White Oak tree before our enemies do.”
She was glad that he sounded more like himself now, less afraid, more confident in surviving this ordeal. “New?”
He pulled her into the water with him and held her tightly with one arm before running his fingers through her hair with his free hand. “The spell my mother used to create us upset the balance of Nature. Magic, no matter what kind of magic, is always looking for balance, just like nature. For example; you’re from a long line of Travelers. When Silas and Amara drank the elixir of immortality, Nature rose against them and created shadow selves of them, doppelgangers, to die instead of the original templates. Or, in our case, mother’s spell upset the laws of nature, that all things must die. She drew upon several things in existence to create us. The sun – which will burn us without the daylight rings that we wear, not kill us, but it would kill a non-original vampire.”
“Beats turning into a walking disco ball.”
“True,” he smirked. “She also drew upon the power of the White Oak Tree. Now, that’s the only thing that could kill an Original. We can burn it down, but another will sprout in a protected area to ensure that the balance can be preserved.”
“So if your enemies would find it…”
“We’ll all be dead by the end of the day.”
“Okay, that sucks.”
Klaus hummed in agreement. It was silly, perhaps, but he knew that Bella knew most of the information he had just given her; she’d been living with Myriam for nearly three years, of course she would have picked up something, however, talking it all through with her gave him some perspective. Truth be told, either way, he would be royally screwed. However, with so many vampires obliged to protect him, to fight for him, there would be a chance he could survive.
He wasn’t going to die. Hope deserved two parents who loved her very much so, and he wanted to spend the rest of eternity with Bella; if she wanted to do the same. “Now, a little birdie told me you’ve gone and done something I don’t agree with…”
“Oh, yes,” she said with a grin, closing her eyes as Klaus’ hands started to roam her body. “But at least I got results?”
“That you did. Tell me, how was my brother?”
“Tasty.”
“Bella.”
“What?” she responded impishly. “He was a little rough around the edges, but I think he wishes to be here with us if only to witness the demise of so many Cold Ones. He also truly believes in Davina, that she can bring him back.”
“I have no doubt, either,” Klaus responded as he took the soap and started to soap up Bella’s body. “The little witch is a force to be reckoned with, and it’s best to keep her at arms length in case she does something that irreparable. With her affiliation with the Strix coven, I’m quite…” It was a good thing to take a little moment away from everything that was going on in his life, in their lives, in the life he shared with Bella. She always managed to calm him, to center him. To… “Bella,” he felt guilty all of a sudden; he realized he’d never told her how extraordinary she was. Any other woman would have simply packed up her things and left him when faced with the way he was handling things. The unintended lack attention. The threat of losing everything. And yet, she was here. She was still here. And, perhaps because he felt that the end was close, he needed to tell her that. “Do you have any idea how extraordinary you are? How wonderful? Understanding?”
“Klaus…”
“I feel the need to apologize for the mess that we’re in.”
“What mess?”
“Bella…” he sighed as he tiredly rubbed his eyes. “Would you please just let me—”
“No,” she said as she turned around to face him and kissed him tenderly. “Because nothing’s going to happen and whatever will happen, we can fix it. You just do you. Do what you feel is necessary and I’ll still be here. But you will live through all of this. You’re Klaus fucking Mikaelson, and you’re going to fuck me. Right now.”
~o.O.o~
It was nice to wake up next to Klaus again, although it appeared that he hadn’t had any sleep that night, and he looked annoyed. “Morning?” she said as she rolled back into him and put her legs around him. He was going to leave again; she could feel it.
“The wolves have found Tristan,” he muttered, running his hand through her hair. “We’re going to deal with him today, and hope they’ll find Lucien as well.”
“I didn’t know Lucien was missing,” she propped her head up on her hand and looked at him. “But you know, I’m starting to think that he’s not on our side, either. Haven’t seen him around much after Thanksgiving, for someone so hellbent on protecting his sire…”
“I know, love.”
“You have to kill him.”
“What?”
She smirked as she crawled on top of him and used her weight to keep him down – not that it would make any difference if he wanted her off of him. “Myriam said the same thing. You’re all sentimentalists,” Bella softly kissed him. “Old friend or not, he’s annoying and probably up to something. He needs to die.”
“It’s not that simple,” he then looked at her, curiosity sparked. “Surely you’re not going to kill all Cold Ones when you’re able to.”
“Why not?” Bella shrugged. “If I kill them, they won’t be able to hurt anyone else. They’re a pest. A blight that needs to be burned. If I’m truly going to be able to kill them, I will.”
“What about Peter? You like him, don’t you?”
“He’s a means to an end. He knows that.”
