The Duke's Hunt

You're Alive?

The sun pokes in between the two curtains that had been drawn together, hitting Samantha's face. She grabs the edge of the duvet and pulls it over her face, an unfamiliar smell clouding her senses. Squeezing the fabric in her hand, she frowns and pushes it back down, opening her eyes slowly.

She blinks a couple times and turns to lay on her back, eyes focused on the ceiling. "Ellie-?" She calls out for the maid she's known most her life. "Ellie...?" Sam frowns when no one comes, her eyes readjusting to the ceiling.

Taking a deep breath, Sam pushes herself upright in the bed, immediately pulling the duvet closer in the unfamiliar room. "Hello?" Sam speaks out just above speaking volume.

No answer.

Ignoring the pulsating pain in her head as she looks beneath the covers, discovering clothes on her body that didn't belong to her. She catches a glimpse of a figure across the room and jumps, placing her hand over her heart when she realizes it's a mirror. "Woman up, Sam..." she whispers to herself and crawls to the edge of the bed, placing a foot at a time on the floor and tiptoes to the door.

She holds her breath and pushes the handle down, pulling the door open slowly. Exhaling, she places one foot in front of the other, wandering the strange corridor.

"Hello..?" Sam calls out again.

The answer Sam gets isn't one she's expecting, causing her to jump. She holds her breath again, following the voices. She hides behind a column when two figures come into view. She stares in confusion, recognizing one. "Klaus..?" She whispers.

"Please, Claire, let me just explain-" Klaus pleads, reaching out to the girl.

Claire flinches away from him, clutching a stack of papers to her chest, "don't you dare touch me, not until you explain these," she yells at him. "How do you have these? You said Elijah is dead, I-I watched him die-"

"I know," Klaus answers gently, taking a step towards her. "Those are from Elijah... He's alive."

"H-He is..? You mean that?" Claire asks with tears in her voice. Klaus nods in response and takes another step towards her. "How could you keep that from me...? You let me go on all these outings with other men, some that tried to-to assault me, and you didn't bother to tell me?" Claire looks at him brokenly. "I... I can't believe you, Nik..."

Klaus takes a half a step towards Claire, "I'm sorry, I wish I could explain it to you and help you to understand."

"To- understand? Are you kidding me right now?" Claire asks with a shake of her head. "Can you just leave? Please." Klaus stays silent for a short moment before he nods and reaches for the papers. "No. I want to read them. I want to know what else you've been hiding from me."

"He's speaks mostly about you and how you're doing. How he misses you." Klaus says, taking a few steps back.

Claire's lip quivers as she holds the papers closer, "you're so selfish... we had a funeral, he died right in front of our eyes. How is this-" Claire stops mid sentence and gives him a questioning look, sniffling. "He's like you, isn't he... He's a vampire..?"

"Him, Rebekah, and Kol..." Klaus answers honestly, looking away from her and catches Sam's eye. Claire stares at him in shock, her mouth hung open. He turns his attention back towards her, "I promise, when you're ready to talk about things, I won't hide a thing."

Claire takes a deep breath and looks to the ground, her feet shuffle over the marble floor. "Okay.."

Sam looks away from the two and turns around, head butting a solid chest and loses her balance. "Catching all the latest gossip, are you love?" He asks.