The Jewel of the New Orleans ⚜ The Originals

Chapter 21: War Has Come

 There was no weariness inside her body as Colette stood in front of the canvas and painted like a mad woman. With only a single lamp illuminating the space, Colette filled white with dark trees and a bright moon hanging over the bayou. A small shack was painted into the corner. On the small deck on the edge of the water, she painted two small figures. In her heart, she knew exactly who was there, but her mind told her to deny it. She grabbed the dry part of the canvas and set it aside to make room for another. She was going to keep painting until all her thoughts about everything, everyone were gone. Maybe then she could sleep. Just maybe.

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After a frantic phone call from Davina, Hayley had called Colette. Jackson and Oliver had been taken hostage by Marcel on their way back from getting the moonstones. No doubt Klaus biting Josh to get information out of Davina was about the whereabouts of the missing werewolves. She rushed to Hayley, knowing Klaus' first stop would be home and with any luck she would get his blood to heal Josh. Whether or not Klaus gave it away willingly didn't matter. Not if he wanted her help with the stones.

The girls waited on the couch in the study when the sound of footsteps went through the room. Elijah was helping Jackson in, both of them covered in ash and looking like absolute messes. Hayley ran to Jackson and pulled him into a hug. "Thank god you're alive!"

Colette went to Jackson and looked him over. "Let's get you over here." She nodded her thank you to Elijah as Hayley brought Jackson around to sit.

"I'm fine, too, thanks for asking," Klaus said as he joined them.

Colette went to him with a fake smile on her face. "I'm happy you're back... so I could do this." The slap made everyone jump as it landed across Klaus' face. He held his cheek, glaring at her. "Davina called. You had no right to do that."

"You weren't answering my calls. Consider it-"

"If you say punishment, I'll-"

"What about the stones?" Hayley called out, trying to distract them.

Klaus pushed past Colette to pour himself a drink as Elijah answered. "Scattered across the bed of the Mississippi, I'd imagine."

"Marcel's not a fool. He knows an empowered werewolf army would mean the end of vampires in New Orleans. The explosion is his way of saying he means to prevent that. For all the good it'll do him," Klaus said.

Colette poured herself a drink. "I can't work without the stones. So I'd say things aren't going in the direction I want them too." If the werewolves could even the playing field, Colette hoped that it would make the power struggle end. That everyone could negotiate like civil people.

"This is my fault. I'll find a way to fix it," Jackson said.

Hayley rubbed his shoulder. "No, Jack, you're hurt. No one's blaming you."

"I'm blaming you! Those stones will be hard to replace," said Klaus, who looked to his brother with a smile that only spelled trouble. "Fortunately, I always have a backup plan."

At that precise moment, a group of footsteps were heard, coming from downstairs. Klaus was out that door like lightning, Colette and Hayley following after him. Even from the balcony looking over the courtyard, the mere sight of Francesca and her brothers made Colette's blood boil. Hayley yelled, "You can't seriously mean her! She's a gangster!"

"I see her more as a means of procuring rare items at short notice." Klaus went down to greet his guests. Hayley and Elijah, who had come after him, went down with Klaus. Colette stayed up above and watched over them. Her knuckles turned white as she gripped the railing, hoping it would keep her from saying something that could steer this whole thing off the rails. "Greetings, Ms. Correa! I see you've brought company."