He was surprised to hear that, and for a moment feared that his Bella, his sweet, kind and loyal Bella, would turn into a monster when turned. They wouldn’t be able to stop her if she’d become a ripper as she was unable to be compelled. “What about the non-Cold One afflicted?”
“Those are your problem, mister,” she playfully smacked him on his chest. “But seeing as it takes a lot of strength to take on one Cold One, perhaps I could lend my strength to you when you’re in a bind.”
Klaus let out a snort and then lifted her off of him as he kissed her. “I have to go. We have an old friend to catch and Elijah’s been hissing my name from behind our door for the last 30 minutes.”
“Hi, Elijah!” Bella called to him as she wrapped herself back into the blankets before watching Klaus get dressed. “I could stay in bed all day… naked… ready and waiting for you when you come back…”
“As much as I’d love that idea,” Klaus smiled at her. “There’s no need, just stay safe. Don’t leave the compound; Freya’s told me that there are more Cold Ones about.”
Bella pouted. “There’s no chance of you taking me with you?”
“We have no idea what we’ll be walking into, and I’m sorry, love, but you’re a very fragile human being and quite precious to me,” he replied and kissed her once he was dressed. “I promise I’ll return to you.”
“You’d better or I’ll find you, revive you and kill you myself,” she commanded before she hit him over the head with a pillow. “Go. Get them.”
Klaus had been gone for hours. For hours and Bella watched the sky turn dark from the balcony overlooking the courtyard. Calmly, but still she felt on edge. Freya kept an eye on the increasing numbers of Cold Ones arriving in New Orleans, but Bella could feel it. It was hard to describe it, it was something she had felt in the presence of the Cullens, maybe a couple of times, but now that she was older, and apparently her Singer side more advanced, she could feel a coldness starting to cover the French Quarter almost as if it was a blanket. Or a fog rolling in.
It was interesting that, on the other hand, she’d never thought it was actually real, that a long living singer could turn into a massive Cold One killing machine. And that she actually had a ‘spidey sense’. It was interesting how she could feel it adjust, how it tried to teach her how it worked. She ignored most of it at the moment, wondering where the hell Klaus was, but she didn’t have to wait long for an answer.
After getting something to eat from the kitchen and resuming her position on the balcony, she overheard Marcel and Hayley argue and saw Lucien – Lucien – help himself to the Mikaelson family blood bag stash. It appeared that Hayley had found Lucien and thought it would be good to bring him ‘home.’ Like a dog finding a stick to play with.
“I had no idea that Aya was gonna take Klaus and Elijah down! And regardless, why the hell are we trusting this guy all of a sudden, huh? He’s the one who ran off with Aurora the first chance he got.”
So Klaus was taken. Bella was going to do something about that; she just had to stay quiet and bide her time, come up with a plan. One good thing about being ignored or left out of conversations about things was that you could listen carefully and, when needed, when capable, save the day.
She’d been avoiding everyone most of the day – or they’d been avoiding her, no doubt having heard Myriam talk to someone about Bella’s ‘ridiculous’ stance on killing things. She didn’t particularly care for Marcel, but she had to agree with him at this point and firmly disagree with Hayley. Yes, Marcel had dug up Jackson’s heart for the Strix, but by doing that, he’d saved Hayley’s life. Hope’s mother. The mother of his sire’s child. Bella would have done the same. Besides, Jackson was already dead anyway, would Hayley rather leave her child motherless?
She didn’t like hearing that Davina was truly going ahead with desiring Klaus and Elijah, but when Lucien spoke of an execution, she was wondering how that would work seeing as she was still in possession of the last of the White Oak… She put her hand in her pocket to confirm that the trinket was there and let out a breath of relief. “How would it be an execution? It’s a desiring spell, they’re still Original vampires,” Bella asked from her spot above them. “And I know of the location of the weapon that could kill them, so it can’t be that.”
“Are you sure, love?” Lucien slurred his words; she could have sworn she saw some panic in his eyes. “They’re quite confident about being able to kill them. Of course, they’ll try to kill Nik first, because they don’t want to accidentally eradicate themselves.”
“I’m sure, so try again, Lucien.”
“Or ask your know-it-all Cold One that you keep in the basement.”
“I don’t keep anything in the cellar. If he’s there, he’s there without my knowledge,” she said as she made her way down the stairs, carrying her glass of iced tea. “However, if you don’t stop lying, I’ll ask him to remove your heart, I’m fairly certain he’d love to do that.”
