I'll Be Your Last

Big Trouble in the Big Easy

When I came downstairs the next morning, I found that I was the last to arrive. Elena, Damon, Jeremy and Ric were all milling around in the kitchen. Someone had gone to the store because every breakfast item known to man was being prepared in there and it smelled wonderful. Better yet was seeing the four of them all together, happy. The sound of laughter? I loved it. Seeing them all together was worth the trip to Mystic Falls.

Bonnie and Clarice were eating breakfast at the dining table, obviously having a very serious discussion on all things witchy. The girls were eating breakfast too, apparently long bored with the adults’ discussion. The older one, Anya, kept sneaking peeks into the kitchen. I couldn’t tell if she was crushing on Damon or Jeremy.

I headed for the food items on the sideboard and made myself a plate. I sat down with Bonnie and the witches. I’d just taken a bite of toast when I heard my phone. I scrambled for my bag that someone had placed on a table by the door. I’d been so tired the night before, I’d forgotten my stuff. I fished my phone out as it stopped ringing. I had seven missed calls. All of them were from Klaus.

Walking outside, away from prying and supernatural ears, I called him back.

“Caroline,” he answered. I didn’t think the phone even had a chance to ring.

“Good morning,” I said. “You called?”

“Where are you, love?” His tone implied impatience.

“The Salvatore boarding house,” I told him. “Clarice insisted on staying the night so her girls could get some rest. We’re going to be hitting the road as soon as Rebekah and – “ crap! “Rebekah gets here.”

I’d almost said Kol. I knew it was too much to hope he wouldn’t notice my slip up.

“So tired that you’re seeing my sister in duplicate?” he asked.

Damn. He never missed anything.

“Well, that would be scary wouldn’t it?” I teased. “Yeah, I guess I am tired from this whirlwind trip.”

“Were you successful in resurrecting your friend, Bonnie?” he asked.

“She was back already,” I explained. “It’s a long story but the good news is that Silas is gone now. I’ll tell you everything later.”

“Been an exciting trip, has it?” There was a hint of suspicion.

“It has.” It was as close to the truth as I could come.

“What are you not telling me, Caroline?”

This wasn’t good. I was terrible at keeping secrets and I didn’t want to ruin Kol’s surprise. But I knew that the only conclusion Klaus would reach is that I was here, with my friends, planning to deceive him. And it wasn’t like in the past when I’d been the blonde distraction, playing a game of cat and mouse with him. There were feelings involved now, including mine. I had to make him believe me. Because the moment he didn’t, he would be hurt. And he could go from hurt Klaus to dangerous Klaus in the blink of an eye.

“There is something I’m not telling you,” I said carefully. “Because it’s a surprise. I don’t want to ruin it. I want to see the look on your face when you see… it.”

There was a pause. “Is it a good surprise?”

“I hope so?” Kol had been on the bad side of Klaus at the time he died. He’d been trying to stop all of us from resurrecting Silas. He’d gone so far as to compel Damon to kill Jeremy so his hunter’s mark couldn’t be completed and the map to Silas found.

“The witches are coming with you?” he asked, making sure of that.

“Yes, they are. They’re finishing breakfast.”