The Devil's Backbone [Klaus Mikaelson]

Chapter ғινє

[Unedited]

Thump, thump, thump. Niklaus tapped his foot along to the steady beat of Audrey's heart. She sat as stiff as a statue on the love seat across from him, her demeanor was stolid. A copy of her family's grimoire lay across her lap wide open for anyone to read, that's if they read braille that is.

The usually demanding hybrid remained in his seat, unusually quiet. He decided to be patient with this one. There was a reason he felt so cautious around her, making him uneasy. She had power he realized, finally understanding it. Not just the normal amount for witches, but something more. Swallowing the remaining Brandy in his glass, Klaus stood from his seat and made his way over to the witch. He was getting ready to rouse her when she was suddenly jolted from her position.

Turning her head slowly to the left, she uttered three words. "Don't touch me." The young witch's voice was soft, but there was a detectable undertone of hostility. 'He's going to be the death of me', she thought. Shifting slightly away from Klaus, Audrey placed her grimoire onto the middle of the coffee table and let out an exasperated sigh. She had spent two hours trying to come up with a away to appease Klaus and fulfill his request, but to no avail. The spirits were violently against it, rearing their ugly heads.

Klaus pulled his hand back slowly, observing the girl. It had been two hours since she had spoken, let alone moved a muscle. She had been sitting stiffly in the same position all evening. "Ah, so she finally speaks! If it weren't for your heartbeat, I would have mistaken you for a corpse. Now that you're out of whatever trance you were under, we can get back to the matter at hand."

"I presume you're speaking about the resurrection of your brother, Kol." She let out a long tired sigh, running her fingers through her short mane. "My instincts tell me I'm not suitable for this type of ritual. This spell requires the worst kind of black magic and more than one witch. It would most likely cause the slow withering death of my soul." She mumbled, giving a dry chuckle at the end. "What you need to do is find a rogue witch. Someone who is not tethered to earthly ties or uses magic from their family ancestors. I do believe the Bennett witch uses expression. She will mostly be of best use to you."

Klaus clenched his fists ready to snap at Audrey, but was interrupted when the front door suddenly opened. Elijah Mikaelson entered, his posture tense. "Niklaus, please tell me you had nothing to do with Liz Forbes' admittance to the hospital?" He asked his brash sibling, overlooking Aubrey's presence.

"Well hello to you too, brother." He greeted, his tone dripping in sarcasm. "I'd like you to meet a new associate of mine, Audrey.." He trailed off, realizing something. "I never got your last name, darling. Oh well, I don't see what it matters anyway now that you are of no use to me." Turning to his brother, he finally acknowledged Elijah's accusation. "As usual, I have no idea what you are going on about brother. Elizabeth Forbes is of no concern to me." Ignoring Klaus, Elijah's eyes zoomed in on the young woman sitting on the love seat. Wisps of dark wavy hair falling onto her face. Bowed pink lips slightly parted. Sitting with her spine straight, her posture was magnificent. Legs crossed and hands held in her lap, she gave off a wave of gracefulness.

It was Audrey's turn to contribute. "Sheriff Forbes is in the hospital?" She asked surprised, her eyebrows furrowing. 'Did I execute the recipe incorrectly? No, I'm positive I measured the ingredients precisely.' She thought, second guessing herself.

Klaus heard her heartbeat skip, a first. "You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you darling?" Klaus asked her suspiciously.

"Are you accusing me of harming the sheriff? Why would I harm the poor women? I've never even met her before." She lied through her teeth.

"Is that so, because I distinctly remember her giving me your information and her warning me that you were special." He stated.

'Busted!' The voices murmured. 'Well there's no point in denying it any longer.' They continued. "Hmm, that's not what she'll tell you. I do believe Liz has had a lapse in her memory. Accidents tend to happen to people who don't know how to keep their mouth shut, Mr. Mikaelson. Now if you'll excuse me, I must be on my way home now. I do not like journeying through the woods alone at night, especially in this forsaken town." She confessed, feeling no remorse for the woman. Plucking her grimoire back into her bag, the young witch got ready to leave.