Lucien snorted as he shifted a little in his seat. “What makes you think I’m lying?” What had happened to Niklaus’ meek whore? This wasn’t even Isa, Bella’s alter-ego, no, this was a Queen talking. A huntress. Did Niklaus have any idea what he was getting himself into with her? Oh, who cared? With a little luck, his sire would be dead by the rise of the sun. And if not, by the end of this week at the latest.
“There’ll be no killing,” Freya’s voice sounded before appearing from underneath the stairs. “I’m going to need Lucien to get Klaus and Elijah out of the chambre that they’re in. The older the vampire, the better the battery, sort to speak. So, while I do that, you can go and stage a rescue.”
“You can’t be serious,” Lucien huffed, grateful for Freya’s interruption, he didn’t have to defend himself, talk himself into a corner he couldn’t get out of. Bella was perceptive, and he believed he had fooled them long enough. Well, her and Marcel at least. The others still seemed to believe him.
“I think I can find a few wolves ready to help us out to buy you time, Freya,” Hayley said as she rose to her feet and looked at Marcel. “What about some of your vampires? Or are they too scared?”
“I can’t order the Strix vamps to attack their coven of witches,” Marcel said, rolling his eyes. “Josh, maybe, but Davina will skin me alive if something happens to him.”
“I think I can ask Myriam for the A squad, especially now Alina’s turned…” Bella said a little absentmindedly. Her brain was working on something, but she wasn’t sure what yet.
“Stay out of this, Bella, this isn’t your fight,” Marcel bit at her.
“Screw you, Marcel,” Bella said fiercely, wanting to throw her glass of iced tea against him but decided against it. “I know I can help, and I can get some sturdy vampires to the estate as well. All Freya needs to do is make me invisible for the Strix, and I can get in. Then I’m sure some Cold Ones will follow me. I’m the perfect bait. Still human. Still tasty and something they want for themselves.”
“Oh hell no.”
“Actually,” Hayley smirked. “I like that idea.”
“As much as I hate to admit it, me too,” Freya agreed and sighed. “My brother is going to kill me when he comes back but yes. I’ll cloak you for the Strix. Save Niklaus and Elijah; I know you can do it.”
Bella smirked and nodded. “Good. Now let me put on my sneakers and we’ll go.”
~o.O.o~
She was surprised it had been that easy to get involved. Not that she’d have given up anyway. Bella knew almost every exit point of the compound; take the sewer if she had to; it wasn’t anything new, she’d done a lot of sewer living when she was still running from the Cullens. But she was glad that the only person who objected was Marcel. Of course, he had to; Klaus was his sire and Bella was Klaus’… something.
Bella quickly made her way to Débauche, making sure she was seen out in the open, her scent in the air, and got in the car with most of the A Squad, who were managed to get into the trunk of the big town car Marcel was driving with the three of them. It was unbelievable how bendy they were. Unfortunately, Alina didn’t have an easy transition; mostly because Peter had also bitten her and infected her with the Cold One venom, not having known that she’d already been ingesting Myriam’s blood. One of the warlocks was doing all that he could to save her from turning into a Cold One and a possible target for Bella. This was a good thing because Bella really did not want to kill her friend.
Sometimes, Peter was quite the dumbass for someone with the knowledge that he had. Bella was glad he wasn’t coming with; it was mostly to save his own skin and all, but she wouldn’t want him to think he needed to protect her. The Strix vampires and witches couldn’t see her. Not even Davina, but she could choose to reveal herself to Davina, and she’d make sure she’d be safe. Hopefully. Probably not seeing as Davina discovered that Bella had been lying and all.
She didn’t know what to make of the newest addition to the A Squad, Abeebee. She commanded a lot of respect with her presence alone. She was very intense, but Ace and Autumn seemed to like her.
When they were almost at the Davilla Estate, Bella made the deliberate decision to go inside. She tried to make her thoughts as loud as possible so that Alice, too, would see her. Once Marcel parked in front, Bella made the deliberate decision to step out of the car and follow him in. She focused on her decisions, making her a beacon to everything and once she had snuck into the pool house, she stopped.
Not because she felt them coming but because of the sight in front of her and it made her stomach churn. Klaus and Elijah were in a pool, throats slit, blood oozing out of the cut and they weren’t moving. The witches were chanting, and Davina seemed to be the most intense. Of course, she was hell bent on destroying Klaus. She had told Bella that she had tried to sever the link last year, to save Marcel and Josh when she killed Klaus. Something told Bella that Davina wasn’t going to give up that easily.
Swallowing back some bile, Bella knew that she couldn’t intervene. She was invisible now; she needed to stay hidden and have the Cold Ones come and fuck shit up. And then, hopefully, Klaus and Elijah would be saved in time. She made it to the farthest corner of the building and waited.
