Red Passion

Chapter 14

Caroline groans as she comes to, feeling extremely disoriented for a moment, before the dull, already fading ache at the sides of her neck reminds her of just what has happened–

–Damon snapped her neck.

"That–"

"Welcome back; to be fair, it took you a lot less than I expected."

Her head immediately swirls to the side, following the direction that the sudden but familiar voice has just come from. She cringes slightly, her eyes closed, as the pain in her neck resurfaces for a moment at the brusque action, another groan leaving her lips.

"Katherine?" she frowns, but her surprise lasts only for a brief second.

Her eyes do a quick survey, and the small room eventually becomes less dark and less blurry around her, as she finally realizes where it is that she is.

"I can't believe that they have locked me in here! The cellar—with you?"

The doppelgänger shrugs, sighing.

"I guess that means that they have found out about you and the Big Bad?" the brunette gives her a somewhat smug grin.

However, as the two girls share a look, Caroline notices how defeated Katherine actually appears to be–

–she was her only chance, she supposes.

The blonde lowers her gaze, her eyes, void and unsure, trained on her fidgeting hands as her fingers play together nervously.

"Yeah. Yeah, they have," she eventually answers, even if there was no real need for her to actually confirm what the other girl already knew.

She presses her lips and teeth together, still looking down to her lap, and half snorts.

"It didn't go too well," she tries to joke, but her tone is a mixture of bitterness and sadness, laced with a hint of disappointment and the betrayal that she feels at the fact that her supposed friends have actually gone as far as to snap her neck.

After a moment, she clears her throat, looks around again; then, her blue orbs settle on Katherine, sitting against the opposite wall.

"How long was I out for?" she asks.

"Not even twenty minutes. Consider me impressed," the brunette attempts a smile.

Caroline takes in the information, making a face.

"It must be the bond," she muses quietly, pensive, almost as if only talking to herself. She averts her gaze again, her brows furrowing together as her mind races with the various different scenarios and possibilities.

But—vampire hearing or not anymore—Katherine has heard her, and her eyes widen just slightly, her lips parting just so.

"Bond?" she repeats, as a question; but she doesn't really give Caroline the chance to answer as she adds—"Oh, God. You are bonded to Klaus."

Caroline's eyes immediately snap back up, big and apprehensive.

"How did you–"

"After the conversation that we had yesterday?" Katherine arches up an eyebrow, knowingly. "I doubt it could be anyone else."

It hits Caroline then, like a punch to the stomach, that it was only yesterday. So much has happened since then, that it actually feels like an eternity ago that her and the human doppelgänger were talking love and morality.

Not–not that that (love) is what she feels for Klaus. Because that would be too fast; and way too crazy, right? She knows that she wants to be with him, that she cannot even fathom the alternative right now, but it's been such a recent decision that, no matter how firmly she believes in it and how much she is sure of it, it just can't even begin to resemble love.