She didn’t have to wait long. She could hear crashing and ripping coming from the hallway, and she knew then, that for the last seven years, they had been intensely looking for her. The speed and ferocity they were showing now said as much. Agitation. Aggression. Desperation. Bella needed to become what she needed to become and kill them. There was no hesitation; it was almost like a frenzy they were in as they tore through the hallway and turned the corner.
Bella gasped when she got spotted by Garrett, Kate Denali’s mate. A big grin appeared on his face, and he started to run to her, but a legion of Strix vampires under Aya’s command flocked in and blocked his path. Bella had never seen so many vampires in one place. Five Cold Ones were fighting at least forty Strix vampires, if not more, as the Strix tried to keep them from getting to the witches.
It was satisfying to see the Cold Ones being torn to shreds and quite a few Strix vampires fell too, but Bella was glad to see the Denali’s torn to pieces on the floor by the time that Elijah awoke from his torment and dragged one of the witches into the pool to feed. Bella fumbled the lighter in her pocket, would she dare to make it across the room to set the Cold Ones alight? She didn’t want to give them time to reassemble.
Hayley and Marcel got to their feet after being flung to the side by Davina and Bella watched Ace throw a flare into the Cold One pile, setting them ablaze as the other witches were killed. Elijah got out of the water, but when Klaus tried, Davina threw him right back in, including bowling over anyone who was not behind something. “You’ve had your time!” Davina snarled before she continued to chant.
Klaus started to scream in agony. Bella could feel the sound penetrate her skin, deep into her bones, sending waves of pain into her own body. Was this what they called sympathy pains? She wanted to get into the water, pull Klaus out of it and have him kill Davina, but it was likely that the witch would kill her first. Marcel doubled over in pain, but all Bella could do was focus on Klaus, willing Elijah to do something.
Soon enough, Davina finished her spell, once again knocking everyone flat on their asses, and Bella scampered out of her hiding spot and jumped into the water to keep Klaus afloat. He looked unconscious, his veins evident and he just looked so dead. “No,” she whimpered as she used all of her strength to keep him from sinking into the pool. “No, Klaus…” His throat was slashed, it was healing, but there was still blood, and she didn’t even want to imagine what she’d do if he truly were dead.
“Allow me,” Elijah crooned as he helped Bella to keep his brother afloat. He wasn’t sure why she was here, who allowed her to be here. He didn’t even want to think about that right now. He had watched his brother in worry before the veins retracted and his brother started to look a little less dead. Klaus’ eyes opened then, looking for Elijah’s and Elijah let out a breath of relief.
“I felt them leave,” Klaus said weakly. “My sireline is broken.” He then looked at Bella. “What are you doing here?”
She gave him a small smile. “Luring Cold Ones here, causing a distraction,” Bella replied with a shrug and helped him to get on his feet. “Here,” she said, holding up her wrist. “Drink.”
“Bella…”
“Drink, Niklaus,” Elijah commanded him. “Hayley and I shall take care of things here, but you need to take Bella home. Get some rest.”
~o.O.o~
Klaus practically fell out of the car when they arrived at the compound, and she was grateful to Myriam being there to help her get him inside. It was a good thing that Myriam had her hands full with supporting the hybrid because Bella just knew that her friend wanted to shake her and check her over to see if she was alright before giving her a verbal punishment. “What were you thinking?”
Bella sighed as she ran a hand through her hair. “That was some good thinking, Bella, luring the Cold Ones to the Strix to get them killed and cause a distraction,” she retorted, mimicking Myriam’s voice. “I was perfectly safe; the Strix couldn’t see me.”
Myriam noticed the marks on Bella’s wrist and nearly dropped Klaus as he tripped. “You bit her!”
“Relax, mother hen,” Klaus complained. “She offered, and I had to get on my feet somehow. What the bloody hell is wrong with me?”
“You hemorrhaged an enormous amount of mystical energy,” Freya replied as she was followed by Lucien. “Enough to create a Nexus Vorti. It’s nothing a good night’s rest won’t cure.”
“I’m glad they didn’t kill you, Niklaus,” Lucien quipped as Myriam put Klaus down on the sofa and used her own blood to heal Bella’s bite marks. “Will you now believe me that —”
Bella winced when she heard the sound of breaking bones and tissue being punched through and then watched as Lucien dropped to the floor, revealing Peter standing where Klaus’ sireling stood before, with a heart in his hand. A deafening silence followed, and Peter merely shrugged. “Trust me. You didn’t have it in you to kill him, and this will save you a lot of headache in the coming time,” Peter explained before he broke out in a wide grin and looked at Bella. “And you! Good job!”
Klaus used every inch of strength he had left in his body to get up and throw the Cold One into a wall. He had just killed history. A long life lived, a vampire who made history. Granted, Lucien was a giant pain in the neck, but he had accomplished so much, and Klaus had been proud of him.
“Relax, it’s not as if his siblings died, you don’t have a sire line anymore, remember?”
“Even so,” Klaus scowled. “He was my friend. Please, tell me what atrocities he was going to do in the near future.”
“Create the beast of your prophecy, create the situation where the friend, family, and foe would end you all. Yep, I single-handedly took care of your prophecy. You’re welcome.”
“Out,” he said with a growl. Lucien was a bastard and a brilliant one at that, one who created the antidote against a werewolf bite, but to create the beast? To be the end of his family? No, Lucien wouldn’t do that. He was loyal. And after a very trying day, he now had lost an old friend. “And for your sake, I hope that you’ll leave New Orleans because once I’m back on my feet…”
“You’ll turn into a whiny brat because all your enemies will come for you now,” Peter winked at him and then saluted. “Very well. I shall make my leave. Good luck with the rest of the prophecy.”
Bella watched as Peter sped out of the compound and then threw a pillow towards Klaus. “Go to bed or have a Snickers.”
“Take him upstairs, Bella, I’ll take care of what’s left of Lucien,” Myriam said kindly before Bella dragged Klaus off to take a relaxing bath first, clean him up, and then take him to bed.
~o.O.o~
“I didn’t get the chance to say this yesterday,” Klaus said the following morning as he brushed some hair out of Bella’s face. “But what were you thinking? I could have lost you, too.”
“I knew what I was doing,” she softly kissed his lips. “How are you feeling today? Better?”
“Please tell me you’re still in the possession of the trinket I gave you,” he replied once he knew she was fully awake. Yes, he had slept, but the moment he felt better he had woken up and hadn’t been able to stop thinking about who was going to come after him now. “It’s made out of White Oak and—”
“Hey,” she rolled on top of him and kissed him tenderly. “You’re safe. It’s safe. Do you honestly believe I’ll let anything happen to you?”
“You’re a mere mortal, Bella, what could you possibly do to ensure my safety?”
She knew this was going to happen. He’d told her that he had felt secure with all the vampires he had sired because their lives depended on his. That despite their anger towards him that they were still happy with their immortality. Now that that link was gone, they could come after him for vengeance. But to have it happen as soon as this? “This mere mortal would do anything to keep you safe, Klaus Mikaelson, because she loves you. Now stop your moping. Save that for your siblings.”
His eyes met hers and he swallowed hard; she had this determined look on her face, and he couldn’t do anything but to nod slowly. “Now, about that Cold One friend of yours.”
“He hasn’t been wrong yet.”
“Perhaps, but between Myriam killing Aurora for your safety and Peter killing Lucien for all of our sakes – if we have to believe him, that only leaves Tristan with a solid link to our past.”
“And he’s an asshole too, so he’ll be dead soon.”
“Bella…”
“I’m not going to say it again, but your sentimentality is your weakness. You made a name for yourself as a ruthless vampire, taking what you wanted, no matter the consequences. It’s fine that you’re more in touch with your feelings in your personal, private, life, but damn it, Klaus, act weak, and your enemies think you’re weak too. Act weak for long enough and you’ll actually become weak.”
“Says the little girl who’s been running from an army of Cold Ones for years and falls into depression now and then. Who doesn’t recognize danger even if it’s being waved in her face!” He pushed her off of him and got out of bed to get dressed. “You have no right to lecture me on this, Bella.”
“I am not lecturing you, Klaus,” she said as she sat up and watched him. “I know how you feel right now.”
“Oh, do you? You have no idea!”
“As if the world’s been pulled away from underneath you, as if you’re alone. It’s okay to be scared, Klaus, but you have to remember that you’re not alone. You’ve got Elijah. Rebekah. Hayley and Hope, they’re still here, and they won’t go anywhere,” she said calmly. “So what you’ve lost your entire sire line? You’re still the same old scary hybrid everyone thinks is a monster. No doubt your enemies will come as groups, knowing that they can’t take you on alone. That’s how afraid they are of you. You’re still you.”
“You have no idea what you’re talking about,” Klaus said forcefully. “I’m going to Aya’s home with Elijah and look for answers. This whole thing about killing me drives me to believe that she has some White Oak somewhere.”
Bella let out a frustrated sigh as she fell back onto the bed. “You need to talk to a therapist or something.”
“She’s dead!”
“Then organize her fucking wake, you asshole!”
